Episode 15: Murishi, The Species That Eats Demons (1)
Sharan called the saint candidates back to the palace and commanded them to pray in the morning and evening. Nicholas Neville’s face, as he was eager to build a relationship with the prospective saint somehow, brightened at once.
“Then should I inform Crawford to withdraw from his duty with the saints? It doesn’t make sense for the saints to undergo magical training in the first place.”
“Ah… right. No, just leave it be.”
Sharan sniffed, brushing his beloved golden throne with his hand.
“Huh? Why…? It’s not good for both of them to keep using magic when their pacio supply is so limited…”
Nicholas Neville’s face darkened. He was ready to drop Crawford any moment.
“I want them to realize that their only use is to sit and pray. And isn’t it a saint’s destiny to be short-lived? These saints are already too old.”
“…Yes. Sharan. I will call the candidates.”
Nicholas politely bowed his head and obeyed Sharan’s command, but his expression towards the ground was chilly.
It was true that saints were short-lived. The saints, who prophesied everything that threatened the kingdom’s peace, either went insane from seeing a terrible future, succumbed to depression and committed suicide, or their abilities overwhelmed them, depleting their pacio and turning them into demons.
Most of the saints who endured such pain were in their teens. They entered the temple before the age of ten and died before surpassing sixteen. Most couldn’t endure for more than ten years.
To mock those who died while fulfilling their duties for the sake of the kingdom’s peace was unacceptable. Such insults shouldn’t be tolerated, not even if they were by Sharan.
Nicholas couldn’t understand why Sharan, who could only monitor threats from the Demon King, enjoyed more authority than the saints who could monitor all threats to the kingdom.
The power of the temple needed to grow stronger. The saints had to have the power and respect they deserved. He wanted to usher and begin the era of the temple and the saints.
“But…”
Could the saint they finally discovered after twelve years surpass Sharan? Nicholas thought of Rovelia and Muriel. Neither of them lived up to his expectations. It was disappointing, but he didn’t give up hope. This was because he knew the true Oracle of the last saint, one he hadn’t shared with anyone.
The true Oracle said that a saint who could rival Sharan would appear. The emergence of a saint with incredible power to restrain Sharan. That was the true content of the prophecy entrusted to them.
“Whoever it may be, they must be on my side.”
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Until Muriel received the fragment of Ur from Rovelia, she believed her risky gamble had succeeded. She thought everything was falling into place.
It was a brilliant idea to get help from Sharan’s brother to change his mind, but it was a dangerous gamble that could cost her life if done wrong. If the prince hadn’t believed her and sent Sharan’s pursuers to the mansion, Muriel would have either been imprisoned in an underground dungeon or executed by now as a traitor.
However, the prince granted Muriel’s request, Sharan had a change of heart and summoned the stars of the oracle, and Rovelia handed over the fragment of Ur as promised.
She thought everything was going smoothly.
Now she just had to time her exit quietly. She thought she could find all the fragments of Ur scattered throughout the kingdom, make a pact of loyalty with Kaiton using them, and be done with it…
‘I did feel like things were going a little too smoothly…’
Muriel looked at the desolate mountain where the scent of demon blood lingered with a devastated gaze.
The feeling of her Pacio slipping away was strange. It felt like flames were boiling in her body, but her heart was growing colder. It was a feeling she never wanted to experience again, and she didn’t want to keep the fragment attached to her body.
Therefore, before going to meet Rovelia, Muriel buried the fragment she had in the mountains near the mansion. It was a classic and one-dimensional solution, but for Muriel, who had no personal space in the mansion, it was the safest option she could think of.
But the fragment disappeared.
She went back to the spot where she had marked to bury the fragment she received from Robvlia, but the box containing her fragment was gone.
She spent a long time digging through the surrounding soil, thinking she might have remembered the location wrong, but she couldn’t find the piece anywhere.
“To lose the piece…”
Did someone take it?
But who could it be?
In the place where the fragment of Ur should have been, there were only torn pieces of a demon’s corpse. The scent of demon blood made Muriel feel dizzy.
“It’s all ruined.”
⚜ ⚜ ⚜
Despite knowing that there was a culprit who had stolen a fragment of Ur somewhere in Storm’s territory, Muriel had to go to the palace. She prayed and listened to the High Priest’s long sermon from the morning, but she was half out of her mind and couldn’t remember anything.
The fact that she had buried the precious item in the mountains because she had nowhere else to store it, only to have it stolen, dealt a tremendous blow to Muriel.
‘I’m so fucking stupid. How can I be so stupid?’
If she had been stupid to some extent, she could have deduced who the thief was and felt angry or resentful at them. But because she was so stupid, she couldn’t blame anyone and couldn’t even feel wronged.
“Hehe… Hahaha.”
All she could do was laugh. Her plan to tighten a leash around Kaiton’s neck and get a pledge of loyalty from him was now completely useless.
“Hehe… Hehehe…”
Muriel clutched her hair like she was going to tear it apart and shook as if she were going insane. She couldn’t sleep all night and was in mental anguish, so her eyes were swollen, her disheveled hair, and her laughter sounded hysterical. If someone saw her at night while they were passing by, they would suffer from nightmares for at least a few days.
However, August approached Muriel with a bright smile, even after seeing her like that.
“Muriel, it’s nice to see you like this again. Have you been well all this time?”
