13 - 11. Rejoining and Muffling Temptations

As I stepped out of the production material shop, I saw a yellow moon in the west and a small white moon in the distance, and looking back, I could see the roofs of the buildings and the sky in the east was a faint whiteish purple. Dawn must be approaching soon.

Even at this time of the day, the plaza is full of players. I am one of them, and if I think about it calmly, it is inevitable that it is crowded since it is before 22:00 in real time, but this world is so real that I can't help thinking in this world's time, even though it is so late.

I feel a little guilty about the fact that I'm doing this without their consent, but I'm letting it slide without looking at the results, so forgive me!

I want to level up, so I decided to cut them some slack.

We pass in front of the guild, which is the busiest area, and head for the inn's cafeteria. The inn, like the guild, has dark brown floorboards, pillars, and white walls, but it is more decorated and looks more gorgeous than the guild. The walls are hung with alternating lights and mirrors reflecting the lights, and the corridor is much brighter than I expected.

"Oh!　Here it comes."

I wave back when Leo stops eating and hands me a piece of wood to exchange for breakfast at the door.

"Thanks for waiting."

We took our seats, and breakfast was quickly served between short greetings.

Today's breakfast consisted of a small but thick slice of toast with jam, salad, three kinds of cheese, three kinds of ham, and orange juice.

Are you still eating?　Of course I will.

How many levels did you go up?

If we had done it all the way from the morning in real time, we would have spent three or four days in this world, so there would have been quite a difference.

"I'm at 14!"

Four levels down, and Shin, you'll have to swallow before you can talk to me.

"I'm a little less efficient now that I have less attackers."

Thank you Peter.

"Homura, you're level 10, right?　We're talking about changing jobs and doing battle with everyone."

A man of a little bit of everything, Ochazuke suggests. Although he has a small appetite, he orders many kinds of food, and often leaves some behind, but he is often stuck eating it all because he is caught up with everyone else.

He is often stuck eating all of the food. "You don't have to go along with me," he says. You don't have to accommodate me. I'm sure I'll be off log in time in the future, and by the next time I see you, you'll have caught up on your levels during my break."

In the past games, except for Ochazuke, I have often been rather higher level than him, Leo and Kikuhime sleep earlier than me, Peter has longer hours at work than most, and Shin usually has shorter login time than me due to his long commute.

"We want to get a [stock]."

"If I'm going to go the distance, I'd like to take [fire magic] and see if I can't become a flaming fist."

"I'll take sorcery and ninjutsu as well."

You finally gave up the bow?

He runs into Peter without thinking.

"So today and tomorrow, I'm going to raise the level of my second job to 20, and then I'm going to change jobs, and then I'm going to change my job back.

"Yes, sir."

The fact that Ochazuke knows about it means that there are already people on the board who have changed jobs for the second job, and since Shin and the others are now 14, the fastest ones must be further ahead.

"I see, am I right to be a swordsman?　What about recovery?　I feel like you can't take the hate if I'm a low-level swordsman."

It occurred to me that I don't think I have a recovery.

"Ha-ha-ha-ha!　I'm the healer!"

"What?　The annihilation flag!"

Leo wants to go fishing all over the world, and he wants to be fast and able to hide and heal himself. What kind of job he plans on getting is a mystery.

"Don't worry, I'm high level, but my skill level is low and people don't do that much damage to me.

I could not shake off my uneasiness even as I sipped my after-dinner coffee and listened to Ochazuke's words.

I heard that while I was away, the first defeat of an area boss and a field boss and the first arrival at a new town took place, and that there was a world announcement for each and that there were special offers for the players who had achieved the first defeat and the first arrival.

After breakfast, we went out to the plaza and took a horse-drawn carriage to the center of the city, heading for the temple.

Job changes, except for production jobs, are currently being made at the temple.

"Homura, they say you can get light or dark if you pray at the temple."

Ochazuke, who is checking the bulletin board again, calls out to me, and I speak up to keep up with the sound of the rattling carriage.

"Oh?　Just praying?"

"Yes, it seems that swordsmen also get light if they heal and pray.

"Paladin course, huh?"

"I'm going to be a warrior, so that's fine."

I guess there's also dark knight.

"Yesterday, I got the moon too, after you taught me. I wanted to get a star too.

Gag!

"Peter and Leo have a guild of thieves in the slums."

We arrived at the temple in no time after listening to Ochazuke-sensei's bulletin board information, such as the fact that even if you don't use a skill, you get some of the experience from other skills of the same type you used, which actually helped me because I was feeling drunk again.

"What should I do with my equipment after changing jobs?　Do you want to go to the artisans' workshop?"

"I wonder if the artisans' quarters will be open early..."

