Chapter 246
"That lunatic!!"
Logan's booming shout shattered the brief calm.
Most of the group, stunned into silence, stared at him in disbelief.
"It's still early; there's time. Sir! Dispatch a messenger to halt the slaughter!"
"Agreed!"
"Revise the soldiers' orders. Completely isolate the infected villages. Round up all the sick in one place!"
"Understood!"
Decisions were swiftly made within the Rafutan Domain, and the group sprang into action.
However, upon reaching the village where the sick were gathered, Logan's party was met with the sight of numerous bodies strewn before them.
"Cursed be these poor souls!"
"They will face divine retribution!"
Moans and sobs filled the air as villagers lamented.
"And I too, curse you all! Oh my heavens……!"
Among them was a woman, holding her child's lifeless body, her face drenched in crimson tears.
The soldiers, forming a solemn barrier in front of her, quickly stepped aside to allow the approaching group through.
"Sir Hamel. Who are the people in the back…?"
"You! Didn't you receive the order to halt?!"
"We ended the attack as soon as we got the command."
One soldier, a superior it seemed, reported to the knight of the Rafutan Domain with a pale face. However, with the king observing from behind, Knight Hamel unsheathed his sword with a fierce expression.
Sliiing.
"Disobeying orders is a serious offense, Gerik."
"Sir Hamel!"
"Stop!!"
Logan bellowed, unable to bear the tragic spectacle before him. The soldiers and the knight hesitated.
Haaah.
As Logan sighed, Knight Hamel promptly prostrated himself.
"My apologies, Your Majesty."
"His… Majesty?"
"Kneel! His Majesty the King is here!"
With that command, the atmosphere in the village shifted once more.
"At attention!"
"Loyalty."
"Loyalty!"
The soldiers and knights, now standing at attention, awkwardly saluted, while the villagers whispered among themselves.
"The… king?"
"Why is the king present…?"
"Curse them, they should be punished…."
"Hey, lie down, man!"
Even amidst the grief and anger, bewildered villagers began to bow down as instructed by the knight, turning the grim scene into chaos.
'Is it due to the plague, or have they lost their minds?'
Logan, too exhausted to contain his frustration any longer, simply walked past the soldiers. Moving through piles of bodies and weeping villagers, he encountered another harrowing sight.
Those with only a hint of red on their faces were considered in better condition. Skin that had turned scarlet with rash-covered bumps, a patient gasping heavily, scratched at their skin, causing blood to ooze from the cracked flesh.
"It's hot, itchy."
More alarmingly, some patients, unaware of their state, muttered deliriously as they scratched their wounds. There were even more severe cases, with individuals losing consciousness, blood and froth leaking from their eyes and ears.
"Save my mother, please help her!"
A sharp-witted, crimson-skinned child ran up to Logan.
"Stay back, child!"
"But, please save her, elder, please!"
A desperate plea from a restrained child, behind whom a woman, likely his mother, reached out with great effort. Her serious condition was evident from the blood and pus seeping through her cracked skin.
"Bishop Ilia, I leave them in your care from now on."
"Yes, Your Highness."
Responding to Logan's words, the clergy stepped forward among the villagers.
"We have come from the temple. Please step forward if you show symptoms of the illness."
The bewildered villagers gazed at Bishop Ilia in her pristine white church garments.
'What is happening…?'
In a village plagued by death, reeling from a recent massacre exacerbated by a plague outbreak, now with clergy arriving unlike any they had seen before, the villagers were understandably bewildered by the chain of perplexing events.
Interpreting their expressions, Ilia spoke once more with a soothing voice.
"There will be no more attacks from our soldiers. We are here to cure the plague. Please step forward if you exhibit symptoms!"
At Ilia's compelling plea, the shaken villagers, rattled by the sudden calamity, began to stir. And then, among them:
"Let's go, too!"
"But, Sir Gilbert, maybe we should wait for the priests to treat them first…"
"We're not magicians like Sir Gilbert, you know."
"Hey! Did you forget His Highness' orders? If we show symptoms, the priests will heal us first. Trust in them! Our duty is of the utmost importance."
"Heheh…"
Reluctant healers tentatively entered the village. They carefully examined and recorded the known symptoms, allowing the priests to begin treatment. Based on those notes, healers would then devise ways to alleviate the symptoms, whether through herbs or other means. This relief effort was planned before arriving in Rafutan.
- Divine power can indeed heal all, but there is a limit to how much priests can channel. This is why plagues could still spread even in ancient times when the temple wielded greater influence.
Therefore, now that priests were present, a cure had to be developed within the Rafutan Domain. This was Gilbert's assertion, and Logan actively supported it because, as he argued, it could effectively halt this crisis.
"Starting today, halt travel between villages. Isolate each village and await the relief team. Food and essentials will be provided by the relief team."
"Yes!"
