The Wrong Hero

Chapter 29 - Enlightenment

Even dead, Idol Rabier seems hell-bent on pissing me off.

Though if Dante were being honest, he knew he had no real excuse. He knew that whip was cursed. It was entirely possible it would inflict him with some sort of curse too. Reichnott's doctor checked him out and found nothing, and Dante didn't think to mention the whip to him.

He had to assure the two clergy members that he wasn't upset with them. Since he was in the presence of people with some experience with curses, though...

"This is what cursed me." Dante said as he dropped the whip from his shield on the table. "From what I understand, it's pretty potent."

Looking at it again, it was a much more dangerous weapon than he realized. He hadn't brought it out since he tested its power with Sadeena, considering how Rifana and Raphtalia reacted to it. The stats were pretty good, but the special effects were so much better. He couldn't see them all when his appraisal was lower, but now it made sense why the whip was so strong.

"My word..." The healer seemed to agree, at least about the curse. She picked up the whip to examine it more closely. "When were you cursed by this?"

"Over a month ago." Dante said.

"A month!?" The healer yelled, snapping her head towards Dante. "Lord Shield, you've had this curse for over a month!?"

"Y-Yes..." He didn't think it was that big of a deal, mostly because he felt fine. Hell, he felt better than before he lost his arm. That might have actually been a cause for concern, but he was content with his peaceful sleep.

"Lord Shield, do you know the damage a curse can cause if it's allowed to fester? Reduced healing is only the start of the problems it can cause!"

The healer launched into a whole lecture about the dangers of curses, and how they need to be treated immediately. Apparently, curses fester in about a week, some as early as a couple days. It went on for a few minutes, all while Dante, Eclair, and the priest stood by and listened. Once she was finished, she seemed to realize she was berating her country's god and started apologizing profusely. Dante refused her apology, saying that this was something he needed to know and he thanked her for her explanation. It wasn't something he was going to easily forget.

After storing the whip back in his shield, the healer wrapped Dante's shoulder in bandages soaked in holy water and cast a Drifa level holy spell over the area. She explained that the spell would remove the bulk of the curse while the bandages would basically siphon out the rest over time. In a few days, he should be curse free, in a sense, but the damage was already done. Dante thought back to Fitoria and asked if there was anything that could be done about the lingering effects.

"Unfortunately, there is no known way to reverse a festered curse like this."

Unfortunate, indeed. It was a longshot, but he hoped this healer would tell him something other than what Fitoria said. It wasn't for his benefit, Dante could still see an alchemist for his arm. He hoped that the restoration of Fitoria's sight might change her mind about wanting to die. He knew she was far older than him, but seeing someone so young looking accept death like that didn't sit right with him.

Finished with their healing, the priest helped Dante back into his armor and he and Eclair met back up with the others. The guide showed them from the church to the castle. Along the way, Dante got a better feel for Siltvelt's layout. More accurately, how areas were so different from each other. Eclair had explained how the different tribes used different architecture, but seeing it all was something else. He saw a lot more of it going to the castle than on the ride to the church.

Eventually, they arrived at said castle. It wasn't just the castle that was a bit bigger than Melromarc's, but its doors and bridges too. There were a number of other differences, but they seemed to be mostly stylistic.