Chapter 142
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I'll Purchase Divine Power with Money
Chapter 142
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I obediently remained inside the tent as Lute Sheary had demanded.
Not long after, Karen Boreo, who had attended to me before, entered.
"High Priestess? Why are you sitting like that?"
She looked flustered upon seeing me crouched in the corner of the tent.
Lute had told me to stay here, but she hadn't said to make myself comfortable.
My conscience pricked at me for acting so freely without my usual caution.
"Hello, Karen."
"Please come over here. I've brought you a meal."
"Don't worry about me. I'm fine going without food."
"Going without? Absolutely not. The Duke himself ordered me to ensure you eat properly."
Even in her anger, she was bringing me food. She really was a good person.
I stopped refusing and sat down at the table.
A perfectly cooked steak, warm stew, fresh fruit salad, and soft bread.
It was an extravagantly luxurious meal for a military encampment in the midst of battle.
"I could manage with just a piece of bread."
"The High Priestess specifically ordered me to watch until you finish everything."
Karen's eyes widened with determination.
Since Lute had commanded it, I had no choice but to take a bite of the steak.
"This is delicious!"
Thanks to the excellent chef hired on the recommendation of Count and Countess Hindel, the quality of meals at the Temple of the Sun God had improved tremendously recently.
But Lute Sheary's personal chef was even more skilled than that.
I'd never tasted food this delicious before.
"If you'd like more, please don't hesitate to ask. Would wine be acceptable as a beverage?"
"Oh, no. Alcohol is... just water is fine."
Now that I thought about it, I'd been quite the drain on Lute's expensive wine while playing the role of High Priestess. I should have been more restrained.
But that wine had been so delicious...
"By the way, Karen, has the Duke mentioned anything to you? About me, perhaps...?"
"No. He only instructed me to serve you well."
He still hadn't revealed that I'd left the Temple of the Sun God.
Rather than immediately exposing the truth and casting me out, he was keeping his loyalty.
"The Duke will be busy with arrangements tonight and won't return. So please don't wait for him and rest comfortably."
"Ah, then...?"
"Not in a corner, not on a chair—in the bed. Understood?"
The moment Karen left, I was about to crouch in the corner again, but how did she know?
"If you're in a corner, I'll be scolded. So please sleep in the bed."
"I will."
I couldn't let Karen be punished because of me.
After the meal ended, Karen left with a few words telling me to get some proper rest, taking the empty dishes with her.
The moment I was alone, I immediately activated the map system.
"Mark the remaining monsters for me."
Red dots appeared across the map.
The number of monsters had noticeably decreased from before. It seemed the subjugation efforts were continuing even now.
That must be why Lute Sheary couldn't sleep at night.
"Should I go help?"
Then she wouldn't need to stay up all night.
Having made my decision, I immediately stood up and pushed through the tent flap covering the entrance.
"Good evening, High Priestess."
Yuri Polton, standing before me, grinned widely at the sight of me.
"Now I can finally give you a proper greeting."
"Count Polton, what are you doing here?"
"I've been protecting the High Priestess! This is a dangerous place, after all."
If he'd seen me kill that intermediate-level monster, he wouldn't have said such a thing.
Yuri Polton was the type to rely on strategy and cunning, not raw power. I could stake the Sun God's own fingernails that I was stronger than him.
【The 'Sun Crawling from Death' protests, questioning why it has to be his fingernails specifically.】
I ignored the Sun God's complaints.
"Where are you going?"
"Ah, well...."
"But if possible, it would be best if you stayed inside. The Duke ordered me to make absolutely certain you don't go anywhere!"
That's not protection—that's surveillance.
"If I disobey orders, only I will face the consequences, so please, couldn't you just stay inside?"
Yuri Polton's expression became pitifully earnest.
Seeing that look, I knew he was sincere. Lute Sheary really must have threatened him.
In the end, I had no choice but to turn back obediently.
"I just hope she doesn't get hurt."
I lay down on the bed and activated the map system, staring intently at it.
Even in this very moment, the number of monsters was steadily decreasing.
Lute Sheary and the Duchy Knight Order's abilities truly were remarkable.
Still, given how special Lute Sheary's body was, I couldn't afford to let my guard down.
I never took my eyes off the map.
If anything went wrong, I'd take Yuri Polton and rush out immediately.
Boom!
"Huh."