With those orders given, Logan set off to join the relief team at the forefront. Or at least, he attempted to.
"Your Majesty. There's no need for Your Majesty to…"
"We can manage."
"Please, this way. How could someone of your stature…?"
People were urgently waving him away, advising him not to. Even without those protests:
"Your Majesty. We understand and appreciate Your Majesty's noble intentions, but for Your Majesty to personally attend to the ill would only inconvenience everyone here. Your presence alone provides great comfort."
Gilbert's words seemed to echo Logan's thoughts. Ultimately, he abandoned the idea of taking a leading role, standing back a few paces to oversee the distribution of aid and food, observing the collaborative efforts of healers and priests.
However, this also meant witnessing less favorable moments.
"Why should we cater to these commoners…"
"Chose the wrong bunch. Blast it."
"Just do enough to show we're doing something. No need to waste divine power on non-nobles and common rabble."
Voices that could make anyone question human decency, voices that did not belong to priests. The golden light flared in Logan's crimson eyes.
'Ha. Those scoundrels…?!'
Assuming they couldn't be overheard, they muttered among themselves, but unfortunately for them, Logan's hearing encompassed the entire village.
Stomp stomp.
"You there, priests. What were you just discussing?"
Logan's accusatory finger drew the attention of the whispering priests, who flinched in unison.
"We were deliberating on how to heal the people of the domain, Your Majesty."
"Yes, that's right, Your Majesty."
They stumbled, attempting to justify their actions.
"Then you should be more diligent, shouldn't you?"
"Yes, absolutely."
"We're on it!"
The priests swiftly changed their demeanor, starkly different from moments before. But even that lasted only briefly, and they weren't the only ones.
"Huff, next."
A priest named Tale reached out to a villager, closed his eyes, and concentrated for a long while, signaling the villager to depart with a gesture. However, the villager, a woman with a feverish face, questioned skeptically.
"Priest, I don't feel any different…"
"Quiet! What do you know? Next!"
Unless it was a miracle surpassing ordinary expectations, divine power would typically be invisible to laypeople. In reality, Tale was merely going through the motions.
'The invaluable divine power that I've diligently honed should not be squandered on such peasants.'
Tale, a junior priest, had recently awakened his divine power after years of intense study and prayer at a monastic school, embarking on a path deserving of nobility. Even a junior priest like him was entitled to the blessings of a god, not meant for mere commoners.
To fully replenish his spent divine power, Tale would need to fast and pray for three days.
'Why should I go to such lengths for these people? If they were wealthy nobles, perhaps, but not for these.'
He was only present because he drew the short straw. Some of his colleagues had already depleted their divine power and retreated to fast and pray. Not out of lack of compassion or because he was detestable, but to conserve his divine power.
'There have been priests infected and killed by the plague due to depleted divine power. I've read the accounts; would I be foolish to heal for them? I must survive.'
If that colleague had known, Tale was certain he wouldn't have attended to the people. Unfortunately for him, he was in the presence of one who could witness divine power firsthand, the king.
"You! What do you think you're doing?"
A menacing voice resonated nearby. Tale turned pale with fear and looked up to see the stern countenance of Logan.
"Your, Your Majesty. I, I was healing the people."
"Healing? It seemed to me like you were feigning."
"But, divine power is usually imperceptible to the…"
"I'm sorry, but I can see it."
"What? That's…"
"Do it again, heal that individual. And if you pretend again, I'll sever those useless arms on the spot."
The aura user's voice dripped with menace, causing Tale's face to drain of color.
"Yes, certainly!"
How could he think otherwise? Tale focused his mind and immediately began the ritual on the woman about to turn away.
Whooosh.
This time, Tale broke out in a genuine cold sweat, contrasting with the previous situation. In turn, relief visibly washed over the woman's face. Feeling lighter, she quickly stood and bowed.
"Thank you, Your Majesty."
"Next in line."
Logan merely observed the next villager approach, patting the priest Tale on the shoulder.
"I'll be watching."
At that chilling statement, Tale could only nod, his face a ghostly pallor.
Logan's warnings had just commenced. After several incidents where he identified and directly confronted negligent priests, the clergy had no choice but to believe the king's assertions about seeing divine power.
Naturally, the priests' attitudes began to shift. Despite their affiliation with the temple, they were ultimately citizens of this kingdom and wouldn't dare anger their king.
However, not all shared this sentiment.
"I'm giving my all, Your Majesty. It's unjust to pressure us in this manner."
Fabian, the rotund senior priest of the God of Water and Agriculture, Aion, bowed before Logan, seemingly genuinely distressed.
"Your Majesty, even as a representative of Your Majesty, it's unreasonable to coerce the temple's priests in this manner!"
While humbly bowing, an expression all too visible beneath his lowered head seemed to adorn his face.
Observing him, Logan's lips curled into a chilling smile.