Ch.74Chapter 74 – No, I’m Not an Apostle, I Tell You! (2)

The elderly priest who served the Earth Goddess received healing through my ability.

“Behold! A miracle has occurred! Everyone, welcome Patos, the apostle of the Great Goddess!”

Then he suddenly jumped up and began running toward the street, shouting loudly.

“No, wait a moment!”

“The Great Goddess has sent us an apostle! O Earth Goddess! I truly thank you for answering this old man’s prayers!”

“Excuse me!”

I tried to stop him, but he started dashing around like Archimedes who, while bathing, realized the principle of buoyancy and density and ran into the streets shouting “Eureka!”

Wait, how is this old man who was nearly dying now so energetic?

Although I admit I lack exercise, I had prided myself on my stamina.

But this priest serving the Earth Goddess seemed to have an endless supply of energy as he continued running around.

“Listen! The Great Goddess has sent us an apostle!”

“What? What are you suddenly talking about, elder?”

He even approached a woman carrying a laundry basket and spoke to her.

“Hahaha! Everyone! The Earth Goddess has answered this old man’s prayers!”

“Mom, why is that grandpa acting like that?”

“When priests receive miracles, they sometimes act like that. Don’t think it’s strange, let’s pray that he regains his senses quickly.”

“Okay!”

Even a mother and child were praying for the old man who was running through the streets like a madman.

“Eterna! Can you catch that old man?”

I called out to Eterna.

I felt that no one but her, an Inquisitor, could stop the old man.

“Cast a buff on my shoes! Like you did with the horseshoe!”

“Understood!”

Eterna asked me to cast a buff on her shoes, so I approached her, took out my hammer, and tapped her boots.

Instantly, her dusty old boots became like new.

“Done!”

“Alright! I’ll go catch him!”

Wearing boots that looked brand new, Eterna dashed off.

Her speed was so incredible that even Usain Bolt in his prime couldn’t have caught up with her.

In an instant, Eterna closed the distance with the old man.

“In the name of the Inquisition, I order you to stop!”

“People! The Great Goddess has sent an apostle to this land!”

“I have no choice.”

That’s when I saw it.

A face like that of a priest from a famous manga when enraged.

“Great Sun God, grant me the power to punish this blasphemer.”

That expression was visible on Eterna’s face.

Eterna pulled out a scripture from her bosom and infused it with the power of the sun.

Instantly, the scripture grew to the size of a carriage…

“You blasphemer! How dare you invoke the name of the Great Goddess!”

Eterna swung the scripture in her hand and brought it down on the old man’s head.

“Gack!”

The old man, struck on the head by Eterna’s enlarged scripture, collapsed to the ground, and after catching her breath, Eterna waved at me.

“Patos! Come over here!”

“Ah, yes.”

The image of Eterna swinging the massive scripture at the old man overlapped with her waving at me.

I’m grateful that such terrifying power exists to protect me, but also afraid that if I make a mistake, that scripture might come swinging at my head.

Anyway, as I approached Eterna, the old man was lying on the ground with his legs trembling.

As I carefully approached, I saw foam bubbling from his mouth, and a large bump had formed on his head.

“Um, Eterna?”

“Yes?”

When I spoke to Eterna, she gave me a refreshing smile.

“Is he dead?”

“Oh, of course not. Do you know how many heretics I’ve dealt with? This much won’t kill him.”

“Is that so?”

She waved her hand dismissively at my question, but should I believe her?

“Yes. Getting hit with a scripture doesn’t kill you. You need to use a mace for that.”

Seeing her specific answer, I guess people really don’t die from being hit with a scripture.

“Hitting with a scripture is just for subduing. Even as an Inquisitor, our main job is to subdue heretics and bring them to court. To ensure they receive proper judgment.”

“Is that… so?”

“Yes. Really, people misunderstand so much! The position of Inquisitor is incredibly difficult. Anyone who reaches that level knows that heretical acts committed out of ignorance can be resolved with simple guidance. Most cases end with just that.”

