Volume 2, Chapter 12 – Welcome! The Saint and Her Party (Part 2)

“Good morning, Saint-sama and your attendants. I, Abby, will be your guide for today. Though unworthy of the honor, I have been entrusted with the position of an A-rank Tour Guide. I look forward to serving you.”

After finishing breakfast the next morning and heading into the lobby, a woman named Abby was waiting to guide us.

At her urging, we boarded a luxurious carriage prepared for us and headed first to the Huttenhorn Central Church.

It was a place mentioned in the tourist guidebook.

With Abby-san as our guide, we received explanations regarding the meaning of the exterior sculptures and their history, as well as a detailed walkthrough of each stained-glass window.

We also spoke briefly with the priest I had met at last night’s dinner party before leaving the church.

It was indeed a magnificent structure, and I could see why the guidebook recommended it.

Incidentally, the church was over 500 years old and served as one of the town’s historical landmarks.

Next, we visited the fountain and stone statues at Central Plaza.

It was normally a place for citizens to relax, but since we were coming, the guards had set up traffic restrictions.

A huge crowd of spectators had gathered all around.

“Saint-sama!”

“Fiene-sama!”

Voices called out to me from all directions.

There were even people waving the national flag of the White Moon Kingdom.

——Uh, I’m not actually royalty of the White Moon Kingdom, though…?

After that, we took the carriage to a restaurant.

This was another establishment recommended in the guidebook.

Surprisingly, the entire place had been reserved for us.

“Fiene-sama, according to this book, the herb-roasted pork and mountain vegetables are famous here.”

“Yes. Just as the Holy Knight mentioned, the herb-roasted pork and mountain vegetables are the most famous. Besides that, the beef stewed in red wine and the yogurt-sauced cabbage rolls with minced pork are also highly recommended.”

As Chris-san spoke while looking at the guidebook, Abby-san chimed in with other recommendations.

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“Since I’m here, I’ll go with the herb-roasted pork. Um, Lu-chan, what about you…?”

She was looking at me with sparkling eyes.

A lot happened in Illumi City, but she had cheered up considerably as we continued our journey, and lately, she’s been starting to show her true self little by little.

Through that, I’ve realized something: despite her small stature, Lu-chan has a surprisingly huge appetite.

“Lu-chan, don’t worry about the money, you can eat as much as you like.”

“Yay! Thank you, Onee-sama! Then I’ll have this herb-roast, the red wine stew, the cabbage rolls, and then this tomato stew over here…”

She eats so much that I honestly want to know how it all fits into that dainty, small body.

Watching Lu-chan eat feels like watching one of those competitive eating championships live on TV.

Soon, a massive amount of food was brought before us.

Just looking at it was enough to give me heartburn.

“”Gods. We give thanks for the blessings You have provided.””

“Itadakimasu.” ¹ In English, “Itadakimasu” (いただきます) translates literally to “I humbly receive”. Said before eating, it is a customary Japanese expression of gratitude used to thank the farmers, the cook, and the natural elements that provided the meal.

“…”

The meal began with a chaotic pre-meal prayer—three, no, four people in three different styles.

Chris-san and Abby-san, being followers of the Temple, prayed to the Gods; I, being Japanese, said itadakimasu ; and apparently, Lu-chan’s Elf race doesn’t have a specific pre-meal prayer, so she just started eating without a word.

The herb-roasted pork was a perfectly normal, unremarkable herb-roast.

The meat felt a bit tough, but meat in this world is generally like that.

I don’t mean to brag, but I think I’ve gotten pretty decent at eating properly with a knife and fork. In the beginning, Chris-san corrected me quite a lot, but thanks to constantly being under people’s watchful eyes, I’ve somehow picked it up.

Meanwhile, Lu-chan was vacuuming up the food at an incredible pace.

“Lu-chan, you eat that much, yet you never seem to gain weight, do you?”

“Hah’s noh hoo. I’m shoor oo’d be fine oo, Onee-shama.”

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Yeah, I have no idea what she’s saying.

“Um, could you please swallow before speaking?”

Lu-chan chewed and swallowed the food in her mouth before opening it again.

“That’s not true. I’m sure you wouldn’t gain weight even if you ate this much either, Onee-sama. My whole family was like that.”

“I-is that so? I had this image of Elves being light eaters who didn’t eat meat…”

“Eh? We eat it normally. If anything, meat’s our main diet. Beans and vegetables just aren’t satisfying enough, right?”

Saying that, she continued to shovel food into her mouth one dish after another.

It seems that, contrary to my image, the Elf race in this world is quite carnivorous.

Then again, there’s a possibility that Lu-chan’s family is just special, and that might be why they didn’t live in an Elf village.

