episode_0002

“Sit here, Father Arthur. You came out early.”

As I sit across from the bishop and quietly look at him, his characteristically kind smile greets me.

It seems like you didn’t call me here to scold me.

“I was surprised when the bishop said he was looking for me in the morning. I thought he was being scolded because he did something wrong like when he was young.”

“Oh, you must be feeling a little guilty. What are you going to do again to scare the old man?”

“I told you I did nothing wrong. This time, I really did.”

“Okay, okay. I’ll take your favorite car. Just wait.”

After being educated at the central church and gaining divine powers.

I was assigned to Palmer Church here and received my education.

When I came, the bishop took me around to different places and let me see and learn about many different things.

Of course, the forced training I had to go through during that process still made me gnash my teeth, but thanks to that, I became a healer now, so I couldn’t just complain.

If it weren’t for the bishop’s teachings, I wouldn’t have become the youngest chief healer.

Now, at this age, even the position of chief healer would have been out of the question.

“The car the bishop drives is still the best.”

“My only pride.”

“The only one? That’s nonsense.”

He is now in charge of a church in the small town of Palmer, but in his younger years he was notorious as an inquisitor.

Even though he’s laughing like that, you never know when he might change his face and show himself as an inquisitor.

The Inquisition was a place where only those who had completed the elite course of the religious order could enter.

For someone with that kind of past to say that his only pride is his tea skills is ridiculous and a joke.

As we drank tea and chatted about this and that, quite a bit of time passed.

“Can you please tell me slowly? I’m getting scared because you don’t tell me.”

Since this is a situation where you have to say something difficult, isn’t that why you’re taking your time?

I thought it would be better to just get beaten first.

“Haha, did you notice?”

“What are you talking about?”

“Hmm… Actually, this came as an official document from above.”

“Can I read it?”

“Yeah.”

The bishop gave me a piece of paper and I read it carefully.

“… Priest support?”

The words written largest on the paper are extremely ominous.

“Do you remember the commotion at the church recently?”

“Yes, the trust was handed down.”

It was a story that any priest could not have been unaware of.

“The story is that the labyrinth is opening. If you’ve studied history, you’ll know. The danger of the labyrinth reopening after 300 years.”

“Can you please not just tell me that I have to go there?”

Why is it that the ominousness fits so perfectly?

Even though I knew that if I answered like that, I would be scolded, I had no choice but to refuse.

“write-”

And as expected, the bishop’s expression hardened as if his old self was about to come out.

“I will do most things that are difficult, but I cannot agree to going to the labyrinth.”

“I have no intention of forcing you. I just think it would be a good opportunity for you. There has been no compulsory order from above, but there is talk that the priests’ training will change to working in the labyrinth.”

“… … .”

The bishop is saying this now.

‘Do you want to be taken by force, or do you want to go voluntarily?’

“You said you had no intention of forcing me.”

“Of course. It’s not like I’m forcing you to go later.”

“Are there any benefits if I go voluntarily?”

“They say they’ll double the performance period.”

The reason priests practice is to cultivate divine power, but also to fill up the practice points every year.

If you don’t plan on getting promoted in your life, you don’t have to fill it up diligently, but if you want to get promoted, it’s better to fill it up more than the minimum score.

“Double the amount of training you do in the labyrinth?! Then there will be quite a few healers supporting you.”

“Well, no one knows how much stronger the monsters in the labyrinth have become over the past 300 years, so I wonder if there will be a priest willing to step forward. It’s not common to find a healer who can overcome fear.”

labyrinth.

There is a labyrinth in this world that cannot be entered.

By the way, the reason you can’t enter is because it was intentionally closed 300 years ago.

It is said that adventurers who have now become heroes in history have tried to close the door to the labyrinth.

And after much hardship, the door to the labyrinth was successfully closed, and the world was able to regain peace.

‘It would be more appropriate to say that the door was sealed rather than closed.’

History books describe the labyrinth in detail.

It was written that if you don’t clear the labyrinth, the doors will randomly open and monsters will jump out and cause casualties, so you must close them.

‘They said that the labyrinth was full of monsters that frustrated humans, and that there were all kinds of traps. And that if you could overcome that adversity, you could receive a great reward.’

An oracle came down saying that the labyrinth would reopen after 300 years.

It is said that the entire country was in chaos as they tried to figure out why the sealed labyrinth was opening again.

After searching through old books, I succeeded in finding the cause.

