PTSD Military Chaplain of the Academy

A day has passed.

I was trying hard to calm my anxious heart as I carefully examined the holy relics I had brought yesterday.

The holy relics brought directly from the Holy Empire by Priest Peter, the censer of St. Jerome and the bell of Terea. Each of them was a priceless holy relic.

I had only encountered them in the Bible or heard of them through rumors, so this was the first time I was seeing them in person.

This was quite a surprising gain and, at the same time, hopeful news for us. If these items had not been satisfactory, we would have had to request holy relics from the Holy Empire, which would have taken at least a week to arrive here.

Just then, as I was carefully placing the relics into a wooden box,

BANG! CRASH!

Suddenly, with a tremendous commotion, Sub-priest Sofia burst into the professor’s office. I stared at her, who was panting heavily.

“Sub-priest Sofia. What is it?”

“Head Priest! It’s here!”

Sub-priest Sofia, gasping for breath, handed me a letter.

Finally, it’s here.

I accepted the letter that Sub-priest Sofia handed to me. As I tore open the envelope, an official document stamped with the diocesan bishop’s seal appeared.

“A permission letter for exorcism….”

It was the permission letter for exorcism sent from the diocesan cathedral. Contrary to the estimate that it would arrive in two days at the earliest, the processing at the cathedral was much quicker than I had thought.

Well, given the unpredictable situation, the diocesan bishop must have been quite anxious to act swiftly.

If this matter could not be resolved quickly, it would mean the next pope candidate’s chances would be lost for good from the diocesan bishop’s perspective.

“Where is the item I requested?”

“Here.”

Sub-priest Sofia handed me a box with a handle. I slowly opened the box.

“Um….”

Inside the box were items that would aid in the exorcism ritual, including three vials of holy water labeled ‘Samadan River,’ some holy oil, a few pieces of charred olive wood, blessed candles, a holy water bowl, a holy water sprinkler, a hand mirror, a cross the size of a forearm, a large metal tongs, and some blessed incense along with extra binders.

The metal tongs were likely sent in case the possessed person struggled, and the binders would be useful for tying the limbs of the possessed. I nodded as I closed the box.

I was satisfied to see it was prepared far more thoroughly than I had anticipated. It seems the diocesan bishop preferred a solid method of processing.

And I was the same. This time, I would surely uproot it.

“Very good. Have you prepared the salt?”

“Yes. Um… ha! Here it is!”

Sub-priest Sofia held up a heavy sack of salt. It didn’t seem like such a large quantity was necessary, but she explained that the future is unpredictable, so she brought more than enough.

“…Excellent.”

“Hehe….”

As Sub-priest Sofia scratched her head and chuckled, she seemed to remember something and shuddered.

“By the way, there’s one more thing I need to tell you.”

I shifted my gaze from the box of exorcism tools to Sub-priest Sofia. With a serious expression, she opened her mouth.

“I found the whereabouts of Priest Peter and Priest Camilla. They were both discovered unconscious in Priest Camilla’s dorm room.”

“What about the two? Where were they moved?”

“Just in time, Professor Esther and Student Chloe, as well as Student Laura, were passing by the staff dormitory. With their help, we were able to carry Priest Peter to the room.”

“Good job.”

I was surprised that they managed to move Priest Peter despite the likely strong smell of rotting flesh from Malodor. I thought I should express my gratitude to the three who helped Sub-priest Sofia and stood up.

After placing the exorcism permission letter into my pocket, I picked up the wooden box containing the relics and the box beside it. I had completed all preparations with the binder draped over my shoulders and my rosary around my neck.

“Let’s go. We’re off to slay the demon.”

“Ugh…! Yes!”

We left the professor’s office.

As expected, our destination was the staff dormitory.

* * * * *

It’s damp. It’s silent. It’s dry.

And it’s eerie.

These were all the thoughts that arose as I stood in the hallway of the seventh floor staff dormitory of the Caldera Imperial Academy. I took a slow step forward.

“It’s getting dark…” Sub-priest Sofia mumbled as she looked out the window. Perhaps because it was close to summer, the sun left an exceptionally strong trace. The late spring evening was still a time when sunlight exerted influence.

However, night would soon fall. If daytime was a time for all life to grow and awaken, night was the time when the byproducts of darkness approached as per ancient beliefs.

In other words, it was the most fitting time for them to show themselves.

I stopped walking and gazed out the hallway window. When I halted, Sub-priest Sofia, who was walking beside me, also stopped.

“Why did you stop?”

“…Crows.”

“What?”

– Caw! Caw! Caw!

Dozens of crows suddenly spread their wings and soared into the sky. The sheer number of them was such that they seemed to completely cover the faint light illuminating the sky.

I felt as if I had locked eyes with a particularly prominent crow leading the flock.

It had blood-red eyes. Indeed, it was the kind of eyes that could be called the evil eye.

“W-what’s going on? Suddenly a flock of crows….”

“They’re watching us. Through the eyes of beasts.”

I stared for a long time at the place where the flock of crows had passed. Soon they disappeared from view. The vast sky still had not erased the traces left by the sun.

“They’re playing tricks.”

It was likely a final warning. A warning akin to their struggles not to step any further. I chuckled softly.

What a pity. I had no intention of leaving the demons hiding in the academy alone. I resumed my steps.