Even so, how on earth did she satisfy that gluttonous stomach of hers while living in the forest?

◇ ◇ ◇

After the meal, we headed to the local history museum.

Thanks to Abby-san’s clear, point-by-point explanations, it was very educational.

Apparently, this town originated as a frontier village.

Gradually, the population increased, and livestock farming began.

Just as it started functioning as a village, a war broke out with the White Moon Kingdom, and because it received concentrated investment as a key border stronghold, it developed into its current form.

After that, there were battles with the Demon Lord and monsters, and after overcoming various internal conflicts, it reached the peaceful present.

The exhibit ended with a reminder that, since no one knows when the Demon Lord may appear, all citizens should pay close attention to the Demon Lord Alert.

Incidentally, the current alert level was 2—a Demon Lord Advisory had been issued.

“Abby-san, what is this Demon Lord Alert?”

“Yes, Saint-sama. This is a five-level system designed to clearly communicate how close the Demon Lord’s appearance is. It is determined based on a comprehensive assessment of divine revelations granted by the Gods to the grand cathedrals of each nation, along with the activity levels of monsters.”

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“What kind of state is a ‘Demon Lord Advisory’?”

“It is a state where Demon Lord Eggs may have been born in various regions, and there are concerns about monsters becoming more ferocious. About a year ago, it was one level higher, but thanks to you, Saint-sama, it has now been lowered.”

“Eh?”

——Wait. Did I do something a year ago?

“Fiene-sama, she is referring to the Purification of Schwarz,” Chris-san whispered into my ear as I stood there puzzled.

“Oh, now that you mention it, that did happen. I’d completely forgotten. If I recall, he was that weakling who made a huge racket near my tent and disturbed my sleep. It was incredibly annoying when I was trying to sleep.”

Honestly, my only impression of him was some weak mob character that bald old guy had practically forced on me.

Come to think of it, what kind of guy was he again?

“Fiene-sama, I believe you’re the only person in the world who would describe Schwarz as ‘weak.'”

Well, since I’m a Vampire specialized in fighting both Vampires and clerics, I suppose that’s just how it goes.

“Um, so in other words, this warm welcome is to honor that achievement?”

“No, no. That is not all. Saint-sama is a being who bestows mercy upon all mankind. As humans living upon this earth, there is not a single citizen of the Blue Star Republic foolish enough not to revere Saint-sama.”

“I see…”

Still feeling somewhat unconvinced, I left the museum. Since no other visits were scheduled, we decided to take a small detour on the way back to browse some souvenir shops.

“Welcome! Saint-sama! How about some of our famous Onsen Manju?”

The old man at the souvenir shop called out to us with a boisterous voice.

“Onsen Manju? Are there hot springs in this town?” ² In Japan, onsen are hot springs and the bathing facilities and traditional inns around them. Also, manju is a traditional sweet treat in Japan.

“Onsen? What’s that?”

“Eh? If they’re called Onsen Manju, doesn’t that mean there should be hot springs around here?”

“No, no. I hear Onsen Manju are a specialty of that island nation in the far east, the Golden Sun Miko Nation. Someone who migrated here long ago spread the word, and they became a local specialty of this town.”

“Huh. Well then, I’ll take three—”

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I glanced at Lu-chan. She was looking this way with incredibly sparkly eyes.

“Actually, please give me five.”

“Coming right up!”

The price was a mere five copper coins. Cheap!

However, the food I received was completely different from what I had imagined.

Yeah, no matter how you looked at it, this wasn’t a manju; it was steamed bread.

I took a bite. The fluffy texture and aroma of the steamed bread filled my mouth, followed by a sweet flavor.

“This is… stuffed with sweetened grapes…”

Yeah, it’s not bad. But this isn’t it.

“Onee-sama, I love this!”

“Lu-chan, you always look so happy when you’re eating.”

“Fiene-sama. I think this is quite good as well.”

“I agree. I don’t think it’s bad either.”

Still, I wonder how it ended up like this. Was it localized after coming from a distant foreign land?

Well, to begin with, there’s no guarantee that the original from the Golden Sun Miko Nation is even the same as the Onsen Manju I’m thinking of.

After looking at a few more souvenir shops, we returned to the hotel, thanked Abby-san, and parted ways, concluding today’s sightseeing.

“Onee-sama, we really were just sightseeing, weren’t we?”

“We were. Hmm, I wonder what’s going on…”

“Fiene-sama. This is my first time visiting this country as well, but it seems the people here hold Saint-sama in even higher regard than they do in the White Moon Kingdom.”

“I just hope it doesn’t turn into something strange…”

Still feeling as though we’d been somehow led around by the nose, and unable to shake the lingering confusion, the night slowly wore on.