The Priest

Less than half an hour had passed since Zayn had returned to the town when a familiar skinny man showed him the middle finger.

The skinny man's face was red like a tomato and not even the soothing energy that emanated out of the blue ancient-looking scale Stigma was able to calm him anymore.

"You fucking scammer!" The skinny merchant shouted at the retreating figure of the somewhat familiar cloaked man who had just sold more than 30 pairs of Frenzy Antelope horns, both claws and fangs of eight Black Wolves, and the Shell of a Soul Shard for more than five silver coins…

He didn't want to pay that much but the cloaked man didn't even hesitate to ask for eight silver coins and he chose to turn around without a word when the merchant offered two silver coins.

In the end, the negotiation came to an end when they both settled on the amount of three silver coins.

Zayn didn't really use any tactics to increase the small fortune he could obtain from the merchant. He just wanted to make quick money and heal his wound at the hands of the Priest Apprentice whose small hut he visited.

'That looks more like the hideout of a witch, or a herbalist than the home of a Priest…' Zayn thought the moment he arrived in front of the small and simple structure of the Priest's hut. It was made of wood with a thatched roof.

Upon entering the hut that had a decayed wooden sign hanging down from above the door, he was thrown in a cramped room, with shelves that were filled with jars and containers of herbs, roots, and other ingredients.

The rich and earthly fragrance of herbs permeated the air, causing Zayn to feel dizzy for a few seconds.

It was warm and he also felt a bit claustrophobic in the small room through which he walked with uncertainty as he wondered whether he was at the right place or not. There was a small fireplace at the other side of the room that was used for brewing potions, food, or even tea.

On the left side of the stove, a table was situated with a stone mortar placed in the middle. The strong fragrance of herbs was wafting towards him from that direction as the mortar had just been used for grinding and mixing ingredients.

'Is there really a Priest living here? Feels like I invaded the house of a Herbalist…'

Despite being a simple hut, Zayn understood that this place was one where great knowledge was gathered and some serious concoctions were brewed. There were a few packages of certain elements scattered throughout the entire room. It was a bit disheartening to see such precious resources being treated as if they were without value but they didn't belong to him, and it was not as if everyone held the items as dearly as he did.

Thus, he cleared his throat after he figured that the Priest was not in the room before he began working on his task.

"Miss Priest, I'm sorry for bothering you at this time of the day, but I got injured when hunting today. It would be great, if you could let your magic work, and heal me, please." Zayn spoke earnestly and looked around, not exactly sure where to expect the Priest apprentice to be.

He looked for a door that led to a different room, or stairs leading to the second floor of the small hut, only to hear papers scattering next to him. Two arms pushed through the stash of papers and he heard someone stifle a yawn.

'...'

Zayn stepped back subconsciously, his eyes glued to the papers that were moved away, revealing a plain woman wearing ordinary clothes. She had long brown hair that was disheveled, brown sleep-drunken eyes, and a rather ordinary build for a woman in her late teens.

Her hair hadn't been washed for quite a while and the bags under her eyes looked like small eggs.

'Looks like I took away the last bits of sleep she got for the last…few years…' Zayn thought as the woman got up from the couch that had been buried under the massive stash of papers.

She was more than 1.8 meters tall and began walking towards him while rubbing her eyes. She just abruptly grabbed his left arm with her right arm which began to gleam in a faint white light.

Zayn flinched as the woman's hand was exactly where the wolf had inflicted an injury upon him. Her grasp hurt him but Zayn didn't even think about moving further back as a soothing warmth spread through his arm.

His wound began to itch and heal. That was what Zayn was able to tell as he circulated his soul particles around the area of his injury. The flesh of his upper arm was beginning to stitch itself back together and the wound was healing magically.

Not even half a minute had passed when the tall woman stepped back. A few droplets of sweat trickled down her cheeks but she seemed fine other than that.

Zayn was still cloaked, though there were a few torn parts of his cloak. Nonetheless, the Priest Apprentice shouldn't have been able to see his wound.

"You will feel a little tired after a while, but you should eat a lot because your nutrition was drained rapidly to heal your wound. Your arm will feel a little sore for the next two days but you're still young, so you won't really have any issues coping with that," The Priest Apprentice gave him a word of advice before she turned around to return to her couch as she added.

"You probably don't have enough to pay for my service, so just pay whatever you want."

Afterward, she lay down on the couch while Zayn stared at her dumbfoundedly.

'Is she some sort of an Oracle?'

He was not offended by her comment because Zayn was actually not that rich. When he saw the decayed and moss-eaten sign where the price for the 'instant healing' for wounds was written, he nearly turned around and left. His 'wealth' was ridiculously low, to the extent that it was insignificant.

Maybe, the six silver coins he was left with were enough to buy him one of the ailment-relieve packages but that had already been it. Yet, the Priest Apprentice didn't say anything about the gold coins he would have to pay under normal circumstances.

She just did what she wanted to.

"I don't have much, so for now I will pay five silver coins and come back later to repay the debt!" Zayn said while retrieving the five silver coins he had just obtained from today's hunt.

He knew that the next few days were very important for his growth and that his healed arm would help him act in a focused manner, without any distraction caused by pain.

However, the Priest just waved her hand away without even looking at Zayn as she turned around.

"Don't bother about the remaining money. Just make sure that you don't injure yourself too often, kiddo…. It's bothersome."