Chapter 247 - Chapter 219 Ancient Iris-Colored Divine Scripture
From the comments viewers are exchanging, it seems goddess statues can be seen in large churches in the capitals of various nations.
But they're nothing like the goddesses seen there… well, that makes sense. It wouldn't be such a plain statue.
"Hmm, I wonder if Argenta-san was mistaken or something?"
Shou-kun, could you please show us the other book?
"Roger that."
I set the Nameless Goddess Statue aside and took out the Ancient Iris-Colored Divine Scripture.
This one was beautifully decorated and remarkably well-preserved.
[Ancient Iris-Colored Divine Scripture]
A book detailing the doctrines of the Goddess of Irisphia, the Iris-Colored Goddess. Holy Magic +1
[Sacred]: "Huh? Holy Magic +1?"
[Mii]: "I've never seen one with 'Ancient' in the name before."
[Burn]: "Is it the original text of the one we saw?"
[Risossu]: "Curious about the material~"
etc, etc...
"Huh?"
I thought it was something players with the Holy Magic skill just naturally had…
Isn't it a book that Holy Magic users carry?
Mion's question flooded the comments with replies like "No way," "No no," and "That's not it."
Apparently, the regular Iris-Colored Divine Scripture is just a textbook found in churches and temples. It doesn't give any +1 bonus to Holy Magic at all.
"Whoa, this was a valuable book. I wasn't planning on getting Holy Magic just for that…"
You just wanted to decorate with the goddess statue, right? And if the area around that church becomes a Safe Zone…
"Right, right. Since the Yakokko came down from the cliff, I thought maybe placing a goddess statue would create a Safe Zone."
[Risossu]: "Aww, Shou-kun, you should get Holy Magic too~"
[Magip]: "Didn't work even with that small one?"
[Shakeena]: "Mion-chan's statue is good enough, right ('▽')"
[Natai]: "Which goddess statue were you planning to place?"
etc, etc...
Hmm, should I get Holy Magic? But…
You received the goddess statue just before coming here, didn't you?
"Yeah. I checked the Magic Transfer Box before coming, and since I was short on time, I just threw it into my inventory. I haven't even looked inside the book yet…"
Shou-kun, which goddess were you planning to place?
"Well, it's an island full of nature, so I was thinking the Jade Goddess… but should we take a look inside first? Argenta-san mentioned it has drawings."
[Izupon]: "I wanna see!"
[Giganot]: "Show us, show us!"
[Domutsu]: "It'd be interesting if it's different from the one in the church."
[Daytron]: "
etc, etc...
Everyone seems to be looking forward to it, please do.
"Roger. It'll take too long to go through it thoroughly, so I'll focus on the illustrations."
Okay!
I opened the cover to find elegant writing on high-quality white paper.
Apparently, it was quite different from what's usually seen, and the comment section was buzzing.
Is what's written inside a myth about the world's creation or something?
"Huh? Can it be read through the stream?"
No, I can't at all, and probably no one else can either…
[Masheri]: "Text becomes unreadable when streaming, yeah."
[Nantsuu]: "Guess there's some special processing going on."
[Mattoru]: "There's a spoiler risk, so it's somewhat justified, right?"
[Sukuna]: "The illustrations are mostly visible, so it's fine~"
etc, etc...
Huh? When I read the [Record] before… I was just talking, so Mion couldn't actually read it, could she?
Well, if the illustrations are visible, then it's fine for now…
As I flipped through the pages, the first image that appeared was probably the Moon White Goddess. She was a beautiful older sister, seemingly "full of compassion."
Next was the Scarlet Goddess. With her short hair and muscular, voluptuous build, she really resembled my older sister, Mashiro…
And then, the next one was,
"So this is the Jade Goddess."
She had a soft, gentle vibe? She did bear a resemblance to Mion, I suppose…
[Risossu]: "Slightly different from the one I saw at the church~?"
