The Priest of Complete Dispel ~ Every Time I Save a Cursed Beautiful Girl with My Status Abnormal Cure Skill, For Some Reason Her Dependence on Me Maxes Out ~

Chapter 63: Invitation

It seems the slave contract in this world has far stronger binding power than I ever imagined.

Even if we’re far apart, my will apparently reaches the other person perfectly.

Though it’s not like we can hold a conversation through telepathy――it’s more like a vague, intuitive transmission.

So for the time being, I decided to have Dorotheia hide somewhere out of sight.

She can apparently use transfer-type dark magic that once flung me across the battlefield, so if I call her, she’ll appear right away. What a convenient tool she turned out to be.

To wrap up the day, we visited the largest church in the city――Saint Patricia Cathedral.

Now that Iris could walk around town in her holy robes without any issues, we decided to take the opportunity to offer prayers together. Of course, Medina came along too.

The cathedral towering in front of us was clearly on a different level from other churches.

Its solemn stone exterior was adorned with countless stained-glass windows.

The light pouring through shifted colors across the floor, giving the illusion that we had stepped into the realm of the gods. Words failed me, and that was exactly the point.

Inside, the sheer height of the ceiling overwhelmed me first. The space was enormous.

Along the walls ran passageways leading to second and third floors, and the number of doors showed that the building was structured almost like a tower.

Further in, rows of pews for worshippers stretched out neatly, and beyond them lay the sanctuary of the cathedral.

At the far wall, bathed in the glow of stained glass, stood the statue of Goddess Artemisia.

Her pose, bow drawn, was dignified and beautiful, radiating such awe that just looking up straightened my spine.

And there was something here that other churches didn’t have: a large mural behind the statue depicting a holy beast with enormous horns――Keryneia.

The way it stood protectively beside the goddess gave off a quiet, powerful presence.

Despite all this grandeur, they say the grand cathedral in the royal capital is several times larger.

――Churches really are expensive places.

And Bulldog had tried to destroy the entire city, including this one.

A man who was supposed to be a believer had tried to defile even the temple.

I walked forward with Iris and Medina to stand before the goddess statue.

Then I quietly knelt and clasped my hands in prayer.

The light streaming in warmed my closed eyelids, and I felt my heart settle into stillness.

“――――”

After a while――I slowly opened my eyes.

――My vision was dyed in white and black.

“Artemisia…?”

‘It’s been a while. It seems you’ve gone through quite a lot.’

A soft, smiling voice echoed through the silence.

The goddess statue emitted a faint white glow, and I noticed that everyone else had frozen as if time itself had stopped.

“Didn’t expect to get dragged into something like this here.”

‘But it was precisely because of you that this city was saved.’

“…I’m not sure if it was really saved or not.”

‘You did more than enough. From here on, it’s up to each person to decide how to live their own life. ――That burden is not yours to carry.’

“…That’s a pretty cold way to put it.”

‘I know. You may not think so, but I was once a combat class myself. Kindness alone doesn’t let you survive.’

I glanced at the bow in the goddess statue’s hands.

“…So you used a bow. Even gods fight like humans, huh.”

‘Yes. What we call gods were all originally human. Over a very long time, they became deified and reached their current state.’

Originally human, huh.

Even though they’re residents of this world, they know about my previous world and even govern reincarnation――gods really are unfathomable.

“And there’s one thing I want to say.”

‘What is it?’

“Seira’s ass was definitely not something I wanted, right!?”

The time she said the skill’s cost would match my desires.

But no matter how I think about it, fingering someone’s ass isn’t my desire. …If anything, it’d be something like wanting to grope or lick breasts.

‘Sometimes it may exceed your own desires.’

“Huh…”

‘I told you before that great power requires a price. If the scale of the power surpasses your fundamental desires, then the excess cost is paid in an excessive manner.’

“So… the curse that could have killed Seira was more than what I wanted?”

‘That’s correct.’

――Phew.

At least it meant I hadn’t seriously desired something that perverted.

But at the same time, a terrifying fact came to light.

“…So you’re saying that even things I don’t want could become a cost?”

‘In some cases, yes.’

“…I see. Well, I guess that’s fate too…”

‘But――you weren’t exactly unhappy about it, were you?’

“Wha――!?”

This… this goddess…!

Sure, at first having a finger in the ass was――honestly shocking.

