In the center of the crowd, there was a man holding a fallen woman.
The woman was gasping for breath, covered in black spots.
The man’s pitiful voice echoed loudly.
“My wife is pregnant! But she’s contracted the plague and it looks like both she and the baby will die!”
As the man said, the woman was carefully holding her swollen belly.
“Despite this situation, there’s no room in the infirmary, so she can’t receive treatment!”
The man sobbed and cried out. But no one could rashly step forward.
Although the story was heartbreaking, the situations of others were not much different. Crossing the threshold of death in this place was a common occurrence.
Moreover, looking at the woman’s condition, it seemed hopeless. If the spots exceed 90%, it invariably leads to death.
However.
Arundel closed her eyes. The fallen woman reminded her of another person in her memory.
[I wish…my child… could survive…]
The moist golden eyes struggling in pain were vividly depicted.
In the situation overlapping with the woman of the past, Arundel, as if enchanted, tries to approach the woman in front of her.
But Lucas was first.
“I’ll take a look.”
Lucas pushed through the crowd and approached the man. The man’s complexion brightened. The man willingly showed his wife.
“The condition is quite serious…but I’ll try anyway.”
Lucas used his divine power on the woman. But the woman’s cold sweat did not stop.
Sweat also formed on Lucas’s face. He was doing his best to save the woman in front of him.
However, not long after, Lucas stopped using his divine power.
“…I don’t think I can do it…I’m sorry.”
“How, how can you not…! Please try again…! Please…”
The man sobbed, holding his suffering wife. But Lucas shook his head.
“It’s hard in this situation…Unless there’s a stronger divine power…”
As he said this, Lucas’s gaze met Arundel’s. Arundel swallowed dryly at the eye contact.
She was already thinking of treating the woman. But why did she feel like stepping onto a well-set stage?
Arundel looked at the woman who was clutching her belly and trembling slightly. Now was not the time to consider other things.
She determinedly walked towards the center.
But then,
“Arundel.”
She had no choice but to stop at the force grabbing her arm. Hills spoke in a small voice.
“Do you want to heal that woman with divine power? Here and now?”
“I’m the only one. If left as is, she’ll die. And the baby inside her too.”
“Leave her alone. If she’s destined to die, there’s nothing we can do.”
Hills’ expression was cold as he spoke. But Arundel was unyielding. She stared at the lying woman.
Seeing this, Hills touched his forehead and spoke.
“Do you remember that woman? The woman we met on the ship.”
Arundel couldn’t say anything. Because Hills’ words were true.
“To save that woman, you have to use much more divine power than you’ve shown so far.”
“…”
“Get a grip, and look at the people around you. Zion is here too. If you don’t want your identity to be revealed, it’s better not to step forward.”
Hills was right.
There were too many people here now. People didn’t know that she was the empress, but words could go anywhere.
And Zion was in the same place. The priests of the Elbis Temple, Lucas too.
They were all top-risk individuals whom she should not reveal her identity to.
Thinking rationally, it was right to stay quiet, but when did she ever consider the situation and act?
She just hoped she wouldn’t regret the situation later.
Arundel, who seemed determined, looked squarely at Hills.
“I have to do it.”
“…”
“Otherwise, that woman will die.”
At Arundel’s firm words, the strength slowly drained from Hills’ hand that was holding her arm.
Arundel pushed through the crowd and approached the lying woman. She felt the gaze of the people. Zion was probably watching this scene too.
“Lucas, I’ll try.”
Lucas obediently handed the woman over to Arundel. Arundel, who was holding the woman, closed her eyes and concentrated.
She had to gather as much divine power as possible.
Gradually, she felt the divine power gathering in her hand. A little time must have passed like that.
‘I think this should be enough.’
Arundel, feeling the divine power gathered in her hand, took a deep breath.
‘…Please.’
And she pressed her hand hard and quickly into the center of the woman’s body. Arundel felt the power seeping into the woman. The gathered divine power was exhausted in an instant.
Arundel closed her eyes tightly at the momentarily dizzying head. But soon she regained her senses and looked down at the woman.
The woman was still gasping for breath.
‘Didn’t it work…’
Perhaps the woman seemed too serious to handle. Arundel looked down at the woman with a slightly disappointed heart.
But then,
“Cough-!”
The woman, who had been lying still like a corpse, coughed out. Then she slowly blinked her eyelids. The man, seeing this, shook the woman.
“Honey! Are you feeling a bit better?”
The woman seemed too weak to answer. But fortunately, she was breathing much more evenly than before.
Lucas approached and put his hand on the woman’s forehead.
“Her fever is going down.”
“Really?! Thank you…! Thank you, priests…!”
The man bowed his forehead to the ground in gratitude. Only then could Arundel relax.
“We still need to keep an eye on her for a while.”
“Yes, since there’s no room in the infirmary… I’ll go home and monitor her condition.”
