1. The first letter (10)
The temple was a storage box containing desperate despair.
The building built with the sum of civilization was tall and wide. The sacred symbols and sacred images displayed throughout the temple exuded a pious and antique atmosphere.
How pitiful a mere human being is in front of such a magnificent house of a god.
The insignificant things on earth should kneel down and pray to the gods. Like grains of sand enduring light and heat in a furnace, it took a long time.
Praying to God was proof that I couldn’t do anything on my own.
Therefore, it is desperate and hopeless. The only place I can cling to is the transcendent existence that doesn’t even return an answer.
The same was true of the treatment center located in the temple.
The temple located in the academy served as a theology lecture building and was a place for high-ranking priests to stay. This was to prepare for mishaps that occurred during training.
It is a place where lectures are conducted with actual combat in mind, even during training. Even the slightest mistake often resulted in injuries.
Of course, most of them only needed a few days of treatment at most.
This was because an academy professor’s observation was essential for training with a high risk of injury, including sparring. It was rare for accidents that could not be handled in front of talented people who were famous on the continent.
However, even in the temple, patients who could not handle it did not appear at all.
4th graders dispatched for practice such as subjugation of monsters, or students who suffered mishaps while carelessly wandering around dangerous areas within the academy premises sometimes suffered serious injuries that could result in death.
So was Emma. He hadn’t died yet, but even though the saintess and the high-ranking priests dispatched from the Holy Land had been poured out with holy power, there was no news of any improvement.
It was worth it. I heard you spilled your intestines.
In the meantime, many people gathered in front of the intensive care unit of the temple to pray and leave.
All of them were related to Emma. My advisor, seniors and juniors with ties, close motives, me and Leto.
Holding my face in the palm of my hand, I reflected on the events of yesterday afternoon. It was regrettable. I still had the potion Emma gave me in my arms.
Around that time, the saintess who was leading Emma’s treatment along with the high-ranking priests of the Holy Land left the intensive care unit looking tired.
My body, which was holding my face in a daze, jumped up. The saintess clasped her hands together and bowed her head as if she were praying, as if she was already accustomed to this.
“Immanuel.”
‘God be with you,’ was the word conveyed instead of greetings from the Holy Land.
Seeing my impatient expression, the saintess half-closed her eyes as if she understood the situation. Perhaps it was because she was excessively pouring out her divine power, but her face, which was white even before that, was now pale.
Silver hair that let the light pass through gently, and pale pink eyes stained with light pity.
If there is a god, it was a beautiful appearance that made me think that he was a lousy favoritism. Normally, it would have been something I would have been fascinated by.
But today, Leto’s gaze and mine were not fixed on her face, but on her lips. As if you were asking me to say something.
Her lips, which always drew a gentle smile, showed no signs of opening, as they were tightly closed today.
However, it must have been difficult for her to turn a blind eye to the two lambs begging for a miracle, so the saintess let out a small sigh. Her mouth opened cautiously.
“To be honest, the situation is not good.”
It was more a threatening truth than a pointless consolation. My body fell back on the chair like a pile of dry straw.
Whoa, he let out a long sigh. It was already expected. I made up my mind.
“It was left there for too long with spilled intestines. Guess how many hours? Contamination has already spread to the intestines. At the very least, Miss Emma drank a potion that brought her to suspended animation at the last moment, so she is still breathing.”
It was a potion that alchemists carry around in case of an emergency.
Once in a state of suspended animation, the heart rate is extremely slow and bleeding profusely does not result in death. In addition, it was a potion aimed at maximizing the survival rate with various auxiliary effects.
But there was a degree of that too. If he spilled his intestines, he was slander among slanderers. Divine power was not omnipotent, and with that level of injury, he had to prepare for death.
didn’t know again If you offer a sacrifice of high value, a miracle might be performed.
However, there was no way that Emma, a mere herbalist’s daughter, could afford such an offering, and neither did I, who felt responsible for her injuries.
It was a world where even the miracles given by God were not equal. My eyes narrowed at the bleak prospect.
“It is not without hope. However, for now… You’d better prepare your mind. I heard that Miss Emma’s parents are arriving soon.”
