The Villain's Sickly Wife Dislikes Being Overprotected - Chapter 3.16

“What do they sell there?”

“Ah, that’s also a popular place for visitors. They sell items related to divine power.”

“Oh?”

Items related to divine power, isn’t that something you can only get in Pierce? It piqued my interest.

“You might be able to find good souvenirs there too.”

I headed to that store without hesitation.

“Welcome.”

Along with the jingle of the bell on the door, the shop owner greeted us.

The interior of the store was quite different from the souvenir shop we had just visited. While the previous store was bright with various items displayed colorfully, this place had a solemn and even dignified atmosphere.

Like library shelves, large dark wooden display cases were evenly arranged, with various items displayed at regular intervals.

However, except for the display cases along the walls, the rest were not too tall, so the face of the owner behind the counter was clearly visible.

We were the only customers in the store, and I started examining the items one by one. Perhaps due to the solemn atmosphere, I found myself treading carefully without realizing it.

The displayed items were not things I could predict the use of just by looking. Fortunately, each item had a brief description of its use written in front of it.

I was standing in front of an ointment said to help wounds heal quickly when I turned my head at Allis’s voice.

“To be honest, I haven’t been to this store much either. It’s quite expensive.”

Allis said in a hushed voice.

She was looking around curiously, probably because she hadn’t been to this store before.

“Wow, how about this?”

She pointed to one item first. It was a crystal ball about the size that could be held in one hand, with a round empty space in the center, filled with swirling water.

“That’s a crystal ball filled with Pierce’s spring water using divine power. It’s known to be especially good for health due to the properties of the spring water.”

The owner explained from behind the counter, having noticed our interest. The store was quiet, so we could hear the owner’s low voice clearly even from a distance.

“Oh my, if it’s good for health, it’s perfect for you, my lady!”

Allis was excited as if she had found a treasure.

“Should I buy this then?”

“If you hold it in your hand often, it will help with overall energy recovery.”

The owner added another explanation. That explanation convinced me.

“I’ll buy this.”

I decided to purchase the spring water crystal ball.

“Let’s look at other things too.”

Allis and I walked between the display cases, examining the items one by one.

It took a long time as we read the descriptions of each item’s use while browsing.

After a long time of looking around, the items I finally brought to the counter were the spring water crystal ball, a wish stone said to grant wishes, and a protective charm said to work in emergencies.

“Will you be purchasing all of these?”

“Yes.”

A “Wow” of admiration was heard from beside me. It was Allis.

“You’re buying all these expensive items at once! Wow, that’s amazing!”

I smiled faintly and then paid for all the items I had chosen.

“Although the divine power detected in Pierce has weakened recently, these items were made by master craftsmen using the highest purity of divine power collected before that. You don’t need to worry about the effectiveness of these items just because the divine power has weakened recently.”

“Ah, I see.”

“Also, a few days ago, someone moved the ‘Priest’s Stone.’ This shows that there are still people born with divine power and that divine power is still strong.”

The shop owner offered an explanation without being asked.

Is being talkative a characteristic of Pierce people?

Anyway, I couldn’t help but pay attention to the story about the Priest’s Stone or whatever, as it was related to me.

“Oh, that’s right! We saw the ‘Priest’s Stone’ glowing too!”

Allis was the first to respond to the shop owner’s words.

“Is that so? I see everyone knows about it. But it seems they still haven’t identified the person who moved it. It wasn’t easy to search because of the recent heavy snowfall.”

My expression keeps becoming awkward. Since it was about me, I felt uneasy, like a thief with a guilty conscience.

“Do you think they’ll find out soon?”

“Well, who knows? But these days, the priests don’t like new recruits joining. Unless it’s a recruit coming with a bag of money, that is.”

“Is that so?”

That was welcome news to hear.

“They’re wary of new recruits with stronger divine power than themselves. They want to share the power and wealth among themselves, and they’re afraid a new recruit with strong divine power might take it away. The current priests probably don’t even care about the ‘Priest’s Stone.'”

I never thought the corruption of the temple would reassure me this much.

“Then they might not look for the person who moved it?”

“Who knows, really.”

The shop owner just shrugged his shoulders.

He handed over the purchased items after wrapping them. Allis took them on my behalf.

As we left the shop, she chattered again.

“But really, didn’t you see the person who moved the Priest’s Stone? You were the first witness to see the stone move, weren’t you?”

“Uh… I didn’t see anyone.”

I answered awkwardly. Fortunately, Allis was somewhat oblivious. Her conversation quickly changed to a different topic.

“By the way, I can’t believe today is the last day, sob. Even after you return to the capital, I’ll write you letters!”

“I would be very grateful and happy if you do that.”

“Hehe.”

***

The day that was only filled with regret came to an end.

I returned to the hotel around the evening.

For several days, I had rarely encountered Kyron’s face.

While I was busy going to hot springs and touring the village, he didn’t show his face even once. I guess he was minding his own business. I didn’t really pay much attention to it.

Knock knock.

I knocked on Kyron’s door. Since the isolation had ended and we no longer needed to conserve firewood, I was naturally using a different room from him again.

“Come in.”

His voice was heard from inside. I was relieved that I hadn’t knocked on an empty room.

I gently opened the door and peeked my head in.

“It’s me. May I come in?”

He, who had been sitting at the desk looking at documents, only then raised his head and met my eyes. His face showed that he hadn’t expected the knock to be from me.

“What’s the matter?”

I opened the door wider and entered. I was still holding the things I had bought at the store earlier.

Kyron’s gaze naturally turned to them.

“What are all those?”

“Souvenirs.”

“Ah.”

Seemingly uninterested in such things as souvenirs, he didn’t show any more interest.

“Did you come because you have something to say?”

I shook my head.

“Give me your hand.”

“Huh?”

I walked around the desk and approached him.