— Bishop Arteto’s POV —
I turn my gaze to the priest, who is averting his eyes.
「You should not tell lies that are sure to be exposed. Besides, what did you intend to do? Saying 『If we transfer the curse to the one who cast it, they will return to normal』. You cannot even restore their appearance」
The reason those who use curses are called monsters is because their appearance changes. The cause is said to be that they have been abandoned by the Goddess. Yes, we cannot save those abandoned by the Goddess.
Well, there is no need to save them either. They became monsters because they used curses.
「I will not… forgive… you… for deceiving… me」
Philan Bargal Lanca walks unsteadily toward the priest.
「What do you mean you will not forgive! I tried to stop you! I said curses are bad! Absolutely bad! Over and over again! Despite that, your stupid daughter went through with it!」
「Do not call my daughter stupid!」
「In her marriage home, she squandered money needed for business on jewels, got hooked on a man who went from woman to woman, offered all her dowry to him, and even touched the money her husband had saved for their future children. A woman who does such things is nothing but a fool!」
That is foolish. Completely a big fool.
「Shut up! My daughter is a noble! She has no reason to be called a fool by commoners!」
「Your daughter married a commoner, so she is a commoner!」
「My daughter is not a commoner, not such a lowly existence!」
It is precisely because commoners exist that you nobles can live, though.
「How long do you think we should keep watching this?」
When I ask Fon, the guard knight next to me, he gives a bitter smile.
「If we do not stop them, I do not think they will stop」
「That is true. But stopping them is troublesome」
Bang.
「Ah, Philan Bargal Lanca has punched the priest in the face」
「What are you doing!」
The priest, with a red face, grabs Philan Bargal Lanca by the chest.
「What are you doing, let go! Who do you think I am!」
She is a sinner, lower than a commoner, who has lost her noble status.
Philan Bargal Lanca and the priest are pulling each other’s hair and hurling insults.
「Ah」
「What is wrong?」
Fon looks at me.
「Philan Bargal Lanca called commoners lowly existences. Then what do you think sinners are? They are of a status lower than commoners」
「Is that what concerns you while they are grappling with each other?」
I look at Fon, who does not even try to hide his disappointed expression.
「Does it not concern you?」
「I am concerned about when we should stop that」
I look at Philan Bargal Lanca and the priest, who are grabbing each other’s hair and clothes. Their clothes are torn, and blood is oozing from their faces.
「Certainly, this will not do. Please stop them」
Saying it as if it is troublesome, Fon signals to those around him. Immediately, the guard knights pin the two down, tie them with ropes, and make them unable to move.
「Let go! Do you think you will be permitted to do such things?」
「Yes. Of course」
When I nod with a smile at Philan Bargal Lanca, she glares at me fiercely. The priest, perhaps remembering the current situation due to being caught, has turned pale and is letting his gaze wander.
「Well then, shall we go?」
We head toward the place with the biggest problem.
Even while Philan Bargal Lanca and the others were rampaging, beast-like growls could be heard from the second floor. From that, I adjust my breathing slightly, thinking it might be in the worst state.
Accompanied by the guard knights, I go up to the second floor.
「No! Stop!」
Philan Bargal Lanca lets out a desperate voice.
「Bishop Arteto, please step back」
When we come in front of the room where the growls can be heard, the guard knights Rudos and Tabaro step forward to protect me. Then, Rudos slowly opens the door.
「Gyaaa, gaaaa」
Clank, clank.
The growls become even louder, and the sound of metal colliding can be heard.
When Rudos and Tabaro enter the room, I follow them into the room. Then, I check the condition of Fismili Bargal Lanca, who used the curse.
「It seems she had a sense of crisis after all. She is chained up」
I give a small laugh at Tabaro’s words.
「She certainly has at least a sense of crisis that she might be attacked」
At the end of the gaze of the guard knights who entered the room with me, there was a woman rampaging on the bed. Both of her wrists were wrapped tightly with chains and connected to the bedposts. Perhaps because she was struggling in that state, blood was flowing from both wrists.
「Gyaaa, gyaaaaaaaaaa」
Fismili Bargal Lanca, who seems to have already lost her sanity, does not ask for help even when she sees us, but instead threatens us.
「So this is what happens」
The guard knight Asroka behind me mutters.
「Is this your first time seeing someone who used a curse?」
When I look at Asroka, he nods slightly.
「Yes. I had heard about it as information, but this is my first time seeing it」
The woman rampaging on the bed is obviously abnormal to anyone who looks at her. The cause is probably her pupils, which have turned completely black, and the characters floating on her emaciated face. Her body, thin from lack of food, adds to this.
「Those characters are the same ones used in magic circles for cursing people」
Nodding at Asroka’s words, I point to her hands.
「Also, her nails have turned black, and please look closely at her arms. Her skin is changing into something different from humans, isn’t it?」
「Are those scales?」
「Yes, they are scales. If left like this, those scales will spread over her entire body, and she will become an existence completely different from humans. Well, her life probably will not last until then」
Looking at Rudos and Tabaro in front, I nod slightly. Seeing my signal, they approach the bed and draw their swords from their sheaths. Then, they thrust them deeply into Fismili Bargal Lanca’s chest.
「Gyaagaaa」
Clank, clack, snap.
At the moment she was stabbed, Fismili Bargal Lanca struggled greatly, and the chain on her right arm broke.
「Please be careful! It seems stopping the heart has no effect, so please cut off her head」
Fismili Bargal Lanca extends her freed right hand toward Tabaro. Fon, who was next to me, cuts off that hand with his sword, and then immediately cuts off her head as well.
Fismili Bargal Lanca’s head rolls around under the bed.
「Whoa. It is still moving!」
When I turn my gaze toward Rudos’s disgusted voice, Fismili Bargal Lanca was still rampaging even without her head.
「Uwa～, how strongly did she curse her opponent? To think she would not die even like this」
Sighing, I raise my hand toward Fismili Bargal Lanca and release holy power.
Fismili Bargal Lanca’s body, enveloped in a faint white light, slowly collapsed onto the bed. And when it completely stopped moving, the faint light also disappeared.
「Are you okay?」
Fon looks at me with concern, so I nod.
「I am fine. I need a little rest, but there is no problem」
I am using holy power to search for the Saintess, so I did not expect to need it here as well. Perhaps because I am overusing it, I feel a bit tired.
「Bishop Arteto, I will purify this place, so please rest a little downstairs」
It seems Fon has noticed my condition.
「Understood. Please do」
Glancing briefly at Fismili Bargal Lanca’s drying corpse, I left the room while shaking my head.
I look at Asroka, who came as a guard.
「What is your impression after seeing it for the first time?」
「I think I will dream of that face」
I cannot help but laugh at Asroka, who answers with disgust.
「Why do they not believe that even if the curse succeeds, the one who cast it will be punished by the Goddess?」
「Well, I wonder why. For some reason, those who use curses do not try to believe it」
「We must spread the word more that they will absolutely receive punishment」
「That is true」
Actually, there is a way to succeed in a curse and not receive punishment.
It is limited to cases where a substitute to receive the punishment is prepared, and the target of the curse is an object. Moreover, five substitutes are needed, and the magic circle is huge and complex. But there is someone who killed their love rival using this method and became a concubine. Well, this is a top secret, though.
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