Forsaken Priest of the Hero's Party-Chapter 1: The Lords Apple

-I refuse to live in a place like this.

Yurinel...No, Yurinel Lakponcia was different since childhood.

-I’ll be famous one day and become a noble! A noble greater than the lord of this village.

Her talent, ambition, and skills were so remarkable that I couldn’t even compare.

All the children in the village, even the adults, were in awe of Yurinel. She was very mature for a child, picking up a sword just a few years after she learned how to run.

When I couldn’t even properly wield a wooden sword, Yurinel was able to defeat a grown man with a real one.

-Hear, Hear! A prophecy has been made! And a Hero will rise from this village, chosen by the Three Goddesses.  Who among you is the destined one?

Since Yurinel was an extraordinary person since birth, it was natural that she was the one who would leave the village to become the Hero.

When I met Yurinel again after she returned, she was already shining brightly.

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She had gone on numerous adventures, earned a noble title, and had party members who were much superior to me.

In fact, I knew best that I wouldn’t be able to stay by her side forever.

Perhaps I had already given up since she pulled out the holy sword and became a hero.

Yes, I can’t become as great as you.

She had her life,

And I had my own.

I left the village following Yurinel’s example and became an adventurer trying to make a name for myself.

But now, I would return not as a Hero’s companion, nor as a famous adventurer, but as Kyle, the priest of a nameless God.

“Sir? Do you have any pumpkin seeds? Ah, I might need some potatoes too...”

The profession I chose for myself was none other than a farmer.

*****Many people think that as a Priest, you could simply heal others and receive money for it.

However, it’s illegal to receive money for using your divine powers to heal someone. To be precise, only the priests of the Trinity Church have the right to do so.

Therefore, the Trinity Priests always keep a close eye on such matters, if caught, Illegal healing can result in fines, and in severe cases, imprisonment in the temple’s underground jail.

Healing is exclusively an act of charity, and cannot be a means of making money.

So, if I wanted to make a living, I had to find another way.

Although farming may seem absurd, the reason I chose to make a living through farming was because I knew my Lord would help me.

The Lord never carelessly helps me.

Only when I put in the effort and showed my resolve, He would gently push me back.

If I do nothing, He won’t help me either. However, if I try my best, He will bless my efforts.

That’s why I just need to try and have faith in Him.

Still, they gave me a generous amount when I left.

I don’t know if this was their way of showing their affection to me,

Or if it’s hush money to prevent me from opening my mouth.

Either way, with the money I currently had, I could afford to buy a modest house with a vegetable garden.

“Sir, this is a vegetable garden, not a farm, so the soil may not be as fertile for full-scale farming. Will that be alright?”

“Well, I’ll just have to do my best.”

After all, I’m not cultivating the field for wealth and honor.

What I want is just enough to get by.

Since I bought a new house, should I offer a prayer?

After buying the seeds I needed, I sat at the table and lit a single candle.

Although He doesn’t gain power through my prayers, I still pray to him.

Because I believed that was the duty of a believer.

There was no need to prepare a lavish ritual for prayer. It’s not what He desires.

I don’t need to preach the faith as well.

He does not feed or grow powerful from faith.

There’s no need to recite a fancy mantra.

Simple human words won’t reach Him anyway.

If you light a single candle while thinking of Him, you’re praying, and as long as your faith doesn’t waver, this single will become a Candle of the Sanctuary and will burn forever.

As long as this candle holds, this place will always be a holy place.

My tumultuous heart soon became as still as the candlelight.

Huh?

As I finished my prayer and left the kitchen, I noticed fruit on a tree in the vegetable garden.

That tree was already here when I bought this house, however, there were about nine apples on its branches now. It was a curious thing. I was sure there weren’t any fruits until now, moreover, it’s Winter.

It’s neither the temperature nor the season for apples to bear fruit. However, this too is God’s will.

They haven’t frozen yet.

I picked the fresh apples that seemed to have grown just now and put them in a basket, bringing them inside.

The future diverges in nearly infinite directions, and among them, there are many possibilities that are usually ignored due to their extremely low probability.

For example, the possibility of nine apples growing on a tree in the middle of winter.

The Lord simply brought that small possibility into the confirmed present through His will.

As a human, I cannot understand His intentions for doing so. I can only speculate.

He sees things differently than I do, and His intuition must overwhelm the likes of me.

So I know that no matter how much I rack my brain, I will not be able to follow His will.

