I Will Buy Divine Power With Money! - Chapter 36

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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“The sacred relic of light only had one very short line written about it, saying it contained healing power. Still, that was my only hope.”

He had clung to that one line and searched desperately for the sacred relic.

At Rute’s words, I inwardly swallowed hard.

The sacred relic of light, which had already been destroyed beyond repair and turned to ash, belonged not to the Sun God but to the final mastermind.

But would an ancient book containing false information about the sacred relic really be a proper book?

“Where is that ancient book?”

“It no longer exists in this world.”

I was about to demand he hand it over immediately, but an unexpected answer came back.

“It doesn’t exist?”

“Perhaps because it was so old, right after I confirmed its contents, the paper completely crumbled and turned almost to powder. It’s such a shame. If the book had been intact, I could have researched it further.”

…That’s strange. No matter how old it was, would an entire book crumble completely?

But it didn’t seem like Rute was lying either.

Knowing the true nature of the sacred relic, this was extremely suspicious.

“Where did you discover the ancient book?”

“In the Imperial Library that only royalty can use. I was able to look around with His Majesty the Emperor’s special permission.”

The Imperial Palace.

Hearing this made me feel even more uneasy.

“…The Imperial Library really has all sorts of things. Even books about our sacred relics.”

But if I kept pressing him, Rute might become suspicious, so I decided to stop here for now.

The ancient book was gone anyway, and it wasn’t like I could go to the Imperial Palace right now, so I’d have to ask again after we became closer.

“I’m really glad the sacred relic actually helped. Of course, my blessing worked hard too.”

“That’s right. So just when we didn’t need to hire Wolfgang Schmidt, I was so surprised to hear that the Holy Maiden would create potions combining alchemy and divine power.”

“It’s not a bad plan, right?”

I shook the potion Zenrik had brought.

“Yes. I’ll honestly admit it.”

For once, Rute nodded readily.

“Even if the Sun God might be unfamiliar, if you say familiar alchemy is included too, people will accept it more quickly.”

…No, wait. This guy is subtly throwing shade at the Sun God’s Main Temple right now.

Really, does he get thorns in his mouth if he doesn’t make sarcastic remarks?

“Well then, I’ll give you a blessing now. Give me the sacred relic.”

He was annoying, but I couldn’t just leave a sick person alone, so I extended my hand.

Thud.

“…?”

No, I asked for the sacred relic, so why are you putting your hand up?

“I don’t really want this.”

“I didn’t give you my pretty hand to admire either. I’m asking for the potion.”

Rute gestured with his chin toward the potion in my other hand.

“Don’t we need to check the potion’s effects? Since I’m conveniently a patient, I’ll drink it myself and verify it for you.”

Good heavens. Could this be why he wasn’t receiving blessings?

“Even if it contains divine power, this won’t be much help for your condition, Duke.”

“Well, there’s no other way, is there? How else would you verify its effects?”

At Rute’s question, I naturally looked at my left forearm.

Specifically, the exact spot where I had cut with a knife when the first sample came out.

It hurts a bit, but still, this method is the most reliable.

“You’re not thinking of that crude method of directly injuring your own body, are you?”

He’s quick to catch on.

I know it’s crude too, but what can I do? There’s nothing more accurate than this.

When I kept my mouth shut and mumbled, Rute let out a hollow laugh.

“You really thought of that?”

“Well, I can’t injure someone else’s body either. So doing it to my own body is the best option.”

“You sound like you’ve already tried it before, but I won’t ask further. I feel like hearing more would put me in a bad mood.”

Rute smiled. It was different from his usual grin where he smiled constantly like someone with a screw loose.

It felt incredibly menacing somehow.

“So give me that potion. I’ll verify its effects for you.”

Saying that, Rute removed the sacred relic he was wearing before I could stop him.

At the same time, his eyes hardened, and the hand I was inadvertently holding began to tremble.

“What are you doing…!”

Horrified by the black spots that swelled enormously as if they had been waiting, I pulled on the hand I was holding.

And hastily shoved the potion bottle into his mouth.

“Are you insane?”

As soon as Rute’s throat swallowed the potion, I cursed first.

