Chapter 30
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I'll purchase divine power with money. Chapter 30 "Right now, what did you just...."
Lute's voice trembled finely. It was that same voice when he first escaped from pain thanks to the sacred artifact.
"I'll look for a way to achieve complete recovery. Truth be told, continuously carrying the sacred artifact is dangerous, isn't it? If it gets lost or destroyed, the pain will return."
"...."
"And I need to receive a blessing from you every month. What if circumstances prevent me from receiving it?"
Lute's hand trembled slightly, as if he too had harbored this very concern.
"That's why the illness must be cured perfectly. You'll gain complete freedom from pain."
"A cure is possible? There's truly a way to achieve complete recovery?"
Lute was trembling far more now than when he'd grasped the sacred artifact as his lifeline. Indeed, it had only been recently that he obtained a method to erase his pain. His expression—one that harbored no hope whatsoever of completely curing the illness—was truly pitiful.
"After the Duke left the Temple, I've been thinking continuously. First, there's that blemish on his body that only I, as the Sun God's Saintess, can see."
The black blemish's intensity had certainly diminished since I last observed it. However, the number of blemishes hadn't decreased significantly. They were merely suppressed. If he removed the sacred artifact, those blemishes would reactivate immediately.
"And the pain that vanished as if washed away the moment I placed the sacred artifact—imbued with my blessing—around his neck."
"...Ah."
"Perhaps with the Sun God's divine power—specifically my power as the Saintess—I might be able to completely cure the Duke's illness."
After saying that much, I hastily added another line, worried he might become too dependent solely on my divine power.
"Of course, it could fail, but given the current circumstances, this seems the most promising possibility."
In fact, the original work contains Idella's inner monologue suggesting that the Sun God's divine power might have been able to cure his illness. However, at that time, Lute's body was so severely corrupted that treatment ultimately proved impossible. But now? As long as he wears the healing sacred artifact imbued with my blessing around his neck, the possibility of him transforming into a villain is extremely low. This world had become completely different from the world of "The Holy Idella," so I believed his cure was entirely possible.
"Immediate treatment is impossible. If it were, I'd cure him on the spot, become his clear benefactor, and extract everything I could...."
Then I would have demanded 10 billion—that is, 100,000 gold—as the treatment fee. With that alone, everything would be solved. But what if I accepted payment upfront under the pretense of treating the illness? If I were to fail, I'd fear the consequences. I didn't want to take such a gamble.
"Truth is, for a Saintess, my abilities are quite lacking. That's why I need to recharge my blessings every month."
Since things had come to this, I simply laid all my cards on the table. After all, Lute couldn't betray me due to the blessing recharge, so I could trust him.
"The reason I'm still a Saintess is because my divine power grows stronger over time."
Of course, I'd add a bit of seasoning to it. Either way, it's not a lie, is it?
"It grows stronger?"
"Yes. Right now, I'm nowhere near the level of the Sea God's Saint and Sage, but that's only for now. Someday, I'll definitely surpass them both."
In the original work, Idella herself had been stronger than the Sea God's Saint and Sage. Once I achieve 100% divine power, I'll gain strength that won't fall short of anyone. Of course, unless ten billion falls from the sky, I'll never actually reach 100%.
"If that time comes, I'll be able to cure your illness for certain."
If I fail, I'll just ask Idella to handle it.
"By the way, as my power grows stronger, the blessings will also grow stronger. Eventually, I'll be able to bestow blessings that last not just one month, but two or three months. That means you won't need to visit the Temple as frequently as you do now."
"...."
Lute, who had been gazing at me as if entranced, suddenly frowned. His expression looked full of dissatisfaction. What now? Did he still not believe me?
"...If you have doubts, there's nothing I can do about it. I can only explain it in words—I have no proof to show you."
If he really wouldn't believe me, I'd just propose a 7-to-3 split.... But absolutely not 6-to-4. Since falling out with Lute now would be troublesome not just for him but for us as well, I mumbled out a compromise. Right, I couldn't very well cut open the belly of the goose that laid the golden egg just to earn a few extra coins right now.
"...If I insist on a 6-to-4 split, will you simply abandon treating my illness even if you find a way to cure it?"
