novelraw Chapter 290: Just As Expected
Chapter 290: Just As Expected
"You grew up in a church?"
Actually, Fisher regretted it slightly right after stepping out of the church. Previously, upon arriving at the Northern Border on the Flying Fish, he felt the Northern Border winds were exceptionally bone-piercing. And having not bought any winter clothing yet, he felt an oppressive chill immediately upon leaving the church.
He exhaled a long breath, watching the visible mist from his mouth disperse. While searching for edible things around him, he began to answer Emhart's query,
"It was a church school, not a church... I don't believe in the Mother Goddess."
"Uh-huh, maybe... You know, in the human societies of your West Continent, many believers of the Mother God religion also commit many evil deeds. They covet wealth and beauty, but wrap these desires beneath the shell of a devout believer. In comparison, although you like ladies, you're still considered a good person; you're more like a believer than those clergy members in the churches."
"A person possessing beautiful moral character has absolutely no relation to whether or not they believe in the Mother Goddess."
"Uh-huh, that is indeed true. But I feel the church from your childhood still had a bit of a subtle, imperceptible influence on you. After all, look; after so long has passed, the one you remember most from the church school is actually a beautiful nun! It corresponds simply perfectly to your image of being unable to control your lower half! It's hard to say whether the other things she said to you along with her beauty entered the bottom of your heart..."
"Shut up."
Fisher expressionlessly grabbed Emhart's book body and threw him towards a snowdrift by the roadside, scaring him into screaming and spinning several times in mid-air before stopping.
"You-you-you! Every time I hit a nerve, you like to get physical! Are you bullying me because I don't have hands? Just you wait! When the day comes that I grow hands, I'll show you!"The infuriated Emhart wouldn't even go onto Fisher's shoulder anymore; he just kept floating by his ear, chattering incessantly. It surprisingly added a few hints of liveliness to the winter in Sardin Woman's Country.
The forest that had just experienced a storm wasn't unpopulated. Fisher hadn't walked far inside before finding prey—a lone stag. Fisher didn't expend much effort to kill it. After all, when he fell into the sea, the fluid sword was still kept in his trouser pocket and wasn't lost. With the fluid sword around, no matter how much it ran, it couldn't escape Fisher's demonic clutches.
As Fisher hoisted the unconscious stag onto his shoulder and prepared to head back, he took the initiative to ask about the Moon Rabbit-kin. Emhart, originally still fuming, had absolutely no intention of speaking. But he was infuriated once more by Fisher's goading, "You couldn't possibly not know, right?"
Without Fisher even needing to ask in detail, he divulged the entire societal situation of the Moon Rabbit-kin among the six clans to Fisher.
"The Moon Rabbit-kin are the race that followed the Frost Prince to the central Northern Border. Like the Slime-kin, they are the most intelligent and dexterous race among the six clans. The reason the Moon Rabbit-kin are called Moon Rabbit-kin isn't because of the crescent moon-shaped notches appearing on their ears, but because in ancient times, they were nocturnal creatures."
"Legends say the Moon Rabbit-kin can rely on moonlight to find hidden treasures, and also see through the secrets buried at the bottom of a person's heart via moonlight. Because of this, the Moon Princess very much liked these furry little rabbits. As a result, her elder brother, the Frost Prince, snatched the Moon Rabbit-kin from her hands as if playing a dirty trick, and took them away from the snowy mountains. The Moon Princess was so enraged she secretly burned down his house on the Frostwood Sycamore Tree."
"After the three Children of the Phoenix disappeared in the Northern Border, the Moon Rabbit-kin and Slime-kin didn't piously wish to return to the Frostwood Sycamore Tree like the Cangniao-kin and Giant Troll-kin did. Conversely, they felt living beneath the snowy mountains was also not bad. So even until now, their figures remain active all over the Northern Border."
Fisher pondered as he walked while carrying the stag, but he was still relatively puzzled about what kind of demi-human race the "Slime-kin" actually was.
Slime-kin was the name given to this demi-human by West Continent people. In the Northern Border language, they were called "Kenongba," meaning "smart jelly." "Slimes" were fictional monsters created by modern West Continent novelists in their fantasy novels, borrowed here to translate this unique demi-human race from the Northern Border.
In novels, this monster with no fixed shape was entirely composed of a jelly-like substance filled with strong acid. The strong acidity of their bodies could easily dissolve armor and weapons... Um, in recent years, they also seemed to have added the setting of liking to attack young beautiful girls—exactly the same MO as West Continent people demonizing the Goblin-kin.
"Slime-kin, huh? Now that's a remarkable race. Although their appearance is somewhat strange, like jelly filling an entire lake... undoubtedly, they all possess a genius mind for business. They are passionate about doing business, all sorts of businesses. Legends say they brought countless wealth to the Frost Prince, and also built the earliest merchant ships in the Northern Border for him."
