The Priest Wants to Retire

EP.195 The Life of Herbivores (4)

Who could the strongest be?

If you ask the majority of the citizens of the system, they would undoubtedly mention the Hero’s name without a moment’s hesitation. It’s a straightforward question.

However, if that question came with the caveat of excluding the Hero, it would surely open a fierce debate that would be obvious to anyone.

After all, the seat of the strongest is like a supreme throne resting on the backs of countless competitors.

Even at this very moment when the owner of that throne has been decided, the jealous gazes of those coveting it were not few.

Those heading toward the Vatican were among those guests.

Before Abigail’s arrival, he was a figure constantly mentioned as a candidate for this generation’s Hero.

S-Rank Adventurer. Monster Slayer. Carlos Zilga.

A rarity in this system, he sported dark hair.

He favored agility over defense, donning light armor.

From a cumbersome cloak that reached down to his knees.

His appearance seemed to vividly portray the embodiment of the Hero from a fairy tale, revealing his deep admiration for the Hero.

One distinguishing feature was the eyepatch covering one of his eyes.

While both of his eyes were fine, many were curious as to why he was obscuring part of his vision, yet since Zilga remained tight-lipped, the truth was beyond reach.

“Looks like the destination is right in front of us. Everyone, stay alert.”

“Hey. That’s creepy; don’t lower your voice like that.”

Zilga squirmed on the bare ground as he pressed on.

The only one who could poke fun at his antics was his twin sister, the sorceress Carlos Ranar.

“What’s up, Leader? Here we go again?”

“Poor Ranar, suffering because of her foolish brother…”

“If it weren’t for that, he’d be a reliable leader…”

The other comrades felt equally exasperated by their leader’s antics.

His boasts of being the reincarnation of the first Hero often made him the target of ridicule among the village children.

Nonetheless, the reason his comrades followed Zilga was none other than his extraordinary skill and character, something that could easily be called the essence of a hero.

The tale of him defeating a colossal dragon that had taken a castle as its home after three days of fierce battle was even sold by renowned bards as a sacred achievement.

Zilga’s audacious claim to be a descendant of the Hero was acknowledged by the Royal Family as an S-Rank Adventurer, precisely because nobody in the system dared to belittle his skills.

The Vatican, located in the capital city, was embroiled in an unprecedented dungeon disaster.

When the Royal Family entrusted Zilga with the pre-investigation mission—something that would typically be considered taboo—there was no need for further explanation about his prowess as an adventurer.

“What’s this sack of flour? Why did you bring it along?”

“Heh. You’re really clueless, huh, little brother? If you sprinkle fine flour in a confined space and ignite it, it triggers an explosion phenomenon called a dust explosion! The more tricks up your sleeve, the better!”

“Ah… Who’s feeding this idiot bad ideas again?”

Despite having many merits, Zilga was a person whose glaring flaws overshadowed them all.

Some would often describe him that way.

“Leader… Could you try to take this mission a bit more seriously? The Royal Family isn’t sending us for reconnaissance just because we’re not the Hero Party; maybe they have high expectations for us…”

“Y-Yeah! Leader! This is our chance! It’s a golden opportunity for our party to make a name for ourselves, much larger than the Hero Party! Aren’t you frustrated!? That you were stripped of the Hero’s duty just because you didn’t receive a prophecy first!”

“Aside from his pathetic behavior, there’s no one more suitable as a Hero than our leader! At the very least, we can confidently state that!”

The party members’ pleading was a mix of blind faith in their leader and resentment toward the Hero Party that had stolen the limelight.

As part of the Royal Family’s endeavors to promote the Hero’s achievements regularly among the citizens of the system.

Like how a single swing of a sword split a dragon the size of a mountain into two.

Or how, by simply inhaling, one could all but perish in the toxic swamp, yet held their breath for hours battling away.

Or how a lost traveler was rescued merely by following their scent in the vast snowy mountains.

These legendary tales made the general public, who had no ties to adventuring, cheer with glee, while the tales sounded like nothing but outrageous lies to other adventurers in the same field.

