Chapter 101: In the Name of the Goddess 2

The chat was buzzing with talks about the Goddess’s chest, but fortunately, there was a summary of the story I had missed online.

Although the explanation was buried in the comments rather than in the actual post, I was able to summarize the game’s story.

In this world created and nurtured by the Goddess, the Demon King is planning an invasion by first establishing a tower.

The portals connecting the inside and outside of the Tower were part of the invasion, and the reason why the boss monsters occasionally appeared outside the Tower.

The monsters inside the Tower, imitations of the Goddess’s creations, were made of magic stones and lacked reproductive abilities.

This is because the inside of the Tower is a fake world where life cannot exist, and the Demon King wants to perfectly harmonize the inside and outside of the Tower, creating a lifeless world.

I don’t know how many posts I had to go through to find this information since Han Se-ah’s VODs haven’t been uploaded yet.

Those crazy people even cursed the ones who tried to explain it properly.

“Ah, I see? There were no traces of orcs, and the blessing of divine energy was received in the southeastern clearing….”

“Yes. I carefully examined the clearings using magic.”

Pretending to look over my physical condition, I busily searched the internet forums.

Meanwhile, Han Se-ah, as the party leader, was completing the quest, or rather, fulfilling the adventurer request.

Receiving quest rewards as a player is different from receiving request rewards as an adventurer, from the Knights Division.

Double charging is wrong, but wouldn’t all players welcome double rewards with open arms?

Anyway, there’s no way the Knights Division would refuse to pay the request rewards after we were even blessed by the Goddess.

“Was there anything else unusual?”

“No. We looked everywhere that orcs might be, but found nothing.”

The knight in charge of the forest also glanced at Han Se-ah’s staff once and shook his head.

There’s no way to submit evidence that there are no orcs anyway.

The knight scribbles something on a document before heading into the tent behind him, emerging with a hefty leather pouch.

Judging by its size, it’s unlikely to be filled with gold coins; it’s probably a large leather bag mixed with silver and copper coins.

Whether it’s for convenience or because tossing a few gold coins would seem unimpressive, it’s sure to be mostly copper coins.

As expected, the bag was filled with copper coins, and Han Se-ah’s brow furrowed peculiarly as she received the pouch and put it in her inventory.

“We can head back to the city now.”

“We’re so close to the capital; should we really head back right away? It feels a bit disappointing.”

“Do you have business in the capital?”

“Not really, I’m just a bit curious.”

While Han Se-ah is organizing her inventory, Grace and Irene chatter away.

Irene is eager to see the children back home, while Grace is curious about the kingdom’s capital, but not to sightsee.

It’s a fantasy world modeled after the Middle Ages, so what tourist attractions or amusement parks could there be?

While the unseen capital may be intriguing, there’s nothing much to see there, just like the other cities.

Although there are more noble mansions in the capital than in the city, what fun would there be in looking at the outside of someone else’s house?

“The capital… if we don’t have anything specific to see, let’s visit some other time.”

“Yeah, I was just curious.”

As we talk among ourselves, a soldier comes and guides us to a carriage.

Though the reward is little, having a carriage prepared for our travel is quite nice.

It’s a bit of a humorous thought, but it’s like the difference in benefits between a small and a large company.

As I head towards the carriage, mulling over memories from my past life, Kaiden, who has been quiet until now, gently approaches me.

She’s likely a bit uneasy since the Northern Duke and I had a private conversation.

“Uh, Roland?”

“What?”

“What did you discuss with the Duke?”

I remember telling the group that I couldn’t share private matters concerning the ducal family, but she either didn’t hear it or is trying to figure out how much I know.

I pause to think about how to respond before slyly throwing a remark.

“Don’t worry, Katie Wesley.”

“……!”

She freezes like a cat that’s seen a cucumber*, her face suddenly going slack and her body stiffening, her walk becoming awkward.

Her odd reaction goes unnoticed as our companions climb into the carriage one by one.

Kaiden, who ends up sitting next to me thanks to the seating arrangement, subtly shifts her hips to create some distance between us.

In contrast to the girls, who are closer to one another, chatting, Kaiden and I sit apart, looking out of the carriage window.

As the rest of the group sadly watches the receding Obernu Forest, she steals glances at my face several times.

“In the end, all we did was admire this beautiful forest. When we get back and start climbing the tower again, it’ll feel completely different there.”

“It was a blessed forest, after all. It was a joyous experience to feel the Goddess’s grace firsthand.”

Whether a storm is raging in Kaiden’s, or rather Katie Wesley’s head or not, the carriage slowly plods on.

The return journey was also uneventful.

There was nothing to show, so Han Se-ah turned off her stream for the time being.

The carriage was driven by a coachman we had not seen before, and thanks to the Knights Division and the army, the main roads near the capital were clear and quiet, devoid of bandits or wandering monsters.

Occasionally, a noble’s carriage or a merchant’s loaded vehicle would pass by, providing the perfect environment to browse the internet in peace.

‘…It’s kind of bothering me.’

I had set up the internet window to look like I was gazing out the carriage window, but I could feel a fierce gaze from the side.

The source of the gaze was, of course, Kaiden.

Understandably, she must have wanted to say something after her runaway act was discovered, along with her disguise as a man, but she couldn’t speak because Han Se-ah was browsing the internet across from us, trying not to fall asleep.

I was sitting by the right window, turning my head to the right to use the internet, while she sat by the left window, leaning against it and looking at me, so I couldn’t help but feel her gaze.

Even an ordinary middle or high school student from peaceful South Korea would notice it at this level.

Of course, I was diligently browsing the internet.

News of a pro team losing to a five-member AI team in an AOS* game, or the introduction of jelly-like nutrition food you’d expect to see in an SF* movie, and other fictional stories.

I felt relieved because, between other celebrity news and useless articles, at least I knew I wasn’t a brain in a jar.

Han Se-ah was connected to the real world, communicating with tens of thousands of viewers.

There were creative works on video sites that I would never be able to watch in my lifetime, and if I added other novels, comics, movies, etc., available on the internet, there would be even more.

I was brushing off this occasional surge of doubt and anxiety when the carriage came to a gentle stop.

“Once we get off, could we talk for a moment?”

At the same time, Kaiden, softly spoke to me.