Having reached level 100, I was able to meet the Creation God, Deuro.
Deuro seems to still be trapped in the world of darkness, and I couldn’t see his face. However, thanks to the restoration of the statue in the temple, I could imprint Deuro’s face in my heart.
“So, what happened?”
After the statue of Deuro was restored, the priests and villagers caused an uproar, and I found myself surrounded by the village’s important figures, including my father.
I thought about how to explain things, and decided to tell them somewhat honestly. I also decided to show my status, though I would avoid showing it too directly.
“Father, I was guided by Deuro and prayed at the temple.”
“Deuro? Is that the name of the god?”
The priest nodded vigorously.
The pedestal clearly read “Deuro.” However, for some reason, the words “Creation God” were missing. That was fine, though. After all, I had planned to keep the title of “Creation God” hidden.
“I didn’t witness it myself, but the villagers saw the statue of Deuro glowing. Once the light faded, the face and name were restored,” the priest said excitedly.
“Did you see it, Thomas?”
“I didn’t see it glow. When I finished praying and opened my eyes, it had already been restored.”
“I see. So you said you were guided? What do you mean by that?”
[Status Information]
Name: Thomas Roxfall
Race: Human
Gender: Male
Age: 7
Health: Healthy
Title: Apostle of Deuro
Rank: S
Affinity: None
Blessing: Supreme Craftsman
Level: 100
Skills: Crafting Knowledge (Lv. 3), Quality Improvement (Lv. 2), Dexterity (Lv. 2)
Life: 200 (600)
Stamina: 280 (840)
Mana: 300 (900)
My rank was originally G, but G is not the G below F. As mentioned before, the lower limit of ranks is F, but the upper limit isn’t just S as Tyrakius said. Above S are SS, SSS, H (Hero), L (Legend), and G (God).
Since I am an apostle of Deuro, I couldn’t have a low rank, but I also couldn’t go above SS. So I decided to settle on Rank S.
As for blessings and skills, I focused on crafting-related ones, so that people would think it makes sense that I’m skilled at brewing alcohol.
“Wh-what… this is incredible!”
“Th-this is!?”
My father seemed surprised, but he remained calm. In contrast, the priest let out a shriek.
“My lord, the title ‘Apostle of Deuro’ is a clear proof of being a divine envoy.”
The priest was making a fuss. His name was Oturso Daigo, a 62-year-old old man with white hair who was usually very quiet, so this was a side of him I hadn’t seen before.
“Priest, what should we do now?”
“We must report this to the kingdom and the headquarters. After that, we will probably have to bring Thomas to the headquarters.”
So, the report to the kingdom doesn’t mean immediate action? It seems that the temple has the initiative when it comes to handling apostles.
But I wasn’t planning to go to the headquarters. I had things to do here. I didn’t have time to play around at the headquarters.
Besides, I had no interest in the traitors who had once been Deuro’s subordinates and now worshipped the great gods.
“Excuse me.”
“Yes, what is it?”
“I won’t be able to leave the Ashwood territory for the time being.”
“What do you mean?”
“I have a mission to brew alcohol. Deuro is the god of creation, and He guided me to brew alcohol. Spreading that alcohol is the mission Deuro gave me. Therefore, I cannot leave Ashwood for a long time.”
The priest looked troubled, but he promised to add that reason to the report, understanding that it couldn’t be helped.
I planned to spread Deuro’s name and gather faith using the popular alcohol I had made. Whether being an apostle would help or hinder that goal was uncertain, but I believed it was my role to make it work in my favor.
“Thomas is God’s apostle… amazing! I always knew you would become someone great, but to think you’re an apostle of a god! Ah, Thomas!”
My mother hugged me. She smelled nice. I was happy that she was so pleased about me.
“Ah, ahh!”
“Oh, Zeke-chan is also saying that your big brother is amazing.”
Well, that’s a bit overboard, Mom.
“But this is troubling,” my father suddenly said with a troubled expression.
“I haven’t told anyone yet, but we’ve decided to sever ties with the Lightstar family.”
It seemed there had been issues with the Lightstar family for some time, but it had escalated to this point.
“After the new year, we were planning to visit Duke Bayerlein to give him our New Year’s greetings, and I had planned to bring Thomas along, but…”
According to my father, Duke Bayerlein was to become their new foster parent, and while my mother and Ziegwald would stay behind, I was supposed to accompany them to the visit. It was customary for a family to visit the foster parent together for the first time.
Since I had told the priest I couldn’t leave the territory for long, being away for about ten days for a round trip would be a difficult line to cross. If I went to the headquarters, it would take over a month. Though that seemed like a short time, it would still require me to leave for two brewing cycles, during which I wouldn’t be able to tend to the alcohol. If Jin and Ram could steadily make premium liquor, then ten days wouldn’t be a problem.
“I’m sorry.”
It would be troublesome if the temple complained, so it was probably best for me to quietly focus on brewing alcohol in Ashwood.
“It can’t be helped. Thomas has a mission, and it can’t be ignored.”
Lying about it stung my conscience. But for now, I judged that this was the best decision. I’ll stick with the lie!
