Governor’s Mansion, Reception Room. Two cups of carefully brewed fragrant tea sat on the table.
Celes had just come from having tea, so she didn’t touch the cups on the table and directly stated her purpose—inquiring about the Sea Demon Priest.
“Our foundation for cooperating with the Sirens is non-interference in their religious affairs, so I’m sorry, but I can’t help with this matter.”
So that’s how it was. When they arrived, they said they’d give their full support, but when it came to specifics, it was just “sorry.”
Celes let out a quiet sigh and got up to take her leave.
Over at the Market, the two girls who had pretended to go shopping returned.
To be honest, even Ella herself felt the reason for going to the mountains to seek help from the Demon Army was a bit far-fetched.
But what could she do?
Vina was just into that sort of thing.
“You really have to succeed.”
“…I’ll do my best. For now, let’s go back and find the others.”
So, they returned to the Market, only to find the beautiful, holy, golden-haired Saintess packing up the Preaching Platform in a huff.
“Miss Leah, things didn’t go well for you?”
“‘Didn’t go well’ is an understatement—I’m about to explode from frustration!”
To fully demonstrate the superiority of faith in the Goddess of Light, Leah not only showed her sincerity, she also worked especially hard.
After setting up the platform, the first thing she did was buy a few dead fish from the Fish Stall and display them on the platform.
Once a crowd gathered, she invoked a Blessing, and the entire platform was instantly spotless, without the slightest fishy smell.
Ella quietly wiped a bead of sweat from her forehead.
“I think the people here are used to living like this. The fishy smell is just part of daily life—they probably don’t even notice the difference.”
This little life hack didn’t mean much to the locals.
They simply didn’t care.
Vina was also puzzled.
“Why not perform something even more impressive?”
“I’d love to,” Leah grumbled, “but there aren’t any injured people around. I can’t just grab someone, cut them, and then heal them in front of everyone, can I?”
You could tell she wanted to do just that, but held herself back for the sake of her image as the Saintess.
Holding back was the right call. If you can’t endure the small things, you’ll mess up the bigger picture.
Just like how the Demon Lord has endured ever since the transformation, and that’s why things are going so well now.
But Miss Saintess’s attempt at preaching really did end in failure.
“I really don’t get how the Sirens’ deity manages to win people over.”
Leah looked around, both unconvinced and confused.
“I’ve heard that quite a few local humans believe in it, too.”
We have such a wonderful Goddess of Light among the Human Race, but they ignore her and go worship some strange, foreign thing.
She really wanted to bop them on the head with her staff.
Ella gently comforted her, “Maybe it’s just for business. On the surface, they follow along—it’s just a social thing.”
“Hmph.”
Leah accepted the pink-haired thunder girl’s explanation, though she still looked a bit haughty.
Their separate actions came to a temporary end as dusk fell.
They returned to the Inn and met up with Celes and Zero.
That’s right, Zero had come back too. She didn’t look especially happy, but not particularly upset either.
“I’ve hit a dead end with my lead,” Celes was the first to speak.
“Governor Kelu isn’t willing to help.”
“We didn’t find much new, either,” Vina tilted her head, “but there’s a shopkeeper willing to take us to a local scenic spot. We might find more there, so Ella and I will need to take the whole day off tomorrow.”
Getting things done while sharing results—that’s the efficiency of a little witch.
Celes didn’t think much of it and nodded in agreement.
“Miss Leah, how did your preaching go?”
“Barely any effect. The locals don’t buy it—not just the Sirens, but the humans too.”
After going around, no one had made any real progress.
Finally, everyone looked at Zero, though her expression already said it all.
“I went back to that little alley behind the Workshop, but I didn’t find any trace.”
“At least you made it back safely,” Celes could only offer this comfort.
She was comforting Zero, but also herself, and the rest of the team.
Ella looked at the table’s gloomy atmosphere and suddenly remembered her original role in this team—a gentle, caring girl who cheers everyone up.
“It’s okay! Failure is the mother of success. Today we ruled out a lot of wrong answers, so we’re that much closer to success~”
She made a little gesture and her voice was super cute.
If she wasn’t worried about jinxing things, she would’ve added a cheerful “mipaa!” at the end.
The mood really did improve. Everyone went back to their rooms to sleep, no one wandered around at night, and they all slept soundly until morning.
Zzzz
The next day, there were five days left until the Sirens’ Ritual.
That morning, Ella yawned as she stepped out the door, and saw Celes standing outside, looking full of energy.
“I thought it over carefully,” the Sword Saint girl said.
“Besides Governor Kelu, there’s one more person—or rather, one group—most likely to have contact with them: the Beachcomber Fishermen.”
Of course, because of the Sirens at the Fish Market, the local fishermen no longer caught fish or shrimp.
Now, their only job was to comb the beach for shellfish washed up by the tide, pick out the original Pearl Oysters, and sell them to the Workshop.
“They’ve probably had contact—no, there must be people who’ve come into contact with the Sea Demon Priest.”
Celes said excitedly, “I’ll bring back good news!”
Ella gave a sweet smile.
“You definitely will! I believe in you!”
Whether she actually believed or not didn’t matter—a good girl had to say that, anyway.
After saying this, Celes left. But soon after, Zero came over, dressed today in a tight-fitting outfit, her long black hair tied in a single ponytail.
“I’ve figured it out. There was something I missed yesterday. I’m going back today—this time I’ll find something… Thank you!”
Zero finished speaking and left, moving with a crisp and agile air that matched her outfit perfectly.
Ella didn’t even have time to say, “I believe in you.”
After she left, less than half a minute passed before a fragrant breeze full of sunshine wafted over.
“I’ve made up my mind. Just because I failed yesterday doesn’t mean I’ll fail today. As long as I get a chance to show the power of Light, someone will surely be drawn into the embrace of Light.”
With that, the Saintess looked at Ella with her beautiful eyes, as if waiting for a response.
“Mm! I believe in you! You’re sure to succeed!”
“And?”
Ella blinked.
“And what?”
“Nothing. It’s just that I might need a helper. Would you like to help me spread the voice of Light?”
“But I have to go with Vina to gather information today. We agreed yesterday.”
“Hmph!”
Leah huffed and stormed off.
Ella stood there in a daze for a while, not quite understanding why everyone had to come to her before heading out.
Am I the NPC that starts everyone’s actions?
Do they need to click me before setting out?
“Ah, everyone’s so motivated~” the little witch’s voice rang out beside her.
“It’s all thanks to your speech last night~”
Eh, was it really me?
“Don’t space out. It’s our turn to go.”
Vina grabbed the girl’s hand.
“You really have to give it your all.”
Ella thought to herself, do you even need to say that? Of course I’ll give it my all—this is my own squad, after all.
They did make contact with someone, but it wasn’t a merchant—it was the Eastern Mountain Expedition Team.
That counts as a local scenic spot, too.