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The appearance of the lake gradually changes.

The water sways as if it has a will of its own. In the sunlight, the now transparent water reveals… the faint outlines of someone else’s skeleton and gear.

Thinking that I could have ended up like that fills me with dread.

I felt like I was about to puke.

An opponent who is immune to physical attacks and strikes at my mind. I have no way to deal with this. My only option is to support from the back.

I am a Bard.

I raised my instrument. Checking the strings of my lute.

A melody rings out.

But it wasn’t beautiful. It was more like a horrifying cacophony.

The magic of a Bard is different from that of a Wizard. Wizards command and negotiate with nature; they make deals, they form contracts.

So, what is Bard magic?

I don’t know. I have no idea how a Bard is supposed to assist allies or disrupt enemies with melodies.

I just happened to succeed once by chance. That, too, was entirely instinctual, lost in the feeling of my fingers dancing.

I haven’t even tried again since then!

‘…No, I can do this.’

A vague confidence surged within me. I can do it! I can!

Suddenly,

Someone unexpectedly grabbed my wrist.

I looked up to see the face of the person. It wasn’t the expected Skylar, but someone else entirely.

‘Propertyius.’

The suspicious priest, who looked like Skylar’s friend, held my wrist firmly and spoke softly.

“There’s no need.”

“…What?”

“Look.”

Propertyius pointed with his thick finger in the direction where Nisha was.

It was the very spot I had just seen the slime.

And the slime was gone.

No, to be precise… what had been slimes were now lying still on the ground.

There was only Nisha, with an unpleasant expression as if the blue goo had stuck to her spear and was glaring at the tip.

‘The shape of the spear… so it could change.’

The lake was undoubtedly immense. The size of the slime was proportionate to the lake’s vastness.

It was certainly not an opponent to be dispatched quickly. No matter how much Nisha was a platinum-level adventurer, there are clear limitations to a weapon like a spear.

“…How?”

“Skylar is a Wizard. I’m a Cleric, you see?”

“Eh?”

“To explain, you first need to understand how differently a Wizard and a Cleric perceive things. May I borrow a moment of your time?”

Skylar was staring at me and Propertyius from a distance with keen eyes.

Something about it felt off.

I hadn’t exactly done anything to get on her nerves. Why is she looking at me like that? It’s really puzzling.

Could it be that my weak mental state, choked by a mental attack, was annoying her? I don’t want to be like this!

“Jealous, are we?”

“Eh?”

“Your eyes seem to be entrapped by Skylar. Or perhaps your body is becoming weaker as your mind does too.”

“Isn’t that a misunderstanding?”

“Yes. Considering his usual personality, it’s more likely anger than jealousy. Anyway, shall we return to the main topic? That thing the Wizard failed to explain properly.”

“…Why do you assume I obviously wouldn’t know?”

“Because I overheard your conversation with Skylar.”

He said that and smiled. There was a blade concealed in that smile.

Should I be relieved that the blade hidden in the smile isn’t directed at us? Or should I tell Skylar that this person is a bit odd?

It wouldn’t hurt to hear him out first.

“Please explain.”

“Firstly, the reason I’m kindly providing you information is that you are also a corporeal being like us and do not collect bodies.”

“Are you sure I won’t collect bodies?”

“You’re too weak to assault other corporeal beings.”

Ugh, that means it’s not a choice, but a fact.

The reason he’s giving me information now isn’t kindness, it’s because it’s less risky for him to have it than for someone else to.

“…”

“Surely, that Wizard explained about the gods to you.”

“Yes.”

“He said the god of storms is the Achilles’ heel, the god of love is the eye, and the god of wisdom is the brain… did he say that each god symbolizes a body part?”

“Yes.”

“That’s incorrect.”

As soon as Propertyius finished speaking, Skylar, who had been quietly listening from a distance, strode towards us.

She looked slightly irritated.

“Propertyius, you’re speaking nonsense.”

“From a Cleric’s perspective, the gods are both one and many.”

“…Don’t you know it’s more correct to explain it through magic and science than vague doctrines?”

