## Chapter 310 – Lingering Scent of Flowers
“God, I’m alive!”
“I never thought the city would look this beautiful!”
My body and mind were in tatters, but seeing the panorama of Isvant bathed in the sunset seemed to soothe my heart.
I finally made it back.
From now on, I should avoid going to unknown spaces with only a few people. I almost died for real. If I had made one wrong move, I wouldn’t have been returning to the city, but crossing the Threefold River after passing the Northern Mountain.
Damn jungle.
“Barbarian, are you heading to the monastery? I’ll give you a hand.”
“No, I’m good. See you later. You take the sack.”
“All of this?”
“I just need the flowers and cash.”
The sack was filled with all the equipment the thugs we encountered earlier had, as well as some plant-based materials they seemed to have collected.
Since Copson already gave me the Alraune’s flower, I’m fine with just the small amount of cash I snatched. I’ll give him everything else. Just the swords alone, there are five of them, so they should fetch a good price.
“Hehehe. You’re a true bro, Barbarian. Then take all the cash. Even if I just sell this, I won’t have to worry until next month.”
Copson grinned and hoisted the sack over his shoulder.
Well, time to head back.
“But are you sure you don’t need a hand? You look like you’re about to collapse.”
“I’m fine, man. If I was going to collapse, I would have collapsed already.”
My chest is throbbing, but I can make it back to the lodgings. The right thing to do is to go back and let them know I’m alive before getting treatment.
If I’m a day late getting back, I can’t imagine how worried they’ll be.
“Well… I’ll trust in the barbarian’s resilience. Then be careful. I hope to see you in good health next time.”
“Yeah, take care. Don’t blow all the money on gambling.”
“Do you think I’m a gambling addict?”
“Aren’t you, you bastard?”
“Hehehe, you’re right. Well, I’ll be careful.”
Copson trudged off into the sunset.
He didn’t look back as he walked away, waving his hand, so I waved back and turned towards the lodgings. The fatigue and pain are no joke right now.
“Ugh, damn it…!”
Maybe it’s because I relaxed, thinking I was safe, but the pain seems to be getting worse. It seems like it’s not just a regular internal injury.
Even if I get treatment, it’s certain that I’ll be resting for a while… Damn it.
Still, I got the Alraune’s flower, so I don’t have to worry about food. I wonder how much this is worth. And I wonder what its effects are.
Just by looking at it, I get the feeling it’s going to be damn expensive.
If I had to rate it, I’d say it’s around Unique grade.
Even rare magic herbs can fetch silver coins for the really expensive ones, so I think it’ll be worth at least dozens of silver coins.
ㅡThud.
“Kuh…!”
I clutched my chest and finally arrived in front of the lodgings. No, I’m really going to die like this. As expected, there’s a side effect to exceeding my limits.
There’s no such thing as a free lunch.
Rather, if I took down the Alraune with this level of internal injury, it’s like making a hundred times the profit. So let’s endure it.
I took a moment to catch my breath and was about to enter the building whenㅡ
“ㅡKatt?!”
I ran into Claudia on the way in.
“Oh, Claudia?”
She looked very surprised, her eyes wide. Winia, standing next to her, was also giving me a shocked look.
Ah.
I missed them so much.
“Where have you been all this time…? We kept looking for you!”
“You darkie!!!!”
ㅡPaaat!
Claudia, who had been rambling as she examined me, rushed at me like a panther and hugged me with all her might. No, my clothes have so much dust on them right now… Winia also screamed and charged at me.
“Cough!”
Claudia hugged me so tightly that I felt my internal injuries worsening. Yeah, they were looking for me. I felt so sorry for making them worry like this that I couldn’t lift my head.
But the squeeze is too strong.
I think I’m about to throw up blood.
“You fucking darkie! Why are you here now, why! Your sister and I thought you went off and died somewhere and we were looking for you all the time! You bastard!!!! It’s not like you stayed out for one night, it’s been days!!!”
