What About a Melancholic Woman?

Parting ways with Fia in front of the guild. She waves energetically, her hands flapping like wings.

"She's such a lively child."

"That's all she's good for," Riz says with a tired smile. We part ways here because I had some business at the church.

"What kind of business?"

"Maybe to express gratitude for meeting Riz and being bound together?"

"You're an idiot..." She blushes faintly, looking up at me with a cute scowl. After we part, I head toward the church.

Stepping through the stone wall door into the building, I nod respectfully to a woman and approach the altar. Placing my spear and axe in front of me, I kneel, raise both hands, close my eyes, and greet the deity of healing. At that moment,

<Notice: A serious error has occurred. An unknown system has connected. Countermeasure system activation...>

Just as 'Sage' speaks with the same panicked tone as before, a thud sound follows, and silence ensues.

"It's so kind of you to come all this way. You could have just prayed."

A woman in her early thirties wearing a black evening dress elegantly sits in the space before me.

"Hello. My name is Akihiro."

"Hello. I'm Dishia. Sir Guest," she says lazily. Her face is beautiful, but the dark circles under her eyes ruin it. Her skin is pale, almost sickly.

"I apologize for appearing like this. You see, my work is quite busy." She lets out a small sigh and mutters. "A message from Alecto has come. Everything is prepared. Let's get started first."

Dishia places her hand over my head. I feel the same faint warmth as before.

"This should do it. I'll temporarily stop the pain property. Cut your left arm with this axe. Make a deep cut."

I take the axe in front of me and slash my left arm. Even though there's no pain, the wound is severe enough to see the bone. My lower back tingles with fear.

"Do you have an image of this wound healing? Imagine it strongly, simulate it."

Suppressing the fear of the injury and the queasiness from the visuals, I vividly imagine the wound healing. The simulation in my mind goes smoothly; the wound heals cleanly.

"Execute."

The wound glows faintly, and the injury quickly begins to heal.

"That's right. That's what is generally called divine magic."

She smiles faintly.

"While most people are somewhat skilled at imagining external wounds healing, internal injuries are another matter. The images sent are often too vague, leading to missed opportunities."

Her expression becomes slightly sad.

"Your image requires almost no correction. However, whether you can remain calm and imagine it during an actual injury is a different story."

"Does divine magic have syntax?"

"Yes. Earlier, holding the image of the wound healing, Attribute Holy. Onset time within one minute. Symptom: left arm laceration. Cause: caused by a blade. Execute," she says.

"It's quite simple."

"There's no need for more. It's very difficult to search through massive logs, find the corresponding symptoms, compare them with normal backup data, and fix the specified abnormalities."

She looks quite exhausted.

"I'm sorry to have troubled you in your busy schedule."

"You called me here, so I came gladly," she says weakly smiling.

"But being able to connect to the emulator alone... Earth is impressive. The precision of the simulator and the grammar derived from it require almost no corrections."

"Thank you."

"Are you troubled?"

She looks at me intently and asks.

"I'm overwhelmed by the sheer amount of content. Above all, I feel afraid of this power." Yes, it's like always carrying a pistol with me.

"Foolish... It's about the user's intent. A knife can kill people too."

That's an extreme view.

"It's scary how my knowledge affects the world."

"That's why magical regulations are updated. If they have too strong an impact, they will be revised." She smiles faintly. "You're kind and weak. But everyone loves you for it. Have you heard about this planet's theme?"

"'To allow living beings to live as happily as possible,' right?"

"Yes. We truly wanted a simple yet kind, happy world. But that's very difficult." Her expression shows regret.

"Talking about how we treat our own kind... It's the result of compromise... Our love is for all living things. But such a paradise doesn't exist."

"We were also struggling to find it on Earth, weren't we?"

"Fufu. Complaining. I'm glad I met you, Sir Guest."

Dishia suddenly decides. "If anything happens, don't worry about the simulation or grammar. Just scream from your heart and soul. Then, it will be heard."

She returns to smiling. "I wish I could hear more about Earth, but I have to go back now."

"It's an honor to meet you."

"I hope we'll meet again when I'm less busy."

The moment the greetings end, Dishia disappears, and the world comes back to life.

A thud sound rings in my head once again.

<Notice: Reconnection confirmed. The serious error has been restored. Checking the connection logs of the unknown system... ………… Confirmation complete. No unknown systems are connected. Normal operation has been confirmed.>

The usual 'Sage' voice.

<Skill 'Acquisition' Notice: The conditions for skill 'Acquisition' have been fulfilled. Attribute Control (Holy) 1.00. The corresponding skill has been integrated.>

And then, the 'Acquisition' voice.

Now I have the ability to heal Riz and my companions when they're injured. But seeing such a tired deity made me realize how exhausting their job must be. Thinking about the work I did on Earth, I leave the church.

Time to practice Riz's shield techniques.