Lacey shook her head. She had a feeling that something similar happened before. Oh yes—with the aforementioned Brooks. His circumstances had been different from Dana’s, but he’d figured it would be quicker to go in person and had knocked heartily on Lacey’s door.
Dana and Brooks were polar opposites, but if one went far enough down the spectrum, they’d loop around to the other side. Although they seemed incompatible, they actually had a good relationship. Lacey gave a small chuckle.
Then Dana’s kind face stiffened into a serious expression. Lacey was startled by her sudden change in mood and shrank back again.
“Tell me something, Lacey. You wrote in your letter that you’re running an anything shop. Then there’s this thing I bought in town earlier. Am I correct in saying you made this?” Dana placed a familiar item on the table. It was an insulated thermal bag.
The fact that Lacey was the creator of these as well as the sachets was a secret to village outsiders. The merchant with fox-like eyes had recommended this as well, and Lacey herself had no intention of loudly announcing it. The insulated thermal bags weren’t being distributed yet, but the merchant would be starting to sell them in the capital soon.
However, since there was no need for her to hide the truth from Dana, Lacey nodded right away. “Y-Yeah. You’re right. Did you buy this? You didn’t need to do that, I would’ve given you one.”
“It’s fine. I love money, but I hate not paying a reasonable price. That means that someone down the line isn’t getting their fair share.”
Lacey didn’t understand Dana’s doctrine very well, but she was a woman who lived by her own rules. Lacey wasn’t about to make her bend them, so she just nodded her head in acknowledgment. Besides, Dana had recognized the bag as something worth paying for. Although Lacey hadn’t made it all by herself, this still made her happy. She felt her heart growing warm again.
“I haven’t used this bag yet, but I bought and ate a to-go lunch in the village. It was chilled all the way through and delightfully tasty. Lacey, I knew you were a brilliant mage—actually, just that adjective doesn’t do you justice—but I didn’t know that you could do things like this too. You’ve really surprised me.”
This was a bit too much of a compliment for Lacey and she felt the need to tell her the truth. “It wasn’t something I could’ve made alone. Allen—um, the villagers suggested that something like this would be nice to have, so I made it. I’m really not that good,” she deflected, somewhat embarrassed.
“Maybe if this was the only thing you made.” There seemed to be some weight behind these words.
Dana pulled out something else from her luggage. It was something that was even more familiar to Lacey than the insulated thermal bag.
“A sachet?”
“Yes, I hear it’s called an aromatic artifact. It’s all the rage in the capital,” Dana noted. “It’s an extraordinary little artifact that’s kick-started a new obsession with scent. In my capacity as a holy woman, I deal with nobles a lot. Nobles love fashion trends. That’s why I keep an eye on the market so I don’t miss the bandwagon.”
Lacey blinked, impressed. She couldn’t do that kind of thing. Dana must have been using her exceptional good looks and conversational skills to get scores of nobles wrapped around her finger.
“You really are amazing, Dana.”
“I just have some aptitude as a holy woman and take an interest in these kinds of things anyway. Lacey, I don’t think you understand how incredible you are. You made this aromatic artifact too, didn’t you?” Dana pointed a finger at the bottom of the pouch. The Aster insignia was there.
The word “aster” meant “star.” The sachets were very popular in the capital, but that meant that plenty of counterfeits had started to circulate as well. As a mark of authenticity, Lacey always left embroidered stars on the items she’d made.
The merchant had registered the insignia with the trade guild, so while the villagers had been enlisted to help make the pouches, Lacey was the only one permitted to use the mark. The same symbol was on the insulated thermal bags as well. That was probably what Dana was referring to.
Lacey nodded, somewhat puzzled.
“I knew it,” Dana let out a sigh, slapping a palm to her forehead. “I swear, you’re so...” She sounded exasperated.
No, that’s not it. Lacey had a bad habit of guessing what other people felt and interpreting it pessimistically. If I don’t ask, I won’t know what she really feels. She bit down on her lip and faced forward, clutching at her chest.
“D-Dana, um, I...”
“You’re so...amazing.”
“...What?”
Dana sounded earnest. The words had dropped so suddenly that they should’ve gone clean through Lacey, but as the seconds passed, they sank in and weighed bulkily upon her arms. She would’ve been perfectly unencumbered if the words hadn’t sunk in, but knowing that she’d been complimented made the backs of Lacey’s ears feel hot.
“Amazing? But...”
“You made both the insulated thermal bags and the sachets. I was wondering what you meant by ‘anything shop’ when I got your letter, but now that I know, I’m once again struck by how amazing you are. I can’t think of any other word for it,” Dana spoke earnestly.