The saintess looked at Leto and me with tender concern. She silently studied the faces of the two of us, then shook her head.
“Telling your parents about Miss Emma’s situation can be painful. If you can’t stand it, you’d better go back to the dormitory.”
“… … No, I will wait.”
A dry voice came from my throat. The saintess looked at me eagerly. Pale pink eyes were asking.
Are you really going to be okay? I nodded helplessly.
“Because I was the last one to see you. As a friend, you should at least convey what you might end up with.”
And if I had stopped Emma a little more then, if I had believed what was written in the letter a little more.
It was already too late. And it wasn’t just my fault. It would have been difficult for anyone to say that a letter came from the future seven years later, and that there was something about you getting hurt in it.
Even if I had warned her, Emma would most likely have laughed it off and said it was nonsense. Nevertheless, the guilt of not being able to do that remains in my heart.
So was Leto. He wasn’t responsible either, but it happened while he was looking for materials needed for his research. He was sitting here in order to take on a moral responsibility.
A sigh escaped his mouth. he touched his forehead
“If I knew this would happen, I wouldn’t have asked Emma… sh*t.”
“… … It is no one’s responsibility.”
In response to Leto’s lamentation, the saintess declared that. It was still a kind voice, but it was a tone of strong conviction.
“Everyone who is facing the death of a relative says that. It was my fault, I should have done better… However, there are a few deaths every year at the academy. Only, right now, one of them might be Miss Emma.”
Continuing her speech, the saintess drew the sign of the cross on her chest at that point. As if mortals facing the issue of life and death should do so.
If it weren’t for the current situation, he might have had an appreciation for the saintess’s voluminous breasts. But at this moment, neither I nor Leto thought so.
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Just kept silent
A man who can’t do anything can’t say anything. It was natural.
“That providence and coincidence are not something that can be taken care of by mere mortals. So, brethren, do not beat yourself up too much.”
She finally bowed her head with her hands together again. It was a goodbye. Apparently, she was thinking of leaving for a while.
“Of course, if it were that simple, no one would be bothered… May you regain your peace of mind, Emmanuel.”
Leaving such a muttering as if passing by, the saintess left.
Even after she left, Leto and I were spread out in front of the intensive care unit for a long time.
That I might lose someone, this situation itself was unfamiliar to me. Up until now, I could count on one hand the number of funerals I have attended.
The death of a friend, let alone a close friend, a death that I might have been able to prevent.
It would be a lie if I said my heart wasn’t complicated. My empty eyes stared into space, unaware of the passage of time.
What awakened my mind, which had been soaked with regret and guilt, was the cry of a villager.
“Oh, Emma! Emma, my daughter!”
My eyes and Leto’s eyes, which suddenly came to my senses, followed the source of the sound. There, a man in a shabby outfit was hurriedly running through the corridors of the temple.
The beard and hair were not properly arranged, so it did not look neat. Even a simple burden carried roughly in one bag.
Leto and I immediately guessed his true identity and jumped up. Now the man with the white hair collapsed in front of the intensive care unit.
A face that wasn’t sure if I dared to go inside. I cautiously approached him.
“I… Are you Emma’s father?”
“… … ugh? Do you know our daughter?”
sure Certain that he was Emma’s father, Leto and I immediately lowered our heads. It was a natural etiquette that should be shown towards the parents of close friends.
“This is Ian Percus, Emma’s friend.”
“Likewise, Emma’s classmate, Leto Ainstern.”
Upon greeting Leto and I, Emma’s father widened his eyes and looked at Leto and me alternately. Then he closed his eyes and was silent for a long time.
The next moment, Emma’s father reacted.
“Pe, Percus? Ainstern… … ? ears, nobility! Oops, sorry, sorry! Learning in this village is short, so I can’t get to know the young masters… … .”
He fell flat on his face and began begging us for forgiveness.
Leto looked at me with a puzzled look, and I looked down at him with pity and sadness.
The problems of life were so cruel.
Even before his daughter’s death, he couldn’t recognize the nobility, so he had to ask for forgiveness.
It was really unbearable.