Chapter 8
“The temple? Did you not say there was no need to go out of our way to visit it?”
“There is now.”
At the abrupt reply, the tears vanished at once, replaced by confusion on Shen’s and Yujelia’s faces.
Shen’s expression, in particular, showed it most clearly.
“You were always a bit… no, I mean, somewhat unconventional to begin with, but ever since you woke up, I honestly cannot tell what you are thinking anymore, Young Master.”
Shen hesitated as he spoke.
He glanced repeatedly at Yujelia, clearly trying his best to phrase his words in a way that would flatter his master, but his expression was unmistakably awkward.
Whatever Aquila Reschenhardt had originally been like, it seemed he had not possessed a particularly exemplary temperament.
‘Then I can afford to go even further.’
Whether Shen looked doubtful or wore a serious expression, Aquila merely entertained such thoughts.
“Are you still unwell somewhere? You said your head hurt badly yesterday. Ah—or is this because of the Great One’s prophecy…?”
Even as Shen asked with concern, Aquila calmly interlaced his fingers and rested them on his knee.
“I was about to speak about that prophecy anyway. Thank you for saving me the trouble of thinking about how to bring it up, Shen.”
“It does not look like you were thinking about it very hard….”
Yujelia muttered quietly, then hastily covered her mouth.
Perhaps now that she knew the curse had been lifted, her guard had lowered and her thoughts slipped out without her realizing it.
Had he been an arrogant noble, he might have bristled at such a remark, but Aquila brushed it off casually and asked her a question instead.
“You know that curses do not simply occur on their own. Do you know what a curse truly is?”
Yujelia studied Aquila with uneasy eyes, then nodded at once.
“Yes. In most cases, a curse is forbidden magic cast by someone who seeks to harm another.”
“Forbidden magic… You mean black magic, correct?”
Magic devised solely to inflict suffering upon others, using the caster’s life or soul as collateral.
That was what black magic was.
The pain wrought by black magic was tremendous and vicious, and in this world, not only its use but even the act of learning it was strictly forbidden.
Anyone found to have so much as touched black magic was executed immediately, without mercy.
Aquila had encountered black magic users a few times, and every single one of them had been the sort of wretch he wanted nothing to do with.
Leaning back against the sofa, Aquila nodded slowly.
“That is right, Shen. There are exceptions, but when a curse targets a specific individual, it is generally classified as black magic.”
“And what are the exceptions?”
Shen tilted his head.
“Occasionally, curses arise from the whims or grudges of spirits, but that possibility is rather slim. A spirit’s wrath does not discriminate between precise targets.”
The capriciousness of spirits was a well-known fact.
Like innocent children, they might approach and shower someone with favor, only to suddenly turn and inflict a curse without warning.
Moreover, their grudges were tenacious and cruel.
“You mean the Lurgenti family. I have heard of them as well. They incurred the wrath of a great spirit and were cursed so that, as they aged, their bodies hardened like tree bark….”
Yujelia murmured in genuine sympathy as she followed his words.
The heir of the Lurgenti family had once gotten lost in the forest and, seeking warmth, broken branches from a tree to light a fire.
The problem was that the tree was inhabited by a great spirit.
In its fury, the great spirit did not limit its wrath to the one who broke the branch, but instead placed a curse upon his entire bloodline.
For the Lurgenti family, it was nothing short of a calamity.
‘Even setting that aside, spirits are selfish beings, one and all.’
Aquila swallowed a sigh and shook his head.
Shen, who seemed to have heard such stories as well, quickly turned pale.
“Then, if it was not the work of a spirit, was the Curse of Deadly Poison that tormented you black magic?”
Stumbling over his words, Shen tried to change the subject.
But before Aquila could answer, Yujelia shook her head.
“…No, probably not. If it were ordinary black magic, holy magic should have been effective. Yet no priest was ever able to lift the Curse of Deadly Poison.”
Most curses cast through black magic could be resolved with the help of a priest.
Black magic and holy magic were perfect opposites.
But the Curse of Deadly Poison was different.
Divine power could alleviate the victim’s suffering, but it could not erase the curse itself.
‘If it had been black magic, it would have been easier.’
The moment that thought crossed her mind, Yujelia’s face darkened.
“…It is shameful to admit this, but when it comes to the Curse of Deadly Poison, many priests have simply given up. We do not even properly know who casts it, or how.”
Still, Yujelia bowed her head toward Aquila.
“Even so, thanks to you, Aquila, we now know a way to lift the curse. I do not know how to express my gratitude…”
“No. Without your help, Yujelia, it would not have been possible.”
Seeing tears well up and sparkle at the corners of her eyes once more, Aquila shook his head and leaned slightly forward from his relaxed posture.
“More importantly, there was something in the Red Dragon’s words that I did not mention, just in case.”
Though only the three of them were in the room, Aquila lowered his voice as if someone might be eavesdropping.
His tone was so secretive that it felt solemn.
Without realizing it, Yujelia and Shen leaned forward as well, listening intently.
Aquila’s black eyes took on a grave light as they briefly swept over Shen’s face before dropping.
What he was about to say was, even for him, something of a gamble.
“The method used to cast the Curse of Deadly Poison.”
“…What?”
At Aquila’s unexpected words, Yujelia reflexively questioned him.
