4. Church
4. Church
"...The weather is nice."
Second-floor terrace of the inn.
The warm afternoon sun shines down pleasantly, and I recline in my chair, enjoying the cool breeze that tickles my ears.
If someone asks what I'm doing here in the middle of the day without working, my answer is already set.
— My profession is that of an adventurer and mercenary...
Well, as grand as that may sound, it essentially means I'm no different from being unemployed if there are no requests.
If I had saved money for such off-seasons, there would be no problem, but...
Jingle—
I reached into my sleeve, pulled out a leather pouch, and shook its contents onto my palm.
"...Only two gold coins."
Two gleaming gold coins. For the average commoner, it's enough to live comfortably for a month, but unfortunately, since I'm not an average commoner, it means I'm in a very tight spot... as they say.
Thanks to this Gift, which I don't know whether it's a blessing or a curse, my mana efficiency is just too poor.
"I should start working soon... Sigh."
Is there nowhere I can easily make some money...?
The city is too peaceful.
Ultimately, it means I have to cover my expenses with other 'side jobs,' but that troublesome hero who paid 6 gold for my ass(?) has already left.
Moreover...
If I were to wait there, customers might come, but I really don't feel like going right now.
As soon as I recover from my illness, I'm supposed to do that again?
'It's just a side job, a side job. I am a noble elf mage that others look up to...!'
Of course, the only reason I can indulge in this mental masturbation is because I'm not hungry right at this moment.
I closed my eyes and became one with the chair as if sunbathing.
Then, as my vision darkened, my sense of smell and hearing naturally sharpened. With my pointy ears perked up, the surrounding noises filtered in one by one.
The lively haggling sounds from the market. The clatter of carriage wheels on the stones. And...
Even the whispering voices of adventurers in the alley right below the terrace.
"...Did you hear the church is recruiting people this time?"
"The church is recruiting? There shouldn't be anything major for the church to get involved in."
"I heard new priests were dispatched recently. It might be related to that. There might be some profitable work."
...Elise?
As soon as I heard about recently dispatched priests, the girl priest I partied with temporarily a while ago flashed through my mind.
"...Wake up, you idiot. How much money do you think a church request pays? At best, they're the kind of people who grandly say 'May God bless you~!' and then stingily give you a single gold coin."
"What can I do? There are no requests these days."
"And if it's something big enough for the church to mobilize on a large scale, this city would have been in an uproar. Well, at most, they're probably just looking for help to take care of some orphan kids."
"......"
I decided to stop eavesdropping on the mercenaries' conversation there.
I slowly opened my eyes. Frowning slightly at the dazzling sunlight, I pondered deeply.
'Recruiting people... is that it?'
Senior Priest Irene is a bit troublesome, but since my elf-life motto has always been 'an extremely ordinary civilian life in a peaceful city,' church work might not be so bad.
If I'm lucky, I might even get lunch and dinner solved...
An elf mage and the church. It doesn't feel like the images clash that much...
"...Should I go take a quick look first?"
The goal is, yes.
A free lunch.
===
Magnificent sunlight streaming brilliantly through the high ceiling and intricate stained glass.
'...They built this building quite splendidly. Just looking at this, all that talk about the church having no money is a lie.'
Bellua Church.
In other words, the Bellua branch of the church.
It's said to be a religion that worships an existence called 'That Being' as a god. If you ask what 'That Being' is...
"I don't know."
"...Uh, well..."
"Noah, that's all."
"Yes, Noah-nim. 'That Being' has said: All beings under the sky can become followers of the church... Please, come inside first."
Following the nun's guidance, I stepped inside the building.
The nun left me with the words, "You can sit in a suitable place and pray," and quietly withdrew.
Taking a quick look around, it was certain...
From kids who looked about ten years old, to a boy and girl who seemed like siblings, and even elderly people—all sorts of humans were tightly clasping their hands and earnestly murmuring something.
And here I am, an elf with pointy ears and snow-white skin.
It feels more awkward than I expected.
I've come inside, but the next step was the problem. Asking for food or looking for side jobs wasn't really something a noble elf should ask.
So, let's act natural...
Straightening my back and sitting properly in the chair, I tried to come up with a suitable excuse.
...But what if those guys misheard or the recruitment is already over?
Then I'll just become an elf who 'came to pray' and that's it. It seems this church doesn't even offer snacks or anything, so it literally means zero profit.
If I go back like this,
Tonight's dinner is confirmed to be the inn's basic meal: a piece of bread with a soup that has a few bits of ingredients 'added.' Ah, with sausage added to that.
...If I knew it would be like this, I should've endured Mr. Bread's restaurant a bit longer.
