Chapter 43 Death's Door

Chapter 43 Death's Door
At the Temple of Elyon

Many priests and priestesses busied themselves in and around the temple, while a select few carried the sacred objects that would be used at the altar, located at the far end of the mountain. The sacrifice would be held later that night, so they had to ensure there were no faults or even the slightest mistake in the arrangement of the altar that might affect the purpose of the sacrifice.

Especially in a situation like this, where they weren't even sure whether the sacrifice itself was an act of rebellion against their God. Everything they did was based solely on Lord Caius's interpretation of the vision he had received. If it was indeed a misinterpretation, as they feared, then surely the entire kingdom would be doomed.

“Ah!” a middle-aged man exclaimed as he immediately sat down on a large stone in the corner. He panted heavily, sighing from time to time. The mountain was the last place he had wanted to be at that hour. In fact, it had never been his intention to climb such a high mountain, even if it was home to the ancient temple.

“Are you alright, Physician?” one of the wardens who had led him up the mountain asked with concern, stepping closer. The physician's apprentice offered him a pail of water.

“Nobody who has climbed the endless stairs of this mountain could possibly be alright!” the physician retorted before emptying the pail into his mouth. He took a deep breath and relaxed, unwilling to stand any longer, for he could barely feel his feet. But an emergency awaited him, so he forced himself to his feet and continued toward the chamber he had been assigned to.

“Jared!” Griselda rushed over to him and hugged him tightly. “Thank you for coming!”

He nodded, equally pleased to see her.

“Please, show me the patient.”

Griselda led him into the chamber and ordered everyone present to leave immediately. The physician's arrival had raised her hopes beyond measure, and she was optimistic that Evie would recover soon.

The physician walked over to the bed where Evie lay and sat beside her. He observed her weak breathing, then checked her pulse and temperature. He shook his head sadly. Her pulse was so faint that it would have gone unnoticed had it not been examined by a trained physician.

“How did this happen?” he asked with concern.

“It’s... she was brutally flogged across the back with a whip that has sharp edges.

“You mean the Devil’s Belt?” Jared asked, his facial expression immediately filled with anger.

“Y-yes!” she replied in utter sadness. Recalling what had been done to Evie brought tears to her eyes.

“Why was she given such a punishment? This whip is rarely used. What sin did she commit?”

“She lied...” Griselda wiped away her tears with a small towel. She had made up her mind not to cry, and she was determined to keep her resolve. “She lied to a fellow priestess, and because of that lie, the beast meant for the sacrifice was killed.”

Jared sighed.

He gestured to his apprentice, who had accompanied him to the temple. Together, they gently turned the patient onto her side, and he peeled back part of the bandage wrapped around her severely wounded back. Blood slowly oozed from the wound, soaking through the bandage. Jared looked on with pity as it mingled with the pus, forming a foul-smelling discharge. He picked up a clean cloth and carefully wiped the pus away. The wound had been poorly treated by an amateur, leaving the poor girl with a severe infection.

Once again, he shook his head sadly and sighed. Punishments involving such terrible whippings truly ought to be forbidden, especially when the victim was expected to survive afterward. But he was neither a priest nor a member of the royal family, so who was he to voice such opinions?

He gently laid her back on the bed and carefully opened her pale eyelids to examine her pupils. The girl was completely unconscious, and if she was not treated properly and immediately, she could die within a few hours. In fact, her chances of survival were very slim.

“Wh-what is the matter, Jared? She will survive this ordeal, won't she?” Griselda asked hopefully, but the grave expression on his face made her heart race even faster. She dreaded what his answer might be.

“She is at death's door, Griselda. She might not live until this time tomorrow,” he replied.

Griselda stared blankly at the physician for a moment, trying to process what he had just said. She looked over at Evie, who lay completely still on the bed. The poor girl had gone from suffering a high fever the previous day to lying motionless and cold. Yet she had believed that the physician would surely be able to save her, for he was renowned throughout the kingdom for his remarkable skill.

“You must save her, Jared. She's too young to die!”

She pleaded firmly, refusing to let her emotions weaken her resolve. But the pain in her heart overwhelmed her, and she broke down in tears, falling to the floor and clutching the physician's hands.

“She must not die, Jared... You must do everything possible. I cannot bear to lose her! I am begging you... This is the only thing I have ever asked of you. Please... do it for me, Jared.”

Jared listened quietly to her desperate pleas, her tears touching his heart. When the wardens had first informed him that a priestess urgently needed medical attention, he had declined, for he already had many patients under his care who required immediate treatment. He could not sacrifice so many lives for the sake of one. But the moment he learned that Griselda herself had sent the wardens to fetch him, he had no choice but to reconsider.

This woman, now weeping at his feet, was very dear to him, and he would do everything within his power to fulfill the only request she had ever made of him.

“Wipe away your tears, Griselda,” he said, helping her to her feet and gently wiping the tears from her face. “Don't lose faith. As long as there is even the slightest sign of life, there is still hope.”

“I just don't want her to die, Jared,” she wailed.

“I will do everything within my power to ensure that she lives,” he assured her. “But for now, I need you to give me some privacy.”

“I want to stay... please.”

“Listen to me, Griselda. You must leave now. I can't work on her while you're here.”

Griselda hesitated, reluctant to leave because she wanted to make sure nothing went wrong. But the reassuring look on Jared's face gave her hope. After all, there was nothing she could do at that moment except remain strong for Evie and wipe away her tears. Evie would not have wanted to see her cry.

Jared gazed at Griselda's retreating figure as she walked toward the door. He had seen the sadness in her eyes, as though it were her own child who had been severely whipped and was now at death's door.