Volume 8, Chapter 11 – As Expected

Following the bustling crowd into the venue, Cynthia pulled Yisi to a seat high up in the back row.

“Here.”

We could see the auction items much better from the front, so why pick the back row? And with the status of the Flower of the Kingdom, even if she sat in the front, she wouldn’t have to worry about gossip.

As if seeing through Yisi’s thoughts, Cynthia’s tone carried a hint of helplessness.

“I told you, didn’t I? I don’t want people to see what I buy. I specifically chose a spot in the back to avoid attracting attention. Sitting in the front would cause a lot of unnecessary trouble. After all, the Tears of God have only one purpose, so it’s obvious why someone would buy them. Well, it’s not a huge problem in the kingdom, but being born into a ducal house, it’s naturally better to keep things quiet if possible.”

“Is that so.”

Since most of the seats in the auction hall were single sofas, and Cynthia had chosen a long sofa that could accommodate multiple people, Yisi made a less than gentlemanly move to make room for Laxy—she squeezed Cynthia further in, then plopped down onto the sofa. The sofa was so soft it felt as if one could sink into it, and its back instantly enveloped her. The indescribable comfort made Yisi want to take a nap right then and there. Yisi was certain that if she were faced with a trolley problem at this moment, she might just choose not to pull the lever for the sake of this comfort.

Cynthia gave Yisi a strange glance.

“You’re the first person who’s ever dared to squeeze past me like that.”

“Cynthia is a beautiful girl, and Laxy and I are beautiful girls too. Why can’t we squeeze?”

Gazing up at the ceiling, Yisi made a =w= face.

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“Tsk. You’re not wrong, but it’s annoying when you put it that way. Speaking of which, you still haven’t told me who Laxy is.”

“About that…”

Should I have her take off the jack-o’-lantern? With this thought, Yisi tilted her head to look at Laxy. If she took it off now, the angel’s identity would undoubtedly be exposed to everyone. Better to change the subject for now.

“Cynthia, you still haven’t told me what the Tears of God are. You came here for them, right?”

“That’s right… but not entirely. This auction is much grander than the previous ones. In addition to the publicly listed, routine items like perfumes and alchemy materials, there are also many magic weapons and potions. If the Tears of God aren’t here, I want to see if there are any suitable weapons.”

“A sword?”

“Of course. It’s a bit strange for me to say it, but the popular saying that the ‘Flower of the Kingdom is skilled with a sword’ is true. As for what the Tears of God are…”

Cynthia sat up straight, gazing intently into Yisi’s eyes, as if trying to find something in her face.

A little flustered by Cynthia’s stare, Yisi feigned shyness and looked away—in reality, she was indeed a little shy, but not as much as she was letting on—half-covering her face with her right hand.

“Staring at me like that makes me feel shy. Or is it that Cynthia finds me so cute she’s mesmerized?”

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Normally, I’d never say something like this. I just sensed that what Cynthia was about to say was serious, so I’m trying to lighten the mood.

“…You’re so infuriating. Just drop the phony act. Alice uses it so much that I’m immune to it. I appreciate the sentiment, but I shouldn’t have used such a serious tone with an outsider to begin with.” Cynthia waved her hand in disgust. “Judging by your reaction, you really don’t know what the Tears of God are. It probably happened after you left the Ymir Territory, so it’s understandable that you don’t know. The Tears of God are a type of magic potion from the Ymir Territory. As long as a person who has made a pact with a demon drinks them, they will be forgiven. According to the Church, it is the tears shed by the omniscient and omnipotent Goddess Ymir, who could not bear to see the sinners suffer, that transformed into a divine power to heal the Fallen. Simply put, the Tears of God are a medicine that cures the marks of the Fallen.”

So it was just as I thought!

When Cynthia had first asked, Yisi had already guessed what the Tears of God were, but she hadn’t been certain because she was worried she might be mistaken.

As for the saying about “the tears shed by the Goddess, who could not bear to see the sinners suffer, that transformed into a divine power to heal the Fallen,” it could only be something Evelyn deliberately fabricated to exaggerate the Church’s power. The Church’s authority comes from its power to interpret the will of the gods, and in order to further strengthen its rule, proclaiming the greatness of the gods is a necessary tactic.

“This item only appears in the Ymir Territory, and due to its limited quantity, it’s only distributed to the residents there. It’s basically impossible to get the Tears of God in the kingdom. Even if there are a few scattered around, by the time I get there, they’ve already fallen into someone else’s hands. I’ve been through this several times already.”

Cynthia paused for a moment, then looked into Yisi’s blue eyes again, her own eyes filled with nothing but seriousness.

“So, may I ask you, Yisi, to help me get a bottle of the Tears of God? Name your price, and you won’t be shorted a single coin.”

For her to ask me so seriously is actually making me feel a bit shy. And Cynthia hasn’t even noticed that her face is too close to mine. I can feel her breath on my face—it has the scent of a mature older sister. No, it’s that perfume Alice was wearing.

Yisi shyly glanced at the floor, twirling the ends of her hair with her finger.

“As for payment… it’s fine even if there isn’t any.”

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Not expecting Yisi to agree so readily, Cynthia’s breath caught.

“No payment needed?”

“Mm, no need. The Tears of God aren’t that rare of an item.”

I gave the medicine that cures the Fallen to Evelyn on the condition that she would not send the cured Fallen into war. There were no other restrictions, so Evelyn found a loophole—prioritizing its use for the people of the Ymir Territory would undoubtedly cause a massive influx of population, indirectly strengthening the territory’s power. But it’s fine not to worry about such minor maneuvers. I can’t very well demand that Evelyn ignore her own country’s believers and treat the Fallen from different countries equally. That’s simply not realistic.

“Won’t it be a lot of trouble? And you seem to know what I’m talking about. Were you just pretending not to know earlier?”

“The name ‘Tears of God’ appeared after I left the Ymir Territory. Before that, although I had seen the medicine that could cure the Fallen, I didn’t know it was called the Tears of God.”

That was my creation, so of course, I’ve seen it before. Though the ingredients are a bit embarrassing.

“You’ve already seen it? Does that mean you’ve really met the Goddess?”

“Probably?”

Following the principle of speaking to people in a way they understand, it was better to acknowledge the existence of God here.

For some reason, Cynthia lowered her head, a thoughtful expression on her face.

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“Yisi has met a god? To be honest, I’ve always had a question about the Tears of God. There are tens of thousands of Fallen on the continent. Since the Tears of God are the product of the Goddess’s pity for her children, does that mean the Goddess shed tens of thousands of tears?”

“No, you can’t say that. The Goddess’s power is infinite. The tears flow from her body, so the magic power they contain is naturally immeasurable. The Tears of God distributed by the Church are just diluted tears of the Goddess. The human body cannot directly touch the purest tears, or it would be blown apart by the divine power within them.”

“I see, that explains it. Regarding the Tears of God, I will do my best to gather them myself before you bring some back from the Ymir Territory.”

“Mm.”

It seems I have a talent for being a charlatan.

Yisi couldn’t help but smile wryly. What she had just said was something she had completely made up on the spot, but she hadn’t expected Cynthia to believe it so readily.

“My lord, is that true? Does the Goddess really still exist?”

Laxy’s excited voice came from beside her, her grip on Yisi’s hand even tightening a little.

The lie was a bit too effective.

I have to explain it clearly to Laxy.