SSBF 04

Chapter 4

As expected.

The temples were rotten to the core.

[It’s suspicious that they demanded tributes. In the end, the only ones who benefited were the higher-ups in the temple. Those villains.]

I blurted out the deductions I had made as a reader.

[…You’re right. They’re already completely corrupted.]

Agatha’s voice was filled with dejection.

It was infuriating even for me, a mere reader, so how difficult must it have been for Agatha, who had to witness it firsthand?

[The oracle we delivered about the epidemic was real.]

[What? Then it wasn’t entirely fabricated?]

[You could say it was manipulated. The epidemic started because the Grand Temple was secretly trafficking people, herding them together, and abusing them in unsanitary conditions like livestock. The temple created the epidemic, and in the end, they used it to extort money.]

[Crazy…]

[We chose devout and honest people to deliver the oracle. So that it wouldn’t be distorted. So that the methods to prepare could reach the previous Emperor… But the result wasn’t good.]

They were worse than what was described in the book. At this point, they’re not a temple, but a criminal organization.

How wronged the gods must have felt.

[Dorothy. We’re too weak now to intervene in human affairs. We can barely manage to prevent large-scale natural disasters.]

[They’re truly terrible.]

[Right? So, Dorothy.]

Agatha’s subdued voice changed to a gentle tone.

[I have a favor to ask.]

The situation was pitiful, but I felt uneasy.

Based on what I had heard, it seemed like a request I wouldn’t be able to handle was coming.

[Please convey our story to the Emperor.]

[What?]

[Persuade the Emperor to clear up his misunderstandings about us. Tell him we’ll help him dismantle the temples. So, let’s heal the empire together.]

[Are you seriously asking me to talk to the Emperor one-on-one and persuade him?]

[Yes, Dorothy. You’re the only one.]

[What? No, I think my hearing’s gotten worse. I can’t hear you well.]

The Emperor was a virtuous ruler to the citizens of the empire, but ruthless to those he considered enemies. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill those who committed evil deeds. Thanks to him, the heads of countless corrupt officials were displayed throughout the empire.

And that’s not all. As someone with the grand goal of eradicating the temples from the empire, he was also incredibly intelligent.

He was good at political maneuvering, willing to make sacrifices for his goals, and outwardly cheerful, but inwardly distrustful of everyone. He was also incredibly stubborn.

[Dorothy. Please.]

[I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that!]

I desperately feigned ignorance and climbed onto the bed.

The situation is pitiful. I want to help.

Since I decided to survive by using the gods, I wanted to help them to some extent.

But the Emperor? The Emperor?

It was no different from walking into my own death. Especially since I’m trying to join forces with the gods to avoid dying.

It seemed better to just sleep.

[Dorothyyy.]

I tried to ignore Agatha’s voice, spread the blanket, and lay down.

But then.

Crack.

Crash.

“Aaack!”

The bed collapsed beneath me.

“Agatha… is this… did you gods…?”

[…Um, well. Our Captain of the Knights is a little angry.]

Typical gods.

How hot-tempered do you have to be to break a bed?

[He didn’t mean to break it, he was just angry…?]

[But why is it broken…?]

[It seems Dorothy’s connection with us is manifesting divine power. This is… as strong as the power we used to have… We’re all surprised.]

So, even though the gods didn’t intend it, this happened ‘because of me,’ ‘because of my constitution.’ Even though their divine power has weakened, it’s manifesting at its former strength!

[We really didn’t mean to do it. I’m sorry.]

If this happens when one of them is angry, what happens when all eight are angry?

That’s even worse. It seems my life would be in danger if I don’t cooperate.

“A-Alright.”

So please don’t kill me.

[I’ll cooperate.]

[Dorothy…! Sob. Thank you. If our divine power weakens further, we might disappear. The disappearance of gods is a very serious matter.]

I think it would be nice if the gods disappeared.

Having been force-fed misfortune, I had become somewhat pessimistic.

[If we disappear, the spirits will be next. Mountains, water, wind. If the beings that govern nature disappear, things will become chaotic. Then the animals will die, the insects, the plants… and humans will slowly wither and die as well.]

