Chapter 49
Lagnis arrived at a village on the border of Regarium, guided by her Lord God.
It was a remote, out-of-the-way place, rarely visited by outsiders, so Lagnis's arrival didn't cause much alarm.
"....”
Lagnis felt an awkward sense of peace in this unexpected tranquility.
She wanted to find a place to rest.
If she let her guard down for even a moment, she felt like she might lose consciousness.
“Young lady.”
As she strolled through the peaceful countryside, an old woman sitting in the distance called out to her.
“...?”
“You're so pretty. Wouldn't you like to marry my son?”
What is this?
A marriage proposal out of the blue.
“I serve my God.”
“Oh dear, oh dear, what did I say? I knew just by looking at you that you'd be busy!”
A scolding erupted from the old woman's companions.
A fuss, and meddling.
For these people, old and frail, with little else to do—
This was a new excitement in their unchanging daily lives.
Lagnis, in their eyes, perfectly fit the bill.
A body covered in wounds, yet her eyes, still full of life, were fixed on a purpose.
It was obvious, wasn't it, that she had a compelling story.
“Oh my, what happened to your ear?”
“There were… circumstances.”
“Hey, stop pestering her!”
“She's a Priest! Of course things have happened…”
More fuss on top of fuss.
Lagnis felt drained, even though she hadn't said much.
There was a certain warmth, and she felt that if she misspoke, she would be hopelessly swept away by their pace.
Even if she said she was full, they'd likely continue to force-feed her; that image kept replaying in Lagnis’s mind.
‘But aren't I older than them?’
However, there was one thing they didn’t know.
Lagnis was an Elf, a being that ordinary people rarely encountered in their entire lives.
Growing increasingly dizzy from the situation, Lagnis quickly moved to leave.
But the curious gazes of the villagers followed her for a long time.
Children playing in the rice paddies, a woman carrying a baby on her back, a middle-aged man already deeply drunk in the middle of the day.
The sight of a stranger was quite fascinating to them.
‘This is uncomfortable.’
Lagnis longed for the comforting scenery of the forest, devoid of any human presence.
The rich scent of grass wafting through her nostrils, the calming chirping of birds.
The warm sunlight filtering softly through the lush trees.
Even if she hated her own kind and their Constellations, she had no intention of denying her own roots.
Lagnis loved the forest.
“If you need anything, go see the Village Chief!”
A villager, worried about Lagnis's rough appearance, offered this advice.
Lagnis nodded obediently and decided to go straight to the Village Chief.
“May the… Blessing of the Stars be with you.”
The man who turned out to be the Village Chief was dressed casually, as if in harmony with the peaceful village scenery.
Despite his age-worn face, his eyes sparkled with intelligence.
From the moment he first saw Lagnis, the Village Chief treated her with utmost respect.
Her rough appearance was proof of her combat experience, and he sensed the faint flow of Divine Power within her.
A Follower of a Constellation.
Even in this remote village, detached from the world's affairs, they weren't so ignorant as to not recognize their might.
“I'll bring the best Apothecary in the village. Please rest comfortably in the room, Follower.”
Everyone in the village was kind to Lagnis.
-Ugh… Disgusting. A slave.
-Heh heh… But for a slave, she’s quite pretty, wouldn't you say? Must be the Elf blood.
-Don't even think about it. You might catch something from her dirty blood.
Memories of her time as a slave flashed through Lagnis's mind.
Cruel and painful memories, incomparable to the kindness she was currently experiencing.
Lagnis felt a strange emotion at this sudden change in her circumstances.
She thought of the being who had granted her the precious status of 'Follower.'
‘You…’
The mysterious Constellation who had suddenly appeared and saved her from the Assassin's pursuit.
She had joined forces with him for survival, but she still couldn't grasp the true reason why he had chosen her.
-Whoosh…
The steamy air of a place for washing.
Lagnis poured water over herself in the provided bathroom, washing away the dried blood and dirt once more.
The water flowing over her deep wounds might be harmful, but thanks to the Blessing bestowed by the Master of Black Fate, she had already avoided serious injury.
Feeling the stinging sensation on her skin, Lagnis reined in her drifting consciousness.
-Swipe.
She touched her neck near where the slave brand should have been.
The burned scar was still palpable beneath her fingertips.
"....”
She had managed to avoid showing it to the villagers, but it was something she needed to be constantly cautious about.
