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A goat bleated softly and ate the grass.
“My, you're eating well.”
Priest Marid beamed. He had just come down to the hut to feed the goats as Iris had requested.
According to Iris, the goats would have been starving since yesterday evening, but looking at the devastated patch of grass within the radius where they were tied, it didn't seem to be the case.
But that was that, and this was this; the goats ate the grass Priest Marid had cut quite well.
Feeling proud, Priest Marid straightened his back and looked around. The wheat field in front of the hut was entirely golden.
It seemed it was time to harvest the wheat. He decided he should suggest harvesting it tomorrow.
As he turned around, Priest Marid said, “Oh, right,” and went back inside the hut.
“Now let's see, the lizard.”
It wasn't just the goats that Iris had asked for. Had she said a pink lizard was sleeping in a cage?
Priest Marid found the cage without much difficulty.
“Is it you? Sir Norwich keeps strange things, doesn't he?”
A pink lizard. It was actually an axolotl, but to Priest Marid, it looked like nothing else, and the creature flicked its tongue.
“Let's see. What do lizards eat?”
He doubted it was grass. Iris had said he could give it pieces of bread, but Priest Marid was a naturalist.
A lizard, of all things. How could it have grown up eating bread?
After some deliberation, he went outside and caught a grass insect. Being clumsy, he naturally got a scratch on the back of his hand while catching the bug.
He offered the insect to the lizard in the cage, but lo and behold, the lizard didn't react.
“Have you developed a refined palate from being fed only delicious things by Iris?”
The pink lizard was quite cute.
“I thought all lizards looked sinister, but you are very cute! Try eating this!”
Of course, just because it was cute didn't mean its eating habits were uncomplicated. But Priest Marid was persistent.
The indifferent lizard eventually flicked the insect away with its tail as if annoyed.
“Ah!”
Just as Priest Marid scrambled to catch the bug again, the lizard climbed onto the back of the priest's hand.
Then, flicking its tongue, it licked a drop of blood on the back of his hand—whether by chance or not.
Priest Marid was momentarily flustered, but the lizard was faster.
For some reason, the lizard made a few gestures of spitting something out, almost like a human. Then it quickly climbed down from the priest's hand and scaled the wall up a pillar.
“Oh dear, what to do with that thing.”
However, Priest Marid had no talent for climbing pillars. The more he reached out, the further the lizard fled. It couldn't be helped.
Since it was a lizard accustomed to human hands, he believed it wouldn't go too far. Iris had also said, ‘Please don't be surprised even if the cage door is open!’
It probably lived free-range. Priest Marid thought nothing of it and walked out of the hut.
“That's strange.”
But why? As he walked up toward the monastery, a strange smell wafted. It smelled like rotten eggs.
Priest Marid sniffed and realized belatedly that the smell was coming from his own hand.
“Eek.”
He let out a flustered laugh.
‘They say the smell of sulfur is similar to rotten eggs.’
It was said that the smell of sulfur always lingered where demons appeared.
Indeed, a strong smell of sulfur had wafted from the carcass of the magical beast Rahan had slain yesterday.
He must have been so flustered and hurried yesterday that the stench of the magical beast had seeped into his sleeves.
‘Or maybe it's because I spoke ill of Priest Vera.’
Early yesterday morning, Priest Marid had been utterly appalled by Priest Vera's arrogant attitude.
In the end, unable to let go of his anger, he had cursed Priest Vera internally so much.
He had cursed her to fall in the privy, and then he had to offer a prayer of repentance to Eridrahan from early morning.
But that woman deserves to at least fall in the privy. No matter how serious the Potato Blight is, how is that the fault of Iris and her husband?
Muttering this, Priest Marid suddenly startled and drew the symbol of Eridrahan over his chest.
“Oh my, I must be possessed by a demon…. Forgive me, O Eridrahan.”
Nevertheless, the sulfur smell did not fade.
As he sniffed his fingertips, thinking the smell was there too, Priest Marid encountered Riet at the main gate of the monastery. The knight of the Grand Duchy.
