Chapter 199: Saintess Candidate
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 199: Saintess Candidate
After leaving the guild, I went to find the resurrected Jack.
Perhaps because he was an Imperial engineer, many people were trying to secure his identity, but since I was the one who paid the resurrection fee, I was able to block their access in advance.
Well, Jack was already bound by my Spirit Chain, so he wouldn't have been able to cooperate with anyone else anyway.
"Jack, are you in?"
"Yes! You may come in."
I arrived at the lodging where Jack was staying, knocked, and entered.
I saw Jack, who looked perfectly fine, and a maid attending to him by his side.
"Any aftereffects?"
"My hands shook quite a bit on the first day, but I'm fine now."
"That's a relief."
He didn't seem to have any particular lingering symptoms, and his condition looked quite good.
It felt like he could be deployed to the field immediately.
Since he looked well, I could throw him into the estate's annex right away and put him to work.
"Good. Let's head to the mansion immediately."
"To your estate, Manager?"
"Yeah. I've set up research facilities in the annex. There's a servant with knowledge from another dimension and an excellent mage. There's even an elf with the now-lost art of gem smithing."
"Whoa..."
A2, Rien, and Zelia were living in the annex. All three were highly skilled technicians; if Jack joined them, they would likely produce significant results.
We had enough knowledge. What we needed now was an engineer who could turn imagination into reality.
Yes, the blueprints were all ready, so it was about time I needed a proper techie.
By the way, my title had been settled as 'Manager.' I didn't want to hear a man calling me 'Master,' so I told him to call me Manager instead.
"What should I be making with them?"
"We're working on three inventions, and I need someone well-versed in magic engineering."
"Three inventions?"
"Right. The first is the telephone. A device that allows for real-time conversation over long distances."
"A telephone? What is a 'conversation'?"
"It's exchanging voices."
The very first idea that came up after A2 and Rien met was the invention of the telephone.
I suspected it might initially take the form of a walkie-talkie, but regardless, it would be great to have any means of long-distance communication.
The Labyrinth City was likely about to undergo another massive technological revolution. A singularity was coming.
"So, you're saying 'conversation' is a technology that enables real-time, long-distance dialogue?"
"Exactly. Is there nothing similar in the Empire?"
"We recently invented something called a Voice Crystal—a crystal ball that transmits voices."
"It might be similar to that. But this must allow for real-time dialogue."
"I see..."
Jack looked at me as if asking if such a thing was even possible.
Sorry, but on Earth, we even have video calls.
If he heard about the existence of the internet, Jack would probably faint from shock.
Come to think of it, perhaps Earth's science and technology surpass magic?
In terms of being useful for daily life, it seemed superior to magic.
"It would be great if it could be used inside the Labyrinth as well."
"I'll have to conduct a separate investigation into demonic energy then. Understood. What are the other two?"
"The second is the radio."
The reason I wanted to make a radio was simple.
'For propaganda.'
Currently, information in this world was transmitted in the form of rumors and stories.
While newspapers existed, paper was expensive, so almost no one bought them regularly except for nobles. Furthermore, the quality of the newspapers themselves was quite poor.
But what would happen if the radio was introduced? If people could hear new information every day just by buying it once—and if it provided proper information rather than rumors or stories where truth and lies were indistinguishable?
What if it even played music at scheduled times? That alone would make many taverns and shops where people gathered buy radios, and the information flowing from them would naturally spread throughout the city.
The Empire or other monarchies would probably lose their minds if they saw this technology.
They would think they could incite the masses however they pleased. Instead of having to manipulate public opinion by using bards to create and spread songs, they could just deliver information via radio.
Well, it seemed like it would be a moneymaker in many ways.
"A radio? Is that a new word?"
"Yeah. You can think of it as technology for wide-scale information delivery through radio wave reception."
"Radio wave reception? What is that? No, this is too difficult."
"I'll have to explain the concept of radio waves first."
Even though I was from Earth, I wasn't confident I could explain this properly to someone from another world. I knew what it was, but putting it into words to make someone understand was a different story.
I'd just leave the education to A2 and Rien. A2's role was to pour out knowledge, and Rien was good at organizing and making it understandable.
I was never good at teaching people anyway.
"Get the details directly from A2. She's well-versed in otherworldly knowledge."
"I just need to hear it from Lady A2, then..."
"But her mind is a bit unstable. Think of her as an encyclopedia. Don't expect very detailed or kind explanations."
