Brain bloom

Volume 1 #182 - Why haven't I met him yet?

"Don't miss out—this year's... no! The fattest and most succulent beef in nearly a decade! Anyone interested is welcome to come and see!"

"Selling lambs, wool, all kinds of mutton... Hey you, bearded little song over there, don't stare at my sheep's butt if you're not buying."

"Would you like to buy some vegetables?"

"Anyone want eggs? Ten for three silver coins!"

Mori walked through the cacophony of shouts and the diverse crowd around him. There were vegetable vendors checking market prices, as well as some experienced young girls, who were mostly maids procuring ingredients for nobles.

Housewives, business people, travelers, and so on.

Sen walked slowly among these people, his eyes filled with colorful images of fruits and vegetables.

"...Where is he?" Mori muttered anxiously.

Yet, amidst this chaotic environment, I find myself searching for those who should be the most eye-catching.

She failed to intercept the Holy Coffin Kingdom's expeditionary force; instead, she actually ended up at the market...

This is not surprising, as there are indeed such markets near Silvermoon City, and it's a necessary route from the winery to Silvermoon City. Previously, this was the site of a watermelon auction; although the hype is gone, it was still quite lively.

This is during the peak trading period of the day, as people prepare dinner.

"...Did I miss it? No, no, no, this is the right road, there's no other way... Maybe we haven't even set off yet, I should ask around."

Mori tried to convince herself that if she didn't, a powerful unease would overwhelm her, forcing her to flee home. Her intuition told her that running back would be a mistake.

In order to obtain accurate information, Mori couldn't help but walk up to a stall.

She took out a few silver coins she had picked up from her home and handed them to the burly vegetable farmer, pretending that she was picking up garlic and casually asking a question.

"The people from the Holy Coffin Kingdom are really handsome. I heard that a very luxurious team is coming. I wonder if they have passed through here yet."

"No, that's not true." The vegetable farmer looked annoyed. "The Holy Coffin Kingdom isn't any better. Even if you pray to the coffin bearers every day, you can only cultivate so little land. I don't know what those people are doing clinging to a useless god."

"It's not working, hmm..."

"Isn't that right? They say they'll give us wealth and stuff, but the gold coins never actually end up in our pockets. Look at other gods, take the sea god for example. Every twelve years, the surrounding city-states offer him the youngest daughter of a nobleman, and it always works. Every year, maritime trade goes smoothly..."

Mori had asked what she wanted to know and had no interest in the idle chatter. She had intended to simply take the garlic and leave.

But then, feeling that she was now in the state of a true god, she should play her part well—so she left a gold coin with a holy letter on it there. Although the farmer knew nothing of this, she had in fact proven that she was not a useless god.

Even for something as small as this, Mori felt a sense of pride, as if he had accomplished a miracle.

Next, let's continue to see the believers.

"Fu Fu".

"Hmm?" The salt sprite woke up from her inner pocket.

Sen Shi remained confident: "Go and scout the city from the air. There should be a very conspicuous team from the Holy Coffin Kingdom heading in my direction."

……

Dandelion didn't understand what "proving faith" meant, but she knew that these people seemed to be able to reason with her.

Although they are all enemies of the Kingdom of Flowers, now is not the time to fight a losing battle.

She stood up, straightened her back, and asked, "Although I don't understand what you're talking about, don't forget, this is the private territory of us Four Seasons People, and you have trespassed."

B's sense of pride made her feel offended, and she was about to reply, or at least offer a verbal apology—

However, she saw something shrouded in black mist forcefully insert itself between her and the dandelion, blocking her way. There was an evil and murky feeling about it—it was a demon! When did it appear?

She had a bad feeling and almost raised the divinely bestowed sword to cut down the island along with it.

The reason B didn't slay it was because the demon's strength felt somewhat familiar.

"Are you from the realm of demons... the one who chaired the international conference a few days ago?" she tried to replace her attack with a question.

"Yes."

May the disguised, harsh voice provide an answer.

Around the black mist surrounding her, everything that was touched lost its vitality and turned to dust. This was the curse she carried, sometimes suppressed within her body, and sometimes used as a smokescreen like this.

She knew very well that anyone would be frightened by this curse, and she hoped it could help Princess Dandelion.

Therefore, she continued to feign an authoritative tone.

"What are you here for? The guardian of the Chaos Blade of the Holy Coffin Kingdom?"

