“Please allow me to explain, my king.”
“Go ahead, Salzar.”
I would later learn that Old Man Salzar was the director of the entire Magical Research Center and the most powerful and renowned magic user in the whole country.
“First of all, there was no error with the construction of the summoning circle. Protections were in place in case the summoner chanted the incantation incorrectly. I tested it myself after the incident took place. When I chanted the incantation correctly, a common monster appeared, and when I intentionally chanted the incantation incorrectly, nothing happened.”
“So the fault was not with the magic user who cast the summoning spell?”
“It would appear not, my king.”
“Then how do you explain the undeniable fact that a fire dragon was summoned?”
“It can only be due to some power beyond the control of human hands… Perhaps it was the will of God.”
“…God?”
Hmm… I wouldn’t put it past him to meddle like that!
It was probably some hair-brained scheme to bring me into contact with certain people. I wanted to be irritated at his meddling, but I met Sol because of it, which I was very happy about, so I couldn’t bring myself to be angry about what had happened.
“…What do you think, High Priest?”
The person the king had called High Priest was the complete opposite of Old Man Salzar.
He wore white priest’s robes. The overcoat had a high collar and slits up both sides, and it was fastened with a light blue cloth wrapped around his waist like a belt. The robes were decorated with elaborate embroidery done with blue thread, but to me, they looked like tacky geometric patterns. I couldn’t see much of the pants he wore under the robes, so I couldn’t tell you much about them other than that they were white. The entire ensemble reminded me vaguely of Changpao-style Chinese robes.
As for the High Priest himself, to be blunt, he was a huge fatso!
In manga and so on, there’s often a stereotypical “corrupt priest” type of character, right? The type of scumbag who embezzles from the church’s donations to line his own pockets and gorges himself on the finest delicacies. That description seems to fit this guy to a T!
“I believe this incident was the work of the God of Creation. The prevalence of holy beasts in this country must surely be a sign of God’s divine plan for Your Majesty. Your Majesty will, without doubt, be the catalyst for transforming this world into a land of peace and prosperity, governed by mankind.”
Sigh. So, this guy is part of the problem that God was talking about. Let me guess: he’s following the typical pattern of claiming to be a mouthpiece of God, brainwashing the populace, and worming his way into politics?
The only religion in this world was the Church of Divine Creation, which focused on worshipping the God of Creation and the Goddess Cresiolle. The spiritual beliefs of the elves and beast people were not quite the same as those of organized religion. For this reason, the church held nearly equal power to the government.
The headquarters for the Church of Divine Creation was in the mountains that divided the Kingdom of Gaché from the neighboring country of Milma and were the location of the church’s only temple. The church’s headquarters were practically an autonomous religious state.
In summary, is this part of a plot to use the Church of Divine Creation to indoctrinate the royal families and ordinary citizens of each country into the belief that “The world is meant to be ruled by humans” in order to persecute other species?
I’d already expected it would be something like this, and it’s probably not a good idea to make any decisions based on just one observation. After all, I still haven’t met any of the other species, and I don’t fully understand how this world operates yet.
Since I started this mission as a baby, I can put off my decision about the fate of mankind until the day I die. In that case, I’ve got plenty of time to figure it out. Although, the average life expectancy here does seem to be a bit lower than in my world.
And, anyway, my primary directive is to cuddle and pet as many animals as I can! God will have to make do with his request being a second priority.
“Have you lost interest already, Neema?”
I flinched, surprised, at the sound of my name.
I jerked my head up, and my eyes met Will’s as he watched me with an amused expression.
Hmph! What exactly does he find so amusing, I wonder?
Gasp! Don’t tell me he could tell what I was thinking about just by looking at my face?! Was I making weird faces while lost in thought?
And he was getting sick amusement out of watching me?! I’m so embarrassed… Is this some kind of messed-up humiliation game…?
Overcome with embarrassment, I buried my face in my bunny backpack.
I had no doubt Will was probably even more amused by this display of my abject humiliation.
To be enjoying the plight of a three-year-old child squirming in humiliation… He’s not a demon prince—he’s a pervert prince!
Will spoke down from the dais above me with a slight chuckle as if trying to hold back a laugh.