“To plant a seed together with parts separated from the target’s body, and make a flower bloom. Then, by pouring malice into it without fail for fifteen days, the offering is prepared.”
Facing their stunned expressions, Aquila continued without pause.
Shen, who had been left gaping by the relentless explanation, suddenly sprang to his feet.
“W-wait a moment! More than anything else, what do you mean by parts separated from the body?”
Aquila merely observed this suspicious individual quietly with his eyes.
“Fingernails, hair, and a small amount of blood.”
“Would just one of those be enough?”
“No. All of them.”
“All of them? B-but that would require someone very close to the target…”
As Shen stammered, his face grew steadily paler.
He had realized that to obtain the materials for the curse, the culprit must be someone close—or at least someone who had close assistance.
“Once the offering is prepared, it is delivered to a specific someone, and one asks for a curse to be bestowed instead of a blessing. That is all.”
Aquila finished his explanation succinctly, without waiting.
This time, however, it was Yujelia who raised a hand with a confused expression.
“Wait, Young Master. Setting aside how you know all of this, you say one ‘asks’ for a curse to be bestowed instead of a blessing? That sounds as if…”
She murmured uneasily.
Some premonition seemed to brush past her.
Perhaps because she herself was a priest, she reacted more keenly.
Nodding as if she had grasped it precisely, Aquila continued.
“Yes. A punishment a god inflicts upon a human at the request of another human. That is the true nature of the Curse of Deadly Poison.”
Yujelia leapt to her feet, her face stricken with horror.
Her trembling gaze left Aquila and fell upon her own white robe.
“Th-then, that god would be…”
“No. The Sun God is merciful.”
Aquila shook his head, quoting words someone had once spoken in another run.
Yujelia felt a brief sense of relief, but it lasted only a moment before her expression stiffened.
“My goodness…”
Both Shen and Yujelia collapsed onto the sofa, unable to say a word.
Shen seemed shaken by the possibility that someone close to him could be the culprit, while Yujelia appeared stunned by the fact that the Curse of Deadly Poison was a judgment delivered by a god.
The only one who remained composed was Aquila.
‘They both look as though this is the first time they have heard it. Their reactions do not seem false.’
Having lived through many runs, he had developed a knack for recognizing lies, yet there was nothing about them that stood out.
Aquila turned his gaze to Shen.
‘He could have helped unknowingly, but from what I saw earlier, lies show on his face immediately.’
Organizing his thoughts, Aquila remained silent.
As no one spoke, a suffocating stillness filled the room.
Only after some time passed did Yujelia, having regained her composure, speak in a sorrowful voice.
“So there was a reason divine power did not work. The curse itself…”
At her voice, Shen lifted his head.
The face he saw—Aquila’s—remained calm and composed despite such a shocking truth.
How could he be so tranquil when someone close to him had sought his life?
“Y-Young Master… are you truly all right?”
Shen was just as confused, but that was the first thing he voiced.
Tears pooled in his plant-like green eyes.
Shen could clearly feel that the Aquila who had awakened after narrowly escaping death was different from before.
If the former Aquila had been like blazing fire, the current one was like cold water.
He did not know what words the Great Dragon had spoken in the past, nor how recalling them after enduring the agony of near death had changed Aquila.
But—
Shen stepped closer to the sofa where Aquila sat, placed one knee on the floor, and lowered his body completely.
Then he spoke.
“I swear upon not only the Great Dragon, but also the two gods of day and night, and all noble beings, that I have never taken any action that could harm you, Young Master.”
With his hands clasped together, Shen looked up at Aquila.
The moment he heard Aquila’s explanation, Shen understood what Aquila’s constant scrutiny meant.
It was suspicious.
Yet despite being suspected by the master he had long served, Shen did not feel resentment.
He was simply worried about Aquila.
“And I swear that I never will.”
Aquila looked at Shen’s face, speaking through clenched teeth as he fought back tears, for a long while.
As he repeated run after run, the moments when his heart inevitably wavered were, time and again, because of such oaths.
Being an outsider, he found it easy to doubt and lightly dismiss oaths, but those born and raised in this world never doubted their absoluteness.
That was how this world had endured, and because breaking an oath was accompanied by real punishment.
This was a place where gods truly lived and breathed.
“I trust you, Shen.”
As Aquila said those words, a gentle light settled around them.
Shen had sworn upon all gods, and there were witnesses nearby, which brought about this result.
Seeing the light, Yujelia recited a brief prayer.
Aquila lifted his gaze, swept it across the empty air, and let out a light sigh.
‘This is one of the convenient aspects of this world.’
That a person’s oath, their heart itself, manifested as something visible.
Still, there was an unexpected gain.
Having gone this far, Shen truly had no connection to the Curse of Deadly Poison.
For now, that alone was enough.
With a lighter heart, Aquila spoke softly.
“Then you will need to help me now. You as well, Shen.”
Shen and Yujelia nodded vigorously toward Aquila.
“Yes, Young Master. I will help with anything I can.”
“Leave it to me, Young Master!”
At their spirited replies, Aquila finally allowed himself a small smile.
He then explained, step by step, the reason they had to go to the temple and the plan behind it.
They were somewhat surprised and even voiced objections, but in the end, they decided to follow Aquila’s words.
And so, in the early dawn before the sun rose, the news that a carriage bearing Aquila Reschenhardt had hurried toward the temple spread far and wide before daylight had fully broken.