The Water Magician

"Cardinal Oskar, here is the blood of the demon king."

"What the... Truly..."

Hugh McGrath placed an intricately decorated metal jar on the desk.

Oskar seemed at a loss for words in his astonishment.

"Shall I take a look inside?"

"Of course."

Oskar opened the lid.

Inside, the jar was filled halfway with blood.

Oskar nodded once and whispered something to the cleric standing by his side.

Three minutes later.

The cleric returned with a man.

"This man is afflicted by the spirit curse of explosion. May I test if we can perform an exorcism on him?"

"Of course."

Oskar asked, and Hugh nodded.

Oskar smeared blood on his fingertip and let it drop onto the man's forehead.

In that moment, light burst forth.

Seeing this, Cardinal Oskar gave a significant nod.

"Indeed, this is the blood of the demon king. Captain McGrath, I thank you."

With that, Oskar lowered his head.

The following day, the secret order for the "demon king exploration" issued to the Templar Knight Order was rescinded.

One night.

In the archbishop's office of the Bishop's Residence in the royal capital of the Rashar East Kingdom, Cardinal Graham was writing, not lifting his head as he asked, "Is that you, Maurice?"

"You're sharp, Graham. I thought I was successfully hiding my presence."

From the shadows emerged Maurice, the former scout of the hero party.

"Perhaps you should quit being a cleric and become a scout instead?"

"That's not an option... So, were you able to meet Master McGrath?"

"Yes. I brought this."

Saying this, Maurice placed a clear and beautiful large bottle, perhaps made of crystal, on the table of the reception set.

It seemed to hold about a liter.

"That's quite a stylish bottle. If it's made of crystal, it's worth a fortune. Is it glass? It must have been tough to bring it without breaking it."

"Not at all. It was made by that water attribute mage. It's made of ice."

"Lord Ryo, huh... In that case, it definitely won't break."

With a sigh, Maurice replied, and Graham chuckled wryly.

He then tried to open the lid...

"Hm? The lid won't come off?"

"Ah, sorry. It seems you need to chant a spell while pouring in magical power to open it. Um..."

Maurice said this as he pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket.

He handed it to Graham.

"Hmm? Open, sesame?"

As Graham channeled magical power and recited the words, a slit appeared, allowing him to remove the lid.

"Is this alchemy? Quite sophisticated."

Graham murmured softly.

"I see... So this is the blood of the demon king. By the way, do you have any messages from Master McGrath or Lord Ryo?"

"Master McGrath had nothing special to say. Lord Ryo said that if the blood of the demon king, which is stored in the church, were to be lost again, please use this. He said to use that achievement to secure the cardinal's position."

"...The kingdom's first duke is quite the schemer."

Graham sighed lightly, shaking his head at Maurice's message.

"Honestly... What about you, Graham?"

"What do you mean?"

"Do you think you could become a cardinal? Since Lord Jezualdo passed away, it's been six months... that position has been vacant, hasn't it?"

"Ah... Yes, I just received word from the Holy See yesterday. I will be appointed as a cardinal next month."

"Oh...!"

Maurice exclaimed in surprise at Graham's words.

However, Graham wore a troubled expression.

"Why do you look so gloomy?"

"The Holy See is a stressful place. Reflecting on it now, I realize that during my journey with the hero party, as well as my life here, my heart was at ease."

"Is it really that... difficult at the Holy See?"

Maurice asked, shaking his head slightly at Graham's complaints.

"During my time away from the Holy See, my emotional fluctuations have become too evident. Before I return, I must readjust how my expressions present themselves..."

"What do you mean...?"

Graham's pained smile made Maurice frown.

It almost seems that the Holy See is no longer a suitable environment for human life.

"Well, that's fine. I used to do it before. More importantly, what about Roman and the others? I've often thought that if I had been quicker, I might have been able to help Roman and the others..."