Chapter 295 - Chapter 261 Is There No Need to Rush?
Tuesday
"Woof?"
"Yeah, it's fine. Go on, have fun."
"~~~♪"
As I replied, Lupi, with Leda and Roy in tow, and Sweee, leading the Fairies, headed for the ruins entrance. They were probably off to play either behind the church or to the south.
From our return yesterday, we decided to leave the locked doors on the north and south sides of the crossroads open.
The cave leading out behind the northern church is a [Safe Zone], and the grassland to the southwest of the exit is also a [Safe Zone], so no monsters should be able to enter the ruins.
Will it be finished by after school?
"It's tricky. It depends on what I decide is 'good enough'…"
I had started carving the wooden [Jade Goddess Statue] yesterday. With the rough outline visible, today's plan was to sculpt the finer details.
I was going to announce on the live stream, 'I'm making a life-sized statue like this,' but how much it would resemble Mion was entirely up to chance.
Well, I guess it’ll probably end up looking ‘somewhat’ like her…
"Alright, I'm counting on you today too."
Y-yes.
I sat down on the grass in front of the house and placed the [Jade Goddess Statue] before me. I activated the sanctuary, too, as it felt like it boosted my concentration, and I was happy that Mion diligently replied to me.
By the way, the [Jade Goddess Statue]'s sanctuary, which activated around 10 PM last night, was still active. It was almost 4 PM now, so it had been going for 18 hours straight.
"So, it seems the sanctuary lasts about a full day, huh?"
But that might be because there are no undead here.
"Ah, that's true…"
If the sanctuary was still active when I logged in again tonight, I'd send a letter to Argenta.
"Speaking of which, what's our club president doing right now? Hasn't Mion received any more photos?"
Ah, she sent some right after school. It seems she went rafting today.
"Huh? What's that?"
It's like going down a river in a large rubber boat, I believe?
"Oh. …Wait, isn't it still cold in Hokkaido?"
I wonder. She commented, 'It's fine, no problem.'
No, I think that's the problematic one…
Chatting idly like that, I carved away little by little.
Ah, sensei is here, so I'll step away for a moment.
"Got it."
The only person who could enter the locked [Club Room] this week was Yata-sensei. If anyone else came, Mion would be notified, and I'd have her switch back to real-world view to deal with it.
Well, no one else ever comes.
Hello~
"Ah, hey there."
Yata-sensei seemed to have come to the studio too. Or rather, like yesterday,
"Aren't you coming to the club room earlier than usual?"
That's because the strictest, Yasaka-sensei, isn't here, leading the school trip. All the teachers are pretty relaxed, you know~
Is that so?
Is that really okay…
According to Yata-sensei, Yasaka-sensei—Bell-san's homeroom teacher—was the vice principal and the strictest. The principal was a laid-back person, so they made a good pair.
By the way, what are you making?
"Um, it's a prototype goddess statue."
There was no point in hiding it from Yata-sensei now, so I told him about the [Jade Goddess Statue] that had ended up looking exactly like Mion. This was something I'd discussed with Mion beforehand, so… it was embarrassing, but.
For the next live stream, we're planning to make a goddess statue to place in the church.
It's nice that Mion-san is the island's guardian goddess. Couldn't Mion-san just transfer into the goddess statue?
"If I did that, it wouldn't just be 'favoritism' anymore…"
Speaking of which, Mion only did character creation and stopped, but she's still paying her subscription, huh…
"That's fine, but I'm a bit worried that the goddess statue itself might be involved in a [World Quest]…"
Why is that?
I explained my speculation that the [Jade Goddess Statue]—the former [Nameless Goddess Statue]—with its sanctuary effect, might be used to clear the Necropolis. I figured Argenta was probably relaying that to the [Dragonfolk] right now, asking them to test it.
I see~. But~, there's no point in worrying too much~. Shou-kun has explicitly stated he's not participating in the [World Quest]~.
That's right.
"Well, I guess so…"
Let's wait until Bell-san comes back~. There's no need for the two of you to rush~.
"Ah, you're right…"
If you push ahead, the club president will be sad.
And I wasn't exactly inconvenienced by not having the [Transfer Magic Circle] right this instant anyway. For now, I'd just wait for Argenta's report and take my time with the goddess statue.
*
"Heh, that's pretty fast."
"That's because Lady Leona's [Imperial Guard] is quite enthusiastic. By Saturday, when Lady Bell returns, the [Frontline Base] will be complete, and it'll connect to the current Imperial side's base."
Dessert after dinner. Miki happily devoured a delicious [Baked Pudding]. I took a bite of my own… the simple happiness of a 150-yen treat.
"How's Mashiro-nee doing?"
"Worry not, she's simply enjoying the game. It seems Season-dono is quite skilled at handling my sister."
"Huh, that's rare…"
Well, Mashiro-nee is easy to understand, in her own way.
"Indeed, she was PvP-ing with Lady Leona again yesterday, though."
"Gah! …That was close. Who won?"
"Lady Leona's overwhelming victory, of course. My sister, she… now that she can do many things, she must be experiencing some indecision. She even offered a wry smile when told as much."
"Seriously…"
As expected of Lady Leona. There aren't many people who can speak so bluntly to Mashiro-nee. Oh, wait, Kumano (Yata)-sensei could.
"How is your brother doing?"
"Doing? He's just taking it easy. The next live stream is about making a goddess statue for the church, after all."
"Hmm. I was hoping for some more of your brother's blunders around now…"
This guy… is he pretending to be perceptive, trying to fish for something I'm hiding?
It was good that I'd been told 'don't worry about it' earlier.
"There's nothing."
"Might the goddess statue you're making not be Mion-dono?"
"…It can't be helped if it ends up looking like her."
This guy, seriously…
"Hmm, perhaps I should ask my brother to carve a statue for me as well."
"We're hiding the fact that we're siblings in-game, so no way. Oh, that's right! The [Silver Manor] people and the [Throne of the Thunder Emperor], was it? I had something I wanted you to tell their production teams."
I told her about how making tools from [High-quality Mithril] gives a bonus to related skills.
"Hmph… Brother, I think that's quite a blunder on its own, don't you? Well, with that much [Mithril], one could make ten accessories, so it might not be top priority, but…"
Yeah, you're right…