[Bluesha]: "A relaxed image suits the island~♪( ´▽｀)"
[Amatsunoyu]: "She looks like Mion-chan~(´ω｀)"
[Beattot]: "I thought she looked more like an Elf…"
etc, etc...
Does she look similar to the Jade Goddess you've all seen before? Or different?
Comments poured in, and it seemed that the goddesses' depictions varied quite a bit depending on the nation.
The Scarlet Goddess, for example, appeared more knight-like in the Empire, but more feminine in the Kingdom and Republic.
The Jade Goddess seemed to be playing with animals in the Kingdom, but more Elf-like in the Empire and Republic.
"Maybe each country developed its own unique variation?"
[Sharuran]: "It's like how a god from one country is seen differently in another, right?"
[Ereck]: "Couldn't it just be the creator's personal taste reflected?"
[Kankampo]: "What about the Blue Sky Goddess?"
[Gardian]: "Just try it first."
etc, etc...
Well, if that's the case, then I guess it's fine if I carve the Jade Goddess statue however I envision her.
"Alright, should I try carving one?"
The Jade Goddess, then. Oh, and could you show us the Blue Sky Goddess too? I think she's related to Lupi-chan…
"Ah, that's right."
Lupi's species, Managarm, is a messenger of the Blue Sky Goddess, right? Why? I wonder if it talks about that too.
As I continued to flip through, the page for the Blue Sky Goddess appeared… Lupi wasn't next to her, though.
[Aoi-sama]: "Somehow, a rather plain Blue Sky Goddess."
[Woody]: "Would've been perfect if she had glasses."
[Venessa]: "She's said to govern Elemental Magic."
[Torato]: "NPCs in towns barely use Elemental Magic, do they?"
etc, etc...
"Lupi, what do you think?"
"Woof?"
No particular reaction. More like, "What?"
Well, the drawing might not look like her, or rather, like the real divine figure.
Um, perhaps you don't have to decide on just one?
[Aoi-san]: "That's right, that's right ♪"
[Marusan]: "Displaying many should bring more blessings!"
[Choccol]: "The big places display all of them~"
[Jont]: "Hope the Safe Zone expands~"
etc, etc...
"Oh, right. Then, I guess I'll make them one by one."
Well, I'll work on them little by little during club time.
Considering the effort of transport, I should make them behind the church… No, it might be better to make them in separate parts.
"Kyuu~♪"
"~~~♪"
"Oh, everyone's finished eating."
Sweee settled on my left shoulder, her usual spot, and the Selkie Prince sat on my right.
They started cleaning up after finishing their meal, which made me feel a bit apologetic.
Shou-kun, may I start collecting final questions now?
"Ah, yeah. Is it that time already?"
It feels like it's just cooking, eating, answering questions, and then it's over, so maybe I should be a bit more active next time. Going to check out the top of that cliff sounds good too.
"Aren't you going to name the Selkie-kun?" they ask.
"Ah, now that you mention it. But is it okay to just give him a name? What do you think, Sweee?"
I thought I'd ask Sweee, who I actually named, for her opinion, but she just flew right over to the Selkie Prince… Is she asking him?
"Kyuu~!"
Those sparkling eyes… it seems like he's really expecting something.
If I named him, it'd probably be something like 'Goma' again, so in times like these…
"I have no naming sense, Mion, please help."
Um… How about… True?
True, as in 'true' or 'real,' right?
It feels perfect for this innocent child's image, and Mion really does have a knack for names like this.
"So, how about 'True'?"
"Kyuu~♪"
The Prince-kun, now True, hugged me happily.
Oh, that reminds me, when I named Sweee, her status started displaying properly…
[Selkie (Prince): True: Intimate]
*Prince of the Fairy Selkies.
Still too young to undergo the trials to become king.*
[Linley]: "A Prince!?"
[Minamiruge]: "This island is crazy lol."
[Rogappo]: "Royal Island ＼(^o^)／"
[Akumon]: "Trials to become king!?"
etc, etc...
Ah, I completely forgot to mention that True is a Selkie Prince…