Chapter 6: The Mage Struck the Saint

About a dozen people lay in front of the hastily erected aid station.

People with missing arms, missing legs.

Though their injuries varied, all were serious enough to be life-threatening.

Other minor injury patients waited in line, receiving treatment when their turn came.

Blue divine power blossomed from the clergy's hands, filling in flesh and reattaching torn skin.

It was truly a miracle of God, inexplicable by modern science.

However, the process wasn't as smooth as it appeared.

The act of healing someone with divine power was accompanied by significant physical exertion.

The more severe the wound, the more divine power was needed, so fatigue was evident on the faces of those treating not only the critically injured but also those with minor injuries.

And the same was true for the Saint.

Sweat beaded on her forehead, and rough breaths escaped her lips.

Still, she didn't rest.

True to her title as Saint, she sacrificed her own body to heal patients.

The problem was that her healing was futile.

"Please, please...!"

Golden divine power blossomed from the Saint's hands.

It was a pure and noble color granted only to the Saint.

Befitting her alias as God's proxy, the Saint's divine power had incomparable performance compared to other clergy.

People said it was a power that could even save those on the brink of death.

Even Franz, who disliked the Saint, had to agree with this statement.

After all, it was none other than the Saint who had saved him when he was facing death during the battle with the Demon King.

However, that was limited to those who were dying.

Even God's proxy couldn't bring back those who were already dead.

"Why on earth...!"

The divine power that blossomed from the Saint's hands scattered without being absorbed into the patient's body.

In other words, the patient had already passed away.

The surrounding clergy already knew this.

Only the Saint, alone, couldn't accept reality.

The Saint couldn't give up.

Time and time again, she summoned divine power.

Sweat dripped from her forehead.

Drops of blood formed and fell from her nose.

The clergy tried to dissuade the Saint, but they couldn't intervene forcefully.

After all, it was unthinkable for a mere believer to question the actions of God's proxy.

So it fell to Franz.

He had been with the hero party for a long time.

Above all, his willingness to argue without restraint gave the clergy confidence.

Franz, feeling all eyes on him, rubbed his forehead.

Thinking, 'Why can't things ever go smoothly?'

'I can understand to some extent.'

Wasn't a Saint, by definition, someone who sacrificed themselves to help others?

Her current actions were close to a desperate attempt to save someone, so it couldn't be called bad.

The problem was that this ideology had taken too deep a root.

Ideals remain ideals precisely because they can't be realized.

Haah-.

Franz took a step forward with a deep sigh.

It wouldn't do to ignore the clergy's expectant gazes.

Soon, Franz's hand grasped the Saint's shoulder.

"That's enough. You know it's not working, don't you?"

"...I can do it."

The Saint summoned divine power once again.

However, the brilliantly blossoming golden light scattered into the air, having nowhere to go.

Franz furrowed his brow.

Was she insisting on her own stubbornness when not just one or two, but several people had already said the same thing?

Words were no longer enough.

Franz grabbed the Saint's arm and forcibly lifted her up.

The Saint struggled and shook off Franz's arm.

Her eyes, bloodshot with burst capillaries, turned sharply towards Franz.

"You, what do you know to interfere?! Do you want to take more lives? Why are you so desperate to kill others?!"

"Is it my fault that person died? And I'd prefer to leave an idiot like you alone if possible, you know? But if you want that, at least don't cause trouble for others."

"How can you give up so easily? Are lives unrelated to you that meaningless? If you're going to weigh lives like that, why don't you become God?! Fine!! Then I guess I'll die soon! My life must be lighter than a feather to you!"

Slap-!

Unable to bear it any longer, Franz struck the Saint's cheek.

The Saint's head turned at an incredible speed.

"S-Saint?!" "Are you alright?!"

Surprised voices of the clergy were heard from all around.

The Saint was considered the most noble being in the Goddess Church.

Naturally, when such a person was slapped, murmurs began to spread around.

However, these sounds didn't reach Franz's ears, filled with anger.

The Saint turned her head to glare at Franz.

Then, ptui-, she spat out a small white object.

It was a tooth.

Franz flinched for a moment, but having come this far, he couldn't stop now.

Since he had already hit her, he might as well try to fix the Saint's mindset.

"Has some sense returned to you? When others speak, try to understand reasonably. Stop being so stubborn."

The Saint bit her lower lip and clenched her fist.

She didn't seem like someone who would back down for fear of being hit, but at least she appeared to have understood.

As silence began to linger between the two, Franz belatedly realized the situation.

Everyone, from the villagers to the clergy, was staring at them.

In the end, Franz, who had taken on the burden, found himself in an awkward situation.

