I Became a Fake Priest the Saintess Is Obsessed With

29 – The Scent of a Flower Fading (2)

On a bitterly cold winter day, my father passed away.

René officially became the lord of Echidna, inheriting his title.

A party celebrating René’s ascension was held in the territory, but he couldn’t enjoy the festivities.

The boiling instincts of the vampire played havoc with his mind.

After succumbing to his father’s persuasion to feed, the hidden vampire instincts surfaced.

Driven by instinct, he longed to crave the blood of passing women or to sink his fangs into a child’s neck, but he resisted.

“I am not a monster… I am a human…”

He murmured day and night, counting the hours.

He struggled to maintain his sanity, acknowledging that feeding was wrong.

However, after a few months, his mental fortitude reached its limit.

Unable to control his instincts, he looked at his servant with bloodshot eyes, trembling hands, and killed him, drinking his blood.

He was overwhelmed with guilt for killing the servant, but more than that, he felt acceptance.

“hahahaha… Yes, in the end, I was nothing but a monster…”

Acknowledging his instincts, he gradually became more monstrous.

He kidnapped foreigners from other countries to feed on their blood, and lured tourists to the territory to feed on them.

One day, when people kept disappearing in the territory, he came out of the royal palace to observe, just like his father had done, hiding the bodies underground to conceal his crimes.

By then, even the sense of guilt had disappeared, and he no longer felt any remorse for killing people.

Now, in his eyes, the human race was nothing more than a means for his entertainment and physical empowerment.

“Are you saying you want to establish a church in our territory…?”

“Yes, your territory’s excellence has always been impressive. And with your abilities, you can certainly manage the church.”

Unexpected things happened to René, who had lived a monstrous life.

It was the arrival of a church, which could only be established in territories recognized by the royal family, in the Aked Territory.

As a lord, it was undoubtedly a joyous occasion, but René was uneasy about the church entering. According to historical records, the clergy of the church had a very high chance of recognizing his true identity.

However, refusing here would undoubtedly lead to suspicion, so he couldn’t reject the proposal.

In the end, René accepted the royal proposal, and a few days later, a priest of the Land Deity Church came.

“Welcome, my lord. I am Elysa, a mid-ranking priest responsible for operating the church in the territory.”

The first time he saw her face, she was beautiful. Her long, flowing blonde hair was like ripe wheat in autumn, and her brown eyes seemed inexplicably affectionate, giving off a warm feeling.

“…Nice to meet you, Priestess.”

She left a favorable impression on everyone, but René had little interest in her.

“I will report to you about the church in the future, my lord.”

She showed a friendly smile and visited every three days for a conversation.

However, he found it difficult to develop any feelings for Elysa, considering it a luxury close to a monster like himself.

It had been five years since the church entered, but he couldn’t bring himself to stop craving blood.

As the days went by, the thirst for blood deepened, and more and more people came to visit the church that had been established.

He pushed through the crowds.

And, eventually, he was caught in the act.

“My lord…?”

He ended up being caught by Elysa, shamefully seeking blood in the streets.

However, Renette was not flustered.

She had anticipated that something like this would happen someday.

In fact, she had harmed countless people and it was surprising that no one had caught her until now.

“Still, it’s fortunate that I was caught by a fragile woman… I should be cautious from now on, and not kill her.”

Renette reached out to touch Elisa, but she couldn’t help but pause at her sudden unexpected action.

“My lord… There must be some reason for your actions, right…?”

Elisa held Renette tightly.

As if understanding everything about him, she embraced him deeply, even deeper.

Renette couldn’t bring himself to harm her, as her embrace, for the first time since he became a monster, was so warm.

And tears flowed.

He had thought that no one would ever understand him as a monster.

But Elisa did.

Renette made a promise.

If he could love this woman, he would end his life as a monster and return to being human.

That’s how Renette stopped killing people.

***

“Come here, you monster!”

After receiving treatment from the goddess and doing everything possible, he lured the amalgamation’s gaze and enticed it as it tried to escape over the threshold, but its tentacle grazed his cheek.

“Eek!”

A passing tentacle was so grotesque that my legs went weak, causing me to fall over, and a cute scream burst from my lips.

If someone else had heard it, it would have been quite an embarrassing scream, but fortunately, there was no one around now.

“Ugh… Why is the attack so fast on such a dirty and heavy subject…”

I hastily brushed off the dust on my legs and stood up.

