Chapter 43

‘Check Dion’s affection level.’

<Affection Level>

• Dion: ♥♥♥♥♡ (+♥♥)

The affection had increased significantly. Staring contentedly at the four filled hearts, my gaze shifted to the additional heart marked with a plus sign. What is that?

When I focused on the heart with the plus sign, a new system window appeared above the affection level display.

<(+Affection Level) indicates an affection that can fluctuate. It primarily reflects changes in libido.>

Seeing the system notification, I let out a disappointed sigh.

His libido increased, so why can’t we do it! I was always ready. If Dion suggested we do it, it would be a win-win for both of us. Why does this character keep handling it alone and coming back?

We could have had sex, then I’d have headed to Haniel’s Resting Place and logged out! How perfect was that? If only he had let me dismount from the horse earlier, I could have enjoyed it already.

I’d learned plenty of good things from Orias back in the Holy Kingdom. With Dion, who likely had no experience aside from self-relief, I could’ve easily made him climax.

Ugh, what a waste.

My mouth itched to scold Dion. Inhaling the faintly muskier scent of his chest compared to usual, I rested my head against him.

Fine, there’ll be another chance.

Dwelling on missed opportunities wouldn’t bring them back. I resigned myself to letting it go.

***

After that, an awkward silence settled between us. Though Dion had said it would take five hours to reach the village, we arrived in four. As soon as we reached the village entrance, Dion jumped down and helped me dismount.

“I was worried you’d leave me up there again.”

“It would’ve been easier for both of us if you’d learned how to ride earlier. And why have you been so informal lately?”

“I already said I’m not criticizing! Are you changing your stance now? At this point, does it matter if my tone is informal?”

“Who said anything about criticism? Shouldn’t a Saintess act like one and show proper decorum?”

“That’s rich coming from you. Shouldn’t a knight like you behave with proper etiquette as well?”

<Dion’s affection has slightly increased.>

Engaged in this bickering exchange, we entered the village. Dion, now recovered enough to argue with me, didn’t seem as annoyed as before. I completely misunderstood how to win Dion’s affection. When I maintained an elegant demeanor, it didn’t budge, but during our squabble, his affection kept rising.

<Warning! A village affected by an unknown contagious disease.>

• This is a hazardous area.
• Proceed with caution.

<Objective Complete!>

• You have arrived at your destination.

Ignoring the warning from the system window, I entered the village with Dion. This was a crucial area for capturing both Dion and Adrian, so turning back out of fear wasn’t an option.

Situated deep in the forest, the village seemed to discourage visitors from entering. The overgrown grass and weeds at the entrance resembled the state of my garden before I organized the herbs in my lodging. Pushing through the thicket, we ventured further inside.

Dion led the way, clearing the foliage, grumbling as he did.

“Saintess, let’s switch.”

“No thanks.”

When I replied curtly, Dion muttered in discontent and continued cutting through the brush. After walking for quite a while along the overgrown path, a small square finally came into view.

Although the square was not particularly clean, it was tidier compared to the path we’d just traversed. An elderly man sat on a bench in the square. Leaning on his cane, he approached us.

“Are you from the palace?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Welcome. We’ve been expecting you. But where are the others?”

As I stepped forward to answer, the old man turned his gaze and asked while looking behind me.

Dion replied to his question, “It’s just us.”

“What?”

“There’s no need to worry. The Saintess is more than capable of handling the treatment.”

“The Saintess? Is this person the Saintess?”

The old man, who had been eyeing us skeptically, lit up as soon as he heard Dion’s response. Looking me over, he stammered in awe.

“Oh, so this is the Saintess. I see. Ah, I understand now.”

Dion stepped in front of me to block the old man’s scrutinizing gaze. Regaining his composure, the old man began to explain.

“I’m the village chief. The young folks here have all fallen ill, so I had no choice but to come out to greet you myself.”

Finally, he’s giving the event explanation.

Listening intently to the chief’s words, I focused on his every word. There might be hints about the cause of the disease hidden in his explanation.

“At first, we didn’t realize it was contagious. Only a few people fell ill, so we thought it was just a passing fever. But as the days went by, more and more people started showing the same symptoms. Now, it’s harder to find someone healthy than someone sick.”

The chief continued speaking non-stop.

“We’ve been using the traditional methods passed down in our village to prevent the disease, but those methods have reached their limit. That’s why we requested help from the palace. To think the Saintess herself would come—it’s a blessing from God.”

Clasping his hands atop his cane, the old man bent so low his forehead nearly touched it. As he straightened up and smiled at me, sharp teeth were revealed. The irregular arrangement of his teeth made me frown, causing him to close his mouth.

“Please, come in, Saintess. Everyone is waiting for you.”

I nodded with an unpleasant feeling. Even without Adrian’s warnings, I doubted I’d grow fond of this village.

***

“During your stay, you can use this room. The man can take that room, and the Saintess will use this one.”

“I’ll be staying in the room next to the Saintess.”

Ignoring the room assigned to him by the village chief, Dion opened the door to the room right next to mine.

“Ah, that room is…!”

Without hesitation, Dion flung the door open and furrowed his brows. After scanning the room, he turned to interrogate the village chief.

“What is this?”

He pointed to a large glass wall. Tilting my head, I examined the room and the puzzling glass wall inside. A glass wall? Was it connected to the room assigned to me?

