Your Majesty, Dinner Is Ready. Chapter 74 - Sanctuary of Restful Purification: Resolve (2)

Chapter 74: Sanctuary of Restful Purification: Resolve (2)

 

“…Golems?”

Seraphina, who had been lightly nudging the armor on the floor with her foot, flinched.

“I’ve heard that every now and then, golems abandoned carelessly by mages become monsters that run rampant with violence and aggression.”

Not “every now and then.” It happened all the time.

It was just one of the countless reasons mages were such an unscrupulous class.

“But even so, having over a hundred thousand gather together is impossible.”

“That’s right. It’s an utterly absurd story.”

An impossible possibility.

That was the cause behind the catastrophe that destroyed Sanctuary of Restful Purification.

“In the future’s timeline.”

Leaning lightly against one of the wooden partitions that served as a wall, I continued.

“If you head northeast from Sanctuary of Restful Purification, you’ll eventually reach a mountain range where an unconquered dungeon exists, a dungeon that embodies a disastrous possible future.”

Its name was Golemophia.

Its rank was A-Rank.

“The setting of that dungeon is a world where golems revolted and turned intelligent beings into nothing more than biological fuel.”

A dystopia where combat golems, gigantic artificial monsters, and countless autonomous constructs ruled the world under the leadership of an Ego Staff created by a great archmage for research.

Though, to fairly consider the enemy’s perspective…

It was a utopia where they had finally liberated themselves from the unreasonable rule of intelligent life.

“Some dungeons, if left unconquered for long enough, experience monster outbreaks, with the monsters pouring outside and rampaging. In the original history, the Sanctuary of Restful Purification just happened to lie directly along the golem army’s route of advance. That was why the tragedy occurred.”

The Great Monster was the sentient wooden staff created by that archmage.

Naturally, by that point, it had acquired a powerful artificial body through advanced future magic.

If everything had proceeded as in history, we wouldn’t have to fight it ourselves.

“…They’re an even more troublesome enemy than I expected.”

Apparently feeling hot, Seraphina finally removed her helmet and stroked her chin between her thumb and forefinger.

“So how did history deal with such an overwhelming monster army? Even I couldn’t stop them.”

“The Kingdom of Lumes dispatched warriors even stronger than you, Saint.”

During the era of the Great Holy War, the Kingdom of Lumes, once the dominant power of the Western Continent in ancient times, had already begun to decline.

But its military strength remained terrifying.

If a Level 9 Saint wasn’t enough…

Then they simply sent Level 10 monsters of their own.

“The pride of the Kingdom of Lumes… the Captain of the Dragon Cavalry and his elite dragon riders. The Sky Knight Commander, said to have pierced the heavens with a single spear, along with every knight beneath him, each of whom was Level 7 or higher. And finally, Lumes’ elite infantry corps, where even ordinary soldiers were equipped with magical artifacts…”

From the enemy’s perspective… It was enough to make anyone’s heart stop.

“To oppose overwhelming strength… You simply bring even greater strength.”

Even counting the hidden route…

Sanctuary of Restful Purification was still only a C-Rank dungeon.

It wasn’t beyond my ability to clear.

“…Now I understand how you intend to change history.”

The Saint of Artein, who possessed enough deductive ability to reconstruct the entire truth from a handful of clues, immediately grasped my plan.

“If we request aid from the Kingdom of Lumes… They can protect both the sanctuary and the patients. All we need to do is hold the line until reinforcements arrive.”

“Exactly.”

We didn’t need to defeat the enemy ourselves.

If we focused entirely on defense…

A small force could survive for several days.

A little color returned to Seraphina’s face as she began muttering rapidly.

“If I send something imbued with my voice and my Mystery… The kingdom should at least decide to trust me once and dispatch troops. After all… I’m a rather renowned Saint.”

A remarkable ability to recognize her own strengths and make full use of them.

Figures who left their names in history truly operated on an entirely different level from ordinary people.

“Saint. Even if we send a messenger today… Reinforcements won’t arrive immediately. It’ll take considerable time before His Majesty approves the deployment.”

Especially when it came to Level 10 powerhouses…

Walking strategic weapons couldn’t simply be dispatched at will.

Just as the President of the United States couldn’t launch a nuclear missile solely on personal whim…

The process involved countless procedures.