The stores in the industrial district, which also serve as workshops, are often active at dawn and close when the sun goes down. The sun is the basis of the residents' working hours.

"We'll lend you a weapon..." "We'll lend you a weapon..."

"Let's trade until you change jobs!"

"Thank you, I can't lend you my initial equipment, and I only have one staff, what do you want?"

He asks Shin and Peter.

"Shin, go ahead - I'll buy a cheap one, you work for me!"

"Oh, thanks~, we can't loan out the armor, can we?"

"Is it because of the size that you can't rent out armor?"

"Why don't you go pray for homura?　If you're going to take it, the sooner the better."

I'll pray for you. Kikuhime, let me know when you move to the armor shop.

"Won't this be over soon?　I read on the board that you only need to do it during prayer because going around the halls of worship doesn't change the results."

"There are six halls of worship here, and this is my first time at the temple, so I thought I'd visit them all. It would take a long time if I prayed in all of them, and I don't have to choose a weapon.

"Nah, I understand."

"Yes, sir!　Have a good day!"

"Then we'll meet at the armor shop, and we'll be off."

I'll see you later.

"Have a good day!"

At the intersection of the main street from the south to the Lords' Hall and the main street from east to west, there is a square, and the temple stands to the northwest of it, surrounding the square for a quarter of its length. The square worship hall in the north alone is larger than both the Adventurers' and Commercial Guilds combined, and is truly a chalk temple.

The reception desk for new jobs is located at the eastern entrance, and it was probably added later because of the different style of the building. The reception desk, the office, and the priest's residence are connected to the hall of worship through the prayer hall.

There are six gods worshipped in this world: Asha, the god of war and rebirth in the form of a fierce red-haired youth; Val, the god of freedom and travelers in the form of a graceful silver-haired woman; Dur, the god of fertility and earth in the form of a gentle old woman; Lusha, the god of merchants and craftsmen in the form of a blond manchild; and the god of love and hunting in the form of a blue-haired girl. The statues of the god Far, the god of magic and alchemy, Tasha, the god of magic and alchemy, the old man with a long beard, were enshrined in a corridor-like building that ran around the courtyard.

In front of the hall immediately after entering the temple was the courtyard, which could be seen without any doors. There was a huge hardwood tree that seemed to be over the roof of the temple, and several young trees that also had magnificent trunks. The rest of the trees are well-kept undergrowth.

To the right from the hall is the hall of fal and to the left is the prayer room. A few players who seem to be mages or swordsmen are being sucked into the prayer room. It seems to be another space like in the tutorial.

On the worship side of the hall, there is a stone tablet embedded in the wall, inscribed with a strange phrase that could be a scripture.

The gods control the turning of the seasons.

The seasons do not turn when the gods are away.

The only thing that takes its place is a little piece.

The sky turns with the wind,

The earth turns with the flow of water.

It is the seasons of the earth that rotate.

When it has finished turning, pray silently.

Anyway, let's take a rest in the courtyard for a while. I was afraid you might say, "Shall we all walk together? Carriages are fast and nice, but I'm not going to take one when I'm alone.

I didn't want people to see me from the corridor, so I stepped through the undergrowth and went under a huge tree. Since it is surrounded by shrubs, I guess that I can't be seen from here. Looking up at the giant tree, even the first branch is three times my height, spreading its branches all over the courtyard and creating a thick shadow. I sit down with my back against the giant tree, thinking that if I sit down I will not be able to see it completely, and serve myself the tea I made this morning. The sound of leaves rustling in the air is pleasant to my ears, and the wind is blowing well for a courtyard surrounded by buildings.

In the real world, too, I feel happy when I see a big tree, not only in the precincts of shrines and temples. As I look at the sun shining through the trees, I wonder if the young trees will be all right in such a shady environment, and I start to feel sober again.

"Have you not come to receive power from me?

He spoke to me out of the blue, from overhead.

Leaning against a tree, I looked up and saw a huge tree glowing faintly, and a white animal, neither a cat nor a fox, with a long tail and fur, floating under the first branch.

"Who is it?"

It is indeed a fantasy, a talking beast. Since I was right below it, I could see almost only the lower half of its body at the first encounter, and I could catch a glimpse of its face peering at me through the lower half of its body.

I am sitting holding a cup and a saucer, with my head bent back, which is a pretty dumb composition.

"Normal people don't drink tea in the shrine.

When he said this, he moved so that they were facing each other. He was sniffing the aroma of tea, as if he was curious about it.

"Do you want some?"

The basic recipe for tea is 2, with a rating of 8 for the specialty correction.

"Don't be silly, I'm more like a spirit. Even if I could, I'd probably only be able to eat fruits, which is the limit for those of the human world.