Honestly, I didn’t know much about it, so I was planning to just accept whatever she said.

“If we killed everyone for minor heretical acts, the courts would be constantly bloodied. So heretical acts committed out of ignorance end with repentance prayers and donations. Ah, but for those who deceive people or lead heretical or cult groups, we sometimes pass immediate judgment on the spot.”

As she spoke, Eterna looked at the old man lying on the ground, foaming at the mouth.

“If this person is not really a priest serving the Earth Goddess but a disguised heretic…”

As her voice trailed off, a mace suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

“I would have to crush his head right here to prevent more people from being deceived.”

“Wait! I am not a heretic!”

The old man who had been lying on the ground suddenly got up with a horrified expression.

What? Was he just pretending?

“You’re up?”

“I apologize for my disrespect to the Sun God’s Inquisitor. And also to the Great Goddess’s apostle here…”

—Swish.

“…or whoever you might be, I apologize for my rudeness to such a great person.”

Wow, look at how quickly he backs down when Eterna raises her mace.

But where does she hide that mace anyway?

No matter how I look at her, I don’t see any space where she could hide it.

And the scripture she was holding earlier has also disappeared somewhere.

“By the way, are you really a priest serving the Earth Goddess?”

“Yes. I am Toba, a high priest serving the Earth Goddess.”

The old man’s name is Toba. He claims to be a high priest serving the Earth Goddess.

“Let me ask you something. Why do you keep calling me an apostle of the Great Goddess?”

I questioned Toba.

Why, after experiencing my ability, did he call me an apostle of the Great Goddess?

I was very curious about the reason.

“Well… the Earth Goddess once made a prophecy.”

Toba answered my question, saying that the Earth Goddess had made a prophecy long ago.

The prophecy was as follows:

[When the authority of the sun falls to the ground, the world becomes chaotic, and heroes rise up everywhere, the apostle of the Great Goddess will descend upon this land.]

When the authority of the sun falls to the ground, the world becomes chaotic, and heroes rise up everywhere, the apostle of the Great Goddess will descend.

“What does this mean?”

“Hmm, I’m not sure either. The authority of the sun falling to the ground…”

Eterna heard the Earth Goddess’s prophecy from Toba’s mouth but seemed not to understand it.

“I understand. Even for me who serves the Earth Goddess, interpreting that prophecy is difficult, so it must be even harder for someone from another order.”

“So, the reason you thought I was the apostle of the Great Goddess was because of this prophecy?”

“Yes. The authority of the sun has fallen to the ground, the world has become chaotic, and heroes are rising up everywhere. Isn’t that exactly the present time?”

Then Toba gave me a detailed explanation of the prophecy.

“The authority of the sun falling to the ground means that the influence of the Sun Order has weakened. Recently, the Sun Order’s influence has been gradually decreasing. And the world becoming chaotic refers to the enormous number of ability users being discovered recently, doesn’t it? That’s why the world has become quite chaotic. And heroes rising up everywhere… actually, I’m not sure about that part.”

“Come on! What kind of interpretation is that? You’re just forcing connections!”

Eterna, unable to bear listening to such a far-fetched interpretation of the prophecy, took out her scripture again and struck Toba on the head once more.

Eventually, after regaining his senses, Toba admitted that his interpretation of the prophecy might be wrong.

However, he insisted to the end that I was the apostle of the Great Goddess…

“Well, if someone using the power of the Great Goddess isn’t her apostle, then what is he?”

It was because he sensed the power of the Great Goddess in my ability.

My ability is indeed from Epitrina, but I’m not an apostle.

“No! I stake my career as a priest on it.”

“Really?”

“…Actually, I’m confused too, but ask anyone in the world! What would you call someone who uses power similar to the Great Goddess if not an apostle?”

“I’m not.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. I’m not.”

As I firmly denied it, Toba finally had to concede and back down.

Sigh, really. But I wonder if I’ll actually end up becoming an apostle later at this rate.