“Hmm, I heard that Erica and the children found a person who had collapsed in the forest and brought them here.”
“Yes, he is a young man. He says he was just a traveler passing by the area by chance.”
“How did that happen?”
“I don’t know. He says he doesn’t remember anything before he collapsed, but there are some suspicious parts that make me think he might be hiding something.”
The abbot stroked his beard as he listened to the priest’s explanation.
“He is in such a bad condition that he can’t move, so he wants to stay in the monastery until he recovers.”
“Then there’s nothing we can do. We should provide him with convenience so that he can live comfortably. He’s an outsider, so we should be careful and observe him.”
The priest nodded his head as if he had expected the abbot’s response.
The other couldn’t just turn away from someone in need, especially since he was more faithful than anyone else.
Looking at the piles of documents on his desk, the priest suggested, “Rather than doing that, why don’t you take a break, Abbot? I’m worried that it might harm your health.”
The abbot smiled at the concerned words.
“It’s only for a day or two. Besides, I’m almost done with everything, so don’t worry about it.”
As the priest left, the abbot continued with his work alone.
...
After reading the documents for a while, he looked down at the bottom drawer under his desk.
The one that was locked with a padlock.
He took out a key from his pocket and unlocked the drawer, revealing its contents.
Inside it, there was a translucent black jewel the size of a finger joint.
“Hmm...”
Dehod picked up the jewel and touched it with a strange expression in his eyes.
The gentleness that he had just shown was nowhere to be seen, and there was only cold ruthlessness in his eyes.
As footsteps approached the room, he put the jewel back into the drawer and cleared his face. Soon after, there was a knock on the door.
“Come in.”
The door opened again, and another priest entered.
“What’s the matter?”
“Well, sir. There’s something I need you to check regarding the scriptures you mentioned earlier. Are you very busy?”
Dehod made a soft smile and gestured with his hand.
“It’s alright. Bring it over here.”
***
After explaining the situation, I asked if I could stay at the monastery until I recovered. They readily agreed.
I spent almost the entire day and the next day lying in bed.
Sometimes the priests came to use healing magic, but it didn’t really help.
If it took this long to recover, even with the help of [Super Regeneration], Ditrodemian’s magic must have been truly deadly.
Of course, considering the fact that I had taken on the attack of an archdemon, I had gotten off cheaply.
'I really lucked out.'
It wasn’t the time to be relaxed, but there was nothing I could do in this situation.
To alleviate my body, I went out to the monastery courtyard occasionally.
Also, it was a hardship to endure restlessness all day long just lying in bed.
I wasn’t in a hospital, but I felt like a patient receiving care as if I were hospitalized.
“......?”
While sitting in a chair and absentmindedly looking at the scenery, I saw familiar faces coming out into the courtyard.
Erica, Tom... and was that Heron?
The three of them noticed me, but they were far away, so they didn’t come over to say hello.
Heron had a book in his hand, and Erica and Tom each had a wooden sword.
The two people holding swords briefly warmed up and soon began to clash swords with each other.
'Are they sparring?'
I had also seen a few other kids swinging wooden swords in the courtyard. Perhaps they wanted to become knights in the future.
Even though it was only for a day, based on the atmosphere I had observed, it didn’t seem like the monastery imposed strict discipline and rules on the children.
Heron leaned against a nearby rock and read a book, while Tom and Erica clashed their swords fiercely.
I quietly watched their sparring.
[Lv. 11]
Erica, the girl, had a higher level than the two boys.
Among the three, she was the only one I could feel a faint magical power, even if it’s very weak. She probably somehow learned how to accumulate Mana.
Since they all looked to be about the same age as Rigon, it was natural for Rigon to come to mind in comparison.
Compared to Rigon, they were at a pitifully low level, but Rigon wasn’t a comparison target to begin with.
Even if they hadn’t received systematic and proper training like those from prestigious families, they could be considered having a considerable level.
Clang!
Not long after, Tom’s sword floated up in the air.
He grumbled loudly, flapping his hands, “Hey, be careful. You almost tore my fingers off!”
Erica snickered and turned to Heron. “He’s not warmed up yet. Want to spar?”
“No thanks,” he declined.
They chatted for a moment, then noticed me and approached.
“Hello, Uncle!” Tom greeted me enthusiastically. I nodded my head in return.
“If you’re having trouble moving, why are you out here?” Erica asked shortly.
“Just came out to get some fresh air,” I replied.
“Hmm, it’s better not to wander around too much if you don’t want to arouse suspicion. You’re a suspicious outsider, after all. And it’s not just me who thinks so,” she said, putting her hand on her hip.
