Chapter 42

Chapter 42

Pluto’s Black Star

042 ? Pluto’s Black Star #1

I was somewhat flustered by the sudden attention directed at me.

This was because I have a somewhat shy side where my face gets hot and I feel very embarrassed when situations like this arise.

“What am I supposed to be?”

Confused, I asked, and Cassandra approached me, lightly stepping on the muddy water and placing her hand on my shoulder before speaking to the surrounding people.

“Hassan of Samaria is someone favored by the grace of the God of Light more than anyone else here. His prayers might even reach the silent higher realm of Hypos.”

A murmur spread through the crowd at Cassandra’s words.

“Was there any grace upon that guy?”

“The God of Light is famous for not bestowing grace, after all.”

“Still, the priestess of the Sun Temple Delphi wouldn’t lie….”

“Quiet.”

The crowd, which had begun to buzz with their varied murmurs, was immediately silenced by a single quiet word from Hippolyte.

Hippolyte pushed through the crowd of adventurers, including the Maiden of the Sword, and stood face-to-face right in front of me.

Ugh, people in this world don’t seem to understand the concept of personal space as they just close the distance so abruptly, making me feel quite perplexed at times.

“Can you do it?”

“That… uh…”

How can someone look straight into another person’s eyes like this?

As I avoided her gaze, the incident at the spring the previous day came to mind, and I felt bl**d rushing to my lower half.

“If you succeed in this task, I’ll propose a promotion to Bronze Tier to the chamber master Valtma.”

What? A promotion to Bronze Tier?

At that statement, fireworks and parades blew up in my head.

I thought I’d have to stay stuck in Iron Tier for another half year to a year, but things seem to be going better than expected, making my neck sweat cold.

“Then, let’s see what you’ve got. Offer your prayer.”

And so, I found myself surrounded by the circle of adventurers as I began an eccentric prayer.

Everyone was watching me with a mix of anticipation, curiosity, and suspicion, making my mouth dry and my palms sweat profusely.

“The prayer of a Samaritan blessed with grace, huh. I’m somewhat expecting it, too.”

Hippolyte, who urged me on, but as I’d mentioned before, I have nearly no experience with religious activities.

Even if you suddenly ask me to pray, I don’t know how or where to start. The only thing that comes to mind is the ritual and bowing that took place four times a year. d*mn, should I do that?

“Hey, could you spread out some food around here? Just take a few things from what you have and lay them out.”

In response to my question, Hippolyte nodded subtly with a flick of her chin. Soon enough, one of the Maiden of the Sword quietly took out some food from her bundle and reluctantly placed it in front of me.

Since placing the food directly on the wet ground didn’t seem right, I took out my alligator leather and placed dried fruits, grains, and some alligator meat I’d received onto it.

It somewhat resembled an offering table, though my father, who was the eldest son of a large family, would’ve scolded me furiously, foaming at the mouth, if he saw how loosely and carelessly it was prepared.

Father was always passionate about matters of offerings and rituals.

Anyway, standing in front of this makeshift offering table, I performed two reverent bows neatly to the wet ground in a composed stance.

Two bows? Shouldn’t it be three, since it’s to a god? d*mn, let’s just do one more.

Whoosh.

“What are you doing?”

“I don’t know, this might just be the Samaritan way of praying.”

“Quite primitive, isn’t it?”

“This is the way of the ancients.”

Amidst the murmurs of adventurers, Cassandra’s calm voice stood out distinctly.

“Before the completion of shrines in ancient times, they used to offer food and items for tribute and then pray. Burning offerings and giving sacrifices were common practices among the ancients.”

“Sure enough, this is the way of the olden days.”

“So, let’s wait and see what happens next.”

…

After my quick prayer in front of the simple offering table, the surrounding crowd fell into an awkward silence.

The only sounds were the dense fog around us and the cries of creatures echoing from somewhere, filling our ears.

After a while, the fog showed no signs of lifting.

It’s natural, of course.

Lately, with everything that’s been going on, I had been ignoring the fact that I don’t believe in the existence of this world’s gods and have never prayed.

d*mn, how embarrassing. If nothing happens like this, I’m going to get beaten, right?

