Chapter: 15
‘I’ll think about that later.’
I turned to the Commander and asked,
“Are you feeling all right otherwise? Any dizziness? Any stomach discomfort?”
I had calculated everything carefully so none of the squad members’ mana would enter the Commander’s body, but there was always a slight possibility.
The Commander stared at me.
His lips moved as though he wanted to say something, but after a moment he simply shook his head.
“There are no problems with my body.”
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“I’m sorry. You’re far too used to enduring pain, so I can’t quite trust your answer. Vice Commander, I think we should have both a physician and a priest examine him.”
“…”
The moment I said it firmly—
Huh?
Something felt strange.
When I turned my head, I saw that every window and doorway was packed with squad members staring at us with odd expressions.
“She said that to the Commander…”
“Wow…”
Some were completely dumbfounded.
Others silently gestured frantically for me to stop.
Chari from Antonio’s squad, in particular, had gone pale. She was waving her arms wildly while clutching at her neck.
Ah… was I acting too casually?
Thinking that the ordinary members might have been shocked, I turned back.
Antonio and the Vice Commander had frozen in place as well.
“I knew the young lady had guts ever since she clung to the Commander’s leg on that hillside…”
“…”
Hmm. Even the elite members looked surprised.
Wondering if the Commander might be offended, I cautiously glanced at him.
“There really is nothing wrong with my body.”
His expression remained completely calm.
See? He’s a much kinder person than everyone thinks.
I’m really glad the curse was lifted.
I’m so glad he won’t have to suffer anymore.
Afterward…
The physician confirmed that there was absolutely nothing wrong with the Commander’s body.
Then, that afternoon, a priest arrived.
An elderly man who had once served as a priest waved his hand a few times over the Commander’s abdomen before speaking.
“Normal. A perfectly healthy monster.”
As soon as he said that, he held out his hand toward the Vice Commander.
The Vice Commander let out a sigh of relief and handed him a pouch about the size of a basketball.
The former priest snatched it immediately and opened it.
He pulled out a silver coin and bit it with his teeth.
Silver coins?
Don’t tell me…
That entire bag is full of silver coins?
There had to be at least five hundred of them.
The former priest grinned.
“Next time, stop making me come all the way here. You come to my house instead. Do you know how annoying it is carrying a bag this heavy?”
Antonio looked irritated but merely clicked his tongue.
The Vice Commander sighed.
“Sir, please don’t say that. Could you examine him more thoroughly? Are you certain there are no other abnormalities?”
“I told you already. He’s a perfect monster.”
His attitude was astonishingly disrespectful.
Well, the assassination corps couldn’t exactly summon an official priest from the temple, so they needed someone from the underworld like him.
And people working in the shadows naturally charged high fees.
Still, that didn’t justify taking five hundred silver coins.
Especially when someone’s life was at stake, yet he was handling the examination so carelessly.
“Um… Sir Priest.”
When I called him, the former priest snapped his head toward me.
“What?”
“I wasn’t sure how to address you since I don’t know your name.”
“Didn’t you hear him calling me ‘old man’?”
His voice rose almost into a shout.
I answered calmly.
“He isn’t just anyone. He’s the Commander of the San Miguel Knights. If you’ll show him proper respect, then I’ll gladly show you the respect due to a former priest.”
The Vice Commander looked at me in surprise.
Antonio’s eyes widened in shock as well.
Apparently, this made it obvious just how rudely the former priest had always treated the Irregulars.
The former priest stood up with a displeased expression.
“Young people these days… Do you think I’d be intimidated just because he’s the Commander of the San Miguel Knights?”
“I wasn’t asking you to be intimidated.”
“What an ignorant child. The higher a person’s status, the more dangerous it is if they fail to address a priest properly. If I report this…”
“Would only we be arrested?”
“What?”
I smiled pleasantly.
“If you reported us, we wouldn’t be the only ones arrested. Being a shadow priest is a far greater crime than hiring one.”
“If I reveal that you’re Irregulars—!”
“You’ll die.”
“…!”
I lightly gestured toward Antonio and the Vice Commander.
The moment the word Irregulars left the former priest’s mouth, both men’s eyes had turned murderous.
The former priest flinched.
“We may cooperate while our interests align, but if someone points a blade at us, we have no reason to honor any trust. Irregulars aren’t saints.”
“S-So what exactly are you trying to say…?!”
“I’m saying our positions aren’t all that different.”
So…
Let’s both show each other some courtesy.
Especially…
My gaze drifted toward the sack of silver coins.
The former priest stiffened.
“Normally, summoning a priest costs ten silver coins. Hiring someone through the underworld would make it… five times that?”
“…”
“Wouldn’t it?”
“…Damn it. How is a kid this sharp?”
The former priest placed the sack on the floor.
Then he took exactly fifty silver coins, put them into his pocket, and left the rest behind.
Just as he was about to leave—
“Sir Priest?”
Still smiling, I called him again.
He flinched.
“I really mean it. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with the Commander’s body. He’s in excellent health.”
“Hmm…”
“I swear upon the god Teretsa… Whatever else I may be, my faith is genuine…”
He spoke dejectedly.