After a long silence, Lute asked. Could he really ask something so bluntly like this? I looked at Lute, then at the ceiling, then at the floor, my gaze wandering back and forth for a while. Then I finally clenched my fists and spoke as if spitting out the words.
"...I wouldn't do that."
If Lute were a villain beyond saving at this point, I would've squeezed everything out of him without caring whether he lived or died. All I'd learned from living as a detective was that there was no need to give chances to those who deliberately committed the worst crimes. Those bastards always took any chance given to them as permission to commit crimes again. But Lute was different now. In fact, thanks to the help he'd given, everyone at the Temple of the Sun God had eaten well for the first time in a long while. We could find joy in eating quality food. When I thought about it, I wasn't his only salvation—he was our salvation too. How could I turn my back on him? Ah, right. Trying to raise the percentage by wagering his life was a bit too much.
"I was wrong to use treatment as a bargaining chip. I apologize."
Since it seemed we'd continue as business partners anyway, there was no point in both of us being upset, so I decided to back down.
"...You hold a certain weapon in your hands, yet you don't even think of wielding it."
Lute, who had been staring at me with an unreadable expression, murmured. Why was he saying such strange things again?
"Well, a weapon is only a weapon depending on what it is. Something like this can't be a weapon, so I don't wield it."
Would I really be mad enough to wield a treatment method that involved someone's life as a weapon? At my bewilderment, Lute let out a short laugh. He seemed both absurd and angry, yet somehow also amused. I couldn't read his emotions at all. Indeed, he was no longer just a character in a novel—he was a living, breathing person standing before me.
"...I understand. Then let's compromise with a 7-to-3 split. And this is a modest advance payment I've prepared."
Lute withdrew a pouch from his breast pocket.
"My goodness. Your Grace is truly the perfect business partner."
An advance payment—I hadn't even considered such a thing. There was no reason to refuse, so I promptly accepted the pouch. How much could it contain? 【3,000 gold.】 "...."
I'd merely hoped it might be around 100 million, given his generous nature, but what fell into my hands was none other than a staggering 300 million, 3,000 gold. Good heavens, and here I was about to haggle over his life as if he were some common commodity. Ah, I should reflect on myself.
"...I shall keep any weapons I wield carefully concealed. Thank you, Your Grace. I love you, Your Grace."
"Feel free to love me as much as you wish. I'm as generous in spirit as I am handsome in face."
Of course, how could it be otherwise? In any case, everything you say is right. As I giggled and rubbed my face against the pouch containing 3,000 gold, Lute burst into laughter. It was the most genuinely delighted smile I'd seen from him yet. * * * A few days later, the two alchemists that Lute and Monica had each found arrived at the Temple of the Sun God. It was quite remarkable, really. Standing in the Reception Room facing the two alchemists, my eyes widened. One was a man with tousled chestnut hair and mischievous orange eyes. The other was a man with jet-black straight hair and stubborn green eyes hidden behind spectacles. The former had been found by Monica, the latter by Lute, and their images were so completely opposite that one might think they'd been deliberately paired.
"First, might I ask your names?"
At my question, the chestnut-haired man responded as if he'd been waiting for it.
"Zenric Ruan. A twenty-nine-year-old alchemist recognized by all as a genius. When it comes to creativity, the foundation of alchemy, that's me!" ...He certainly exudes confidence. Whether he's truly a genius or merely a self-proclaimed one remains to be seen.
"Creativity?"
"Abbreviating commonly used manufacturing methods, or discovering entirely new alchemical creation techniques that didn't previously exist. Those are my specialties!"
So he's skilled at adaptation and innovation, then. If genuine, he was certainly worthy of Monica bringing him here. Our goal is to develop new potions by combining divine power with alchemy, after all. Next came the introduction of the black-haired man.
"Wolfgang Schmidt. My specialty is formulating alchemical creation formulas. When I heard you were creating new potions by combining divine power with alchemy, I became interested and applied."
Ah, so Wolfgang specializes in establishing formulas, while Zenric specializes in applying them. I see. How on earth did they manage to find two people whose appearances and specialties are so perfectly opposite? If they work well together, the synergy could be extraordinary—my heart was already racing with anticipation.
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