episode_0075

Sister Melody’s job was to protect me, and she knew that better than anyone else, as she didn’t engage with any monsters that didn’t attack me.

However, because so many monsters were coming out, her sword never rested for more than a certain amount of time.

“It seems like a much larger crowd than I thought.”

“Hmm.”

When I saw one monster, it wasn’t that big of a threat.

However, since they lived in groups, the number of monsters that attacked them was very large.

“If we continue like this, we will end up in an ant hole. It’s no different from us being caught in a trap.”

“Then what should I do?”

If we’re stuck in an ant hole, I think we need to get out of here as quickly as possible.

“You can either continue fighting here and kill all the guys that pop out, or do your best to get out of here. However, there’s no guarantee that they won’t chase you, so it might be better to just kill them all here and leave.”

Since they dig the ground, hide in the snow, and then suddenly pop out, if you get chased by them, clearing the labyrinth will become a real hassle.

Sister Melody also seemed to know that and thought it would be better to handle it here, but the battle situation wasn’t very good.

“If we deal with it like that, it will take a long time. Furthermore, these guys are very clever. It seems difficult to confront them directly and confront them head-on, so I am using my head.”

He was not a mole in a game called Whack-a-Mole, but whenever he felt he was at a disadvantage, he would hide in the snow and then pop out to make a surprise attack.

Because of that, our team was unable to properly deal with the monsters that suddenly disappeared.

“I think I need to ask for your understanding, Your Majesty.”

“Yes?”

“Can I leave your safety to someone else for a moment and help you deal with them?”

“Ah! Of course. I will stay here and wait without moving.”

“I will send someone to escort you right away.”

She said she would go fight, then wiped the blood off her sword and put it back in its sheath.

“??”

As I was blankly staring at it, suddenly light burst out from her hand.

“!!”

I knew what that was.

Healers use divine power to heal wounds, but paladins use divine power to strengthen their bodies or increase their strength.

And it is said that the Inquisitors can use their divine powers to create ‘weapons’ appropriate to the situation.

I have seen the Master use it himself before.

The weapon made of divine power was a large hammer that emitted white light.

“Ah!”

I quickly realized why he had chosen that weapon.

We are not inside an ant hole.

We were still standing at the entrance to the anthill. The ants were trying to lure us into their lair.

‘There is still a choice. A way to kill all the ants without entering the ant hole.’

The method is simpler than you think.

It’s like completely destroying an anthill that stretches out to an unknown extent.

It was obvious why he had taken out that big hammer.

“You’re thinking of breaking it down.”

“Yes. I will be back.”

She left a cool, nonchalant comment that she would be back and moved towards where the battle was taking place.

And after a while.

Three team members approached me to ask if I had been chosen by her.

“Priest, we have come to protect you.”

“There are three of you here?”

“I’m embarrassed, but I hurt my ankle because of that guy.”

“They were all injured.”

“Yep.”

It seems that he told me to send the injured people to him first so that he could receive treatment and also provide escort.

I thought it was a good idea, so I looked at their wounds first.

-Kuung-!!!!!!

Kwaaang!!!

“Oh my, it went in so well.”

“Did he die from a broken neck?”

The team members receiving treatment were constantly exclaiming in admiration as they watched the battle.

“Priest.”

“Yes?”

“Are you by any chance a very great person? I’m worried that we may be ignorant and not treating you properly.”

“He’s a great man. He’s just an ordinary priest.”

“Hey~ No matter how I look at it, it doesn’t seem right?”

“I also have no idea where you saw me and why you felt that way.”

“If you look at that, isn’t the answer obvious? With such a powerful person as your bodyguard, doesn’t that mean that the priest is that important?”

He paused from his treatment to listen to his teammate’s words and checked the battle situation.

“Ah… .”

A scene unfolded that made me immediately understand why he had said that to me.

Sister Melody was smashing the heads of the moles with a large hammer without hesitation whenever they tried to take their faces off.

Thud! Thud!! Thud!!!

Flesh and blood were splattered everywhere.

You can also see twisted intestines that are disgusting to look at.

There were burst eyeballs rolling around on the floor, and it was nauseating to look at them.

“Priest, you’d better look away. It’s not a pretty sight.”

“… It certainly looks like that.”

A terrifying sight, perhaps even one that appears in dreams.

I can endure it because I’ve cleaned up the corpses of heretics. If I hadn’t had that experience, I would have retched several times.

