"You asked me to pick you up, Mr. Foca?"



　We came to the Adventurers' Guild looking for a request and were informed by the guild that we had a request from the S-class adventurer Saintess Focha, with whom we had once explored the dangerous ruins discovered deep in the Carbang Mine.



"Yes. She wants you to come to the Temple of the Great Mother Goddess in the Holy City as soon as possible. The details of the request will be explained there, and you can decide whether you accept the request or not at that time. The reward is 1000 gold coins, and 10 gold coins will be paid separately in advance for the cost of transportation to the site. You are not obliged to repay this amount even if you do not accept the request.



"Ten gold coins for expenses with no obligation to repay is pretty generous. The reward is also quite large, so this could be a very tricky request.



Yes, it is. But the fact that they say it's okay to refuse the request makes it sound like trouble.



　Liliela and Mina are pondering.



"But I get 10 gold coins for free!　If you fly away with flight magic, you won't have to pay for a carriage and you can save money on lodging!　You should take it!"



　As expected of Mr. Megli.



"Oh, and if there are any of your friends with proven ability, please bring them along too.



"You mean I can bring everyone?"



Yes, because I'm nominating you for Mr. Lex's party, not just one S-rank adventurer.



　So it's not that much trouble, is it?



"Yes, yes!　I think you should take it!"



　Mr. Megli agrees with you without a second thought.



"Well, if it's a direct request from the saint, I think we should accept it. Besides, I think I can be of some help when it comes to the Holy City.



　Unusually, Mr. Norbu also expressed a positive opinion.

　It is a little strange since he usually speaks up after everyone else's opinions have been expressed.



　On the other hand, Mr. Gyro is still silent.



"What about you, Mr. Gyro?"



"Well, the Holy City is that, isn't it?　You know, where there's a bunch of old churchmen and they're preaching and preaching and preaching and preaching all the time?　Why should we, adventurers, go there?"



　Ah, Gyro, you like to put your body on the line and fight, so you're worried about what you'll be forced to do in a formal place.



"You're free to refuse the request if you want, so why don't you just ask?"



"Hmm."



　Gyro-kun still seems reluctant to go along with the idea, and growls at me.



"You idiot. You're forgetting something important, aren't you?



"What's important?"



　Mina came back to Gyro-kun, who seemed to have finished discussing the matter with Lilieira.



"Lex is involved. Of course it's going to be important.



　No, wait a minute.



"Oh, I see!"



　Oh, I see!　No, Mr. Gyro!　Don't just clap your hands and look convinced!



"Right!　You're with your brother!　It's definitely going to be a great adventure!"



"No, of course not!　I'm just living a normal adventurer's life!　I'm not having that great adventure!"



""""" great adventure,...... no? """""



　What?　Why is everyone looking at me with a "what is this guy talking about" look on their face?



"Anyway, the trouble is that it's all about the church, isn't it?"



　So Ms. Lilieira returns to the story.



"There are two main types of requests we get from church people."



"Two things?"



"Yes. One is a request for low-ranked adventurers to purchase a large quantity of herbs that are in short supply. This kind of request is not so uncommon when a battle with a large pack of monsters happens unexpectedly and they run out of potions, but there is another kind of request that is troublesome. Requests from temples in large cities are almost always troublesome.



　Mr. Norbu's face turns bitter when he hears these words.



"Big temples are crowded, so there are more priests who ask for bribes and cheat. Then there are people who ask you to do criminal work or clean up after a mess. If the client is stingy, he or she may be forced to cut back on the reward.



"A thousand gold coins for a thousand gold coins, huh?"



　Ah, this is the same story as the adventures of the great swordsman Rygard, a corrupt priest who repeatedly misbehaves under the guise of authority.

　In those stories, the bad priests are usually punished by the gods in the end.



"But the person who requested me was a saint, Phoca, and from our previous adventures together, she didn't seem like the kind of person who would be stingy with her reward.



"So, it's a problem that the church can't handle on its own," he said. If anything, it's more likely to be the kind of trouble Mr. Gyro is looking for."



"Oh!　I knew it!　That's my brother!"






　Wait, why do I have to be the rock?



"I mean, the request is the same as what I always do. Then, 1000 gold coins and 10 expenses are very reasonable!　There's no way I'm not going to take it!"



　Megli must have really liked the 10 gold coins for expenses.



"Well, everyone seems to agree, so I guess I'll take it then."



　I like how you said it's ok to turn down a request!



　That's why we decided to accept Phoca's request.

　But I didn't have any idea at that time that I would end up in such a mess because of it.



　I had no idea at the time that it would lead to such a disaster.



　Phoca asked us to come as soon as possible, so we decided to stay at an inn in the nearest town after dark, using flight magic to get around.

