I Just Wanted to Avoid Death - Chapter 3
If I’m going to die anyway, I just wanted it to end quickly. I’d rather enjoy the tranquility during the 10 minutes that occur when the cycles repeat.
‘It just occurred to me. Should I try to run away next time? It feels like something might work if I bolt as soon as the saintess runs.’
Or maybe it’s not so bad to experiment to see if really dying 100 times would let me escape from here.
Yeshion stretched his neck, accepting his death.
Soon after, a sword was aimed at his neck.
Yeshion closed his eyes. He did hope for a quick death, but it seems letting them do as they pleased wasn’t the right answer after all.
‘But even if I try to escape, can I really get out of this place? Or should I try catching the fleeing saintess to prevent her from calling Eldis?’
If I’m going to die anyway, I might as well try something.
Yeshion pondered what to attempt next.
After several repetitions in any direction, perhaps he could escape this cycle of death. At least before he went mad.
While Yeshion vaguely entertained these thoughts, a voice laden with unmasked emotion dropped from above.
“…Now, what is this?”
What? This line is something I’ve never heard before.
As he raised his head, Eldis was looking down at him with a puzzled face.
‘How many times have I died?’
It was the expression Eldis made when Yeshion had apologized. At that time, his expression had been quickly concealed, as if it were a mistake, but now Eldis looked genuinely surprised.
‘You’re going to kill me anyway.’
However, Yeshion didn’t hold any expectations. After all, there had been several times when Eldis had suddenly changed his demeanor and unexpectedly struck his neck.
Yeshion blinked his large eyes and, tilting his head, asked.
“Aren’t you going to kill me?”
At that question, Eldis’s face contorted further.
“Could it be… that you staged this to be killed?”
…Hmm. That’s not it.
Yeshion rolled his eyes and gave no answer. How could he, who had possessed the body, know what the real ‘Yeshion’ before him had done?
Did Eldis take his silence as an affirmation? He sheathed the sword he had drawn…
“U-uh, huh?”
Wait, he sheathed his sword?
Yeshion’s eyes widened.
Then, a deep disgust appeared in Eldis’s eyes.
“It seems I was planning to make you commit another sin by killing you.”
“No, that’s not…”
“I will no longer be played by your schemes, Priest Yeshion.”
Yeshion closed his mouth.
‘He has no intention of listening to me.’
Yeshion looked at Eldis with half-dead eyes. The still angry man stated firmly,
“The sin of insulting the saintess is grave. Therefore―.”
Eldis reached out and grabbed Yeshion by the collar. His face was strained as if he wanted to kill him on the spot but was forcibly holding back.
“For the next six months, you are to clean the underground dungeon and take care of the sick.”
“……”
“If I hear even once that you are misbehaving, then a harsher punishment will be administered.”
Eldis said, lifting the corners of his mouth.
Eldis thought that even for the crime of daring to insult the saintess, Yeshion would immediately rebel even against this absurdly light punishment.
That’s the kind of person Yeshion had been in Eldis’s experience.
Selfish, and only thinking of himself.
‘I… I, really won’t die?’
But the current Yeshion was not the real ‘Yeshion’ he knew.
Yeshion forcefully suppressed his uplifted spirits.
If he acted out, questioning if he really wouldn’t be killed here and only needed to endure the punishment, who knew if that madman’s mind might change.
Yeshion, struggling to calm himself, dropped his gaze.
“If that appeases the saintess’s anger and allows me to atone even a little, I will do so.”
“…Excuse me?”
“Otherwise, I will leave this place and live out of sight of the saintess forever.”
Yeshion said this as he pointed towards the temple door.
He refrained from rejoicing at escaping the repeated deaths. No matter how he thought about it, staying here in Yeshion’s body meant only death lurked around him.
If so, it was better to distance himself from the characters of the novel as soon as possible. If they looked at him with such fiery eyes, wouldn’t they accept his offer to leave the temple?
As Yeshion’s eyes sparkled, Eldis exhaled a hollow breath and said,
“Nonsense.”
Eldis came close, leaned in, and whispered in Yeshion’s ear,
“I won’t know what you’re going to do once you leave the temple, out of my sight. Do you think I’d let you do as you please?”
“……”
Eldis reached out and lightly stroked Yeshion’s neck, his regret at not being able to strike it clearly showing.
“You must pay the price for dragging me into the temple.”
“……”
“And whatever your scheme may be… I will never act as you wish.”