But this was Seira we’re talking about. That cool, seemingly perfect beauty, her face twisting and moaning from my finger… there was no way I could keep my reason.

“…Are you actually the goddess of that Miledia country or something?”

I heard the Miledia Empire to the west was extremely open about sex.

‘Hehe, please don’t lump me in with those sluts. You’d understand if you went to Miledia. That country has beings called Pleasure Saint High Mistress and Servant Maiden of Service. ――It’s a completely different world from the Einfilia Kingdom.’

“…I just heard some seriously dangerous words, didn’t I? Wait, each country has its own saint?”

‘Yes. In this world, the church holds immense power. Therefore, wherever there is a church, there is always a pope and a saint.’

I see… so the Miledia Empire is dangerous in that sense too.

Even Iris, a saint candidate, already felt a little slutty to me, so something called a Pleasure Saint must be on a whole other level.

‘And――about the church school the saint candidate mentioned. In a little while, you should head there.’

“…So I really have to go, huh.”

‘That’s where new encounters and the future you desire will begin.’

“The future I desire… huh.”

What I truly desire――honestly, I still don’t know myself.

I do want to help people. But that’s it.

There’s also the desire to explore dungeons as an adventurer… but the essence of my skill lies not in dungeon combat, but in saving people.

“…Well, got it. I’ll go check it out.”

‘That would be wise. Then――until we meet again someday.’

“Yeah. …You take care too.”

In the next instant, color returned to the world.

The glow from the goddess statue faded quietly, and Iris and Medina began moving again.

I lowered my hands, bowed once to the statue, and stood up.

And just as I was about to leave the cathedral,

“――Shu. I’m glad you’re safe.”

The one who called out was the pig old man, Alaster-san.

“You too, looks like you’re not hurt. I was wondering what happened to you after that.”

“I can use recovery magic, so I healed myself. ――More importantly, I never properly thanked you. For what you did with Bulldog, and with Seira. I’m deeply grateful.”

Alaster-san was dressed in the same red-and-white priestly robes as yesterday.

Despite his pig-like face, he carried a solemn air that fit this grand cathedral perfectly.

“I just did what I could. Seira needed you. That’s all.”

“…In that situation, very few could have pulled it off. Honestly, I seriously thought you might have died saving me.”

“D-died!? What do you mean, Shu-sama!?”

“Ah…”

Come to think of it, I hadn’t told anyone the details of the fight with Dorotheia yet.

Sure enough, Iris came rushing at me with a panicked look.

“It was this robe. Without it, that thing’s claws might have pierced right through me.”

“I did check with <Appraisal>, but the explanation was so complicated… I couldn’t really understand it.”

I see.

Iris probably couldn’t grasp something like the dilation phenomenon. Even if she got the info from <Appraisal>, if she couldn’t comprehend it, it was meaningless.

“Well, I’m alive now, so all’s well that ends well.”

“Jeez… I was really worried, Shu-sama…!”

Iris looked like she was about to throw herself at me, and I felt a little embarrassed.

I’m happy, but I didn’t want to worry her. Still, in that moment, I had no other choice.

“Also, Shu――Seira has something to say to you.”

“Huh?”

Alaster-san beckoned toward the far wall.

When I looked, Seira in her armor was walking over.

“Hey, Seira. Looks like you’re safe.”

“O-of course! I’m a captain. Something like that wouldn’t take me down… but I heard you collapsed… I’m glad you’re alright.”

Seira turned her face away while shyly continuing.

――Looks like she was worried about me.

“So, about that… do you know something called the ‘Sword Festival’?”

“Nope, first time I’ve heard of it.”

“Shu-sama, the ‘Sword Festival’ is a huge event held twice a year in the adventure city Hares. For that period, church members, adventurers, and residents are all equal. It’s a celebration to thank the sword――the symbol of weapons――for how this city developed through the dungeon.”

I see. So this world has festivals too.

It suddenly reminded me of the summer festival Rikka dragged me to in my previous life.

“Huh… so what about this ‘Sword Festival’?”

“W-well…”

“Shu-sama… after all this, if you still don’t get it, you’re way too dense.”

“Uh, um…?”

Iris pressed her forehead and sighed.

No way… was that it?

“The ‘Sword Festival’ starts tomorrow and lasts a whole week. I’m busy with temple knight duties… but I get one day off.”

――With that single sentence, I finally understood.

Seira was inviting me to the festival.

Doing something like this in public made me feel embarrassed instead.