　And now we were in the room of the inn, listening to Mr. Norb's explanation about the Holy City.



The Holy City is the headquarters of the servants of God. It is said to be the place where God descended for the first time in this world and where the gods left the earth. It is no exaggeration to say that working in the Holy City is a dream come true for those of us who serve God.



"So it's not like a country boy wants to live in the city."



"......Well, that's not quite right, Mr. Gyro."



　A rare blue streak appeared on Mr. Norb's forehead as he explained about the Holy City.

　Yes, that's a bit rude, Mr. Gyro.



"In the Holy City, there is a main shrine that enshrines six great deities: the Lord God, the Earth Mother, the God of War, the God of Commerce, the God of Wisdom, and the God of Night.



　Hmmm...this area is the same in my previous life and two previous lives.



"The Lord God is the leader of the gods and is in charge of decision-making and discussion. He is mainly worshipped by those in power. And the Earth Mother presides over the fruitfulness and healing of the earth. She is worshipped by farmers and medicine men. The god of war presides over battles, as its name suggests, and is worshipped by knights, mercenaries, and adventurers. The God of Wisdom presides over wisdom, and is worshipped by wizards and scholars. The god of business governs business and contracts, and is worshipped mainly by merchants, but sometimes by adventurers because they work on commission. Finally, the god of night is the god of sleep and peace, and protects people from the dark, from events that lie ahead, and from other evils from unseen places.



"Speaking of which god do you believe in, Mr. Norbu?"



My family has believed in the God of Wisdom for generations. He is the God of Wisdom, and his role is to accumulate wisdom and to lend wisdom to the government of the country.



　The belief in the god of wisdom is a rare one, and it feeds into politics with gusto.

　It is said that sometimes God sends an oracle to stop human beings from running amok because human beings alone would get into trouble by giving in to their desires.

　Of course, there are many countries where people don't listen to the oracle and end up in trouble.



There are many kinds of gods.



""""" what? """""



　Gyro-kun's words make everyone look at him like, "What is this guy talking about?



"Gyro-kun, I learned it from the village priest. ...... right?"



"Oh, yeah?　I don't care, I don't remember."



"Oh, God, I'm sorry ......."



　Mr. Norbu collapsed with his head in his hands and began to beg God for forgiveness.



"Well, it's all right. Rural peasants only understand that God is God. It is common for them to only know about the god that the priest of their village believes in.



　It was Lilieira who defended Mr. Gyro.

　Come to think of it, Liliela was born in a farming village that was swallowed by a forest of magical beasts.



"Yes, yes!　Besides, it doesn't bother me if you don't know that!"



　Well, that's true, but please don't say that in front of the people of the Holy City where we are going."



"Gyro!　Please don't ever say that in front of the people of the Holy City!　I'm not talking about a level of disrespect or anything like that!"



　But then Mr. Norbu, in another great show of swordsmanship, started to stop Mr. Gyro from talking.



"Oh, oh ......"



　The usually quiet Mr. Nolbu became such a brash and aggressive person that even Gyro-kun, who is a quintessential Gyro-kun, was a bit overwhelmed.



"Oh, yes, the saintly lady Phoca is a high priestess who believes in the Mother of the Earth.



"You're a high priest and you're an adventurer?"



In her case, she became an adventurer while she was still a priest, and she became a high priest in recognition of the fact that she had healed many people and made the authority of God known.



"So he's a publicity agent with ability."



　Mina says something sharp.

　In fact, there were many activities to raise the authority of the church by sending church officials to the front line in the past lives.

　Even so, the people fighting on the front lines appreciated the increase in the number of people who could use recovery magic, so they didn't complain about it.



The holy city where the saints reside. I was too inexperienced to get permission to go there, but my grandfather said it was a place with magnificent temples.



　Mr. Norbu's face was filled with longing for a holy city he had not yet seen.



　I am not sure if this is a good thing or not, but it is.



"So this is the Holy City."



　After a few days of traveling by flight magic, we finally arrived at the Holy City.



"......"



"What a ......"



"You're so glamorous."



　I was wondering how to put it in a casual way, when Mina told me exactly what she thought of the place as she saw it.



"There's definitely a lot of gold and money!"






"......"



"Well, it's just like a church in the city, isn't it?"



"......"



"It's soooo vulgar, isn't it?"



"......"



"A place of majestic temples."



"......"



　Give him a break already, people!　Because Mr. Norb is cowering in mid-air with his face covered!

　But this is the Holy City.

　As everyone says, it was indeed a very expensive-looking scene, as if they were tired of money.

　I guess the atmosphere of the place is the same even if the time period and architectural style are different.



"Solemn ...... solemn ...... sacred ......"



　Yeah, anything I say is going to be counterproductive now.

　Let's leave it alone.