Mama, Papa, help! Your precious daughter is being toyed with by a mega-pervert!
“If you’re bored, why don’t you go to the corner and play with Lars?”
What?! Is that an option?!
No, wait. I was summoned here by the king. I can’t just leave without the king’s permission.
“Ish dat okay, Mishta King?”
I hugged my bunny backpack to my chest and stared up at the king with wide, glistening eyes, really playing up the adorable, innocent child factor. It was my most effective weapon; it would be a shame not to use it to my advantage.
This would work on Papa for sure, but…
“This conversation must be difficult for you to follow, Nefertima. I’m sorry for not realizing sooner.”
Sweet! It looks like it worked on the king, too! I’d better crank up the charm—they are the most powerful people in the entire country, after all.
“It’s okay; I’m happy I could meet you again, Mishta King! And Mishus Queen, too!”
It didn’t cost anything to be affable; it could be argued that this was one of the secrets to success in life.
I don’t think this was what they had in mind when they coined that phrase, buuut… There’s no shame in playing to my strengths!
In any case, the king and queen were smiling kindly at me, so I figured all’s well that ends well.
“Lars,” Will called. Lars appeared beside him on the dais, leading me to assume that the tiger had been waiting off to the side just out of sight. Will whispered something to Lars, then instructed a maid as well.
Lars nodded his head indulgently to Will.
Oh my goodness, that gesture was so adorable!
While I was internally fangirling, Lars leapt down from the dais in a single giant leap, without even a running start, to clear the large distance.
He looks just like a cat! Well, I mean, I guess tigers are a type of cat, but…
Lars landed softly without a sound or even a vibration on the ground. The way the muscles along his back rippled as he moved was 100 percent feline.
Lars skulked up to me and sniffed my scent. Then he moved past me, giving a single “Growl” as he passed.
It seemed he was telling me to follow him, so I did, turning and following him with excited steps.
Wait, wait, wait! That was a close one! I almost broke Papa and Mama’s rule. Lars, did you use some kind of magical charm on me?! You naughty boy!
My parents had forbidden me from playing with holy beasts in public, but the prince instructed me to do so. I looked to my parents beseechingly, silently asking how to proceed.
For some reason, Papa was wearing a pained-looking smile, and Mama was smiling indulgently, seeming proud that I’d remembered the rule about not playing with holy beasts.
“We still have more to speak with His Majesty about,” Papa said. “Neema, please be a good girl and don’t get into too much trouble, okay?”
Haha… He hit the nail right on the head with that one.
Given my track record of causing mayhem, I did my best to appear convincing as I cheerfully agreed, “Yesh, Papa!”
I turned, determined to enjoy playing with Lars as much as I wanted without reservation now that I’d received permission, when…
Lars wagged his tail back and forth.
Almost by ingrained reflex, I reached out and grabbed his tail.
Oh no! Cats hate having their tails grabbed, don’t they?!
In my previous life, I’d done the same thing to our family’s pet cat on many occasions and was always clawed bloody, but I never learned my lesson.
I timidly, hesitantly, glanced at Lars’ face, but surprisingly, he didn’t seem bothered. In fact, he seemed to be in a good mood.
Then Lars walked off, letting me hold onto his tail.
Oh, I see. He used his tail as bait to catch me, like a fisherman. It was a calculated move!
Lars led me to one side of the throne room. Technically, it was more like a corner. The only thing in the corner was a ginormous cushion. It was navy blue in color, soft and fluffy, and incredibly comfortable-looking. The massive cushion was as big as three twin-sized beds.
Lars hopped up onto the cushion and lay down.
I knew you were big, but this drives home just how huge you are, Lars.
Lars’ body was about the size of a bison. Does that make sense? Okay, let’s say he was the size of a very large cow, maybe a little bigger than a prize-winning Holstein. In terms of height, he was at least twice as tall as me.
If he wanted to, I bet he could swallow me whole.
After all, a bowl was overflowing with a giant mountain of raw meat beside the cushion, and that was just a snack for Lars.
A small chair was next to the cushion. Did someone put it there for me?
I’ll use Lars as a cushion, so I don’t need a chair, but thanks!
“Lars, shay ‘ah’!”
I grabbed a handful of the raw meat and held it up to Lars’ mouth.