Volume 9, Chapter 27 – Miracle of Reversal

The academy Lin spoke of was not, as Yisi had imagined, a place similar to a noble academy. Instead, it was a towering structure that looked for all the world like a spire. Nearly fifty meters tall and circular in shape, from a distance, it resembled a spear thrusting straight into the sky.

Bricks covered in moss, mud, and other marks of time gave the entire spire a grayish-black appearance. Just looking at it made one feel cold. Coupled with the design featuring very few windows, if the lighting inside used candles instead of magic lamps, it would surely be a suitable place for a test of courage.

Yisi couldn’t help but confirm with Lin.

“This is the academy?”

“Surprised?”

Lin answered with a question, but Yisi wasn’t annoyed by it.

“I thought the academy you mentioned was quite far from us. I didn’t expect it to be right here…”

What Yisi didn’t say was that no matter how she looked at it, this wasn’t a suitable place for learning. Since it was called an academy, it should have an open-air garden courtyard and several separate buildings with different functions. If the floors were made of red brick and gray tile, complete with a bell tower and a fountain, then it would undoubtedly be a true magic academy. The current spire, no matter how one looked at it, seemed like a place for imprisoning criminals or providing indoor training facilities for soldiers.

“This place was originally used by the Duchy of Chloe to imprison noble criminals, but we requisitioned it. Out of consideration for appearances, we couldn’t place the academy for cultivating Heroes in the commoner district, and there wasn’t a large enough space in the noble district. Not only are the walls of this spire sturdy enough, but the outside is a spacious training ground, and the underground connects to the shaft network. Although it’s not pretty, it lacks none of the other functions. Most importantly, as long as you don’t go inside, people outside will never know what’s happening within.”

Although her words highlighted its advantages, Lin’s expression wasn’t exactly proud. She herself knew that these words paled in comparison to the reality. When she had studied here in the past, she hadn’t felt anything wrong with it. But after graduating and going out on missions, seeing the world, she realized that this spire had all sorts of inconveniences.

For example, whenever it rained, the inside of the spire became exceptionally damp, only gradually improving a week after the rain stopped. Additionally, there were large numbers of rats and cockroaches. It was common to lift the covers and find several small cockroaches nesting on the bedsheets. Of course, that wasn’t the worst part. The worst was the lack of personal space. The rooms inside the spire were limited, often with dozens of people crammed into one room. Towels and cups were shared, even between genders. Looking back now, Lin found it simply unacceptable.

Fortunately, as the most promising Hero, Lin had been assigned a separate room upon entering the spire. Although it was very small, it was still better than living with many others.

“I see.”

Nodding lightly, Yisi followed Lin to the spire’s entrance—an iron gate only wide enough for three people abreast. After confirming their identities with the guard, they stepped inside.

Just as imagined, the interior of the spire was dim and oppressive. The air was not only damp but also carried a faint, musty smell. What greeted her eyes was a spiral staircase, no more than two meters wide or high, winding upwards. It was built around a huge stone pillar in the center of the spire. Yisi could faintly sense magical energy from within the pillar; it was hollow inside.

Just as Yisi was about to ask about the reason for this design, a Divine Religion member guarding the stairs walked up to Lin, stood straight, and bowed his head respectfully.

“Lady Hero.”

The curt voice carried an intangible pressure, like facing someone who never smiled. It felt as though one could only discuss official business in front of soldiers.

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Lin returned the nod.

“Nothing special today. I’m just here to visit and offer some guidance.”

“Yes,” the soldier bowed respectfully again. “While you were away, another group went out.”

Unperturbed by the soldier’s words, Lin asked calmly, “It’s already the end of the month; they should be back. How many?”

“Seventy percent.”

“Huh, still quite a few. Where are they?”

“They only returned two days ago. They should be in the mid-level rest area now.” At this point, the soldier’s usually business-like tone suddenly softened, as if troubled by something. “It’s just… just that a few of them need you… Shall I take you there?”

Hearing the end of his sentence, Lin, whose expression had just relaxed, immediately radiated an indescribable aura—a mixture of unwillingness, sadness, and regret. Her lips pressed tightly together, and her voice dropped considerably.

