I Became a Fake Priest the Saintess Is Obsessed With

28 – The Scent of Flowers Fades Before It is Smelled (1)

Renet Aekid drew attention from the people of the fiefdom as the next lord.

His exceptional swordsmanship and magical abilities garnered admiration from those around him, and with his good character, he helped those in need and governed the people of the fiefdom with keen eyes.

Renet’s talents were recognized by the fiefdom, the academy, the royal family, and the tower, and people evaluated him as an exceptional talent.

When he returned after subjugating the group of demons that threatened the fiefdom, he heard a strange rumor along with the welcoming of the people.

“Renet Young Master, it’s really fortunate that you have returned safely.”

“Yeah, I was worried about what would happen if Young Master had even a single scar on his handsome face.”

“You too! If you’re a man, having a scar on your face is even cooler! Anyway, did you hear about that?”

“If you say ‘that,’ how am I supposed to understand?”

“Well, Casten came to our fiefdom a few days ago and he seems to have disappeared a few days ago!”

“Again? Why do these people keep disappearing so regularly… It’s been a long time since the Lord said he would solve it, what on earth is the problem?”

It was a rumor that had been circulating in the fiefdom for a long time, and Renet had also heard it vaguely.

At that time, Renet could not simply ignore the rumor circulating in the fiefdom, so he began to uncover the truth behind the rumor.

However, a week, a month, a year passed.

He had been trying to uncover the truth for a long time, but he couldn’t even find a clue.

In the meantime, tourists entering the fiefdom regularly disappeared, causing great stress for Renet.

One day, as he was racking his brain over the disappearance cases, his father secretly called him to the underground.

“You’ve come, my son.”

It was so dreadful that it made a sound like “ugh” that he had never heard before in his life.

The underground, where he had never been allowed to enter by his father, took the form of a massive sewer.

The smell of mucus tingled his nose, and the bloodstains scattered around made him uneasy.

“Why did you call me to such a place, Father…?”

“I will explain gradually. For now, take this and follow me.”

Leading the way through the sewer, his father handed him a small knife.

René didn’t understand English, but he accepted it for the time being.

After walking for a while, his father paused in front of a tattered curtain and glanced at René.

“My son, I hope you won’t be surprised by what unfolds here.”

“What could possibly be here…?”

“I will pull the curtain; you confirm for yourself.”

Before assessing the strange aura behind the curtain, his father soaked it.

“This is…!”

Behind the curtain were corpses.

There were already skeletal remains, recently deceased-looking bodies, numerous corpses, but the most noticeable ones were the emaciated corpses, as if their souls had been sucked dry.

Although each one was so decayed that their features were unrecognizable, one person, Gilbert, was distinguishable.

“Gilbert…?”

Gilbert was a tourist who had visited the estate a few days ago.

As René looked again, turning away from him and examining the corpses, they shared a common feature.

Attire and belongings not easily worn in Akid Territory were on the bodies.

A shiver ran down his spine.

Instinct and reason judged that this was somehow related to the missing case they had been unable to unravel until now.

“What is this… What on earth is this? Why are the corpses of tourists beneath our house?”

“…Son, do you know about vampires?”

“W-Well, vampires were said to have gone extinct a thousand years ago…”

“That’s what they say. But there’s one thing that’s different.”

Father calmly passed through the bodies and moved forward.

Renet followed him, as if possessed.

“Vampires didn’t go extinct. They were wiped out by the Church, and it’s true that they were on the brink of extinction… But one individual survived.”

As Renet followed his father, there were beings like us.

Within us was a terrified woman, bound.

Renet absentmindedly brushed his hair back.

And suddenly, he found a commonality between vampires and the people of the house.

“No way… It can’t be, right?”

“I’m not sure what you were thinking… but your sharp intuition is probably right. Yes, we are descendants of that vampire.”

Though he understood it in his head, Renet wanted to deny his words.

“But if I’m a vampire, wouldn’t I have died by now without ever having fed on blood?”

“If you were a true-blooded vampire, that would be the case. But the blood of vampires, passed down through generations, has become diluted, and since the first Akyde Gaad, we no longer need to feed on blood.”

Father who had entered the room took out a knife.

It was clear what he was about to do to the woman, but Renet couldn’t stop him, his body trembling uncontrollably.

-Shluk!

With a gruesome sound, the blade pierced the woman’s forearm.

“But, the instinct for blood remains, and their blood strengthens our bodies.”

Abazi began to gaze ecstatically at the pouring blood of the woman, lusting after it.

“That… Why are you talking about it now?”

“Tomorrow, won’t you also come of age? You’ve hidden your shock until now, but I’ve decided it doesn’t matter anymore. Come, partake in this blood.”

As if it were nothing special, he filled his hands with the woman’s blood and extended it towards René.

René knew that it was right to reject his father’s offer and plunge a knife into his throat.

However, the overpowering scent of fresh blood made it difficult to breathe.

The distant screams of the woman.

The instinct for a pulsating heart and blood.

They severed René’s reason.

***

[Main Quest: Halt Count Ackid]

Reward: Mable’s Favorability +30, 100,000 PP

※ Failure results in death.

