Chapter 88

Following the fierce battle with the wyvern, the struggle against the enemy dubbed a global disaster ensued.

In such a situation, it would be easy to feel despair, yet Evan stood firm, resolutely maintaining his position.

Seeing him like that is truly impressive.

I can’t help but reflect on whether I would have been able to confront the situation like Evan if I were in his place.

Of course… to others, my determination might seem greater than Evan’s resolve.

It’s a shame to say, but…

“What would it feel like to be eaten by a monster?”

Unfortunately, the person in question is contemplating the sensation of being devoured as a positive thought.

Hmm… surely, it wouldn’t take so long to fight that I’d be digested first, right?

If I were digested, I wouldn’t die, but things being excreted out the other end isn’t really appealing to me, even if being eaten might be manageable.

I’m somewhat of a masochistic preference, but not in that… filthy way.

‘…’

Now that I think about it, that’s a real possibility.

The longer the battle with the monster drags on, the higher the chance I might end up being excreted, isn’t it?

The more I ponder that, the more chills run down my spine.

“I-I can’t just say I don’t want this now, can I?”

If the saint, who had declared that I would weaken the monster by being eaten, suddenly said she couldn’t go through with it with a fearful expression, the image I’ve built for myself would be utterly shattered.

I must absolutely prevent that from happening…!

And to ensure that, I have no choice but to step up and keep my promise.

To avoid becoming monster poop, I have to beg them to catch it quickly.

But…

“Do monsters poop…?”

There’s no way a game would outright tell me that monsters poop, so how would I know?

It’s a given that if they’re living beings like us, but if I ask whether monsters eat and poop, I can’t be sure.

Watching them form an ecosystem where they hunt and are hunted, one might think they must be living beings, but I wonder if that disaster-level monster eats anything at all.

I have to willingly enter that monster’s mouth rather than wait for it to eat me.

And…

“How could I say I’m going to get eaten?”

No one knows that I plan to weaken the monster by being eaten myself.

In fact, it’s closer to being something I cannot say.

It would be ridiculous to suddenly gather everyone and declare I will get eaten by the monster to weaken it!

That’s not just absurd, but I’d probably not even get to fight properly.

Thus, I made a proposal to everyone.

To soften the blow of the fact that I will be eaten, I aimed to ignite their fighting spirit instead.

“… Are you really okay with this?”

“[It’s unavoidable…]”

To be honest, I felt a bit uneasy with this method, as it feels deceitful.

But if we want to defeat it without anyone dying, this is our only option.

So, I told everyone in advance.

If they felt like they were going to die, just stay back, and even if they did die, I can definitely revive them.

I have to be eaten to weaken the monster… and I need to boost their spirits so that it’s okay if I get eaten…

There’s a lot to do.

It’s quite a complicated feeling.

Sigh.

*

Tension hung in the air among the many people present.

Most of those here never thought they’d have to fight a disaster-level monster in their lifetime.

It was about the legendary monster that had frozen the Northern Region of the empire forever in some distant past.

“Hah… damn… I feel like my heart’s going to explode…”

“I can’t believe I’m actually participating in a hunt for a disaster-level monster… I have a story to tell for life.”

“As long as we don’t die, that is.”

Brien, just an ordinary soldier who found himself participating in the hunting party by accident, sighed as he watched his comrade venting about having a story to tell for life, chuckling.

“Hey… is it really appropriate to be saying that in a situation like this? It’s not like we’re wishing for anyone to die.”

“C’mon… who do you think would die taking on a disaster-level monster? Us rookies.”

“Goodness… haven’t you heard the rumor? The saint is fighting with us.”

Saint…

While many in the empire sang praises for the saint, I wonder how much that name truly means to mere soldiers like us.

Would such a revered figure even glance at us if we were to perish?

“Wow… funny how you know one thing but not the other.”

“Is there a problem with that?”

“There is! Of course there is! Do you know what this saint is called?”

Charles asked with a look of exasperation, and Brien shook his head in confusion.

In truth, he didn’t care much about it.

He never even considered he’d be dragged into this situation, so what interest would he have in the stories about a saint he would likely never meet in his lifetime?

That was Brien’s thought process.

“The Saint of Devotion! The Saint of Sacrifice!”

“What’s the big deal about that…”

She’d probably be too busy tending to high-ranking people, hero parties, and those around her.

Brien frowned at Paul passionately extolling the virtues of the saint, feeling increasingly uncomfortable with it.

After all, he was thinking that it was unlikely that such a figure would even approach ordinary folk like them, let alone offer help.

“Sigh… this is frustrating… Look over there, can you see?”

“What do you mean, see what?”

“Look, there’s a girl with hair that seems delicately crafted from light bestowed by Lady Romania!”

“Hmm… you mean that girl?”

Among the soldiers gathered to face the forthcoming monster, a girl stood atop a high place, looking down at them.

Mentioning her in such a situation could only mean one thing.

Brien looked at Paul, startled.

“Could that girl be…”

“Yeah! It’s the saint!”

“She’s still a child, isn’t she?”

She looked about a teen, but if asked whether she appeared as an adult, that wouldn’t be accurate either.

She seemed to be a girl in her early to mid-teens, not having properly undergone any coming-of-age ceremony, and she had her eyes closed.

Though her expression was too far away to be seen clearly, she likely wore a serious face in such moments.

“Why is she keeping her eyes closed?”

“Wow… I guess she didn’t know about a rumor everyone else knows.”

“Rumor?”

With Paul’s tone conveying he found it pitiful, Brien tilted his head slightly in confusion.

“Didn’t you hear the rumor that she gave up her sight and hearing to accept the power of the goddess?”

“What?”

That she gave up her sight and hearing for the powers of a saint…?

As Paul, looking impressed, continued to speak about the girl chosen as the saint this time, Brien stood stunned.

“The value of the body is priceless, yet they say the eyes are worth 900 gold coins… How could accepting a sudden responsibility and giving up those so easily…?”

But the rumors didn’t end there.

The high-ranking nobles… they didn’t care about the saint at all.

If anyone got hurt, she sacrificed her own body to save them.

“I heard the power of the saint takes on the burden of the healing they provide.”

“Burden?”

“I’ve heard that for every injury healed, the saint takes on an equivalent amount of injury herself. The goddess is ruthless, isn’t she? How could she do that to such a young girl…”

Having helped many, it was also said that she, on her own decision, went to the Northern Region, known as the final line of defense, where she supposedly saved all those who were supposed to die.

I wonder how many there are who owe her gratitude.

With soldiers leaving behind children like rabbits and wives like foxes to defend the country, the saint was effectively like a real deity to them.

“…”

Brien stared blankly at the saint.

Just moments ago, he knew nothing of this saint, but now he felt he understood why so many people called out her name and praised her.

“So don’t worry. Even if you want to die today, you won’t be able to.”

Seeing Paul laughing heartily, Brien couldn’t help but chuckle.

With such a young girl dedicating herself to the peace of the empire, there’s no way an adult could just sit idly by.

With that thought, he envisioned the upcoming monster.

“Let’s take down that beast!”

The two exchanged determined glances and made that vow.

And…

“Saint…?”

As they pledged and charged towards the monster before them, what unfolded in front of their eyes was,

“Ah…”

“S-Saint…?”

The sight of their hope, the saint, being devoured by a massive beast with a white mane.

Silence engulfed them.