Chapter 266 - Chapter 236: The Goddess's Healing
"Um..."
I came to the studio, but where was Mion?
"Shou-kun. Over here."
"Oh, there you are. Ah..."
Turning towards her voice, I saw Mion wearing the overalls we bought the other day. Because she was wearing the white blouse, she looked a little more mature, and it made my heart skip a beat.
"H-how is it?"
"Yeah. It really suits you."
"That's good. Please, sit here."
A luxurious two-seater sofa was placed in a spot not visible on camera in the studio. Apparently, it was used as a waiting area during a collaboration when President Bell participated as a commentator, and Seth also sat there recently. Mion urged me to sit on the sofa.
"Phew..."
"You must be tired. Today was tough, wasn't it?"
"Yeah, especially coming right after yesterday."
I sat next to Mion, sinking exhaustedly into the backrest. If it had just been Argenta-san, it would have been one thing, but if she was bringing the White Dragon Princess-sama too, I wish she'd told me beforehand. Still, I can't believe such a small child...
"Shou-kun."
"Huh? Ah, yeah..."
She suddenly called my name in her real voice, and when I wondered what was wrong, she patted her lap. It was incredibly embarrassing, but... I gently leaned over and rested my head on her lap.
"Wait, did you turn off the physical contact restrictions?"
"Yes. Only for Shou-kun."
When she said that, I couldn't retort anything. No, I mean, she's done it for me in real life, so why am I being shy about it now?
"Speaking of which, how was the archive?"
Mion shook her head at my question.
I wonder if she wants to hide Argenta-san, or rather, White Dragon Princess Althena-sama...
"Hmm, what should we do about tomorrow's live stream?"
"Why don't we take a break?"
"Huh? Wouldn't suddenly taking a day off be bad for the viewers?"
"I don't think it's worth forcing yourself. My mom also says, 'When you're not feeling well, your smile looks awkward, so you should rest.'"
"I see. That makes sense..."
Making myself smile when I have a fever or headache seems impossible for me.
I closed my eyes and slowly took a deep breath. Mion was continuously stroking my head, which was embarrassing but comforting.
"For tomorrow's live stream, I'll just casually tend to the fields or something."
"Okay."
I definitely need to show off the avatar outfit I bought.
"I'll talk about being the Ancient Ruins' manager at the start of the live stream, but I haven't sorted everything out yet, so can we leave the details for Saturday?"
"That's fine. Um..."
"Hm?"
"Will you talk about the Goddess Statue?"
Ah... I wonder if Mion wants me to keep it a secret? When she explained that day's events to President, she mentioned defeating the Maroon Wraith but kept the Goddess Statue a secret.
"I mean, I'm sorry..."
"Huh?"
"Well, when I was about to be defeated by the Maroon Wraith, it felt like praying to the gods in a time of need..."
The fact that it became the Jade Goddess was largely because I was planning to make it in the first place, and it had a Spirit's Blessing. However, I didn't expect the image in my head to be directly reflected in the Goddess Statue.
"...It would have been terrible if it had been someone other than me, wouldn't it?"
"Yes."
Well, in that situation, there really wasn't any other woman I could think of. The only women whose faces I could instantly recall were Mashiro-nee and Miki.
"I'm sorry..."
"?"
Come to think of it, I don't really have an 'ideal' (?) female image in my head. Mom's expressionless, so she's out of the question. Mashiro-nee has the image of my unruly older sister, and Miki still has the image of a little sister I need to protect. Besides family, who else is there? Iincho, probably because of our elementary school days, feels like a 'teacher.' The same as Yata-sensei. And... President Bell still has a strong 'Majo Bell' image. Though it's starting to crumble recently...
"How do I put this... You're the only goddess to me, Mion, so that's why it turned out that way..."
"Y-yes..."
Still, what a mess that the Nameless Goddess Statue turned into a Jade Goddess Statue with Mion's face. If Mion is embarrassed, she could just keep it hidden, but then I'd have to figure out how to make a Goddess Statue to display in the church. I could sculpt a different face, but that would also feel wrong.
"What should I do about the Goddess Statue for the church?"
"Um, Shou-kun, you can make it however you like."
"I was planning to display the Jade Goddess, so it'll look like you, Mion. Is that okay?"
"Yes. But, if possible..."
She asked for two things. She didn't want me to sculpt other Goddess Statues. Apparently, having some unknown person standing next to her would be uncomfortable. Well, yeah, that makes sense. If a statue of some mysterious old man stood next to my own statue, I'd feel pretty weird too.
And instead, she asked me to sculpt Lupi. And if possible, Sweee and True too.
"Roger. I definitely want to sculpt Lupi."
"It doesn't have to be the Blue Sky Goddess, right?"
"I think it's fine. Lupi always listens to your voice, Mion, so I think she'll be happy."
I'll just keep the Goddess Statue in my inventory. It seems like it could be useful if something like last time happens...
...Hm?
"Ah, so that's what it means..."
"What's wrong?"
"Oh, nothing, I just thought that the 'need to purify areas with the Goddess's divine authority' in the World Quest might mean using those kinds of Goddess Statues."
"Ah..."
The Appraisal results mentioned 'placed in each household,' so they'll probably be found as we conquer the Necropolis. President Bell said this island was like endgame content, but I just happened to get one from Argenta-san, and barely managed. No, did the operations team have Argenta-san give it to me so I wouldn't get stuck? Hmm...
"Should we tell President after all?"
"No, I think she'll probably figure it out without us telling her, so it's fine. Besides, isn't President still at the Mage's Tower today?"
"Yes. The archive should be up by now, so would you like to watch a bit?"
"Yeah, let's watch. Hmm..."
I opened my eyes and thought about sitting up to watch properly, but...
"No, you can't."
"Okay."
When I obediently complied, Mion opened President Bell's channel, smiling. Why does she like me so much...?
"What's wrong?"
"Huh, ah, yeah... Is next Sunday good for making sweets?"
"Yes! Ah, I'll need Tsubaki-san to prepare the ingredients."
No, if Tsubaki-san prepares them, I'm afraid she'll get all sorts of expensive things. And Mion's sense of money is probably off too, so I need to normalize things there.
"Why don't we just shop at the supermarket in front of the station? What do you want for lunch?"
"Ah, um..."
I was planning to gently redirect her to homemade cooking if she asked for something too extravagant, but...
"I want to eat the yakisoba you treated Kashihara-kun to."
"Ah, okay."
She was really curious when we talked about it the other day, huh?
Still, I'd be happy if she got used to home cooking and felt even a little inclined to make some herself.