Chapter 7: Early-Game Weapon
Ever since we taught the primitive villagers the joys of cooking, they had been going off the wall, trying to cook whatever they could. Of course, that was with our help.
“No, Egg. No matter how much you try to cook those rocks, they’re not going to become edible, or tasty for that matter. That should never have been a trend.”
“Trend, what?”
“... Forget I said that.”
Whenever they had something they wanted to try, they’d either go to Esphera or me and have us start a fire for them. I tried teaching them how to start a fire on their own with sticks, but so far, those efforts haven't produced any fire starters. Instead, those bald idiots, Rock and Stone, have been playing with sticks like they were swords, swinging them at each other and stuff!
“Rock! Stone! Oi, you dumb apes! Did I say you could play with the sticks?! I left you two for one minute, and you’ve already started playing around!”
“Sorry, Apostle…”
“Me, sorry…”
“Get back to practice! Keep it up until those sparks start flying!”
“Yes, Apostle!”
“Me, go!”
“Geez…”
[...]
With the troublesome pair of bald brothers, now gone, I turned to look at Esphera, who was sitting on a stump, head downcast. She’s been down ever since yesterday’s incident.
Recalling the events, I felt a sharp pain run through my left hand.
Fuck.
Every time I moved my fingers, even just a little bit, I’d feel jolts run down from my palm and through my wrists. For that reason, I bandaged up my hand with long leaves to restrict finger movement, but sometimes I end up moving a finger or two on habit and end up hurting myself.
Honestly, I should’ve expected something like this would happen when we arrived. But I got distracted thinking about Esphera and making sure we’d make a grand impression on the villagers.
Clearly, our presentation worked, and the village’s perception of us improved whenever Egg shared the story about Esphera eliminating that winged cow rex, but…
“Esphera.”
“...”
“You know that there was nothing that you could have done about Fish.”
While Esphera was perceived as the loving Ringed Star Mother who protects her faithful children from the threat of beasts, there was no divine aspect about her that granted her any healing powers. Instead, as the personification of this world’s sun itself, she carried the divine aspect of fire.
Even if Esphera had rushed to the scene from the condo, there was nothing she, even as a constellation, could do. Perhaps it was for that very reason that she simply stood there in shock that time. Or… maybe the shock from losing a follower was just that strong for her.
“I… I know.”
“I will not tell you to stop sulking. Emotions are not things we can truly control, after all.”
People claim all the time that controlling your emotions is easy. They often make it sound as easy as stretching a finger or kicking your leg up. But truth be told, dealing with one’s emotions is less like controlling a limb and more like training a pet. You need to teach yourself to act how you would prefer in certain situations.
Composure. Joy. Excitement. Sadness. Anger. Disgust.
Rationalizing with yourself won’t persuade your heart, just as trying to play logic games with a pet won’t go anywhere. The dog isn’t going to understand your elaborate explanation about why he shouldn’t shit in the shower. Cats, even while trainable, won’t always listen to you if they’re not in the mood. Hearts are the same way.
“But you will need to pick yourself up again, eventually. If not for yourself, then for your followers. The way this village is now, surely, they will eventually succumb to the forces of nature.”
“... Yes.”
The most difficult thing about training your heart, though, is that there’s no universally good way to teach you how. Every individual is different, after all, so often most people have to figure out their own ways.
“As a constellation, you will be responsible for a great many faithful. So, you must become stronger. Not just as a goddess. Mind and heart, those two things are what matter most.”
“Mind and heart…”
“You are already a quick learner, Esphera. But your heart sways far too easily. However, most solutions to problems of the self are best discovered by the self.”
My dad always told me to just forget about my problems and live my life the way I wanted to. But I always hated that advice. Because ultimately, that was just another form of running away. Something that my dad had always done that eventually ruined him.
If you never deal with your problems upfront, you’ll always find yourself haunted by them later. Running away only buys you time. But eventually, time will force you to repay your debts.
