Chapter 130: The Cursed One (2)

Instantaneous gravity. If the body's weight suddenly increases about 50 times, the limbs are bound to be shattered.

Even if one has an immortal life, in a situation where they cannot move at all, they can do nothing.

I sat on the back of the man sprawled on the floor, who looked like a frog crushed under a wheel, and said,

"If you really wanted to lift that curse, you should have used the method I suggested from the beginning."

"Ugh... Method? What method are you talking about?"

Look at this guy. Did he really forget?

No matter how much his life was full of the resentment of all the gods, did he really forget the only way to solve that problem? Really?

I had explained everything from the beginning, but he forgot it? Really?? Truly???

Ugh. The people of Arcad who lost their country because of this kind of guy are pitiful.

Well, it was I who cast that curse.

But from now on, I will never use such a curse again.

Only the perpetrator will be crushed. No harm to others. The lesson I learned after a country fell and many people suffered is this... The price is too high.

But I'm not a perfectly omniscient, so I can't help it.

I let out a small sigh and pressed down even harder on the man lying on the ground.

"Sister, was he the one you... cursed?"

The hero finally seemed to realize something.

"Is this the one? The one who tried to make a move on me the day I drew my sword!?"

A move. Hmm. It was a move, indeed.

"So you recognized him too."

"Of course. The memory of that day is still vivid, even after dozens of years."

It must have been a day that completely changed the hero's life, so it's natural that he remembers it.

"Was that despicable man still alive?

"Since the curse I cast was an immortality curse, he couldn't die."

Other than that, he must have gone through all kinds of suffering.

"Immortality... Is that the curse?"

"I also cursed the land of Arcad, but that's another story."

"Arcad? The country that existed before Arcadia was built?"

"Yes. This fellow, as the prince of Arcad, wielded his power and despised the Goddess of Life and the Temple of Life, so as a punishment, I cursed the land so that no life would be born."

At my words, the hero thought for a moment, then shook his head and said,

"I can see why a country that was said to boast considerable size and power fell so quickly. But cursing the country itself seems a bit too much, doesn't it?"

"But how could I just let the one who defiled the Goddess of Life in the Temple of Life go? I do think I went a bit overboard, though."

"The previous king of Arcadia would have been horrified."

Ah, the king of Arcadia had passed the throne to his eldest son and was now living quietly on the land of Arcadia.

"But it's the truth. Even though Uncle was being chased by others, he helped me."

Chased by others?

Ah, I see. Since he was also targeted by other gods, he must have been treated like a calamitous god, bringing disaster wherever he went.

If storms, downpours, wildfires, and earthquakes followed wherever that fool went, the humans would have tried to drive him out, eyes ablaze.

He could have fought the humans using his immortality as a weapon, but that would have only made the situation worse, not better.

So.

"That's a story from decades ago. On a cold, snowy day in winter."

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

In the bleak winter when even the farmers' crops failed and the hunters and fishermen had no luck.

I was quite ill at that time.

My father, the village chief who ruled a fairly large town, was worried about me.

I was sickly to begin with, but this year my ailments were even worse--

"Wait, that's enough."

"Huh?"

"I don't want to hear the whole story. Just give me the key points briefly."

Well, it would just be about how difficult it was, how that fool saved him, how he was able to live because of it, and how much suffering followed after. Same old story.

Dragging out things I'm not curious about isn't good. Short and concise.

"But... there's a story about how I met and parted with Uncle, and our touching reunion..."

"I don't want to hear all the details. Summarize the key points briefly."

The middle-aged woman pondered for a while, carefully choosing her words, and then spoke.

"Uncle saved me when I was abandoned by my family. In a situation where there wasn't much food, he couldn't afford to feed a sickly child like me who couldn't work properly."

I see. When resources were scarce, they cast out the child they deemed useless. How cruel.

It seems that she was born in a rather harsh place, where food was not abundant. In such regions, circumstances like that are not uncommon.

"It was uncle who took me in at that time. He cared for me as I was dying in the cold forest."

Cared for? That fool? Was he not mistaken about the person?

"When my uncle placed his hand on my head, my health gradually recovered. I didn't know what method he used back then, but now I know. My uncle had shared his life force with me."

Life force... Hmm... The one cursed for desecrating the Goddess of Life is wielding life force.

What a curious irony.

"After I recovered, my uncle tried to send me back home. But I didn't want to return to that house. That's how I clung to my uncle, asking to travel with him."

The middle-aged woman paused to catch her breath, then continued.

"My uncle said no. He said he was cursed by the gods, and their punishment was raining down on him. He couldn't travel with me, as I would be put in danger as well."

The woman's eyes held affection for that foolish man as she spoke.