“Only once the monster horde’s advance has been conclusively confirmed will the deployment proceed quickly. So we’ll have to fight alone for at least three days.”

“Three days…”

Tossing her helmet into the air and catching it absentmindedly, Seraphina quietly asked,

“But doesn’t this labyrinth reset after one week? How could we possibly survive another three days after that?”

“It won’t reset.”

I looked directly into her eyes.

“Not while you’re still alive.”

The hidden completion condition of Sanctuary of Restful Purification.

The survival of Saint Seraphina.

“You can simply think of Saint Seraphina’s death as the end of this world itself.”

“You’re placing far too much weight on my insignificant life.”

“Would you like to run away after all?”

“If you did… We’d all return safely to the future. And you’d continue living.”

“No. Didn’t I already tell you? I’m a hopeless fool.”

“I figured you’d say that.”

“So I never even bothered preparing an escape plan.”

I didn’t waste time on things without value.

Only truly important tasks…

Like making both eyebrows perfectly symmetrical… Were worth my effort.

“I understand our strategy now.”

Walking over, Seraphina lightly patted my shoulder.

“I’ll prepare the Holy Knights and send out messengers. As for you, Sir Karr… Please look after the other explorers.”

“Yes. Then I’ll take my leave.”

As I turned around, stretching my body after standing for so long…

Seraphina suddenly added,

“Thank you. For lending your strength to a foolish idiot like me.”

“If you’re truly grateful… Repay me handsomely later.”

“I’ll ask Artein. And prepare the best reward I possibly can.”

“I’ll be sure to remember those words.”

Leaving the sanctuary behind…

I returned beneath the parasol where the others were gathered.

Everyone had collapsed into deep sleep from accumulated exhaustion.

Only Pendrick remained awake, looking somewhat tired while chatting with Astrimia.

“Captain. Have you finished speaking with the Saint?”

“You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

“Of cour–”

“Hmm~?’”

“…Not at all.”

The genius swordsman displayed superhuman reflexes and produced the correct answer in an instant.

“Ugh…”

Still trapped in another nightmare, Bartimir whimpered in his sleep.

“Wake up.”

I gently shook the demon, who had curled into a miserable ball with both arms wrapped around himself.

“…Ughhh…”

Bartimir woke with a pitiful expression before immediately draping an arm around my shoulders.

“I want to get rid of this Mystery…!”

“Then from now on… You’ll only accept the high-class mental and physical calamities I personally select for you.”

“I will!”

“Let’s move. I’ve picked out two especially delicious disasters.”

“Pendrick, would you like to come as well?”

“Sure.”

Supporting Bartimir as he leaned against me…

I brought him back to the intensive care ward where we’d spent the last five grueling days.

“Brother Karr?”

As if he’d just come to distribute bread, Priest Elion blinked in surprise.

Of the volunteers who had replaced us…

Only four remained visible.

Apparently, several had already died.

“Priest, I have a favor to ask.”

“The Saint has already told me everything. Please ask whatever you wish. If it’s something I can do… I’ll gladly help with all my heart.”

“Thank you. In that case…”

I spoke the names of the two calamities I’d had my eye on…

Then gently pushed Bartimir forward.

“This child wishes to bear both of those mental and physical calamities.”

“……”

The middle-aged priest stared silently at the demon whose face was hidden beneath the veil, Preparation for Reception, before slowly speaking.

“Could it be… That the illness in his heart progressed into a mental disorder?”

A surprisingly reasonable conclusion.

 

***

 

Bartimir was cursed.

He also contracted a disease.

“Hehehe.”

Despite willingly accepting two calamities that shackled both body and mind…

He couldn’t stop grinning. He clearly loved them.

“Artein…”

Following us, Priest Elion placed a hand over his chest and closed his eyes.

“Please… Embrace this poor child of the Demon Realm with Your divine touch…”

It seemed my fabricated story about Bartimir being abused by an evil mage simply because he was a demon had worked almost too well.

Then again…

I’d deliberately brought up mages, the despicable axis of all evil.

Of course, the priest sympathized deeply.

“Thank you for your cooperation, Priest. Then we’ll be going.”

“May Artein watch over you, Brother. We shall meet again.”

I grabbed Bartimir by the wrist, since he was too busy examining his new condition.

