Chapter 391 - Chapter 7: The Giant's Cave (4)
James-sama and Gwyn-sama drew their swords. They are silver swords, but they are meaningless if they don't hit. Fiona won her duel against the Cait Sith.
"Um, as for running away..."
"Unfortunately, we were sensed before we crossed the fissure earlier. We cannot run away. If we were setting a trap, that would be one thing, but those who simply run away naturally harbor fear. That will be exploited. You'd better prepare yourself."
My suggestion was easily overturned, and I was admonished in a gentle voice. It can't be helped. I'll steel myself.
Suddenly, a chill ran down my spine. Is this the sensation of an evil spirit...
There should be a considerable distance. I only feel it very faintly. However, the unpleasant feeling is clearly transmitted. My hands tremble. My legs are shaking. I try to do something about it myself, but they tremble naturally.
"Everyone, you'd better be careful. It seems this isn't an opponent that can be reasoned with."
The two princes tried to step forward, but this is the turn for priests. Price-sama held them back and stepped in front of the two. I followed suit and managed to walk and line up beside him. My legs were shaking, but I am also a Bishop. I have to do my best.
"James-sama, Gwyn-sama. Leave this to us and please crouch down. Stay calm and do not be agitated."
After saying that, he cast Calm on everyone. Thanks to that, the shaking stopped.
"Jeanne. Please produce one Firefly. Make it so it can illuminate all directions, but for now, throttle down the output."
I produced a large Firefly between my raised hands. That way, I can produce more output than letting it float in the air. However, as I was told, I kept the output to a minimum for now.
Next, Price-sama reinforced my Firefly with a log-class Holy Lance.
The Firefly took on heat and became hot. As expected of a super-high-level mage, it wasn't so hot that I couldn't hold it, but it was the first time I'd felt this much heat from a single shot.
"Jeanne. When I give the signal, release it all at once. In all directions."
Saying that, he himself crouched down.
The unpleasant feeling grew stronger and stronger.
I could see dark blue-black flames. The flames of an evil spirit. However, the color was different from the Queen of the Demon Realm or Fiona. It was darkened... no, I'm not seeing it. I'm feeling it. The dark black flames.
Gradually, what you might call emotions, or perhaps the thoughts of the ghost, came flooding in.
Fear... craving... grief... pain... jealousy... hatred... anger... I didn't think there could be such strong negative emotions. Moreover, it didn't seem to be just one person. On the contrary, it seemed to be a considerable number. Especially the fear.
What on earth happened here?
Because I throttled down the Firefly's output, it was dark everywhere except around my palms. Through that darkness, blue-black flames were approaching. Not just one. There were several. The sizes varied; some exceeded the height of an adult man, while others were lower than me. They were approaching, swaying.
Negative emotions filled my head. It was a sensation I had never felt before. It felt as if my heart was being seized...
Price-sama clapped his hands with a "Pop," and I came to my senses. In a hurry, I shook my head vigorously and raised my arms, which had fallen to my chest, high above my head.
"Jeanne. Chant the Chant of Exorcism. James-sama, Gwyn-sama, join in."
At Price-sama's words, I glared at the largest of the approaching dark blue-black flames.
"O Glorious Mother who watches over us from the heavens
I here offer my devoted prayer"
James-sama and Gwyn-sama were also chanting with us. Price-sama's voice carried well and was particularly loud.
With every word I chanted, my heart calmed, and the negative emotions in my head faded.
"Purify the earth born of the Heavenly Consort
Protect the established principles
Give us the courage to face the wicked
Suppress the power of the evil ones"
While chanting, I felt a doubt. Even though they are evil spirits, they were originally human. Were they really evil ones?
"Bishop Jeanne! Concentrate!"
Price-sama's sharp command flew.
I mustn't, I mustn't. He saw through the wavering of my heart.
Taking a breath, I chanted again.
"Now! Release the Light!"
When the second chant finished, the instruction came down.
I opened the Firefly to full power.
All at once, white light carrying heat burst into the darkness.
"Uuuguuuuaaaaaa!"
A scream that didn't sound human at all echoed in my head.
"Bishop Jeanne! Match the Chant of Exorcism to my Ascension!"
For a moment, I didn't understand what he meant, but I understood when Price-sama sang out a passage of the incantation in a loud voice. It was the same as during the Exorcism Formation that the Headmistress and Harrison-san released.
Once again, I sang a passage of the Chant of Exorcism. James-sama and Gwyn-sama also joined in.
Price-sama sang a passage of Ascension, I sang a passage of the Chant of Exorcism, and the two princes chanted along.
The evil spirits had unknowingly huddled together as one and were fluttering violently like flames before a howling wind. They had clashed head-on with the light of the Firefly reinforced by Price-sama. They were inching closer and were now right beside us. Ascension was not yet complete. Because we added the Chant of Exorcism to calm ourselves, it was taking time.