Though it might make Esphera feel good for a day, I can’t let that become her whole life—or her entire existence.
That would be awful for an immortal goddess, now wouldn’t it?
“You will find your answer if you keep searching. But if you stop just once, you might just stay clueless forever.”
“I will keep those words to heart, Lord Yvell…”
That’s enough for now.
My NEET brain cells are dying from the incessant milking of my unemployed wisdom.
“That will be enough lecturing from me for today. I will go converse with the village chief regarding the construction of fences around the perimeter.”
“What should I do, Lord Yvell?”
“Explore.”
“E-Excuse me?”
I can’t always accompany Esphera around the village. While the matter of deepening the village’s faith in the Ringed Star Mother is of high importance, I shouldn’t miss the chance to have her independently experience what it’s like to live here.
Guiding her thoughts about her responsibilities as a constellation is nice and all, but it would be for the best if she also figures things out on her own.
That, and I really want some time to myself. I was originally an introvert, you know?
It’s a natural part of being a NEET. Just comes with the territory.
“Think of this as a school trip. Except you’re the only one in it. Take your time to look around and interact with the people. Consider this a test.”
“A school trip? Lord Yvell, what is—”
“Later.”
I am speed.
Fwooosh~
Just like that, I fucked right off, sprinting as fast as my NEET ass could manage.
“Lord Yvell…”
Suddenly, Esphera found herself standing alone in the middle of the village.
Unsure what to do, she decided to chew over her revered teacher’s words.
“A test… Exploration… To interact with the people…”
Emulation.
The first teaching her mentor had given her. The concept of emulation.
She was told that, by emulating her faithful’s way of life, she would grow closer to reaching her desired utopia.
“Certainly, I have come to understand a lot more than I have before…”
Esphera has experienced exhaustion and pain on the same day. While she has seen through the life of one of her followers through their death, that was not the same as experiencing such things for herself.
Just what answers could she possibly find that would lead her to her dreamed utopia?
Utopia… such an ambiguous desire.
While she had her ideas of what world she wanted to make this world into, through her recent toils on the mortal plane, she has come to understand that many of them are beyond her ability to realize.
A heart that easily sways. And… her lacking abilities as a constellation.
It could not be helped that there are still very few powers she holds, for she was only recently conceptualized by her faithful. Therefore, through their activities in the village, she must grow stronger. She must.
For now, the matter of the heart can wait. If even her revered mentor could not provide her with a rather direct answer to her plight, then perhaps the issue is far too difficult to fix by listening to words alone. So, Esphera chose to prioritize a goal much closer to reach. The deepening of the Ringed Star Mother faith.
“Holy Spirit. What, doing?”
A familiar voice called out to her from behind.
“Oh, Egg! Good morning to you.”
“Good, morning. What, doing?”
“Ah… To be honest, I am not sure.”
Legacy.
Another teaching Esphera’s revered mentor had passed on to her recently. As a newborn constellation, she lacked a strong foundation for her faith. Her very existence could be morphed beyond recognition at a wrong step, so it was important to perform feats that could earn her faithful’s respect and devotion.
If she wanted to deepen the village’s faith in the Ringed Star Mother, then the answer must lie within forging a new legacy.
“Have, time?”
“Yes, I suppose I do. Do you need help with starting another fire, Egg?”
“No, me want, show Spirit, friend.”
“Excuse me?”
“Story, tell. Show, Spirit, friend.”
“Oh, I see. Then I will come with you.”
Stories of the Holy Spirit… Stories told through word of mouth are a fine way to start a foundation of faith. However, they are not very reliable. Memories go frail with time, so stories change as they pass through new mouths. Perhaps this momentary endeavor will not amount to much, however…
Holy Spirit… Spirit…
Ah!
“Egg?”
“Yes, Holy Spirit?”
“Could you provide me with some ashes? You must know. The black dirt left after a fire is spent.”
“Yes, okay. Anything, Spirit.”
