Chapter 85: Sermon of the Crimson Dragonewt.

Chapter 85: Sermon of the Crimson Dragonewt.

Acquisition requirement fulfilled. [Delayed Cast Lv. 1] acquired

Multiple proficiency requirements fulfilled. [Concentration Lv. 3] [Singing Lv. 8] [Dancing Lv. 6] [Musician Lv. 4] [Woodworking Lv. 4] gained

Custom magic gained: [Prayer]

Snows here, winter is about to start

Lets cuddle up together, around the fire with stew, ooh, ooh, ooh ooh oh!

Have fun, turn this time so merry, yeah

New Year with my family, is all I could really wish for

So, how was that, Tasianna? I think that would make a good chorus for what Im planning for the song. Hmm, the melody would be something like this, I shoved my blue-haired friend a wooden slab covered with black letters into her hands before using [Aerokinesis] to reproduce the song that would guide my lyrics.

It certainly flows better than your previous attempts, although I must criticize your pronunciation a bit, Lady Hestia, Tasianna responded as she scrutinized the slab, correcting any typos I made with a piece of charcoal. Lady Hestia, considering you have nine extra minds, you randomly made a typo here. I believe Priest Kushlekzar did mention this was one of your weaknesses you must overcome, if you wish to construct your custom spells more consistently.

Uh, Im sorry, I responded with my tail lying flat on the ground, scratching my cheek as Tasianna handed me back my slab. Jeez, youre so strict now. Did you really have to take Saoris advice so seriously?

Enough complaining, Hestia, she is doing this for you, speaking of the devil, Saori approached us while carrying a plate filled with rice balls, before sitting herself down on the vacant wooden chair. Besides, to me, she is not that strict as you might think. Anyway, enjoy the onigiri and let me clean your slab, Create Water.

A light blue magic circle appeared on Saoris hand, pouring water down on my slab as she wiped away all my typos and Tasiannas corrections, leaving only my lyrics behind in a more readable state. She then laid it down and joined us for breakfast, eating the onigiri and the other dishes she made for us three.

I believe today is the 20th of AutumnSun, exactly a week after we arrived back at Carine Village after our bandit subjugation Quest. As you might have guessed, the welcome back celebration was pretty grandiose as Colwyn, Harriet, Lorena, and the rest of the villagers practically charged at us to greet the formerly captured villagers the moment they saw us.

Family members would embrace and cry on each others shoulders, releasing all the pent-up emotions they built up from awaiting their captured relatives return. Friends would become raucous as they either cried or laughed with each other, all elated that the nightmare was finally over.

Of course, the mercs and the non-Carine villagers couldnt exactly do the same. It was pretty awkward for them as they had to look at the wholesome moment with wry smiles, aware they couldnt interrupt this moment.

Mister Kushlekzars party and mine couldnt help but watch the scene with pride. I mean, look at what we did. It might have been dangerous fighting those bandits, but the results speak for themselves. Happy faces and reuniting family and friends were already rewarding enough for me. It was a real tear-jerker.

After everything cooled down, the hecticness of getting everybody inside the village was a real headache as the watchmen took their job pretty seriously. Well, they were getting paid for it, and orders are orders, right? Couldnt be helped that most of the prisoners lost their IDs after getting capturedalso couldnt be helped that I was the reason for everything turning to ash during my rampagewhoops.

Colwyn thanked us for a job well done, ready to write a report so we could hand in the Quest to receive our money from the merc guild. However, instead of accepting it now, Mister Kushlekzar told him that he would stay in the vicinity of the village for a few days to rest, while the mercs we saved were still not well enough to wander back to the nearest town on foot.

We, on the other hand, received the white grace money from Colwyn including a report to make us eligible for the reward money. However, as we knew they needed the money for themselves, our party paid them to allow us to stay in the village for over the winter.

Of course, Colwyn wanted to deny it, explaining it would be inappropriate for him to take money from us, his benefactors. In addition, he found the idea of us living among serfs unappealing.

