Forsaken Priest of the Hero's Party-Chapter 39: The Vlad Duchy

If there is one thing the Lord has taught me,

It’s that we are actually nothing.

A night of counting stars.

Gazing at the countless stars pouring down, I am reminded once again that all those stars are actually suns in their own right.

From a far, far away place, even the sun would look no different from a star. It would be just one of the many, many stars in this universe.

Before meeting the Lord, my knowledge was shallower and smaller than that of a frog in a well, but only after meeting Him did I finally realize how vast the world is.

Just because a place is out of reach when you stretch out your hand, it doesn’t mean that place doesn’t exist. If you were to bring just one of those many suns, it would be much larger than this crust we stand and live on.

On this small piece of land,

we humans, who cannot live in the sea, stay in the air or live underground, merely live on this small space called the earth, on this continent smaller than the smallest star.

Thinking like that, what meaning is there to our lives?

If enough time passes for a star to exhaust its lifespan and die out, any trace of our existence here will disappear without a trace, as if it never existed in the first place.

Perhaps even this continent and our small world may shatter and scatter. I don’t know. Because humans do not live for such a distant future.

So help each other.

And love each other,

Seek a better future, and live.

Because no matter what happens to the future, people have to live in this moment now.

Also, we must love.

As long as I am also human, I cannot make this world a paradise.

That would only be possible for the Lord.

But I can make it not a hell.

I can ease the suffering of those in pain. I can give time to those who cannot enjoy a long life. The Lord gave me such power because He thought it would not be meaningless.

How much longer can I remain?

I was lost in thought as I stroked and tidied Roka’s sleeping hair. The night was deep, and the moon had risen. And today, we walked all day long.

Still, sleep does not come. Drowsiness could not invade me. It’s natural, but it’s not a good thing. At least, not for me.

It’s a good thing that my soul is gradually becoming full,

But my fragile body cannot withstand that change. The change can no longer be resisted, only delayed. The backlash of the countless miracles I’ve used has only recently begun to come.

Blossoming Starfall...

Honestly, I didn’t want to use that, because I knew things would turn out this way,

However, there was no choice.  If I hadn’t used it, I would have been the only one to survive.

As expected, I couldn’t endure it.

The moment I used that miracle, the vessel called my body cracked.

A cracked vessel became even more fragile. A miracle that I could have easily endured before now accelerates the wear and tear on my body. Little by little, very little by little, I am gradually getting closer to ascension.

There is no pain. Because it’s a good thing.

Far from being painful, a sense of exaltation akin to enlightenment sometimes wells up.

That’s why the Lord doesn’t restore my body either.

Because He wants me to come up to His side.

However, it’s even more ridiculous to not save those who can be saved for fear of ascension.

That day will come anyway, even if I do nothing. As long as I don’t use The Blossoming Starfall again, using a few other miracles won’t dramatically hasten that day.

“I wish I could stay until I see you grow up into a beautiful Young Lady.”

I’ll be able to see it even after ascending to the lofty heavens, but I won’t be able to comfort you like I do now.

I don’t know how much time I have left, but I can only pray that there is still a lot left.

My Lord. My God. Please,

Please allow me to me leave only after I finish what I have to do.

*****“Vampires were a bat-like race that was not well-treated by either humans or demons. They sometimes betrayed humans and sometimes betrayed demons, so they were not trusted by either race.”

The next morning.

We made our way towards the Vlad Duchy. Of course, it was after we had a simple breakfast of bread, butter, and goat’s milk cheese that were in the cabin.

Vampires are a race that have survived by siding with humans when humans are strong, and siding with demons when demons are strong. One should not think of them as merely cowardly people.

If they were only cowardly, they would have gone extinct or settled on one side long before living through such a long time. The fact that they are still continuing their precarious tightrope walk means that they clearly have the skills and status to match.

“So while I’m sure you wouldn’t do such a thing, Saint, it’s best not to make remarks that provoke them. Especially you, disciple, you need to watch your mouth a bit.”

“Huh?! Who are you calling a disciple?!”

Roka had a sulky expression but didn’t actively deny it.

The master and disciple relationship formed overnight didn’t seem to be on very good terms yet, but I had no doubt with a bit of time and the Lord’s grace, things would end up well.

“Stop right there. Are you a wandering peddler? Or an adventurer?”

After walking a bit further, we saw a soldiers’ garrison. Even the Vlad Duchy cannot surround the entire border of their territory with castle walls, so they usually send soldiers to guard the paths connecting to the outside.

The soldiers were all wrapped up in thick coats from head to toe. They even wore long-brimmed hats and pulled down beak-shaped masks to tightly cover their faces. The weather today wasn’t that cold, so it was a strange sight.