Images of streets being swept away by floods and burning mountainsides automatically played in my mind.

This is more serious than a god turning evil.

Since the novel focused on romance, the story of the empire after the Emperor’s reforms wasn’t detailed.

So, I didn’t know the fate of the gods or the empire.

But if the gods were right, a massive natural disaster would have struck after the Emperor’s victory, killing all humans.

[I’ll do my best!]

I have to prevent both the gods from cursing and the gods from disappearing. Either way, I’ll end up dead.

So, I reluctantly nodded.

[You’re enthusiastic! Good! If you can just persuade the Emperor, we’ll help you live happily ever after, Dorothy.]

[Happily? How?]

[What do you want? Wealth? Fame? A handsome man? A healthy life?]

The list was more blatantly secular than I expected. It seemed the gods here weren’t so demanding of purity and integrity.

[I…]

Of course, everything Agatha suggested was appealing, but for a long time, I had only wanted one thing.

For me to not see what others can’t see.

To become utterly ordinary.

What I want is the same, both in my past life and in this new life.

But if I help Agatha, I can make a deal. Who knows, I might be able to change this cursed constitution of mine…

[I can’t think of anything right now. Can I tell you later?]

I couldn’t bring myself to say, “Please stop talking to me” to Agatha’s face, so I changed the subject.

[Then tell me when you think of something. Anything, unconditionally! I’ll grant your wish. One… is too few. Two, I’ll grant you two wishes. But nothing evil, like murder or theft.]

[Anything, unconditionally?]

[Yes. Think carefully.]

[…Okay!]

[Do your best! Go and meet the Emperor!]

The encouragement was nice, but the words that followed made my heart sink.

[But it seems like it will be very difficult for me to meet the Emperor.]

The problem was that I was a vagrant, possessing a character who wasn’t even an extra in the novel.

Let alone meeting the Emperor, I’d be lucky to even see his face once.

[The best way would be to go to the temple and reveal myself as the Saintess…]

[I’m not keen on joining forces with the temple. The Emperor hates the temple.]

[That’s true. Since the Emperor is wary of the temple, if we side with them to meet the Emperor, he might avoid us.]

Avoidance would be fortunate.

The Emperor was grinding his teeth at the mere mention of the temple.

The appearance of a Saintess would benefit the temple, and if the Emperor noticed my existence first, he might eliminate the Saintess without hesitation.

I need a shield.

Not a literal shield. A shield that would prevent Theodore from easily killing me.

For example, fame.

If more people see me and become aware of my existence, even the Emperor wouldn’t be able to easily eliminate me.

[I need to become famous.]

The answer came easily.

[That way, I’ll be able to meet the Emperor, and the attention on a famous person will act as a shield, ensuring my safety.]

Becoming ‘famous.’ Spreading the news of the Saintess’s appearance to the point that even children on the street would know.

[That makes sense, Dorothy! You’re absolutely right. It would be easy if you became a renowned strategist in a war, but the world is at peace…]

[War?]

Come to think of it, Agatha was a strategist who played an active role in the war of founding when she was human.

Her remarkable strategies led the war to victory while minimizing casualties.

The strategies that shone brighter than the king’s authority and the swordsman’s prowess were talked about for a long time, and soon became more famous than the king’s name or the name of the general at the forefront.

It speaks volumes that Agatha’s name was much more famous than even the first Emperor’s.

As a result, she was worshipped as a supreme god. That’s how great she was at strategy.

[Or there’s the method of becoming a priest and gaining fame by receiving accurate oracles. If you become individually famous that way, I don’t know if the Grand Temple will stay put.]

[They won’t stay put.]

We brainstormed a few more ideas, but none were realistic or helpful.

[…That.]

In the end, what crossed my mind was a very familiar method.

It couldn’t be helped, since it’s what I’ve seen the most in my life.

[How about… giving fortune tellings?]

[Fortune telling? What’s fortune telling?]

Agatha asked in a puzzled voice.

Mother, the daughter who threw such a fit saying she hated it is finally becoming a shaman.