“No need. I’ll go myself.”

“Very well.”

Saying no more, Lin silently led Yisi up the stairs. However, compared to before, her steps were now exceptionally heavy, reminiscent of a condemned prisoner walking to the execution ground.

What happened?

Although she wanted to ask, doing so would show a complete lack of tact. Lin probably didn’t want to talk about the story behind this. Not because she couldn’t, but because it would touch a raw nerve.

Following Lin, just as Yisi emerged from the seemingly endless spiral staircase, her vision was filled by an exceptionally wide, circular training area. Around this training ground were many rooms separated by doors. Currently, a man with a very anxious expression was pacing back and forth on the training ground. Beside him stood a group of elderly men and women holding divine staves, with pouches tied at their waists. These elders all wore expressions of worry mixed with helplessness.

“Can’t you think of something else? Can’t you keep them going a little longer? Just half a day more is all I ask!”

“We’ve done our best. Healing magic, herbs… we’ve tried everything we could. They’ve already fought hard enough to last until now.”

“Aren’t you priests?! Didn’t you say you can save anyone, no matter who they are?!”

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“…Healing magic has its limits. These people have not only lost too much blood but are also possessed by demons. Even if His Holiness the Pope were here, he could do nothing.”

An old woman holding a blue divine staff added with a look of pity, “Let them go peacefully. It’s better to return to the Goddess’s side soon than to suffer in agony.”

“Damn it.”

A low curse.

In his fury, the man grabbed a nearby weapon rack, intending to slam it to the ground. But just as the rack tilted to a dangerous angle, about to hit the floor, Lin stepped forward and gripped his arm.

“Calm down. Take me to them.”

“It’s Lin… Lady Hero! You’re finally here! I’ll take you to them right away! They’ve been waiting for you for a long time!”

Seeing Lin arrive, the man who had been frantic just moments ago immediately beamed with joy. He didn’t even notice Yisi behind Lin. Without a glance at the elderly priests, he led Lin straight to a room at the edge of the training ground.

The acrid smell of blood.

And the stench of rotting flesh.

This was Yisi’s first impression of the room. Inside the space, less than ten square meters, lay six injured individuals lined up. More than half of them had lost consciousness, lying wide-eyed on the floor mats, their breathing extremely faint. Yisi wouldn’t have been surprised if they were to breathe their last in the next second. The cause of all this was the exceptionally severe wounds covering their bodies—burns, cuts, animal bite marks, bruises from blunt trauma. Most had lost limbs and were suffering from high fevers. The reason Yisi could smell rotting flesh was that one person’s leg was festering and stinking, with even traces of some kind of insect squirming on it.

An iron bucket by the door was filled with a large pile of blackened bandages. The thick smell of blood attracted swarms of flies. If someone who had never seen blood before came here, they would surely think they were having a nightmare. It wouldn’t be surprising if they vomited on the spot. This scene would become a shadow haunting them for the rest of their lives.

Pausing for a moment at the gruesome sight, Lin silently took out her silver scythe from her storage magic.

“How long have they been unconscious?”

“Two days, Lady Hero. The only reason they’ve held on this long was to wait for you. Please, transform them as you did before. It’s their wish.”

“Six of them…”

The hand gripping the scythe turned pale, and Lin’s shoulders trembled slightly. After a moment, as if having made an irreversible decision, Lin said no more. She raised the silver scythe high with both hands, aiming at the six lying figures, and began chanting a spell in a low voice. When a thick aura of death enveloped the entire scythe, she closed her eyes and swung the weapon down towards the six.

“The Divine Religion will not forget your contributions. Your names will be carved in the preface of the Gospel. Sinners—”

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“Wait.”

Confirming that Lin intended to end the lives of these six people, Yisi, standing nearby, quickly stopped her, halting the scythe that was about to reap their lives.

Yisi had initially thought the man waited for Lin because only she had the ability to save these six heavily injured individuals. But upon seeing the dense deathly aura on Lin’s scythe, Yisi realized she had been completely mistaken. Lin intended to turn these six into undead, not save them.

“Yisi!”

