Chapter 72
Chapter 72
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 72
Chapter Title: How a Shaman Influences the War (1)
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Thud -
With Parmon Elder's signal, the castle gates closed.
The knights who had gone out to deal with the undead had all returned.
"We are grateful for the Church's assistance."
The Pope Uncle replied to the Elder's greeting.
"We apologize for being late. We should have come to your aid much sooner..."
"Your help was a great boon."
Aluerd came running straight to me.
"Is the Saintess alright?"
"Of course."
"Ahh...!"
For a while, greetings and various conversations were exchanged, and people began to move.
But...
"Why is everyone acting so sneaky?"
The knights standing behind the Elders.
And people who looked like high-ranking nobles.
They were furtively glancing at me, stealing looks.
"Isn't that to be expected?"
Aluerd looked at me with a face that said it was strange otherwise.
"What do you mean?"
"Even I would be wary of you, Chris. You crossed the battlefield with the Saintess on your back."
"Hmm..."
"And you walked almost the entire way?"
It had been a pretty unconventional move.
Seeing the nobles like that made it clear.
"Where are those people heading?"
A larger group of mages than before was rushing toward the gates.
"To see the Generals."
"Closel Elder!"
"Shall we go together?"
Come to think of it, there seemed to be some changes with the totem poles.
They definitely looked bigger in size and aura.
"Fortunately, this reinforcement group included spiritists."
"Spiritists?"
"Two water spiritists, no less."
"...Are those the ones?"
Two people being dragged along behind the mages.
They reeked of water, so they must have been the spiritists the Elder mentioned.
The problem was their utterly exhausted appearance.
They looked worse off than the others who had fought in battle.
Not just tired, but gaunt and haggard.
"While you were away, they gave water to the Generals."
"That's appreciated."
The gates, which had only just closed, opened again.
As I followed the Elder, the mages who recognized me greeted us.
"You're finally back."
"We waited with bated breath."
"There's been a change with the Generals. Will you take a look?"
These mages...
Their eyes were gleaming unnaturally.
When one of the mages gave a signal with his eyes, a spiritist stepped forward.
"A-already starting?"
"The battle's over, so their throats must be parched like last time. We need an undine."
"Just a bit more rest and then..."
Zzt.
"We'll start right away."
Shiver.
The spiritist's fingertips were trembling.
The remaining spiritist let out a relieved sigh, as if thankful to be spared.
"What on earth did you do to leave them in that state?"
Closel Elder waved it off like it was nothing.
"We just gave them water. The Generals only drink water from undines."
"...Somehow, that doesn't seem to be all."
The Elder smacked his lips thoughtfully before starting his explanation.
"With only two water spiritists, they took turns giving water."
Up to here, it didn't seem like a big deal.
But the next part left me speechless in disbelief.
"They alternated day and night, continuously providing water."
"...?"
You said it was while I was gone, which wasn't a short time?
They kept giving water the whole time?
The Elder spoke with an intrigued expression.
"The Generals drink quite a lot of water. The amount increases with each passing day."
"..."
"We started in the morning, and by nightfall... one collapsed."
"...Pardon?"
"Then the remaining one starts providing water."
Isn't that abuse?
Working them until they collapse...?
In two shifts around the clock?
"They volunteered, so no need to worry."
"You don't 'assign' volunteers; you receive them..."
"Among mages, that's how it is."
Whatever the situation, as the Elder said, the totem poles had grown considerably.
When I first made them, they were only knee-high.
Now, both reached up to my waist.
"They've really grown a lot..."
I turned away from the spiritist gazing at me desperately and examined the totem poles further.
"I don't remember carving them like this..."
I'm not that good at sculpting.
Now they looked stylish and refined at a glance.
They truly resembled the totem poles from storybooks.
Their features had shifted slightly, so who knows what they'd look like fully grown...
The divine energy within them had grown beyond recognition as well.
"...Are these really totem poles?"
No totem pole in the world carried an aura like this.
Was it because they were carved from the World Tree branch?
A voice from the spiritist came from beside me.
"Undine..."
