Chapter 12 – There Are Still Things I Want to Know

「Alright, let’s go find the next book」

『Eh? Are you still investigating?』

Yuu looks at me with a surprised expression.

「I want to know more about the Goddess. The relationship between this world and the Goddess. Whether there are other gods worshipped. Whether devotion to the Goddess is the state religion of this country. There are still many things I want to know」

『That much?』

「Yes」

Well, first is the relationship between the Goddess and this world. The first book said, 「The Goddess who brought happiness to the world」. Since it was for children, it cannot be helped, but I wished it had been written in a bit more detail.

I go to the living room with Yuu. When I gently open the door and peek inside, I see Mother sleeping on her back on the sofa, with Suna sleeping on top of her. There are leftovers from Suna’s breakfast on the living room table. It seems she fell asleep right after eating.

I quietly approach the two of them.

『They are sleeping soundly』

「Yes」

I take a blanket from the shelf and gently cover them. I was worried they might wake up, but it seems fine.

Ah.

When I look closely at Mother, I notice she has a tired expression. After onii-chan and I were attacked by the curse, and I collapsed with a high fever, those trash people barged in. Moreover, they are nobles. An opponent we cannot fight properly.

「It must be tiring」

Wait just a little longer. I will definitely eliminate them.

『Rina, how about this book?』

When I look at Yuu, he is pointing to a book on the bookshelf.

Huh? Yuu should not be able to read characters.

I take the book Yuu pointed to from the shelf and flip through it to see if it is readable.

「This one is no good」

The phrasing is difficult, and it seems it would take Rina a very long time to read it.

「Is there not another good book?」

I return the book in my hand to the shelf and pick up another one. Then, I flip through it to check the content.

「What is the title? 『The Goddess and Us』. Could this be the book I am looking for?」

There are more characters I do not understand than in the book I read earlier, but I should be able to manage if I try hard.

『That one?』

「I will choose this one」

Ah, I spoke to Yuu. I quietly look at Mother and the others sleeping on the sofa.

Good, they are fast asleep.

「Let’s go back to the room」

I leave the living room and tilt my head, thinking, 「Huh?」. Mother usually does her sewing work at this time.

「Why is she sleeping? Is she extremely tired?」

Or… that scum shouted, 「I will make sure you cannot live in this village!」 Could it be that the effects are already appearing?

『Rina?』

「It is nothing. Let’s go」

With my current abilities, I cannot do anything for Mother. First, I must gain knowledge.

I return to the room, sit on the corner of the bed, and spread out the book.

『Please take care of me again this time』

I nod at Yuu’s words and continue reading the book aloud. After stumbling over the words many times and thinking through it with Yuu, I finally finish the book.

「I am tired～」

I fall backward onto the bed and raise my hands. I stretch them out firmly to loosen my stiff muscles.

『We worked really hard』

When I look at Yuu, he is looking at the book with a satisfied expression for some reason. His expression makes me smile a little, but I certainly feel a sense of accomplishment.

『Still, to think that this world was created by the power of the Goddess. Can Rina believe it?』

「I believe it」

I sit up and look at Yuu.

『Eh? Really?』

Yuu looks extremely surprised. Not understanding why he is so surprised, I tilt my head.

「Why are you so surprised?」

『Because the Goddess created this world. I thought that only happened in manga and anime. I thought Rina felt the same way』

Ah, that is the perspective of people who cannot see spirits.

『Ah, it is because Rina is from a family that protects a shrine』

That is part of it, but I have also actually seen the existence of gods. Not the powerful humanoid gods that appear in anime and manga, but gods with weak powers.

「More importantly, now I understand the Goddess to some extent. Ah, I should be careful about how I refer to her from now on」

『How you refer to her?』

「Yes. I must call her ‘Goddess-sama’ instead of just ‘Goddess’」

『Why?』

「It is unthinkable for someone living in this world to refer to the Goddess who created this world without an honorific」

『That is true』

「So Yuu, you must also call her ‘Goddess-sama’」

『Eh. Why? It has nothing to do with me, right? No one around can see me!』

「It is for my sake. If I get used to your way of speaking and accidentally say ‘Goddess’ in front of third parties, what will happen? It would be very dangerous, right?」

『That is dangerous. No, if I just make sure not to influence you…』

「Impossible. I will definitely be influenced」

I interrupt Yuu’s words and declare it impossible. He gives me a slightly disappointed look, but it is for risk avoidance. There is no problem.

「So, from now on, Yuu, you must also call her ‘Goddess-sama’」

『Understood. I cannot put Rina in danger』

「Please do. And thank you」

I stroke the cover of the book I just read.

Goddess-sama created this world, and it has developed through the hands of people blessed by her. Those who received her blessing are now called Bishops. In other words, church officials.

And the Royal Family refers to those who were granted power by Goddess-sama. At the time this world was created, there was an existence called the Demon King. To fight against that Demon King, Goddess-sama selected certain individuals and granted them the power to protect the powerless and defeat the Demon King. After those who received the power defeated the Demon King, they established a country.

Currently, there are three kingdoms. All of them have Goddess-sama as their state religion and are not in conflict. Essentially, Goddess-sama decides the next King. She sends down an oracle to the Archbishop at that time.

「The Goddess is closer than I thought」

『The Demon King. If there is a Goddess, there must be a Demon King too』

I look at Yuu, who says this happily.

「That is irrelevant right now」

『I know. But does not hearing about the Demon King make you excited?』

「Not at all」

Why would I be excited? The Demon King is definitely trouble, right? I absolutely do not want to get involved, no matter what.

『Eh～ You have no dreams!』

As if having dreams about the Demon King is something to aspire to!

「The Demon King is irrelevant right now!」

『That is true, but can I not enjoy it a little!』

I let out a sigh at Yuu’s sulky expression.

「You were not that happy when it was about spirits」

The book also had a little information about spirits.

Spirits are beings who healed this world, which was ravaged by the Demon King. Therefore, Goddess-sama cherishes spirits very much and conveyed this to the people.

However, from Father’s story, it seems there are more and more people who doubt the very existence of spirits. Does Goddess-sama not say anything about that? Even though she sends down oracles to decide the next King. Well, if I am going to say that, I also wonder how the Demon King was born… Let us ignore it for now. It is irrelevant.

I turn the book over and look at a certain mark. That mark is a seal indicating that the book is approved by the Church. In other words, it means the book is written based on facts recognized by the Church.

「Well, it does not write about everything」

Even if Goddess-sama says spirits exist, to those who cannot see them, they do not exist. This might be very similar to the relationship between those who can see ghosts and those who cannot.

『What?』

「It is nothing. Anyway, I am glad I could learn most of what I wanted to know」

However, it did not mention the existence of ghosts at all. The fact that it did not mention them at all might mean that the existence of ghosts is not recognized in this world.

「Perhaps there has never been anyone who could see ghosts before?」

Seeing ghosts requires spiritual power. There is magic, but is there no spiritual power?

「Maybe I should just stick with saying I can see spirits」

『But what if there is magic that can detect lies?』

「Eh? Is there such magic?」

『I do not know. But in a world where gods are close, Demon Kings exist, spirits exist, and magic exists, it would not be strange for such magic to exist』

「That is true」