Chapter 34
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I'll purchase divine power with money.
Chapter 34
"Genric? Are you alright?"
When I casually asked, Genric scrambled to his feet.
"...No, I'm not alright. I think I need to go check on something right now. I believe my problem might be solved."
Divine power. Yes, it was divine power. If I use that....
He muttered something under his breath before suddenly jumping up and rushing off without so much as a goodbye. He was heading toward the Potion Creation Workshop.
"...It seems I may have given him quite the answer to his troubles?"
"It appears rest was indeed the solution."
Rather than point out his rudeness, we chose to celebrate his problem being solved.
Now the only thing left was my own dilemma....
Wait. Now that I think about it, what did Genric say earlier?
A flower imbued with divine power.... And he said you could 'use' it, didn't he?
"That's right. Why didn't I think of that?"
If I had solved Genric's problem, then he had just solved mine.
Yes, that method existed!
A way to infuse blessings into potions while keeping my abilities hidden from Airic Dert!
* * *
The study of the Sheary Duchy Mansion.
Lute Sheary was alone, having dismissed his adjutant Yuri Polton.
Yuri had complained loudly about the remaining work that needed to be done, but there was something more urgent at hand, so I kicked him out.
"I wonder how it will be."
Lute Sheary fingered the sacred object he hadn't removed from his neck even once in a month.
That's right. Today marked exactly one month since receiving the sacred object from Saint Ordel Kiris, and it was the day the blessing's duration expired.
Even knowing he needed to receive the blessing again, he hadn't gone to the Temple of the Sun God.
There was something he needed to verify first.
'Is it time?'
Lute Sheary waited without removing the sacred object.
A few minutes later, the moment he had anticipated arrived with perfect precision.
"...Ha!"
A bitter laugh escaped him. From his clenched fists and gritted teeth, an emotion neither anger nor exhilaration leaked through.
A heart withering in agony, needles piercing his lungs with every breath—this terrible, familiar pain!
The suffering that had tormented him for twenty years began to grip him once more.
"...Damn it."
Because he still wore the sacred object, only the blessing had vanished; the pain itself was comparatively bearable compared to before.
But now he knew.
A body without any pain, an ordinary life without suffering.
How could he ever return to what was before, now that he had tasted such sweetness?
"At least you didn't lie to me about this."
The pain radiating from his heart seemed to strike through the back of his neck and crash into his head.
Lute exhaled a sigh and leaned back in his chair.
"...Ah."
And then he felt it.
The warm sunlight pouring through the window right beside him.
Perhaps because he was wearing the Sun God's sacred relic, merely basking in the sunlight seemed to ease his pain more than before.
Ordel Kiris, whose title as the Sun God's Saintess hardly seemed to suit her.
Her words that the Saintess's blessing would be more effective than the sacred relic itself had proven true.
This proved that there was not a single lie among everything Ordel Kiris had said.
'...Then could I perhaps find a cure for this cursed illness someday?'
He had been grateful merely for the pain to disappear.
But now that hope had kindled for the first time—that he might be able to completely cure this illness—greed stirred within him.
It was something he had never once considered before....
For the first time in his life, he felt the desire to trust another person.
"I've been completely played."
Not only did he need to receive a blessing every month, but this person held the very key to curing his illness in her hands.
It was hardly an exaggeration to say she had his heart firmly in her grasp.
Yet something felt strange.
At any other time, being completely at another's mercy would have irritated and frustrated him greatly....
But instead, this very moment didn't feel so bad.
In fact, it almost felt enjoyable.
He found himself curious about Ordel Kiris's next move, unable to predict even a step ahead.
So he had to go now.
Besides, he had a reason to go anyway.
"Yuri!"
Having made his decision, Lute sprang from his seat and raised his voice.
As if Yuri Polton had been waiting, he opened the door and entered without having heard the instruction to stay away.
I knew it.
"Prepare yourself. We're going to the Sun God's Temple."
"Yes? Again?"
