Chapter 40
Chapter 40
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 40
Chapter Title: Kellerton's Judak Statue
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Someone had come looking for me.
But this time, I had a shotgun and the famous sword gifted by the dwarf.
"Who am I? Shotgun owner."
Suppressing my tension, I slowly approached the door.
And as I slowly opened it,
"You're in. I'm an investigator sent from the Kellerton Kingdom."
"Oh."
A man with deep dark circles under his eyes was staring at me, scribbling something down and then erasing it repeatedly.
What is this? Just an ordinary civil servant.
"So, what kind of investigation is this?"
"Since Kellerton was founded, we're conducting a census of the capital's residents. Were you a citizen of the old Kelton by any chance?"
"No, not that..."
He spoke to me in an official tone, his face etched with exhaustion.
"Then you'll need to go get an ID issued."
*
Even though a new nation had been founded, plenty of people remained in the old Kelton Kingdom territory.
Kellerton issued them new IDs, turning them into citizens.
I'd just happened to be next in line after they went house to house.
"All set. You're a Kellerton citizen now."
"Um, thanks."
And that was it, done in a flash.
In this chaotic situation, they didn't bother asking what I did for a living.
No one rummaged through my warehouse and discovered I was Judak or anything like that.
They just took my name, stamped it, handed over a wooden plaque, and called it a day.
[Kellerton ID]
[Name – John Malphite]
"This actually works."
I couldn't exactly give a Korean name, so I'd thrown out something random, but it really went through.
Getting out into the world turned out to be easier than I'd thought.
"No magic beasts in sight, either."
Compared to when I'd first dropped into this place, the streets looked totally different.
Sure, it still had that ruined vibe, but at least there were no zombies eyeing my flesh.
I considered heading back like this, but as I glanced around the plaza for a bit, something strange caught my eye.
A statue as huge as a building.
"What the hell is this?"
A mage's robe fluttering in the wind, and even as a stone statue, it was clearly a beautiful girl.
The plaque explaining the bizarre statue proudly declared:
[Judak]
Kellerton, founded under Judak's protection. This is the first statue made in honor of Judak.
"Me?"
Wait, and sure enough, the conversations from the people gathered around the statue were mostly about me.
Comments on the statue, evaluations, or...
"Hmm, but isn't it made a bit wrong?"
Even nitpicking the historical accuracy.
"What nonsense. You saying this statue is wrong somehow?"
"What I mean is, Judak's a half-elf beauty. Shouldn't the ears be pointier?"
"What are you talking about? Judak's the youngest daughter of some noble house. Obviously human."
Of course, they were all wrong.
Anyway, while some burned with debates over my race and gender,
On the opposite side, people tossed coins into the fountain in front of my statue, making wishes.
"Please stock spicy tuna cans at the next market."
"Let me pass the knight exam."
The scenery of the newborn kingdom Kellerton matched the vibe in the gallery—no, it didn't fall short at all.
I watched this blatant scene unfold before sitting on a nearby bench and clutching my head.
"What kind of phenomenon is this?"
Had they all gone collectively insane?
"Why pray, debate, and make such a fuss over who Judak is?"
There were way too many things out here I couldn't wrap my head around.
I couldn't stay outside any longer.
Just as I thought I needed to hurry back to the warehouse and restore my peace of mind with some beastfolk selfies,
"What? What did you just say?"
Someone passing by had overheard my grumbling and called me out.
"Pardon?"
"I'm asking if you didn't just spout something like 'what's the big deal about Judak anyway.'"
Turning around, there stood a man with his upper body bare, muscles bulging like they might explode.
He glared at me as if I'd personally insulted him and strode over.
Thud.
"Take it back...! That thing you just said...!!!"
"Take it back!"
Unless it was a fight I could win perfectly, I didn't fight.
I immediately handed over 10 mana rice cakes, retracted my statement, and the man nodded before walking away.
"I didn't expect it to be like this."
I knew the gallery was full of Judak praise posts every day.
But experiencing it firsthand felt totally different.
However, no sooner had the man left than a shady guy in a black robe approached me.
"Hey, I've got some good words to share with you."
His suspicious attire screamed cultist, with an eerie aura to match.
But the man approached with a friendly smile and straight-up asked me,
"Do you believe in Judak?"
*
Lady Evelyn Ophelia.
Now the queen, Evelyn had stepped out of the castle for an inspection.
One hand held a tuna can, the other a spoon, as she walked the streets.
"Your Majesty, look over there."
Lloyd, now her queen's knight, pointed somewhere.
There, a black-haired man was being proselytized by a sinister-looking guy.