“On top of that, I’ve heard that the current Hero asked for a statue to be erected in a remote village only to later destroy it because it didn’t meet his standards! How wicked! It’s impossible to even call him a Hero!”

The story of the Hero smashing their own statue was well-known among some adventurers.

Of course, they had no idea that the Hero did this to save a child, and such tales were casually concocted as bar gossip.

The majority of the citizens of the system dismissed these rumors as baseless nonsense, but for those who were envious and jealous of the Hero, these tales were a delicious treat.

Moreover, there are rare spices to stimulate the twisted minds of those whose characters deviate from the idealized hero everyone admires.

Thus, it was no strange thing for Zilga’s comrades, who admired him, to harbor resentment toward the Hero.

“Leader, just the other day, you saw the actual Hero at the blessing ceremony with us! That confused impression! No matter how you look at it, he didn’t look like a superhuman who could overpower a dragon!”

“Hey, calm down…”

A royal decree directly issued by the Royal Family. While attempting to carry out the mission that would determine the party’s future, the newbie was passionately pleading while his emotions were swinging wildly.

Yet, among the other comrades who were trying to restrain him, Zilga himself, upon hearing the Hero’s name, began to sweat bullets and turned away from the gazes directed at him with a sweat drip.

“Er, everyone. W-What should we have for lunch today?”

“L-Leader…?”

As evident from his pitiful tone, it was undeniable he was desperate to change the subject.

“What’s this? A new toy?”

Thump!

Right then.

As if something elegant had slipped past their consciousness, a stunning voice reverberated through the tense air.

“─!?”

Without signaling anyone, they quickly took a defensive stance.

A girl, oddly shaped more like a neatly crafted doll than a human, stood in the spot where all their horrified gazes converged, flashing an ominous smile.

◈◈◈

“Ugh, ugh!”

In an instant. It truly was in a blink of an eye.

Amidst the robust ranks of the party. Right in the center, a nameless girl appeared like a mirage.

The fierce light radiating from her engulfed the flawlessly composed adventurer group in an instant.

The source of the agonizing pain that coursed through their bodies was unfathomable.

They couldn’t even confirm if the screams ringing in their ears were their own or someone else’s.

All they could fully grasp was how they, who had vanquished countless monsters across countless battlefields, had been utterly annihilated by a single girl.

And that this astonishing being looked down upon them like mere insects as they lay sprawled out on the ground, made it all the more surreal.

Snow-white hair. Crimson eyes. Copper-toned skin.

Those features that did not resemble any race they had ever seen were embedding primal fear deep within their minds alongside the dismal circumstances.

“Wow. So many toys. What should I play with first?”

That bizarre being’s voice, seemingly imitating a human, emitted an unsettling melody, gradually but surely closing the distance toward them.

Pat pat. The sound that seeped into their eardrums felt like the footsteps of death, echoing through the air.

This is dangerous. That is a dangerous existence.

Not the experience of an adventurer but the instincts of a living being seemed to scream this with every fiber of their being.

“Everyone! We need to run away right now!”

“L-Leader!”

Only their leader could push back the whisper of death that surged around them.

But that once-reliable figure, reminiscent of a great boulder, had long since crumbled into a dilapidated fence-like appearance.

His entire body was covered in blood. One arm hung limply, as if it were broken.

In this grim situation where glimpses of hope were nowhere to be found.

Though they bore expressions ignited with a will to resist, it was abundantly clear that within each of them, the acceptance of death had already sunk in.

Crash!

At that moment.

Like a brilliant beam slicing through dark clouds, a sudden blinding flash cut through the darkness encasing their bodies.

“Hero has arrived!”

The savior. The savior had appeared.

In the instant their thoughts, splintered by the nightmarish visions flickering in their minds, had united perfectly.

Tonight, the Priest will devour us like dogs! Tonight, the Priest will devour us like dogs! Tonight, the Priest will devour us like dogs!

The inner imagery of that savior was rather tragic, but fortunately, that grim resonance did not reach their ears.

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