Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Soap
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"How did things end up like this?"
He pondered deeply while gazing at the Island logo etched with a wheat motif.
"It started with..."
The very beginning was after he'd gained the system ability.
Unable to explain the system, he'd pinned it on the Earth Goddess.
To farm on Monster Island, he'd need that kind of divine intervention.
That way, people would believe it.
"I thought it was a perfectly reasonable excuse..."
But that excuse had snowballed.
He'd appointed Inon, a devout follower of the Earth Goddess.
Every village they built had a temple at its center.
Now, even without him saying a word,
people were convinced it was all the goddess's blessing.
"Sigh..."
Knock.Knock.
"My lord, the seal is complete."
"Let him in."
The artisan brought the seal along with a bar of soap that hadn't fully hardened.
He pressed the seal into the soap.
A clear wheat emblem emerged.
"What do you think? I poured my heart into it, as if offering it to the goddess herself."
The logo etched into the soap was visible.
It was well-crafted.
Vivid enough to feel almost lifelike.
But...
'The problem is I never liked the logo to begin with.'
The artisan carefully set down the seal and soap.
Then added one more thing.
"When word spread that you'd adopted this symbol, the entire city sang your praises, Heir."
"Sigh... That's appreciated. Good work. You're dismissed."
He picked up the soap.
A fresh fragrance wafted up,
and the stamped wheat pattern gleamed.
"Russell's going to love this."
The soap was already hailed as a gift from the goddess.
Etching a logo resembling the Earth Church's symbol on it would only heighten that.
Consumers would go wild.
"Inon will love it too."
Inon had worshipped the Earth Goddess long before meeting him.
Come to think of it, everyone involved would love it—no one would hate it.
Except for him, the only one who knew it was all a fabrication from the start.
The quiet study.
He knelt alone.
'Goddess, mind if I use this symbol? In exchange, I'll build massive temples in Plein and the surrounding satellite cities with the soap profits. No objections means you're fine with it. And no complaints later.'
He finished his prayer and rose.
A weight lifted from his shoulders.
Soap sales began across Monster Island.
Two varieties hit the market.
One was Black Soap.
Made with black tree extract, it was aimed at commoners.
The black tree gave it a deep black hue.
The second was Gold Soap.
Infused with black tree, olive, and laurel extracts, it targeted nobles.
Its exceptional moisturizing effects made it especially popular with noblewomen.
Though basically black, the olive and laurel lent it a subtle golden sheen.
As soap flew off the shelves,
someone was as thrilled as he was—maybe even more so.
A letter from that person arrived in Plein.
"Stop calling me Heir every other word."
Lately, talking with the Vice Mage Tower Lord made "Heir" sound like "generous patron," which grated.
And why was the letter crammed with "thanks to you, Heir"?
"Half a year anyway."
In just half a year, all the money flowing to the Gray Mage Tower would be his.
He pressed down hard as he penned a reply.
After replying to the Vice Mage Tower Lord,
he dashed off letters to even more people on the spot.
Frontier.
The frontmost lines.
Command tent.
The tent was packed with soap.
The Frontier Viscount opened the letter that came with it.
"The goddess's aid, eh..."
He wouldn't have believed anyone else.
But Elwin was different.
He'd proven it himself by succeeding at farming on Monster Island.
The viscount picked up a bar of black soap with a golden sheen.
It carried a fragrance unlike any ordinary soap.
"Disease..."
Disease ravaged humans.
It wreaked havoc in special circumstances—like the battlefield.
Infectious outbreaks on the front lines meant weakened fighting strength.
The florid praise that followed barely registered.
That single line about preventing disease was reason enough to use it.
"You there!"
"Yes, my lord!"
"Distribute all this soap to the soldiers!"
"Understood!"
Vampire's North.
North-north sector.
Alensia's unit.
A large shipment of soap arrived here too.
"So this is the soap."
Rumors had spread like wildfire even before Elwin's gift arrived.
"A gift from the goddess..."
She unfolded the letter that came with the soap.
"Friend...?"
She didn't care for that word.
She picked up the soap with its luxurious packaging—unlike the standard bars.
It had a different scent.
"Just for me...?"
Vampire's North.
Benia's unit.
"Is this the gift from Lord Elwin?"
"Yes, it is."
Elwin was an unusual man.
He didn't fully side with her or Alensia like the other island nobles.
'Or... does he lean a bit toward Alensia?'
Either way, he straddled both camps.
This time was no different.
Sending lavish gifts her way too.
Benia unfolded the letter.
"Hmm..."
"Lord Elwin truly is remarkable."
"Pardon?"
"Nothing. Just talking to myself."
Words like "beauty" and "moisturizes the skin" lingered faintly in her mind.
But Benia deliberately focused elsewhere.
Disease prevention.
In the end, it had practical value.
Especially invaluable on the battlefield.
'Balistas and now soap...'
She couldn't afford to let go of Elwin's hand.
Not even knowing he'd taken Alensia's.
The same unfolded in other units.
Soap reached the two heirs aligned with Benia,
and those with Alensia.
And in the northeast sector.
Elwin's own unit.
"This is!!!"
"Sir Inon, please set that down first..."
Inon ignored Hans's plea entirely.
He dropped to his knees, cradling the soap reverently in both hands.
"This iiiis!!! Oh goddess, thank you!!"
Hans ignored Inon and unfolded the letter.
"You bestowed the soap recipe upon the Heir!!"
Hans momentarily lost his focus to Inon's shout.
He steeled his gaze and read on.
"Through our lord, you grant us soap!!!"
"Grr..."
A vein bulged on Hans's forehead.
He gripped the letter tighter and focused.
'Heir...'
The Heir understood him.
Appreciated his efforts.
"All glory to the Earth Goddess!!!"
"No!! Sir Inon!! Take that soap back to your private tent right now!!"
Officially, soap was sold only in the Monster Island region.
Yet some bars trickled onto the continent via Vampire's Bridge.
Those continent-bound soaps reached various hands.
Among them, devotees of the Earth Goddess.
One passed it to a priest,
the priest to a high priest,
and ultimately, it arrived at the Earth Church's Saintess.
"This is... the goddess's gift?"
"So we're told."
The Saintess closed her eyes and focused.
No trace of divine power emanated from the soap.
She asked again.
"Is it truly a gift from the goddess?"
The high priest explained the full story.
"So, a plague spread on Monster Island, and to combat it, the goddess revealed the soap recipe to Heir Elwin. This was made following that recipe."
"Yes."
That explained the lack of divine power.
The goddess provided the recipe; humans did the manufacturing.
"Well done."
"I'll take my leave."
The Saintess cradled the soap in both hands and placed it on a dish.
Her hands carried its fragrance.
Normally, a divine gift would be enshrined,
but this was meant for use.
She took the soap to the bathing area.
The Saintess served closest to the divine.
She bathed daily.
Today, as always,
she disrobed and began.
The difference: she lathered with soap.
Bubbles formed.
The fragrance intensified.
She finished bathing
and stepped out.
Yet the soap's scent clung to her entire body.
"This is... the goddess's gift..."
A refreshing sensation she'd never felt despite daily baths suffused her.
What she'd done before wasn't true bathing.
Only now, with soap, did she grasp bathing's true essence.