Ossan Boukensha no Jimichi na Isekai Tabi - CH 29

Another World God

“The river up ahead is the country border.”

The finger pointed to a river and a grand stone bridge. And there was a building made of wood right in front of the bridge.

There were several guards by the border, and a number of waiting carriages, but not enough to be a line. Currently, they were allowing people to cross from the opposite direction. So it was an alternate passage here.

Before crossing, I had to get out of the carriage so that it could be inspected. And I also had to show my Adventurers plate.

Apparently, it was quite relaxed as far as border inspections went.

In any case, I was able to enter the country of Razsita.

After crossing the river and traveling on for some time, there was an encounter with some unfamiliar monsters that resulted in a fight.

They had the heads of dogs and had bodies that were a little smaller than goblins. And they stood on two legs and wielded weapons. They were kobolds.

Five of them attacked the carriages, but they were routed by the mounted guards. It seemed that they weren’t very strong as individuals, but their speed had been impressive.

“We’re near the edge of the kobolds territory. Goblins can see in the darkness of night, but there are undead out there. And they do not breed as quickly as in the Fia kingdom.”

“If only they would start a war and crush each other.”

“Large battles breed powerful monsters. And if one comes out to lead the others, that could result in a stronger herd. It’s best to deal with them while they are still small.”

Oh, now this was why it was great meeting a D-Rank Adventurer. Knowledge of locales that can’t be learned from books. Wonderful.

The first Razsita village was surrounded by a wall that was much larger than the ones around villages in the Fia Kingdom. Perhaps it was to defend against the undead.

While it was still early, it was decided that we would be staying in this village tonight. And so I walked around in order to gather information.

There was not much prey for hunters around here, but there seemed to be a lot of livestock. The cheese was delicious, and there were sheep.

When I asked local Adventurers at the taverns during the night, they told me that kobold hunts were the most popular around here. However, while there was great demand, few wanted to accept the undead hunts.

There was even an E-rank fixed quest for hunting undead in the ancient battlefield ahead of Suimel.

Hunting undead in an ancient battlefield at night… Yes, I would definitely decline.

We arrived at Suimel on the following day.

In terms of scale, it was the same as Ilrak, but there was a castle in the center that was so tall that you could see it from far away, and it was surrounded by soaring walls that gave it the impression of a ‘fortress city.’

There were no farms or settlements around it, making the lands look quite barren. But once you were inside, it was even more lively than Ilrak. The driver and Adventurer guards were all recognized and let through immediately. Only the passengers were checked before entering.

I went straight to the Adventurers Guild in order to make a report. In spite of it being passed midday, the F-Rank quest board was filled with requests to hunt undead.

Maybe I could go if I held a magic lantern in one hand? But then I wouldn’t be able to use a shield. Besides, I can’t go outside unless I have a way of dealing with ghosts.

Ghosts were immune to physical attacks. And they damaged your MP. Once your MP went down to zero, you would faint. And so I would have to prepare.

That’s why I went to the church. It was my first time since coming to this world. I hadn’t even gone to one in my previous life.

I hadn’t gone because I never had a reason to.

“Father. I’ve come to receive some holy water.”

A father was like the chief of the church.

I had heard from the guild that this was where Adventurers gathered holy water.

“Then offer your prayers and gratitude to God. And then leave a donation of one silver for every bottle.”

He had clearly done this countless times. But I had not.

“Father, embarrassingly, I have never prayed to God before. Could you teach me how to do it?”

The father looked a little surprised, but taught me happily.

“Just kneel before the statue of Lord Memrikia, fold your hands together, and lower your head. And then with closed eyes, recite the holy scriptures. You do not need to say them out loud. But today, you can repeat after me.”

Memrikia was the god of the Memrikia church. This god was not humanoid, but was an abstract shape that resembled a sphere with lines stretching out in all directions.

But as I had no interest in religion, the name meant nothing to me.

“Great Lord Memrikia, who bestows on us the sun, earth and moon. The forest and seas and blessings of nature and our status. With our daily prayers we praise your eternal reign and offer our gratitude for the favors you grant us.”

What!? Lord Memrikia granted status? I was suddenly very interested.

“What is it?”

“Father, is status something granted from Lord Memrikia?”

“You did not know? Long ago, humans were frail beings that did nothing but cower in fear at monsters. But Lord Memrikia took pity on us, and granted us ‘status’ and ‘skills.’ After that, humans were able to step out into the world. And so the world you see before you now is all thanks to Lord Memrikia.”

Was it the same god that invited me to this world?

But didn’t they say something like, ‘I made statuses because it looked amusing’? I probably should keep that to myself.

Also, wasn’t there supposed to be a god who was ‘in charge of statuses’?

“What is the name of the god of statuses?”

“Statuses were made by Lord Memrikia, and everything including statuses are a gift of Lord Memrikia.”

So there was only one god as far as they were concerned.

Hmm. I saw three possibilities.

It was a different god to begin with.

Lord Memrikia was the god who managed statuses.

Lord Memrikia was the god who invited me to this world, and there was a different god who managed statuses.

“And what god do they serve at the temple?”

“They are merely serving a different face of the same god, Lord Memrikia.”

I see. So it probably isn’t option 1. Since they have actual baptisms and grant skills.

I don’t know about 2 or 3. In that case…

“I’m sorry. I’m just really curious. Could you recite the holy scripture one more time?”

“It is a good thing that your heart is drawing closer to God. Now listen carefully.”

“Great Lord Memrikia, who bestows on us the sun, earth and moon. The forest and seas and blessings of nature and status. With our daily prayers we praise your eternal reign and offer our gratitude for the favors you grant us.”

(Thank you for bringing me to this world. I am grateful to you every day. I would not have been able to survive without skills and statuses. I am thankful for this system.)

“You seemed to be very passionate when praying? Is there something on your mind?”

“I wanted to make up for all the time I lived in this world and did not thank Lord Memrikia.”

“How very noble. If you are interested in the teachings of the church, there are services during the mornings of the day of light. You will be very welcome.”

“I will be glad to, if time permits me.”

In this world, the days of the week are named after fire, wind, water, earth, dark, and light to make up one week. A month has thirty days, and a year has three hundred and sixty days.

But for some reason, the recast time for Reverse Age is three hundred and sixty-five days.

I donated three silvers and received three bottles of holy water from the church. And then I headed out to town.

As I walked around and searched for an inn to stay at, I discovered something interesting at a tool store. It was a ‘holy water sheath.’ When it came to undead, you used holy water by coating it over weapons or pouring it directly onto enemies.

However, how could you do that if you had a shield in one hand or were dual-wielding swords? Some might have a friend to do it, but that wouldn’t work if you were alone. And that’s where this item could come in handy.

It was the right size for a single-handed sword, but was a little larger than an ordinary sheath. And it was filled with a sponge-like material that would absorb liquid. And so if you poured holy water into it and sheathed your sword, it would get coated.

Of course, the blade would rust if you left it in, so you would have to clean it one you were finished fighting.

“Bought!”

I made the decision immediately.

Aside from that, there was even an anti-ghost ‘holy sword’ that allowed you to fill the handle with holy water so that it would slowly seep out of a hole and run down the blade.

Eventually, I managed to find an inn and got a room so I could plan for tomorrow.

I would not head to the royal capital until I could recast Reverse Age. This was certain.

And so I would take on quests at the Suimel guild in the meantime. If possible, I would like to fight both kobolds and undead.

I thought of such things as I controlled the flow of magic energy. I didn’t even notice it until I used some everyday magic before going to sleep.

“Blessing of the Ability God.”

The words that had appeared under Titles in my status.