The Church and the Witch – Part 02
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Translator: Kell
“Mercenary? What is wrong?”
“The key…” My voice trembled. “The key doesn’t fit.” Panic began to set in.
The priest handed me two keys. One of them was the key to the cell, and I thought that the other one would unlock both shackles. But it was actually the Knights Templar who put the arm shackles. Corruption simply snatched her away. She wouldn’t have the right key.
What do we do?
“Leave me, Mercenary.”
“What?”
“If you stay, we will both be trapped. Your body cannot handle holing up here in its current state. But if you escape, you can come rescue me later, though it might take some time.” Her quiet voice calmed me down.
Right. We can just do that.
But my body wouldn’t move. “I can’t,” I said.
“Yes, you can! I am a witch. Even if I am trapped here for a few days, or even a year, I will most likely survive. I have no doubt that you will come for me. So—
“I said no!” I roared, then yanked the chain.
Realizing what I was about to do, Zero grabbed my arm to stop me. “It is impossible! The Church’s chains cannot be destroyed easily. If you were in perfect condition, then perhaps there is a possibility, but in your current state—”
“Just shut up and stay back! We won’t know until we try!”
“I already know without you trying! You have only one arm, and you have lost too much blood. The way you are now, you cannot even muster half your usual strength!”
“So what?”
I pulled on the chain with all my strength, and the iron stake pinning the chain to the cobblestone creaked. The stake, driven deep into its neck, would not budge one bit. It made me think that perhaps it was buried deep into the bowels of the earth.
“I’m never leaving you,” I declared. “I’ve decided that I’m never leaving anyone behind again!”
Twice in the past, I left my comrades behind and ran away. First I left Zero with Thirteenth, and the second time, I left Theo behind in the Holy City of Akdios.
Both times, I regretted my actions deeply. I could blame myself all I wanted, but Theo would never come back to life.
I decided that that was the last time I left someone behind.
Gritting my teeth, I wrapped the chain around my arm and pulled with all the strength I had in me. Blood began to flow out of the wound on my arm, dripping onto the cobblestones.
I slipped on my own blood and fell hard on the floor.
Letting out a human-like scream, Zero held on to me. “Did you not hear me?! I said it is impossible! And I am not Theo! Our best option is to leave me!”
“I left Theo behind thinking it was for the best, and you know what happened!”
“I—”
“What are you dawdling around for?!” the priest yelled. “Do you want to be steamed?!”
“Priest!” Zero called. “Please take Mercenary with you and go! The key does not match the lock. I cannot leave this place. We will all perish at this rate!”
“But I only found two keys. So she was hiding one more?” The priest hesitated for a moment. I thought he was going to leave, but he rushed over to us.
“Back off, priest!” I shouted. “I don’t have the time to deal with you right now!”
The priest ignored me and grabbed the chain.
What? I blinked repeatedly.
He hooked his staff on the stake and let Zero hold it. “You know about the principle of levers, yes?” he asked.
“Y-Yes…” Zero answered.
“I’ll lend you my staff. For the record, this thing won’t bend or break no matter how hard you try, so please pour all your strength into it. Mercenary and I will pull the chain. We need to sync up.”
“Who died and made you king?!” I barked. “What the hell do you think you’re doing? This is my job! I don’t need a priest to help me—”
“This is no time to be stubborn!”
I went silent. I realized that of us three, the priest was the only one who kept his cool. Even Zero, who was usually calm and composed, was desperate in trying to stop me.
“If Zero dies, I’ll be in trouble too,” he said. “While Cestum is out there working behind the scenes, the information she provides is crucial. Now stop complaining and put all you have into pulling. You have nothing besides your brute strength, anyway.”
“Th-That’s not… I know that! You don’t have to tell me!”
I stood up and grabbed the chain. The priest also grabbed the chain and sat down, his face steady despite having been tortured. Zero firmly grabbed the far end of the priest’s staff.
Synching ourselves, we poured all we got into the task.
“One… two… three!”
The stake creaked and tilted slightly. Cracks ran through the cobblestone.
Zero’s eyes lit up. “It moved! We can pull out this stake!”
“Don’t let up! Again!”
The crack widened, and the stake shifted greatly.
Blood and sweat dripped onto the floor. The fire above was starting to heat up the basement.
“One last time! Gooooo!”
Letting out a roar from the pit of my stomach, I pulled on the chain with everything I had. With a dull thud, the crack spread out some more, freeing the iron stake. The momentum propelled Zero’s body back, but I quickly caught her.
“We pulled it out, Mercenary,” Zero said, relieved.
“We did, witch,” I replied.
I almost started laughing, but even with my blood-starved brain, I knew that now was not the time for celebration.
I tried to carry Zero, but I couldn’t. My legs buckled all of a sudden. Zero and the priest supported me on both sides, forcing me on my feet.
“I will lend you a hand,” the witch said. “Stand up!”
“We don’t have time to waste,” the priest added. “If you don’t want to be left behind, get up on your feet like your life depends on it!”
“Uh, I thought you’d just take the witch and bail.” My wry remark even in this situation just showed how cynical I was.
The priest clicked his tongue in annoyance. “The Goddess is merciful. You should be grateful to her.”
That’s not even an answer.
With the help of Zero and the priest, I managed to get out of the temple. Fortunately, there was a secret passage from the basement to the surface, so it didn’t take long. We made it out of the temple safely before it burned down.
Then I ran out of strength. My body was shaking from losing too much blood, and I couldn’t see a thing.
Holding me up, Zero turned to the priest. “Cut off my arm!”
“Wh-What now?! Where did that come from?!”
“As long as these shackles are in my arms, I cannot use Magic. With no key, the only option is to sever my arm. Then I can heal Mercenary’s wounds.”
“You idiot!” I managed weakly. “I could’ve cut off your arm in the dungeon if I really wanted to. It’s fine. I’m just a little tired. Let me a rest a bit.”
“But…”
“Big brother!”
Suddenly I heard a call. Eyes wide open, we turned to the direction of the unexpected voice.
A small rat Beastfallen was scurrying towards us.
So she uses all four limbs when running at full speed, huh? I thought.
“Lily, why’d you—”
Before I could finish my question, I saw the group standing behind her, all wearing matching armor. I was astonished.
The priest stood up. Zero stared blankly, her mouth open. Apparently I wasn’t hallucinating.
“Th-The Knights Templar?!”
Lily brought with her two hundred fully-armed knights of the Church.
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