"Gugugugu!"
James-sama, who was crouching and chanting, held his throat with his left hand.
Something like a dark blue-black mist was approaching his clenched mouth.
This is bad, the mage was targeted. Even James-sama, a super-high-level mage.
I immediately crouched and thrust the Fireflies in both hands toward the mist. The mist retreated once, but from there, it became thin like a tentacle and stretched toward James-sama.
"Hah!"
Gwyn-sama slashed upward from beneath the tentacle with the sword in his right hand. The tip of the mist vanished.
"S-Sorry. Gwyn. You saved me."
"Don't worry about it. We're even. Buy me a drink later."
The chanting had stopped, but Price-sama continued the incantation regardless. Originally, it was probably a device to prevent the three of us from having our consciousness taken over. Thanks to that, James-sama resisted, and Gwyn-sama overcame his fear and drove away the evil spirit.
"It is complete. Ascension!"
As if supporting something large, a huge ball of white light appeared above Price-sama's hands stretched over his head. The super-high-level magic to let wandering souls ascend had been activated.
However, the evil spirits were not drawn to the ball of light from Ascension.
I immediately let the Firefly float above my head and controlled the light to illuminate everyone from above. The effect was the opposite. There was no point in illuminating with light that repels and light that attracts at the same time. As expected, the intensity of the evil spirits' dark blue-black flames gradually diminished.
"H-Help me"
"I'm scared, I'm scared"
"Hey, what will happen to me? Will I die?"
For some reason, I heard the screams of many children's souls. Most were girls.
Is the source of the evil spirits many children? Or am I being deceived?
No, I am a Bishop. What kind of Bishop would I be if I didn't believe in wandering souls!
"Please rest assured. It's alright. You are going to the Goddess's side. You won't have to suffer anymore. It won't be painful anymore. Rest assured. It's alright. Rest assured. It's really alright."
While I called out many, many times, many small white balls of light came out from the flames of the evil spirits and gathered around me. Perhaps because the light of the Firefly was in the way, they were keeping their distance.
"J-Jeanne!"
Gwyn-sama stepped forward and tried to swing his sword, but I grabbed his hand with the effect of the Cat Stone.
"It's alright. These children are no longer evil spirits. Please leave it to me."
When I said that while looking firmly into his eyes, Gwyn-sama withdrew his sword.
"Price-sama, I'm turning off the Firefly."
"I leave it to you, Bishop Jeanne. Please save the wandering souls."
"Thank you very much."
Price-sama was maintaining the ball of light from Ascension. I had to lead the souls to that light while I could.
When I turned off the Firefly and spread both hands in front of my body, the balls of light gathered. When I made a bowl with both hands, several drifted into it.
Instantly, one intense image after another crossed my mind.
The corpse of an infant wrapped in cloth was falling to the bottom of a hole. Beneath it was a corpse with bones protruding from rotten flesh, and further beneath that, a massive pile of human bones thought to be those of infants. Among them were also bones of children who had grown to some extent.
Suddenly, the scene changed, and I saw a round hole in the darkness. I could see a face that I couldn't identify because it was in shadow.
The scene changed again, and an infant wrapped in cloth began to cry violently. Is it alive? No, the scene changed and there was no change in the person visible from the hole. Just like that, the face vanished...
Is this... were dead infants thrown away? Or were newborn infants killed... Could it be thinning... (T/N: 'Thinning' refers to infanticide, a historical practice in times of famine or poverty.)
I have heard of it. In an era when agriculture was not as developed as it is now, serfs who could not use magic were apparently prolific. And girls, who could not do heavy labor, were secretly killed immediately after birth and officially treated as stillbirths.
No, perhaps it still happens now. In fact, two-thirds of the children of the serfs who come to the village where Beatrix is the landlord are boys.
These children might be those who were thrown away after being killed in that way. And there might be infants who were born unwanted by their parents. Despite being spirits of small children, most of them were not calling for their parents. They didn't know them. Orphans might also be included. It's hard to raise them until they reach the age of discretion. Slave traders would also dislike infants.
If the place I was born wasn't Sertoria, there was a possibility I could have ended up the same as these children.
"Come here."
When I offered the bowl made with my hands, small lights gathered little by little. Every time one entered my hands, the image of when they were dropped into the hole was reproduced in my head. Among them were children who had spent several days in a state of consciousness. Over a long era, the hole where more than a hundred children were thrown away was further ahead. The last memories of those children before they wandered were being reproduced continuously in my head. Since I wasn't seeing them with my eyes, it would probably be the same even if I closed them. Besides, I couldn't look away from these children.
"It's alright, rest assured. It was painful, wasn't it? But it's alright now."
"What will happen?" they asked one after another.
"You are going back to the Goddess's side."
"Goddess? I don't know. More importantly, is it okay to leave the hole?"
