WNC 344

When one’s energy is low, the first thing to do is fill one’s stomach.

The mercenaries said they had never eaten near the holy land before. But for some reason, leaving the divine realm felt unsettling, so trusting in the benevolent heart of the First Goddess, we decided to commit sacrilege.

We lit a fire a little ways off from the back of the statue of the goddess. Perhaps because it was winter, even lighting a fire in the middle of the day felt only warm. After filling our stomachs and making ourselves comfortable, our startled hearts gradually calmed.

As the sun began to dip low on the horizon, I was receiving my second bowl of stew.

The ones who had been silent began to speak, one by one.

“We have to go, right? To the Sanctuary of the Sun.”

“Well, if a divine being is looking for us… don’t we have to go somehow? That Oasis guy called us for a reason, didn’t he?”

Marianne’s troubled voice was immediately answered by Hugh Benson. However, his voice too was drained of strength. As we stood there, Peter mumbled while refilling his empty bowl.

“It seems the gods haven’t coordinated their messages.”

“Why?”

“Well, the Third God told us to find a divine object…”

Peter was right. If it was truly a god calling us, it wouldn’t be the Oasis. Nor was it the First Goddess. She was said to be north of the Yuil Mountains, so she had no connection to the Sanctuary of the Sun.

Could it be a trap set by the Ninth God?

And would this new god be friendly towards us?

I thought of the ones who had dragged the mercenaries away as offerings. I also thought of Raul, who had secretly tried to take Ruben. Considering how the Oasis had treated us, I was reluctant to blindly trust any god.

“Hi…”

“Enough with the ‘Hi-sert.’ Haven’t you heard any other divine revelations?”

“…Yes.”

“Really? If you mess up again, I don’t care if you’re my senior or not.”

“Truly.”

“Hmph, I’ll believe you.”

I watched blankly as Elvin was about to say something, only to be scolded by Marianne.

Ruben, who had been picking at his food without finishing even one bowl, looked at Leon with a worried expression.

He had the axe he always carried on his back resting on his lap. He occasionally turned it, looked at it, and seemed to be examining it for something unusual, unlike his usual self, but if there were anything, we would have noticed it long ago. I could only sigh.

“Are you alright?”

“Huh? Ah, yes. Well, there’s no reason not to be…”

“Really?”

“…No. Honestly, I’m terrified right now. It feels like I’m carrying a ghost-possessed axe.”

Ruben didn’t hesitate for long. He lowered himself in front of Leon and placed his hand on the axe. His left hand rested on the axe, while his right hand touched his forehead, both shoulders, and his chest in a gesture I had seen once before in a faith lesson. It was a gesture used only for a few noble rituals.

As Leon watched with bewildered eyes, Ruben stepped back and acted kindly again.

“Though I am not a Saint, am I not a descendant of a god? I feel no unholy energy, so I have offered a simplified blessing.”

“…Uh, huh…”

“Wow, me too. Do me too!”

“Alright.”

Ann, who had been watching from the side, suddenly held her longsword with both hands and offered it to Ruben.

Ruben unhesitatingly blessed Ann’s weapon in the same manner. Only then did Leon give a slight smile and re-fasten his axe. The mercenaries, offering their weapons one by one, received the same blessing. Ruben laughed when Marianne playfully offered her staff, and everyone burst into laughter as Elvin presented his sword.

The morale, which had faltered for a moment, soared as if to pierce the sky.

Hugh Benson, who had been silently watching the boisterous scene, put down his utensils and let out a sigh.

“Well, if it’s the will of the gods, how can a mere creation escape? Anyway, whether it’s bread or stew, it’s all just flour and water mixed. Let’s go. We’re going.”

“We’re going?”

Giselle echoed the end of his sentence as if adding a flourish. Hugh Benson gestured with his hand, calling everyone closer. Even though we were a bit far apart, they could still hear a few words, but they moved closer as instructed.

“If you know anything, spill it. Let’s decide what to ask beforehand.”

“…What is there to ask?”

“Honestly, that Oasis guy just came when he wanted and left when he wanted. It was so sudden that we couldn’t even organize our questions, and we asked whatever came to mind, but we didn’t get many proper answers.”

“That… was true.”

“Don’t we need to know what we know to know what to ask the gods?”

We saw the gods directly. However, the Oasis was not a god worthy of worship.