At Lucas’s explanation, the man nodded. The man’s face, which had been a mess with tears, looked much brighter.
The man picked up his wife.
“Then I’ll be going.”
Arundel grabbed the shoulder of the departing man.
“We need to check on your wife’s condition, so please come again tomorrow.”
“Yes, thank you. Priest!”
The man disappeared with light steps, even though his collapsed wife must have been heavy.
“You’ve worked hard.”
Lucas spoke to Arundel. Why did his affectionate voice sound so threatening?
“…You too, Lucas.”
Lucas’s reaction was lukewarm, to say the least. Rather, the other priests who had been watching the situation were looking at her with sparkling eyes, saying it was amazing.
In case someone recognized her, Arundel hurriedly got up.
But Zion’s voice caught her.
“Irina.”
Zion, who had approached, spoke to her.
Arundel felt her palm getting sweaty. She had acted without thinking, but now that she had to deal with the aftermath, her mouth went dry.
“…Yes?”
“Did the black spots disappear when you treated patients before?”
She thought Zion would ask about the divine power, but she did not expect the words that flowed from Zion’s mouth.
Arundel nodded with a slightly flustered expression.
“I see.”
Then he ran his fingers through Arundel’s hair and said,
“It’s good to help people, but don’t overdo it.”
Huh…? That’s it?
Arundel was a little flustered, but she was relieved that he didn’t ask a difficult question.
“I need to go back to the mansion.”
Zion, who said so, looked quite serious. Arundel just replied that she understood.
“See you in the evening.”
Zion, who lightly kissed Arundel’s forehead, disappeared in an instant. Arundel, who couldn’t move from his spot until Zion disappeared, just blinked her eyes.
‘He really didn’t ask anything.’
Well, he had already seen her using divine power. He had even seen her swinging a spear, so there was nothing more to be surprised about.
She was unnecessarily nervous because of Hills.
Arundel was grumbling to herself when the person in question appeared. Hills whispered in Arundel’s ear, bending down.
“Oh, Archangel Arundel. Your skills haven’t died.”
“Be quiet.”
Arundel covered his mouth and pushed him away. She was afraid someone might hear.
“Do you feel better now that you’ve treated her?”
At Hills’ teasing words, Arundel narrowed her eyes.
“Yes, I feel better. You were pushing me ‘then’, and now you’re stopping me, what are you?”
“Ah, ‘then’…with you, even a little…”
Hills stopped speaking.
“Even a little?”
“No, anyway, you’ll regret it later.”
Arundel was getting annoyed too. Hills was whining like a spoiled child.
His behavior had worsened since he came to the temple. He had improved a bit, but then he started again.
“You’ve been talking negatively lately.”
Arundel, who had been holding back, finally spat out her words. She couldn’t help it if Hills was going to be upset again.
“Because Arundel doesn’t listen to me well!”
“Do I have a reason to listen to you?”
When Arundel spoke quite coldly, Hills seemed a little deflated.
But that was only for a moment.
“…That’s too much.”
His fists clenched, his hands trembling slightly.
“How much I…for Arundel…”
“How much what?”
“How much I hate that bastard Zion… It’s because of Arundel that I’m sticking to him. It’s because of Arundel that I’m here, feeling so bad because of the priests around me… and also…”
Hills looked very aggrieved. Arundel, who had been quietly listening, was a little puzzled.
Why was it her fault that he was sticking to Zion? And she had clearly said that he didn’t need to follow her to the temple, but he had followed her reluctantly.
But Hills, who had already become the most aggrieved person in the world, looked like he was about to burst into tears.
Anyone who saw it would think he had been beaten, and the one who was rather flustered was Arundel.
I didn’t say anything that harsh!
Arundel reached out desperately towards Hills.
“Hey, who’s not grateful? Why are you so crooked these days…”
But it was already too late.
Before Arundel could catch him, Hills was mumbling something with his eyes red.
He disappeared in an instant. Only Arundel’s panicked hand remained in the air.
****
Arundel, who had had a particularly hard day today, sprawled out as soon as she entered the room.
She didn’t know what to answer to the priests who asked where the captain had gone.
[Ah… He had some business, so he went back to the temple for a while.]
At her vague words, the priests thankfully agreed.
‘What puberty.’
Arundel thought discontentedly, recalling Hills’ angry face.
She had been particularly sensitive lately. She was already having a hard time with Lucas and the plague, and she didn’t have the leisure to deal with his tantrums.
But that’s not to say that he looked like a complete fool, he also had quite a sharp side.
[Do you remember that woman? The woman we met on the ship.]
Hills accurately read my troubled self. I was so struck by the truth that I couldn’t answer.
‘Is that woman… okay?’
As she thought this, Arundel remembered that woman for a moment.
She was pale, incredibly weak, but she had completely changed everything about Arundel.