I was so shocked that I couldn’t speak politely.

“What if there are side effects when the black spots blocked by divine power suddenly go wild!”

Indeed, when the obstruction disappeared, I could see the black spots rejoicing and growing stronger.

It was a terrifyingly ominous energy that made my heart sink.

Rute could have died from shock if things went wrong.

“You’re just as crude as I am.”

I put down the half-empty potion and sighed.

It would have been better to injure my own body. At least I wouldn’t die from something like that.

“Since we’re both the same, let’s not blame each other.”

The guy wiping potion from his lips while smiling was so infuriating.

If he weren’t sick, I would have hit him.

“Still, we obtained meaningful results.”

His finger, stained with orange liquid, tapped the potion bottle.

“Perhaps because it contains divine power, the pain decreased slightly. Not as much as when I wore the blessed sacred relic, though.”

“…”

“In numerical terms, roughly one-tenth or less? It’s not dramatically improved, but considering the special nature of my illness, it’s quite an effective potion.”

“You have the presence of mind to analyze in the midst of all this?”

Still, I was glad we gained something.

But somehow I couldn’t feel completely happy about this situation.

“Oh, were you that worried about me?”

Is that supposed to be a question?

Rute doesn’t know this, but he’s the person whose future fate I directly twisted with my own hands.

He’s the first person I made deviate from the original story’s flow, so naturally I hoped he would continue living well.

“I’m just dumbfounded watching your foolish antics.”

But I couldn’t explain all that in detail, so I had to let it go.

Clicking my tongue, I grabbed the potion instead of hitting Rute’s annoying smiling mouth.

It was an unexpected situation, but since it came to this, I had to use everything useful.

【Activating skill ‘Blessing’.】

My golden divine power gently dissolved into the potion.

Just like before, the orange potion gradually began to take on a red tinge.

But this potion had a deeper color than the previous one, so when the red energy settled in, it emitted a color like burning flames.

Brilliant, beautiful, and powerful.

It was a color that naturally captivated the gaze just by looking at it.

“The color…”

“It’s a potion containing my blessing.”

I handed the half-remaining potion back to Rute.

“Try drinking it.”

Rute, who had been admiringly observing the potion that looked like sunset or flames, didn’t refuse and obediently drank it.

Then he opened his eyes wide in surprise.

“The effect is good. I feel much better.”

“How does it compare to when you wore the sacred artifact?”

“It’s not quite as effective as the sacred artifact that lost its blessing.”

That’s only natural. What Rute is wearing is a divine artifact specialized in healing power.

“Still, compared to potions before they were blessed, this seems to have at least 3 to 4 times the effect.”

“That’s good.”

That should sell very well. As expected, deciding to infuse potions with blessings was the right choice.

Now that the experiment was over, I cast a blessing on the divine artifact that Rute had thrown off.

“Here, I’ve infused it with a new blessing. Come back again in a month.”

This time, Rute obediently put the divine artifact around his neck.

From the moment he drank the potion, the black spots that had been hesitating as if wondering when to show their strength drooped like a machine that had lost power.

I confirmed that his complexion looked significantly better than before and said:

“From now on, don’t do anything pointless and come get your blessing regularly before the month is up.”

“Yes.”

“If something urgent enough comes up that you can’t come, drink a potion like today. However, I’ll prepare the potions for the Duke separately, so don’t pilfer the ones being sold to the public.”

Rute immediately drooped the corners of his eyes.

“What do you take me for? Do you think I’d do something so petty?”

“It’s not that, but we’re a bit sensitive about embezzlement. We caught several embezzlers just a month ago.”

The embezzlers including Chef Kento are still locked up in the dungeon.

This is because crimes that occur in the Grand Temple can be punished according to the Grand Temple’s own regulations rather than imperial law.

Count Kiris also doesn’t want to stir up unnecessary trouble, so he hasn’t even asked for them to be handed over.

“The dungeon has become a room for embezzlers.”

If you cause trouble, I’ll prepare a room for you too.

“…Don’t worry. If I urgently need something, I’ll purchase it at full price.”

Understanding my meaning well, Rute raised his hand and swore.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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