By the Grace of the Gods (LN) - Volume 14 - Chapter 11

Chapter 9, Episode 3: The Gods’ Request

“Let me go over everything again,” I said, having asked for details to supplement Meltrize’s too-vague request.

Apparently, there was a dangerous monster on the loose in the Sea of Trees. More specifically, it was in the ruins of Korumi village—my destination. Although the monster was still young, it had grown rapidly from the magical energy as if it had evolved. Now, it was powerful enough to threaten the balance of the world if left alone. Naturally, the gods couldn’t let that happen.

In cases like this, the gods usually resorted to one of two remedies: to command a divine beast—a creature appointed as the guardian of a specific location—to dispatch the monster, or to eliminate the threat themselves. The Sea of Trees of Syrus, though, was one of the spots where Fernobelia had been experimenting with methods of management that didn’t involve divine beasts. That ruled out the first option.

Syrus was also one of the sacred grounds of this world that were vital in filling this world with magical energy. With Fernobelia’s experiments going well, Syrus generated more magical energy than many other sacred grounds. If the gods were to take this matter into their own hands, the Sea of Trees would most likely be leveled, which would be a shame. The gods explained that there was no method of limiting their astronomical power enough that it wouldn’t destroy the surrounding area. Whenever they’d invoked powers like Smiting or Divine Judgment in the past, they had wiped out entire nations or even a small continent. Our brief conversation was enough to make me see that they took using their powers that way very seriously, and wanted to keep them as a last resort. Still, they couldn’t leave the monster alone.

“So the honor falls to me, because I was already going to Syrus,” I said.

I had no problem with taking on this task. It was just like any other adventuring quest, only it was given by the most trustworthy clients there were. Besides, it was by the grace of these gods that I was fulfilled and content now. Even if they had their own reasons for bringing me to this world, I still owed them my gratitude and would do anything I could to repay them. I didn’t hesitate to accept their request... But now the gods were looking both grateful and consternated.

“What’s going on?” I asked. “Is this really something that troubles you more than the demon lord fragment?”

“It is a conundrum that doesn’t have a simple solution... We’re debating whether or not we should allow you—or any human, for that matter—to shoulder our responsibility,” said Kufo.

“It would have been out of the question to make a decision without asking you first. Since the three of us stood close to the middle of the debate, all of us had decided that we should be the ones to ask you... But I was concerned that there would be no difference between us asking you and commanding you. I doubt you would have refused,” Lulutia added.

So it’s a contentious issue among the gods, I thought. But that doesn’t matter to me, really. “I’m more concerned that I won’t be able to handle this monster. I’d known that going into the Sea of Trees would be dangerous, and I know I’m lucky just to get a heads-up, but this is a monster that you gods consider a threat, right?”

“While I voted against requesting your help, I admit that you’d have a good chance of succeeding. If we had to ask anyone, you would be our best candidate,” Fernobelia said.

“Correct,” Meltrize chimed in. “You would have a good matchup against the monster, were you to engage in combat with it. I do not mean that you are our only choice. You are our best choice, weighing both your and the monster’s abilities. If we were to request aid from the Knight’s Order or army of your country, a force of thousands or even tens of thousands would almost certainly be destroyed.”

What kind of monster are we talking about here...? I’d love to know its exact powers. 

“The ability we are concerned with the most is the binding of souls. Souls that are bound cannot rejoin the circle of reincarnation. Some souls have already been turned into Undead, almost like Necromancy,” Meltrize said.

“And the monster casts those spells out of instinct...” Fernobelia added. “It’s also tricky because it steals from the vast store of magical energy in the Sea of Trees. While the magical energy it can wield at any given time is a negligible portion of how much the forest generates, that’s still more than enough for the monster to functionally have unlimited magical energy to cast spells with.”

So I was facing off against a necromancer with unlimited magical energy. Bound souls plus unlimited magic equals an endless horde of Undead monsters. Taking out the Undead monsters wouldn’t do any good when they could easily be rebuilt. Trying to outnumber the Undead using human soldiers would just give the monster more vessels to increase its army with, like in a zombie movie. But where an ordinary army might not stand a chance, my grave slimes and I just might.

