I Don't Want To Work! - Chapter 167

CHAPTER 167

‘It seems the devil god doesn’t know that I’ve got Gaia’s sickle in my hands.’

They might not even know it exists. 

In that case, if I were to utilize this sickle in various ways… 

‘I could create quite an interesting picture.’ 

With a smile, I left Betty’s room. 

“I brought the medicine.”

Pendrade, who had returned to his usual appearance in his apprentice priest robe, was sitting in a chair, shaking the medicine bottle. 

“…Why is this lizard suddenly here?”

“It hid to avoid the road.”

I chuckled as I took the medicine bottle and opened the lid. 

‘Oh, the medicine itself seems better than I expected.’ 

It seemed to be of good quality, perhaps made by a skilled person with good herbs. 

“It’s medicine made by high priests.”

“Is it?”

It certainly seemed so, but it looked slightly, just a little disappointing to me. 

‘Adding a few more herbs here would make it much more useful.’ 

Lionel applied the medicine he brought, but just in case, you know. 

‘Let’s see, where are the herbs…’ 

I might be able to make another emergency medicine with the herbs I brought just in case. 

The more of these, the better. 

I focused on selecting the herbs from my bag. 

“Hey, but a lizard? Do I look like a lizard to you?”

“If not a lizard, what then? A snail?”

Let’s add a little bit of that too. 

Oh? This was left? This is a surprise. 

“…Talking about the young mortals, and now you’re talking about me.”

After sprinkling this a bit. 

“How old are you?”

“Huh?”

After gathering and cutting the herbs well. 

“How old are you to call me a young mortal, then? So, how old?”

“I’ve lived for a thousand years.”

Now, grind the herbs well. 

“I’ve lived at least several times more than that.”

“…Huh?”

“Call me brother.”

“.…”

“Call me.”

After sprinkling on the medicine and mixing it well, ta-da, the universal medicine is complete! 

‘It will take a few days to mature before it shows its effects, but well, it’s emergency medicine.’ 

“What are you doing?”

When I turned around, Pendrade, looking somewhat defeated, and Lionel, confidently smiling, caught my eye. 

What? What did they do while I was making medicine? 

“It’s nothing, Master.”

For some reason, Lionel, who seemed pleased, approached me with a sparkling smile. 

“Did you make the medicine well? It didn’t take long.”

“Yeah, I just added a few herbs to the existing medicine.”

Still, its performance must have increased several times. 

‘It’s natural for the medicine to improve when touched by someone.’ 

I hummed a tune as I put the medicine in my bag, but then I looked at Pendrade, who seemed lost in thought. 

What? What happened while I was combining the herbs? 

‘Huh?’ 

I don’t know what it was, but I’ll recover on my own, I thought as I turned away. 

But then, I noticed one medicine bottle firmly grasped in Pendrade’s hand. 

“Hey.”

“Uh, uh?”

I called out to him, kicking the leg of the chair he was sitting in lightly, and he responded in surprise.

“What’s in your hand?”

“What’s in it? Oh.” 

Pendrade seemed to just realize the existence of the medicine he was holding in his hand. 

“I was going to leave this, but the medicine priest insisted I take it. He said if the pain gets too severe, I should take it.” 

“Is that so?” 

“Yeah, from what I’ve heard, it’s also taken when feeling weak. It seems to work well. People have been seeking this medicine the most lately.” 

“Hmm.” 

I accepted the medicine. 

What could it be that you take it when the pain is severe or even if you’re weak? 

‘It doesn’t seem like a painkiller.’ 

Out of curiosity, I opened the medicine bottle, and inside was powdered medicine. 

But there was one thing odd about it. 

“It has various colors?” 

“Uh, yeah. Was it made with five different herbs? That’s why it’s called Pentas.” 

“Pentas…” 

It was an ancient word for five. 

I examined the medicine here and there. 

Strange, why does it seem familiar?

It’s not uncommon for medicine to have various colors, but… 

‘Why do I feel suspicious?’ 

“Hey.” 

“Yeah?” 

“Is this medicine made internally by the temple?” 

“Could it be? I’ve heard that this medicine wasn’t seen in other temples.” 

“Hmm.” 

“Why, Master?” 

“Lionel, take a look at this.” 

I showed Lionel the medicine bottle with a glance up. 

He’s lived for a long time too, so he might have an answer. 

“Hmm.” 

As expected, Lionel narrowed his eyes. 

“This feels like I’ve seen it somewhere.” 

“Exactly. It feels suspicious.” 

“That’s right.” 

“What is it?” 

Finally sensing something unusual, Pendrade, who was slouched in the chair, approached. 

“Haven’t you seen it before?” 

“Uh… I don’t think so.”

If he knew, he would have shown some reaction when giving the medicine. 