Lacey automatically clammed up. Her mouth tightened into a straight line and her ears went red. Dana smiled affectionately upon seeing this, but Lacey was so embarrassed that she kept looking down at her hands and didn’t notice.
Then Dana’s expression turned serious again, as it had before. “Lacey, I want to request something from you—or rather, from the anything shop Starseeking.”
While Dana had known that Lacey had started up an anything shop, she didn’t know what exactly that entailed. Thus, this request was probably something that she’d thought of after arriving in the village. Though she was still startled by her sober tone, Lacey raised her head and looked at Dana.
H-Huh? Upon closer inspection, Dana’s face was terribly pale. She emanated an uncharacteristically heavy, melancholy aura, and her eyes were half shut in anguish.
“Because I’m a holy woman, this is something I can’t talk about to anyone. I wouldn’t have told you either if you weren’t running Starseeking.”
“Dana... Um, if it helps you out, I’ll do whatever I can!”
“Thank you. The thing is...my body feels heavy.”
“It’s...heavy?” Is it a curse? Lacey wondered, her eyebrows furrowing. It was an entirely possible story if she’d been possessed by an undead monster.
Dana leaned over the table toward Lacey. Her gaze was steadfast, but paradoxically, there was a deep darkness within her eyes that threatened to swallow everything up. Lacey was almost about to lean back and try to get away...but this was a request for her anything shop. Lacey mustered up her energy and clenched her fists.
“Y-Your body feels heavy. Is there anything else?”
“My head hurts. My back aches. I feel dizzy.”
I-Is it really a curse?! A holy woman couldn’t exorcise herself if she got possessed, so it wasn’t the kind of thing she would be able to speak publicly about. It must have been an incredibly powerful monster if Dana was having trouble with it.
“I’m worn out in the middle of the day and the sunlight burns. Getting here was so, so, so tough.”
“Th-Then the problem is—!”
“Exactly!” Dana slammed the table with a heavy thud. Their teacups jumped up into the air, and Lacey likewise jumped up from her chair a little in surprise.
“I’M SO SICK OF DEALING WITH THOSE SHITTY SENILE NOBLES, THE STRESS IS KILLING MEEE!!!”
Lacey wasn’t really sure what Dana was talking about. She spontaneously echoed a more modest “Um, shitty...?” to the vociferous beauty wearing a dress.
She could hear Tee chirping “Nkwee nkwee!”—Scrumptious! Scrumptious!—as it messily ate medicinal herbs near her feet.
Dana panted, her shoulders heaving and her fists shaking.
“Ah, er, umm...”
Lacey recalled seeing this many times before. No matter how many times Dana warned him, Brooks kept coming back from fights worn and battered, which would prompt her to say “Cut that shit out! Making miracles happen saps my energy, so if you don’t quit it already, I’m gonna start charging you! I will beat the crap out of you!!!” Then she would deliver a righteous punch to Brooks’s butt. She was acting much the same way right now. This holy woman was buff.
“Oh dear. I’m sorry, that wasn’t directed at you, naturally. Don’t get me wrong, okay?!”
“O-Of course, I understand. It’s all right.”
Actually, she’d almost blacked out for a moment, but after shaking her head and straightening out her expression again, Lacey faced Dana firmly. There was just one thing for her to do right now: comprehend Dana’s request in full.
This is a job. I can’t keep looking down all the time. I have to do this properly.
Dan had said that she told Lacey specifically because she ran Starseeking. In that case, Lacey would have to acknowledge her in kind and act professionally.
“Dana, could you tell me more about this stress that’s affecting you?”
If she was going to fulfill Dana’s request, it was essential to first understand what she was asking for.
In a complete one-eighty from before, Lacey placed her palms on the table and straightened out her posture as she spoke. Dana blinked a little in surprise when she saw this, but she quickly guessed Lacey’s intentions. She began to describe her situation in greater detail.
“As you know, I’m just a holy maiden. I’m not a mage like you, so I can’t use magic. I am simply one who was chosen to convey the will of God, and I can use a healing power which we refer to as ‘miracles.’”
Lacey nodded. Dana’s miracles, Lacey’s magic, and Brooks’s technique for converting the soul’s inner power into strength were all different. However, there was really no other word for what Dana did besides “miracles.” It was a sacrament that could only be conferred by a small number of people chosen by God. It was a power that could cure any wound or illness.
Dana was an essential member of the hero’s party. Without her, they wouldn’t have been able to complete their quest without any casualties among their number.
The sacrament of miracles was derived from bestowing a spirit of virtue unto people. Dana’s power could easily cleanse the spiritual contamination known as a “curse,” but those with healing powers could not receive miracles from fellow holy women or men.