episode_0039
by fnovelpiaIt happened late at night.
Father Camilla lay down on the bed and closed her eyes.
“… … .”
Because I had broken the clock last time, the room was quiet. The sound of the clock hands ticking that I had heard before was no longer heard.
After she broke the watch, the Chaldea Imperial Academy did not ask for compensation. However, Priest Camilla forced her to pay for the watch.
And the proof is this.
Priest Camilla opened his eyes slightly. He looked down at the spot where the wall clock had been hanging.
The new wall clock, which had been surrounded by silence, was leaning against the wall, keeping silence. The reason for this was the unmoving hands.
Although she received a new watch thanks to the prompt compensation, she always turned it off at night and put her quiet wristwatch on the nightstand before going to sleep.
When Father Camilla saw that the clock was not moving, he felt relieved.
Her eyes closed again, darkness falling over her vision.
After a while, Priest Camilla began to breathe evenly. It seemed as if he was slowly falling asleep.
– It hurts… It hurts so much… .
As always, it sounds like this.
She woke up from a light sleep with a start, clutching the blanket covering her body tightly. There it was again, that sound.
For the past few days during her stay at the Academy, she had been suffering from these inexplicable auditory hallucinations that recurred every night.
Because of this, she often had trouble falling asleep and spent many nights wide awake, and even when taking prescribed sleeping pills, she often had trouble falling asleep until late at night.
There was no problem getting to bed. The dormitory for faculty and staff at Chaldea Imperial Academy was comfortable and the beds were comfortable.
However, the problem is.
– Dalgrak.
“… … !”
A sound came from the kitchen. It sounded like the sound of dishes being knocked over, but for some reason it was an eerie sound that reminded me of bones rolling around.
Father Camilla jumped to his feet and ran straight to the kitchen.
Click.
The lights came on brightly, and Father Camilla could see the kitchen, which had been shrouded in darkness, at a glance.
“… What the heck?”
There was no one in the kitchen.
The clean dishes were neatly placed and kept their places as usual. There was no sign that anyone had touched them.
– Thump, thump, thump…
If so, this sound.
– Crack. Crack. Crack.
What on earth is this sound?
“Who the hell are you… .”
Priest Camilla’s hand groped the nape of her neck. He felt the rosary beads stuck to her skin between her collarbones, which were soaked with cold sweat.
“How dare you do such dirty things in front of anyone… . A mid-level priest looks ridiculous… !”
Priest Camilla’s bloodshot eyes were constantly shaking. Her eyes were unfocused, searching every corner of the kitchen for a hiding place.
– Caw. Caw, caw. Caw.
Priest Camilla muttered, breathing irregularly.
“My heart is guided by the Lord, and Archangel Gabriel protects me… . My heart is guided by the Lord, and Archangel Gabriel protects me… .”
– Tick.
Stop.
Priest Camilla’s body froze. He couldn’t help but doubt his own ears when he heard that sound.
– Tick, tick.
Priest Camilla’s stiff neck slowly turned.
Where her gaze met.
– Tick. Tick. Tick. Tick.
Clearly, the spot where the new wall clock had been placed. There.
An evil snout that imitates the ticking of clock hands. That is….
It, it peers into Priest Camilla, glances at him, whispers, approaches, moves away, hesitates, pursues… .
And then, it started to laugh, cry, get angry, and glare at me… .
[ Found . ]
“… Huuu—!”
Priest Camilla quickly got up.
Her mouth craved fresh air, as if she had been holding her breath for a long time. Her body was clammy with cold sweat.
Father Camilla clutched his rosary tightly and slowly turned to where his watch had been.
“… … .”
The clock was still silent. It was so reassuring to see the hands not moving at all.
Priest Camilla, who had been looking at it with a very wary look, slowly got up from the bed. The wristwatch on the nightstand caught his eye.
The wristwatch told me that it was now three in the morning.
Yeah, it happened at three in the morning.
* * * * *
I sat on a bench in the Academy’s courtyard. When I tilted my head back, the beautiful pink scent of spring came into view.
The forsythia flowers blooming in profusion on the bench were gorgeous. The sunlight streaming in through the gaps felt good as it warmly brushed my face.
“Priest Camilla, you know.”
Father Peter, who was sitting next to me, spoke. I waited silently for him to continue speaking.
“I think I’ve become a lot more sensitive lately.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes. Since coming to the academy, he says he has trouble sleeping. What is going on… .”
“Are you having trouble sleeping?”
“I asked the same question… .”
Father Peter shook his head slowly. I shrugged and asked him.
“Father Peter, are you having trouble sleeping?”
Father Peter slowly shook his head and answered.
“I’m fine. Since I came here, there hasn’t been a day when I couldn’t fall asleep easily. I always fall asleep before midnight and wake up early in the morning… .”
The bed wasn’t uncomfortable, he said. Did he have a nightmare?