“I haven’t even been walking around,” I retorted, annoyed.
I knew that whenever I went outside; I was being watched by the priests and holy knights in the vicinity. I decided to leave and was about to turn when Erica suddenly reached out and grabbed my shoulder, making me stumble.
Since my body was so weak that walking was a struggle, even though Erica’s touch was not strong, it was enough to make me stumble.
Thump.
Erica caught me urgently as I lost my balance.
Even though I stood still, my body ached, and a sharp pain shot up my back. My face twisted involuntarily.
I turned my head in confusion.
Erica also released her hand from my shoulder and looked at me with a startled expression.
“I didn’t even use much strength. Why are you so weak?”
“Hey, Erica.”
Heron interrupted her shameless remark.
I clicked my tongue and asked, “What is it?”
“Don’t go deep into the forest behind the monastery. It’s a place you shouldn’t enter.”
“A place you shouldn’t enter?”
I was about to ask why, but at that moment, a nun from the direction of the monastery shouted, “Erica, Tom!”
The two of them quickly turned to flee in the opposite direction, their faces anxious. Heron sighed and followed them.
The approaching nun asked me while catching her breath, “What were those children doing here?”
“They were practicing swordsmanship...”
“I see. Excuse me.”
She bowed her head and ran back in the direction where they had fled.
As the sound of mumbling faded into the distance, it seemed like the person had other things to do but was procrastinating and putting things off.
***
Almost a week had passed since I had been staying at the monastery.
I spent each day focusing solely on my recovery.
Although there was still stiffness when I moved, the constant pain that had been piercing my body had almost disappeared.
As I walked through the corridors of the monastery after finishing lunch, I saw the priest named Tane picking up books and papers that had fallen to the ground up ahead.
I watched him for a moment and then approached him, offering my help.
“I’ll help you with that.”
“Oh, Mr. Ethan. Thank you,” he said, smiling. “You seem to be coming out of your room more often now. Has your health improved?”
“Yes, thanks to your kindness.”
As I picked up the fallen books, I glanced over their titles. They seemed to be religious texts like the Bible.
“You’ve been moving all of these by yourself?”
“Haha, yes. I tried to take them all at once and it was too much...”
I was curious about why he was moving so many books, and he seemed to sense my curiosity and explained.
“I need to transcribe the scriptures, but I have some things to organize first.”
Transcribing the scriptures? At first, I couldn’t understand why he would do such a thing, but then I realized that there were no printing presses in this world, and each book would have to be handwritten by a person.
'Or maybe there’s something like a typeface.'
I picked up all the books and grabbed the paper documents, quickly scanning their contents.
With a cursory glance, I immediately realized that the contents were a summary of passages from the scriptures.
This world was a world where transcendent beings that could be called gods really existed. My interest was piqued suddenly.
I briefly read through the passages written on the paper, and Tane, who had finished organizing all the books beside me, asked in a surprised voice,
“Ethan, can you read the ancient proverbs?”
“...?”
Oh, right. Come to think of it...
At his words, I recalled one of the settings from RaSa, which was in the far recesses of my memory.
'In the church, they used ancient proverbs along with the continental common language.'
The church had its own unique script that they had been using for a long time, and it was called ancient proverbs.
It was based on the continental common language, but the script was much more complex and difficult to learn.
That’s why mastering ancient proverbs was said to be one of the biggest challenges for those who walked the path of priesthood.
'...Why am I able to read this so easily?'
I looked through the contents written on the paper once again.
Upon closer inspection, I realized that it was similar to the continental common language, but clearly different. However, I had no trouble reading it smoothly.
Was this because it’s based on the continental common language, so interpretation was possible?
“Yes, I can read it.”
Tane looked at me with surprise in his eyes at my answer.
“You can read ancient proverbs. Does that mean that you, Ethan...?”
Finally, I realized that I had caused a useless misunderstanding. It was because ancient proverbs were characters that only clergymen would learn.
I quickly shook my head. “No, I am not a clergyman.”
“Then why do you know ancient proverbs...?”
“I just learned them out of personal curiosity. I enjoy exploring and analyzing ancient languages and various characters.”
“I see.” Tane nodded as if convinced, though a slightly disappointed expression remained on his face.
Nevertheless, I could still sense a considerable amount of goodwill in his eyes.
“Still, your effort is truly remarkable. Even gifted individuals born with talent would take at least a few years to fully learn ancient proverbs. The fact that you learned them out of curiosity rather than faith is truly something.”
