Rather than being resurrected with my neck reattached, the fact that I suffered only minor injuries from falling off a horse felt more like a divine blessing.
Come to think of it, having gone through the trouble of reattaching my neck, if I were to die from something like a fall from a horse, even as a god, that would be quite unfair.
Samuel, having checked all the visible wounds, pulled out a rolled-up paper from his chest. As he laid several sheets on the ground and concentrated on his fingertips, suddenly white flames shot up.
"Though this is a cave, a bonfire would likely catch the search party's attention. However, this should be fine."
"Is that fire?"
It looked like fire, but the paper wasn't burning at all. Rather than burning, it seemed to merely serve to contain the flames.
"Condensed divine power contains high-temperature heat, so it should be sufficient to warm your body."
"It's not even a self-sustaining flame, and if it's divine power, wouldn't you need to continuously pour power to maintain it? It seems terribly inefficient."
Despite my grumbling tone, Samuel paid no heed and calmly intensified the flames.
From the fist-sized fireball, I could feel waves of heat. To think he could manifest such warm divine power with a face as cold as ice.
"Even so, enduring the cold night air with an injured body in such poor conditions would be foolish."
"Instead of wasting divine power like this, couldn't you just take me to the village?"
At my question, Samuel fell silent for a moment. Then he calmly replied.
"There are likely still Roam's search parties in the village. Do you wish to encounter them?"
"Ah, so you can't hand me over to Roam. I asked something obvious."
Right. If they show me to Roam now, I might be taken away. They probably plan to quietly capture me once those people leave.
As I indifferently shook my head and was about to lie down on the roughly laid-out cloak on the ground, Samuel suddenly took off his outer garment and laid it on top.
"The cold rising from the ground is biting."
"......Even if you act kindly, I have no intention of cooperating."
"Though your wounds are abnormally minor compared to the accident you suffered, there is no denying you are injured. You deserve appropriate treatment."
"...."
At Samuel's words, my eyes narrowed.
In other words, this kindness was because I was injured.
In his eyes, my injuries probably seemed severe enough to require bed rest for several days. Given my healing speed so far, I would likely recover enough strength to escape by tomorrow morning.
Of course, I had no intention of informing him of that fact.
"Nadav. Come here."
Lacking the energy to argue with Samuel right now, I decided to simply ignore him.
As he said, if I went out now, I might encounter soldiers searching the forest with torches.
"Do you really control monsters?"
Samuel frowned at the sight of Nadav folding his massive body to sit calmly beside me.
"I don't have such ability."
Samuel didn't seem to believe me at all. Whether he believed it or not was none of my concern, but still, I didn't want to be misunderstood as "controlling" monsters if I could help it.
"I simply don't refuse creatures that take a liking to me. Except for humans. Even excluding humans, there are countless lives on this earth that God must love."
I thought he would fume about distorting divine care, but Samuel just stared at me blankly.
Facing him with a sour expression, I turned my gaze away first.
His attitude, which seemed strangely softened compared to when we first met, felt somehow displeasing. Had there been some change of heart in between?
His previous behavior, acting like a religious fanatic, was far easier to deal with.
"How did you find me?"
When I calmly changed the subject, he answered readily.
"Leaving blood trails leading in another direction in that brief moment was a good judgment. Sir Arin led the search party in the opposite direction."
The blood that fell on the ground was from an animal. The blood of a rabbit caught by the Dullahan's horse's hoof.
I threatened to eat it if it didn't run to the opposite side immediately, and the frightened rabbit ran with its wounded body. Since it wasn't a fatal wound, it probably escaped quite far.
I thought it was a decent improvisation, but he noticed that? Wow, the more I know about him, the more I dislike this man.
"I wasn't asking for praise. I asked how you found me."
"I cannot tell you."
"I'm so curious I could die. Even if the first time was coincidence, and the second time was luck, by now it's reasonable to be suspicious, isn't it?"
What exactly is he sensing from me?
"Did you cast a tracking spell on me?"
"I do not use magic."
"Then?"
"The power given to me is only the blessing bestowed by God."
Religious people!
Shuddering at his answer full of piety, I asked again in a sharp tone.
"Are you saying God gave you the ability to track people?"
At my persistent questioning, he finally turned away from me. For someone who always behaved calmly, it was a very distinct reaction, rarely seen.
"Just rest."