“S, sorry!”
Winia yelled at me, enraged. Seeing the tears welling up in her eyes, it seemed like I had caused her serious worry.
Damn it! Jungle, you bastard! You made my Winia cry!!
ㅡBuzzing.
But the sound is so loud that my head feels like it’s ringing.
I must be really hurt.
It was quite painful to have Claudia hugging me so tightly, but it felt good. Winia’s shouting was also hurting my ears, but I was really happy.
“Kuhaack!”
Perhaps because I felt such intense joy, blood burst from my mouth.
“Kyaaaaaaaaak!!!!!!”
“Katt!!! What the hell!!”
Winia and Claudia exclaimed at the same time.
Now that I was truly relieved, all the tension that had been enveloping my body was gone. The internal injuries and pain that I had been holding back until the limit burst out at once.
Damn, I’m really going to die like this.
Feeling a crisis in my life, I immediately took out the rosary from my neck and held it out to them.
“Sorry…! Something big happened…! I’ll explain later… Kuhaack?! Let’s go to the Brass Celestial Church… quickly! If you show them this, they’ll treat me right away… Huergh!”
Claudia caught my collapsing body.
“What the hell is going on, you darkie!”
“Oh no!”
She immediately picked me up and started sprinting down the street. As my consciousness faded, the feeling of the wind tickling my body and her warm back felt quite pleasant.
***
Fragmentary and ambiguous pieces of information swirled confusingly in my head. In the scattered memories, I recalled entering the Brass Celestial Church.
“Ah.”
When I came to, the surroundings were bright, probably around midday. I was lying in a pure white bed. Seeing the religious patterns decorating the ceiling… it seems like it’s definitely a church.
“Ah. Saint. Are you awake?”
“Saint…?”
It didn’t take long for me to realize that was what they were calling me.
Before me was a young woman with twin tails of dark blue hair, wearing the nun’s habit of the Brass Celestial Church.
“…Ah, did you treat me? Thank you. I’m awake now.”
“No. It wasn’t me who treated you, but the Mother Superior.”
“Is that so?”
When I focused my mind inward, I could feel a slight throbbing, but no serious pain. Mother Superior… just hearing the name makes her sound like someone who’s all-in on healing.
That must be why the pain has been so alleviated.
ㅡSwish.
I tried to raise my upper body, but I had no strength in my whole body. My body felt heavy, as if I were paralyzed, and I felt severe muscle pain and crippling lethargy.
Overall, I felt languid.
I felt tired even though I seemed to have slept for quite a while.
“Oh my. Please don’t move. Your internal injuries are severe, so you shouldn’t be active. You’ll have to rest for a while.”
“Was it that bad?”
I felt a little uneasy when I heard that.
“You were a complete mess. If you hadn’t received treatment, you would have been with Verde-nim soon… Ah, you’re not one of our followers, are you?”
“No.”
“Oh, how rude of me.”
It seems this nun was waiting to explain my progress to me. She began to explain my condition.
“Thanks to the Mother Superior’s efforts, you’ve fortunately recovered enough that your life is no longer in danger. She said that if you get enough rest, you’ll soon return to your original, energetic state. She said you’re naturally strong, or something like that?”
As I continued to listen, she said that fortunately, there would be no particular side effects. If my body can return to its original state, there’s nothing more I could ask for.
I thanked the Mother Superior, whom I didn’t know, and relaxed my body.
ㅡThump.
Perhaps because I’ve recovered a little, I can feel mana.
If I use this, I can slightly increase my body’s natural healing power.
“Hmm… You’ll probably be able to leave the hospital after receiving treatment from the other nuns just one more time. Of course, even after you leave, strenuous activity is absolutely forbidden for the time being, and you have to eat well.”
I’m really going to put my business on hold and just rest for a while.
