“Master. What shall we do with this human? Shall I carve her up here, or should I make her your slave?”
“Hey, Al. Don’t say such morbid things. She’s scared.”
Seeing Cindy trembling, Kent felt sorry for her.
“Understood. Then, Master. It seems to be your first time, so shall we try it out for now?”
“Al. What are you saying in front of me?”
“I’m sorry. Caro…”
This time, Al was scolded by Caro.
“No actual harm was done, so why don’t you forgive her now?”
“If Master says so, then I have no choice. You’ve gotten lucky, human!”
Al released the oppressive aura he had been directing at Cindy. She then collapsed powerlessly onto the floor as if relieved.
“I have one question, but why did you restrain me? If you thought I was a god, you should know what would happen if you did something so rude.”
Al sat down in front of Cindy and asked. Cindy then got up and said apologetically.
“This place, even if there isn’t a god here, is in front of the altar. Standing and talking here would be considered unnecessary conversation, and it’s rude in front of a god. I apologize, but we will talk in the waiting room beyond.”
Saying that, Cindy gestured to the door next to the altar from which she had emerged earlier.
“I understand. If that’s the case, we must comply. Well then, Al, Caro, let’s move.”
“Understood.”
“Understood, Roger that.”
Caro and Al agreed, and the four of them moved to the adjacent waiting room.
“Please have a seat here. I’ll bring you some tea now.”
Across from a simple table, Kent and the others sat on individual wooden stools. Cindy went further into the room to prepare the tea.
“This is just a normal room.”
“Yes, it is.”
Caro replied in agreement as Kent spoke. Unlike the splendor of the sanctuary, this room was very ordinary. It lacked any gaudy decorations and could easily be mistaken for the interior of a middle-class commoner’s home.
“I’m sorry for the wait. Please have some tea.”
“Thank you.”
“I can only drink water, so I don’t need any!”
Cindy returned and placed the tea in front of Kent and the others. However, Al, who could only drink water, told Cindy he wouldn’t have any.
“I apologize. I’ll change it to water right away.”
Saying that, Cindy returned to the inner room, replaced the contents with water, and brought it back.
“Here you go.”
“…Thank you.”
Al accepted the water from Cindy. Cindy then sat down on a stool and continued the conversation.
“Continuing from earlier, there is a document left by a former saintess who resided in this temple, which states the following regarding the treatment of gods… ‘Gods may escape from the temple. To prevent this, they must be tied with rope and brought back to the temple. At that time, they may resist with magic, so gagging them to prevent chanting is essential.’ The saintess, you see, is a person with the important role of conveying the wishes of the gods to this country and its people. Gods are originally fickle beings, and the saintess’s role is to draw out their motivation and guide them for the country’s benefit. It is said that the saintess is directly appointed by the gods. As the title suggests, only women are appointed as saintesses. Their social status does not matter; even commoner women have been appointed. Furthermore, as the saintess is a vital position in the country, they are granted a status equal to that of an upper aristocrat.”
“The saintess who left that document seems to understand fairies quite well… I would like to say that, but there’s a mistake in it.”
“A mistake…?”
Al denied Cindy’s explanation.
“First, while there are many weak fairies like me, there are also fairies who are skilled in physical attacks. If it’s that type… it would be impossible to restrain them even if dozens of humans attacked them all at once.”
“Is that so?”
“Also, gagging them to prevent them from chanting magic is also useless, as some fairies can cast spells without chanting. By the way, I can also cast magic without chanting.”
“Eh?”
At Al’s words, Cindy’s face showed surprise as her lifelong assumptions were overturned.
“But you know, in my case, when I do it without chanting, I move my hands and feet… Since my hands and feet were restrained, I literally couldn’t lift a finger… get it?”
Al said with a laugh.
“I have one question, may I ask it?”
“Yes? What is it?”
Kent, having heard the previous conversation, had a question and asked Cindy.
“The country’s important… um, isn’t this building too small for a facility related to national affairs?”
“Ah, about that. Originally, this entire residential area surrounded by a fence was the temple grounds. There were multiple temples and attached facilities on the vast land. The building currently used as a temple was originally used as an educational facility for priests, and the actual temple stood next to it. It was also far larger than this building.”