Poof -
An undine appeared.
It floated around busily in the air before approaching me.
- ...?
Unlike the spirit Serena summoned, this one was meeting me for the first time.
It looked similar, but its temperament was a bit different.
- ...!
Bow -
And, as expected, it greeted me as if realizing something.
The spiritist's eyes sparkled.
"Did the undine just bow to you?"
"Yes."
"How could that be... You're as mysterious as they say."
The curious gazes began again.
It seems everyone involved with magic looks at me that way.
"Ugh!"
"Luna?"
Luna squirmed against my back.
She was flailing her arms toward the undine, as if asking to be let down.
"Want to wait a sec?"
Swish -
I untied the carrier as usual, picked Luna up in front, and approached the undine.
"This is a spirit... um..."
How does it look to Luna?
"For now, think of it as water."
"Muu?"
See that?
A baby not even a month old trying to say "water"?
The undine floated over to us smoothly.
"She's my little sister."
- ...?
Splash -
Splish splash -
"Muu!"
The undine alternated its gaze between me and Luna, then its eyes suddenly widened.
Whirl -
The undine spun around Luna in circles.
It sprinkled a few light drops of water on Luna before flying toward the totem pole.
As expected of a saintess— even the undine showed affinity.
"...?"
Murmur murmur -
"...What?"
I'd been focused on the totem poles and hadn't noticed, but now all eyes were on us.
The soldiers on the walls, the mages who came to inspect the totems— everyone was staring.
"They say the baby she's holding is the Saintess."
"Did the Saint and Saintess appear together?"
"No need to worry now."
The mages' eyes gleamed too.
"You all saw it clearly. The moment Chris appeared, the totem pole turned its head."
"I witnessed that moment perfectly."
"It even rose from the ground."
"The area blocking the undead has expanded too."
Rush -
This time, priests came pouring out from inside the gates.
"It's time for the Saintess to eat."
"She must be exhausted, so she should rest soon..."
"She's clinging to Chris and won't let go. It's worrying."
Closel Elder chuckled and stood beside me.
"You're truly famous now."
"This is troublesome..."
"It's only natural. You'll face even more gazes like this from now on."
Murmur murmur -
I'm not some zoo monkey.
With all these eyes stuck on us, it was incredibly uncomfortable.
As fame grows, more people will come for divinations...
"When on earth do I get to rest..."
"Let's head in. We have much to discuss."
As we followed the Elder, we began chatting about various things.
Given the circumstances, some hardship was inevitable.
It was my fate, after all.
"Do you sense anything more about them?"
"Hmm... The undead felt a bit off."
Different from what I saw in the elf forest last time.
This time, it felt like something was crudely attached all over them.
I could feel lingering attachments to their flesh.
And the resentments of corrupting souls.
"We should head to the mountain as soon as the elves arrive."
"Right away?"
"We need to check quickly. The summit has turned pitch black."
Closel Elder gave some instructions to the mages following behind, then returned to me.
"Preparations are in place."
But still.
"Is it really okay to follow my words...?"
I'm clueless about war.
Yet all these people seem ready to act on my say-so?
"Referencing your opinion is the way to minimize casualties."
"Hmm..."
"We'll handle the rest of the strategy ourselves, so don't worry. They're all talented; it won't fall short."
Indeed, they had won battles without me before.
These Elders had already led the continental war to victory.
"Minimize casualties, huh..."
This might be my role.
"It won't be easy."
Step -
Rush -
People kept following us.
They all seemed in good spirits.
Perhaps they'd adapted to battle.
Some even joked about comrades' deaths to move past them.
I couldn't just smile at that.
Because I saw something else beyond them.
"Elder."
"Speak."
"We need to hurry a bit."
I'd noticed earlier that not a single one was in sight, which was odd.
But this was unexpected.
"Souls are circling the village..."
In the distance, souls marched in a line toward us.
Every one had vacant, unfocused eyes— not in sound condition.
"...That's why they drank so much water."
The souls heading for the gates changed direction and began circling the village again.
The totem poles had turned them back.
"They've charmed the souls."