Instead of directly pursuing the shadowy figure, Lintis deliberately turned into a corner of an alley.
Then, she grabbed the wall with one hand and pushed off, her toes lightly tapping the wall. In a few swift movements, she reached the rooftop and used magic to conceal her presence and sound.
Arriving at the spot where she had noticed the anomaly, she looked down.
A grown man in a black hood was lurking furtively in the shadows, his gaze fixed precisely on Sery’s clothing shop.
‘Is this the culprit harassing Sister Sery?’
‘But… what a useless fellow, to be detected while surveilling an ordinary person…’
Lintis sighed inwardly. Hiding any longer wouldn’t yield results, so she simply jumped down.
She deliberately canceled her magic, letting the sound of her landing reach the man. He immediately turned around, his expression clearly one of great surprise, and shouted:
“Who are you!”
Lintis couldn’t be bothered with such a person. She lightly snapped her fingers.
Magic circles appeared beneath the man’s feet and above his head. Immediately after, his entire body slammed face-first into the ground, unable to move as if something heavy was pressing down on him.
Star-Moon Magic: [Gravity Collapse]
As the name suggests, it alters the gravitational composition within a certain area.
The man’s face was pressed tightly against the ground; he couldn’t even lift his head.
Lintis approached and looked down at him, her voice cool and clear.
“Speak. Who sent you? What is your purpose?”
“My patience is limited. I’ll give you five seconds. If you don’t speak in five seconds, you’ll become one with the earth for the rest of your life.”
“5… 4… 3… 2… 1…”
As she spoke, she was already preparing to snap her fingers again.
Catching this movement from the corner of his eye, the man became frantic and cried out agitatedly.
“Hey! Wait, wait, wait!!! Please hold on a moment!”
But Lintis didn’t lower her finger. She snapped them anyway.
The man’s eyes widened in disbelief, and he fearfully shut them tight.
After waiting a few seconds, the death he expected didn’t arrive. He opened his eyes, puzzled.
He saw the girl in priestess robes squatting in front of him, blinking her eyes, looking utterly adorable.
It was hard to imagine she was the same person who, moments ago, had threatened to bury him alive.
He tried to move and found the pressure on his body had lessened considerably. He didn’t know why, but it seemed he had gotten his life back.
Somewhat awkwardly, he pushed himself up with his hands, sat on the ground, and looked at the girl again, organizing his words.
“Um… Priestess. My name is Marco. I’m an ordinary friar of the church, assigned by the Head Priest to investigate the abnormal situation at Sery’s Clothing Shop.”
“Hmm?” Lintis was taken aback, looking at him suspiciously. “Aren’t you the abnormality?”
Marco scratched his head and explained, “No, Miss Priestess. Miss Sery has been seeking help from the church for several days in a row.”
“She said her shop has been frequently harassed by drunkards and malicious individuals recently. That’s why we dispatched personnel to check the situation. It was my turn today, so I was here observing.”
Lintis blinked, feeling a bit awkward.
“Uh… So, Mister Marco, you’re actually a good person?”
Hearing this, Marco also realized it was probably just a misunderstanding and nodded.
“Yes, Priestess.”
“……”
Lintis silently stood up, gave an awkward laugh, casually dismissed the magic circles on him, and then clasped her hands together.
“Sorry, I thought you were a bad guy.”
Marco, feeling the pressure completely gone, stood up and smiled, indicating he didn’t mind much.
But Lintis felt bad about it. After thinking for a moment, she took a sandwich from her basket and handed it to him. After he accepted it, she turned and ran away as if fleeing.
Her speed was so fast it left Marco dumbfounded. He took a dazed bite of the sandwich.
“Huh. You know, this is actually pretty good.”
…
On the other side, Lintis walked down the street, a wisp of holy power swirling around her fingertip as if she was pondering something.
‘That’s a bit strange… Does the church need to act so covertly?’
