Ch.59Black Blood – 4

“Christine.”

“Speak, my god.”

“When you were bathing in the lake, no one saw you, right?”

“If any human had, I would have offered them to you on the spot. Please put your worries to rest.”

I had heard Christine’s explanation about when the black blood demon appeared and how it died while we were moving in the carriage.

According to Christine, she was performing her purification ritual after the usual “offering” when the creature suddenly appeared, lunged at her, and then melted away after falling into the lake that had turned into holy water.

So it was obvious what the “premium holy water” discovered by those Jupiter Company humans was.

I was worried that someone might have seen Christine bathing in the lake and was selling that, but fortunately, the company didn’t seem to be that depraved.

If that had been the case, I would have started by killing everyone associated with the merchant group.

For reference, there really were crazy people in the past who sold water that beautiful, well-shaped women had bathed in, along with various related items.

And there were actually perverts who bought that stuff thinking it was good. I’m not sure about now, but I bet you could still find one or two if you looked.

Of course, I have absolutely no desire to look for such things. Do you think I’m crazy?

“A lake made of premium holy water… Whoever discovered it must have struck more than just gold, right?”

“They could give up everything else and just sell holy water for three generations of leisure. Just supplying the royal palace regularly would bring in how much per year?”

“Assuming other religious folks don’t make a fuss about it.”

“Come on, would they really go that far for a lake buried in a forest like this? Even they can’t be that shameless.”

“Why wouldn’t they when their biggest source of income is being cut off? They’d probably make an even bigger fuss. I’d bet on it.”

“Is it really a problem? People who can’t afford that premium quality would go to churches anyway.”

“They could just dilute the water and sell it in different grades, idiot. You think merchants wouldn’t think of that?”

“Oh.”

The soldiers, in high spirits after pocketing an extra two gold coins per person for turning a blind eye at the checkpoint, were talking so loudly that the adventurers escorting us also enthusiastically joined in discussing the holy water lake discovered in the forest.

It was such incredible information that even a party of A-rank adventurers behaving so frivolously was understandable.

If the black blood demon melted away without putting up proper resistance, the efficacy must far exceed what most religious orders sell as their premium grade.

Since holy water production typically requires divine blessing and is virtually monopolized by certain religions, the opportunity to sell it independently was like having good fortune fall into one’s lap. And this wasn’t just any holy water—its potency could put ordinary premium grades to shame.

It would be strange if people weren’t eyeing it greedily.

The only problem was that I had something I absolutely needed to confirm at this premium holy water source.

‘Bribing with money probably won’t work.’

They could earn platinum coins instead of gold if their business succeeded, so why would they give permission to a random stranger to investigate the area?

A verbal refusal would be the kindest response; I’d be lucky if they didn’t chase me away with swords, thinking I was a spy from another company or a noble trying to get a piece of the action.

Of course, there’s no problem that can’t be solved with enough money, so maybe handing over all the gold pouches in my bag might work.

Charlotte wouldn’t care how I spent this money, and would probably ask if it was enough, offering to bring a pouch of platinum coins next time.

“But I don’t want to do that.”

“Though I know not what displeases you, if that is your will, my god, then it is mine as well.”

Christine, who had been sitting glumly beside me after being ordered not to kneel on the floor, affirmed my words.

As she stared at me blankly, I smiled slightly and patted her head.

Though I had to avoid her teeth a couple of times.

“What do you think I was thinking about when I said that?”

“The will manifested by my god is prophecy, doctrine, and truth—how could I doubt it?”

“…Well, alright. Never mind.”

Christine was still Christine.

The company people must have put considerable effort into paving the road to this precious place, as the carriage no longer bumped along.

That one checkpoint seemed to be the last, and the rest of the journey was smooth. As promised, we didn’t have much further to go. The carriage stopped after about five more minutes, and adventurers holding torches politely knocked on the door.

“Employer, we have arrived.”

“I understand. Let’s get out.”

With a slight nod, I gathered my bag and sword and stood up. Christine stuck close behind me.

Having heard our footsteps, the door opened just as I was about to exit, and adventurers with torches lined up on both sides.

The carriage had stopped in the middle of the forest. The relatively flat road ended completely here, and there was nothing but trees and grass all around.

After all the formality of presenting the lord’s seal at the checkpoint, I expected something more bustling.

“Is something wrong?”

“Nothing much, it’s just emptier than I expected.”

One of the adventurers nodded at my words.

“Indeed. I certainly expected it to be busier.”

“It’s night, so maybe they’ve gone to sleep except for a few guards. Don’t you know it’s inefficient to make people work at night in a forest like this?”

“Hey, we’re talking about premium holy water here—isn’t that worth the inefficiency?”

Leaving the adventurers to their bickering, I handed a heavy pouch of gold coins to the coachman, who had respectfully removed his hat and held it to his chest.

Instead of counting the amount in front of me, he immediately attached it to his belt, showing the good manners expected of a well-paid coachman.

“Thank you for your hard work. The journey was comfortable thanks to you.”

“Are you certain you’ll be alright?”

“What do you mean?”

“I mean the two of you staying in this forest. Wouldn’t it be better to have an escort?”

The coachman seemed genuinely concerned about leaving just the two of us here.

I couldn’t tell if he was worried about losing a good customer or if it was genuine human concern, but either way, he seemed like a person of decent character.

“No need to worry. We’re strong enough. Besides, I already have an escort.”

The coachman glanced at Christine, then bowed his head respectfully, apparently accepting my word.

“Very well then. Please be careful.”

“You too. Remember, three days later at sunrise, back here?”

“Of course. You’ve already paid the deposit—how could I forget?”

This combination of coachman and A-rank adventurer party would likely welcome us here again in three days.

Whether we’ll have finished all our business by then and be waiting idly, or be rushing to make it in time, remains to be seen.

After the carriage and adventurer party left with their payment, only Christine and I remained.

With no one else around, I immediately took out a wooden rod with a small mana stone attached to the end from my bag. It was about the same length as a typical torch.

When I gently rubbed the mana stone with my hand, light burst forth—brighter than any ordinary torch. It was nothing special, just one of Charlotte’s inventions.

Christine and Serena could function fine without such things, so it was made strictly for my benefit.

“How much further do we need to go from here?”

“We can arrive in about 10 minutes, my god.”

“By your standard? Or mine?”

“I speak based on my experience.”

“So it’ll take over an hour then?”

If it’s 10 minutes by Christine’s standard, it would take at least an hour and a half by mine.

Christine wouldn’t carefully step to avoid slipping on tree roots or struggle to get through waist-high bushes.

“It would be better to get there as quickly as poss—?!”

Just as I was considering whether to ask Christine to carry me, a crushing sound interrupted my words.

It came from Christine’s direction. I turned my head to see trees falling in the distance, accompanied by the cracking sound of internal structures twisting.

I closed my mouth as I watched the ground deeply indent from a single stomp, sending surrounding bushes flying to the sides, and several trees, split from their bases, collapsing helplessly.

As the ground rippled, Christine calmly uprooted the pathetically protruding tree roots and tossed them away before speaking matter-of-factly:

“I shall escort you, my god.”