He offered us to inform his lord about it so we could find proper accommodations at his mansion, befitting of my "status". I know I should have realized this back then, but I think when I did my "formal greeting" when we first met, I gave him the impression that I was a noblewoman priestess of Aurena.

I know there was royalty among dragons as I had the [Princess] title, but I didnt know if dragonewts had nobles, so I couldnt confirm his suspicions. I do know that Loatryx, the dragonewt country, was a vassal of Kargryx, the dragon empire, my supposed home. At least, I think thats how it worked after Tasianna explained it to me.

Anyway, as that guy was a noble, I refused him outright. Except if I really, really, have to, I dont want to meet an aristocrat. Colwyn still insisted to the very end but eventually caved when Harriet told him it might be rude if he kept this up. He quickly recovered his posture and welcomed us to stay at his house if we wanted to.

Once again, our party went against his expectations and instead told him we would like to help him with the construction of the village, in exchange for our very own home.

After we were away for six days, the village made progress with the rebuild, constructing two additional houses in our absence as the villagers were absolutely sure we would save the ones the bandit kidnapped. They werent very complicated, so it made sense the villagers were able to finish them so soon.

After Colwyn announced our intentions, the villagers were naturally overjoyed. A priestess of Aurena that can wield holy magic, as witnessed by our saved relatives and friends, wishes to stay in OUR village? OMG, what an honor!, or at least something of that kind was mumbled among them.

It also coincided with the wishes of the people I saved. Remember the whole white grace stuff? About the fact people actually have to pay for priests to cast healing spells on them? Well, the people I cast it on during my stay in the bandit camp couldnt exactly pay me back, as most of their money was stolen by the bandits, so they were distressed that they couldnt think of an alternative payment.

In the end, we agreed that they would help me construct my party's house in their village while also sharing their winter rations with us. We gave everything we recovered from the bandits back to the villagers, as it was the right thing to do, resolving the village's food problems.

With the help of the saurians and the villagers, we finished my partys house on the same day, and we were able to enjoy a relatively large feast during the evening. I gotta say, earth magic and wind magic make construction work pretty fast.

Earth spells create a firmer foundation with strong walls, while wind magic enables precise cuts of tree logs. My job in the construction was simply creating the resources, while Krim-Slak, Grazlahta, Colwyn, and the villagers assembled them. Akasht, the lovable giant, did what he loved and carried all the construction materials.

With that done, I left the construction to the experts, the men, and went to the women to prepare for the welcome back feast. Lorena and her mother Linda took the chance to personally thank me for everything I did for their family by promising that they would serve their family recipe to me. You can guess that I was hyped about it, so I wanted to help them prepare

Too bad that a Lady like me was not allowed to dirty her hands. Harriet explained most of the villagers were appreciative of what I did for them, however, they felt nervous that a priestess of my refined background would damage her hands while cooking. Not only did I honor them with the white grace but my display of the arcane was so noble-like.

Ooooh, the tragedy. If I hadnt exposed my refined education and formal background, I could have experienced the joy of life with themUrgh, they really looked like they had a ton of fun while cooking. Sitting around and sipping tea was boring me to death.

Well, watching them cook did entice my appetite, though, and I was rewarded for my patience during the feast. Everything was simple and European-like, not exotic like what the lizardmen made, but it was filling. Especially the rice, which complemented all their sauces and soup. They truly showed that rice has been a part of their lives for a while now with their recipes.

A few days passed after the feast, where I continued helping the villagers construct more houses while taking different lessons from Mister Kushlekzar or Tasianna depending on the day. I would continue under his tutelage to widen my horizons as a mage when Mister Kushlekzar had time, while Tasianna would continue helping me with my letters. I still had to overcome my illiteracy, right?

Speaking of houses, I was currently with Saori and Tasianna inside our own right now, enjoying breakfast as the roosters just woke us up. Our home was medieval, I guess you can call it. It was quite minimalistic as you might expect, only having the essential furniture and a hearth in the same room where we were sleeping.

