Chapter 23
"Hey, look. What is that…? Your group leader said a G.o.ddess is descending, right?"
One of the villagers said as he looked up at the sky.
"I don"t know. But I do feel a mystical presence, so it probably isn"t something bad…"
The restoration support team member said, though his face clearly showed confusion.
They had never seen a G.o.d summoned like this before.
As they all watched, a pink sphere of light descended as if it were being pulled down by the vines.
The sphere of light seemed to be struggling, just like a b.u.t.terfly that was caught in a spider"s web. Then it fell in a pond that was on the outskirts of the village.
They could feel a faint vibration coming from far away.
"Hey, it fell down!"
"It"s somewhere near the pond."
Perhaps it was curiosity, but everyone started to move to the place where the pink light had fallen.
"There"s…a very sweet smell in the air."
One of the villagers said as he sniffed.
"Now that you mention it…what smell is that?"
The closer they got to the pond, the stronger the smell of perfume became.
It was clearly not the smell of flowers. It was closer to fragrant wood that was burning.
And when the people arrived at the pond with torches in hand, they saw a peach-colored sphere floating on the water. And the pond itself was being dyed the same color.
So, this was where the smell was coming from.
"Hey, something is strange! A crack is appearing on the sphere of light!"
Someone shrieked. In the next instant, the ball cracked in half, and a giant lotus bud appeared.
Before they knew it, the bud began to grow until it was big enough to fit a human inside. Then there was a pop, and it bloomed into a flower. And a single girl appeared.
She had pink hair that was just like the color of the lotus flower. While she was short, she was still curvacious and had long arms and legs.
She looked to be about eighteen? Her long eye-lashes covered eyes that were slightly slanted upward. The overall impression was that of a kitten.
However, what drew in the eye more than anything was what she was wearing.
It left little to the imagination. And while her nipples and privates were hidden, one could hardly say they functioned as proper undergarments.
After seeing Darten and this G.o.ddess, one might wonder if showing a lot of skin was the latest fashion among the G.o.ds.
"Hehehe. Thank you for inviting me! Though, it was done in a rather brutish fashion. Oh, it was quite the shock, really! I am Moral, a rank-one G.o.ddess of l.u.s.t! Now, kneel before my greatness and bow your little heads!"
The girl with the pink hair declared. As for the people watching, the same words popped into their heads at the same time.
—Here"s another loud character.
"G.o.ddess of l.u.s.t…you say!?"
Qudels could not help but raise his voice at this most unexpected turn of events.
He had never even heard of a G.o.d with that t.i.tle before.
"Exactly! I command the hearts of those with sinful thoughts. And in exchange, I grant their wishes! If you love me, not just l.u.s.t….but anger, hatred, jealousy, greed, slothfulness, and arrogance, I will take all of it away. Everything that is the seed of sin and suffering will be taken away from you. Now, love me!"
Moral, the G.o.ddess of l.u.s.t, danced around as she spread specks of light everywhere and winked and posed.
In an instant, Qudels seemed to snap out of a spell. He quickly backed away.
"No! That G.o.ddess is dangerous!!"
He suddenly shouted. Everyone turned to him.
It was rare to see Qudels with his eyebrows narrowed like this.
"G.o.ddess of l.u.s.t, Moral. You say that you take negative emotions and thoughts in exchange for making wishes come true. But what happens to a person once they"ve given up those emotions? It is unnatural for human beings to live in such a way!!"
"What happens? Nothing bad, I a.s.sure you. You lose all of your evil ambitions and become a pure being. That"s all, you know? You will all become clean and the world will be happy!"
Moral put her hands in front of her chest and closed her eyes as if in prayer.
And just like that, it was like staring at a painting. The world seemed beautiful.
People sighed at the sight of one so pure. And they folded their hands, just as she did.
However, that was when it happened.
"Ahhh! I was wondering who it was. It"s Moral, the one who must not be prayed to! Oh, daaamn!! Why are you here! They sealed you away so you could never descend!"
Darten had arrived quite late, but he started to shout immediately upon seeing Moral.
"Hey, all of you! You better not pray to her! Everyone who prays to her and has their negative emotions and l.u.s.t sucked out of them will then turn into hollow, dried-up elders. In the end, you will become depressed and kill yourselves! She"s already destroyed an entire human kingdom before. She"s been sealed ever since. Praying to her is forbidden!!"
Qudels became more cautious of Moral after hearing this.
As for whether Darten could be trusted. Yes, he could be trusted, but he also couldn"t be trusted. That"s how he felt.
However, as soon as Darten said those words, the atmosphere surrounding Moral suddenly changed.
"Eeeh? I was wondering who was making that noise. If it isn"t the sun G.o.d"s lazy son. Right when I am able to come down here due to someone forcing me… I won"t take it easy on you if you get in my way."
Her almond-shaped eyes narrowed like daggers. She went from looking like a pure idol to a gangster in an instant.
"Tsk… So, that is your true nature. To think that I would be caught in such a trap… I really have a long way to go. I"m sorry, but I must make you return to heaven."
"No. You. Won"t!"
Moral said with a mischievous grin.
It really was a cruel world…this deception was too terrible.
However, Darten moved between Qudels and Moral.
"…Heh. Even if you are a rank-one G.o.ddess, I"m a rank-two G.o.d of war, and this guy is a monster who is even stronger. You don"t have a chance!! Besides, if I seal you away, the villagers will sing my praises and I can live out my fantasies!!"
Right? Darten looked at Qudels with a smile. But Qudels put a hand on his forehead and sighed.
Moral shrugged with exasperation.
"Oh, you really are stupid. That"s why muscle heads are no good. If you two started fighting here, this entire area will become a graveyard. Is that what you want?"
Darten"s face froze.
A G.o.d must not kill all his believers.
If that happened, he would become just like Moral. No one would be allowed to worship him.
And just as Darten and Qudels hesitated, Moral put on her "disguise" once again.
"Hey, good people. This man wants to do horrible things to me! Please help me!!"
—d.a.m.n it! Qudels clicked his tongue, but it was already too late.
"Oh, that"s no good, Mister Qudels."
"Group leader, you can"t go around hurting G.o.ddesses."
"You too, young G.o.d."
The villagers and group members surrounded Qudels and Darten.
There was no malice at all in their expressions.
They had lost the ability to be angry. They reached out their hands in order to lead Qudels to the "right path."
"Tsk. So, you charmed them while you were doing that prayer pose!"
"Bleh, how unfair! Wh-what are we going to do!!"
Darten said as he looked at Qudels. Qudels was sweating a cold sweat as he opened his mouth.
"For now, we must run! But I warn you, you must not hurt the villagers or group members!!"