“How can a single being, the god, be many? The Church has pondered that question over many years and finally arrived at this answer.”

“Selina, there’s no need to listen. Let’s go. The request has also ended fruitlessly.”

“Don’t interrupt me.”

Propertyius gazed impassively down at Skylar. I felt the strength slowly leaving the hand gripping my wrist.

It looked like it was a sign that he didn’t want to get into unnecessary arguments.

‘Sure, do as you will.’ was the feeling?

Anyway, Propertyius continued his explanation to me.

The main point was supposed to be how Nisha could dispatch a massive slime in a single blow, but somehow we had strayed quite far from that topic.

“The god is one, yet many.”

“Eh?”

“Think of a cube die. Let’s say the die is the god. The number one on the die is a god, and the number six is also a god.”

My intelligence may have dulled, but my memory remained intact.

Thanks to that, I recalled the topic of the Trinity that set the internet ablaze for a while, and I could somewhat understand what Propertyius was saying.

“So… does that mean that the god of love and the god of wisdom are like different sides of the same die?”

“Exactly. This theory managed to unify the divided church somewhat.”

“What does that have to do with Nisha dispatching the slime in one blow…?”

“Just as the god has multiple sides, humans also have multiple aspects. Therefore… there are realms that only humans can reach.”

And just as Propertyius was about to say more,

Nisha appeared from behind and tightly grabbed Propertyius’s shoulder.

She was wearing a smile.

“What are you talking about?”

“Oh, Nisha, I was just explaining about you.”

“About me?”

“Specifically, that technique you used to dispatch the slime before we even jumped in.”

“I’ll explain myself.”

“Yes.”

Propertyius took a step back, and Nisha, now holding her cleaned spear, excitedly began to explain.

With her index finger pointed and a triumphant smile on her face, her shoulders were raised high as if she could pierce the sky.

‘This person… is a bit like me.’

Of course, that doesn’t mean she is strong or has a similar personality. Rather, it was that she reacted positively to the gaze and attention of others… particularly when those less than her looked up at her.

In summary, she showed signs of having potential to be quite the attention-seeker.

“Propertyius has already explained the basic content, right? The god is one and has multiple aspects. The same goes for humans. That’s what I’m talking about.”

“Yes.”

“Good. Just as a god can divide his body into many aspects, a human can do the same.”

“…Doesn’t that mean they die if they divide themselves that way?”

“No, it’s not that kind of physical separation. To be precise, it’s revealing something a human has accumulated over a long period of time in an instant.”

“I don’t get it.”

“I may not have a talent for explanation, but there’s no one who could explain it better than me even if you called someone else.”

Nisha scratched her face for a moment, looking awkward.

I still couldn’t understand what they were talking about. What does it even mean to emphasize and reveal an aspect of a person?

“Alright. I’ll just show you once.”

“Eh?”

“An aspect of the spear wielder.”

With a thunderous sound, countless spears erupted into the air.

An unreal scenery resembling magic unfolded in an instant, then vanished just as quickly.

There was nothing left where the spears had passed, and the previously intact forest was left a wreck of punctured trees and debris.

“Did you understand?”

–

[ Understanding – 15 or higher ]

[ 10 – 3 ]

[ Failure! ]

–

“No. I don’t understand at all.”

–

You have disappointed Nisha, who kindly demonstrated.

You had them use a technique that puts strain on their body twice in one day, and you showed no results. Congratulations. You are a fool destined to be named in history.

–

No matter how I think about it, the status window seems to hate me.

Isn’t that not a system but rather a human typing away?

As time went on, I received my reward from the Adventurer’s Guild.

I submitted some parts of the slain slime in a water container and collected the Adventurer’s cards from the skeletal remains to prove the hunt.

The reward was 10 denarii.

We divided it as 2, 2, 2, and 4.

I argued that Nisha should take it all, but her insistence of “I have enough money anyway.” while distributing it to us made her seem like the very embodiment of a saint.

And so, another sun appeared.

A day has passed.

“It’s about time to depart for Regan. We’ve gathered money and replenished our scrolls.”

“…Yeah.”

The time to leave was drawing near.