‘And Sister Sery’s matter… Was this the reason Mister Shilo was in a bad mood when he returned earlier?’
‘It seems I’ll have to trouble Ifreya to investigate further… And also trouble her about Sister Sery…’
‘…I hope she doesn’t come to drag me back…’
Lintis walked with a worried frown and soon arrived at the Adventurers’ Association entrance. Just as she was about to go in, several people burst out through the doors. If she hadn’t reacted quickly, she would have been knocked over.
Once she steadied herself and looked closely, she saw they were familiar faces.
The people who rushed out were Eric, Tina, and two other companions. They were clearly surprised to see her, but their surprise quickly turned to delight.
“Great! Priestess! You’re here again!” Eric said excitedly.
As soon as he said it, Lintis roughly understood what was going on. The corner of her mouth twitched involuntarily.
“Priestess, please help them!”
‘Sure enough…’
Lintis sighed inwardly, but she didn’t refuse out loud. Her tone just sounded a bit resigned.
“Where are they?”
Eric was overjoyed and immediately stepped aside, allowing Lintis to see the situation inside the association.
The usually bustling Adventurers’ Association was now filled with sounds of misery. Most people were injured, bandaged, and looked weak.
“What’s this?” Lintis asked, puzzled.
Eric quickly moved closer to explain. “They were all injured in the Black Forest.”
“The Black Forest? Wasn’t the danger there already resolved by me… by Mister Shilo and me?”
Eric shook his head. “Priestess, it’s not the previous Golem. It’s a magic book that moves on its own. The magic it releases is too powerful, and it has injured many adventurers who went to the Black Forest.”
At this point, the receptionist handling business suddenly walked out. She came before Lintis and, under the latter’s curious gaze, slowly began to speak.
“Allow me to explain the rest.”
“Priestess, this happened after you and Shilo left. Because the Black Forest is rich in resources, it was always a frequent activity area for adventurers before the Golem incident.”
“But after the Golem incident, the Association sealed off the area. It was only reopened after you resolved it, just a day or two ago. However, the Black Forest, which previously wasn’t very dangerous, started frequently producing casualties. Some adventurers even permanently remained there.”
“Based on their reports, we learned that an anomalous, seemingly living magic book has appeared there. It attacks all living creatures indiscriminately, disrupting the Black Forest’s ecosystem and threatening adventurers’ safety.”
“The situation arose too suddenly. The Association immediately dispatched a large number of personnel to seal off the Black Forest again. Meanwhile, the Association itself has to handle a large volume of complaints due to failed missions, leading to an extreme shortage of personnel.”
“So, I commissioned Mister Eric to go to the church, to request they dispatch knights to subdue the magic book and send priests to treat the wounded. The expenses will be borne by the Adventurers’ Association.”
“The losses this time are too great, directly affecting the entire operation of the Adventurers’ Association. This is a decision made by the entire Association.”
Lintis blinked, fully understanding everything.
“I see. Then let’s start with the treatment first.”
As her words fell, the receptionist asked tentatively, “Um, Priestess, about the price…”
Lintis glanced at her, naturally understanding what she meant.
“Same as before. Since the Association is covering it, I’ll ask you for it later, okay?”
“Of course!” The receptionist nodded excitedly.
After all, if they had to ask the church to send priests, the Association would surely bleed a lot of money. But adventurers are the foundation of the Association; it’s an unavoidable expense.
Now, with this kind Priestess here, they could save a huge sum.
Without saying more, Lintis placed her things on a table and directly released holy power around her. In an instant, the association seemed to become an ocean of light.
Everyone present was enveloped in the radiance. Then, based on each person’s specific condition, she began healing them one by one.
Half an hour later, Lintis wiped the sweat from her forehead, let out a sigh, and looked slightly tired between her brows.
Just as she was about to ask the receptionist for some water, the association’s main door was suddenly kicked open.
A priestess, only about four feet seven inches tall and wearing priestess robes, appeared at the entrance, accompanied by a tall knight.