"Tea is usually made by boiling the leaves, flowers or fruits of plants. This is leaves and apple peels.

He holds out a cup filled with a liquid that is redder than ordinary tea.

"If it is undrinkable, will it upset your stomach?"

I ask the hesitant white creature.

"No, I just can't drink what I can't drink. I will spit it out in rejection.

"Then why don't you give it a try?　Do you want a new brew?"

"...... No, not too hot either."

Curiosity got the better of the white creature and it put its tongue in the tea.

"It seems to be all right."

"...... is good."

"Thank you."

"I didn't mean it as a compliment to you."

Flatten your ears and turn away.

"I made this."

"What, what ......?

I told him with a smile, and he reacted as if he had a letter written behind his back. Why?

"You can drink all of it."

"......mm."

After a beat, he starts drinking again.

I tickle the base of the white creature's ear. It froze for a moment and looked at me annoyed, but it did not run away but turned its face to the cup and started to drink again, so I continued to stroke it.

The white hairs were so plentiful, soft and smooth that I was surprised they were not tangled. When I slide my fingers between the hairs, I feel a strange sensation of coolness and warmth.

"Holy shit!　That's enough!　...... tsk."

"If I were the old me, I'd have the whole city to myself by now, huh?"

He was saying something, but there was no resistance, so I muffed him with my desire.

Five minutes later, I found a furball stretched out on my lap, rumbling and choking. The pink of its paw pads was bright. I'm glad he was satisfied.

"Well, I guess I'd better get going."

"How dare you ......"

He came to his senses when he heard my voice.

"Yes, yes, I'm sorry. I've got a meeting to go to."

"Wait a minute. I'll let you off the hook for touching me unintentionally. Listen to me, I have a role to play!

The white creature stands up holding her and speaks hurriedly.

"Role?"

"Well, you have wind magic, don't you?"

"Yes, I have it."

"On that condition, I give the [spirit art] to those who come to this great tree."

"Thank you?"

"...... Why the question mark there, my dear?"

No, it's because the fluffy thing in front of me is a stronger temptation than the spirit technique.

The white creature sighed and reached up from its hand to touch my forehead.

I have mastered the skill of "Spirit Art".

The Spirit of the Wind has blessed you.

The occupation [Spiritual User] has been added to the list of occupations.

Oh, so it's not an addition to the list, but an acquisition. That's a good deal.

That's all right. You have now made a covenant with the spirit of the wind, albeit a weak one. There are spirits all over the world, but only a few that can bless you. Spiritism is the art of invoking spirits by offering magic power to them. Sometimes a medium is needed to call powerful spirits.

"Okay."

I thought you were in the hall of worship!　Why are you taking me with you?"

They were moving even while I was talking to them. Fifteen minutes have already passed, and considering that I am going to visit the hall of worship, I guess I made them wait too long, even if I deducted the time for shopping.

"I was thinking of taking it home with me."

I told you I have a job to do!

"It's okay to go out once in a while, you shouldn't work too hard."

"That's not the point!　I am sealed up in here!

Can't you leave the temple?

I can't leave!

"Will the city collapse or something?　Or are you voluntarily holed up?"

No, I'm not going to let it fall apart now, and I don't have the power to do so. We are not voluntarily holed up.

"Then what's the problem?"

What's the problem? I can't get out even if I tried.

I'll give it a try when I'm done with my prayers."

"......"

The white creature seems to have given up on something and is slumped over.

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More...

Skills

[Spirit art].

Spirit of Wind [Win].

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Homura Lv.10

Rank E

Occupation Mage, Pharmacist

H!?　　214

M!?　　347

STR 10

VIT 11

INT 40

MID 14

DEX 9

AGI 10

LUK 10

N!?C!?　Galahad] [-]

Title [Interactionist

Skill (2S!?)

■Magic and Magic

Wood magic Lv.2] [Fire magic Lv.4] [Earth magic Lv.2

Gold Magic Lv.3] [Water Magic Lv.3] [Wind Magic Lv.1

Spiritual Arts

Spirit of Wind [Win Lv.1

■Production

Mixing Lv.1] [Alchemy Mixing Lv.1] [Cooking Lv.3

■Collecting

Collecting

■ Appraisal and concealment

Tool medicine appraisal Lv.3] [Plant food appraisal Lv.3

Animal and Demon Appraisal Lv.3] [Skill Appraisal Lv.2

Weapons and Armor Appraisal Lv.2

Attention Detection Lv.3] [Attention Dilution Lv.3

Enhancement

Intellectual power enhancement Lv.2

Others

M! Natural Recovery], [Night Vision], [Map].