Chapter 100: As Expected, My Brainwashing Skill is Wrong
Thanks to the wisdom of Prince Lucas and Lily, I managed to come up with a plan to somehow save Rosalie. However, preparations and groundwork would take some time. It would be pointless if Rosalie reached her limit in the meantime.
First, to ease Rosalie’s burden even a little, I used my «Ninja» Skill to dash through the Royal Capital, lit by the half-moon, towards the Grand Cathedral.
When I arrived in front of the Grand Cathedral, as expected, there were no people gathered at the door like there were in the morning. Although it was gradually approaching summer from spring, the nights in the Royal Capital were still bone-chillingly cold. They must have either returned home or been invited inside the Grand Cathedral.
Hiding in the shadows, I switched my Skill from «Ninja» to «Clairvoyance». When I searched for Rosalie’s location, it seemed she had returned to her room in the spire. Perhaps because it was already late, Cicely-san was not in the room.
Rosalie was kneeling in front of a small Goddess Statue in the room, offering a prayer. …It would be great if her faith could somehow fix her Skill.
Just in case, I searched for Cardinal Malicious, but it seemed he was away from the Grand Cathedral. It was convenient that I didn’t have to worry about interference.
I switched back to the «Ninja» Skill and climbed the wall from the outside, aiming for the spire. There were several protrusions that must have been used during construction, so with the «Ninja» Skill, climbing was easy.
…Even so, the height to Rosalie’s room was a little over 70 meters. Thanks to starting the climb with momentum, when I looked down, the ground felt quite far away. If I fell from this height, even with the «Ninja» Skill, I wouldn’t escape unscathed… Also, the wind is strong and it’s really cold.
While enduring the trembling in my legs for two reasons, I somehow continued to climb towards the spire. After about five minutes, I finally reached the window of Rosalie’s room.
Peeking into the room from the window, Rosalie was still praying. It was hard to interrupt her, but I knocked on the window a few times to let her know I was there.
“Eh… H-Hugh-sama!?”
Rosalie’s eyes widened in surprise, and she rushed to the window in a panic.
“W-What are you doing in such a place!?”
“Ah, well, I wanted to talk to Rosalie a bit. I’d appreciate it if you could let me in, but if you don’t want to, it’s fine as is.”
“No! Please, come inside!”
Rosalie opened the window and invited me inside. I almost fell because the window opened outward, though…
“How did you get all the way up here…? –Ah! Could it be that Hugh-sama is a messenger of God!? Has my prayer finally reached you!?”
“Huh? Uhm…”
Rosalie had started some incredibly grand misunderstanding, but… what should I do? It feels like it would be more convenient to let her continue misunderstanding.
The «Ninja» Skill also includes «Acting», so it would be easy to deceive her. If I just close my eyes to my conscience…
“Y-Yes. I have come to see you, taking the form of a boy named Hugh Pnosis.”
“Oh my, as I thought!”
Rosalie’s expression brightened, and she knelt before me.
“W-What are you doing!?”
“Messenger of God, please grant me the power to save the people!”
Rosalie pleaded while praying to me.
“Many people suffering from illness come to me seeking healing…! But I don’t have the power to save them… Today, many people died before my eyes… and I couldn’t do anything…!”
“Rosalie…”
“I beg you, Messenger of God! Please… grant me the power to save them!”
A strong desire to save people suffering from illness. The frustration and regret of not being able to save those people. What she had been holding onto all this time overflowed as tears from her tightly closed eyes.
I want to answer her feelings, but…
“Holy Maiden Rosalie. No matter how much you wish for it, God does not create exceptions. A person’s Skill is only one.”
“N-No… But my grandfather said that if you believe in God, you will eventually be granted a Skill to save people!”
“Are the words of that grandfather of yours more believable than the words of me, a messenger of God?”
“T-That is…”
Rosalie was flustered and clutched the neckline of her nightgown tightly with her right hand.
…Sorry.
“Your dedication to saving people is wonderful. God is also pleased… But at the same time, He is also lamenting. No matter how much you pray and suffer, God cannot save you. That is why I was sent to you.”
“Messenger of God…”
“Holy Maiden Rosalie, endure a little longer. You will eventually be freed from your suffering. Until then, I will lend you a little of my power so that you can keep yourself together.”
I glanced at my eyes reflected in the mirror in the room and muttered “Brainwash Release.” I removed the «Ninja» Skill and returned to my original «Brainwashing» Skill, and said to Rosalie.
“Can you look into my eyes, Rosalie?”
“Yes, I understand.”
“Skill «Brainwashing»”
I made eye contact and used the «Brainwashing» Skill on Rosalie. The words [Under Brainwashing] appeared above her head, and Rosalie stared blankly at me.
Now, the power of life and death over Rosalie is in my hands. It’s terrifying because I could do whatever I wanted with her, give her any order, and even torment her as I pleased.
…I really don’t want to use this kind of power.
But I can’t say that.
First, there’s something I want to try.
“Rosalie. Your Skill is — «Holy Maiden».”
Just like when I switch my own Skill, I switch Rosalie’s Skill.
“Rosalie, tell me your current Skill.”
“Understood. Status… My current Skill is «Heal».”
“………I guess it’s no good.”
The result was the same as when I tried it with Lily in the presence of Prince Lucas beforehand.
My «Brainwashing» Skill cannot change the Skills of others.
I also tried to see if I could switch Skills with «Skill Granting» or «Skill Exchange» using the «Brainwashing» Skill, but that didn’t work either. It seems there is no Skill that can interfere with the Skills of others.
…What the heck is my «Brainwashing» Skill, seriously?
If I could change Rosalie’s Skill to «Holy Maiden», I would no longer be able to use «Brainwashing», but Rosalie would no longer have to suffer. I thought everything would be resolved if this worked… but it can’t be helped.
“Rosalie, get into bed and lie down.”
“Yes, I will.”
Rosalie got into bed and lay down as I instructed. I put a blanket over her and instructed her to sleep soundly until morning with brainwashing. After confirming that I could hear her regular breathing, I released the brainwashing.
There were dark circles under Rosalie’s eyes that couldn’t be completely hidden by makeup.
I’ve also experienced insomnia caused by stress. The worst thing is that sleep deprivation further wears down the mind. It causes a vicious cycle that further worsens the insomnia, and right before I died in my previous life, I couldn’t sleep even after grabbing a handful of sleeping pills and washing them down with tequila.
Just forcing her to sleep like this with the «Brainwashing» Skill will be much easier on her mentally.
Prince Lucas is working on a fundamental solution to the problem, but it seems that it will take time to coordinate with the relevant parties. Until then, it seems better to put Rosalie to sleep like this every night.
…I’m sorry, Rosalie, but I’ll have to pretend to be a messenger of God for a little longer.
“Rest well, Rosalie.”