"Ah. Understood for now. The telephone and the radio... then what is the last one?"
"The last is the speaker."
"What's a speaker?"
"A device that amplifies sound."
I planned to install speakers in the central plaza and the Adventurer's Guild.
Wouldn't making a speaker be easier than a radio or a telephone?
"For now, those are the three main things. You're also free to work with A2 to create whatever else you want."
"Understood. Since it seems the focus is on information transmission, I'll try to build them as quickly as possible."
Now that I had a techie on board, the greatest inventions of this world would soon be produced in my estate's annex.
I felt like the Labyrinth City might change quite a bit while I was busy diving into the Labyrinth.
While I was preparing for the 6th-floor raid, a message arrived from the Church.
It wasn't just anyone, but a direct contact from the Pope, so I rushed over. There, I saw three women.
"Are you saying the Saintess candidates have been narrowed down to three?"
"That is correct. Here are the new Saintess candidates."
"Rosier?"
Rosier was among the three women.
I had felt it back in the Snake Nest, but it seemed Rosier had awakened some kind of new power.
The amount of Divine Power she wielded was absurd.
"This lady here is Irene, who was known as the Saint of the Frontier. And this is Hylan, an authority on Holy Barriers from the Empire."
The Archbishop introduced the two women standing on either side of Rosier.
The young-looking woman with blonde hair was Irene, the Saint of the Frontier, and the seductive-looking black-haired woman was Hylan, the barrier expert.
All three had different specialties.
Irene specialized in healing magic, while Hylan specialized in Holy Incantations other than healing, such as barrier techniques and purification.
And Rosier was specialized in combat. She was the strongest of the three and possessed a robust physical body. In the end, wouldn't Rosier be the most helpful for the Labyrinth expedition?
"Will one of these three become the Saintess?"
"Indeed. As you can see, the Goddess has narrowed down the candidates. Once we select one of the three and petition the Goddess, she will likely appoint her as the Saintess."
"So the choice lies in human hands."
"It is thanks to the Goddess's vast and ocean-like grace."
The Goddess had given the choice to the Church, and it seemed the Pope had called me to choose the person who would be of immediate help for the Labyrinth expedition.
"Since we've been working together, Rosier seems the most suitable."
"That would be so. However, the thing is, we have our own circumstances to consider."
The Church side claimed it would be beneficial to choose Hylan, who came from the Empire. They also had to be mindful of the Kingdom, as Irene, though from the frontier, was a citizen of the Kingdom.
Apparently, the prestige of a nation rises depending on the Saintess's origin. It seemed the Pope was agonizing over the three candidates for such reasons.
"Let's just pick all three."
"Pardon?"
"Hmm? Ah. Apostle-nim."
As we were debating who to choose as the current Saintess, Freya, who had been in the bracelet, popped out.
Irene and Hylan looked at Freya in surprise.
Since we had agreed to call her 'Apostle' in official settings, her identity as Freya could remain hidden.
"What do you mean by making all three of them Saintesses?"
"We have them receive separate blessings, specializing in combat, barriers, and healing. Is there a rule saying there can only be one Saintess?"
"If we do that, the Goddess's power won't be able to dwell in them fully."
"The Archbishop is right. However, there is a way."
"A way, you say..."
"In a hidden space on the 6th floor, there is a Holy Relic left behind by the Saintess from two generations ago."
A relic of the Saintess from two generations ago, located in a hidden spot on the 6th floor.
'So there was a Hidden Piece.'
If we had that, she said we could make all three of them Saintesses and utilize them.
"The better part of this is that they can reach the pinnacle of their respective specialties. Freya, the previous Saintess, was so versatile that she was good at everything, but not every Saintess is like that. The Holy Relic will compensate for those areas."
"Then where is it located?"
"There is a place called the Necropolis. There should be a hidden entrance there."
The Necropolis? I know that place.
'The place Frodo asked me to bring the sarcophagus from...!'
It was the place where Frodo the Frogman had asked me to retrieve the Traveler's Sarcophagus for item transmission, so I had to go there anyway.
Since a Holy Relic left by the Saintess from two generations ago was there, if I brought it out, I could make all three of them Saintesses and have them join the Labyrinth expedition.
"It looks like we'll have to tackle the Necropolis first on the 6th floor."
The next destination was clearly decided.
This time, it was the Necropolis on the 6th floor.
Since the paths on the 6th floor were so complex, it seemed I would need a guide.