“Treatment is finished.”

Even though his mind was slightly distracted, he drew on his divine power to heal the injured area.

In an instant, the treatment of three people was completed.

“Huh? Already?”

“It really doesn’t hurt.”

“Wow~ Your skills are amazing.”

Everyone gave a thumbs up after confirming that the sore area had completely healed.

“My stamina seems to have returned to normal… .”

They were the ones who had regained their appetite, perhaps because their stamina had returned or because they wanted to join the fight.

But there was no place for them to interfere with the fun Sister Melody was having.

Urrr-!!

“Ouch! Be careful!”

Suddenly, there was a loud noise and the ground sank slightly.

It seemed that the ground had sunk a little as the ant hole underground had collapsed.

Urrr- thump! bang! bang bang!!! thump thump!!

“What is that creepy sound?”

“How many holes did you make inside… .”

Other people weren’t stupid either, so they knew what was going on underground.

And then the monsters that survived the collapsed cave began to rise above the ground.

“Come out! Everyone, focus!!”

The number of monsters hiding inside was so great that even though I was keeping some distance, monsters came up to me and I was exposed to danger.

Of course, the three team members surrounding me protected me and blocked the attacks.

I occasionally helped them by replenishing their stamina when they were out of breath.

I had already applied the full buff once, but as the battle time grew longer, it seemed that some people would lose the effect, so I didn’t forget to apply the buff again.

“These little guys are weak to fire! Burn them!”

“Who would be able to set fire to it when it’s snowing like this! It’ll go out soon!”

“But give it a try! That’s the most effective way!”

As I continued to deal with them, I also learned their weaknesses.

In a field where a blizzard was swirling, fire attacks boasted the worst efficiency, but they were very effective against them, so those who knew how to use fire actively attacked them with fire.

It’s like pouring oil on something and then shooting a flaming arrow at it.

“Priest, are you hurt anywhere?”

“How could I get hurt when you guys are protecting me so thoroughly?”

“Haha! That’s fortunate.”

“It seems like it’ll be sorted out soon. Please hold on a little longer.”

“I’m fine, but I’m worried that you guys might have a hard time.”

“This much is unbelievable!”

When the ant hole first collapsed, I was out of my mind, but gradually the number of monsters coming up from below decreased.

“Oh my, those noisy guys.”

If this much is sticking out, then the number of those hiding underground must be enormous.

It was clear that the choice to destroy the anthill was an excellent one.

“Is it over now?”

“Yes, I think I’ve almost got it all sorted out.”

When I said it was all over, he took a step forward and started to panic. He then waved both his hands and said,

“Uh-uh- Don’t come in yet. You have to come in after you’re done. You don’t know what these clever guys are going to do.”

“Didn’t you say it’s all over?”

“You have to make sure you kill them. These guys aren’t that smart, so sometimes they pretend to be dead.”

“Ah~”

In the end, I couldn’t go near where the battle was taking place until I finished confirming the kill of the dead monster.

It was nice and reassuring to be loved and protected by my teammates, but I couldn’t help but feel embarrassed and ashamed that a man with all his limbs was being treated that way.

“If you have any injuries, please come here. We will fix them.”

​

In the end, I decided to do what I do best.

It’s about healing injured team members.

​

* * *

When all the dead ones were gathered together, a huge number of monster corpses piled up.

“What do you think? Are these worth any money?”

It’s important to kill monsters without getting hurt, but it’s also important to know how much money each monster you kill will earn you.

If you exhaust your stamina and catch something only to find out that it’s useless, it’s hard to feel a sense of accomplishment.

“Yes, I think the nails will be worth some money.”

“Your nails were rough.”

“The leather is soft, so it would be good to use as fur. It has strong cold resistance, so it won’t flinch in even the coldest of cold.”

“Oh! The fur is nice.”

“But there are a lot of places where the leather is burned, so I don’t know if I can get a lot of money.”

“Umm….”

“Who said that fire is weak?”

“If I hadn’t exploited the weakness, someone might have died. Don’t say anything.”

“It’s you?”

As the time for collecting loot passed, the guides were busy inspecting ant holes, or rather mole holes.

If you search through the places where monsters used to live, there is a higher chance of finding something surprisingly good.

When the labyrinth was sealed, didn’t the monsters live inside the labyrinth?

If they found something in the labyrinth, there’s a good chance they moved it back to their nest.