I've Been Killing Slimes for 300 Years and Maxed Out My Level Max Level Witch - Volume 6 - Chapter SS

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BONUS: WE FOUND A WEIRD TEMPLE

With a watering can in hand, I went out to the garden, where I grew vegetables for eating and herbs for medicines. At first glance, some of the plants looked like weeds, but those did actually have medicinal effects, too.

And living there was a very, extremely special plant.

“Azusa, hurry up and water me.”

In the corner of the vegetable garden, Sandra was in the dirt up to her chest. It looked like she had been buried alive, but she wasn’t in nearly so much danger.

“Yes, I know, hold on a moment.”

In an orderly fashion, I watered the area around Sandra. Falfa and Shalsha typically did this, but it was my turn today.

“Put more on my head. I’m going to wash my leaves while I’m at it.”

Her leaves were to her what hair was to a human. As I watered her, I thought about how she was essentially taking a shower.

“Oh right, you changed your spot, didn’t you, Sandra?”

Even though Sandra could move around, she had settled on a favorite spot, so she was usually there. She was part of the family, so those kinds of changes did catch my attention.

“Yeah… That thing has been making me all uncomfortable…” Sandra raised her head slightly with a flash of irritation in her eyes.

She was looking at a massive pine tree.

“That’s the pine sapling Misjantie gave to us at the wedding, isn’t it?”

Because it was a gift from the pine spirit, the tree grew magnificently in just three days, and now it was even more majestic—enough to be designated one of the natural wonders of Nanterre Province.

“It’s taking all the nutrients around here. It has no restraint—it’s shameless. That is not how a newcomer should act.”

I guess the plant world had hierarchical relationships, too. Or maybe it was just Sandra’s own rules.

“Well, I’ll just be grateful for the privilege of having such a beautiful tree so close. You have to look for the bright side.”

Even if it was a nuisance to Sandra, the pine was still stately and awesome.

“Yeah. It’s just one tree, so I’ll allow it this time.”

Sandra wasn’t malicious toward it—she didn’t want it to die or anything. Compliments from her were few and far between, but that didn’t mean she was angry. One way or another, she was probably going to try to get along with it as a fellow plant growing in the earth.

“It sure is massive. It’s like the pine-iest of pines.”

I almost wanted to put a table out here and snack on my own famous edible slimes. And I wanted some green tea to go along with them. This pine sure suited the Japanese taste.

But there was something off about it—it was different from all the others I’d seen before.

What was causing this feeling? I didn’t think it was much different size-wise…

I carefully observed the entirety of the massive tree, from its roots and all the way up.

Hey, there’s something at the top.

There was a wooden box with a triangular roof, like a birdhouse, sitting up there.

No, it was way too big to be a box. It was almost big enough for people to wander in and live in there. A little house was snuggled right in between the pine branches.

“Hey, Sandra, you didn’t make that house, did you?”

“How could I…? There is nothing to be gained from being so high above the earth, and I couldn’t get up there anyway…”

“Then…was this Falfa’s idea or something? If she asked Laika to do it, she could get it done quick.”

Hmm? There’s a sign hanging off a nearby branch. It’ll have the answer, I bet!

“She just built this without telling me?!”

Hey, come on! Who did this? Well, I sure have a guess.

I put my hand on the pine’s trunk and climbed up. My level was maxed out, so this was easy.

I knocked on the door to the building. “Is someone in there? Open up if you are!”

“Oh… We’re currently closed, man, so please wait… Unless you need to talk about a wedding, in which case, we’re wide open.”

I knew exactly who this was from the manner of speech. My guess was right.

I opened the door and found Misjantie surrounded by stacks of little cloth bags. It looked like she was doing some kind of side job.

“Whoa, hey! Don’t just barge in, man!”

“Let’s get to the point. What are you doing here?”

“I’m making charms to sell here in this branch shrine, man. One will go between five hundred to a thousand gold.”

“No. I’m not asking what you’re making.”

And she was making charms? Like the ones for a Japanese shrine?

“I never heard anything about you building a shrine here. And reading the history plaque, it sounds like we built this shrine.”

The spirit definitely built this place herself.

“That’s, er…… See, a sapling growing in just three days is like…a spirit’s miracle, or something mystic, man… It’s pretty normal to build a temple for those things, you know…”

Misjantie refused to look me in the eye, so there was definitely something she was ashamed about.

“Oh? Well then, it sure is a coincidence that it grew in three days. So that wasn’t part of your little plan, then? It was a real miracle, right?”

“I mean, I might’ve helped it along just a little…”

“You planned the whole thing!”

I brought Misjantie into the house in the highlands and held a hearing with the rest of the family.