“Oh, Sir Riet. You look absolutely terrible.”
“Ah, good morning, Priest Marid.”
“It's not morning, it's lunch….”
Marid looked Riet over with a weary face. For good reason, Riet was practically drenched in black blood.
Furthermore, a massive smell of sulfur wafted from her. It was because she had disposed of the magical beast carcass Rahan had killed.
However, Riet was cheerful.
“Why are you smelling your fingers? Did you pick your nose?”
“Oh. What a waste, Sir Riet! I just picked a booger so enormous it would have been recorded in the history of the Empire, but it flew away!”
The priest and the knight chuckled. Marid knew well that disposing of carcasses was grueling labor.
In times like this, playing along with a joke was the only way to be helpful.
“It seems you haven't slept much either, Sir Riet.”
“Well, disposing of that magical beast carcass took much longer than expected.”
Most magical beasts occur because they accidentally swallow contaminated Mana Stones from a hundred years ago, or because of the remnants of contamination.
Thanks to that, the carcasses of magical beasts do not rot easily. It is because of the Mana Core inside them.
If left in the ground, they contaminate the surroundings, so it was important to extract the core and burn it properly.
Perhaps because of that, Riet's face looked ridiculously tired.
“You've worked hard. Both Sir Norwich and Sir Riet.”
Priest Marid offered his gratitude to Riet with sincerity.
As of yesterday, he had significantly revised his evaluation of Rahan.
It was true that when Rahan kidnapped Iris to marry her, he had thought of him as nothing more than an arrogant knight of the Grand Duchy. That was why he had said threatening things to Rahan.
Still, he had endured it because Rahan was at least better than that Philod Ahen.
‘I didn't know he would save Iris like that.’
Any human tends to protect themselves when their own life is at stake.
When Iris returned to the monastery covered in blood, Priest Marid had been absolutely horrified.
But upon closer inspection, Iris only had a few scratches. It was the result of Rahan pushing her into the bushes and fighting the battle entirely on his own.
‘The world is full of bastards who use the powerless as shields just to save their own skins.’
Of course, the biggest reason was likely that Iris was the heir to the House of Ahen.
Yet, for some reason, Marid liked Rahan. The fact that Iris had stood up to Priest Vera also played a part.
She had always been such a kind child, unable to speak her mind firmly to others, yet here she was, talking back to protect Rahan Norwich.
To Priest Marid, who cherished Iris and felt sorry for her, this was a quite welcome change.
‘I like him.’
“What about the remaining corpses?”
“The priests said they would take care of them.”
As she spoke, Riet pointed beyond. Priests with pale faces could be seen lifting and moving parts of the magical beast's carcass. Marid gasped.
“No matter how many times I see it, it is enormous. I have great respect for Sir Rahan.”
“I’m baffled myself.”
Riet grinned.
“I knew our captain was a monster, but I didn't know he was this much of a monster.”
Was that a compliment or an insult? While Priest Marid was confused, Riet asked again.
“Is the captain awake?”
“Ah. Sir Norwich woke up a moment ago and has been moved to the Sanctuary.”
“The Sanctuary?”
Marid proudly explained that Abbot Wilbert had stated the hero who saved the monastery and Vandel village from the giant magical beast was worthy of entering the Sanctuary.
Furthermore, he informed her that the Sanctuary was a hot spring where holy water welled up to aid in healing, and that it was a place used by an Emperor from several generations ago.
However, Riet's reaction was unexpected.
“A hot spring? Oh ho….”
“Wh-why is that?”
Priest Marid tilted his head at the ambiguous reaction. Riet grinned. Pushing a newlywed couple into a hot spring.
“Abbot Wilbert is quite the player.”
He was impressive for a priest.
Of course, Priest Marid had no way of knowing what Riet meant. He simply tilted his head with a puzzled expression.
Naturally, Riet had no intention of telling this innocent priest just how profane the events occurring in that place called the Sanctuary were likely to be.
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