Compared to the other villagers' houses, ours didnt have a place for livestock to live like theirs. Instead, that space was occupied by our very own garden and work out space. Yes, you heard me correctly, we had a garden. Remember how I would collect seeds and plants in the Belzac forest? Well, now that we could finally relax I took the chance to build everything up with Tasiannas help.

Saori did say, We finally can live like normal people, so why not enjoy it until spring comes? While as a former city girl, I couldnt call living in a village where people threw their bathroom business out of the window normal, it was certainly peaceful enough that I could deactivate [Detection Sensor] for a night.

Of course, I wont keep it up in case some bandits appear. I like to relax but not to the point of being useless.

Still, the feeling of sleeping on a bed, an actual bed instead of on a pile of foliage, wascomfortable. The villagers were nice enough to share some good bedding with us, but you cant improve too much from below mediocre, nonetheless, there was a certain charm of sleeping on it, knowing that you dont have to fear for your life. I slept like a boulder on the first day, even oversleeping, and it felt amazing.

Its still not what Im used to, but its better than a bush or a cave. Were also bathing now, instead of only showering, but our toilet situation hasnt improved though

As my party was enjoying breakfast, a sudden knock on the door drew our attention, as the voice of a woman resounded from behind it, Hestia, uh, Lady Hestia. Saori. Tasianna. I wish you a wonderful morning on this fine day of the Goddess! Chief Colwyn asked me to call for you if you are ready.

Urgh, verdammt.

A loud bang on the table could be heard as my neck lost all strength, letting my head crash on the it. Ignoring my dramatic showing of despair, Saori stood up and went to answer the door, Oh, good morning, Lorena. I wish you a fine LightDay, and may the Goddess find you well.

Ah, Saori, may the light guide you through the day, despite digging my face on the wooden table, I could audibly hear their conversation. Excuse me if I disturbed your breakfast but Chief Colwyn told me to inform you that everybody is awaiting Lady, uh, Priestess? Lady Priestess Hestia? Uhm, he said that everybody is waiting for her sermon.

Oh, right, thank you for informing us, Lorena. I will get Lady Hestia ready, Saori answered before closing the door. Once she was back to the table, she tapped my head with a finger, "You opted into this so do not think you can just run away, Hestia. If you have anybody to blame, then it would be yourself.

I raised my head with a mix of exasperation and reluctance, glancing at the book with the leather cover laying on my bed, Frankly, I have no idea why I agreed to Chief Colwyns request. Im not even a priestess or a shrine maiden. I dont even know the difference between them, so how am I qualified to preach about Aurenas majesty to a bunch of REAL followers?

Tasianna watched me swing my hands up in defeat before opening her mouth to comment, But you are [The Light], Lady Hestia. You have been chosen by the Light Goddess herself to be her champion, evident of her missive to you and the awakening of your titles true powers. There is nobody inside this village who is more qualified than you.

I agree with Tasianna, Hestia, Saori said with an encouraging smile. You knew nothing about Aurenas religion, besides the tidbits that Tasianna was able to teach you. However, although you were studying on your bodys new abilities in addition to learning custom spells, while also preparing songs, dance choreographies, and other tasks for your concert; youve been reading and memorizing that bible for the past week, diligently.

Placing my arm on the table, I used it to support my unenthusiastic head, I needed it to learn how to read, and it was a better practice material than the books I found in the Belzac forest. It was so annoyingly hard, though I let out a fatigued sigh, remembering the request that I, unfortunately, promised Chief Colwyn and his wife Harriet.

It happened the day after the feast while I was conjuring up [Terra Walls] and using [Wind Slash] to slice through tree logs, having decided to help in the construction work of the village. A few of the older villagers were a bit nervous about me helping out but as I wasnt part of the assembling itself, only the magic casting, no one outright refused my help.

However, the look of those who witnessed my healing magic, among them Lorena and her parents, never wavered their attention. They were respectful through the entire sermon.

For those willing to stay with me, let me prove my worth to you. Let us pray, I announced as I conjured up a white magic circle.