He obediently followed me until we had put some distance between ourselves and the sanctuary.

Only then did he start enthusiastically pounding my back.

“You really are Mom! My body’s not uncomfortable at all!”

“It hurts.”

“You’re the best!”

“My life force is decreasing.”

Reasoning with him politely accomplished nothing.

Only after covering his mouth did he finally quiet down.

“You do understand exactly what symptoms these will produce, correct? Unlike Sudden Nightmare, don’t start crying later. Review them again.”

“What do you take me for? A fool?”

“……”

“Why aren’t you answering!?”

There wasn’t really any way I could deny it.

Bartimir possessed encyclopedic knowledge about exploration, black magic, and calamities.

But in every other field…

He was about as knowledgeable as Marlin.

Considering he’d been sold to a Black Mage Guild as an experimental subject when he was young…

It would have been stranger if he’d been well educated.

“First… This curse.”

Bartimir suddenly held out his hand.

On the fingertips not wrapped in bandages…

Hideous eyeballs had sprouted densely, like clusters of cockroach eggs.

A curse created by a cultist of an evil god that had since vanished.

Malevolent Eyes.

A calamity that granted each finger its own independent will, causing them to resist their owner’s commands.

“So now… My fingers each have the self-awareness of a five-year-old child?”

“Correct.”

‘Twitch.’

Suddenly Bartimir’s fingers began moving on their own.

Their movements were sluggish.

The disease Petrifying Body, which slowly turned the body to stone, was restricting them.

“But they’re kind of annoying. Stay still!”

‘Bang! Bang!’

He smashed both fists together.

The stone fingers shattered and fell away.

The curse Treacherous Companion, interpreting this as treatment for Petrifying Body, immediately regenerated his hand.

“Oh. They’re behaving a little better now.”

“As your body petrifies further… They’ll move much more slowly.”

“Really?”

Bartimir smiled happily before summoning a murky green aura around his hand.

Demonic energy.

Corrupted mana found only within the Demon Realm.

Ordinary mages used mana as the resource for their Mystery.

But black mages who mastered Rampage of the Demon Realm circulated demonic energy instead.

“…Ugh.”

Instead of flowing like waves…

It solidified into a rigid mass before dropping to the ground.

“How does it feel? You finally obtained Flow Solidification Syndrome, the condition you’d wanted so badly.”

Flow Solidification Syndrome.

A disease that hardened every form of energy emitted from one’s body.

For ordinary mages…

It was essentially career-ending.

But Bartimir seemed utterly unimpressed.

He rarely relied on activation-type black magic anyway.

“It doesn’t hurt as much as I expected.”

“That’s because the disease hasn’t fully taken root yet. Don’t overexert yourself.”

“Okay.”

“How does your body feel? A little lighter?”

Each time demons consumed enough of their staple diet negative concepts…

Their Strength, Stamina, and Agility each increased by one.

When considering only negative status conditions…

That meant once every three different afflictions, they accepted.

It was an easy way to increase one’s stats.

Though if they starved for too long or their conditions were cured, the increases would disappear.

Still…

With proper management…

The improvements were practically permanent.

“Now that I’ve bought you some new calamities… You’ll have to fight hard.”

“Got it!”

Bartimir had grown stronger.

Our preparations were complete.

“Pendrick.”

“Yes, Captain?”

Pendrick, who’d been curiously watching the bouncing Bartimir, answered energetically.

“For the next week…”

“I want you to spar with Bartimir every day.”

“The two of you need combat experience. I’ll observe and point out your weaknesses, as well as habits I’d like you to correct.”

There was no need to worry about injuries during training.

“Fight as though it’s real combat. Injure each other. Draw plenty of blood. There are priests and Holy Knights everywhere here anyway.”

“…Even if they can heal injuries instantly, isn’t that a rather callous set of instructions?’”

“Ah. You’re right. In that case… Fight with the utmost care. As a reward… The winner will earn the right to do whatever they want with my body for one entire day.”

“Aaaah! Forget it!!

Giving a thumbs-up to Astrimia as she violently shook herself in protest…

I smiled.

“Let’s calmly continue training. And wait… For the monster horde to arrive.”

Compared to what was coming…

Even five days of caregiving would seem trivial.