Part Two, Section One: “Saints And Devils”
Chapter Forty-nine
The blonde girl… wiped the blood splattered on her face from the devil with a handkerchief, sheathed her falchion, and walked up to me.
“Nice to meet you, Great Saint. I’m Elsa Notis… an exorcist. Under the name of Archbishop Zenos of the Clamu Church headquarters… I’ve come to guard you.”
The exorcist who introduced herself as Elsa informed me that she came from the headquarters of the Clamu Church. That red-bladed falchion… was a specially crafted weapon using high-magic-permeability ore. The magic power I felt from her was also remarkable, perhaps surpassing even Mia and Grace.
And that agility of hers… it seemed that exorcists were specialized in combat even more than saints.
“I am Philia Adenauer. Ms. Elsa, thank you for coming all the way here.”
“It is indeed far… but it’s just part of my job. Great Saint, is this the first time you’ve seen a devil?”
Elsa asked me without changing her expression. While it was indeed my first time seeing a devil… there was something that surprised me even more.
“…Yes, as you say, it’s my first time seeing one. But I’m even more astonished that this so-called devil is still alive…”
““…!””
“Huh? Lady Philia? His head is detached. He must be dead, right?”
Lina assumed that he was dead, but… based on his still powerful magical wavelengths and the sound resembling a heartbeat, I deduced that this devil was still alive.
“Oh… you’re sharper than I thought. You can stand up now, Mammon.”
“Yes, yes, I’m up. Sister, you mercilessly lop my head off. It hur―ts.”
When I declared that the devil was still alive, Mammon, as Elsa called him, stood up. Being alive even after his head was cut off, it was certain this being wasn’t human…
“T-The severed head talked!”
Looked like Lina was shocked when Mammon’s fallen head opened its mouth as he stood up.
“Whoops, sorry about that. I didn’t mean to startle you, missy. I’ll put it right back.”
Mammon picked up his head and pressed it onto his neck. Then, his head seamlessly reattached to his body.
“As expected of Great Saint. Not even flinching at Mammon’s little show, you’ve got some nerve.”
“No, it’s just always been hard for me to show emotion outwardly. I’m quite surprised.”
The fact that he was alive after being decapitated indicated that his vitality was even higher than described in books. Moreover, I was astonished to see his severed head reattached itself.
“More importantly, isn’t the job of an exorcist to exterminate devils? That devil over there seems to be rather fond of you, Ms. Elsa.”
Lina expressed skepticism about Mammon following Elsa. In the first place, I also didn’t understand why she cut off his head…
“Oh, this guy is a familiar that has served my family for generations. The Notis family has a contract with Mammon. He absolutely obeys me.”
“And in exchange, when Sister dies, I get to devour her soul. Heheheh…”
In other words, she employed a devil…
The proverb “baker to baker, snake’s path to a snake” comes to mind. And in the case of an exorcist, “using a devil to deal with devils” would be more appropriate.
“Was the purpose of your sudden violent visit to make us aware of the devils’ terror?”
“I apologize for that. This idiot didn’t listen to everything I said and jumped ahead.”
“But seeing the real thing makes it faster to understand, right?”
“True. Actually, cutting off the head saved me the trouble of explaining.”
“Philia, have you know? She lops off my head for just a little mischievous act. Personally, I’m against resolving things through violence, you know.”
Elsa and Mammon exchanged complaints about each other. Apparently, not all devils were enemies of humans.
For now, let’s end the chit-chat and have them explain the details…
◆ ◆ ◆
I used a healing spell to awaken Philip and all others who had been put to sleep… Then, Lina brewed tea for us, and we all decided to listen to Elsa and Mammon’s story.
“Miss Elsa, the exorcist, and Mister Mammon, her familiar… To think I would be completely fooled by a devil. It’s a lifetime failure.”
“It’s not your fault, Mr. Philip. Your compatibility was just bad.”
“No, to be in this pathetic state while tasked with your protection, Lady Philia… Unforgivable.”
Philip and Himari were especially shaken, but it was only natural that there was no chance against magic from an unknown opponent. However, everyone has their pride, so my clumsy consolation might have the opposite effect.
“Alright, from now on, let’s all study about devils together! Let’s ensure we can protect Lady Philia next time.”
“That’s great, Lina. I like that positive aspect of you. How about we go on a date in five years?”
“Don’t get carried away.”
“Gyaaah…!”
““His head went flying…””When Lina acted positively, Mammon put his arm around her shoulder and started flirting—Elsa once again blew off his head with her falchion.
“I keep saying, it hurts even though I don’t die… Can you please stop nonchalantly lopping off my head, Sister?”
“”His head reattached…!””While staining the tablecloth bright red, Mammon reattached his head to his body and complained to Elsa. It seemed he did feel pain, but it was not severe enough to be considered a serious injury, given that it could be dismissed as merely painful.
“Leave that idiot alone, let me tell you all about the mysterious disappearances right away. And then, about the connection to you, Great Saint…”
“C-Connection to me…?”
Having beheaded Mammon without a second thought, Elsa proceeded with the conversation. Was there a connection between me and the mysterious disappearances…? It seemed Elsa’s reason for coming here was not simply for the purpose of being my guard.
“The mastermind behind these incidents is one of the most powerful figures in the Demon Realm, Asmodeus. The goal is the resurrection of the first saint, that is, the previous Great Saint, Fiana. To do this, he is gathering a large amount of magic power from young women, including the current saint, Philia Adenauer… your body is intended to be a vessel for her resurrection. His goal is about to be accomplished.”
The sudden revelation of the purpose behind the mysterious disappearances… Using me to resurrect Great Saint Fiana, what did that mean? Why did a devil want a saint…? The story Elsa was about to tell looked unbelievably surreal.
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