The Fortune-Teller Saintess - Chapter 104

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

Of course, that didn’t mean I planned to go around handing out money to people saying ‘The Temple is innocent. Please believe us.’

In my future plans, money was merely a material.

Material that would be used to restore people’s faith.

So how would I utilize this material?

“First, I’ll buy food ingredients.”

“Food ingredients?”

Nodding my head, I walked through the temple corridor and explained the plan I had devised.

“I’ll buy ingredients to make food and distribute it to people who are starving. And I’ll also hire workers.”

“Why workers?”

“I’ll send them to villages throughout the Empire that suffered monster damage and instruct them to help with building restoration.”

I stopped walking and spun around. Robelina and Hamel, who had been following me, also stopped in their tracks.

I grinned at the two of them and continued speaking.

“Faith ultimately means the people’s sentiment toward the Temple. By helping people like this, everyone will gradually realize that the Temple is still strong and slowly return.”

“It might take some time, but it’s not a bad method.”

Hamel nodded in agreement.

Robelina also looked like she thought it wasn’t bad, but worry still lingered on her face.

“But Holy Lady, sending people not just to this city but all over the Empire will require quite a lot of manpower. Will that be okay?”

“The Temple’s manpower alone probably won’t be enough, right?”

“Then how…?”

“Don’t worry. I have something in mind.”

The two of them gave me puzzled looks.

I smiled slightly and thought of someone in my head.

“I happen to have the perfect person for the job.”

***

“What’s this all of a sudden? The Holy Lady calling for me.”

Nein, who had been grinning cheerfully, suddenly leaned forward with seductive eyes.

“Did you miss me that much?”

“Of course. I missed you.”

At my affirmation, Nein’s smile deepened even more.

I looked at Nein like that and smiled sweetly.

“I need my man’s help.”

“Help?”

“Lend me the Mage Tower’s power. By the way, this is an official cooperation request from the Temple.”

Nein’s eyes narrowed and a strange light flickered in them. Leaning back against the sofa, he spoke with a leisurely smile.

“An official cooperation request from the Temple. I should hear what it’s about first.”

‘Is this the Mage Tower Master’s atmosphere?’

His attitude, different from what I usually knew, made me a little nervous. But I had no intention of asking as his girlfriend from the start.

Straightening my back as a representative of the Temple, I took a slight breath and opened my mouth.

“You know what the Temple’s situation is like right now. Believers are leaving. We need to hold onto them.”

I told Nein the same plan I had explained to Hamel and Robelina. Then I added.

“I want to hire the Mage Tower’s mages as workers. The job is simple. Use spatial movement magic to transport priests to other regions and help them with their work.”

“So you want to use my subordinates as super-fast carriages and slaves.”

“…I didn’t think of it that way, but it’s similar.”

Nein made a humming sound and smiled. I stared intently at Nein, who wore an ambiguous smile that was neither positive nor negative.

Then Nein opened his mouth.

“How much will you pay?”

Finally, we got to the main point.

I smiled slyly and smoothly handed him the estimate I had prepared in advance.

Nein glanced over it and spoke with interest in his eyes.

“Not bad.”

“So you’ll do it?”

“If you add just one more condition.”

“What condition?”

I already gave quite a generous amount.

If the amount went any higher, it would be quite burdensome for us too. As I looked at his face with a tense expression, Nein grinned and said.

“Act cute and say you love me. Then I’ll do it.”

‘Crazy bastard.’

My mouth fell open slightly in shock. Is this guy really on my side?

Whether I was shocked or not, Nein was staring at me intently. Anyone could see it was an expectant gaze.

I trembled at my fingertips and suddenly stood up from my seat.

“I won’t do such a thing! No, I can’t!”

“Tch.”

Nein clicked his tongue with a disappointed face.

Meanwhile, I strode over to his side. Then I grabbed the face of Nein, who was looking up at me puzzledly, and lowered my lips.

Smooch-

Nein’s eyes widened and his purple pupils shook.

After kissing his cheek, I stepped back with my face burning red.

“…So please accept this instead.”

“…Ha.”

Nein let out a hollow laugh and tore up the estimate I had given him.

Just as I was about to widen my eyes, thinking he was going to refuse even after I did that much, he spoke.

“I’ll do it for free.”

“…Huh?”

“But.”

Nein pointed to his other cheek with his finger and grinned.

“Do it once more on this side.”

“…”

I realized a new fact.

A crazy guy in love is even harder to deal with.

Especially if that’s your man.

***

Through my self-sacrifice, I was able to secure the Mage Tower’s help.

I paid the amount as planned. Although Nein, satisfied with my tearful efforts, said he’d do it for free, the ones carrying out the work weren’t him but the Mage Tower’s mages.

‘I can’t make them do free labor because of their superior’s orders.’

Anyway, all preparations were complete. I had prepared food and supplies for the poor, and hired workers to help villages throughout the Empire.

All that remained was execution.

Thud-

“Anyone who’s hungry, please come and eat! The Temple is distributing food for free!”

As I placed the pot of soup on the table and shouted loudly, the gazes of passing citizens began to pour in one by one.

“What are they doing?”

“They’re distributing food?”

But people only murmured among themselves and didn’t rashly approach.

I could see that everyone felt uncomfortable about food being distributed from the place where Barion had been.

But they didn’t run away either. They were clearly hesitating. Their gazes, seeming to conflict over whether they could trust the Temple or not, were proof of that.

Sensing this, I took a bowl of soup and approached them with a kind smile.

“Please come and have some before you go. We prepared plenty so many people can eat.”

“That…”

“Are you perhaps hesitating because of the Prophet?”

The citizen flinched as I hit the mark. It seemed they hadn’t expected the topic of the Prophet to come from the mouth of a Holy Lady like me.

But avoiding the conversation didn’t suit my temperament. Besides, it was a topic that couldn’t be avoided forever anyway.

So I spoke. Words that might become the Temple’s official position, coming as they did from my mouth as a Holy Lady.

“What we serve is not the Prophet, but God. That heart remains unchanged even now. That’s why we expelled the Prophet who held wrong beliefs from the Temple.”

“You expelled him from the Temple?”

The citizen who had been listening to my story widened their eyes in surprise.

I smiled slyly and held back my words.

‘To be precise, he ran away with his tail between his legs.’

Well, even if I had known Barion was the Prophet beforehand, I would have driven him out somehow anyway, so it wasn’t completely wrong.

I kept this thought to myself. At my words, the citizens nearby began to murmur. I offered them food with a nonchalant expression.

“So, will you have some before you go?”

“Ahem! …Then I’ll take just a little.”

‘Success.’

I secretly curled up the corners of my mouth and guided them to an empty spot.

It was human nature that when three or more people gathered somewhere, others would start taking interest in that place.

Using these people as a starting point, rumors would spread quickly, and faith in the Temple would gradually recover.

Of course, these rumors might reach Barion’s ears, but what did I care.

‘If he jumps out in indignation, that would be good since I could catch him.’

I was thinking this and mentally snorting when it happened.

“Holy Lady Ellia!”

I frowned and turned my head at the angry shout that broke the peaceful atmosphere.

A group was walking out from inside the Temple. They were the Temple’s Cardinals.

They reached me and opened their mouths with stern faces.

“Let’s have a word.”

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————