“I wish I had known sooner. Why didn’t I know? The seal of the labyrinth lasted 300 years.”

If I had known in advance, wouldn’t I have raised warriors to conquer the labyrinth?

The bishop simply smiled and did not answer my question.

Actually, I didn’t know the answer, so I was just curious about it.

How could he have said that this seal would only last for 300 years in front of the people who were cheering for their survival after finally closing the labyrinth?

They probably tried to hide it by whispering, and then it was really forgotten over time.

‘… Should I go?’

The bishop was still drinking tea leisurely with a friendly smile.

I think he gave me time to think because he knew all kinds of thoughts were running through my head.

If I had been forced to go to the labyrinth, I would have just followed along.

But the bishop never forced it, as if it was out of the question.

“Haa~ You could at least threaten me to go. That would make it less frustrating.”

“Oh, they say that you have to decide and act on your own.”

“… … .”

“You can think about it before sending the official reply, so there’s no need to decide right away.”

“Okay, I’ll think about it until tomorrow.”

“Yeah.”

Instead of leaving right away, I quickly ate all the refreshments the bishop had given me and then left the room.

I had to work today, but I didn’t feel like I was going to get anything done.

◎ ◎ ◎

“Priest, what’s wrong? You’ve been making a lot of mistakes today, and I’m worried that you might be feeling unwell.”

It was only after hearing the nurse’s words that I came to my senses.

“I’m sorry. I couldn’t concentrate on my work because I was worried about something.”

“I’m glad you’re feeling well. But is there anything to worry about?”

“Yes.”

The nurse priest said he has no intention of advancing any further, so there is no need to worry about matters related to his practice.

So, if you hear about labyrinth-related content, you won’t think it’s a big problem.

“Now I will focus on work.”

Although Palmer is not a large city, many patients come to the treatment center.

Although residents of small towns often visit, it is not uncommon for people from distant rural areas to come to Palmer for treatment.

After being harassed by patients all day, I was exhausted, and my head was pounding as I had to decide whether or not to go to the labyrinth to practice by the next day.

‘You should drink some holy water.’

Seongsu is not as great as he appears in novels.

Holy water was usually used in exorcism rituals or when baptizing believers.

But why did you say you wanted to drink holy water now?

‘Taking holy water has an awakening effect, so it helps you come to your senses.’

If someone like me who can’t come to their senses right now takes it, they will see results.

“Do you have any extra saints?”

“Yes. Would you like some?”

“Yes. I think that’s what it should be.”

I was handed a finger-sized amount of holy water and drank it.

As the cool holy water went down my throat, the throbbing headache subsided.

“Did the bishop make this?”

“Oh my, how did you know?”

“The holy water made by the bishop tastes a little different from other holy waters.”

“That’s impossible. I’m sure only Father Arthur can guess who made the holy water by tasting it.”

Since it is water imbued with divine power, when you drink it, it ends up just tasting like water.

The reason I can distinguish holy water is because I can distinguish the divine power that resides in the water.

“Bishop, I feel refreshed because of the Holy Spirit. Thank you.”

You could have brought other holy water, but you must have brought the holy water that the bishop made just for me.

If you don’t express your gratitude for their consideration, you’re not human, you’re an animal.

“I just want Father Arthur to be healthy.”

“Anyway, we need to recognize that our nurse priest is a good person.”

As I was receiving such warm consideration, I began to feel unhappy as I thought about the things I had to do in the future.

‘So I have to get out of this place and practice in the labyrinth?’

Just give up on promotion?

But all the efforts I’ve put in up until now were too wasteful to do that.

What an honor it is to be the youngest Chief Healer!

‘My life ends as a senior healer? You went through all that trouble when you were young to get a healer license and you’re just going to stop here?’

Having to go into a labyrinth might not seem like a big deal when I think about the hardships I faced as a child.

‘There is not enough information about the labyrinth.’

To decide whether or not to go to the labyrinth, I felt like I needed to find out what kind of place it was.

“Do you know what hours the library is open?”

“Probably until 9 o’clock. Are you going to the library?”

“Yes. I’m trying to get some information.”

“I don’t know what your problem is, but I’m sure it will be resolved. I will pray for Father Arthur tonight.”

“Thank you, Father.”

It’s a small library, so I’m not sure if they have any information about mazes.

Still, I thought it would be better to try something than to do nothing, so I decided to go straight to the library after work and look for books.

It looked like tonight was going to be a very long night.