Paradigm Parasite

Chapter 148: "Priest"

Next day.

I was talking to Brosdan and it was very late.

He is walking next to me, looking very sleepy.

Just a few minutes ago, I received a messenger asking me to come to Manuel's place to inform me of the results, so that's why I'm on my way there with Brosdan.

Last night, not only did I talk to him about me, but I also got to hear about Brosdan.

He lives with his parents, but they are both busy with work and don't come home much.

His father is a chief priest druid and his mother is a priest sakerdos, or something like that, and they are very busy.

The social structure of the elves living in this forest is quite unique.

The roles are divided into three categories: sovereignty, hunting and production.

With the exception of children, all the inhabitants belong to one of these categories, and children are assigned to one of these categories after a while, according to their aptitude.

A brief description of these three roles...

Sovereignty - the ruling class of elves, which is made up entirely of High Elves.

Basically, it seems that all High Elves belong here.

What they do is basically steer the village, mediate important matters and disputes... in short, they are in charge of deciding on something.

Naturally, not all of them are aligned with each other, but there are ranks among them, and they are divided into three classes, from the top: the chief priest druid, the priest sakerdos and the diviner uates.

It is said that the more important a matter becomes, the more it needs to be judged by the higher ranks.

If the matter is at the level of a fight, the uates alone will make the decision, but for dealing with foreign enemies, the sakerdos will make the decision, while the druids will make the decision for more serious matters.

...So.

The top of that priest-chief druid is the king.

His name is Rikhard.

His role seems to be to coordinate the druids' opinions and give the final go-ahead.

Rikhard.

Abdullah's enemy.

I would like to talk to him if possible.

Next is the hunting - although they call themselves that, they are in fact a warrior class responsible for the elimination of foreign enemies.

Basically, they are almost entirely made up of elves, but some of them are also druids who are high elves, and in some cases they seem to take command.

Basically, elves are not a physically strong race, so combat is exclusively with bows and magic.

There are some who use swords and spears, but they seem to be in the minority.

The details are unknown, but it is said that druids have weapons "gifted to them by revelation" or something like that.

Finally, production - at first I thought they might be cultivating fields, but it seems to basically mean clothing, equipment, etc., and they are the most numerous class.

Elves with no aptitude for warriors are thrown into this category without omission.

Some druids are also assigned to this rank, and it is said that they are in charge of it.

The fact that there are so many of them means that there is a lot of work to be done, and this rank takes care of all the chores as well.

Brosdan was vague, but it seems that this rank is also prioritised for consumption when something goes wrong.

...Well, what can I say about that?

It's blatantly the High Elves on top.

It sounds good to say it's a dual role, but what they're doing is managing.

If I were to judge from what I've heard, it could be said that the High Elves are managing the Elves like livestock.

...High Elves managing elves in a society ...... where elves don't even realise they are being managed?

This is my impression after listening to the whole story.

But they're still doing it very well.

Even if they say they are high elves, they are still originally elves.

The reason for the difference is... well, it's probably Grigori or something like that.

I don't know who they are, but it seems that they have some sort of influence over the High Elves.

Looking around, there is a lot of traffic and activity.

If I didn't have any previous knowledge of the town, it would seem like a nice town, but after knowing so much about it, I have a rather delicate feeling about it.

"We have arrived. This will be the temple."

Brosdan's voice snapped me out of my thoughts and I looked ahead and saw a magnificent building in front of me.

It is said to be a temple, but no matter how you look at it, it is designed to look like a church.

I am urged to go inside.

As soon as I enter, I see a chapel with chairs lined up at equal intervals and the symbol in front of it.

The destination seems to be at the back of the chapel, so we head towards the back through a door in the corner.

On the way, people passing us glanced at us, but we ignored them.

When we are led to the innermost room, Manuel and another old man who looks kind of important are there.

From the way he was dressed, I thought he was a druid.

"Welcome, welcome. O wanderer."

The old man looked at me and nodded in an exaggerated manner.

I didn't know how to react, so I nodded anyway.

"I am Millard, druid of this western village."

"Hello. I am Roe."

Gender: male.

He is probably the same age as Manuel or slightly older, with long ears and slanted eyes characteristic of high elves, and a well-defined face that gives an impression of coldness.

The clothes are almost the same in design, but they look even more expensive than Manuel's.

The first thing that comes to my mind is that the top management is coming out of nowhere.

I would add that I feel like I'm being watched.

Even if I don't, do I feel like I'm being noticed?

Well, that's okay. Then I can see how the other side comes out with that.

"Before we start talking. Brosdan, I'm glad you brought him here. You can go home now."

"Sir... father..."

Father?

Oh, I thought you said your father was a druid.

This Millard is Brosdan's father?

If you compare them closely, there are similarities in their facial parts, but their expressions give a completely different impression.

"Don't worry. You go back home and stay there."