"The Slime-kin are just like the giant dragons that love treasure in your West Continent's myths and legends—not only insatiably greedy but also completely devoid of a bottom line. This was also what the Moon Princess hated the most... I heard that as long as enough money is offered, they would even sell their own clan's sigil..."
As Emhart continued speaking, he still wasn't completely satisfied. But within Fisher's line of sight, that rather dilapidated-looking Healing Rot Church had already appeared. Currently, the church doors were open. A rabbit-eared nun holding a worn book in her hands was standing at the doorway, looking rather worriedly at the forest outside the church. Upon seeing Fisher walking back carrying a stag, only then did she heave a sigh of relief.
But interestingly, this young girl's emotions seemed to be single-threaded. One could see her face first display a relaxed expression, which then turned into surprise upon seeing that giant stag, which then turned into admiration for Fisher possessing such great strength, and finally turned into a hint of unaccountable hesitation to speak.
"Mother Goddess bless us... I thought you had fainted in the forest; you seemed to have suffered very severe injuries earlier. Wait, is this a deer? You... you killed it?"
Fisher exhaled a breath of hot air. Just as he wanted to walk into the church, he saw Ilos spread her arms and block his path in front of him. She shook her head and repeatedly refused, saying,
"Mis-Mister Fisher, this is a church. How... how could you kill a living creature and then carry its corpse into the Mother Goddess's eyes? This absolutely cannot do... Moreover... the deer is so cute, are you really going to eat it?"
If I don't eat the deer, do I eat you instead?
Looking at Ilos's pathetic expression before him, Fisher narrowly refrained from saying this.
But he didn't reveal any surprised expression either. After all, he still possessed a certain understanding of the Mother Goddess Church. Although ancient doctrines allowed believers to eat meat, they had to consume living creatures that died naturally—just like how she picked up those dead shells by the seaside earlier.
The rule of killing to eat meat was established by churches outside of Kadu, primarily Naris and Schwari. After all, meat was simply far too delicious; eating it was still a must.
"If I don't eat something right now, I'm going to starve to death. When that time comes, the Mother Goddess will punish you for not letting me eat. And most importantly, at night, I'll turn into a starved ghost and come looking for you."
"Do-don't come looking for me, don't come looking for me... Th-then you should eat it quickly. Just eat it outside. But you absolutely must not starve to death and come looking for me at night; I already don't sleep well at night as it is..."
Fisher's joking words scared Ilos so much she hastily reached out to cover the ears atop her head. She seemed genuinely afraid that a starved-to-death Fisher would seek revenge on her at night. It made Fisher stifle a laugh.
Hm, wait. Didn't Emhart previously say the Moon Rabbit-kin could see some hidden things under the moonlight? Could her current thoughts be related to this?
Fisher threw the already thoroughly cold deer from his shoulder onto the ground. It was precisely while Ilos reached out to cover that pair of ears atop her head that he suddenly saw clearly what the other party was holding in her hands was actually a "Scripture of Creation." It seemed she had just been studying the scripture.
He also remembered that back when Fisher was in the church school, he would also be punished by Teresa to copy the Scripture of Creation whenever he made a mistake. Loving to act mischievous and cause trouble as a child, he was a massive recipient of punishments to copy the Scripture of Creation. His erroneous behaviors included, but were not limited to: getting into brawls and fights; secretly running onto the streets to trick ladylike elder sisters in Saint-Nazareth into giving him pocket money using a deadly serious, cute child's face; and peeking at the erotic novels Priest Tolen hid in his drawers...
Anyway, up to the present moment, Fisher still owed Sister Teresa fifteen uncopied rounds of the Scripture of Creation.
Fisher smiled silently, tossing the all-too-familiar memories out of his mind. He lowered his head and prepared to begin using the fluid sword to process the corpse of this stag.
"Sizzle sizzle sizzle~"
"Yes, yes, this is exactly the heat! Spread a bit more salt and spices, and you can pick it up and eat it! What are you still waiting for?! You're all clumsy!"
"..."
Fisher, sitting at the doorway of the Healing Rot Church, frowned as he stared at the deer meat shimmering with grease before his eyes. He truly couldn't believe making a certain food taste good actually involved such simple steps... Hm, assuming one ignored the fact that every word Emhart just said was totally unexpected.
It turned out the belly of this guy Emhart also contained the recipes of many culinary masters. Having comprehensively mastered the contents within, he could optimally opportunely teach a student like Fisher, whose cooked food was merely barely edible.