The combined gasping sound of the crowd was audible to all, none were more surprised that my naysayers. However, this only lasted for a second as everybody quickly understood what I was planning to do, clutching their hands together as they prayed.

The Goddess watches over us

In her name, we pray, we sing, we love

For her merciful light, protects us all

Purify the ground, wherever her feathers touches

The song went on and on as everybody followed my singing with their own, eventually sounding like a choir. White particles also began escaping everybodys bodies, which I confirmed to be mana particles with my [Mana Eyes], as they streamed to my magic circle.

After a bit, I released the magic circle from my hand and sent it into the air, all magic runes having been filled up already. Honestly speaking, from a mages point-of-view, the spell was already ready to be activated.

If you havent noticed it yet, this was a custom spell. Not just any custom spell, but one that I learned inside the bible. Call me surprised when I realized this truth, finding it pretty curious when I read the chant out loud.

When I questioned Tasianna and Mister Kushlekzar about it, they helped me decipher the magic runes and chant from the bible, writing the whole chant and how the spell worked. The spells name was [Prayer], a fitting name, as it was a buffing spell that would become stronger the more people prayed.

Prayer

A custom spell whose strength depends on the combined prayer of everybody before it is cast. Applies [Blessing of the Goddess of Light] to everybody within the spells effective range

Blessing of the Goddess of Light

A magical blessing granted by the spell [Prayer]. Using the combined prayers of the followers of Aurena, the Goddess of Light, this status effects alleviate any status ailments inflicted on everybody involved, if possible. Also empowers Health, Mana, and Stamina regeneration. Increases Strength, Intelligence, Vitality, and Wisdom by 10%/30%/60%/100% depending on the strength of the blessing. The strength of this blessing depends on how many prayers are given during the cast time of the spell [Prayer]

A pretty strong buffing spell if I may say so myself, although it required a long process to hit its maximum potential.

What I read from the book was that singing while the miracle was happening would empower the spell while giving prayer to Aurena, empowering her with our faith. The spell granted all those who prayed to her a blessing, which essentially was a spells activation effect.

From the point-of-view of a mage, it wasnt very truthful. The way they described it sounded like they were trying to glorify it, especially once you understood some of the intricacies of it. And what I mean with intricacies, I mean how this custom spell actually worked.

Ive tested this spell with Saori and Tasianna, and we noticed that the prayer wasnt needed. You see, whoever made this spell gave it the function to absorb the mana of those under its magic circle while they sang along with the caster. While singing wasnt a pre-requisite, the spell required people to willingly donate mana if the caster cannot pay the mana costs themselves, and I would guess this song was an effective way to do so without revealing the truth of the spell.

Pretty sneaky, you have to admit.

By my second cast, I was personally able to grant both of them [Blessing of the Goddess of Light (Moderate)] by purely using my own mana, although I do have to admit that it was pretty taxing. The important part was that I didnt need them to pray with me.

However, that didnt mean that praying together was completely useless. The mana cost for this spell was immense, and a single normal priest might not be able to satisfy the requirements to even cast it in the first place. I can do this cause I have a fuckton of mana.

It was pretty obvious that somebody from Aurenas church made this spell and that they spread this song to reinforce the faith one had to the Goddess of Light. Most villagers here were illiterate, so song lyrics were a great way to have them remember those words, seeing as everybody here aside from the really small kids could keep up with me.

Still, I do wonder why they had the instructions for the spell in a bible. Was it an instruction manual for priests in case they forget? Then why spread it through publicly sold books instead of personal, church-issued bibles?

Its weird surebut not really my problem to think about. Im only interested in its effectiveness and it has impressed me. Both Saori and Tasianna agreed that the stat increase was powerful, despite how much work and effort it demanded for a single cast.

I would definitely want to use it more often but unless I want to spend the mana to cast a "major" version which grants a 60% increase of stats, it would still be more effective to use the individual System buffing spells for that job.

Still, thanks for the custom spell, bible!

