Chapter 148
Chapter 148
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 148
Chapter Title: Prayer Answered
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As soon as I confirmed the button had activated, all the tension from encountering an unknown culture vanished, and my mind cleared up on its own.
'Ah, so this is the style?'
[!!!] was a sort of quest balloon. It was safe to interpret it as someone requesting sponsorship.
Clicking it brought up a short comic strip, followed by a message window asking whether the situation had been resolved.
And this— the 'Sponsor' button had activated, but it didn't mean I had to sponsor unconditionally.
In fact, there was a small [X] button tucked into the corner of the tooltip listing Ares's request.
In other words— I could provide real-time sponsorship, exactly as much as I wanted, right where it was needed.
It was straightforward and easy to understand, yet it felt like the kind of monetization scheme where money slips away unnoticed, like getting soaked in a light drizzle.
'Considering there's only two days of prep time, this is pretty impressive in its own right...'
Sure enough.
Sure enough, I would probably end up spending far more than when I was just reading comics.
Honestly, until now, I'd been getting ridiculously cheap freebies— so it wasn't so bad to spend a little.
Besides, for just 1700 won, Ares and Karen could be happy?
In an era where a large triangle kimbap cost about that much, this was definitely a profitable deal.
'Alright.'
I lightly clicked the Sponsor button and invested the 1700 won without holding back.
Then— a white light gradually gathered on the screen, soon forming a small orb that plopped down onto the recumbent Karen.
Karen's body on the bed gave a faint glow—
[ Sponsorship Complete! Thank you so much, Lord Igugwoden! ]
[ Sponsorship Effect: Karen has regained her health! ]
[ Ares's Faith has increased! ]
The moment the messages appeared, Karen smiled and pumped her fists a few times, bringing the scene to an end.
'So that's how it works.'
I was thinking the motion they'd put together was pretty cute when—
[ Money Please: Thank you for sponsoring, Lord Igugwoden ]
[ Money Please: We have successfully detected the Divine Power spreading through the world ]
[ Money Please: It seems the system recovery itself has been completed without issue ]
[ Igugwoden: Well, since the one who sent Karen to Ares was me, of all people ]
[ Igugwoden: Of course I have to take responsibility for it ㅎㅎ ]
[ Money Please: No matter how many times I think about it, there is no god as merciful as Lord Igugwoden ]
[ Money Please: Thank you, Lord Igugwoden ]
[ Money Please: xgqw.wo.to <<< You can check the subsequent situation via this link ]
The fact that they sent the link so quickly meant they had probably drawn this comic in advance too?
Did that mean the author prepared a total of three short comics: one 'before sponsoring', one 'after sponsoring', and one 'after deciding not to sponsor'?
The comic itself was shorter than usual, so the workload probably didn't vary much... but it was still like drawing two-thirds of the comics that I might never even see.
No matter how hard I tried, I clearly couldn't match the author's obsession with detail.
'Well then, let's take a look.'
I immediately checked the continuation of the story via the link.
* * *
—It was.
It was an incredibly wondrous thing.
Something spiritual and holy, beyond expression in human language.
"Wow...!"
The warm light streaming in through the window coalesced into an orb that enveloped Karen.
"Lord Igugwoden...!"
Karen's body sparkled as she closed her eyes and prayed in response—
"...Ah!"
Karen's complexion visibly improved, and she looked at Ares with a voice full of disbelief.
"I'm okay now, Your Highness! It feels like the Lord has taken care of me!"
"R-Really... Sister?"
"Why would I ever lie to you, Your Highness!"
Her beaming, exuberant smile was the picture of the old, energetic Karen.
Could it be... that my prayer had gotten through?
Had the Lord watched over me once again?
If that was truly the case.
How could the Lord— Lord Igugwoden— not be the epitome of mercy!
Karen watched Ares tremble with awe at the Lord's love, then ventured a cautious question, as if she had some inkling.
"By any chance, that prayer you offered just now... was it for this sister?"
"Huh? Ah..."
For a moment, he considered just being honest instead of getting embarrassed.
As far as Ares knew, Karen might be an existence even more connected to the Lord than Saintess Erin.
There was no point in lying here.
"Yes. I did it."
At that moment.
Grab—
"...?!"
He was startled when Karen suddenly reached out and snatched his hand—
"Thank you so much, Your Highness...!"
"Sister...?"
"It's just... this is the first time since I was born that someone has prayed for me like this...! I'm truly, truly moved. Thank you for praying for your sister!"
"T-That..."
"...Ah!"
Only then did Karen seem to realize something, quickly letting go of his hand and turning her head away for no reason.
"Sorry. Your sister can be a bit overdramatic, huh? Eheh... When you think about it, it's not a big deal... Sorry if it made you uncomfortable."
"No. It didn't make me uncomfortable... I'm glad."
"Really? Eheh, thank you! Your Highness is so kind. Your sister feels good too!"
With those words—
Both Karen and Ares blushed noticeably and said nothing for a while.
Ares thought to himself.
Enjoying this strange ticklish feeling was probably the rational way to move past this situation.
He naturally recalled the fireworks festival from his childhood, hosted by the mages of the Fire Magic Tower.