Only then did I bow deeply.
“Thank you very much, sir.”
“…Where in the world did you people find a child like her?”
Grumbling that even being dragged to the Central Temple hadn’t left him this flustered, he finally departed.
The Vice Commander chuckled.
“We didn’t find her. She came to us. We were incredibly fortunate. Shall we escort you home?”
“No need…”
The elderly priest simply waved his hand.
“Take care, sir!”
He stared at me one last time as though I were unbelievable, then burst into laughter.
Good. Then everything’s been resolved.
I looked at the Commander and grinned.
He quietly gazed back at me.
“You’re unusual.”
“Me?”
How so?
I tilted my head.
Antonio and the Vice Commander both looked utterly speechless.
Then, before long, they burst into laughter.
Even the Commander’s expression seemed noticeably gentler.
Finally, night came.
As soon as I reached my room, I washed up and collapsed onto my bed.
What a long day…
Actually, every day had felt long ever since I learned about the Commander’s curse.
Still, everything had ended well.
Thank goodness.
As I was thinking that, my fingertips caught my eye.
A black line had appeared beneath one of my fingernails.
I froze.
Mana Poison.
Simply put, it was an illness caused by foreign mana mixing into the body.
I’d accepted an enormous amount of other people’s mana, so I had expected something like this.
Still, luckily I know how to cleanse Mana Poison. I’ll endure the pain tonight and cleanse it tomorrow—
I pressed firmly against the nail with the black line.
Then…
Huh?
The black line slowly began to disappear.
“What is this…?”
I stared at my hand.
Suddenly, I remembered the message that had appeared in the air after breaking the curse.
Second Class Advancement Successful!
[The Purifier]
※ This system has been reconstructed into a familiar interface for the user’s convenience.
If I’m a Purifier…
When starting the game, Stella’s character couldn’t be changed.
But her class could.
And every class had an advanced form.
- Swordsman → Bearer of the Sword of Courage
- Mage → Manifestor of Thought
- Warrior → Bearer of Fighting Spirit
- Shaman → One Who Shakes the Laws of the World
And so on.
The advancement path for The Purifier was:
Priest → Purifier
So becoming a Purifier allowed me to cleanse Mana Poison.
It seemed I had talent as a priest.
But why did it have to be a priest?
Hardly anyone chose Priest as their class in the game.
After all, there were classes like Mage and Shaman that excelled in both offense and defense—and they looked much cooler, too.
But all a Priest could do was support others.
Their only real ability was using mana to purify curses.
And if they ran out of mana…
It was game over.
In other words…
They died.
Not only was it the class with the worst drawback, it wasn’t even particularly useful for clearing the story.
And in the ending…
“I shall now return to the embrace of the Goddess. Father… Brother… Farewell…”
Stella said goodbye to her family and entered a monastery.
It was practically a bad ending, which was why so many players hated it.
“Still… being a Purifier could help me in real life… Hmm. No, maybe not.”
If other people found out, they’d start coveting me.
My future would become that of a miracle cure, used anywhere there was poison or curses—just like the protagonist’s spare organs.
And if I exhausted all my mana while purifying…
I’d die.
“I’ll just keep my mouth shut.”
With a serene smile, I made my decision and drifted off to sleep.
Once all the hardship was over, peace finally arrived.
“Wow…”
Everyone stared in amazement at the Commander, who now wore robes embroidered with the crest of San Miguel.
The members of the Vice Commander’s squad, who had practically carried sacks of money to grease the palms of Esgarot’s high officials, looked deeply moved.
That’s right.
The Commander had officially become the new Lord.
And me…
“No matter how I think about it, flowers won’t survive here. The north is too cold. Let’s switch to trees instead.”
“But aren’t colorful gardens prettier?”
“We’ll plant only evergreen trees so that when snow falls, they’ll look like blooming flowers. During the warmer seasons, we can decorate them with glass ornaments.”
“Hmm. That sounds pretty too.”
I was working on designing the garden with Chari from Antonio’s squad.
Now that the Commander had become the new Lord, many guests would surely be visiting the castle.
Designing the garden was legitimate work.
But I’m having so much fun.
I loved making the best possible results with limited resources.
Seeing those results take shape before my eyes was incredibly satisfying.
Back in Andres, everything had to match my biological father’s tastes.
I was constantly anxious that he wouldn’t approve.
It had been stressful rather than enjoyable.
But the Commander…
“Before we begin redesigning the garden, I’d like to know your preferences. It’ll reduce the chances of making mistakes. You can simply look through these examples.”
“…?”
“Um… If that’s troublesome, maybe just tell me what colors you like…”
“The garden isn’t mine. It belongs to everyone in this castle.”
“Ah…”
“The opinion of the one tending it is the most important. And even if you fail, that too is experience.”
…That’s what he had told me.
Remembering that conversation, I smiled to myself.
“The Commander really is a wonderful person, isn’t he?”
“…Pardon?”
Chari, who had been counting the trees, stopped.
The other members carrying soil also turned to stare at me.
When I looked back at them in confusion, they all rushed over at once.
“Miss, it’s good to be kind. Really, it is. But you can’t be that innocent.”