Just as I was getting worried.

“Brother Hassan of Samaria. How about offering some praise or hymns?”

Cassandra spoke up from behind, and for a moment, I felt as if a lifeline had been thrown to me from the edge of a pit.

“Praise?”

“Yes, even a brief accolade will do. Do as much as you can do. Reciting incantations will be fine too. Perhaps in the Samaritan dialect—”

You want me to praise the god? But nothing comes to mind. I’m not exactly the type who knows how to flatter others with fancy words. Hallelujah? d*mn, wrong religion.

The only incantations or prayers I’ve ever done are absurd ones like “Long live chaos” or something along those lines.

d*mn, I’m in it for the win. Embarrassment is free.

“Long live the sun!”

Just as I shouted an awkward and ridiculous form of praise.

Ding.

“You can invoke power by spending 200 mission points.”

“Your current mission points: 217.”

“Yes.”

“No.”

What the hell? Characters have appeared! A format of letters I have never seen before. There are even two options: “Yes” and “No.”

With the mention that I can invoke power by spending mission points, a strange sense of hope and déjà vu washes over me. Although, I realize that it requires the expenditure of 200 points, and I have no idea if that is a large or small amount.

“Nothing’s happening though, right?”

“Looks like it’s probably a scam, huh?”

Without any further hesitation in front of the people who were gradually casting skeptical eyes at me, I moved my hand.

Bronze Tier isn’t that far off, right? d*mn, time for my own upgrade! More money! A more comfortable life!

Ding.

As I moved my hand to touch the “Yes” option, it disappeared in a mobile-game-like flick and sound.

Now, what’s supposed to happen—right about then.

WHOOSH-BANG!

Something flew through the fog, grazed past my face, and plunged into the ground. Simultaneously, the fog that had been enveloping the surroundings evaporated in an instant, revealing a bright sky.

d*mn, what just flew by?

Or, is “flew” even the right word? The speed and weight were unimaginable, making it feel like a meteorite or missile had been plunged into the ground.

Indeed, the ground beside me looked like something substantial had collided, digging quite a hole. And right at the center of it, it was—.

“An arrow…?”

Who said that? Probably Luna. That’s indeed what it was.

Instead of fletching, it was shimmering with a dazzling golden glow. It was an extremely surreal sight.

However, it soon disappeared, scattering into the air like burning logs that had run out of fuel.

“Whoa, d*mn! The fog has completely lifted!”

“It’s not just the fog. Look at the ground. The mud is completely dried!”

“What the hell!? What just happened? I didn’t see anything! I just heard a loud sound!”

The adventurers looked at each other in amazement due to the strange weather changes. Meanwhile, Hippolyte, examining the indented ground, spoke.

“The food and leather you laid down are gone. It seems the God of Light has accepted the offering. In return, the ground has sunk deeply here. And this heat—.”

Hippolyte kneeled where the arrow had struck, sweeping her hands over the ground.

Beside her, the priestess also knelt and touched the ground, adding a few words.

“Even though He always remained silent despite offering sacrifices, I didn’t think He’d descend such a miracle instantly… Ugh, ugh, ughh…”

Cassandra, who had been talking well, suddenly started shaking and convulsed.

“Ugh, guh, hhgh!”

d*mn, what’s happening? Is she having an epileptic seizure?

In this world, which easily harbors various mental illnesses, it wouldn’t be strange for someone to have peculiar afflictions, even for a priestess who wears fancy clothes and eats only the best.

“Priestess of Delphi, why, why are you like this? What’s happening!?”

Even Hippolyte couldn’t maintain her calm while watching Cassandra tremble in severe pain, and she tightly shook her frail shoulders back and forth.

“Snap out of it!”

“Uh… uh… It’s… the revelation!”

“A revelation?”

“Uh… D, from the depths beneath the earth, a sun will rise for three days and nights, illuminating the land high and the deep waters of mountains and seas, leaving no dark spot in the world… But the sun sinks back into the earth, breaking its light and fiery crown by an ancient vow….”

*

Cassandra’s consciousness returned some tens of minutes later after she had lost it, babbling incoherently.