The fused creature moved so slowly that it was frustrating, but its attacks with swinging tentacles and spewing blood were incredibly fast.

Still, if asked whether it was avoidable or not, it was manageable.

So, maybe I could somehow avoid it and drag the creature down below.

“This pig bastard! It’s so slow that it’s sigh-inducing!”

I shouted loudly with the intention of provoking it.

And whether it was through provocation or not, the creature’s attacks relentlessly poured down.

As I ran away, it followed me, continuously spewing blood and swinging its tentacles like a whip.

“Sorry! Really sorry! I take back what I said about you being a pig bastard!!!”

Perhaps realizing it might go berserk to this extent, I apologized, but monsters don’t show mercy.

I barely dodged the pouring attacks at the interval of a single sheet of paper.

[The goddess says the fusion is still quickly catching up.]

“Well, that’s fortunate!!!”

Ignoring the goddess’s warning, I did my best to drag the monster along.

Running at full speed, I soon saw the stairs leading down, and I rushed down as if rolling down the stairs.

“Ivan Sajin-nim has arrived!”

As soon as I reached the lower floor, the Crown Prince welcomed me with joy.

He was in the midst of confronting a fusion entity, overwhelming it while seemingly unaffected by Lecia’s explanation.

“Your Highness! Where is the Holy Maiden of the Celestial Faith?”

“She is bringing another guy from the garden! By the way, Priest!”

“Yes?”

“Do you happen to have any connection with the one from the Celestial Faith?”

“Um… is that something you’re curious about in such a critical situation?”

“Yes! I’m extremely curious!”

Although I have no idea why His Highness is curious about that, I guess I should answer since he’s an important person?

But as for my relationship with Lecia…?

I don’t really know.

Ugh… is it even considered a relationship if you really think about it?

“As for me and the Holy Maiden Lecia…”

After pondering for a moment, as I opened my mouth to speak, the monster I brought from the second floor crashed through the stairs, barging in.

“This timing, seriously!”

His Highness intercepted the approaching monster, aimed at me.

“Watch your side!”

“Ugh! Thank you!”

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With the two monsters cooperating, gaps started to appear in His Highness’s defense, like a fortress crumbling.

No matter how skilled His Highness is, facing both monsters simultaneously seems to be a bit too much.

“Well then, I guess I’ll…”

Realizing that I was the only one who could help immediately, I drew my knife.

At that moment, the tentacles of the fusion attacking Prince Hwangja, driven by a sudden gust, were severed in masses.

“I’ve returned.”

With a nonchalant remark, Lesia gathered the storm on her sword and neutralized three fusion entities.

“…Priestess. I felt a great sense of helplessness within myself.”

“Prince Hwangja has not yet inherited the blood of the imperial family. It’s rather terrifying how much stronger he becomes there.”

“Ahahahaha… By the way, it’s a shame we can’t bring someone like that to war. With him, he’d sweep away the demon army like fallen leaves in the wind.”

“Considering the pact with the former emperor and the heavenly deity, it’s unreasonable.”

“That’s… true.”

As Prince Hwangja and I were amazed by Lesia’s sword, Lesia walked towards me.

“As you mentioned, I gathered three unidentified monsters in one place.”

“Thank you, Saint.”

“I, I also… managed to hold one off for a while, but…”

“Ah… Thank you.”

Leaving the two who seemed pleased with the praise behind, I approached the fusion entities.

‘They won’t suddenly open their eyes and try to kill me, right?’

An uneasy thought crossed my mind as I hesitated before the ones who had ceased their activities.

Taking a deep breath and muttering, ‘That wouldn’t happen, right?’ I bound their tentacles together and held them in one hand.

‘It must hurt… It’s definitely going to hurt…’

When healing Lucia and the others, I had almost fainted.

Hundreds of people gathered at the party, and the horror of treating this amalgamation was beyond imagination.

But there was no one else but me who could cure it.

I asked this question, my voice distant.

“My god, I offer this flesh and soul to the mother of the earth…”

And then, I recited the spell of absolute healing.

“Priest!!!”

As the amalgamations gradually returned to their original forms, Prince Hwangja and Lesia urgently called me.

“Yes? What’s the matter…”

When I paused the incantation for a moment and tried to look at them, the scenery was dyed in deep crimson.

Then, a massive explosion resounded.

Red liquid burst out from here and there.

I couldn’t confirm the identity of the liquid.

I, too, was engulfed in the explosion.