“How can you have such poor judgment of people? Seriously! Your organs… are they all still there? You haven’t donated them one by one already, have you?”
If the spice merchant from the Imperial Market—who always lost salt worth five coppers to me—had heard that, he probably would’ve collapsed clutching the back of his neck.
I simply tilted my head.
Then Chari spoke with deadly seriousness.
“Miss.”
“Yes?”
“You need to memorize this.”
“…?”
“Just because someone’s handsome doesn’t mean they’re a good person.”
“…”
“Repeat it.”
“…Just because someone’s handsome doesn’t mean they’re a good person.”
“Good.”
Chari let out a huge sigh.
“The Commander isn’t a good person.”
“…?”
“He’s a strong person. A rational person.”
Everyone nodded in agreement.
“Our young lady is far too innocent. I guess we’ll all have to stay close and protect her.”
“Don’t ever let her go anywhere alone again. Her organs are in danger.”
“Agreed. Let’s all stick together.”
My organs probably were in danger.
But from my perspective…
Antonio’s squad was the truly innocent one.
Considering that I’d even managed to collect paid weekly leave in a world where such a thing didn’t exist, their reactions left me baffled.
One of the members spoke up again.
“From now on, if you want to say someone’s a good person, make sure you say they’re a good person to follow…”
Just then—
Ahem.
Someone cleared their throat.
Everyone turned instinctively.
Then they froze.
There stood Antonio, grinning mischievously.
The Vice Commander looked deeply uncomfortable.
And…
“C-C-Commander…”
Yes.
He was there.
Apparently he’d been listening the whole time, and when the conversation dragged on, the Vice Commander had tried to warn everyone.
Antonio chuckled.
“That’s right, Miss. You really shouldn’t be that innocent.”
The Vice Commander immediately drove his elbow into Antonio’s side at terrifying speed.
Antonio doubled over with a scream.
Leaving him behind, the Vice Commander approached me.
“The announcement for selecting the Crown Prince’s page has arrived.”
At last.
I stood up.
The Commander’s eyes met mine.
The announcement sent down from Esgarot could be summarized as follows.
- The page selection would be conducted at Esgarot’s main castle.
- Each territory could send one candidate.
- From the moment the announcement was issued until the final selection, candidates were forbidden from privately meeting any officials of the main castle.
The notice also included the date of the examination and the location of the testing grounds.
Exactly fifteen days left.
It wasn’t an especially short amount of preparation time.
Yet the Vice Commander’s expression remained grim.
“This has become difficult.”
“Why?”
He pointed directly at the line stating that candidates could not privately meet officials of the main castle until the selection ended.
“It means we can’t bribe anyone.”
So that had been the plan.
It wasn’t because they doubted my abilities.
There was another reason.
“Because I’m from Andres. Andres and Esgarot aren’t on good terms.”
“Correct.”
When the Vice Commander first learned that I was the eldest daughter of a great noble house, he hadn’t even considered recommending me as an adopted daughter.
Only after all the girls had been kidnapped and the situation became desperate had he reluctantly allowed me to take the adoption test.
This was exactly why.
Andres and Esgarot belonged to opposing factions.
By the time of the previous Marquis of Andres—my grandfather—and the current Duke of Esgarot, the two families had become bitter enemies.
Even if I’d been cast out from Andres, they would still hesitate to let me into the main castle.
“Originally, one of the Esgarot officials allied with us was supposed to oversee the examination.”
“And you were planning to blackmail him over all the bribes he’d accepted so he’d make sure I became a page.”
“Very perceptive. However…”
Antonio clicked his tongue.
“That greedy old bastard got caught taking bribes somewhere else too. Heard he’s sitting in the underground prison now.”
I see.
That certainly complicated things.
For the Irregulars, at least.
I see it differently, though.
I smiled.
“Then I’ll just become a page without taking the exam.”
The Vice Commander and Antonio frowned.
Their expressions clearly said such a thing was impossible.
“Are you planning to be personally chosen by one of the Imperial Princes? That won’t be easy. Their travel routes are kept under absolute secrecy, and even if you knew them, there would be no way to approach them.”
“Hmm. Could you take a look at this?”
I pulled a letter from my pocket and handed it to them.
Yustea,
As I travel toward the far north, I find myself thinking of you. The weather reminds me of those days when you served with the supply corps during the campaign against the northern tribes. When an avalanche cut off our supply line and everyone was at a loss, you single-handedly hunted a wild boar and asked, ‘Would it be all right if we carried this back and roasted it whole?’ You were more remarkable than any soldier. I still miss the roast we ate that day…
…And the dumplings, the boiled lamb, the shark fin soup. Those days with you feel like a dream. Are you still working at that place you were fortunate enough to enter? I hope your employers aren’t treating you harshly. If they are, my door is always open to you…
…Ah… dumplings…
—Missing your dumplings, Ragoni
“Traveling to the north…?”
“Colonel Ragoni of the Imperial Guard…?”
That’s right.
Colonel Ragoni was escorting one of the Imperial Princes to Esgarot in the north.
I smiled brightly.
“Doesn’t it seem like we might have a way after all?”
