Chapter 472 - Chapter 419 First Step Towards the Jade Goddess?
Monday
"So, that's how Mion came to the island, but…"
After finishing today's summer homework, I first told Bell-buchou about yesterday. And, as expected,
"…"
"Buchou…"
She froze. Meanwhile, Yata-sensei was all smiles.
"Mion-san~, that's wonderful~"
"Yes!"
It was Yata-sensei who had encouraged Mion to play IRO, or rather, to play games in general. Watching Mion display her stats, we talked about this and that, until…
"So, the World Announcement about the Uninhabited Island Discovery that happened yesterday afternoon, that was Mion-san, right?"
"Yep."
Bell-buchou unfroze. Apparently, there was a brief commotion on the mainland too, but since there was no live stream, it was quickly dismissed.
"Mion-san will be moving to Shou-kun's island, but what do you plan to do with this southern island afterwards?"
"For the time being, I think we can just leave it as is. Oh, but I do want to go look for southern fruits, or rather, ingredients."
"Sweee-chan and the others were looking forward to it."
"That sounds nice~, there might be bananas, mangoes, kiwis, even coconuts~? Is that a coconut tree~?" Yata-sensei asked.
The tree visible at the edge of the screen, next to the water cottage, indeed looked like a coconut tree.
"Ah, Shou-kun. What you talked about with Argenta-san…"
"Oh, right. Actually, Argenta-san asked if I intended to become the administrator of those ancient ruins over there. I said 'not yet' for now."
"So, eventually?"
"Honestly, I haven't even considered it."
Exploring those ancient ruins would be something I'd do when I'm done exploring my current island and have free time. The path probably connects beyond the Ghillie Dhu forest, past the grassland where Floss Cotton grew, and then to the tower that likely connects from the northern cave. That would be the priority.
"And then there's the guild."
"Yes. I officially asked Argenta-san for her backing."
"Really! Then, immediately to the Necropolis… the branch office is in the Necropolis, right?"
"That's the plan we're moving forward with. Um…" I explained that Azure-san would be made the person in charge, and the actual detailed duties (?) would be left to the Dragonfolk or Beastkin. However, since we couldn't pay them with money from our side, the payment would instead be covered by the sweets and alcohol sent to the Dragonkin.
"Won't the things Shou-kun makes on the island become rewards?"
"Hmm, I guess that depends on the demand?"
In addition, it would be better if they were things that could be stored. Weapons and crafts were fine, but for island ingredients, perhaps dried goods? Dried fruits, jerky, dried fish, or smoked foods would also work.
"If it's Shou-kun's handcrafted items, it sounds like resellers might appear…"
"Eh? That far?"
"I think so too."
Hmm, is it really that much…?
………
……
…
"~~~♪" """~~~♪"""
Sweee's designated seat seemed to have moved to Mion's left shoulder. Around her, the Fairies were chattering happily, making Mion truly look like the Jade Goddess.
"Kururu~♪"
Raz, meanwhile, still preferred being in my hood, so she remained there. "Woof!" ""Bow!"" The light from behind the church became visible, and Lupi and the others started running. I was a little excited to see how the other Urisks (besides Pan), and the other Cait Sith (besides Shal), would react to Mion.
"Mion. The fairies are likely to make a huge fuss, are you okay?"
"Yes."
"~~~♪"
Sweee assured us she'd handle it. Thinking if that's the case, it should be fine, we stepped out behind the church. "Nya~" "Ryu~" "Whoa…" Shal, Pan, the other Urisks, Cait Sith, and even the Carbuncies gathered around Mion, making a huge fuss. But then,
"~~~!" """~~~♪"""
Sweee and the Fairies seemed to be organizing them properly? Well, it makes sense when their creator goddess suddenly appears before them.
"""Ryuryu?"""
"Yes. Um, she's the Jade Goddess, but she's visiting in human form, sort of?"
"""Ryu~!"""
I explained it that way, that they probably wouldn't ask for anything unreasonable just because she's a goddess. They seemed to understand, so I figured I could give True and the Selkies the same explanation.
"For now, let's sit down until everyone calms down."
"Y-yes."
We came to our usual patch of grass and sat down. Everyone seemed calm now, but they were lining up, wanting to shake Mion's hand or have their heads stroked. "Nya~…"
"It's fine, it's fine. Mion seems to be enjoying herself too." Shal came over to me and bowed his head, as if to say, Sorry about these young ones. Shal himself seemed to have calmed down overnight after being quite surprised yesterday.
"Ryuryu."
"Hm? Oh, you mean the island we went to yesterday?" Pan, who sat next to me, seemed to have found various things on the southern island yesterday. Since the climate there was subtropical and the vegetation was different from our island, with coconuts and such, we decided to go explore it again sometime.
"Ryu!"
"Yes. This time, let's all go together."
"Nya!"
"Of course, Shal and the others too." It was also a relief that I could leave the island in Mion's care. Wait, I need to tell them about my situation.
Perhaps it would be better to establish the guild quickly so we can communicate via guild cards?
"Shou-kun. It's about time for [Holy Magic]."
"Roger. Then, let's go to the church."
We had shown Mion to Pan and the others, and now we planned to go to the church to acquire the [Holy Magic] skill. It felt strange to do it in front of a goddess statue that looked like herself, but that's how the system worked.
I led Mion and everyone into the church. There was no dust on the pews; I could tell Shal and the others had cleaned it. When we reached the altar,
"How about it? Can you acquire it?"
"Ah, yes, it's fine. I'll acquire it."
And this book, the [Ancient Iris-Colored Divine Scripture]. It gave a +1 correction to the [Holy Magic] skill, and reading it would probably raise it to about level 5.
"Do you want to try [Purification Magic]?"
"Yes."
I handed her a tiny [Magic Stone], and Mion immediately tried [Purification Magic]. She succeeded quickly without any need for advice, and…
"Ah, my skill level went up!"
"Oh, congratulations!"
"Ah, thank you."
Pan and Shal and the others around us cheered and congratulated her. Yeah, this kind of thing is fun.