“….”
Muriel passed by August, moving as swiftly as a ghost. It was difficult not to notice August because he was dressed in a colorful and dazzling outfit, as if he had gathered all the colors of the world. But Muriel was completely lost in her thoughts.
What was going on? August tilted his head in confusion but greeted Muriel cheerfully, following her footsteps without showing any signs of being upset at the fact that he was ignored.
“It’s fortunate that Sharan changed his mind, isn’t it? He’s not someone who easily gives in, so I’m glad that we can meet again like this.”
“….”
August expected a sharp response from Muriel, who usually threw harsh words seemingly indifferently with a fierce expression. But again, Muriel was completely out of her mind.
“Hmm….”
August didn’t miss this opportunity.
“Muriel, may I tidy up your hair a bit? The hair on this side, the right side, left cheek, and the back of your head is all messy.”
Basically, he meant that her entire head was messed up.
“I want to tidy it up. May I?”
“….”
“If you allow, don’t say anything, and if you don’t want to, just say no.”
“….”
“Then, can I touch your hair? I asked, alright?”
August lightly combed through Muriel’s hair with his hand, like a mad wizard.
As a fashionable man who always dressed splendidly, he skillfully arranged her hair. Unlike at the beginning, when he was being careful in case she might smack his hand away, August became bolder as he realized that Muriel was completely out of it.
He walked alongside Muriel, who was walking aimlessly like some slime monster, and deftly braided her hair.
“Muriel, you always have your hair down. Is there a particular reason why you don’t style it?”
It was because she was lazy. There was no other reason, she simply didn’t want others to touch her head. But since she didn’t know how to style her hair either, she just let it flow freely and went around like a ghost.
Muriel, who mostly avoided touch, still didn’t notice August. His touch was subtle, yes, but it was also because Muriel had an automatic filter that blocked her nerves, which in turn blocked his touch out. It was like how a meditating monk couldn’t hear the buzzing of a fly.
“I like styles with my braided hair held high. Adding a ribbon as an accent is also nice.”
The final result wasn’t bad, but it didn’t suit Muriel. She looked better with a cool and natural style rather than a cute and delicate one.
“Hmm… It doesn’t suit you as much as I thought. I guess the natural wavy style with blonde hair suits you better…”
August unintentionally recalled someone. He realized that he was giving Muriel a hairstyle similar to Rovelia’s.
A sense of defeat washed over August, and his expression darkened for a moment. It was a heavy expression that was never seen on him, who always wandered aimlessly. However, Muriel was lost in her thoughts and didn’t see his face, and August quickly shook off the gloomy expression, returning to his usual light and carefree self.
“I like the high-braided look. It would also look good if a ribbon is added as an accent.”
The finished result wasn’t bad, but it didn’t suit Muriel. She looked better with a cool and natural style rather than a cute and delicate one.
“Hmm… It doesn’t suit you as much as I thought. I guess it looks better with blonde hair and wavy curls…”
Someone naturally came to August’s mind. He realized that unintentionally, he’d given Muriel a hairstyle similar to Rovelia’s.
A sense of disappointment washed over August, and his expression darkened for a moment. It was a heavy expression that was never seen on him, who always floundered about. However, Muriel was lost in her thoughts and didn’t see his face, and August quickly shook off the gloomy expression, returning to his usual light and carefree self.
“As expected, I prefer your lively, riled up self, even if it’s a little fierce. Muriel is no fun today.”
Muriel was still in her mode of blocking out flies.
August, who was sighing, noticed blood on Muriel’s ankle as she walked ahead.
“Muriel, wait a moment.”
Muriel, who couldn’t help but filter his words at this point, was placing her hand on the door of the lab when August grabbed her feet.
Thwack.
Muriel reflexively threw a punch. The punch landed squarely on August’s cheek.
“Ah… I’m sorry.”
Focus finally returned to Muriel’s dazed gaze and she looked at August. Although she apologized sincerely, her indifferent tone didn’t convey much remorse.
“But when did you come up next to me? I told you not to touch me so casually.”
Muriel remained expressionless, but compared to just a moment ago when she seemed absent-minded, she appeared much more lively.
“Nice to see you, Muriel. You’re back.”
August smiled warmly. It was worth his cheek. Despite his laid-back appearance, August was a swordsman of Eklum. He wouldn’t be caught off guard by a fist that was swung as if to catch a bug. He’d allowed Muriel to hit him. Of course, her hand stung more than he expected, but that was it.
“Why do you keep smiling? Did you get hit in the head?”
“Your hair. It looks pretty.”
“Ah…”
At August’s words, Muriel touched her head and checked it, then frowned and messed up the hairstyle he’d worked so hard to create. It became even more disheveled than before August’s touch, but in his opinion, this natural-looking hair suited Muriel better and was more like her.
“I did tell you before touching you. It seems Muriel didn’t hear it. Hold on. There’s blood on your ankle.”
August knelt down and took out an expensive-looking cloth to wipe the black blood off Muriel’s ankle.
Muriel’s ankle was visible because she was walking as usual in her dress. When Muriel, embarrassed, tried to make him let go of the dress, August grabbed her hand to block her.
“Hold it properly. I haven’t finished cleaning it all yet.”
WHERE CAN I GET ME AN AUGUST AAA
I don’t like it, he is kind of a creep. Thanks for the translation Ami!