Cindy answered Kent’s question.
“Why did it become like this?”
“Well, it was a long time ago, but the gods disappeared, and as years passed, the country and its people could no longer receive their blessings. No one came to the temple to pray, and religion virtually vanished. Well, it continues to this day… The temple also fell into disrepair, and the saintess at the time used her personal fortune to raise funds. Based on that, everything except this building was demolished, the land was leveled, and high-rise apartments were built to provide housing for those suffering in their lives. At that time, the country, which had no particular interest in the no-longer-needed temple, granted permission for development. After this saintess, no successor was appointed, and it has remained this way until now.”
“But even if it’s no longer needed, there are still priests like you assigned here, aren’t there?”
“Yes, we cannot leave the temple empty in case the gods return. So, priests are assigned as building custodians, one or two of them. As you can see, we receive our salaries and necessary expenses from the country, so we are technically government employees. In the past, they were only paid very little and were forced to live in considerable hardship, but since the current Queen married into this country, the budget has been increased, and we can now provide breakfast to residents about once a month.”
“And that just happened to be today?”
“Yes.”
Cindy explained the events leading up to the present. The soup kitchen was held about once a month, and today just happened to be that day.
“Why did the budget increase after the current Queen married into this country?”
“Well, before the Queen married, she was a saintess in a neighboring country. Therefore, she was very knowledgeable about gods and was surprised that the budget for the temple in this country was too low, so she ordered an immediate increase.”
“To send someone who could influence national politics to another country, how must that country have felt?”
“When the proposal came, she transferred her duties to the next saintess.”
“They can do things like that, huh.”
Kent, who had thought the position of saintess was lifelong, was a little surprised that a succession was possible.
“Um. May I ask one more thing?”
“Yes, as much as I can answer.”
Cindy asked Kent a question.
“Is it because Al is under a contract of submission that he calls you Master?”
“Ah, about that. I don’t really know, but he says so himself.”
“Master! Isn’t that a cruel way to speak when I’m serving you so devotedly?”
Al said to Kent with a hint of displeasure.
“Is that so? Being able to contract with a fairy means you have the appropriate qualifications. If you’d like, feel free to visit the temple when you have free time. We have a lot of past records, so I think I can offer various advice. You can always consult me if you have any problems.”
“I’ll consider coming again when I have the chance.”
“Thank you. Also, when you enter into a submission contract, you must provide magic power to the subordinate fairy. Therefore, please be careful not to contract with multiple fairies.”
“What happens if you contract with multiple fairies?”
“You will be unable to supply magic power to the fairies, and they will be depleted. In that case, they will not only be unable to move but will also significantly shorten their lifespan to recover their magic power. Please observe this for your longevity.”
Hearing this, Kent’s face turned pale. Caro also looked at Kent, clearly disturbed.
“Is something wrong with both of you? Are you feeling unwell?”
Cindy looked at Kent and Caro with concern.
“Did Al know about that?”
“I did?”
“Then why did you contract with Kent when he already had a contracted fairy?”
Caro looked at Al and spoke in a sharp tone.
“Does Kent, by any chance, have contracts with two fairies?”
“Yes. I have contracted with one other fairy.”
“Is it already too late…?”
Cindy said with surprise.
“Um, about that, Master will be fine.”
“Huh?”
All three were surprised by Al’s statement.
“Master’s magic power… it’s a little different, but it’s an immense amount, and its recovery rate is so extraordinary that even when we absorb it, it recovers immediately. So, even if about 100 fairies of my class contracted with him, it wouldn’t affect their life activities at all.”
“I’m surprised that someone like that exists.”
Cindy, who was knowledgeable about such matters, said in surprise.
“Then Kent is fine?”
“Yes, he’s always perfectly fine.”
Al said with a laugh, making a crude joke. Caro seemed relieved by his words.
“Then I will come again.”
“Cindy, excuse me.”
“Human, I’ll be back.”
“Yes, I have also learned a lot. I look forward to your next visit.”
After a while of trivial conversation, Kent and the others left the temple.