Thinking that enough mana was poured into the magic circle, I stopped singing and started the chant, Oh Goddess of Light, Aurena. I bid you, hear our prayers of gratitude and ardent worship so it may empower you ever more in your duties of overseeing us. I beg of you to hear us and grant upon us your blessing of light, Prayer!

I technically didnt have to chant [Prayer] anymore as the System registered the spell into my status board so it was affected by [Chant Revocation]. I still have to draw the magic circle and write the runes, however.

The white magic circle glowed for a solid second before releasing its effect. Light began descending on the congregation of villagers, basking them in light as everybody was quickly granted a powerful buff.

[Blessing of the Goddess of Light (Moderate)] inflicted on [Young Spark Inferno Dragon, Hestia Atusko]

Woah! A miracle of the Goddess! I was blessed! a villager screamed.

We are your servants, Goddess! Praise be to our Goddess! another shouted.

Thank you very much, Priestess! Thank you, one the villagers shouted, recognizing him as one of those I rescued from the bandits.

Appreciation was predominantly given to Aurena, as I expected, but the few people that actually gave me their thanks were the 25 Carine villagers, the ones from another village, and the mercs that I healed with healing spells. I hadnt noticed the mercs and the villagers who were captured with me be there, but their shouts were so distinct compared to the normal merry-go-happy villagers.

Thank you so very much for everything, Crimson Saintess, one of the mercs shoutedwait what?!

Crimson Saintess? Oh come on, what is that nickname? Thatll just cause a ton of trouble for m-!

39 humans have become your followers

Total follower count updated. Total follower of [Young Spark Inferno Dragon, Hestia Atsuko]: 46

Follower amount requirement fulfilled. [The Light] proficiency requirement fulfilled

Milestone reward gained: Unique Skill [Venerated Saintess Lv. 1]. Next Milestone unlocked: 100: [Sacred Amp]

"Heh," I let out as a smile merged my mouth. "And I would like to announce one more thing before this sermon ends. On the eve of the year's end, I will be performing an Idol concert for everybody in the village. On that night, I will become your shining light to welcome the new year, so ask of you from the depths of my heart to attend!"

It was clear that everybody was confused about what "Idol concert" meant, so I knew that I had to do something to give them an idea of what that meant. SoI danced and sang. It was only a sneak peek of what I will be performing on that day but I showed them everything.

The still unfinished lyrics, the mumble-jumble that was the music, and the chaotic mess that was my dance choreography. It was so imperfect. It was embarrassing. It was killing my soul as I was doing all of thisbut I didnt stop. Seeing everybody's eyes locked onto me, no one looked at me with disgust but instead were filled with interest, gave me the motivation to continue.

[Stage Fever (Minor)] inflicted on [Young Spark Inferno Dragon, Hestia Atusko]

The moment I was finished, I thanked everybody and immediately ran off the stage and rushed out of the plaza with my natural, unsuppressed Agility, speeding through the village like a speedster before arriving at my house.

I opened the door, closed it, identified where Tasianna was and jumped at her.

Lady Hesti-AAAAHHHHHH!

Tasianna, omg, omg, omg, omg, omg, omg, omg, omg. I cant believe I just did that, I cried out in embarrassment, feeling like I would turn into ash at any moment now. OMG, kyaaaahhhhh! What went through my brain that I would even think about showing anybody sensible that terrible stunt. Ahhh, I cant believe that I showed that in front of a whole crowd! Ahhhrgh, I want to wrap myself under my blanket and just die there!

OW! Lady Hestia youre actually starting to burn me here! Also, please, dont say that you want to die! Tasianna scolded me, trying to push my embrace away as my cheeks were burning hers.

After calming down for a bit, I retold Tasianna everything that happened, which she simply responded with, As expected from you, Lady Hestia, crossing her arms together before nodding her head proudly. Wanting to experiment with [Venerated Saintess], we quickly departed from our house, after leaving a note for Saori, to go to Mister Kushlekzar.

Oh yeah, maybe today would be good day to evolve.