A loud sound from somewhere jolted my eyes open.
But something felt wrong.
"...Why is it so bright outside?"
It was definitely night just moments ago—could I have fallen asleep?
I'd made up my mind to wait until Lute Sheary returned.
I scratched my head vigorously and let out a sigh.
What time is it now, anyway?
【The current time is 10 o'clock in the morning.】
...10 o'clock? My last memory was around midnight, wasn't it?
I slept for ten hours straight.
This was the first time since I'd crashed after five days of surveillance duty.
Well, it made sense—I'd ridden for hours and even fought monsters, so exhaustion was inevitable.
I hastily combed my disheveled hair with my fingers and tied it back, then stepped outside.
"You're awake?"
Unlike yesterday, Karen stood before me.
"Is something wrong? I heard a loud noise."
"The Duke has returned."
"Now? Did he really stay up all night hunting monsters?"
"Yes."
I reactivated the map that had turned off while I slept.
All the red dots that had remained plentiful until last night had vanished completely.
He really did handle them all in a single night.
"I'll bring breakfast, so please wait inside."
"No, I'll wash up quickly and go meet the Duke."
"Then I'll fetch washing water for you."
Karen pushed me inside despite my insistence on going to wash myself, then returned shortly with the water.
I washed hastily and headed toward where Lute was.
The wide ground near the encampment was piled high with monster corpses.
Knights and servants gathered to dismember the monsters, harvesting magical stones and materials for equipment.
"Duke."
Lute stood to one side, observing the scene.
His armor, stained from the night-long battle, was smeared with monster fluids.
"Are you hurt anywhere?"
I examined his body thoroughly.
I'd handled the poisonous one myself, but I couldn't be too careful.
As long as Lute carried the stain of Evil, I couldn't let my guard down.
But the fluids caked on his body and his armor made it impossible to see if there were wounds underneath.
"Wait a moment."
Lute stopped me and used a cleansing spell to wipe away everything coating his body.
"I am hurt."
With his body now clean, Lute stepped closer and extended his hand, revealing a small cut on his right index finger.
"Be more careful."
I clicked my tongue and quickly grasped Lute's hand, channeling healing energy into it.
I also discreetly checked to see if there were any other wounds.
"Ah, I'm sorry."
Feeling Lute Sheary's steady gaze fixed upon me, I hastily withdrew my hand.
"I'll be more careful going forward."
She's no longer the High Priestess, so I shouldn't treat her with such familiarity—yet the habit had become far too ingrained.
"Why are you keeping your distance?"
But Lute Sheary grasped my hand again.
"Because I'm no longer the High Priestess, I have no right to such intimacy."
Lute Sheary's face contorted sharply, and I heard the sharp click of her tongue.
"Enough of this talk about rights and qualifications. Have you eaten breakfast?"
"No. I just woke up. I was so exhausted I collapsed into sleep."
"Good. Then let's eat together."
Lute Sheary walked forward with long strides, still holding my hand.
She showed no intention of releasing it, so I simply let her be.
"You should have taken me along when you went to subjugate the monsters."
Upon arriving at her encampment, Lute Sheary asked my permission before removing her armor piece by piece.
Fortunately, there appeared to be no additional wounds.
"You saw me defeat that intermediate-class monster myself. I can purify as well, so I would have been helpful."
"I actually wanted to ask you about that."
Now free of her armor and dressed more comfortably, Lute Sheary turned to face me.
"How did you end up fighting an intermediate-class monster? Did you encounter it by chance?"
"...."
"Surely you didn't know there was an intermediate-class monster there and go deliberately."
But I did know.
Since it was venomous and could injure others, I wanted to dispose of it quickly before anyone else got hurt.
"...You went on purpose."
Accepting my silence as confirmation, Lute Sheary let out a hollow laugh.
Her expression was gradually darkening with anger again.
But—it was all for everyone's sake, especially for you.
"Ordel Kiris."
It was then that Lute Sheary called me by my name alone for the first time.
I had requested this, yet why did it sound so unfamiliar?
"You said you'd do as I wish, didn't you?"
"Yes, well?"
"As payment for deceiving me, you said you'd accept whatever I demanded."
"That's true, but...."
"Fine. I've decided. Come with me to the Duke's Residence."
This cannot be happening.
My mouth fell open at her words.
Lute Sheary was so furious that she was going to lock me away in the Duke's Residence Prison!
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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