Internal injuries were a more serious problem than I thought. Until my body returns to its original state, I will not hunt or drink at all.
“Ah, don’t worry about the fees. It’s a courtesy to the Saint.”
“Haha. Saint. Did you participate in the Holy War?”
“Yes. I was also watching the Saint’s zealous speech and the way you judged the heretics.”
The memory of the heretic stew remains a good one for me. We, united by faith, were true comrades and companions.
“This is a little embarrassing.”
“Hoh, hoh, hoh. It was a moving event, so there’s no need to be embarrassed. Ah, your wife is waiting outside, so I’ll go get her. Get some rest.”
The nun, speaking in a cheerful tone, smiled and grabbed the doorknob.
“Yes. Thank you. As you said, I will never do any strenuous activity. Then, please take care.”
“There’s no need to worry. Then, I’ll be going now.”
As the nun left, silence fell.
Looking around again, this wasn’t a large space like a recovery room, but a private room that a church member would use. Was it out of consideration?
As expected, doing good deeds gets you rewarded like this.
ㅡCreak.
And who came in but Claudia and Winia.
“…You’re here?”
They both had worried looks on their faces. They saw me vomit blood, so it’s understandable. I smiled at them, telling them I was okay, and apologized.
“Sorry. I was going to go early, but it didn’t work out as I thought it would.”
They came closer and sat gently on the bed.
Winia on my left. And Claudia on my right. They silently reached out and touched my face. Perhaps because of their warm touch, I felt sleepy again.
“…Katt. Do you know you almost died?”
“I know… I’m sorry.”
“So, what happened? I’ll be angry if you don’t tell me properly.”
I could feel strength in the grip of the hand that was holding my face.
She seems angry.
I just feel so sorry to Claudia Mama.
“Is darkie’s body okay?”
Winia asked in a gentle tone.
“I got treatment, so I’m okay. Sorry for making you worry.”
“You’re such a bastard… Do you know how worried I was?”
“I’m sorry, really. I’m so sorry.”
“Haa, I couldn’t sleep, wondering if darkie had gone off and died somewhere, and your sister and I were looking for you every day.”
From now on, I have to let them know my location whenever I go out.
“Still, you’re here now, so that’s enough. Then tell me what happened. What did you do to come back in such a mess and vomit blood, huh?”
“Yeah, Katt. Tell us quickly.”
I took a moment to collect my thoughts, took their hands, and said.
“I went into the jungle that appeared up ahead… and I got lost as soon as I went in.”
“What?”
“Huh?”
The two women made dumbfounded expressions.
Just as Winia was about to curse, I continued.
“No, it’s not that I’m an idiot and got lost, but it was something that happened because of the forest’s magic. I went with Copson… and somehow, I ended up being chased by dryads. And… I met an Alraune.”
That’s right.
Alraune.
This was the cause of everything.
“Ah, an Alraune?!?!?!”
Winia screamed as if she were having a seizure, and
“Ah, an Alraune? What’s that?”
Claudia, not knowing what it was, looked around and held my hand tightly.
I explained to them in a little more detail what kind of monster an Alraune was. Then Winia glared at me as if she were going to kill me and screamed.
“You, you crazy darkie! Why are you telling the story of how you almost died so calmly! No, more than that, an Alraune?! Did you see something wrong, darkie? Why is that there!”
Judging by her reaction, it must be a rare monster.
Claudia, on the other hand, grabbed my hand tightly and asked in an excited voice how I managed to win against such a monster.
“Ka, Katt? You defeated such a monster? How?”
The two women asked at the same time, so I wasn’t sure how to answer, but I had a duty to tell them, so I explained calmly and patiently in chronological order.
The circumstances of meeting the Alraune.
And the crisis of death and the illusion I fell into.
Finally, the dramatic reversal.
Winia was restless as she listened to the story, and Claudia’s face became increasingly happy and she trembled. As expected, she really likes stories about me slicing and dicing.