Why would they build it like this?

Dion, seemingly deep in thought while staring at the glass wall, moved to open the door to my room. His face hardened as he took in the sight. His jaw trembled slightly, and he appeared on the verge of anger.

“How dare you offer such a room to the Saintess?”

Sensing something off about Dion’s reaction, I approached him to check the condition of my room.

“Huh? There was a glass wall in the other room, but mine has a mirror?”

Unlike the other room, where I could see through to the opposite side, mine had a large mirror. Was it some sort of one-way magic mirror?

Why would they assign me such a room…?

Before I could step further, Dion moved me behind him and confronted the village chief. With one hand on the hilt of his sword, Dion spoke harshly, as if ready to draw his weapon at any moment.

“Was this an attempt to spy on the Saintess?”

“No, absolutely not! This is simply the best room we have, so I thought it would be most fitting for the Saintess!”

The chief, trembling and bowing his head to the menacing Dion, responded in a shaky voice. His wrinkled hands clasped tightly together, he seemed terrified.

Tugging on Dion’s sleeve, I intervened, “Stop it, Dion.”

“Can’t you see? They’re trying to monitor you!”

“It’s fine. He said it’s the best room, didn’t he? Judging by how they didn’t assign you a room at all, it seems they just left this one vacant for emergencies.”

“Y-yes, that’s correct, Saintess!”

“Well, given the situation, why don’t you use this room instead, Dion? Wouldn’t it make guarding me easier if you could see into my room?”

I didn’t trust the village chief at all. His scrutinizing gaze when he heard I was the Saintess, as well as this suspicious room, left no room for doubt. However, showing my suspicion outright might hinder my movements within the village. That’s the only reason I decided to stop Dion.

Since this village had driven out Adrian, it couldn’t possibly be a good place.

As I subtly shook my head, Dion seemed to catch on to my intent. He removed his hand from the sword hilt and spoke, “Very well.”

“B-but, Saintess. Won’t this arrangement be uncomfortable for you?”

“No, I’ll feel more at ease this way, so it’s fine. Let’s assign Dion to this room.”

The village chief’s grip on his cane tightened momentarily before he gave a forced smile and raised his head.

“Very well. Then I’ll come back for you tomorrow morning since it’s late today.”

Once the village chief had left, Dion and I entered my room together. Dion pressed his ear to the door, checking for movement outside. Confirming that no one was nearby, he turned to me.

“This is suspicious.”

“Indeed.”

“This isn’t the time to be so calm. What if we leave the village now and gather more information? Adrian might know more about this place.”

“Sir Adrian said the situation was urgent. We shouldn’t delay any further. Let’s prepare the medicine quickly and leave.”

As I responded, I began searching every corner of the room. The moment I stepped in, a system notification appeared.

<Clue Collection Available>

There was something hidden in this room.

As I opened the wardrobe and thoroughly searched inside, Dion approached me and asked, “What are you looking for?”

“Not sure… just checking.”

I didn’t know what I was searching for either.

Finding nothing in the wardrobe, I turned my attention to the bed. Stripping off the bedsheet, I began inspecting the mattress.

Watching me from the side, Dion remarked with disbelief, “If you’re this uneasy, why not switch rooms with me?”

“No, that’s not it… Ah!”

Lying flat on my stomach on the floor, I reached under the bedframe and felt something stuck there. Grasping the object, I pulled it out.

<Clue Collection Complete!>

A system notification appeared as I retrieved a crumpled piece of paper. The paper, wedged into the bedframe, was yellowed with age and brittle, crumbling at the edges.

Carefully unfolding it, I managed to open it without tearing it apart, though some fragments fell to the floor. It must have been there for a long time.

<You have obtained ‘Adrian’s Journal Fragment’!>

• Progress (1/3)
• Your understanding of Adrian has slightly increased.

Ah, so this is it.

<Collected Plague Clue (1/3)!>

A new event had been added. In addition to gathering Adrian’s journal fragments, I now had to collect clues about the plague.

Are these two events progressing simultaneously?

I suspected that if I hadn’t gathered information about Adrian earlier, only the clue about the plague would have appeared in the system. Without prior knowledge, I wouldn’t have known the identity of the journal’s owner.

Closing the system window, I read the writing on the paper. The crooked handwriting was so messy it was hard to believe it belonged to Adrian. Squinting, I struggled to decipher the text.

“Stock… stockyard? Is that right? Hmm, ‘This place is a stockyard… uh, the word is escape?’”

“What does it say?”

“Dion, can you read this?”

“Is this supposed to be writing? I can’t read it.”

Dion, who had likely only ever encountered neat aristocratic handwriting, dismissed the journal’s scrawl as unintelligible. Without his help, I painstakingly decoded Adrian’s journal fragment.

After a few minutes, I managed to read it in its entirety. Excited, I recited the deciphered text aloud.

“I got it! ‘This place is a stockyard. If you want to survive, obey or escape.’”

Though I laughed and spoke cheerfully, Dion’s response was a chilling glare.

Feeling his icy gaze, I reflected on the words I had just read. If you want to survive, obey or escape. Wait, is this a horror game instead of an R-19 game?

As my arms dropped limply at my sides, a system notification popped up with cheerful enthusiasm.

<Your understanding of the plague has increased.>

• To uncover the cause of the disease, focus on the village’s ‘Disease Prevention Methods.’