The Priest Wants to Retire

EP.221 Life is a Flower. Love is the Honey of That Flower (8)

A turf war of beasts.

Or maybe it would be better described as a showdown of monsters.

If I had been observing from a distance as a third party, I would have thought it was an incredibly thrilling spectacle that I couldn’t take my eyes off of.

But now that it’s turned into a reality I have to face, I just wanted to close my eyes and escape the panic tearing through my mind.

Every time the Hero swung his sword, heaven and earth split, and everything around me crumbled.

Every time Dawna finished her spell, blue flames soared, threatening to tear skin apart with a fierce blizzard swirling ominously.

In the middle of it all, a woman’s figure was tossed around like a soccer ball, adding a vivid sense of harsh reality to the transcendent scene.

Hack! Gack! Ugh! Cough! Ack!

I never imagined I would experience the full spectrum of human agony like this.

For the first little while, I definitely felt a sense of exhilaration.

But witnessing one character being thoroughly trampled like an ant under an elephant, I couldn’t help but feel a bit pitiful as a member of the clergy.

Just when her body was about to regenerate, indiscriminate attacks and magic would break her down once more.

The endless cycle of destruction and regeneration turned into a blood-soaked, violent feast that left me feeling like I was peeking into the gates of hell.

You won’t die peacefully if you can’t manage your lower body…

Apise’s kind reminder of something I already knew brought a tear to my eye from gratitude.

While it was truly fortunate that Apise’s quick thinking helped us avoid disaster.

Feeling the weight of their affection towards me so physically, I couldn’t say my heart felt at ease.

So what do we do from here…

Swallowing dryly, I posed the question, and Apise’s expression stiffened slightly.

We had put out one urgent fire, but there was still a catastrophe looming ahead, incomparable to what we’d already dealt with.

On the surface, it seemed like the two were joining forces against a common enemy, but in reality, it was the exact opposite.

The Hero, spurred by my sudden declaration, swung his sword at the enemy in front of him but was narrowly avoiding Dawna’s magic aimed at him, creating a painful cycle once again.

In fact, it was only him who was suffering greatly.

While that living biological punching bag was still standing, it would be safe to assume the Hero and Dawna wouldn’t clash again.

The Hero, barely awake right now, seemed entirely focused on erasing the woman I had just pointed out, as if I didn’t even exist.

But that meant— the moment that woman’s body reached its limit, that dizzying triangle would collapse instantly.

Both the Hero and that Dawna have completely lost it. There’s no way we can deal with this the normal way.

That makes sense…

I had attempted mediation a few times, but those efforts had proven futile in the face of the thunderous booms clashing around us.

In that case, there’s no choice. We’ll have to wait until they’re exhausted, and when the time comes, we’ll knock some sense into them.

Apise said while loosening her body slightly.

Having narrowly escaped death a few times, Apise looked just as ragged as I did.

Her top was barely holding on, with only her long hair flowing down below her neck to cover her modesty.

Her bottoms were somewhat better, but even those were full of holes, making them effectively useless.

But strangely enough, despite a half-naked woman doing stretches right next to me, I felt neither lust nor even a hint of it.

It was just like having an elf doing stretches casually beside me.

That was the only piece of knowledge spinning aimlessly in my mind.

…Why?

Nothing.

Come to think of it, I must have inadvertently groped her chest a few times while healing the damage earlier.

I hadn’t thought much of it at the time, but now it left me feeling a little embarrassed.

They say genuine friendships can exist between men and women.

Honestly, I never really believed that.

In this situation, I couldn’t help but acknowledge it.

I’ll handle Dawna; you take care of the Hero. Flirt with him, do some lip action, whatever works. That’s probably more direct than any petty tricks you could use on him.

Got it… But are you really okay, Apise? I can’t help but think it’ll be too much for you to face Dawna in your state. Maybe a prayer or two…

I’ll be fine. Don’t do anything unnecessary. You’ve dealt with that pain-in-the-ass Dawna enough times. You just focus on keeping the Hero busy.

Apise was truly a reliable comrade for me.

…Apise.

What now?

You know I really love you, right?

Pfft, what are you talking about, you idiot.

At my pathetic joke, Apise suddenly burst into a cheerful laugh.

I might not have intended to say it while we were in the middle of raiding a dungeon, but once everything was over, I desperately wanted to have a drink with Apise and the other comrades.

By the way, in a situation like this, where the heck is Bigtim? Is he just lazing around?

No way…

◈◈◈

Hah…

Boom!

With a noise like thick oak splintering, Bigtim, clearly exhausted, leaned against the wall.

Breath caught in his throat.

His armor was dented and cracked all over.

Holding just a shield, his ragged appearance vividly illustrated the harrowing battles he had fought so far.

What are you doing? Hurry up.

─!

Bigtim hurriedly composed himself at the Saint’s calm yet pressing voice.

After separating from his comrades, he had initially aimed to join back up as swiftly as possible.

But for some reason, the Saint had persistently urged Bigtim towards a different destination.

He couldn’t defy her command, which was infused with her unique mystique and an unexplainable authority.

Following the Saint was a treacherous journey.

Just the attacks from the Saint candidates that appeared every ten steps would be enough to put him on the verge of collapse.

With every step he took, the ominous tension closing around his chest revived the primal fears he thought he had overcome long ago as a frontline member of the party.

Bigtim suddenly turned his gaze to the surroundings.

Crackle. Sizzle.

The citizens of the system were staring fixedly at a black box of indeterminate nature.

All their faces wore a slow, eerie smile that spread like ink on white paper.

Don’t look. Don’t listen.

─!

The Saint’s firm voice jolted Bigtim awake just as his consciousness was fading.

How many times had it been now?

The Saint had woken him from his daze every time he unconsciously reached for that box.

That box shows you what you want to see, hears what you long to hear. It makes you greedy. So you must never approach it.

Bigtim nodded silently.

Instinctively, he felt that if he carelessly approached that black box, something catastrophic would occur.

That instinct was correct.

In fact, one of the Hero party members who hadn’t heeded the Saint’s warning had completely fallen under the spell of the voice emanating from the black box.

When he saw beastwomen swaying their tails to entice him from beyond the black box, Bigtim almost wavered, but—

He bit down hard on his lower lip until it bled, ultimately overcoming the temptation.

Hurry up. We need to be quick.

Where exactly were we going?

Such doubts crept in, but knowing it wouldn’t yield any satisfactory answer, Bigtim silently followed her lead.

The Saint. Welna Angelas Ashes.

She was a pillar of peace in this system and also the rival of his sister.

Even Bigtim, who had tastes different from others, couldn’t help but get lost in her stunning beauty.

However, every time he looked at her, he was gripped by deep fear.

How could he casually converse with such an absurd person? He held deep respect for Regis, who could communicate with her so effortlessly.

Every encounter felt like he was on the verge of having his very being transformed into something altogether different.

Every time facing the Saint, Bigtim had to endure that chilling tension.

And then—

Just when he was about to shake off his doubts, Bigtim shifted his gaze from the ground to meet the Saint’s eyes.

Her pure white fingers pointed straight at the grand cathedral located at the center of the city, where the famed Meeting Room resided.

Dad. We have to go meet him. Otherwise, we’re all dead.

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