Just as I was pretending to pray with my eyes closed, a familiar voice came from behind me.
"...Huh? Those ears... Noah-nim?"
Though it's only our second meeting, it's a familiar, high-spirited voice. I could tell without even turning my head.
Sure enough, when I turned, Elise in her priest robes was looking at me with wide eyes.
"...Elise?"
"It really is Noah-nim? Ah, this is the chapel so we should be quiet... Haha. I was just passing by..."
Elise smiled awkwardly and passed by me, heading toward the front of the chapel.
'That's her.'
I immediately got up from my seat and followed Elise. After passing through the inner door of the chapel, as the sound of the piano inside grew slightly faint, Elise stopped walking.
Thud—
"...Did you come looking for me, Elise, because you had business?"
"......"
Somehow, her eyes looking back at me were filled with expectation.
"I just stopped by while taking a walk around."
"Walking is great! Would it be alright if I show you around the church? I happen to be free right now...!"
"...Do as you please."
I'd rather avoid running into Irene, but it's not that I dislike her, she's just a bit bothersome.
For a free lunch side job, that much is fine...
And so, under Elise's guidance, I ended up looking around the church surroundings.
The chapel, the main church building, a quite well-maintained flower garden, and... the orphanage run by the church.
The church is larger than I thought.
But no matter how much I looked around, there didn't seem to be any signs of recruiting people.
"...In this garden, there are flowers that Priest Irene-nim cherishes. They're a famous feature of our church. I think even Noah-nim would be impressed if you saw them?"
"Flower appreciation isn't really my hobby..."
"Don't elves like nature and such?"
"...Ahem. Well, I like a natural feel. Isn't a garden an artificial beauty created by humans?"
Probably so.
"You'll understand once you see it. They're really pretty, I tell you?"
"Yeah, yeah..."
As Elise unraveled a bundle of talk about how pretty the garden was, we moved our steps to a relatively less crowded path behind the main building when...
A argument between a man and a woman could be heard from beyond a window.
[ ...There will be no additional personnel recruitment, so that's that. ]
[ Bishop Valerius. The children have talent too. There are quite a few children with magical talent. As a church that should set an example for the faithful, we have a duty to guide children with dreams. That is the teaching of 'That Being.' Our budget... it's not that insufficient, is it...! ]
"......?"
"......"
Elise and I stopped walking almost simultaneously.
Eavesdropping is always interesting, no matter the era or place.
[ Senior Priest Irene. The budget has already been fully allocated. There is no additional budget to execute. Are you going to hire some expensive mage with your own money? Well—you could probably hire as many E-rank mages as you want who are drinking at the adventurer's guild right about now. ]
[ ...There is a mage we can hire. ]
[ Hah. Stop being stubborn, Priest Irene. If you want to nurture their magical talent as you say, you need to provide them with a proper teacher. Where in this city is there a mage worthy of being called a teacher...! ]
[ There is Noah-nim. ]
...Huh? Me?
Elise looked at me.
I shrugged my shoulders without thinking. Oops. Did that seem like a frivolous gesture? But Elise didn't seem to mind that sort of thing.
Then...
I moved a bit closer and peeked inside the room through the window. Standing on my tiptoes...
'...Hup.'
[ ...Anyway, it's not possible! No elves! ]
[ Noah-nim is an excellent mage! Probably in this city, no, in the surrounding cities as well, there is no mage who can match him. For someone who leisurely conducts research in a city like this and steps forward without hesitation to solve the requests of troubled residents... ]
...I just solved requests to make money, but it seems that's how Irene saw it.
This is a bit embarrassing, being praised like this.
[ If it's him, he surely wouldn't turn his back on the children... ]
[ Hah! Priest Irene. You're too naive.. That elf is no good! I acknowledge his skill. But who knows how many snakes live inside him? She's suspicious as hell. She must be well over a hundred years old, bringing such a person of interest into this church is preposterous! ]
A hundred years...?
Since I always evade answering whenever someone asks my age, it seems my age has somehow surpassed a hundred.
Still, it's better than being looked down upon for being young.
Elise looked at me and asked worriedly.
"...Noah-nim. Should we stay here?"
"Wait a moment. There's something bothering me..."
I pressed myself against the wall and stared intently through the window at the guy called Bishop Valerius.
An annoyingly authoritative, pig-slaughtering metallic voice that sounds like it's mixed with phlegm. I wondered why the name Valerius sounded familiar...
'Ah, I remember.'
Once a month.
That pig VIP who always visits my room is named Valerius... Marian told me.
'Fuck.'
It seems wherever I go in this city, I keep running into my customers.