“I’m sorry, man… The pine spirit faith is really weak in this province, so I thought I could get more wedding ceremonies if I got some territory here… I felt like I couldn’t play it safe, so I decided to go on the offensive…”

And your first point of attack was right by my house.

“I doubt you will flourish here, but if many people do start coming to the shrine, we will lose the quiet environment we have now.” Laika wore a troubled look.

Exactly, that’s what was dangerous about this. We had a shrine next to our house now.

“Just cut down the pine tree. That’ll solve all the problems. Simple.” Flatorte’s idea was, of course, violent.

“But…don’t they say you’ll be cursed if you cut down such a special tree like that? I heard so many stories like that back when I was alive…” Rosalie the ghost was shaking. I had heard stories about sacred trees like that when I lived in Japan, and they must have existed in this world, too. But why would a ghost be worried about that?

“Even if there was a curse, I still wouldn’t be afraid of this pine spirit.” Flatorte pointed at Misjantie. “You curse me, and I’ll destroy another one of your Misjantie Temples.”

“P-please don’t, man… It costs a lot of money to rebuild a temple… I just want to settle this peacefully… Plus, my curses are weak…”

Misjantie was on her knees. She had no authority as a spirit…

“If you were to curse us, what sort of things would happen?” Laika asked, sounding less afraid and more interested in spirits.

“You’d wake up covered in pine resin.”

“That’s just mean!” Laika retorted.

It sure was a powerful prank, though…

“I, the great Flatorte, am not afraid of pine resin! I’ll cut it down!”

“Wait. You always, always want to resort to violence,” Laika told Flatorte, then turned to Misjantie. “Your temple being here is a problem, but we have no right to bar you from proselytizing here in the province of Nanterre. Let us search for a point of compromise.”

“Then why not use the pine wood to make torches?”

Flatorte, that probably isn’t a compromise to Misjantie.

All of a sudden, two people shot out of their chairs.

“Wait, everybody!”

“Big Sis and Shalsha can put this together nicely.”

Both Falfa and Shalsha had taken victory poses.

I’m pretty sure they wanted to be cool, but it was just cute. Super cute.

“Miss Misjantie, thank you for the wonderful wedding. We wanna help you this time!”

“We are both slime spirits, after all. Spirits help each other in times of need.”

“Thanks, man! I’ll remember your good will my whole life!”

Could a spirit promise to remember something her “whole life” that easily?

“If you two say so, then I won’t cut down the tree…” Flatorte was accepting my daughters’ proposal, too. “Cutting it down was a joke. I, Flatorte, am not that violent.”

“No, she was most certainly going to chop it down,” Laika said curtly.

And so, as a result of Falfa and Shalsha’s efforts—

The Misjantie Temple, Flatta Branch, was completed in an empty lot in town after the building in the tree was moved.

The girls were the daughters of the Witch of the Highlands. The villagers gladly agreed to their wishes, and the land was free anyway.

“This is a relief! Falfa is glad it’s somewhere everyone can come visit easily!”

“If we continue planting pines around it, it will naturally become a temple with a subtle, profound, and holy air.”

The two gazed at the temple they had helped move to the village, smiling in satisfaction.

“I appreciate it! I’ll spread the pine spirit faith throughout the entirety of Nanterre from here!”

Misjantie seemed sincerely thankful. This whole situation appeared to be settled. There were no serious problems with a new temple in the village, and all she needed to do was put the temple’s business on a good track.

“In ten years, I want every wedding in a Misjantie Temple! I want anything else to be, like, for weirdos, man!”

That might be too much, though…

The villagers and people from surrounding towns seemed interested in the new temple, so many people came to take a look. Please buy the charms the spirit herself made—she worked hard on those.

Of those guests, one was particularly serious.

It was Natalie, guild staff member. “I can get marriage counseling here, too, yes?! Please! I want instructions from the Great Pine Spirit herself!”

Natalie’s eyes were so earnest. She really wants to get married that badly, huh…

Now that I thought about it, Natalie could apparently see Misjantie, probably because they met once.

No one else knew the spirit was here. Most spirits didn’t typically show themselves to normal people, although some of them, like Momma Yufufu, were practically a part of human society.

“Sure, man. I’ll do the pine spirit marriage fortune reading for you, which has been handed down for generations. I should be able to get you advice that’s tailor-made just for you.”

Ooh! Misjantie’s in serious mode now!

—But her methods were less than impressive.

Misjantie took a bunch of pine cones and placed them down around Natalie.

“Hoy man, hey man, hoy man, hey man…”

And her chant was stupid.

“Er, the pine cones are just sitting around me. This is enough for you to know…?”

Natalie was apparently starting to get apprehensive. There was no divinity about any of this.

“Trust me, man. When this ritual tells someone when they’ll get married, it’s right on the money eighty percent of the time!”

“That is a high percentage! Very well! I’ll trust you!”