The Cursed Forest Where I Was Exiled Had Somehow Been Designated As A Sanctuary. - Awakened to the Purification skill, I, Surrounded By Divine Dragons And Great Spirits, Become The King of A Nation - Episode 12

The dwarf village we finally arrived at was noisy.

Raucous shouts are echoing everywhere, and you can even hear something that sounds like screams.

The reason became clear immediately.

It seems that the monster from earlier was one of their allies.

From the shadows of a simple house standing side by side near the low mountains, several wolf-like monsters appear.

The monster was fighting a dwarf wielding an axe.

“!? Hey you guys! Don’t just stand around there, hurry up and escape to the shelter!”

The dwarf notices Zess and raises his voice.

Following his gaze, there was the entrance to the mine.

“Flora, Peter, can you keep up?”

“Y-yes”

“Don’t worry about me!”

The two, sensing what Zess was about to do, nodded vigorously.

With a reassuring response, Zess charged into the horde of monsters.

With a twitch, the darkness all at once turns towards Zess.

With a warning roar, the monsters redirected their attention from the dwarves.

“You!”

The dwarf, sensing this, shouts at Zess who is approaching.

Without caring about that, Zess used “Purification.”

The monsters are returning from darkness to light.

The dwarf, who had been gripping the axe tightly, looked up at Zess with a stunned expression.

“Who on earth are you…?”

“Are these all the monsters in this village?”

As a characteristic of the dwarf race, even as adults, their height is around 140 cm.

Even so, the magnificent beard extending from his chin and the countless wrinkles etched on his face tell the story of his advanced age.

When Zess asked politely, the dwarf’s eyes widened as if taken aback, and then he pointed towards the depths of the village as if propelled by some unseen force.

“There are a lot of monsters over there chasing after the young ones. Honestly, acting all cool by keeping their distance from the shelter.”

Even though she said it with dissatisfaction, her voice somehow sounded proud.

“I perceive you to be a highly esteemed priest. Might I request your assistance?”

“I’m not a priest, but of course, that’s my intention.”

Nodding, I head deeper into the village under the dwarf’s guidance.

On the way, Zess suddenly thought.

Wait a minute. Do we even need to head to a place where monsters are…?

When purifying the divine curses of Haku and Yggdrasil, Zess was strongly envisioning the target of the “purification.”

Even for the monsters we encountered before reaching the village.

However, against the horde of monsters fighting the dwarves, Zess only gave the vague command, “Make all the filth clean!”

Just like that, the horde of monsters vanished.

In Zess’s mind, Yggdrasil’s “Spirit’s Blessing” flashes.

That is a barrier that prevents monsters from approaching within its range.

Isn’t it possible to do the same thing with “Purification”?

That’s right, what was I misunderstanding? I was so focused on the strong stains that I was missing the essence.

Zess grits his teeth involuntarily.

You’re unqualified as a laundry professional.

Unless the stains are exceptionally stubborn, laundry is something you do for the entire garment――.

“Zess-san…?”

“Are you okay?”

Suddenly stopping and placing his hand on the ground, Zess puzzled Flora and the others.

Without caring about that, Zess imagines.

Make this entire village the target of the cleansing.

The cleaning I did so thoroughly in my past life. Returning to those basics, I will… cleanse the world itself.

“—Purification!”

“Wha-what is it?!”

Like the “Spirit’s Blessing” of Yggdrasil, the entire area is enveloped in pure light.

The dwarf involuntarily recoiled at the divine radiance of the light.

A sense of mental fatigue, far beyond what it was just a moment ago, overwhelms him, but the status that has grown abnormally over the past few days supports Zess.

As the light faded and the dwarves and Flora looked around in a daze, young dwarves approached from the other side, carrying weapons.

“Y-you all, are you safe?”

The dwarf who had been with Zess ran towards them with a sigh of relief.

Then, the young dwarves spoke with expressions as if they had been tricked by a fox.

“Th-that’s Nagao-san.”

“For some reason, all the monsters that were fighting us…”

“He was enveloped by light and disappeared.”

