After parting with Jered papa, I headed toward the Meiyu branch of the Church of the Forest and World Tree.
Not that I was a devout believer, nor was I planning to pray.
And it wasn’t because I wanted to meet the beautiful nun either. I had a different reason for coming here.
Though, if you asked me whether I had absolutely no desire to see a beautiful nun, I couldn’t really say that.
After being worn down in the endless Reversi hell, I felt like I deserved a little comfort…
「Hello—. Is Laudette-san here—?」
I stepped inside the church and called out to her from the chapel.
「Yes, yesss, I’m hereee」
Her reply came immediately. Since she usually spent most of her time sleeping, it was rare for her to be awake.
Soon after, Laudette-san, the beautiful nun, appeared from the back of the chapel. Beautiful, no doubt, but she still didn’t give off any nun-like presence. She looked more like an ordinary village girl.
「Ah, I knew it was you, Alec-san. Are you here for another appraisal? You really like those, don’t youuu」
As she said, I often came to this church to have my status checked. I probably stopped by about once every two weeks.
Other reincarnators could just say “Status Open” and check their stats instantly, but I had to come all the way here, pay money, and have it appraised.
Even Laudette-san had hesitated at first about taking money from a child, but I had forced it on her.
It might have been fine at the start, but if I kept making her work for free, she would have gotten irritated. So I decided it was better to pay properly and keep things pleasant.
By the way, the money I used was earned from Reversi. I handed most of it over to my parents, but they allowed me to keep a little for myself.
Things like lumber costs and tool maintenance were covered by my parents, so I didn’t have to pay for those.
Which meant, in the end, almost all of the money I earned was being poured into Laudette-san…
「Please take care of me today as well. I’d really like to see a level-up or at least some stat growth soon.」
「We’ll seeee. Well then… could you come with me to the back roommm?」
「Huh? Don’t you usually bring the crystal here and do it in the chapel?」
「That’s true, but… it’s fine, isn’t it? Come on, this wayyy」
…So she must have gotten tired of carrying the crystal out every time. Well, as long as she appraised me, I didn’t care where.
「This wayyy. This is the reception roommm」
Following Laudette-san into the back of the chapel, I stepped through a door and found myself in a room that did indeed look like a reception room.
There were two sofas with a low table set between them. At a glance, it looked proper enough… but scattered among the furnishings were clear signs of Laudette-san’s personal belongings. A blanket and pillow lay on one of the sofas, and on the table sat a half-finished cup.
…Somehow, my heart started racing. It felt like I had unexpectedly been invited into a woman’s private room.
「Just a moment pleaseee… alright, here you go」
Laudette-san picked up the appraisal crystal she had left out on top of a cabinet and placed it on the table.
Her handling of the crystal was careless. She probably got tired of putting it away each time because of how often I came here…
「Ah, before that, here」
「My, my, thank you as alwaysss」
As usual, I handed over the payment. …Most likely, the money never even reached the church, and went straight into Laudette-san’s pocket.
Well, maybe it was better to spend on a woman than to donate to a religious organization… I think? I’m not sure.
「Also, about what you mentioned last time, Laudette-san…」
「Ehhh? Did I say something?」
「You said you wanted Reversi, didn’t you?」
「Ah! Well, it’s not like I was begging, you knowww? I just said, ‘That looks nice, I want one too’」
If that isn’t begging, then what is it?
「Anyway, I brought it, so here’s a present」
「Waa, thank you so muchhh」
I pulled out the Reversi set from my magic bag and handed it to her. Laudette-san looked delighted…
…Why did this suddenly start to feel like a cabaret club?
It was as if I had become some pathetic customer showering gifts on a hostess. What on earth was I doing, in this holy church of all places…
「You made this yourself, didn’t you, Alec-san? That’s amazinggg」
Even the way she lifted me up with her words felt like something out of a cabaret.
It was frustrating to admit, but it didn’t feel bad at all… Maybe “status checks” were just an excuse, and this was the real reason I kept coming here every other week.
「Alec-san?」
「Eh? Ah, no, it’s nothing, really. Compared to Jered papa, I’ve still got a long way to go」
「Is that so? Well, I can’t do anything like this, so I still think it’s amazinggg」
With a smile, Laudette-san praised me.
…Champagne. Couldn’t I order champagne here? What about bottles? Couldn’t I at least keep a bottle!?
next chapter: Skilled Hostess Laudette-san
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