After walking for a while, I came across the familiar front door I had seen before. I stood in front of one of them.

It was the dormitory where Priest Camilla stayed. I intended to bind her up to prevent her from fleeing before I exorcised Priest Peter.

As I explained my plan, Sub-priest Sofia tilted her head and asked me.

“Isn’t it better to exorcise Priest Camilla first?”

“Sub-priest Sofia, who is most likely to be the head demon possessed right now?”

“Um… As you said, then it must be Priest Peter.”

“And that’s why.”

I slowly opened the front door of Priest Camilla’s dormitory. This time, the foul stench was less intense than the one coming from Priest Peter’s room.

As I stepped inside the room first, Sub-priest Sofia followed me, covering her nose with her sleeve and grimacing.

“Ugh…. What do you mean by that?”

“If we exorcise the head demon, the power of the other demons following it will diminish. Once that happens, it will greatly assist in exorcising them.”

Since the items used for the exorcism are limited in quantity and the act itself causes immense exhaustion for the exorcist, I needed to move with utmost efficiency.

After hearing my explanation, Sub-priest Sofia nodded and then suddenly turned away, retching.

“Ah… But the smell is too… Ugh…!”

“…It’ll be over soon.”

I carefully opened the box containing the items necessary for the exorcism and took out four binders. Since they were all blessed directly by the diocesan bishop, they would prevent the demon from easily escaping.

“Sub-priest Sofia. You handle the right side.”

“Y-yes….”

By now, Sub-priest Sofia had rolled tissues and fitted them into her nostrils, nodding her head with a stuffy voice. While she tied Priest Camilla’s right legs and arms to the bedpost, I took care of the left side.

Even while binding the limbs, Priest Camilla remained completely still. The only evidence of her life was the regular sound of her breath.

“Alright… Now, please go around and pour the salt in a circle, about two steps away from the bed.”

“Y-yes….”

Sub-priest Sofia started to grunt as she began pouring the sack of salt on the floor. I took out the charcoal from the box and started drawing a line slightly within the salt barrier.

As the blessed olive charcoal dragged across the floor, it left behind blackened traces.

“Sub-priest Sofia.”

“Uh… Yes!”

After everything was completed, we hurried out of Priest Camilla’s room. Since we used a considerable amount of salt and charcoal, as well as securely tied the limbs with binders, she wouldn’t be able to escape easily.

Priest Peter’s room was right next door. Therefore, we had to immediately face the even worse stench of rotting flesh coming from him, without a moment’s respite from the foul aftereffects of Priest Camilla.

As I was about to open the front door to the dormitory where Priest Peter was lying, Sub-priest Sofia looked distressed. I pulled something from my pocket and handed it to her.

“W-what is this?”

“Anointing oil. Just put a little under your nose. It’ll smell much less.”

For a moment, Sub-priest Sofia hesitated but quickly snatched the anointing oil after hearing it would smell much less. Was the previous smell causing her that much pain?

After pulling the tissue out of her nose and applying the oil under her nostrils, Sub-priest Sofia had a much more comfortable expression. I nodded my head towards her.

“Okay, then I’ll open it now.”

“Yes…!”

I slowly opened the door. The moment I opened it, the rotten stench assaulted us, and when I fully opened the door, it greeted us with a level of odor that could numb our noses.

“Ugh….”

This was a bit challenging for me as well. I applied the anointing oil I had given to Sub-priest Sofia under my own nose.

Applying the oil made it somewhat better, but the intensely foul smell of rot was far beyond anything that could be disregarded with mere anointing oil. Frowning at the smell, I slowly stepped into the room alongside Sub-priest Sofia.

As we closed the front door and stepped into the living room, the room was shrouded in complete darkness.

Through the dim light slipping in from the tightly drawn curtains, I could barely discern that Priest Peter lay slumped on the bed.

I calmly turned on the living room light. On the bed, which was placed on one side of the room, Priest Peter lay perfectly still, as if dead.

“Do the same as we did in Priest Camilla’s room.”

“Ugh…. Yes….”

We carried out the same tasks as we had in Priest Camilla’s room. First, we used the binders to tie his limbs to the bedpost, while Sub-priest Sofia poured salt, and I delineated the circle with the charcoal.

In the meantime, I had grown somewhat accustomed to the foul stench, making it bearable. I cautiously opened the box that I had laid down on the floor and placed the tools necessary for the exorcism one by one on the nightstand next to the bed.

The box containing the sacred items was still unopened. It was advantageous for the demon to not reveal our numbers.

“Haah….”

So, all preparations were complete.

Sub-priest Sofia and I stepped back a step away from the salt surrounding the bed. When I drew the sign of the cross and folded my hands, Sub-priest Sofia standing next to me closed her eyes and bowed her head.

I began to recite the prayer.

“St. Michael the Archangel, please be our protector.”

Protect us as we fight.

If we wander due to the malice and schemes of Satan, please do not let our eyes go blind.

O Lord in heaven, I humbly ask.

Lead your servants.

Forgive us the sins we commit today in this place, and deliver us from evil.

I request this in the name of the Lord, the eternal guide of all living things, the archangels who shine from the heavens, and all the saints.

“…Come, Lord.”

I quietly concluded my prayer.

Thus began the long fight ahead.

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