Blood burst from the massive lump of flesh.

“Argh!”

Turning sharply to avoid it, the blood sprayed, splattering his back.

“Ah, damn it! What am I supposed to do!”

Faced with the monster, I tried to approach, recalling how I had reverted the fusion creature to its original state as an absolute remedy.

But dealing with the fiercely resisting creature was no easy task.

Even if I killed a duke, would the fusion be released? I looked at the duke, but he had long since been fused with the monster, his joints broken and melded together.

“At least he hasn’t been merged with that… yet.”

While everyone at the party, even the duke, turned into monsters, I remained unharmed.

The reason was written in the message that came to mind.

[The power of the divine resists the power of the vampire]

The divine power, which I had never known where to use, prevented me from merging with that dreadful thing.

“But that’s not the only thing!!!”

I thought resisting the power of the vampire would make me stronger against it, but that wasn’t the case.

The goddess who enjoys the suffering of others wouldn’t have given me that!

“Ugh?!”

As I cursed the goddess in my heart, a huge tentacle from the monster flew and snatched one of my legs.

Normally, I wouldn’t have been caught, but I got caught while cursing the goddess for no reason.

The creature lifted me up, and I dangled upside down as it flew through the air.

“Damn you, goddess! It’s all because of you that I’m caught!”

[The goddess is confused why it’s her fault]

“I don’t know! Anyway, it’s all the goddess’s… argh!”

I groaned as the creature squeezed my leg with the tentacle.

Feeling immense pressure on my leg, I whimpered.

I thought about trying to heal while being caught, but I gave up.

Not because I was afraid of the pain, but because I realized this wasn’t the only enemy I was facing.

The garden, the living room… In the mansion, there are a total of three fusion entities, including this one on the second floor.

If I treat them without thinking, I might faint and won’t be able to treat the others.

“To treat them, I need to gather them in one place and treat them simultaneously… Does that even make sense logically…”

I felt weak at the thought of having to do something almost impossible.

Even so, I won’t give up.

I promised Mabel that I would handle it, and if I give up now, I’ll be too embarrassed to show my face.

I tried to cut the tentacle that was tied to my foot with a knife.

“Isn’t it going in?!”

I tried hard to stab it with the knife, but it didn’t penetrate the flesh that seemed to be bundled with dozens of tendons.

As it resisted, the creature tightened its grip on my leg.

It felt like my bones were about to snap.

Ah, I really hate this.

Could it possibly be broken?

“Ugh… darn it, weakling…”

I let out a sigh.

It seems like escaping on my own strength is impossible.

However, I am the only one who resisted the divine power and didn’t become a monster…

While deeply contemplating how to escape, the tentacle was cut off, and I found myself being embraced by someone.

“Thank goodness, you’re still unharmed, Priest.”

“Saint Lesia?”

It was Lecia who rescued me in the moment of crisis.

Come to think of it, if I hadn’t been fused through the sacred ritual, Lecia, sitting in a position higher in sanctity than me as a saint, would undoubtedly have resisted the power of the viscount.

Setting me down, she confronted the amalgamation, her shining blue hair fluttering.

“I’ll handle those monsters, so please, Priest, find somewhere safe to hide.”

“Saint, those things are all people. Don’t harm them.”

“Even if they were people, they are now monsters. To prevent future harm, I must…”

“I can heal them, so please don’t harm them.”

“Really?”

“Yes, if these creatures are gathered in one place, I can heal them.”

Lecia, hearing my words, briefly looked at me and nodded.

“Understood. In that case, I’ll take these monsters below.”

“No, I will take them down. Saint, please block the ones below from escaping.”

“As for that, the Crown Prince is already blocking them.”

He resisted the fusion too…!

I mentally applauded at the good news.

“The Crown Prince will find it difficult to deal with both of them. Go and help.”

“But, Priest, your leg…”

“It’s fine. So, go quickly.”

“…Alright. I’ll leave it to you then.”

Lecia grasped her sword and descended below.

Alright… Once my leg is fixed, I can drag this guy down.

Since there’s no way to recover through treatment, I decided to use a different method.

[The goddess is worried that your leg is broken.]

“If you’re worried, please treat it.”

[The goddess says it’s impossible.]

“I’ll give you all the PP I have now, so why not?”

[The goddess says it’s impossible due to the treaty of the divine realm. Unless you become a hero…]

“Ah! Please! Heal me! Mom!”

[The goddess looks at you in surprise.]

“When it comes down to it, didn’t you reincarnate me as an orphan in this world?! If you’re my parent, take responsibility! Show the mercy of a ‘mother’ of the earth that people praise!!!”

The other way to fix my leg is just to throw a fit.

I wasn’t sure the goddess could help, but I thought that if she was going to bother with me, she might as well indulge my stubbornness, even if it was a stretch.

And that was the right answer.

[The goddess looks at you pitifully, sighs, and heals you in exchange for the reward of the quest and all the PP you currently have.]

My broken leg was mended.

“Thank you so much! Mom!”

[If the goddess calls you “mom” again, she’ll break your leg again.]

Geez, so cold.