The roasted meat mixed with Northern Border spices was quite delicious. In the freezing winter air of the Sardin Woman's Country, that aroma spread out very far. It was unknown if people far away smelled it, but regardless, the Moon Rabbit-kin young girl reciting the Scripture of Creation at the church doorway definitely smelled it.
"'The Mother Goddess and the stars beside her looked at her child who had fallen into the mortal realm. On the first day, he crossed high mountains; on the second day, he crossed rivers; on the third day, he walked into the forest. Day and night without rest, he gazed up at the sky, attempting to see his beloved mother amidst the boundless canopy of heaven...'"
Ilos recited the scriptures, but as she read, the viscous sound of saliva in her mouth grew increasingly obvious. Even funnier, both her eyes glared uncontrollably at the roasting deer sizzling with grease amidst the snow.
The deer is so cute, it should also be very tasty, right...
No, no, no! What on earth was she thinking about? Th-that was content violating taboos! If she ate it, she would be punished by the Mother Goddess!
Fisher took a bite. The taste was actually unexpectedly good. Compared to the meat he roasted previously, it was simply the difference between heaven and earth.
"The taste is terrific."
"Right? With me, Emhart, around, you couldn't starve to death even if you tried, you know? Read more books, and you will also become as outstanding as I am."
Fisher ignored Emhart, who was on the verge of self-destructing given a sliver of sunlight. He took a piece of roasted deer meat and handed it off to Ilos sitting at the church doorway in the distance, saying to her,
"Do you want to eat? You didn't get full from that tiny bit of shell meat earlier, right?"
"Eh? M-me? No... thank you for your kind intentions, Mister Fisher. But I cannot eat meat from killing lives. This is the Mother Goddess's..."
"Uh-huh. But in reality, current church precepts no longer contain this rule. They cited passages from the Scripture of Creation to provide an explanation: 'Her child walked for seven days and seven nights; her child's tears also flowed for seven days and seven nights. The Mother Goddess then reached out, removed a piece of flesh from her own arm, and threw it towards the mortal realm. During its descent, that flesh was blocked and scattered by the stars, falling into the lakes, seas, mountains, and rivers, converting into corporeal animals.'"
Even after twenty years had passed, Fisher still remembered the contents of the Scripture of Creation word for word without a single error. While eating meat, he said,
"'The stars said: why must you harm yourself like this? The Mother Goddess then sighed: my child sheds tears because of hunger, and my heart also bleeds because of his tears. Since using my blood can be exchanged for my child to cry no more, as long as he can sincerely correct his mistakes, why not let it be so? And so, following the guidance of the stars, the child of the Mother Goddess consumed the animal formed from his mother's flesh and blood beside him, and survived.'"
Ilos listened and opened her mouth. She found this passage familiar, yet instantly couldn't recall exactly which chapter's content of the Scripture of Creation it was. Just as she was about to lower her head and flip through the Scripture of Creation, the Fisher prior to her eyes expressionlessly provided the answer for her,
"Stop flipping. The fourteenth passage of Chapter Two, the Ymir Section... Furthermore, the Scripture of Creation you were reciting earlier was missing a few passages, wasn't it? Regarding the conversations between the stars and the Mother Goddess?"
"Eh? Th-that..."
Ilos hurriedly lowered her head, flipping through the quaint Scripture of Creation book that was already on the verge of falling apart in her hands. The rabbit ears atop her head swayed ceaselessly. She appeared somewhat embarrassed, pausing for quite a while before continuing the words she wanted to say.
"Actually... back then, my teacher—who was also the true master of this church, Sister Charut—told me that the Healing Rot Church's Scripture of Creation had been damaged. I heard it was because religious control was implemented in the McDowell fiefdom a century ago. Thus, the Scripture of Creation I study is missing a lot of pages..."
"Is that so."
Fisher ate the deer meat with a somewhat lack of interest. But in the eyes of Ilos, this man from the West Continent—which was the true birthplace of the Mother God religion—seemed to possess a tremendous understanding of the Scripture of Creation. If it was like this, could she ask him to help repair the defective Scripture of Creation in her hands?
"Um, Mister Fisher, you seem exceptionally familiar with the text of the Scripture of Creation... Could I... could I ask you to help me see what contents are missing from my copy of the Scripture of Creation?"
The Fisher eating the roasted meat paused slightly. The expression of Emhart on his shoulder instantly transformed into a "just as expected" dead fish eye look.
Fisher gently put down the roasted meat in his hand. Then, he turned his head looking towards Ilos, dressed in a classical nun's habit, sitting at the church doorway. The flames roasting the deer meat illuminated his expression and gaze in intermittent flashes of light and dark, making Ilos feel somewhat guilty and embarrassed.
Only after Fisher swallowed the chewed deer meat in his mouth did he calmly open his mouth and say,
"Of course I can... But you also said it's to 'ask' me, right?"