I simply move forward in the direction that I think is most correct with my simple mind.

Sweet.

Crunch!

The apple was sweet as honey and simply by eating one, I felt sateted.

It was delicious, but I didn’t want to eat another one right now. So after covering the basket of apples with a cloth to keep them from freezing, I put on my clothes and went outside.

I wager this may be His will for me.

He gave me nine apples, not just one. Even though one would have been enough for me. That means He wishes I share the other eight with someone.

Of course, I could be wrong.

He may have simply wanted to give me nine apples.

Truthfully, there was a good chance I was misinterpreting His will.

However, how could I know what the Lord desires?

As a feeble human, all I could do was put in the effort in the things I wanted to do. Even if I’m misinterpreting his intentions, my actions won’t go against His will.

Who should I share them with?

On the outskirts of this small city, Larpentia, houses are few and far between.

I was thinking of going to the market for now, but just then, the door of the house I was about to pass opened, and a gentleman wearing a coat came out. I quietly approached him and greeted him.

“Hello. My name is Kyle, and I just moved in next door.”

“Name’s Rubert. Mr. Smith said he was selling his house and moving to the countryside, so it seems you bought it.”

“Indeed. Say, you like some fresh apples? While they are common in Autumn, they are quite rare to find in the middle of Winter.”

“A-Apples...? You have fresh apples?”

But the gentleman’s reaction was strange.

Even if apples are rare in winter, is it something to be this surprised about?

I was about to open my mouth and question him, but the gentleman reached out and touched the basket. He took out an apple that was as fresh as if it had just been picked and took a bite.

“It really is an apple... Oh, God of Heaven. Have you heard my son’s prayers?!”

......One thing was certain.

There was one God revered even before the Trinity. And who is still worshiped to this day.

The Heavenly God, Aldehir, was not the one I served. Of course, I didn’t say that out loud.

“S-Sir! I’ll buy those apples. H-How much will it cost? Please just name your price.”

“I cannot accept money for such a trivial thing, my friend. I was going to give them as a gift anyway.”

These apples were not obtained through my efforts.

I didn’t even put in the effort to plant the apple tree.

They were simply bestowed upon me by God. I cannot sell them for money.

That is not something I or He would want.

“Take them. May God’s blessings be upon you.”

“M-May God’s blessings be upon you too kind sir! My son, who has been lying sick in his bed, has been desperately asking for apples these past few days...He wishes to taste a fresh apple...But how could I get him a fresh apple in this bitter cold? As a father...My heart aches at being unable to grant my child his wish.”

Ah. Only then did I realize why God had given me the apples.

After making the cross sign, I asked.

“Has your son fallen ill?”

“Sigh...It was a few months ago. He caught a cold, but unlike the usual colds that would go away in two weeks, this one didn’t go away and only got worse. So, I finally took him to the temple and had him treated using the priest’s Divine Powers, but...”

With the help of a priest who serves the Goddess of Healing, Hillai, the cold was driven away.

However, that was just the beginning. Even after receiving treatment, the child’s condition didn’t improve.

“He often felt dizzy, his face lost color, red spots appeared on his skin and he complained about pain. When he bled, it wouldn’t stop. My child, who was a healthy kid, became visibly ill. We went back to the temple for healing once more, but his complexion would only improve for a moment before returning to how it was the next day...”

“Have you found a way to cure him?”

“Since the disease couldn’t be cured by Divine Power, I called the herbalists to make some decoctions. But only the Heavenly Father knows if it will be effective or not.”

I’m certain now. This was the reason the Lord gave me those apples.

Saving the sick is the duty of a believer. I’m not certain if I can save Mr. Rubert’s child with my power. But trying is better than not doing anything at all.

“Mr. Rubert. Would it be alright if I took a look at your son for a moment?”

“That’s...”

“Although I do not serve the Three Gods, I am also a priest who serves my Lord. I believe there must be a good reason why my Lord has led me here.”

An emerald-like green energy gathered on my hand.

My Lord is always watching over me. I believe that fact without a doubt.

Besides, I have faith not in my own power, but in the Lord’s.

Since the Lord has led me here, I may be able to save the child, but Mr. Rubert looked troubled by my confident attitude.

“Honestly, I don’t believe in you. I don’t think you can save my son when the priests have given up. But at this rate...My child may die anyway.”

He finally decided to let me see his son.

“Right now I’m desperate enough to accept any sort of help. So if you can save him, I’ll be eternally grateful.”