The rising flames had been beautiful, but in the end, they couldn't stop them from fading away.
Even so, it was fine. There were things that were beautiful precisely because they ultimately vanished.
His relationship with Karen was the same.
He knew she couldn't stay by his side forever.
Because of that, he also knew he had no right to put a brake on her actions.
But.
The feelings that bloomed in his heart alongside her recovery...
"Sister..."
"Yes? What is it, Your Highness?"
Ares lowered his head and spoke a little more seriously.
"...I know I have no right to say this. Still... I hope you won't try to shoulder everything alone forever."
"Shoulder everything?"
"You're just... taking on all the dangerous stuff yourself. Even things that you don't need to step up for... I think even without Armageddon, you would have ended up bedridden like this someday."
Karen looked at Ares without saying a word—
Then replied in a tone devoid of any playfulness.
"Your Highness. Your sister isn't human. You know that, right?"
"I know."
"Things like taking on all the dangerous work... that's just human logic in the end. Your sister is here to carry out the Lord's will. The very fact that your sister exists is the Lord's will, so I can never waste time carelessly. And—"
—Even the fact that your sister is by Your Highness's side is ultimately the Lord's will.
"You haven't forgotten that, have you?"
"......"
"Your Highness being good to your sister... your sister is truly grateful for that. But if you start expecting too much from her... the one who ends up breaking will be Your Highness. In the end, your sister is something you have to graduate from... You don't need me to say more; a smart prince like you understands, right?"
As he watched Karen smile dazzlingly while saying that, Ares thought.
It was a topic he himself had pondered many times.
Her being by his side wasn't her will, but the Lord's will, the Lord's intent.
In the end, it was possible only because the Lord hadn't taken her— Karen— away and had instead placed her by his side with Plain Fact.
Ares could now easily understand that her will had no part in that process.
But even so.
Even if everything ultimately came down to the Lord's will...
'The fact that Sister was by my side doesn't change.'
'The warmth I felt from Sister isn't all fake...'
Ares barely swallowed those words.
How she had approached him— at least for Ares, it didn't matter in the end.
No matter the process, thanks to Sister being there, Ares had met the Lord and gained a better way of thinking.
That was why.
Ares didn't want to regard her— Sister— merely as an 'object of graduation.'
Before he knew it, he was thinking that way. That it would be nice if she stayed by his side forever.
'......'
When he thought about it, the Lord had just answered his prayer— so it would be ridiculous to dare ask for more here.
Instead of replying, Ares offered a cautious prayer of thanks to the Sole God who surely existed.
'Lord Igugwoden. Thank you for hearing my prayer. I will never forget that this is Your grace, that even this moment is Your love. And...'
...If I may ask, please forgive the anguish of this frail creation.
Please don't hate too much this pathetic human who can only wish.
The once-foolish youth who had sought to affirm his self by turning the world upside down—
Was now simply in love.
* * *
After checking the comic, I let out a short sigh without realizing it.
'Come to think of it, Karen was the 'term-limited nun' I created by paying money, right?'
At first, she was a character made to give a proper lesson to Ares, who had been trying to kill Eirene to protect his bloated ego—
But toying with him this far by spending money wasn't all that fun anymore, and I felt a bit sorry, so I'd kept her around via subscription.
Ares seemed to understand that her being by his side was my will. From the in-story descriptions, he appeared to have a pretty sharp mind.
'This is tricky...'
As the Observer had said, 'Birthing life requires an immense Divine Power, and even then, success isn't guaranteed.'
In other words, just as resurrection was forbidden, manufacturing humans with money was something they didn't want to allow in terms of world balance.
Of course, since it was just a setting, if I seriously insisted, they might allow it— but if the author didn't want to and I shoved money in demanding it, that would just make me the problem customer.
Ideally, Ares living happily with Karen would be best.
If that couldn't happen, then as Karen said, the process of letting him 'graduate' safely would be necessary.
'Will related quests pop up from time to time going forward?'
In any case, Ares.
God can do anything for you as long as you don't touch Eirene-chan.
Never forget that she's my wife before she's your mother.
I almost thought, 'Then wouldn't Ares naturally become my stepson?' but I held it back.
Phew. Good thing. I nearly turned into an over-immersed otaku.
'Anyway, that's one thing settled.'
I closed the window showing the interior of Ares and Karen's house and returned to the village view.
Though I had sponsored, as I scanned the screen with a sense of incomplete combustion—
'That' entered my view.
A corner of the village square.
The sight that came into my view—
[ Rabbit / Duration: ∞ (Unlimited) / Rabbit / Pet (Owner: Ophelia Translente) / ??? ]
Was a rabbit sitting squarely in the center.
[ Ophelia Translente / ✟✟✟✟✟ (Zealous Fanatic) / ♥♥♡♡♡ / ♘ ]
Ophelia standing beside the rabbit like a proxy, saying something.
Elves and priests of the Igugwoden Church sat in a circle around them...
Kneeling demurely, gazing at the rabbit and listening intently to Ophelia's words.
'......???'
—The sight that entered my view was nothing if not an avant-garde scene.