The Goddess Is Obsessed With Me

Lately, the atmosphere on the streets has felt a bit chaotic.

Even in broad daylight, the sky was dark and overcast, as if it was about to rain.

Compared to other days, the number of people walking the streets had noticeably decreased.

Even in the narrower alleys, the streets seemed desolate, with hardly anyone in sight.

Even in the usually bustling market, the number of operating shops and visitors was minimal, and there was hardly any chatter to be heard.

Usually, the streets would be a cacophony of overlapping voices, but now, even though the street remained the same, the scene was so different it felt almost alien.

However, the reason for this change wasn't hard to understand - the ominous message delivered by the gods.

Anyone with faith would have received the divine message. It might not be every single person, but in this world where most people have a religion, almost everyone would have heard it.

The ominous sign of impending doom.

The concept that gods are eternal beings is a universally known fact among intelligent beings in this world.

Under normal circumstances, they can't be killed or injured, and even if they were, they could only experience a physical death; their souls could always be reincarnated into a new body.

But now, there's talk of an event so cataclysmic that even such beings could face true death. Considering their stature, for mere mortals like us, this could mean the extinction of our entire race or the disappearance of massive nations - it was a dire warning.

"Young man, judging by your gear, are you an adventurer?"

A sharp-eyed old man, handing me the item I purchased, suddenly asked.

"Yes, with the gods giving such a dire prophecy, there's much to prepare for."

I put the high-grade mana potion into my bag and honestly answered the old man's curiosity.

"Adventurers have been flocking to our shop since yesterday. They're buying potions to protect themselves, so much so that we're running out of stock."

Indeed, while the number of customers in the shop was low, the volume of items being purchased was significant.

Now, looking outside, even though there were fewer people, a high percentage of them carried weapons.

For the foreseeable future, it seems best to stay armed. Those who can't fight probably stay home, while adventurers like me, whose primary job is combat, are busily preparing.

"Take care then."

After bidding the old vendor goodbye, I left the shop.

Jingle~ Jingle~

As I opened the door, the sound of a bell chimed, but...

"Huh?"

My vision began to dim and narrow.

In this situation, I couldn't even be sure if I was looking straight ahead.

What on earth is happening? Before I could even understand, I was hit with intense pain.

"Ugh?!?!"

Another side effect of the curse, and compared to yesterday, it had worsened significantly.

I could faintly hear a whispering voice in my ears.

-!...!!

It must have been like this the second time the curse affected me on the day it first struck. Now, my vision was consumed by darkness.

"Aaahh! Ughh!!"

The malevolent darkness, emanating from within, made me feel even worse.

"Young man?! Are you okay?!"

In the midst of the excruciating pain, a stranger's voice reached my ears.

"Huh?!"

When I came to my senses, the shop owner was looking at me with concern.

"You suddenly fell and started wailing in pain! Are you hurt?"

He helped me up and looked at me with puzzled eyes, full of questions. "I'm fine... I think I just had a brief episode due to a known illness."

Despite my explanation, he had a slightly bitter look on his face, but since I assured him I was okay, he didn't seem to press any further.

"Thank you for your concern. I really should be going now."

With a brief expression of gratitude, I left the shop for real this time.

"Phew..."

Since last night, for some reason, the pain from the curse has intensified.

It wasn’t just pain; my vision was darkening, and I kept hearing what sounded like whispers.

The voice, from what I could tell, was a woman's... probably due to the power of the ancient goddess Lusia who devised this curse.

Thankfully, Erina is currently away on personal matters. If she were here, she would have been very worried and bombarded me with questions, which would have made my already bad mood even worse.

"Should I go to Eleona now?"

Wiping off some sweat, I decide to visit her shrine, a place I hadn’t yet been to today. "Welcome, my child... You have... arrived."

Upon visiting Eleona, the atmosphere was quite different than usual.

It was hard to tell if she was in a somber mood or just indifferent, but her expression was certainly not a positive one.

Perhaps she's worried about the impending Night of Ruin?

"What brings you today?"

Her voice was weak, and she looked pale.

"My Goddess... Are you feeling unwell? You look pale."

When I expressed my concern, she seemed momentarily startled but quickly reverted to her usual smiling demeanor.

However, the strong initial impression made it hard to ignore the underlying emotion.

"It’s nothing, I just heard some unsettling news from Morione, so I’m not feeling my best. But I'm fine."