"Unique appearance. A foreigner, maybe?"
"Your Majesty."
"Oh, right. Casual speech, like I said."
Evelyn awkwardly corrected herself as she looked at the black-haired man.
She hadn't seen many black-haired people in her life.
Let alone eyes that black—it was such a distinctive look that her gaze was drawn to him.
The problem was that he was currently being cornered and preached at.
"Magic beasts aren't the only issue..."
Even in a world on the brink of destruction, problems weren't limited to magic beasts.
All sorts of criminals and cults taking advantage of the chaos were major societal issues too.
If you only focused on magic beasts, you'd end up like Adrian before you knew it.
"Let's help him."
"Understood."
As the two approached the man, their suspicions turned to certainty.
"It'll only take a moment. This is good news for you too, brother."
"No, I don't want any."
"Believe in Judak. Judak gave us the market and weapons. Judak alone is our savior!"
"No, I don't want it. Go away."
Anyone could see the man was repulsed, but the cultist clung to his limbs, preaching relentlessly.
"That's enough."
Lloyd stepped in to intervene.
"What? Who the hell are you to butt in..."
Shing.
"You think you can say that?"
The cultist vanished into the alley the instant Lloyd drew his sword, and the man let out a sigh of relief.
With the magic beasts gone, now these cultists, scammers, and criminals were crawling out of the woodwork.
Had some law of trash preservation kicked in?
The man hesitated for a moment, then seemed about to bow in thanks.
"Really, thank you. Thanks to you, uh."
But at that moment, the man locked eyes with Evelyn, mid-sentence, and froze solid.
His expression paled as if he'd run into someone he absolutely shouldn't have met.
"Are you okay?"
Evelyn examined him with a worried look.
Why was he so shocked?
It was like she was forcing him into something he didn't want,
Teasing him like she was pranking him,
Gazing at him like an old acquaintance they'd been chatting with forever.
"Have we met somewhere before?"
By the time the sudden question popped into her head and she voiced it, the man had already vanished without a trace.
"Huh?"
She'd wanted to ask about that sense of familiarity.
Evelyn propped her chin on her hand, lost in serious thought.
"Did you know him?"
"No, not exactly..."
Hard to put into words.
He'd definitely been polite to her... but somehow, it felt like casual speech?
His tone carried the unmistakable scent of the gallery.
"Well, if we meet again, I can just ask."
Dark hair and eyes.
And conversely, skin pale white, like it hadn't seen sunlight in ages.
"Not the kind of face you forget easily."
Remembering the man's lingering image, Evelyn popped a bite of tuna into her mouth.
*
- Kellerton Judak statue sighting.jpg
-感動Real story) Imagining Judak
- Single bingle) World's first Judak statue update
Title: Why Kellerton's Judak statue has historical inaccuracies...jpg
(Fist clenched, intense ranting guy meme)
Historical accuracy? Uh, no idea.
H-Honestly, it's cute, so it's fine...
- What are you even saying, gallery bros...
- Classic Isekai Destruction Gallery
Quality post) Kellerton Magic Tower under construction ㅇㅇ
Posted by: zl Ground Explosion Mage
(Mage tower completed up to 5 floors pic)
Gonna raise it to 10 floors first.
Made an office too, and basing it on the Judak statue, gonna commission a portrait and hang it up.
- Ooh, cool design, looks great!
ㄴ Humans these days have magic talent too.
ㄴ If I just had a magic tower like that, fr.
ㄴ zl Ground Explosion Mage) ? Not mine.
ㄴ ?
ㄴ You built it, so whose is it if not yours?
ㄴ zl Ground Explosion Mage) Giving it to Lord Judak.
ㄴ ???
- I have no idea what this means.
ㄴ Never try to understand mages.
ㄴ They get fixated and go all out like this.
- Wasn't there something like this before?
ㄴ Yeah, that gallery bro who wanted to be a grand mage's disciple built a tower and invited him ㅇㅇ
ㄴ ?
ㄴ To learn magic, you gotta go that hard?
ㄴ Becoming a disciple sounds tough af.
ㄴ Fact) Back then too, he just took the tower and didn't teach any magic.
"Hmm, same as usual."
Endless creepy tales.
Rumors piling on rumors until they twist into "truth."
Yeah, this is the gallery.
Looking at the gallery calms my mind.
- Do you believe in Judak?
- Have you gallery bros been reborn?
- Join the Judak Worshippers and awaken to gallery life!!
Until I saw the cultists from outside spreading their crap in the gallery too.
"Ah, fuck, what's this now."
Season 3 curseword entrygal.
My mind started spinning.