Regardless of right or wrong, being the one at the center of attention was inherently uncomfortable.

Franz scratched his head unnecessarily and said.

"Clergy, please escort the Saint away. She seems tired."

"I, I...!"

"Just go and cool your head. I'll take care of things here."

The Saint couldn't say anything.

She knew better than anyone that her condition wasn't good.

Soon, the Holy Knights took the Saint away.

Franz watched them leave and reached into a small bag at his waist.

He wondered if it was right for a dispatched magician to go this far.

But since he was here, he might as well do something.

"Does everyone know about elixirs? If you drink one of these, new flesh will grow right away. This is no laughing matter. It's real."

Grape-flavored elixir.

It was an item secretly stolen from the Demon King's castle.

Effect: Full HP recovery.

There was also a cherry-flavored sister product.

* * * * *

On a hill overlooking the village.

The Saint gazed at the village panorama with unfocused eyes.

Most of the buildings had been repaired, but even so, it couldn't be said that the situation was good.

This sight reminded the Saint of her childhood.

A village where the only intact building was a small church.

The young Saint Yustia was with her parents then.

Yustia's father was a tenant farmer who rented land from a nobleman's territory, and the taxes were so heavy that a day's work couldn't feed the family for a day.

Even in such poverty, Yustia was happy.

Because she could be with her mother and father.

She could overcome mere hunger as much as needed.

Still, just in case, she went to church every day to pray.

Hoping that someday her prayers would reach heaven.

Goddess, please make our family happy-.

Goddess, please let our family eat many delicious things-.

Since the Goddess was said to watch over all in the world, surely she would grant the wish if it just reached heaven.

She was pure.

Just a child satisfied with eating delicious food with her family and being happy.

However, the world was not pure.

No, it was full of evil.

For Yustia, that day was a bit happier than usual.

Her mother had bought a small piece of meat with money earned from working at a restaurant.

Yustia tasted meat for the first time in her life.

Although it was of poor quality, and just a small piece in thin soup, the taste brought an involuntary smile to her face.

She was happy.

To be able to eat meat with her family.

However, that happiness didn't last long.

Unfortunately, some thieves lurking nearby attacked Yustia's house.

The Saint still vividly remembered that day.

"Yustia, keep your mouth tightly shut and don't come out no matter what happens."

Yustia followed her mother's words and hid in a small box. Tightly covering her mouth with clothes.

However, there was a small gap in the shabby wooden box.

Yustia watched everything outside through that small gap.

Outside, her mother gathered and hid the dishes Yustia had been eating from.

Meanwhile, her father's shout was heard.

"Y-You bastards! What are you doing! Ugh..."

The candlelight reflected off the sharp blade, flickering.

Red blood sprayed everywhere.

"P-Please spare me. I'll do anything you say."

The thieves roughly stripped off her mother's clothes, who was speaking desperately.

And after satisfying their desires, they stabbed her in the abdomen.

Tears flowed from her mother's eyes.

Blood gushed from her stomach.

The thieves' expressions were calm, without a trace of guilt.

As if such things were nothing out of the ordinary.

Yustia's whole body trembled.

Tears flowed from her eyes, and her shoulders heaved uncontrollably.

Nevertheless, she kept her promise to her mother.

She tightly covered her mouth and made no sound.

She was lucky.

The thieves, looking around for things to steal, left without opening the box.

They thought there wouldn't be anything worthwhile in the box, given how poor the place looked.

A long while after the thieves left the house.

Yustia carefully crept out of the box.

And ran to the church.

Of course, Yustia's parents were already dead by then, but how could the young Yustia know that?

She just ran, believing only that the clergy could heal wounds.

However, even when Yustia arrived at the church and pleaded earnestly, the clergy coldly refused.

Money.

It was because there was no money.

Even the Goddess Church's clergy didn't work for free.

In the end, she could do nothing.

She could only helplessly look at her parents' dead bodies.

She hated humans.

She hated those who took lives without remorse.

She disliked the clergy.

She disliked those who turned away despite someone seeking salvation.

Afterwards, Yustia grew up in an orphanage and went to church every day.

And she prayed.

Asking why they were left to die.

If God was omnipotent, why didn't He save them?

Cruelly enough, God gave power to such a Yustia.

It was the birth of a contradictory Saint who hated God but couldn't abandon those seeking salvation.

Anyway, that was why.

The reason the Saint couldn't give up on the woman whose life had ended.

Because she looked exactly like her mother.

The image of her mother dying before her eyes overlapped.

And once again, she could only watch.

The Saint looked up at the sky and thought.

Why did you give me this power?

That's when it happened.

Grrrr-.

A bizarre sound, like scraping metal, was heard from behind.

It was a monster.