Trapped in a Game That Flopped

Chapter 89

Episode 89

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

Behind the temple, past a small garden where slimes and mud sludges played, stood the dilapidated old temple building.

The farthest corner of that place was Nise's quarters.

Nise limped, barely managing to enter the old temple building.

By the time he arrived at the shabby room he used as his quarters, his whole body was drenched in cold sweat and an unknown liquid.

The memory from the morning—washing his body in a luxurious bathtub, eating high-class food he'd never seen before, and sleeping in a soft bed—felt like a distant dream.

Now, he only had the thought of wanting to lie down on his hard bed and rest.

He had barely managed to reach his quarters with that one wish, but that wish could not be fulfilled.

There was a visitor.

"...Liv."

"Nise!"

Liv, who had been pacing anxiously inside his quarters, spotted Nise and ran over as if to jump at him. And.

Slap!

A flash of light sparked before his eyes, and Nise's head was snapped to the side by a brutish force.

"Are you crazy?!"

Before he could even register what had happened, Liv shrieked at the top of her lungs.

"Do you have any idea what kind of event that was, to ruin it like that! Huh?!"

"..."

"Did you think I was joking when I said I'd die? I asked you to help me. I said I'd die, that I didn't want to be kicked out!"

"..."

"Why! Why the hell did you do it! Why did you cause this mess because you couldn't control one measly dead monster!"

Thwack, thwack.

As if slapping Nise's cheek wasn't enough, Liv pounded his chest with both fists, sobbing, before collapsing onto the cold floor.

"I, I'm sorry, Liv..."

Nise could say nothing else.

Maybe he could have told only his sister the truth.

That he had met a strange kidnapper who had controlled a gargoyle using black magic for 'employment'.

But seeing Liv crying, her face flushed red, it didn't seem like the truth mattered.

"Do you see this, oppa?"

Liv, who had been sniffling for a long time, seemed to have calmed down a bit and pointed to her cheek with a calmer voice than before.

Red rashes, like hives, had bloomed densely on both of Liv's cheeks.

"The Pope said that if I can't fix this by this week, he'll consider announcing a new prophecy. That the Goddess has decided to use the power she granted the Saintess more widely and beneficially elsewhere."

"Th, that's..."

It sounded like absurd nonsense, but the Pope's prophecy was absolute.

He had turned even the Crown Prince, who was in an impossibly high position, into a sinner overnight. A powerless Saintess from the slums would be nothing.

However, the problem wasn't just that Liv would be kicked out of her position as Saintess.

"...You know it too, oppa. We're not just going to be kicked out."

Liv, who knew this better than anyone, pointed to a dark corner of Nise's room, where shadows had fallen, and shouted neurotically.

"As long as that monster is here, do you think the church will let us go quietly? They'll brand us as witches or heretics and try to burn us to death!"

"Th, that won't happen, Liv."

All Nise could do for his extremely anxious sister was offer pitiful comfort.

He reached out his hand and, as if it were nothing, gently stroked Liv's cheek where the grotesque rash had appeared.

"Y, you're the Saintess, no matter what anyone says... and a rash like this will heal quickly if you use a potion..."

Thwack!

But Liv sharply slapped Nise's hand away.

"You're always like that! You don't even for a second think about what happens if even potions don't work!"

"L, Liv..."

"I don't know who to believe anymore, oppa."

Liv glared at Nise with a contorted face and staggered up from the floor.

"Should I believe you, oppa, who just says 'it's fine' like a parrot every time? Or should I believe the Pope, who says you're just clinging to me like a parasite, doing nothing, even though you know my position isn't good?"

"..."

"Just keep that monster under control. The Pope seems to be interested in it."

Liv gave one last glance toward the corner she had pointed to earlier, then turned her back.

"Ah."

As if she'd forgotten something, she, who had been heading quickly for the door as if she didn't want to be in this place a second longer, paused and looked back.

Her brother, who fit in so well with this shabby, old building, was still standing blankly in the same spot.

At his unchangingly pathetic and wretched state, Liv opened her mouth without hesitation.

"And I used too much blood during this procession, so I don't think I can give you any."

"..."

"Take care of yourself."

Kkiiik. Thud.

The door closed, and complete darkness fell.

Nise, who had barely been supporting himself with his remaining strength, finally collapsed onto the bare floor.

He curled his body up tightly, knelt, and buried his face on his knees.

"Ha..."

A deep sigh leaked through his teeth.

His forehead, touching the back of his hand, was hot, as if a fever was rising from the spot where the Pope had struck him.

It was then.

Kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk.

In the corner of the room that Liv had pointed to, the darkness began to move.

The thing, which crawled up the wall and slowly approached Nise, looked like a giant shadow at first glance, but if you listened closely, it also sounded like an angel described in myths.

Kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk.

Hundreds of eyes embedded in the black abyss blinked their stiff eyelids one by one, creating a bizarre noise.

Nise, without showing the slightest bit of repulsion, placed a hand on it and stroked it gently.

