Chapter 51
Chapter 51
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 51
Chapter Title: The Igugwoden Temple
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* * *
The grand plaza in front of the Igugwoden Royal Palace.
This was an incredibly symbolic place where the Imperial Knight Order's enlistment ceremonies, as well as all sorts of large and small events, were held.
And in this plaza—
Countless people, including the Imperial Knight Order, were lined up in formation.
A short while later.
Atop the two-story-high altar, the Empress of the Empire, Eirene von Ainsberg, made her appearance.
She wore an incredibly luxurious dress, as if to prove she was the noblest person on the continent.
The tiara symbolizing her as Empress crowned her asymmetrical updo like a dragon, accentuating her beauty.
Of course, she was no mere "beautiful" existence that could be described with a single word.
The charisma that all who rule over others inevitably possess proved she was the absolute sovereign of the continent.
And on top of that—
Her massive breasts, impossible to conceal even with her dress.
Breasts that rivaled—nay, perhaps even surpassed—those of Erin, famous for her tremendous Divine Power Pouch.
They were clearer proof than anything of why she was loved by the gods.
Eirene took her place on the platform—and a brief silence followed.
Breaking it was the human who stood at the highest pinnacle—Eirene.
"I ask you all: What do you believe Plain Fact to be?"
Plain Fact.
The symbol of mercy bestowed by Lord Igugwoden upon His creations, an enigmatic and wondrous something that encompassed all the manifold phenomena of the world.
Something no human could dare define with a single word—that was the god's Plain Fact.
"Some might call it strong will. Others might say it's an unyielding heart. But I believe it to be 'a trustworthy heart.'"
"Faith! The power to trust the person right in front of you! The power to gaze toward the same place as those beside you!"
"It's been some time since we declared the Igugwoden Church our national religion... But we still lack faith in the god's Plain Fact!"
Eirene placed her pale white hand on her chest and declared once more in a resounding voice.
"That is why we must now erect proof of our faith in Lord Igugwoden upon this land! Something that will make Him up in the heavens chuckle 'Uhuhu' when He beholds it!"
"Thus, I declare here and now! We shall demolish the old ruins and upon that site—"
—build a temple for Lord Igugwoden, repaying His Plain Fact with our faith!
"Discarding the old and embracing the new is also the will of the Sole God Igugwoden! Ruins like those were relics from the days of local faiths anyway! Why not repurpose them into a new temple and repay the great Igugwoden, who bestowed Plain Fact upon us, with our faith?!"
—Waaaaaaaaah!!!!
The first screams of excitement came from the Imperial Knight Order side.
Leading the fervent cheers from the front was Knight Order Commander Bernheim Otomitia, who had become a zealous Igugwoden Church believer after meeting Saintess Erin not long ago.
Next to heat up were the mages affiliated with the Magic Towers.
Some, like the Fire Magic Tower Master, had met with Erin in person—but truthfully, the mages at present quite supported the current Eirene.
In the past, she had been strict, saying things like "You must produce results" and "The Magic Towers governing each attribute will compete, and those who fall behind get no research funds."
But these days, just profess faith in the Igugwoden Church, and generous research funds flowed in.
Who wouldn't love a deal where believing in a religion lets you research freely?
The Igugwoden Church figures, including the Pope, went without saying.
Watching the world染 with the teachings of the Igugwoden they believed in—it was a dream come true for the faithful.
Ophelia and Luca watched Eirene's speech with eyes full of感動.
This was the god's Plain Fact.
It was making everyone happy—or so one might think and move on.
'......'
Linea glanced at the expressions of her Dish of Holy Knights comrades standing beside her.
Their eyes gazing at Eirene shone with piety.
She... lacked the confidence to look at the Empress—at her mother—with such eyes.
'Is this... right...?'
Linea turned her head to behold First Princess Yuria, who was shedding tears and giving a standing ovation.
It wasn't just Yuria. Everyone who met Erin suddenly transformed into zealous Igugwoden Church believers.
To be frank, the emotion Linea felt wasn't the overwhelming awe of witnessing a miracle.
It was fear. Fear born from events she couldn't comprehend unfolding.
'...Once things settle down a bit, I should consult my little brother Ares.'
With Yuria and her mother like this, Ares was the only blood relative she could rely on.
He had his eccentric side, but he was smart, so maybe he'd have some helpful advice.
Thinking that, she stared at her mother for a long while amid the cheers of the crowd.
* * *
The temple construction proceeded at an astonishing pace.
Overwhelming capital provided by the Imperial Family. Devout cathedral laborers beyond reproach. And a relatively simple process of just remodeling an existing temple!
With all three elements perfectly aligned, perhaps?
In no time, a remarkably impressive temple was complete.
The temple's structure was simple.
Pillars lined both sides, with an altar in the center.
The marble walls were densely engraved with messages from the Holy Scripture—one by one. This process had taken the longest in construction, by far.
"You've all worked hard."
Overseeing it all was Saintess Erin, chosen by the god.
She addressed all the gathered clergy in a voice that rang through the temple.
"Come! Let us offer prayers of gratitude to Lord Igugwoden!"
