Chapter 6
Tudel sat on the sofa in her personal research room, quietly continuing her thoughts.
Although it wasn't by choice, she had been observing Erpha closely for a long time.
Erpha was an expressionless witch who always deflected any criticism or attack flexibly and softly.
But yesterday was the first time she showed a glimpse of intense emotion.
The Saint of Healing.
And the hidden left side of her face.
She had probed on a hunch, and it seemed she was right.
But no matter how much she thought about it, something seemed odd.
"If half her face is distorted or injured, couldn't she just fix it with healing magic? Is there any reason to go through the trouble of meeting the Saint of Healing? Someone who might be a con artist?"
Erpha was a recognized master of body modification and healing magic. She was also well-versed in transformation magic.
Even if half her face was injured, couldn't she just heal it? Was there any reason to meet a saint?
"Is it a condition that can't be cured by ordinary healing magic? Something so serious that she needs to seek out a saint."
She slowly.
Searched through the vast knowledge in her head to recall if there was such a condition.
A condition that couldn't be treated by ordinary healing magic or body modification.
Suddenly, a thought flashed through her mind.
"Abomination."
Once every few hundred years.
Beings were born cursed from birth with horribly twisted parts of their bodies. There was a legend that such beings would bring great calamity.
It was said that their terrifying appearance, created by a powerful curse, could never be changed by magic or human effort.
Of course, this legend had now been proven to be a false rumor.
The true nature of abominations was a physical mutation caused by mana imbalance in the body that couldn't be treated by ordinary magic, potions, or miracles.
Now, everyone understood it as a rare disease that was difficult to treat, and no one believed anymore that the existence itself brought calamity as the work of a demon.
"Except for the White Order that serves Dullaneer, the God of Justice, that is."
The White Order was the empire's best demon-hunting group, but they were also famous for causing various problems with their outdated way of thinking.
Like carrying out burnings that violate imperial law.
Or trying to execute innocent citizens without trial by accusing them of being demon worshippers or evil god worshippers.
Nevertheless, they were also an order that rooted out and captured numerous demon worshippers and evil god worshippers every year, so the empire tended to try to clean up the incidents they caused as much as possible.
And of course.
The priests of the White Order also attend the regular academic conferences.
If I were to unmask that Erpha bitch there.
Wouldn't that be quite a sight?
"Erpha. You can look forward to it."
You must be dying of happiness at the thought of pushing aside my paper and being designated as the next Tower Master.
But it won't be long.
The day when your smile will be wiped away forever is not far off.
A joyful smile appeared on Tudel's lips for the first time in a long while.
***
"They said there's no such witch in the Magic Tower. I was told that you might be looking for a dark magician."
At the holy knight's words, I felt darkness descend before my eyes.
This was the worst-case scenario.
It would have been less frustrating if they had said she was in the Magic Tower but refused to meet me.
A dark magician was the worst of the worst.
How was I supposed to find a dark magician who thoroughly hid their identity?
Should I just say I saw the dark magician burning the world in a prophecy?
No.
Then I might get beaten or attacked before even going to heal her.
That would increase the chances of things blowing up even more.
In the end, waiting for the witch somewhere in the empire to hear about me and come find me was the most orthodox and safest method.
But now, I didn't have time to wait leisurely for that.
Because suddenly everyone started revering me as a saint of the goddess Lilia even though I had never even uttered the “Li” of Lilia, putting me on a time attack.
"Thank you for your hard work, Sir Knight. By any chance, do you know when the people from the Lilia Order will arrive in the capital?"
"Even the closest Lilia Order is quite far from the capital. Even if they come by train, it will take about 3 days."
3 days.
What are the chances that a dark magician witch with 4 arms will come looking for me within those 3 days?
If she was a dark magician, she'd be an extremely suspicious type, and I didn't think she'd resolve all her doubts and come looking for me in just 3 days. No way.
"Sir Knight, would it be possible to look into dark magicians then?"
"Our order has a register of heretics. There are records of those who have used evil dark magic."
"Could you check the register? Please look for the witch I mentioned there."
"It's possible, but... Saint, why are you trying so hard to find that witch?"
Because I'll die if I don't!!
The empire is about to be blown away!!
I couldn't say that.
If I said that, even if we found the witch, there was a risk that the holy knights would antagonize her and ruin everything.
"She's someone I need to heal."
"...I see."
The holy knight looked very moved by my words about healing even a dark magician.
"I'll go immediately and search the heretic register, Saint."
"Thank you."
After the holy knight disappeared again, I returned once more to the slums where people were swarming.
Having heard rumors about a saint appearing who gave free treatment, all kinds of people were endlessly lining up and waiting.
"Saint! My child…!!"
"Saint! My wife can't walk properly after giving birth! Please heal her!"
I kept healing and healing the people who came tirelessly, one by one without rest.
As I kept doing body modifications, I was getting more and more used to it and becoming more skilled.
Now, the speed of body modification had become much faster compared to the beginning.
How could there be so many sick people without end?
I continued to heal people while maintaining the most benevolent smile I could, without showing how tired I was to death.
In the midst of this, a father and daughter stood before me.