"Sorry. You were surprised I didn't come back yesterday, weren't you."

Everyone in the Temple, including Liv, called this thing a 'monster', but they were wrong.

This was no different from a treasure chest where Nise kept his most precious things.

"Still, I brought something you'll like."

Dead beings intrinsically liked things like curses, misfortune, and despair.

It seemed the strong desires contained within them were what allowed them to hold onto their souls and continue to move.

Suddenly, among the densely packed eyes, a thin line was carved.

Jjeok.

The abyss opened its mouth.

Nise spat the lump of black curse he had taken from that woman into it.

Perhaps because it wasn't a curse that held such strong power, its size was very small.

Though it seemed a little dissatisfied, the abyss willingly swallowed it.

Wageujak, wageujak, wageujak, wageujak.

Kkadeuk. Kkadeudeuk. Kkadeudeuk. Kkadeuk. Kkadeuk.

With this, one more precious item was added to Nise's treasure chest.

His beaten back ached as if it would tear, but still, he felt no regret.

If he hadn't been able to withstand the Pope's pressure and had spat out the truth, he would never have been able to meet those strange kidnappers again.

Kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk.

The abyss, having swallowed the curse in an instant, closed its mouth again and rolled its stiff eyes back and forth.

It was then.

...'s representative... Nise...

Do not lose faith... paradise...

"Euht...!"

With a loud, static-like ringing in his ears, an unknown language echoed in his ears again.

His head throbbed. Nise covered his ears with both hands and desperately held his breath.

"Haa, ha..."

A long time later, only after the unidentified sound had subsided, did he raise his head, catching his exhausted breath.

Kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk, kkadeuk.

Next to him, the treasure chest, called a monster with hundreds of eyes, was still with him.

"...Are you asking if I'm okay? Yes, I'm fine."

Nise, who had answered the question reflexively, suddenly stared blankly at it.

The reason he couldn't refute a single word the Pope spouted.

His own sin was too great to hope for the God's blessing now.

Nise reached out and pulled the thing, his treasure and his sins, into a full embrace.

It was easy to fall asleep.

In his dreams, he repeated the terrible things he had done, over and over.

Over and over. Over and over.

⚜ ⚜ ⚜

As expected, when I went to Berun Village, a couple of holy knights were waiting for me.

I followed them and was able to easily enter a deep part of the Grand Temple, inaccessible to ordinary people.

When I came to my senses, I was standing in front of a woman who looked identical to Nise.

Saintess Liv

"...Are you the apothecary who gave me the potion in Berun Village?"

The Saintess greeted me quite gently.

Although her face was covered in a red rash, her inherent beauty, like her mysterious silver hair and eyes, was not hidden.

Her face was identical to Nise's, who had been the very picture of gloom, but the atmosphere was completely different, which made me feel a little strange.

"Yes. That is correct."

"Your name is..."

"I am called Shari Azrael."

"Ah, Shari."

When I answered politely, the Saintess gave a troubled smile.

"I'm sorry. I fainted, so I wasn't able to greet you properly."

She hadn't fainted. The image of her having a meltdown when she saw the rash on her face was still vivid.

In the end, a priest had accepted the diluted potion from me on her behalf, so it was understandable she wouldn't remember.

I just nodded silently, playing along with the Saintess.

"I am the one who is sorry for not greeting you. I only gave you a potion you could use for the emergency and then left quickly to find ingredients."

"Ah... d, did you find the ingredients?"

"Yes. But there is one problem."

I intentionally lowered my voice, pretending the situation was not good.

"The type of allergy the Saintess has is extremely rare... so there is difficulty in sourcing the ingredients, and it seems it will take some time for a full recovery."

"H, how long?!"

"I cannot guarantee that."

It was something that would be over if she just drank three or four potions right now, but of course, I didn't say that.

This was because I had to stall and stay in the Temple as much as possible until the day the Hero Selection Tournament ended.

So, my grand plan was to clear the 'Uncover the Temple's Secret' quest at the same time as the Hero Selection Tournament.

At my answer that I couldn't guarantee it, the Saintess's face immediately darkened.

"I don't mind if the full recovery takes a long time, but I have to participate in the tournament opening ceremony next week."

"I see. That is unfortunate."

"I have to get this rash on my face to subside somehow by then..."

Even if all the apothecary NPCs in the capital were disabled, if I seemed too incompetent, there was a chance I'd be suspected of being a quack.

"Ah, that much should be possible."

When I quickly set aside my soulless reply and said that, the Saintess's face brightened.

"Really?"

"Yes, of course."

"Thank you. I'll be counting on you, Shari!"

The Saintess beamed, pleased.

However, no other words came from her mouth.

"But..."

I, who had been waiting inwardly with a puzzled face, reluctantly spoke up.

"I heard that the Saintess has a twin brother. Usually, if they are twins, they tend to have similar allergies..."

"..."

"Is it alright if he does not receive treatment?"

When I directly mentioned Nise, the Saintess's smiling face hardened.