In this world, revealing that she had been a slave wouldn't do her any good.
Even after that, the Village Chief's consideration continued.
He wrapped bandages over her shallow wounds and collected her dirty clothes for washing.
Now, clean and refreshed, Lagnis had regained some of her former beauty.
"If you've come to this village following the Lord God's guidance, you must have a grand purpose... But please, rest well today."
The Village Chief continued to worry about Lagnis's fatigue.
-Creak.
It was more modest than her dwelling in the Great Forest, but Lagnis knew well enough to be grateful for this much.
The one-eared Elf stared blankly at the room, then walked as if mesmerized towards the bed and collapsed onto it with a *thud*.
The warm, soft sensation against her skin made her consciousness flicker, as if on the verge of shutting down.
"You look comfortable."
And someone caught Lagnis's fading consciousness, pulling it back to the surface.
"......."
She turned her head in a daze.
Her head was still buried in the bed.
The world was half-obscured by the pure white blanket.
Beyond it, a figure clad in black, wearing a black mask, sat on the floor, watching her.
A Grim Reaper? Oh, right.
In the succession of dreamlike situations, Lagnis's mind refused to grasp the reality.
However, her survival instincts, honed to a sharp edge, immediately whipped her mind into proper function.
"You can stay like that. You look incredibly tired."
"...Lord God."
Lagnis tried to move, her body like rusty machinery.
But faster than she could, the Master of Black Fate gently pushed her shoulder.
"...Ugh!"
"Ah, sorry."
Her entire body ached with muscle pain, so even a small impact made her wince.
"I just wanted to tell you to rest comfortably."
Guided by the Master of Black Fate, Lagnis buried herself deeper into the bed.
"I'm glad the village is taking good care of you. It would have been troublesome if they had reacted strangely."
The Master of Black Fate expressed relief.
A Constellation who personally checks on their Follower's condition—what profound care.
"......."
He had come to chat for a while, but conversing with Lagnis, already lost in comfort, proved difficult.
He even felt sorry for his Follower, who, with blurred vision and drooping eyelids, was forcing herself to look at him.
As a Constellation, he didn't realize it, but Lagnis had faced death multiple times.
The accumulated fatigue couldn't be dispelled by a mere day's rest.
"Pitiful."
The Master of Black Fate said, covering Lagnis's forehead with his hand.
A brief surge of Divine Power eased a considerable amount of her fatigue.
Now, she could no longer maintain consciousness.
Her eyelids fluttered, once, twice.
And then, they didn't open again.
"Hmm? Oh well, she must be exhausted. I should let her rest for now."
Left alone, the Master of Black Fate spoke to someone.
There were complicated circumstances that Lagnis wouldn't understand.
"Forget revenge for now; she needs to take care of herself first."
It seemed he had come too hastily.
The Master of Black Fate, whose true name was Ron, decided to grant Lagnis a bit more rest.
#
'I didn't think of that.'
Looking down at the sleeping Lagnis, I revised my plans.
I hadn't expected her to collapse in the middle of the day, but thinking back, it was a natural progression.
I postponed Lagnis's growth plan and decided to talk about the dungeon first.
[Black Sun's Incarnation: Do you really need to send your Followers?]
"...What?"
Before I could properly advertise the newly opened dungeon—
The Black Sun raised a question.
[Black Sun's Incarnation: It's a dungeon built using the power of Black Fate, but if a Follower bearing the Father God's symbol gets involved, it will definitely arouse suspicion.]
"Is that so?"
It wasn't like there was only one or two Religious Orders searching for dungeons; I thought it was a natural phenomenon.
Still, the mere presence of our Religious Order could raise suspicion.
The Black Sun's argument wasn't unreasonable.
"That's why I was going to use Lagnis."
[Black Sun's Incarnation: Followers of Black Fate can be used for more valuable tasks. So...]
They could be used for more valuable tasks.
The way they treated people like tools was typical, but their words hinted at some other plan, which worried me.
Things never ended well when other Constellations were involved.
[Black Sun's Incarnation: How about using our Followers?]
"...What?"
[Black Sun's Incarnation: With our Religious Order's image, you don't have to worry about damaging your image like you usually do.]
The Black Sun Cult, already reeking of shady dealings.
With Lagnis's debut postponed, the Black Sun had surprisingly made a decent suggestion.