Chapter 176

“The language used on this continent―――let’s call it the lingua franca of this continent.

The lingua franca of this continent is clearly a poorly developed language. It would be wise not to try to spread literacy in such a futile manner.”

Omoikane, accompanied by Tsukuyomi, came to Amaterasu’s house. After listening to the whole story, Omoikane said it outright.

Incidentally, Omoikane in『 Atros Online 』is a goddess. She is a beautiful woman with long black hair, which she often wears tied back in a ponytail.

(TN: In the original Shintoism, Omoikane is a Male called the “God of Wisdom and Intelligence.”)

“Are you suggesting that the language is flawed?”

“No, as a purely conversational language, it is passable, but when it comes to writing, the lingua franca is so rudderless that I have to give it a failing grade.”

“Hmmm… First of all, I am surprised that Omoikane already knows our language.”

“I had some free time, so I learned it.”

Omoikane put it so simply. Learning a language is not an easy thing for a normal person to do.

“So, what exactly is the flaw?”

“Well… If I were to explain the theory one by one, there would not be enough time, so I will just give you the gist. The most important problem is that because the state did not take the lead in creating the rules for the language, the language has been altered too much by the times and the community in a random manner.

“… Sorry, I’m not quite sure what the problem is with that.”

“To put it simply, there is no textbook to use as a model. There is no set standard for teachers to understand that they should teach in this way, and the teachers who teach have too much variation in their understanding of the language.

As a result, even between speakers of the same language, it has become impossible to have a conversation unless we know what the speaker is trying to say.

In addition, when writing the common language of the continent, it is written in phonetic script. Since the pronunciation itself is ambiguous from person to person, there is no specific way to write a word, and the notation can change depending on the writer’s discretion, which is another major problem. There are too many homophones or approximate heteronyms, and the difficulty of deciphering the text is quite high.”

“Ah, I see…”

Omoikane explained the problems with the continental lingua franca in a way that sounded like water off a bridge. But Yuri did not understand most of it.

―――Although, if Omoikane says so much. I guess the flaws in the continental lingua franca are not at a level that can be ignored.

“Omoikane. So what do you think we should do?”

“I don’t think we need to stick to the lingua franca. We should teach them Japanese.”

“That would be too difficult to learn…”

When Yuri heard Omoikane’s suggestion, she couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow.

Japanese is even said to be the most difficult language in the world to master.

To learn them, you have to memorize hiragana, katakana, and kanji, and while the first two are phonetic characters, kanji is ideographic or ideographic. Since the total number of characters is huge, it is undoubtedly quite difficult to learn them all.

In addition, the Japanese language often distinguishes words with the same sound by intonation, making it a difficult language not only for writing but also for conversation. The fact that it is possible to express the same thing in a variety of ways may be an advantage in terms of language, but it is a disadvantage in terms of difficulty in mastering it.

“It won’t be a problem. It’s just a matter of me giving them my『 Blessing 』.”

“…… Oh, I see. So you’re planning to solve the problem by force?”

“It’s easier that way.”

『 Blessings 』are a type of enhancement buff that gods can grant to mortals in the game『 Atros Online 』, and have the effect of increasing the growth rate of a limited number of skills.

For example, the『 Amaterasu’s Blessing 』granted by Amaterasu is very useful, as it increases the growth rate of any skill by 30%.

However, the effect only lasts for a maximum of 30 minutes, and there are often some conditions attached to it. In the case of the Amaterasu’s Blessing mentioned earlier, it only works in places where sunlight is available.

Omoikane’s blessing has a very large effect,『 Increasing the Speed of Acquiring Knowledge Skills by 600% 』.

However, it must be a skill that is pure “knowledge” ―――that is, a skill that does not require experience. This means that skills that require experience as well as knowledge to acquire, such as production skills, are excluded from the list, making them less useful than expected.

In addition, this blessing has the additional condition that it is only effective within the realm controlled by Omoikane. So, in the game『 Atros Online 』, it was common to see players buying books to learn knowledge skills, getting the blessing from Omoikane, and then spending all their time reading books in Omoikane’s homeroom.

“Thanks to Yuri-sama’s summoning of a very high-quality ritual, I can now bestow『 Blessing 』on others in any number of ways, and if I teach while reapplying the blessings every half hour, I should be able to learn Japanese in no time.”

“I see… So it would be better to give the ownership of the building itself to Omoikane.”

“Yes. If not, the blessing will not be effective.”

If the educational facility itself were to become Omoikane’s personal domain, all of the students studying there would be able to fulfill the conditions attached to the blessing.

The protection lasts for 30 minutes and is constantly reapplied. If you can learn at seven times the normal rate, it certainly won’t be too difficult to learn Japanese.

“Now if only the people of this world wouldn’t object to changing the language of their country”

“…? I don’t think we need to change the language, just let it coexist with the existing language.”

“What? Oh, I see. You’re right, if you ask me.”

If you want to use Japanese, that’s all you need.

I wondered if it was my Japanese nature that I had subconsciously thought of that.

Omoikane is indeed right, there is no need to limit the official language to one.

“By the way, Roselotte-sama.”

“… Y-Yes! W-W-What can I do for you?”

She must have been startled by Omoikane’s sudden question.

The tone of Roselotte’s voice was turned upside down.

“Oh, don’t be so deflated… Roselotte-sama said that you’re asking Yuri-sama for a job, so you have time to spare, right?”

“Oh, yes. I’m sorry to say, but I’m pretty bored…”

“That’s superfluous. Yuri-sama, would it be possible for you to leave Roselotte-sama with me for a while from today?”

“Hmmm…? Are you planning to teach her Japanese?”

“Yes. The first thing I wanted to do was to see how long it would take for the person I gave my 『 Blessing 』to master Japanese since I have no textbooks or anything like that ready.”

“I see, you certainly need a test sample. Give it a try.”

“Yes.”

Omoikane nodded at Yuri’s words.

Japanese is Yuri’s most important mother tongue, needless to say. It was a pleasure for Yuri to have Roselotte master it.

I don’t think I’ve confirmed her intentions―――but that’s a minor issue.