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Chapter 112
“‘Prilien broke the ray gun?’”
It wasn’t the high priest, but Prilien herself who had caused such a thing. That was unexpected. Of course, it was a one-time PPL item, so it could have broken over time… but still.
“First, please sit comfortably. Calm yourself.”
“Th-thank you.”
Prilien, repeatedly expressing her gratitude, sat on the sofa. Her low posture was so extreme that someone might not believe she held a high position like a saint; Elegia felt almost overwhelmed.
“So… can you tell me what happened?”
Elegia asked gently, and Prilien, seemingly a little calmer, slowly nodded.
“Well… the moment I held the gun… it shattered into pieces.”
“What?”
It completely broke. Even for a PPL item, it shouldn’t break that badly unless it had been deliberately disposed of.
“How did that happen…?”
In response to the question, Prilien pressed her lips tightly together. After a brief silence, she muttered in a miserable voice:
“…It’s probably my fault.”
“Why are you so sure?”
Even at Elegia’s question, Prilien didn’t respond. Perhaps she was unsure how to answer.
After a tense silence, she spoke in a barely audible voice.
“It’s always been like that. Whenever I get greedy for something beyond my reach, it disappears.”
“Huh?”
Had Prilien ever done that? Even after descending here as the protagonist, everyone should have treated her favorably.
Reading Elegia’s puzzled expression, Prilien continued, looking embarrassed.
“It’s the same with training. Whenever I get greedy to become stronger, the opportunity seems to vanish instead.”
‘She must have faced a lot of frustration during sword training.’
She trained with such sincerity. That was impressive in many ways, even getting bruised and injured in the process. She might surprisingly be a persistent and diligent type.
‘But that’s different from an actual object disappearing.’
It seemed she was trying to take responsibility for everything. It was a bit pitiful. Elegia herself had given her the PPL item. She shook her head as if to reassure her.
“It’s okay. It doesn’t seem like you did it on purpose. And it’s not certain that it’s because of you, so I don’t want to blame you for this.”
“R-really?”
Prilien’s eyes widened in disbelief. Soon, tears began welling up again in her large eyes.
“My lady… you are truly… so kind…”
“Wait a moment.”
At that point, Howell interjected from beside her.
“Elegia, are you an idiot?”
He looked at Elegia irritably, as if exasperated.
“You’re not seriously planning to forgive everything the temple did, are you? What’s wrong with you? Acting so uncharacteristically…”
Howell glanced sharply at the priests waiting outside.
“I just told you, your charges are cleared. Do you know why? The temple confirmed that the relic has disappeared. Now, no light tracking the relic will follow your side. At the same time, the ‘relic’ you were holding disappeared. The presumption is… what you had might have been an ‘undiscovered relic.’ That’s why they mistakenly accused someone innocent.”
“……”
As Howell spoke, Prilien hung her head, apparently too ashamed to face Elegia.
“Are you seriously going to forgive the temple that dragged you away, interrogated you, and sent you to the Tower of Magic, tarnishing your honor?”
“No.”
Elegia shook her head.
“I said it’s okay for you, not the temple.”
“M-my lady…”
At Elegia’s words, Prilien’s expression became a mix of fear and awe. Gasping in surprise, she spoke hurriedly.
“What… what kind of compensation would you like? Anything the temple can do.”
“What can they do?”
At Elegia’s question, Prilien answered desperately.
“I’m good at healing! You can request my divine power anytime…!”
“Ah… so you weren’t planning to help me if I got hurt next time?”
“O-of course not!”
Prilien shook her head with an embarrassed expression.
“Th-then… what you need right now, my lady…”
There was something she needed, of course. Elegia muttered very quietly to herself.
“I do need money…”
Ah, right. She had briefly thought of the 1 trillion gold needed to go home. She closed her mouth too late, and everyone had heard it. Howell shouted, exasperated.
“Our family already has plenty of money! Please don’t say things like that in public—it makes you seem so greedy!”
‘Already said it…’
Elegia’s image was slowly deteriorating. Had she contributed to that?
At that moment, Prilien spoke, her face pale.
“I-I heard… the temple doesn’t have much of a budget…”
‘Even now, the temple has no budget?’
That didn’t seem likely.
Prilien’s clothes and accessories were obviously high-quality. Moreover, the temple buildings were grand, showing they received a lot of noble sponsorship. Could their finances really be in trouble?
‘Or maybe they’re hiding financial details from Prilien.’