Brosdan looked at me and his father alternately as if he was lost, but when I nodded, he gave me a complicated look and walked out of the room.

Now there are three people left in the room: me, Manuel and Millard.

Manuel stays behind?

For that matter, there's no one in the position of sakerdos.

Maybe that's the one who's hiding and watching?

"You've been asked the same question over and over again, so let's skip the preamble. Let me ask you frankly, who are you?"

"As I've answered many times since yesterday, I'm a traveller. I'm heading north."

Millard's mouth hangs open without taking his gaze off me.

"Let me change the question. You are not an elf."

"I'm not sure I understand what you mean."

Millard exhales lightly, thrusts his palms upwards and uses magic.

[Water Ball].

It didn't look like it was going to attack me, so I kept quiet.

The ball of water that appears ripples in the air, changes shape and turns into a flat oval.

It flutters through the air and stops in front of me.

The mass of water produced by the magic in front of me reflects my image on its surface.

Is this a mirror?

I wonder, but Millard takes out a pebble-like object from his pocket and throws it into the mass of water.

"This mirror reflects a person's true nature. As I recall, some people call it Eidos..."

I kept my expression unchanged, but inwardly I wondered if this was a bad idea.

On the other hand, I was also curious to see the true nature of the strange glances that Vertex and some other people with good instincts were giving me.

As a result of the struggle between both, I didn't move.

There is no change in my reflection ...... oh.

I thought a black spot like thing floated up on my forehead, and in an instant it covered my whole body.

"Oh..."

"This is..."

I heard the two of them let out an unintentional sound, but I couldn't remove my gaze from in front of me.

The change doesn't stop there, but my whole body turns black, and a large number of faces, both human and animal, appear on the surface.

Each face covers all the emotions that can be expressed, such as anguish, anger, joy, etc., and there is no sense of unity at all.

The changes continue.

Tails, wings, human and beast limbs and even organ-like objects grow out of the whole body, wriggling on the surface of the whole body together with the first face that emerged.

...What is this?

A grotesque image? To be honest, it is a figure that even I hesitate to look at directly.

No, no, wait a minute.

Is this really me? I'm quite surprised.

If the reflection in this mirror is real...

I look at them both.

Manuel compares me to the mirror and shudders and backs away in fright.

Diagonally behind me, in the corner of the room, I hear the sound of liquid hitting the floor.

I turn to look and see a High Elf woman vomiting profusely on the floor.

...Oh, you're the guy who's been watching me. I mean, don't throw up, you're rude.

Millard is also exclaiming.

You, don't be surprised when you do it yourself.

"What a surprise. I never thought it would go this far..."

He comes to his senses and gives me a hard look.

"Now it's clear. What are you... no, what on earth are you? Essence is supposed to have a form that is almost identical to the body. It is impossible for them to be so divergent! This mirror reflects only the truth of the person! This is your true nature! You monster! What is your purpose in approaching my son?"

Millard stares at me with a spit-flying stare, having abandoned his calm demeanour of a moment ago.

The fear in his eyes was obvious.

Manuel says nothing more and points his cane at me, while the woman stares at me with a look of disgust and fear.

Both have one thing in common: their eyes are clouded with fear of the unknown entity.

...This is a mistake.

From the way they're behaving, it seems that those grotesque images are the form of my essence - my soul.

That's something Vertex would be wary of.

I mean, how could he talk to a guy with this kind of face?

Is he a brave man?

But first, let's get to the matter at hand.

Putting aside any extraneous thoughts, I lightly raise my hands to show that I have no desire to fight.

"I apologise for lying about my race, but as for my objectives, as I've said before, they are to see this place and to go north."

Not offended, I say so and put my outstretched ears back on.

"Do you expect us to believe that?"

Millard's gaze is hard.

Well, that's a natural reaction.

"I'm sorry, but I have no way to prove it. You'll just have to trust me on this one."

"Lord Millard. What should be done with this man?"

You are too dangerous to be left alone. You will be taken to an underground prison. I'll ask you again who you are and what you want."

"...... I'm certainly not normal, but is that the only reason you're putting me in jail?"

"Look in the mirror in front of you and say something! That deformed appearance is enough for me! As the druid who rules this western village, I cannot let a monster like you go unchecked! If you don't want to see pain, don't resist. Be quiet and be bound."

I see. A monster, eh?

"Will you give me a break and let me get out of here?"

"Don't make me laugh. There is no guarantee that you will not harm this village. I will not allow you to escape."

...I see. I see.

"Somebody! Seize this one!"

The door to the room opens and several guard elves enter.

"One last question: do you intend to let me live?"

"That depends on your mindset. If the interrogation after this proves harmless, we'll let you go."

Millard says this without changing his expression.

At that point I guessed.

Ah, these guys are going to kill me for any reason they can think of...

It's decided.

Good for you, Abdullah.

You're going to get your revenge, right?