“It’s probably because they’re vampires.”

The Princess whispered behind me.

“Vampires are weak to sunlight. That’s why they have never become the Rulers of the continent despite possessing various powerful traits.”

True Vampires have the ability to make lower vampires their vassals and control them with near-absolute obedience. Her Highness, the Princess called it the power of domination.

In a way, it’s a tremendous strength for the upper and lower ranks to move with one heart and mind. Unlike humans or demons who do not unite well, vampires move like the hands and feet of their leader.

However, despite all those advantages, they suffer critical damage when exposed to sunlight. All vampires burn up the moment they are touched by sunlight, and even true ancestors cannot overcome it.

Her Highness explained that even Duchess Vlad Shmira himself would instantly die the moment he is touched by sunlight.

Their sense of duty must be strong indeed if they are risking such a danger.

Hearing that story, the reason why they were dressed in clothes and even covered their faces with hats suddenly felt new. They had no choice but to do so because sunlight was fatal.

“That’s right, I am an adventurer. Here is my identification.”

“A priest...? What business does a priest have coming here? There are no humans here for a priest to heal.”

The soldier questioned us in a firm tone.

“Get lost. God rejects us, vampires. We also reject God and his servants. It will not be good for you or us if someone exuding holy power roams the Duchy.”

Are they just trying to chase us away? No, but his words were filled with desperation.

He sincerely did not want to let us in. Of course, it’s natural that not many cities or villages welcome adventurers, but it was strange since they usually tolerate them as long as they don’t cause trouble.

Adventurers are outsiders who spend money in the village,

and it’s hard to find someone who dislikes money.

“Put down your spear.”

At that moment, Roka grabbed the tip of the spear pointed at me, and twisted it away.

But at that instant, the soldier holding the spear shaft screamed and stepped back. Fierce flames erupted from his hand, and the soldier collapsed while screaming. He let out a shriek that I couldn’t understand.

“Aaaagh! S-sun! The sun!”

“What’s going on, Hans?! Damn it, what’s this commotion!?”

“Let me see your hand. Ah, no, don’t take off your gloves now. Let’s go to the darkroom and look first.”

“Shoot them with arrows! Kill those bastards!”

The Princess and I were roughly dazed by the sudden situation.

What in the world just happened? At least it didn’t seem that Roka did it on purpose.

The child also looked surprised, with wide eyes, and just blankly mumbled as if trying to say something.

“Ah! It’s the mana of the Sun! Tehehe?”

The Princess smacked slapped her face and groaned.

“That’s why I said you need to learn how to fully control your mana first...!”

This incident occurred because Roka’s mana that flowed through the spear shaft happened to have the attribute of the sun. If Roka had intentionally released mana, it wouldn’t have ended with just a hand.

It wasn’t deliberately released, and it was a natural flow that occurs because mana flows from high to low.

Roka’s mana amount was higher than that soldier’s.

Still, it should have ended without any incident under normal circumstances, but the vampire’s characteristics and the sun’s mana caused the situation to blow up.

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“Ha, shoot arrows? Shoot if you dare.”

All that commotion suddenly died down at once.

Because a giant golden dragon was now descending from the sky to the ground.

The Princess’ aura overwhelmed the surroundings, taking the form of a dragon. Those who were about to pull their bowstrings unknowingly stopped their hands.

“Only if you have the confidence to bear the consequences.”

“Y-you... who are you?”

The one who seemed to be in charge hurriedly ran out and prostrated himself.

“We have been rude to you, not knowing who you were. May I ask who you are?”

“I am a guest who has come to meet the Duchess. My name is Ardein von Illumina. The 1st Princess of the Empire.”

“Ardein? That name... Ah, no, that person is...”

The confused soldiers soon realized that this was not a problem they could solve at their level, and one of them quickly ran inside to report.

The person in charge politely guided us.

“For now, would you please wait in the room for distinguished guests? We will report as quickly as possible.”

“That person who was injured earlier, may I see him for a moment?”

As I comforted the startled Roka, I made a request.

“Since it was an incident caused by this child’s mistake, I would like to take responsibility as the guardian if possible.”

I may not be able to understand why other great people dislike demons, but at least my Lord does not. He considers all life in this world as equal.

The only exceptions are the undead, who are revived when they should be dead and unmoving. With that one exception where he bestows nirvana instead of healing, my holy power shows healing effects even on demons.

Of course, healing enemies and allies at the same time does nothing, so I usually only give holy power to allies, but when I meet demons who are not enemies, I have healed them several times.

This time will be no different.