With Erin clasping her hands and bowing her head, everyone closed their eyes and recited the prayer to Lord Igugwoden.
—To my one and only Lord, Igugwoden.
Thank you for always cherishing us humans.
Thank you for sharing Plain Fact with us every day.
Thank you for not turning away when we face trials.
When we lose our way and wander, thank you for willingly becoming our lantern, illuminating the path ahead.
Thank you for sharing all this with us without demanding anything in return.
For the rest of our lives.
We shall serve You, Igugwoden, with these bodies.
Igugwoden, my Lord, my everything... Igugwoden.
If the chance arises, we promise to repay all this Plain Fact...
"Guu—men."
Guu—men.
The Dish of Holy Knights and Empress Eirene.
And over a hundred clergy bowing their heads to the Sole God Igugwoden in the temple—it was truly a magnificent sight.
* * *
"Wow......"
I let out an exclamation before I knew it.
This round's plot is seriously no joke......
How can an entire chapter be straight-up 'Igugwoden worship'?
Does the author need money?
Well, sure, there was some stuff about Linea.
At this point, Linea was the only one wary of me.
If I just sponsored right now, she might come to believe in me too, but......
'I can intervene after figuring out what Linea is thinking.'
That bit about consulting her little brother at the end, too—Linea seemed to have her own reasons for not believing in me.
Still, she's a Dish of Holy Knights member, so as her god, shouldn't I at least know what she's thinking?
From a reader's perspective, I was curious how the author would unfold the story without my intervention.
Truth be told, that last reason was the biggest. This author spun a pretty fun tale aside from the brainrot.
I reread the scene of them worshiping me in the temple.
Every head-bowing prayer shot blatantly showed cleavage.
The author hammered home the breasts with obsessive persistence in scene after scene—talk about a weird fixation.
He's drawing it that way because I like it, though.
In other words, the content and scenes were blatantly serving me up a feast......
'This might not be...... so bad......?'
I let out a hollow chuckle for no reason.
Ah. I shouldn't love this stuff too much.
They say enjoying free rides makes you a fool.
You'll turn into a Tteoltyo. Yeah? Tteoltyo. Praise me. Tteoltyo—.
[ Igugwoden: Author ]
[ Igugwoden: Earn money honestly. This is too blatant ]
[ Give Me Money: But everyone wants to sincerely convey their gratitude to Lord Igugwoden ]
[ Give Me Money: Because the grace You bestowed is righteously changing the world ]
[ Give Me Money: And You've already shared so much of Your Divine Power—how dare I ask anything more of Lord Igugwoden? ]
[ Igugwoden: ㅎㅎ Is that so ]
[ Give Me Money: Yes ]
[ Give Me Money: Truly thank you, Lord Igugwoden ]
[ Give Me Money: We will never forget that You gifted us happiness ]
Ha. Doing it again!
I think "earn honestly," but before I know it, my face is grinning as my mouse cursor heads for the sponsor button.
Can't take it anymore. Gotta pay the author!
[ Igugwoden: (Sponsor / 50,000 won / Fine, I'll cover chicken ) ]
[ Igugwoden: ㅋㅋㅋㅋ Fun as always today ]
[ Give Me Money: No ]
[ Give Me Money: Lord Igugwoden... really... you don't have to do this... ]
[ Give Me Money: Thank you so much. Another precious sponsorship... ]
[ Igugwoden: Keep it ]
[ Igugwoden: I'm only giving what I can afford, so no worries ㅋㅋㅋ ]
[ Give Me Money: Where's the line on what you can afford ]
[ Give Me Money: Thank you once more for Your precious Divine Power ]
[ Give Me Money: But... what do You mean by chicken money...? ]
[ Igugwoden: Literal meaning ]
To buy you chicken, milord.
With prices so high these days, I wonder if 50k gets two birds.
Used to get three back in the day—it's gotten so expensive.
[ Give Me Money: Understood ]
[ Give Me Money: I shall follow the god's will ]
No need to let me dictate your meal—go for pizza if you want, I was about to say—
'Don't ruin the vibe.'
He's kindly indulging my immersion fully, so I'll return the favor.
[ Igugwoden: Yeah yeah ]
[ Igugwoden: It's the god's will, so use it gratefully ]
Wrapping up the chat, I fired up the delivery app on my smartphone.
'Maybe I should get a chicken too.'
I ordered some without much thought.
With no clue how the next round would unfold.
* * *
The day after erecting the temple and offering prayers.
As Saintess Erin read the Holy Scripture in her room, Cecilia arrived with an urgent expression.
"You're here, Saintess."
"What is it, Cecilia?"
"I think you need to come to the temple."
"The temple? Did something happen?"
"Well...... It's better if you see it for yourself rather than me explaining here."
Erin hurried to the temple with Cecilia.
Upon arriving at the temple, not far from Igugwoden Cathedral, what greeted Erin was—
'Th-this is......!'
—chicken.
An overwhelming mountain of chicken—enough to feed a hundred people to bursting!
A pile of fresh raw chickens heaped on the temple altar like a veritable mountain.
* * *