Worried about the upcoming events, perhaps? After all, even for a goddess, the possibility of death is a grave matter. The look she had earlier now made sense.

"What is it you came for? If it's within my power, I'll grant your wish."

With a gentle smile, she asked about my request.

"I seek magic. The magic you have granted me is sufficient, but it consumes a lot of energy. I need magic that's more suitable for me to handle."

Upon hearing my request, Eleona nodded gently and conjured something in front of me.

"What is this..."

Upon inspection, there were spells I recognized from the game, but there were also unfamiliar ones.

Based on their titles, they seemed average. Without trying them, it’s hard to tell, but they didn't seem like high-consumption spells.

"Thank you, Goddess, for your continued blessings!"

With a sincere smile, I expressed my gratitude, to which she responded with a nod.

"What could I possibly deny you? As long as you use it wisely, that's all that matters."

She then took out a scroll and started reading it intently for a few minutes.

"My knight, you've probably heard about the impending disaster that's about to strike, haven't you?"

The Night of Ruin. I nodded solemnly in agreement.

"I've received an additional message. Morione herself wrote it."

Morione wrote another letter?

This wasn't a development from the game I knew.

"In six days, the event will unfold. There will be a massive slaughter, and the gods have been asked to gather at the kingdom's center."

This was good news for me.

I was rushing because I didn’t know when the final quest would start. Knowing the timeline gave me an advantage.

It seemed I still had some time to prepare further.

"And they have also requested their followers to join this gathering."

In the quest, NPCs, including players who served the gods, fought against heretics.

So, her next request would be for me to participate in this gathering, right?

"But you must not come."

Her response was utterly unexpected. "What?"

Taken aback, I replied with a slightly shocked tone, but her answer remained the same.

"I told you not to participate in that gathering. I have a bad feeling about you attending, so please understand it's for your safety."

"Just a moment!"

For the first time, I protested Eleona's decision.

"Why do you say that? I am your only knight. Isn't it natural for me to attend?"

I had to participate in this quest to advance in the story. I couldn't simply agree to Eleona's request to abstain from this event.

"Recently, I've had disturbing dreams... In a dark world, I saw you dying, and I was holding onto you, crying. I have a bad premonition."

Had Eleona had a similar dream to Erina's? Why is everyone around me having these strange and similar dreams?

"How can I stay calm and accept your request knowing something might happen to you? I can't accept it. Dreams are just dreams. As your knight, I cannot permit this."

Laying out my reasons, hoping to participate in the main quest, she seemed hesitant, a look I'd never seen on her before. Fortunately, she eventually relented.

"Ugh... I really don't want to, but if you insist... Okay."

Relieved, Eleona sighed deeply and nodded reluctantly.

With this, I can safely proceed with the main story.

The heretics are by no means weak, but surely Erina will also definitely be there.

Now that I've acquired a magic that doesn't consume too much energy, I believe we can progress without much difficulty.

Plus, with six days left, if I spend time preparing and gathering items, I can smoothly conclude this chapter.

After Harold left, Eleona was once again left alone.

"Ugh..."

She groaned briefly, removing the cloth from her shoulder.

The darkness that had noticeably spread since yesterday...

While still limited, Eleona was undoubtedly being consumed by it.

"So there's roughly six days left..."

She muttered to herself in the dimly lit temple, looking up at the sky.

"If I don't finish within that time, it'll be inconvenient."

Despite the somber atmosphere, she chuckled and spoke lightly.

"But don't worry, Harold..."

A monologue she could only express after he left.

"No matter what disaster strikes, I will protect you..."

What on earth was happening?

I shouldn't have let my guard down.

I underestimated the variable of the curse, and now I'm suffering the consequences.

I should never have taken it lightly...

"Harold?! Harold!! Snap out of it...!!"

I hear Erina's desperate voice.

"Wake up! You can't die here!"

"I'm sorry... If I hadn't met you from the beginning...!"

The voices of Miru and someone who sounds like her, perhaps her twin, also reach my ears.

And then...

"Please... open your eyes..."

I faintly see Eleona, who is crying.

"I'm sorry... I promised a hundred times to protect you, but I ended up hurting you..."

'I'm okay.'

I wanted to say that, but I couldn't muster the strength to open my mouth.

My vision rapidly darkens, and in it, everyone is crying.