The old woman's house was at the edge of town, and the carriage was moved there and placed next to it, and I was led inside. The old woman seemed to be sharing her spacious house with the young man who had just arrived, and when he sat down at the table, he began to relax as if it were his own home.

The man said, "Come in, come in," and we took our seats.

"It's a beautiful house.

　Feele says, looking around the room.

Feeel looks around the room and says, "Is it?　I haven't had a chance to clean it yet. I can't wait to get a wife.

　The man smiled and scratched his head.
　While they were moving the carriage to the house, they saw a lot of young men on the street, especially those with an old woman.
　I don't know if I can accept the relationship between the old woman and this man.

He looks like a member of this family, but is he your grandson?

I'm not sure if that's what you mean, but I'm curious.

　The only thing that bothers me is the age of some of the guys in town.
　Among the men I saw in the town, I saw very few who were middle-aged or older, and a good number of men and women of the right age, but there were very few children.
　There were also too many combinations with old women in terms of proportion, and everything felt alien.

By the way, where do you guys think you're going?

　The old woman poured a steamy drink from the kitchen, put it on a tray, and brought it to the table with trembling hands. Just to be sure, the brown drink is subjected to the magic of appraisal, but no particular poison is detected.

...... We're thinking of crossing the border through this area.

　It was a quick answer, and Celestia and the others nodded in agreement.

"The border?　You've chosen a very difficult path again. Do you guys have ...... tags?

No, of course not. No way. We just chose a deserted route to train.

　The old woman just replied, "I see," and went to the kitchen again.
　Seeing her, the man who had been sitting on a chair slowly stood up.

I'll help you.

You just sit there.

But you have to prepare dinner, right?　I'll take care of that. You go rest.

I'll take care of it. You can help me.

　The old woman's words revealed the fact that the young man in front of her was not her grandson, but her son.
　As soon as Celestia heard this, she turned pale and grabbed my sleeve.

What do you mean?

You can't ask me that. ...... You're not adopted, are you?

　I'm not sure what you mean.
　The old woman and the young men we saw in town might be father and son as well.
　If that's the case, the composition of the town's inhabitants will become stranger and stranger.

I don't think so. ......

　An unpleasant thought flashed through my mind.
　Considering that Chlorina had been eliminated from the town and all the inhabitants were apostates, it was quite possible that they were embracing paganism.
　No, there is no point in abandoning Chlorinism without accepting it.
　It is impossible for a person who has been clinging to Chlorinism to suddenly live without clinging to anything.

I think it's best to be clear, Master Walth.

　In the event that you've got a lot more than one, you'll be able to get a lot more.

---- Speaking of which, I heard that this Cassandra Kingdom is currently at war with the Rain Kingdom, and this town has a lot of male hands.

"...... I don't know anything about that.

　The old woman with the knife has no change in her hand, and the son standing next to her has no change either.

I don't know if it's true or not, but I've heard rumors of immortals. I've heard rumors of immortals, true or false, who use the bones of the dead to create the illusion of resurrection.

...... Why are you telling me this now?

　The sound of the knives, which had been rhythmically hammered by the old woman, stopped.
　The man also stopped washing the vegetables and turned his head towards me.

I've heard that this rumor has something to do with paganism. I've heard that this rumor has something to do with paganism, and since this town seems to have apostatized from the religion of Chlorina, I thought you might know something about it.

What are you ...... doing here to ruin our lives?

　The old woman looked back at him with a knife in her hand, but the man made no move to stop her.

Mother, you've gone too far.

"Because they're here to destroy our lives, .......

　The man took the knife from the old woman and placed it gently on the cutting board.
　It's very likely that the man is not a human being, judging from the reaction of the old woman.
　I wasn't the only one who thought there was a connection between the unnatural number of male hands in this town and the alchemy dolls.

"Is that son of yours really human?

　Neya asked in a voice so cold and inorganic that I could not feel its temperature.

Don't you recognize him?　You're not really human, are you? ...... I still think you're suspicious. You must be working for the Church.

I told you that's not true. We'd rather know who created it.

What the hell do you want with the imam? Say it. You can't say it. You must have been sent by the church to spy on us.

　The old woman approached us with a look of anger on her face that you wouldn't expect from an old woman.
　The old woman said that the imam ---- knew something about the person who created the alchemy doll that we didn't know until now.

"The Chlorina cult didn't save anyone. My son and the young men of the village were killed by the government, but the imam saved us. What can you do for us?

---- But that doesn't mean they've come back to life.

Shut up, when we say we're alive, we're alive.



　The old woman is about to grab Celestia, but the man holds her back.
　It's an ironic scene, but I'm just reading the memory of how the son in the old woman would act.

That wrought metal doll is a desecration of the dead. It's a toy for the old woman, not a comfort object, is it?

Of course it's not for comfort. ...... My son is alive. ......

　The old woman sank into a nearby chair, leaning against the man.
　Just as she was relieved to have regained some of her composure, she saw a moving figure staring out the window.
　It was a child whose head was just sticking out of the window, and when his eyes met mine, he hurriedly sucked on his whistle and made a sound that echoed throughout the town.