‘Where have I seen it, where… Wait a minute, could it be!’ 

“Pendrade!” 

“Uh, why, why?” 

“Did anyone who took this medicine show strange behavior?”

“Strange… behavior?” 

“Yeah, like suddenly feeling feverish when cold, or having so much energy they wanted to wander around.” 

“Hmm.” 

After a brief silence, Pendrade spoke up. 

“No one who took it in the temple, as far as I saw, but a servant who followed mentioned complaining.” 

“Exactly how?” 

“After taking the medicine, the master’s health improved, but it became difficult to keep up with the extended walking time.” 

“…!!” 

I had a hunch, and it turned out to be true. 

‘That’s right!’ 

Wasn’t this also something that vanished into history? 

Who brought it back? 

‘Following arsenic, now this.’ 

The biggest problem was that the temple was deceiving and selling this as medicine. 

The temple is where most people come to get medicine. 

So, there must be more than just one victim. 

‘They must have known that Pentas isn’t medicine.’ 

They knew how to make it, but didn’t know its true nature. 

That was nonsense. Absolute nonsense. 

‘Anyway, how did this come about?’

Even if they stumbled upon it by chance, it’s unlikely they would consider the ingredients themselves as medicine. 

Even if they discovered it, they wouldn’t have thought of using it as medicine. 

‘That means someone passed on not only the recipe but also the idea of selling it as medicine.’ 

Wait a minute, could it be? 

Arsenic that I just thought of, and this. 

And behind it all was Achel. 

“So the temple of the Lord was colluding with evil gods!?”

* * *

“Welcome.”

Even the birds were asleep on this late night. 

The High Priest was receiving a guest with tens of thousands of feet in tow.

After deeply bowing in greeting, the High Priest smiled at the night visitor.

“I am delighted to see you here again.”

Standing before the High Priest was a woman. 

Long black hair, eyes glowing purple. 

Behind her stood a man with white hair and golden eyes, and a little girl with short hair.

Unlike usual, the man with white hair was wandering around, and the little girl was nervously chewing her lip.

But it didn’t matter to the High Priest.

“As always, we welcome the visit of our guests.”

“I’m glad to be welcomed.”

The woman, simply referred to as ‘the guest,’ laughed.

“Is the room I requested prepared?”

“Yes, this way…”

Guiding the guest himself, the High Priest rolled his eyes.

No matter when, this person was always strange and unsettling.

‘But that’s just a feeling.’

Since meeting this guest, they had made quite a bit of money.

“Prepare the medicine.”

One day, appearing out of nowhere, this guest provided the recipe for Pentas.

“If you make the medicine as I instructed…”

Honestly, they weren’t hungry. They didn’t need money.

Their god was the supreme ruler of the divine realm.

But there was always a lingering dissatisfaction.

Other gods should follow their god. 

Others should come to their temple and listen to them.

They had many things, but the one thing they didn’t have was gnawed at them.

“As you wish, the footsteps of the believers will turn to this place, and the voice of the Lord will spread even wider.”

And this woman precisely scratched that itch.

The medicine made with skepticism showed its effect properly.

People who were looking for other temples all flocked here.

The pockets of the High Priest and a few other high-ranking priests became quite plump.

And then, it was the grace that the woman received from the gods.

The secret grace of the gods is known only to the High Priest and tens of thousands of high-ranking priests.

Well, they later found out about the side effects of Pentas, but what could they do?

Countless believers were already seeking Pentas.

‘Even Princess Pandelion came to get Pentas yesterday.’

She looked like she had a headache yesterday, so it was a good thing he gave her medicine management just in case.

‘Now, the Detmé Temple will also come under our control.’

Anyway.

‘Even if the god were to know, I have nothing to hide.’

Leading the guest to the temple annex, the High Priest puffed out his chest. 

The number of believers is a measure of the power of the god. 

So, praise would come to him for gathering believers befitting of the power. 

“High Priest.” 

Walking down the corridor, the guest asked a question. 

“Yes, please speak.” 

“How much time is left for the ceremony?” 

That’s right, they suddenly came to see the ceremony. 

The High Priest smiled and answered. 

“It starts tomorrow. In the morning, we’ll open with minor rituals, and the main ceremony will start when the sun is at its zenith.” 

Although he answered sincerely, there was no response coming back. 

When he turned around, the guest was already looking at the moon. 

No, was she looking at the sky? 

But that wasn’t his concern either. 

The High Priest casually turned his gaze forward. 

Meanwhile, the evil god was looking at the sky. 

More precisely, she was looking at her father sitting on the throne beyond the sky. 

“I’ll see you soon, Father.” 

Her eyes twinkled with laughter and widened. 

This time, she won’t make a mistake. 

He’ll be able to come down from that throne. 

“I’ll cut that neck for you.”