“Exactly. Defeating the Undead by normal means allows the monster to recycle those souls. But isolating the souls in the Undead will prevent more from rising in their wake. Once the monster itself is defeated, those souls will be unbound from it,” Meltrize said.

“Then I’ll have all the time to clean up the Undead... I really do have a good matchup.”

“Your grave slimes aren’t the only reason for that either. Syrus is a hive of powerful monsters and a marching army would be as good as a sitting duck. You need to go in with a small, elite team to even make it through the woods. Any big group would get taken out by the other strong monsters in the Sea of Trees before they even got to the one we need eliminated. By Fernobelia’s design, I might add,” Tekun said.

“Don’t make it sound like I want to see bloodshed there. I merely constructed an environment both dangerous and difficult to inhabit so that the sacred grounds would be protected from humans and foreign monsters,” Fernobelia indignantly clarified.

“Same difference,” Tekun countered, shoving his face in his.

Ignoring their quarrel, Kufo said, “Long story short, you have a much better chance of succeeding than an entire army does. And we would like you to carry this out alone. We’ve delegated handling something like this to humans a few times, and it wasn’t unusual for the person who received the oracle to become way overzealous.”

“That’s even more likely to happen when we ask a group for help. Not to mention the bad apples who make us their excuse for lining their pockets, or persecuting those who wouldn’t join their cause, or waging war on those who don’t share their beliefs,” Lulutia said. “Those things could not be further from what we want, and I hate to see people suffer because of our requests.”

“We have never demanded worship from humans in the first place...” Gain noted. “Of course, I wouldn’t want to trade it for ridicule or derision. And shattering their illusion now seems cruel, so we maintain a show of solemnity when we give oracles.”

The gods don’t have as much free rein as I thought... “In any case, I accept,” I said.

“Are you sure?” Meltrize asked in her signature deadpan. Somehow, I felt like she was almost encouraging me to change my answer. Of course, I was always going to say yes, and I’d thought that Meltrize wanted me to accept, since she voted strongly to offer me the quest in the first place. “That is more convenient for us,” she explained. “But you will also face more danger. You still have the choice to refuse, now that we have given you more context. You could even cancel your venture into the Sea of Trees altogether, and we would not hold it against you.” Although she was still hard to read, Meltrize seemed to be concerned for my well-being.

“I’m not agreeing to go because I’m afraid to turn you down. If I’d said no, I’m sure you wouldn’t push the issue either. Still, I was always going to accept. It’s the least I can do to pay you all back for bringing me to this world.”

“I appreciate your assistance.” Just as she thanked me, darkness burst from her.

Before I could even react, the darkness swallowed me up from the neck down. Although it came with no sense of discomfort like the curse had, I stiffened at the sudden entrapment.

Kufo quickly called, “It’s all right, Ryoma! She’s only giving you a blessing!”

“Oh, a...blessing,” I stammered. I’d never been given a blessing like this. In fact, I’d never experienced the actual process of obtaining a blessing before. “I appreciate it, but what made you give me a blessing all of a sudden?”

“Humas offer payment when giving quests. With a blessing from the goddess of death and sleep, you will gain some resistance against Dark magic, curses, and cursed energy. It will subdue the demon lord’s curse on you, and it won’t hurt in your fight against the monster in Syrus. Think of it as advance payment. A proper payment will be given upon your return,” Meltrize explained.

A blessing that made the job easier and dampened the curse? I’d be happy even if this is all the payment I get. One quest for the blessing of a god seems too good to be true as it is. 

“The blessing is not that powerful,” said the goddess of death. “It’s little more than a placebo. Stay vigilant.”

“Humans always revere our blessings, but they take little for us to give. Don’t feel bad about accepting it,” Fernobelia said. “And I will have your payment ready. We’re sending you into my sacred grounds, after all. If you have any requests, I can make it happen.”

“I can’t think of anything... Dealer’s choice,” I said.

“There’s no rush, but I’ll pick out something for you.” Fernobelia turned to Gain. “That covers the basics, I believe.”

“I agree,” Gain said. “But there’s still some time left. Let’s give Ryoma a few more details on the curse and the monster he is to face.”

The gods and I continued talking for as long as I could stay. As light wrapped around me to take me back down, the divine realm looked a little more peaceful than it was when I came up. If I was able to quell their worries in any small part by accepting their quest, that made it well worth it.