“So, Lady Saintess, you are saying it is a priest’s duty to heal people? It isn’t a way for them to make money?”
Lintis blinked and said as if it were obvious, “Of course. Mr. Shilo, you are a knight, after all. At the very least, please read the Holy Scripture thoroughly.”
“Besides, the Church provides salaries to the priests. Why would any priest go out and take side jobs on their own?”
“I am not a knight. Besides… that isn’t in the Holy Scripture.”
“How could — ” Lintis started to protest, but she saw Shilo’s eyes looking fierce enough to cut someone down.
A possibility suddenly occurred to her, and she spoke tentatively.
“…Mr. Shilo? Could it be that the priests in Isol City charge high medical fees every time they perform a treatment?”
The moment she finished speaking, Shilo’s expression grew visibly darker.
She realized she had guessed correctly. He was likely telling the truth; otherwise, it would be impossible to explain what had happened at the Adventurers’ Guild.
But… why?
Lintis did not understand. Everything she had experienced since childhood told her that the Church and the clergy were the absolute backbone of Eresia, a presence the people could trust unconditionally.
(Eresia: A human empire based on the Holy Church, with the strongest comprehensive national power among the human race.)
Why did this small, peripheral city have the audacity to abuse its power for personal gain right under the Church’s nose?
And why hadn’t the Church sent anyone to handle this yet?
Solving one problem only brought more questions. Lintis felt her head beginning to ache, and her expression became uncharacteristically serious.
“Mr. Shilo, has Isol City not communicated with other cities? Logically, this kind of thing couldn’t be hidden if the accounts were balanced even slightly.”
Looking at the now-serious Lady Saintess, Shilo, who had just calmed down, also felt a bit strange.
This Lady Saintess seemed to have no understanding of anything in Isol City. Weren’t they all part of the same group?
Thus, he did not answer her question directly.
“Lady Saintess, based on what you are saying, the Church and clergy in other cities aren’t like this?”
“Of course not!” Lintis nodded emphatically.
“The reputation and glory of the Holy Church were fought for by the clergy with blood and tears for the sake of the people. Please do not generalize and insult them. At the very least, do not say such things in front of me, or I will get angry!”
‘She really is the Saintess of the Church, being so quick to defend them.’
Hearing the Lady Saintess’s words, which did not seem fake, Shilo muttered a critique and then didn’t know how to continue the conversation.
Thinking carefully, if the Lady Saintess hadn’t lied to him, hadn’t his actions toward her been quite excessive?
A silence fell between them. Seeing that he was ignoring her, Lintis pouted and gave him a poke with her elbow, instantly shattering the small amount of guilt Shilo had managed to muster.
Feeling the pain in his side, Shilo turned around irritably and said, “More than ten years ago, the roads connecting Isol City to the outside world were occupied by several large magical beasts. Relying solely on adventurers, one can’t even leave the vicinity of Isol City without being torn apart by monsters.”
“People from Isol City cannot get out, and people from the outside cannot get in. Communication between the city and the outside world only happens once or twice a year through a fixed process. A knight is forced to lead a team to briefly exchange intelligence and goods with cities dozens of miles away.”
“Normally, no knight leads a team. Over time, things became the way they are now. Currently, the operation of Isol City relies almost entirely on the surrounding rivers, forests, and a few mines. The distribution of resources is quite limited.”
Listening to Shilo’s response, Lintis rested her chin in her hand and thought.
The acquisition of information cleared much of the fog hanging over her head, but many points remained suspicious.
Were they just monsters? Could the knights not solve the problem by working together?
Just how powerful were those monsters?
Wait!
Lintis suddenly remembered something. Before she was kicked out of the Holy Capital and sent to Isol City, a certain middle-aged man with a perpetually punchable face had said something.
“All you do is eat and drink every day! What the hell have you actually been doing? Do you know what they’re saying about you outside? ‘Lintis, the Idle Saintess.’ You’re a goddamn embarrassment to me! Get the hell out of here and do some work!”
“There’s a city called Isol on the northern edge. Something might be happening there. Go and see what the deal is. If you don’t do a good job, don’t bother coming back!”
Aha!
So, someone was sent to handle the abnormalities of Isol City!
Wait?
Lintis froze for a moment, then blinked.
‘Isn’t that person me?’
‘But I’m currently neglecting my duties… haha…’
Cold sweat dripped silently. Lintis swallowed hard and stole a glance at Shilo as he walked.
She finally understood why this gentleman knight disliked her. It was because the Saintess had been derelict in her duty.
The two of them, both filled with their own brands of guilt, walked silently down the street.
Before long, they arrived at the entrance of a decent-looking clothing store in the center of the market.
Pushing open the carved wooden door, the two of them walked in, one after the other.
“Welcome! Oh? What a rare guest! What brings our Knight Shilo to my shop today?”
A woman in her twenties sitting at the counter immediately stopped her needlework when she saw Shilo enter and walked over quickly.
As soon as she approached, she began fussing over Shilo, touching his shoulders and arms, pinching here and there, and using her hands to take some rough measurements.
“Tsk. Miss Sery, could you stop messing around? And don’t call me a knight. I’ve told you many times!” Shilo said with some impatience.
“Oh, please… you child. You stress over the most trivial things every day. Am I not taking measurements? How can I make clothes for you without measurements? I’m trying to be kind, and you treat it like dirt. Do you really think I’m that desperate for you?”
With that, Sery stopped her movements and spat a few times in disdain.
Shilo clicked his tongue again, his expression very displeased, but he moved aside to reveal the curious-looking Lintis behind him.
“This is the actual customer. Please don’t get it wrong!”
“With your habit of putting your hands on people as soon as they walk in, be careful I don’t report you for sexual harassment. I don’t think the Lord’s guards would mind taking you away for a few days. Don’t you think I’m right, the perverted Miss Sery?”
Sery’s eyes widened as if she had remembered something terrifying, and her eyes were full of resentment as she looked at Shilo.
“You poisonous-tongued brat! Go, go! Get out! You’re not welcome here!”
“Heh.”
Shilo gave a cold laugh and crossed his arms. No matter how much Sery tugged at him, he didn’t budge an inch.
After a while, Sery seemed to tire. Only then did she notice the very cute young girl standing at the door. Her playful eyes were especially eye-catching.
Of course, the most important thing was the priest’s uniform.
Sery’s eyes suddenly became misty, and a few tears began to fall. This left Lintis, who was watching the scene, completely bewildered and nervous, thinking it was some kind of illness again.
Fortunately, Sery just wiped away her tears and calmed herself down. She looked at the equally confused Shilo, gave him a thumbs-up, and nodded.
“Good job! Little Shilo, I haven’t seen you in a few months, and you’ve already found such a young and cute little priestess to be your girlfriend! In another two years, will you be holding a baby?”
“Oh no, I’m already starting to look forward to it!”
“So, you’re here for a wedding dress, right? Come, come, over here we…”
*Thump*
“Ow…”
Sery crouched on the ground, clutching her head.
Beside her was Shilo, his mouth twitching wildly and his fist still raised.
And then there was the Lady Saintess, her mouth agape in surprise, though for some reason, she began to clap.