It was difficult for me to fathom how powerful a soul he possessed. If it were true that he had indeed played a part in creating this world, he would be an extraordinary being. However, if we were to harm the Ninth God while resolving this matter, we might have to fight him.

Perhaps that’s why. No one pointed out Hugh Benson’s tone when he spoke ill of the gods.

Among those contemplating, Leon was the first to speak.

“The Sanctuary of the Sun… the temperature within about 4 kilometers of it reaches nearly 80 degrees Celsius. Fortunately, the humidity is low, so if we use temperature-regulating artifacts properly, we can travel to the temple in the center of the sanctuary, but I’ve heard some ascetics deliberately go without artifacts.”

“What about monsters around there?”

“There’s a large Makrir colony, and numerous Orc and Kobold colonies. Among them, the Grey Orc tribe that has tamed wild wolves has a rather large pack, so we must be careful when traveling.”

As Leon finished speaking, Rubel immediately recited what he remembered.

“There’s no record of which god resides in which holy land. It’s merely a general hypothesis that the God of Oasis lives in the Oasis, and the Sun God lives in the Sanctuary of the Sun.”

“Are there no characteristics or general precautions?”

“No. There is only one clear passage: ‘Only humans who revere the sun may set foot in the holy land.'”

“Humans who revere the sun?”

The explanation for that came from the mercenaries. Giselle nodded and continued.

“Monsters cannot enter the Sanctuary of the Sun. The sanctuary is overflowing with various treasures and jewels left behind by pilgrims, yet treasure goblins have never entered.”

“It might be that monsters don’t come near because there are no temperature-regulating artifacts, but treasure goblins should be able to use a few artifacts.”

“That’s right. There are no human thieves either. The journey to the Shatun Desert itself is quite costly.”

“Even mercenaries like us usually travel with incredibly devout individuals to the Sanctuary of the Sun, so we can’t even dream of carrying gold or jewels. It’s just a distant dream.”

Peter added humorously to Giselle and Ann’s explanation, but then, observing our faces, he quickly clasped his hands politely.

“Now that I know the gods truly exist, I intend to never touch them again.”

“…Yes. That… putting that aside.”

“So, it means the god in the Sanctuary of the Sun might be more friendly to humans than monsters.”

“That’s a relief, at least.”

Whatever the reason the gods were calling us, what we needed to ask and obtain from them was clear. The entire party, including the mercenaries, actively offered various opinions.

“First, I definitely want to ask if the Ninth God is related to black magic.”

“You don’t think so?”

“It’s an important issue to determine if we have one enemy or two.”

Marianne was curious about matters related to black magic.

“It is said that there are two ways to put the Ninth God to sleep: relying on the gods and gathering divine objects. It would be best to learn both methods and choose the easier one.”

“…Wow… I’m already overwhelmed. Meeting a god, or gathering divine objects.”

“And we need a way to awaken those who have been captured. Even if we know how to remove the contaminated mana from their bodies, Mika can’t do it every time.”

Rubel prioritized finding a way to retrieve those who had been captured.

“I’m curious if the First Prince is in his right mind.”

“…Huh? You’re asking the gods that?”

“Yes. Wesley Kiadris’s constant association with him has been bothering me. I can’t explain it well, but…”

“Ugh, well, there’s no reason why not. They’re not going to be stingy and say only one question per person, are they?”

And I was still bothered by the murderous intent in Wesley’s eyes when he glared at Rubel.

The mercenaries wanted to ask what was in the Magic territory, how the gods knew about our movements even though none of us here particularly revered any god, if perhaps someone among us was chosen by the gods as a hero, how many people the Ninth God had stolen in total, how many lives were needed to tear apart that world, and if they could perhaps tell us the location of the divine objects.

Hugh Benson diligently wrote down all those questions in his notebook.

Occasionally, we would laugh and chat, with him scolding questions like “How long will I live?” or “Can I find a lover?” or “Will I get married?” before they could be fully asked, and before we knew it, the sun was setting.

The tent was set up almost leaning against the back of the statue of the goddess. According to the mercenaries, this was also an act of sacrilege, something they never did normally. Marianne, who was helping with setting up the tent, grumbled.

“I wish the First Goddess would just appear right now.”

“Do you think that will happen?”

“No. It’s just…”

She let out a sigh.

“I don’t want to go to the Magic territory… Ah, I’m afraid I’m tempting fate by saying this.”

“…”

Indeed. Such a thing must not happen.

If we had to go to such a wicked place, I resolved firmly that I would leave these children behind.