The Priest Wants to Retire

EP.237 A Song for the Remaining Ashes (8)

Archery Mastery. Apis.

Mage Power. Dawna.

Iron Wall. Bigtim.

And of course, the Hero and Saint.

Is there a more reliable lineup in this world?

Exaggerating just a bit, with our current strength, even if we turned the entire world against us, we wouldn’t be scared.

No, wait. To be honest, that was a bit terrifying.

“Seriously… You made such a big deal about leaving it to me and look at this mess! What the heck… And why couldn’t we just wait until Dawna collapsed from exhaustion? Why start a pointless fight again…?”

“Ah, shut up! Seriously! I did want to follow the plan at first! But damn it! That just infuriates me! Again and again!”

As I aligned Apis’s twisted limbs, we exchanged stories about what had happened.

If I carelessly healed her distortion, her bones could end up fusing in a bizarre way.

Before using a miracle, it was essential to make sure the wound would heal correctly.

Crack. Snap.

Every time my hands moved Apis’s limbs, the sound of bones and muscles twisting assaulted my ears.

Even battle-hardened knights would likely scream from that pain.

But Apis seemed to find my persistent nagging even more irritating than the pain itself.

“I-I’m sorry. Because of me…”

Dawna, who had healed first, muttered apologetically.

“Ha… It’s disgusting, so stop that.”

“That’s right, Dawna. This wasn’t really your fault.”

“B-but…”

Though the apologies had become deafening, Dawna still floundered in a swamp of guilt, her eyes glimmering with tears.

It was surprising to see Dawna, normally overflowing with confidence, crumbling like this.

I had known her for a long time, and this was the first time I had witnessed such a sight.

Normally, after Apis would say something harsh, Dawna would have fired back just as fiercely.

But with her head hung low, barely clinging to her skirt, there wasn’t a hint of retaliation in sight.

“The so-called greatest mage of the system falls for such a pitiful illusion. How on earth will you face us again? Let alone Apis and the Hero…”

“I-I’m fine! And the Hero said I don’t need to worry about that at all…”

While I said this, honestly, I felt just as embarrassed.

I had always known that she had feelings for me, but the fact that I had inadvertently rejected someone who had been holding back those feelings made it hard to face her.

The Hero, who had been struck by Dawna’s lightning, seemed enviable, as those memories had completely flown from their mind.

BAM!

“This burns for real!”

“Ah!?”

“Apis!?”

In that moment, Apis’s sharp slap landed on Dawna’s head.

We were still in the process of healing her broken arm.

And yet, she couldn’t hold back from swinging her arm.

There’s a limit to how tough you can be.

Even a bear just waking from hibernation would be more sensitive than Apis, don’t you think?

“Are you even paying attention!? You saw how the situation is unfolding! I’ll listen to your whining later! For now, gather what little magic you have left!”

Eeep!

Though it was a bit brutal, Apis’s sharp reproach was effective.

As I curled up holding my smacked area, I heard…

“I-I know! I’ll do my best!”

With a strong shout, a hint of determination returned to Dawna’s face.

“Priest!”

Finally, the Hero, who had been watching the situation from the roof of a house near the city wall, joined us.

“Hero! What’s the situation like?”

“Yes! Right now, two dragon-class monsters are rampaging near the city wall! Various monsters’ stench is beginning to fill the town!”

“Do you have an estimate of their numbers…?”

“Yes! It could be in the thousands! At the very least, there should be several hundred!”

Gasp!

The situation was turning out to be way worse than I had thought, causing my brow to furrow.

Somehow, I hadn’t seen a single monster, not even a trace of one, inside the dungeon.

It didn’t seem any monsters had spawned yet.

“Damn it. This is crazy…”

“Haha, right…?”

I quietly agreed with Apis’s bitter words.

Monsters appearing in a dungeon is as normal as fish swimming in the sea.

Exterminating those monsters is our main job as adventurers.

No matter how strong or numerous they are, our duty remains unchanged.

However, given the dungeon’s location, there were bound to be limitations.

This was indeed the capital of the system, where hundreds of thousands lived.

Just the fact that dragon-class monsters were rampaging there was enough to give me a headache.

The mere report of thousands of monsters possibly appearing here made my vision blur.

We could easily take them down.

The problem was the collateral damage that would follow.

No matter how strong we were, demonstrating our true power on a fragile glass surface that could shatter at any moment was nearly impossible.

“Hah…”

This series of events had started after the sister, Raiza, had completely lost her breath and transformed into the dungeon’s core.

Thus, deducing the culprit behind this incident through prior circumstances wasn’t too difficult.

To think she would lead this system to ruin even in death.

Her twisted obsession inspired a sense of awe beyond mere fear.

“Hero, how’s your condition?”

“Yes! Though I really didn’t want to! I really didn’t! Thanks to the Saint’s holy power, I’m in perfect shape! I’m ready to fight right now!”

Did it annoy him that he was healed by the Saint’s holy power?

He showed a rare display of unease, but as long as he was in top condition, that was enough for now.

“Huh? Dawna! You’re still moping! Don’t cling to those petty matters among comrades who share their hearts! Didn’t I say? To be honest, I don’t even remember what happened then! I’ve already forgiven you, Dawna!”

“Y-You, Hero…”

Dawna was moved to tears by the Hero’s cheerful words.

While it was quite touching, with all the context in mind, Apis and I could only help but roll our eyes.

“Are you going to tell the Hero that Dawna likes him…?”

“Apis. I love peace. I hate conflicts.”

“…Sigh.”

Murmuring softly so those two couldn’t hear, I exchanged comments with Apis.

“You folks of the human race really have it rough. Always in heat…”

“Apis… That’s a prejudice…”

Academically speaking, it wouldn’t be entirely wrong.

It’s just that a unique type of woman happened to intersect around me.

I wanted to make it clear that not every human woman was like that.

Boom!

While we were chatting for a while, Bigtim appeared, having returned from the nearby weapon shop with spare weapons for our damaged comrades.

“Thanks for your hard work, Bigtim.”

“…”

I gave him a thumbs up in response, and he returned it.

With that, all preparations were complete.

“Well then! Let’s finish this quickly and return!”

“Please take care of yourselves…”

“Trust me to worry about it!”

I’d rather go with my comrades, but since two giant monsters were to be taken down, plus the countless monsters that would soon appear throughout the city, I had no choice but to stay behind.

So now, all I could do was wait in a safe place with the Saint.

“If that woman tries to touch the Priest’s body carelessly, please scream at the top of your lungs. I’ll rush over anytime!”

“Yes…?”

“Okay!”

I saw the Hero off with an awkward smile as he squeezed my hands tightly.

Leaving my comrades heading towards danger and remaining in a safe space felt unbearably disheartening.

But some members were needed to keep an eye on the Saint Candidates, who might unleash their ill will at any moment.

So I decided to accept the situation.

Even if they showed hostility again, with the Saint’s power, she would surely be able to handle them.

“Haha, I really am useless…”

Just as I was chewing on that dreadful feeling of powerlessness once again…

“Brother. Pray. Pray for me.”

“Saint?”

The Saint, who had been quiet up until now, began to pester me to pray.

“Saint, we need to find a place to hide right now, and we’re quite busy, so let’s save the prayers for later…”

“If you don’t, we’ll all die.”

“…Huh?”

“If you don’t pray, we’ll all die.”

It was a phrase I couldn’t possibly ignore.

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