Due to Yisi’s intervention, a hint of anger entered Lin’s tone. Additionally, the man who had led Lin here noticed Yisi and stepped behind her, reaching impolitely for the back of her neck.

“Tsk.” Dodging the man’s grab, Yisi stepped between Lin and the six injured people. “Lin, are you trying to kill them?”

“At this point, is there any other choice? Step aside. Becoming undead is their dying wish.”

“But they’re not dead yet. They still have a breath left.”

“It’ll be too late once they’re completely dead!”

Her voice growing increasingly anxious, Lin pushed Yisi. But the force feedback from her hand was abnormally heavy, as if she were facing not a young girl, but a mountain. No matter how hard Lin pushed, Yisi showed no sign of budging.

“I have a way to save them.”

“A way? If you’re talking about expensive magic potions like high-grade recovery potions and panaceas, then please step aside. Our Divine Religion doesn’t have such things.”

“No, I mean magic. Lin, have you forgotten—damn it.”

As the man beside her reached for her again, Yisi frowned, released Lin’s wrist, and kicked him away.

The man’s body made intimate contact with the wall, emitting a dull thud.

“Lin, have you forgotten who I am?”

“Even if you are a Cardinal, you can’t do anything about such fatal wounds. Even if the Pope came—”

Unless I show her, she won’t believe me.

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Yisi sighed.

“How will we know the result without trying? If even I can’t save them, it won’t be too late for you to turn them into undead according to their wishes then. How about it?”

Glancing at the man Yisi had kicked against the wall, who was slowly getting up, Lin hesitated. It wasn’t that she didn’t want to save these injured people, but that she lacked the ability. Therefore, she could only choose to fulfill the final wish of these young men and women: to become undead and continue contributing to the Divine Religion. However, that was only if there was no other way. If there was even a sliver of hope to save them, Lin would absolutely not want them to become mindless dead things.

“…They don’t have much time left.”

“I know. Give me three minutes. You two wait outside first. The undead aura on you will interfere with me. It would be bad if it got into their bodies during the healing process.”

“Three minutes… Alright. I trust you.”

“Okay.”

Nodding, Yisi pushed Lin and the man out of the room and shut the door with a click.

Three minutes was just a number she’d made up. In reality, one minute was enough. Although the injuries of these young men and women were severe, the missing limbs weren’t too extensive. Healing magic wouldn’t have much difficulty restoring them. As for the claim that the undead aura would interfere, that was also a fabricated excuse. She just didn’t want Lin to see her using magic. Casually revealing her strength to others wasn’t her style. Defeating someone could be explained away with various excuses, such as blaming it on magic weapons or the opponent being weak. But healing someone left no room for excuses.

Furthermore, restoring people from a near-death state in just one minute would be sensational no matter how it was explained. If the Divine Religion saw how easily she used healing magic, they might come looking for her every day in the future, creating unnecessary trouble.

Glancing at the unconscious young men and women with faint breaths, Yisi helplessly took out a short staff from her storage. This was the scepter symbolizing a Cardinal’s authority; apart from looking nice, it had no function, offering zero magical amplification. The only reason she took it out was purely as a cover. Although Lin and the man weren’t in the room, it didn’t mean she could use magic carelessly. If her healing magic instantly restored these injured people, and they happened to see her using high-tier healing magic empty-handed, she believed the news would quickly spread throughout the entire Divine Religion.

“…In my world, people your age should still be in school. This other world is too unreasonable.”

Searching her mind for a suitable spell, Yisi suddenly whipped her head around, looking towards the crack in the door—no one was peeking. She then relaxed.

“Making you all jump around lively right away would cause me trouble. Let’s just restore you to a state where you need a good period of convalescence. You all need rest too.”

Raising the scepter with one hand, a golden light emitted from its tip instantly enveloped the entire room. Misty golden streams of light, taking the form of life force, flowed like tangible entities into the bodies of the six injured individuals. Then, as if time were reversing, severed flesh grew back rapidly, rotting flesh quickly withered and fell off, and everyone’s breathing gradually stabilized.

Those affected by this spell would absolutely not die from slow-acting injuries and would gradually recover seventy percent of their health in a short time. This was the spell Yisi chose.

『 Miracle of Reversal 』