"Saint! Glory be to Lilia! My daughter is sick. Please heal her. She's so skinny and keeps coughing up blood..."
A man with a thin jaw said with a face full of sorrow.
"Bring me the child."
A young girl, so skinny she could barely walk, approached me.
Unusually, the child's entire skin was covered in dirty mud.
Without much thought, I placed my hand on the child's head to perform body modification again.
Huh?
As I watched the child's true body condition in 3D, hidden by the mud, something strange started to catch my eye.
There were marks on the skin from being whipped.
There were strange bruises on the arms and legs.
It looked like traces of being tied up with something hard like a rope.
And that thing inside the child's stomach...
That sloshing white thing.
It's indicated as male semen?
I stopped the body modification.
With such clear circumstances, I couldn't just stay quiet.
"Are you really this child's father?"
"Yes, I am, Saint."
"Do not utter lies before me! Speak only the truth! Are you really this child's father?"
As my voice rose, the holy knights and police officers beside me, as well as other poor people, started to turn their attention to me.
"I, I really am this child's father! Why else would I have come to the Saint?"
This bastard.
It's so obvious, yet he lies?
I guess I'll have to use another skill.
Since it would be troublesome if the skill got applied to the wrong place like last time with the time stop, I opened my eyes wide and burned with intense will to use the skill on the man in front of me.
[Using the Absolute Hypnosis skill!]
Fortunately, as a result.
The skill didn't go astray and was cast on the target I wanted.
"Tell the truth, not lies! Are you really this child's father?"
At my words, the man nodded with an expression that looked like he was dying of injustice.
"No, I'm not. I'm a human trafficker. This girl is someone I kidnapped from a nearby house a few days ago… hup!"
The man hurriedly covered his mouth with both hands, but it was already too late.
"Take your hands off and tell the truth. What did you do to this child?"
"I thought I might as well have some fun since I was going to sell her anyway, so I, I raped her, but then she suddenly started coughing up blood. I was worried because it would be troublesome if the goods were damaged before I could sell her, so when I heard about the Saint, I thought it would be good to get free treatment and came here like this… aaaaargh!"
The man started to run away.
But I had no intention of letting that happen.
Time stop.
I had already used it once.
I focused my mind on the inside of the man's body.
More precisely, I aimed for the heart area.
Although the control was still excessively unstable, fortunately, this time I was able to accurately.
Apply a localized time stop inside the man's heart.
The fleeing man clutched his heart and collapsed.
"Huuuurgh!! Kuhuurgh!! Uuuurgh!"
As the man collapsed and writhed in agony, only then did I lower my hand and release the skill.
"He's a criminal!! Catch him!"
"Take this guy away and interrogate him!!"
The police officers around me quickly rushed in to arrest him.
"Please spare me! Please spare me! I did this because I liked it! I'm doing this job because I love the taste of raping children...! Why, why? Why?? Why do I keep telling the truth???"
That’s because I put you under hypnosis, you bastard.
There was no need to interrogate him at the police station.
He'd just spill out the truth immediately when asked.
I turned my gaze away from the man being dragged away while spewing only truths unfavorable to himself, and placed my hand on the head of the skinny young girl who was barely standing.
"Don't worry, child."
Like with others, but this time with special care, I performed body modification on the young child.
In less than 3 minutes.
The young child returned from a body full of traces of malnutrition and beatings to a normal, fluffy, and cute appearance like an ordinary child.
After removing the mud that had been applied to the child's body to hide traces of beating and abuse, she now looked quite like an ordinary girl.
I didn't stop there.
I used the Absolute Hypnosis skill on the child once again.
"I'll make you forget the memories of being kidnapped. It will be better for your life not to have such dirty and disgusting memories."
Focusing my mind to barely grasp the skill that was trying to escape my control and apply it to the child, the child's eyes became dull for a moment before returning to normal.
"W-where is this? Who are you, mister?"
I gently stroked the young child's head.
Well, even though it's an adult game skill.
It's not bad when used like this.
I looked at the holy knight beside me.
"Please find this child's parents. And help them so they never lose her again."
Only after seeing the holy knight's face did I realize I had made a mistake.
The holy knight was crying.
"Glory to Lilia, the Goddess of Grace!"
"It's a saint!! An undoubtable saint!"
"Aah!! Save us with your grace!! Apostle of the Goddess!!"
The poor people around me were also crying and bowing.
Some were wailing.
Cold sweat flows involuntarily.
"I will follow your orders, Saint of Lilia."
"But I'm not affiliated with any specific order..."
The holy knight didn't even listen to my words and left with the young child, shedding tears of emotion like a waterfall.
I had to secretly shed cold sweat as I watched the departing holy knight and the shouting poor people.
Even though I had never even uttered the word Lilia, somehow I had become an undeniable heretic impersonating the goddess' saint.
The moment the people from the Lilia Order discovered that I wasn’t a believer of Lilia, I'd be burned at the stake for real, no joke, on charges of heresy.
Burning at the stake, damn it!
"Call the next person."
I continued to heal the poor while thinking to myself.
Please, quickly.
Tell me you've found a witch with 4 arms in the dark magician register! Hurry!