“It’s not like the bed is uncomfortable… . What exactly is the problem?”
“I don’t know the details, but it seems clear that something bad has happened to Father Camilla. She suddenly said she wanted to meet the head priest… .”
“Are you talking about me?”
My eyebrows twitched involuntarily. You want to meet me? Isn’t that too unexpected?
“Yes. Feeling a strange presence, hearing voices… Even though I recite prayers and ask about the discomfort, there is no progress. I am at a loss, and I am just frustrated.”
Father Peter let out a deep sigh that made the ground sag. Once again, his hunched back looked pitiful.
Even though I’m only in my mid-40s, why do I look so old?
“I know it’s a shameless request, but could you meet with Priest Camilla just once as soon as possible?”
“Hmm… .”
“Please. And, if possible, I would like to join you.”
It wasn’t that difficult. I think if we just met and talked for a bit, I could figure it out on my own.
It was quite unpleasant to face her again, but still.
“Well… . I’ll make time for it soon.”
“Thank you.”
“Yes. More than that… .”
We didn’t meet to talk about the priest Camilla. I got straight to the point.
“What happened to your fingers?”
“Finger… .”
Father Peter sighed again. What could be the problem this time?
“Actually, there are some problems with that too.”
“No… .”
I couldn’t help but sigh. These people were dispatched from the Holy Land, but instead of solving anything, they were just adding to the workload, which was incredibly frustrating.
“Hoo… What else is wrong?”
“At first, I tried to purify my fingers. But, there was nothing on my fingers to purify.”
“Then, why don’t we just take it to the Holy Land?”
“That is…. The Vatican does not grant permission.”
Suddenly, I remembered Father Giovanni, who had disappeared with the sunlight at dawn.
The aura I felt then was clearly that of the devil. It has been fixed now, but I still remember the wooden door of the main church, rotting and rotten, turning black and red.
Demons are not fragile beings that disappear immediately just because they see sunlight. I know them all too well.
“Father Peter, if you have read the letter of General Damien, you will know that I personally witnessed the evil entity that came from that finger. And if I am not mistaken, it was definitely something demonic.”
“… … .”
“All I need now is certainty. Please tell me. Is it really the first priest, Giovanni, that I saw?”
Father Peter’s eyes trembled anxiously as he looked around for a moment. I waited calmly for him to speak.
“… Silence is golden. Your Majesty, you know that.”
“I won’t reveal anything, so please tell me.”
Father Peter took a deep breath and made the sign of the cross. I made the sign of the cross as well, waiting for his mouth to open.
“… The story about the current academy wandering priest Giovanni is somewhat true.”
“As expected… .”
“But the story was a little distorted.”
Father Peter looked at me. I had an inkling of something.
“Are you a priest from the Holy Land?”
“Yes. Father Camilla and I have collected information that has spread throughout the Academy. Among the students, there is a rumor that the priests who visited the Academy at that time harmed the head priest, Father Giovanni.”
Daniel and Vivian’s faces came to mind first. I’ve been meaning to tell them a bitter story when I meet them someday, but I think I’ll have to go see them in person soon.
However, this part also made me wonder. If so, then why did the priests who came from the Holy Land a long time ago come here?
“They weren’t just priests.”
“Then… .”
“It was an exorcist group dispatched by the Vatican.”
“… … .”
I didn’t understand what he was saying. The priests who had been dispatched from the Holy Land to meet Father Giovanni…
“The Exorcist Priests’ Association… is that what you mean?”
Father Peter nodded heavily. I couldn’t help but feel confused.
“Then, Father Giovanni… .”
“Father Giovanni was possessed. He asked for help from the Holy See to confront the demon hiding inside him, and a group of exorcists were secretly dispatched from the Vatican.”
I thought that if Daniel and Vivian heard this story, they would get really excited and come running to me. But this was a very serious matter.
Father Peter continued to speak.
“At that time, the demon possessing the body of the head priest Giovanni was not just one. According to the records left by the exorcist priests, the number was three.”
I bowed my head with a serious expression. If what Father Peter said was true, it would make sense that Father Giovanni was still walking around the Academy.
“Are those demons still possessing the body of Father Giovanni?”
Father Peter swallowed hard.
“… Yes. To be precise, it would be correct to say that Father Giovanni locked himself up in his own body.”
“What the hell… .”
“And Priest Camilla and I were ordered to exorcise those demons. If we simply retrieved the fingers, the demons would still remain in the Academy.”
“Then why are those demons looking for the finger?”
“… I don’t know that.”
Anyway, it seemed like a little more time was needed.
“If you need my help, please call me anytime. I have experience leading exorcisms.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“No.”
After finishing our conversation, we got up from the bench as if nothing had happened and started walking our separate ways.
I glanced at Father Peter walking away and clenched my fists.
I thought the finger-related incident was resolved.
The students of Chaldea Imperial Academy were still in danger.
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