“Uh, ugh…”

Behind me, a woman woke up groggily, groaning as if suffering from a hangover. Soon, she realized she was piggybacked on the back of a tall, dark man and exclaimed in surprise.

“What in the world is going on here?”

“I picked you up when you passed out. You’re awake now, so please get off. You’re heavy.”

It’s just as inconvenient as losing at rock-paper-scissors and having to carry extra luggage.

I thought it would be nice to carry such soft-looking women, but carrying her while walking several kilometers under the scorching sun with all the baggage made me feel anything but good.

“If I…? More importantly, it’s embarrassing to show such behavior, and I apologize for the inconvenience.”

After getting off my back, Cassandra gave a slight shake to her body. Soon after, she quietly addressed me.

“Hassan of Samaria. Once this mission is finished, if you have some free time, it’s better to visit Delphi. It seems the God of Light has some intent towards you.”

“Delphi?”

Where is this Delphi located? People say it’s the main headquarters of the sect that worships the sun god, but traveling between cities in this world without cars or buses is no easy feat. That’s why terms like ‘journey’ or ‘expedition’ exist.

“As a mere mortal, that’s all I can share with you.”

With those words, Cassandra distanced herself from me. Hence, I couldn’t ask her anything else.

“Hmph, ugh, ugh…”

At that moment, Luna paused and stopped walking next to me.

“What’s wrong?”

“I think I sprained my ankle. There’s a rock.”

This girl, who had been walking well through the mud, has sprained her ankle on dry land.

It’s somewhat similar to how after enjoying a trampoline and jumping around happily, when you finally land on the ground, walking becomes difficult.

Likely, her feet have become accustomed to the mud and haven’t yet adjusted to the dry land.

“Ah, it hurts—.”

“Eh, quit it. Let me check. Visibly, it doesn’t seem seriously injured.”

With my hands that heal mysterious illnesses, shouldn’t a sprained ankle heal easily?

As I was about to place my hands on Luna’s ankle, she stopped me instead.

“E, excuse me, but it’s a bit embarrassing to touch ankles in front of people…”

“Ah”

Thinking about it, people don’t let just anyone touch their feet. Definitely, in this crowd, touching such private areas would cause more unnecessary talk.

“Rustling…”

“The Samaran prayer works…?”

“Multiply the food and bow…”

After the mysterious sacrificial event, people began whispering amongst themselves, keeping a distance from me.

“What’s happening there?”

Having noticed the abnormal stop, Hippolyte halted the march and looked back.

“Is there a problem?”

“No, there’s nothing.”

“Our schedule is already delayed from the plan. With the fog lifted and the ground dried, we should move quickly now.”

And with that, she resumed walking. This was truly merciless. The strides of Hippolyte leading the team were almost like running, making it quite exhausting to keep up.

“Luna, what should we do? Shall we rest a bit here?”

“No, we can’t do that. I need to upgrade to Bronze Tier…”

And so, despite her limping, Luna continued her journey. Watching her piteous form, I asked.

“Should I carry you then?”

“Could you, really? Thank you, Hassan.”

Lowering my back, Luna hung on to my neck with her arms in a gesture as if she had been waiting for it. Added to her backpack weight, she was quite heavy, but due to my increased strength lately, it wasn’t unbearably heavy. Luna had been thin and light due to eating poorly anyway.

“Mmm…”

However, I could feel something soft and warm pressing against my back due to the weight of her bag.

In addition, through my hands grasping her bottom, her smooth and delicate skin was transmitted without any barrier.

“Isn’t it heavy?”

“No, it’s fine.”

“But isn’t it hot? I’ll blow some wind for you.”

“Hmph…” The wind she blew on the back of my neck was somewhat cute. But, for some unknown reason, my body felt hotter instead.

[Work Postscript]

A huge thank you goes to soto, Kadeom, M.F., GullDan, and especially honor7 who gifted several single coupons! I deeply thank all of you…

Many thanks also to those who gave me script coupons… 😭

As always, thank you for your recommendations and comments before leaving…

Time to dive back into breathing exercises… Huff Huff…!

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