“No, better yet, summon all your friends and have them each bring ashes of their own.”
“...? Why, Holy Spirit?”
(Magical problems might require magical solutions.)
It is just as you say, Lord Yvell! Ah~... Truly, my teacher’s brilliance knows no bounds!~
“I’ve been telling so many lies these last three days, it’s insane.”
A liar. I was never much of a liar back on Earth. There weren’t many reasons for me to.
If anything, people used to hate me for being the blunt asshole that I was. I was a masterpiece of antisocialism.
Oh, but I did lie a lot to get out of trouble.
“But never to this level…”
Who would’ve thought I’d find myself telling one lie after the next to a fucking goddess of all things?...
Stress has been piling up like a mountain thanks to recent events.
I’d love to go let off some steam right now.
… I’m tempted to make a certain joke, but I feel like I’ll get into trouble if I do.
Anyway, I decided to take a walk around the village and enjoy the scenery. I wasn’t exactly the type to go out and touch grass like this, but I don’t exactly have many options right now. My phone’s dead, and my power bank, which had its own little solar panel for outdoor charging, was back at the condo.
If I had known that I had my phone with me at the time, I’d have brought the power bank with me, but alas… I am now cursed to touch grass.
Scrrrk… Scrrrk… Scrrrk…
Hm?
I could hear a curious scraping sound coming from around that tree. Quietly, I stepped towards the source of the sound.
Scrrrk… Scrrrk… Scrrrk…
The sound kept going, seemingly unaware of my slow but steady approach.
When I looked around the tree, there sat a young woman sharpening a long bone with a rock.
Ah, normie detected.
It was the woman from yesterday. The village chief’s daughter.
“Yo.”
“?!?”
Surprised, she suddenly thrust the long bone towards my face.
Girl, chill! The fuck did I do?!?
“I would appreciate it if you put the bone spear away, please.”
“... Apostle. What, want?”
“Name?”
“Huh?”
“I don’t know your name yet.”
Yesterday, after Esphera and I parted with this woman, we talked with the village chief, Bear, about what we planned to do here at the village. It appeared that we had made quite the impression on him, so he was quick to promise us all the help he could provide.
But at the time, I couldn't bring myself to ask him about his daughter. Neither could Esphera, who seemed to have far more complex feelings about her.
The young woman’s face quickly distorted into a scowl.
“Why, I, tell?”
Ugh. If eyes could kill, would I have died hundreds of times just now?
How do I approach this? It's not every day that I find myself next to somebody who's shown me this level of hostility.
I could leave, but that'd feel unsatisfying. Maybe I ought to pour some water over the situation with a little casual conversation?
But what do I talk about?
I take a moment to look around, my gaze returning to the spear she was holding.
"That spear, is it Fish's?"
"..."
"It's a fine spear. Was it made with a beast's hind leg?
As if she had finally had enough, the woman suddenly lunged at me.
Why do people always go for the collar at times like this?
I suddenly found myself pulled towards her, her furious face up in mine. I could feel her heated breathing on my neck.
“Hate! Esphera, bad! Fish, let, die!”
“Now, now. How about we be civ— oof!”
“Go, away!”
Suddenly, she pushed me away. Since she wasn't too strong, it didn't hurt too much.
I get that she's lashing out in grief, but isn't this a bit much?
Then, just like yesterday, she picked up a nearby rock and threw it. Since I wasn’t caught off guard this time, avoiding the rock wasn’t exactly difficult, but that gave me quite a scare. After all, it was heading right for my nuts.
"Alright, alright! I'm leaving!"
"Go, now!"
Just as she had demanded, I quickly decided to scurry off. But not before taking one last glance at her.
With her back now turned, she walked back to the tree and returned to her place, likely to go back to sharpening the bone spear.
Then, I noticed something around her wrist.
A crude bracelet made of twine.
Ah!
That's it! The answer to our problem should've been obvious from the start.
Time to develop an in-game weapon.
