“Oohh!”
“Hessed, my god!”
“Saintess!”
I heard exclamations from the priests, which didn’t help at all. The elder priest also closed his eyes and muttered prayers earnestly.
“T-The gate is restored!!”
A priest’s cry was heard.
After all, the power of this munchkin-class ability is amazing. In fact, I couldn’t see very well in the halo, yet it was clear that things were going well. Otherwise, the priests wouldn’t have been so excited.
I looked at the gate with the thought of pouring all my energy into it. Fortunately, the size of the gate seemed to be getting smaller than before.
And the Paladins were easily blocking the attacks of the demon beasts from outside the net. If the gate is completely closed like this, they should be able to release the barrier and deal with the monsters.
I closed my eyes and focused on restoring the gate.
“Saintess! A little bit more!”
The elder priest’s deafening voice was heard.
“Be quiet.”
“Pardon?”
“Stop making noise and shut up.”
I gritted my teeth and said a word, as his high-pitched voice annoyed me, then stared straight ahead.
Sweat started to form on my forehead.
“Saintess. Are you okay?”
I could hear Cass’ voice around me, but I only nodded my head.
The sacred power that could have saved ten people so far has been poured out. Yet the gate was still about two-thirds left.
My hands were eventually shaking.
“…”
Yeah, it’s the first day right?
‘Let’s not be too greedy.’
I gave strength to my fingertips.
Even if the holy power that I can use is infinite, this body, which is the channel of the holy power, isn’t strong enough to use infinite holy power.
“Replenish the number of people in the barrier.”
“T-The barrier, you mean?”
“Those priests, they won’t last long. Still, the barrier must be maintained.”
At my words, the elder priest hurriedly ordered to replenish the priests.
Now that I’ve done all I wanted to do, I knew I could easily block this gate as well. However, this gate seemed to be lacking even with my abilities.
“Gasp… gasp…”
“Please stop..”
I shook my head at his voice.
“Just a little more.”
“Saintess.”
It was me who was having a hard time, yet Cass was rather angry.
“Please stop.”
“Ugh.”
Finally, when I couldn’t stand up any longer, I withdrew my hand. Cass hurriedly supported me the moment I stumbled.
My whole body was covered with sweat. It was a hole that had shrunk to about half the size of before, yet demon beasts were still sticking their faces into it.
“Saintess!!”
“Saintess, are you okay?”
The priests’ voices were heard.
In the midst of the mess, Cass’ angry voice also flowed into my ears.
“…To this extent.”
But I muttered something more important than that.
“Is the barrier blocked well by calling the priests?”
“The priests are blocking it.”
“That’s a relief.”
At that moment, my consciousness was clouded.
Kyuu, it felt like I could hear the sound of Kyuu..
When I opened my eyes after a while, I was on the bed.
[The use of sacred power is temporarily blocked because you used an amount of sacred power that your body cannot handle.]
[The sacred power penalty is applied for three days until your body recovers.]
[The oracle communication is not smooth.]
My whole body felt heavy like wet cotton, but I couldn’t lie still because I remembered what had happened before I collapsed.
“I have to block the gate…”
A gate that was less than half blocked came to mind.
“To protect the original story and my peaceful life…”
Does the fact that the sacred power penalty is applied for three days mean that I have to wait and see how the gate widens without using the sacred power?
When I barely got up, I noticed that someone was sitting in a chair next to the bed.
Before I could turn my head towards him, he jumped up and leaned over me, hugging me.
I opened my eyes wide. Cass’ voice sounded hoarse.
“…Ariel.”
My chin rested on his hard shoulder. I was frightened and froze still.
Right now… are you hugging me?
“Do you know how surprised I am?”
His voice, which was always smooth, trembled slightly.
My mind was a little blank.
I pushed his shoulder and asked right away.
“W-Where… is this?”
“Lloyd’s Merchant Ares district.”
Unexpectedly, it was his merchant, not the temple.
He gave me a glass of water from the bedside table, and I drank it, gradually came to my senses.
“How much time has passed?”
I even remembered that my body couldn’t stand it and collapsed.
“Are you thinking of going to the mines again?”
I could see his fine brow hardening coldly.
I nodded.
“Since half of the hole is closed, if I restore the remaining half…”
“You can’t.”
However, he sternly cut my will.
I said to him with a puzzled expression.
“Why? If the delay causes the gate to get bigger, it becomes more difficult. Didn’t the Lloyd’s Merchant also suffer from this incident?”
His eyes widened slightly at my words.
But he didn’t back down.
“It’s still not possible. Your condition hasn’t recovered.”
I couldn’t understand him.
“I take care of myself. If I fall again, it won’t do Lloyd any harm.”
“That level of problem…”
His eyes shone brightly.
His ultramarine blue eyes are the coldest shade of blue.
“…is not what I’m talking about.”
This man, who seemed like a well-learned nobleman or the son of a conglomerate who maintains manners in any situation, gave a somewhat rough voice.
“You can’t get out of here until you are fully recovered.”
Unlike the original story, it was a completely coercive tone.
I was dumbfounded for a moment, then spoke up to him.
“I admit that the Marquis’ help was great to come this far. If it wasn’t for Lloyd’s warp system, the priests wouldn’t have been able to hold out until we arrived, and a great disaster would have happened. But I want you to know that the Marquis isn’t my protector.”
Judging from the muscle pain all over my body, my physical condition wasn’t normal, but it was my decision that it was better to end this trip with a quick hit every time.
“Aren’t you going to give up your stubbornness despite this fever?”
“It’s not stubborn, it’s a rational decision. You don’t get any damage do you? Who would blame her companion for the Saintess’ collapse while fulfilling her duties?”
However Cass opened his mouth angrily.
“Did you say damage?”
After a while,his eyes took on a subtle light. It was such an expression that I couldn’t tell whether he was angry or self-deprecating.
“As the Saintess said, I have no right to protect you.”
I listened to him, stretching my legs out to the side of the bed to get myself out.
Then, Cass, who leaned his back towards me, approached me again.
The moment his shimmering, ultramarine blue eyes met my gaze, I felt we were so close.
“But regardless of the damage, I can’t let you go of my own will.”
“…!”
“I have no choice but to go beyond the authority.”
Then our faces touched within the breath-taking distance, and one of his fingers rubbed forcefully against my lips.
The moment I thought something had slipped into my cracked lips, I resisted, and he pushed me by the shoulders, laying me on the bed.
As my body leaned back, the bedding rubbed against my back, and my eyes, wide open in surprise, caught sight of his dark eyes.
“…!”
There was a tingling sensation in my fingertips, like electricity, and my heart pounded.
I felt the strength in his hand on my shoulder loosen.
‘The medicine went down my throat.’
He slowly rose from above me. My eyes became dizzy and began to spin.
“What did you feed me?”
I asked him, holding on to my fading consciousness.
The figure of Cass standing by the bed got blurred.
A low voice permeated my ears.
“Get some rest. please.”
And the string of my consciousness was cut again.