Chapter 414 - Chapter 366: The Goddess's Authority Also Comes from Faith
After getting home, I cooked and ate dinner, finally settling down.
I handed Miki her baked pudding for dessert and briefly told her about my day.
While keeping quiet about the [Transfer Magic Circle] from the [Necropolis] to the island, I told her about the [Azure Dragon Azure] and the [Cait Sith].
"So that's the situation. Could you explain it to [Master Chef]?"
In the end, [Azure] went back via the [Transfer Magic Circle], and the [Cait Sith] decided to stay on the island for a while. It seems even the boss cat wants to remain here until everyone's health improves.
The basin where that [Mountain Cabin] is located is peaceful, and I've asked [Lupi], [Leda], and [Roy] to act as escorts or, rather, lookouts. If anyone's health takes a turn for the worse, [Sweee] should be able to manage it.
"Hm? What's wrong?"
"Brother is always so sudden..."
"Huh?"
She let out a big sigh and thrust the empty baked pudding container at me, so... I handed her my portion.
She took it, and, opening the lid with a satisfied look,
"So what should I do? Or rather, how much can I say?"
"Ah, yeah. You can talk about [Azure Dragon Azure]. After all, [Azure] was the one who came to pick up the [White Dragon Princess] the other day, and you heard about it from [Argenta] back then, right?"
"I see, I see. And how did Brother come to know [Azure]?"
"He carried the [Jade Goddess Statue] that's installed in the [Necropolis]—the one that was originally the [Nameless Goddess Statue]."
I wasn't lying.
That thing looked incredibly heavy. If [Azure] hadn't carried it for me, it would've been a huge struggle.
"I see. Then, what is the reason the [Cait Sith] fell ill?"
"They said they were affected by the miasma remaining in the [Necropolis]. Apparently, young fairies don't have enough resistance."
"So they brought them all the way to Brother's island? If miasma is the problem, then the [Dragon Capital], or whatever it's called, should also be fine, but..."
"No, they apparently took them to the [Dragon Capital] first. However, while their condition didn't worsen, it also didn't improve, so they said they brought them to my island."
"You are relied upon indeed..."
It must be because of the story about how the [White Dragon Princess]'s health improved thanks to the food I served on the island.
Still, I feel like that was mostly due to the excellent ingredients. It's all thanks to [Sweee], [True], [Pan], and the others.
"Do the [Dragonkin] know that Brother possesses the [Medicinal Cuisine Mastery] skill?"
"Hmm, I haven't told them, so they definitely shouldn't know that."
Is it possible that some NPCs, like [Azure], can see my skills?
No, but I only acquired [Medicinal Cuisine Mastery] yesterday, so that's probably not it...
...
Evening arrived, and we held a strategy meeting in the [Virtual Club Room]. Or rather, 'strategy' might be too strong a word.
Anyway, it seems the [Jade Goddess Statue] I installed definitely has diminishing goddess power (?), so we needed to discuss what to do about that.
Seth-chan, please.
"Indeed, indeed. Well, if it is [Master Chef], he will surely understand and say, 'That's Shou for you!'"
"So, will you permit visits to the church?"
That's what I'm wondering. I glanced at [Mion], and she returned a gentle smile, making my heart skip a beat...
No, that's not what I meant.
"Um, how are the other churches handled?"
"The southern church is managed by NPCs hired by [Leona]-san's [Imperial Guard]."
"That is because the [Scarlet Goddess Statue] bears a striking resemblance to [Leona]," she added.
I thought, "Hiring NPCs, that's impressive again," when it turned out young people had been dispatched from the [Marsis Republic]'s church headquarters.
Are those people managing it?
"Yes, it seems to be part of their training," she said.
"We have also established a church in the Amiera Territory's developing lands, and administrators from the [Capital Wolkel] church have come there as well. Of course, we must pay them a certain amount so they may live."
If that's the case, is it alright?
As for the goddess statue being stolen while no one's there... the [Dragonfolk] are probably keeping watch, so it should be fine. ...Hm?
"But if only NPCs are managing it, does the sanctuary from the [Scarlet Goddess Statue] also wear off?"
"There are many players who come to pray at the goddess statue, so that's not a problem," she said.
I see.
If players offer prayers, the sanctuary is maintained without issue, and they apparently receive a +3% bonus to [STR] and [VIT] for one hour.
It's apparently become a trend to pray before entering the [Instance Dungeon] in the center of the [Necropolis].
"That's cleverly done."
Is it different if you pray at the northeast church?
"In the case of the [Blue Sky Goddess Statue], you reportedly get a +3% bonus to [INT] and [DEX] for one hour. Over there, NPCs dispatched from a church in the [Demon Kingdom] seem to be managing it," she explained.
So, for the [Jade Goddess Statue], it's [AGI] and [LUK]? It feels a bit like leftovers, but it's not bad, I guess.
"The church with the [Jade Goddess Statue] is being managed by the [Dragonfolk], right?"
"I believe so."
"Then, if worshippers appear, there should be no issue."
Worshippers, huh... well, I guess that's true.
I logged into [IRO] and first checked the situation...
Are the [Cait Sith] alright?
"Bow!"
"Roy, good morning. Wait, where's [Leda]?"
When I asked, he turned to the right.
"Bow!"
"[Leda], good morning too. You were properly standing guard. Thanks."
After patting both their heads, I peeked inside the [Storage] and saw nine [Cait Sith] sitting in a circle, seemingly talking about something. But I couldn't understand a word of their conversation.
"Nya!"
"Ah, yeah. Um, please relax?"
The boss cat came and knelt before me, but... to me too?
I thought it was because [Sweee] is the Fairy Queen, but what kind of explanation are they giving, I wonder...
Shou-kun, please [Appraisal] them to confirm their condition.
"Oh, right. Just hold still for a moment, okay?"
I probably wasn't understood, but I politely asked anyway, then proceeded to [Appraisal] the [Cait Sith].
Yep, the 'Mana Disorder' next to their race name is gone, so it looks like they've recovered.
That's good.
Now, if only the miasma would disappear from the [Necropolis]... but there's no way to even measure if it's gone in the first place.
"Well, what should I do? It seems I can leave this to [Leda] and [Roy], but..."
Why don't we go to [True]-kun's place? I'm sure the cats would want to eat Shou-kun's fish dishes.
"Roger that. Actually, I was planning to go over there today anyway."
I was also thinking I needed to gather [Bluegaris] (beets) along the way to make sugar.
But leaving [Leda] and [Roy] behind to go to the [Drab Wolf]s' territory... I don't know.
Should we consult [Sweee]-chan?
"Ah, yeah, you're right. [Lupi], can you go call [Sweee] and [Raz]?"
"Wafun!"