They didn't react to the Goddess.
Come to think of it, infants don't have religious feelings. The talk was too adult.
"Of course it's okay. Look, look up."
"There's a big light."
"Are you scared?"
"N-no. It's warm."
"That's right. You are going back to the Goddess's side protected by that light. It's the place where you were before you came to this hole."
"Is that so? But I don't remember. Is it fun?"
"Hehe. I'm sure it is. Because everyone is going back to the Goddess's side. Me too."
"Let's go together."
"I'm sorry. I can't go yet. There are other children who are suffering like you were. I have to put those children on that big light like this."
The lights now filling both my palms were trembling. Because there were many, I had to have the same exchange several times, but in the end, they all agreed.
When I looked at Price-sama, greasy sweat was beaded on his temples. His hands were trembling violently, and he was being supported from both sides by James-sama and Gwyn-sama.
It seems I took too much time.
"Did they understand?"
As expected of the Vice-Archbishop of the Medioland Royal Capital Great Church. Even though his legs were shaking, he smiled.
"Yes. I will release these children now."
"Understood. Leave the rest to me."
Price-sama took two deep breaths and then steeled himself with a grunt.
"Goodbye. Be well."
"Yeah. Thank you, big sister. Goodbye."
"Goodbye, mister."
The lights that soared all at once flew energetically toward the light Price-sama was supporting and became one.
After looking around and confirming there were no omissions, I gave the signal to Price-sama, and the light gradually proceeded into the cave. I followed behind on the bowl.
While following the light, the cave came out into a wide area. It dropped off significantly from the cave we had passed through. Light could be seen above. Beyond that was probably a cliff. The hole was open diagonally, and there was a slope leading to the hole. The light climbed that slope and passed through the hole.
Passing through the hole and going outside, we came out onto the middle of a sheer cliff. Since there was just a rock ledge, we landed there and all watched the ball of light ascending to the heavens.
Now, from here is the real main event.
"Um, that, Price-sama, are you alright?"
When I checked on Price-sama's condition, he nodded after a light glance.
"Yes. I cast Refresh just now. Besides, since Jeanne seems to be quite fired up, I can't very well rest, can I?"
"I'm sorry."
This is no good. I have to relax my shoulders.
I take one big deep breath.
"No, no. But this isn't about avenging those children, you know."
"Ah, yes. I'm sorry."
I'm being completely seen through. I mustn't, I mustn't. I take a deep breath to calm my feelings. The evil spirit that was manipulating those children was also originally human.
"By the way, Jeanne already knows, doesn't she?"
"Ah, yes. Probably..."
I glanced at James-sama.
"Is there something?"
James-sama asked Price-sama. He didn't seem to understand. Gwyn-sama beside him was also tilting his head.
"Those children were indeed evil spirits, but they were not the spirit I initially sensed."
"In other words, there's still one left."
"Yes. The spirit that was taking in wandering young souls to increase its own power is the true evil spirit."
It was when we flew over the low, wide area at the bottom of the hole on the bowl. A problem occurred.
The moment I illuminated below with the Firefly, it went pitch black before my eyes, and at that time, the ghost of a man in old-fashioned clothes was standing beside a discarded infant. Black tentacle-like things were stretching from his body and clinging to the infant. When I saw that image, I felt a chill. It was undoubtedly the sensation of the evil spirit I felt at first. That guy is still left. It's his fault those children wandered and even became evil spirits. He had dodged Price-sama's Ascension and escaped.
When the image was seen, Price-sama told me to stay as I was. Price-sama had also noticed.
"An unforgivable fellow."
Gwyn-sama, who likes children, raised his voice. James-sama was also nodding. Both of them must have seen the image itself.
"Gwyn-sama, it is forbidden to let your emotions run high. Such negative emotions are the source for an evil spirit to take advantage of you. Please calm down."
"Ugh, s-is that so?"
Gwyn-sama hurriedly took a deep breath. When I glanced at his eyes, he shrugged his shoulders. It's the usual Gwyn-sama. No matter what happens, it should be alright now.
We descended to the bottom of the hole on the bowl. Since the Firefly was floating above my head, I could see bones scattered on the bottom. I offered a funeral service together with Price-sama. I really wanted to collect them and make a mound for them, but there's something to do first.
We ascended and proceeded through the cave we had passed earlier. Arriving at the place where we encountered the evil spirit, we deactivated the bowl and, according to Price-sama's instructions, formed a circle. Price-sama, then James-sama, then Gwyn-sama beside him. And I stood between Gwyn-sama and Price-sama. James-sama and Gwyn-sama knelt on one knee and clasped their hands in front of their chests.
Price-sama sang the Chant of Exorcism, and the other three chanted along.
Price-sama's voice, singing sonorously, echoed in the cave. There was no sign of the evil spirit. However, it must surely be watching us.