Yuri Polton, who had entered confidently carrying a stack of documents, widened his eyes at Lute's command.
"This time the Saintess didn't even send a letter asking to see you, so why suddenly now?"
"Why? Because I want to see her. Shouldn't the one who misses someone go find them?"
Rustle, rustle....
Shocked by Lute's words, Yuri Polton dropped the entire stack of documents he was holding.
Though the office floor was now completely covered in white papers, Lute paid no mind and put on his overcoat.
"W-w-you're not planning to go right now, are you?!"
"If you don't want to go, I'll leave you behind. You're not particularly useful anyway, so you don't have to come. Stay here and handle the work instead."
Lute roughly trampled the scattered documents underfoot and pushed past the dumbfounded Yuri Polton, heading out of the office.
Yuri Polton came to his senses belatedly and hurried after him.
"Wait, useless?! I'll come with you!"
Whether or not I cared, I ordered a passing servant to prepare the carriage at once—I was going out.
Though the command came abruptly, the servant, accustomed to my eccentricities, carried it out without so much as a flicker of surprise.
Thanks to that, my preparations were completed in a flash.
I leaned back leisurely against the specially cushioned seat—modified far beyond a standard carriage to accommodate my condition—and hummed a cheerful tune.
Yuri Polton, seated across from me, was beginning to regard me with increasingly peculiar eyes, but I paid it no mind.
How strange it was.
Just moments before, the pain that resumed the instant the blessing faded had been utterly unbearable.
Yet now, it wasn't so terrible at all.
Or rather, to be precise, my elation and excitement were offsetting the pain entirely.
I smiled contentedly and closed my eyes.
The soft sunlight pouring across my face felt wonderful.
* * *
In my second life, I hadn't expected time to pass so quickly.
Yet somehow, time in this life seemed to flow even faster than in my previous one.
A month had already slipped away, and now the man sat before me once again, making it feel all the more true.
"You're a bit late," I said.
Lute Sheary.
At his arrival, I quickly counted off the days.
The date itself marked exactly one month since receiving the sacred relic, though the time was somewhat later than expected.
Unlike his previous visit in the morning, it was now late afternoon, with the sun beginning its descent.
"I deliberately waited to confirm the effects of my blessing."
It was obvious without even asking.
"Yes, that's right."
Lute Sheary admitted it readily, as expected.
"Shouldn't these things be verified properly? Besides, I needed to confirm what happens when the blessing fades."
His reasoning was sound, but something felt... off.
Why had he been smiling so contentedly this whole time?
In the original story, he smiled often enough, but only when mocking others, dismissing them, looking down on them, or scorning them.
Yet here he was, smiling despite none of those circumstances being present.
It was genuinely unsettling.
"Are you... unhappy because it's become clear you'll need to receive the blessing every month?"
No matter how I thought about it, this didn't seem like a smile born of happiness, so I explained carefully.
"As I mentioned before, as my abilities increase, the blessing's duration extends as well. It may be impossible now, but I'll certainly extend it soon, so don't worry."
I'd delayed my offerings to invest in the potion business, but once the business truly launched, my divine power would grow rapidly.
So in roughly three months, I could definitely resolve this...
Yet for some reason, Lute Sheary's expression didn't brighten—his smile vanished entirely.
His smiling face had been unpleasant, but this stern expression wasn't much better.
"I was really looking forward to seeing you, but it seems you weren't looking forward to seeing me."
"..."
What kind of nonsense was this?
I nearly let out a sound at such an absurd remark.
"Ah, that's right. You only want to see my money, don't you, Saint?"
"...."
"You're not denying it... Am I really only useful because I have money?"
Damn. I'd been caught.
Since Lute Sheary was our valued customer, I quickly shook my head before his mood could worsen further.
"That's not it at all. Absolutely not."
Then Lute Sheary broke into a radiant smile and said....
"Ah yes, our Saint also finds my face quite appealing, doesn't she?"
-he said.
I was going mad. This capriciousness was utterly unbearable.
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