Zess, having overheard their conversation, wiped the sweat from his forehead with a satisfied expression.

“Um, Zess-san. What was that just now…?”

Flora asks hesitantly.

To her, Zess nodded and replied.

“It’s the basics of laundry. Unless it’s a stubborn stain, you don’t wash the stain itself, you clean the whole garment, right? I just remembered that now.”

“Huh…? Huh…?”

“If we’re talking about Flora’s clothes, it’s not about sweat stains, but rather the clothes themselves first—”

“Th-that’s enough already!”

In response to the example Zess mentioned as a supplement, Flora protested with her face turning bright red.

◆　◆　◆

After that, Flora treated the injured with her healing magic, and then Zess and the others were invited to the village chief’s house.

Outside, they are repairing the houses and defensive fences damaged in the battle with the monsters, so it’s a bit noisy.

A house like a high-floor warehouse.

The dwarf from earlier introduced himself while bowing his head.

“First, let me express my gratitude. I am the village chief here, Do-Rarado.”

Zess and the others follow Rarado’s lead.

When Flora and the others introduced themselves, Rarado fiddled with his chin beard as if he had noticed something.

“Are you perhaps from the eastern elf settlement?”

At that mutter, Flora and the others showed awkward expressions.

And Flora briefly explained their situation.

“Therefore, if any elves from that village happen to visit here, we would like you to keep our existence a secret.”

“I see. Of course. I would never repay a life-saving benefactor with enmity, nor would I allow it. I’ll make sure the whole village knows later.”

Thank you very much.

Flora and the others bow their heads in response to Rarado’s reply.

“So, what brings the three of you all the way to this village?”

“Actually, we’re trying to build a village right now, but we don’t have enough tools for the development. I heard from Flora that we could procure high-quality tools here.”

“Hahaha, that’s certainly true. You can get much better stuff here than the half-baked things you find in human towns.”

However, Rarado says apologetically.

“We dwarves have a principle of making things only after receiving an order. Moreover, right now, even the workshop members are being called to help with the village restoration. I apologize, but could you give us a few days?”

“Of course. …Um, by the way.”

Nodding in response to Rarado’s words, Zess suddenly turned his gaze to the innermost part of the house.

“What’s that thing displayed over there…?”

There is something that looks like an old, worn-out scepter leaning against it.

However, it seems that the shine was lost long ago, and now it is just a rusted ornament.

I was curious about that ornament for some reason.

“Ah, that is a divine relic passed down in this village. It is said to have the power to repel monsters and bring prosperity. Although its power and radiance have faded now, it has been handed down through generations to the leaders of this village.”

“Divine relic…”

Divine relics are said to be artifacts created by the hands of gods in the age of the gods.

Each of them possesses special powers, and some even choose their owners or have become symbols of authority.

Its greatest feature is that it never breaks.

In fact, even with its antiquated appearance that could easily be mistaken for something excavated from ruins, the scepter maintained its shape.

“Zess-san, are you worried about the dirt again? Just so you know, that’s not dirt.”

“What do you mean ‘again’? What do you think I am, Flora-san…? That’s just wear and tear. There’s no way it’s dirt.”

“~~, I-I just can’t seem to accept this…”

Flora puffs up her cheeks and looks down at Zess’s serious face.

While wondering about her, Zess, who couldn’t help but be intrigued by the royal scepter, asked Rarados.

“Um, may I take a look at it for a moment?”

“Yes, of course. However, it’s just a mere ornament in name only. It’s not particularly interesting.”

Having been readily accepted, Zess approaches the royal scepter.

And the moment he picked it up.

“…Huh?”

With a crack, the royal scepter crumbled.

“Z-Zess-san, wh-wh-what are you doing?!”

“Hey, I didn’t do anything!”

The panicking Zess were startled, but Rarado, who had been sitting and watching the scene, exclaimed, “Whoa?”

With that voice, Zess notices the discomfort in his hands.

The scepter that was supposed to be broken. However, I can feel the solid grip of the staff in both hands.

When Zess cautiously looked down at his hands, there was the figure of a royal scepter radiating a brandnew brilliance, as if it had just shed its skin.