It seemed there were many things the saint wasn’t told. Even during the demon beast invasion, Prilien had been left out. Was it genuinely withheld, or was she aware and just pretending?
Without time to ponder further, Prilien clenched her fists again and shouted:
“C-can my divine power earn money?”
“What? I think Frinis would be angry if you tried that.”
She is a saint. What are you even saying?
“Oh! I-I’m sorry, Lady Frinis…!”
Prilien quickly offered a prayer, realizing her mistake, asking for forgiveness for momentarily thinking of worldly matters. Her closed eyes looked truly devout and pure.
‘Seriously, what are they asking for?’
Since the temple had nothing, there was little to ask for. Even if there was a budget, most temple funds were donations, essentially using patrons’ money, which could provoke backlash. Discussing compensation otherwise might only cause trouble for Prilien. Elegia, feeling troubled, buried her face in her hands as Howell spoke.
“Regarding compensation, we need to discuss further before delivering it. Our family also has a position to clarify. For today, let’s conclude with accepting the saint’s apology.”
“Ah, I see…”
Prilien’s face flushed with embarrassment. She had been forgiven personally, but temple-level issues remained unresolved. Still, she nodded after looking at Elegia once.
“…I understand. I’m just grateful for that.”
‘She’s quite skilled at negotiation.’
Elegia glanced at Howell, surprised. It was better to conclude the meeting and let Prilien leave in this situation.
Because Elegia didn’t fully know ‘the situation’—she didn’t know what the high priest might have been thinking.
‘Ah, one thing is clear. Prilien was deliberately sent.’
Sending the saint, who had used her divine power during the poisoning incident, was likely meant to soften hearts.
Howell continued.
“Then, we siblings have something to discuss among ourselves. Is that okay?”
“Ah, yes. Of course. You must have things to discuss, so feel free.”
Prilien repeatedly bowed and withdrew, speaking to Elegia.
“I’m truly sorry and grateful, my lady.”
“Ah! Wait, before you leave.”
Elegia hurriedly stopped Prilien from leaving.
“Yes? Did you want to say something…?”
“Saint, if you get hurt during sword practice, just heal yourself. Don’t leave injuries untreated for too long. I wondered if your current wounds were because of that.”
Elegia pointed to Prilien’s arm. Beneath the sleeve, bruises were still scattered. Prilien looked flustered.
“Ah…”
Her ears red, she quickly healed her arm with divine power.
“You saw that too… My lady, you are so kind.”
Prilien looked at Elegia, touched, as if misunderstanding something.
‘Actually, I heard gossip about it later.’
If left unchecked, rumors that ‘the villain is harassing the saint’ would spread. Elegia added seriously:
“I meant you should learn to rely less on divine power, not leave injuries untreated. Promise me you’ll always heal yourself from now on.”
“Yes! I’ll remember!”
Prilien nodded repeatedly. Her bowing continued until she exited the room. She even spoke briefly to the priests outside before leaving. Elegia checked the soundproofing of the reception room.
“Phew… now it’s safe to talk. They won’t hear us.”
Confident, Elegia spoke. As someone who could see the flow of magic, she verified the soundproofing worked. Observing it, she even started to understand its principle.
“Are you eating well?”
“Very well.”
Without hesitation, Elegia answered Howell’s question. She had fared quite well during her short stay at the Tower of Magic—good food, non-poisonous meals, helpful dreams, examining relics, and learning about dimensional travel.
She smiled playfully and added:
“I’ll stay a bit longer even after this is over. I don’t want to go home yet.”
“What?”
Howell looked bewildered.
“If you stay, it might be a burden on the Tower. Unless you’re a special researcher, they wouldn’t continue treating you as a VIP…”
“Really?”
Then, as a research magician, I should be fine, right? Thank you for the info, Howell. Elegia sipped her tea, stifling a laugh. Howell continued, unaware.
“Yeah. But if you’re kicked out, return home immediately… many people are asking about you.”
Howell paused, looking at the tea, then hesitated before continuing.
“The physician, Dora, and… probably your father too.”
“Hmm…”
It made sense for the physician or Dora to inquire. They were people she often saw. But her father? That was hard to imagine.
Just as Elegia picked up her fork skeptically, Howell spoke.
“It’s true. It has to be. Just looking at what you’ve done…”
He lifted his head. His voice trembled more than it had when with the saint.
“Elegia Semperion, what exactly is that ‘relic’ you brought?”
‘Ah.’
Of course, that’s what he’s asking.
“You never met your mother. Your father didn’t give it to you. Then where… did it come from?”