Avoiding me like that, I wanted to know out of sheer stubbornness. Frowning, I raised my body that had been leaning against Nadav and approached him.
"Sir Samuel."
The moment I tried to touch his arm, he moved before me. His large hand instantly reached out and wrapped around my neck.
At the same time, Nadav brought his massive sword to Samuel's neck as if he would decapitate him on the spot.
[Take your hands off the Captain!]
"Nadav. Put away the sword."
He held my nape, but didn't apply force. It was closer to lightly cupping my skin along the curved contour.
Meaning there was no intention to strangle. I could feel the somewhat rough texture of his gauntlet stroking down my nape. It was where a scar remained from my head being reattached to my body.
Samuel, who had been staring blankly at my scar, slowly moved his lips.
"It is because you are a resurrected one."
Unlike his stoic expression, his touch was quite careful. Perhaps he was a bit fascinated.
Could he possibly mean he could sense traces of divine power used by God to reattach my neck?
If that's the case, isn't that a bit too much? It means while resurrecting me without my request, they left traces on my body that allow tracking?
At this point, calling it God's curse rather than God's blessing seems like a more accurate expression.
"Even if you flee, I will eventually find you. Wouldn't it be better to just come along?"
Withdrawing his hand, he silently averted his gaze. He pulled out more rolled papers from his chest and slightly increased the size of the fire created by divine power, continuing his words.
"I won't stop you from running away. However, rather than entrusting your protection to such a monster, entrust it to me."
The statement about not stopping me from running was surprising, but the request to entrust protection to him instead of a monster was not surprising.
Because asking to receive the protection of a holy knight was essentially the same as asking to be entrusted to the Temple.
With Samuel by my side, my destination would always be the Temple.
As I snorted, Nadav, who had been watching with his sword lowered, made a ferocious sound.
"Nadav, endure it."
[Captain, I'll cut off that bastard's neck right now.]
"I said endure it."
That man possesses divine power that ranks among the highest in the Temple, and you're a dark-attribute monster. It's different from being attacked by regular soldiers. You could truly be annihilated.
Unable to say that openly, I glared at Nadav instead.
Since he was a Dullahan awakened because of me, he should understand my intentions without me having to say anything, right?
With that thought in mind, I put force into my eyes, and Nadav slumped his shoulders and backed down. He looked like a dog that had been scolded and drooped its tail dejectedly.
I stopped you because I was worried about you, but did you really understand my intention correctly?
I was about to say something more to Nadav, who had clearly misunderstood me quite severely, when Samuel suddenly spoke up.
"The man you kept by your side ran away alone."
"The man I kept by my side?"
Wondering what that meant, I looked at Samuel and only then remembered my companion whom I had forgotten.
Ah, so Zenon must have escaped without being caught by the Temple soldiers. Nessie is with him, and since he's lived as a wanderer for quite a while, I figured he'd find a way out.
"It's a relief that even he managed to look after his safety."
Strictly speaking, the one who ran away alone was me. I was the one who fled, leaving Zenon behind.
Leaving without a proper explanation, how dumbfounded the one left behind must have been.
Samuel frowned at my appearance, calmly worrying about Zenon's safety.
Whatever was so dissatisfying, a trace of anger emerged on his face, which had maintained relative composure.
"Do you always keep only untrustworthy people by your side?"
No, it wasn't anger but rather frustration. Samuel, who showed hesitation right after speaking, said in a suppressed tone.
"The one who shot an arrow at you was Sir Arin."
"Ah."
There was nothing newly disappointing or any sense of betrayal, but I couldn't help the bitter taste in my mouth.
Arin shot an arrow at me, so Roam must have ordered to use any means necessary to find me. It was quite an extreme command for someone claiming to search for their beloved daughter.
I can guarantee the father's command was one thing: secure her alive at all costs, as long as she's breathing.
"They said he was your knight. I've never heard of a knight threatening the lady he served with a bow. Even knowing there was a risk of death from falling off a horse."
Samuel's voice was steeped in unconcealed displeasure and contempt. Even though they walked different paths, being a fellow knight, he seemed to feel shame on Arin's behalf.
Only now did I realize the reason for his strange attitude toward me after our reunion.
"If that's what drew out your sympathy..."
Being so emotional, how truly useless. To sympathize with me of all people.
"Throw it away immediately. I don't need it."