Knowing his opponent's strength, B sheathed his sword.

Fearing that the conflict might affect the identification of the coffin bearers, they decided to show some weakness.

"Although all the elite forces of the Holy Coffin Kingdom are gathered here under my command, they have no intention of clashing with you. Isn't that a good thing for you? Don't be impatient, devil. I'm here to ask questions. I want to talk to the Seasons One who shot the Rain Wizard."

"You mean Morishi? What happened to her?" Dandelion reacted immediately, breaking out in a cold sweat for Morishi.

"Senji?"

"Yes, this is the name of the Four Seasons One who killed the Rain Wizard in one blow."

"...I've heard that the names of the Four Seasons are all based on flowers or plants. So, what flower is Mori-toki?"

B started to have ulterior motives, wanting to know more. If he really was the one delivering the coffin, then he could go back and turn this unheard-of plant into a national symbol.

The dandelion replied boastfully, "It's another name for strawberry."

"...Strawberry?"

"Yes, it's the kind of sweet fruit that often appears on pastries."

B's expression twisted instantly. This fruit, which should be a national symbol, is widely loved by women and children... If this Strawberry All-Season is indeed a true god, then how many times have they... blasphemed?

Is that why it came to be known to the world?

“Princess Dandelion, when you were serving her, did you hear her mention anything... such as ‘It’s not good that people have eaten too many strawberries’?”

"...I serve Mori? Why?" Dandelion felt baffled.

Her demeanor was strange, as if she knew nothing about it. B was equally puzzled, a nervousness creeping into her voice, and she tried to speak to confirm—

"No, isn't that right? Even though you are a princess, the other party is a true god. It's not shameful for you to serve her."

Dandelion was beaming with excitement, her heart pounding: "A true god? Really! Oh, there's hope for restoring the kingdom... Hmph, that silly strawberry, why did she keep this from me all this time..."

"She claims to be a coffin bearer and has even performed miracles before the paladins of our country—don't you know that?"

Could you please say it again?

Volume 1, Chapter 183: Leak...

Clearly, Dandelion was acting strangely. The moment she heard the name "Coffin Bearer," her attitude became extremely odd, exceeding anything B had anticipated. She didn't think this was normal…

"Didn't you know she called herself a coffin carrier?" she tried to ask again.

"The coffin bearers? Hmph, they brought a whole bunch of people all this way just to play this joke on me?"

"This is no joke, Princess Dandelion, otherwise you would already be beheaded. Our sacred relic was lost, yet it immediately appeared in your hands—this is a definite problem..."

Despite her fear of the unfathomable devil, she still brandished her weapon.

Dandelion adopted a vicious tone.

"If the true god you worship truly exists in this world, then he must be our mortal enemy! Don't insult us Four Seasons, and don't forget the choice the Holy Coffin Kingdom made back then. In the War of the Flowers, you were all a bunch of villains!"

As expected, the other party consulted the almanac. B's face stiffened: "The events of that time are recorded very clearly in our country's records. In fact... the state of our country at that time—"

Dandelion waved her hand to interrupt, not wanting to listen to her nonsense. This clichéd talk disgusted her even more than the scum at political conferences who raised their glasses and talked about how to divide the world.

Unbeknownst to her, her hatred for the coffin bearers and the blood feud of war reignited, and she simply pulled out her staff.

This was personally improved by Mori, so that it could reassure her and give her inexhaustible courage.

Mori couldn't possibly be that kind of monster, claiming to be a coffin carrier? It's definitely a scam, either deliberately impersonating someone to humiliate them, or just trying to create chaos. Dandelion didn't know what to do, but in her moment of realization, she blurted out something that would worsen the situation.

"Sen is the great hero we summoned! Not your so-called true god. Go back to your god's statue and drool over it! Don't drip your saliva on my land."

B had reached her limit.

She had forcibly suppressed the attack to question him, not because she was insulted.

The matter is already quite clear.

One is a princess who still harbors resentment towards the Holy Coffin Kingdom. The other is a madman who seems to thrive on chaos, committing acts like "disguising himself as a coffin bearer" and "killing the Rain Wizard."

And there's also a devil with a powerful background! No matter how you look at it, it's the devil backing them up, preparing to stir up some huge waves.

"—You melon cutter! Come here! Look at all the questions you've made me ask!" B immediately reprimanded, but out of consideration for their colleagueship, he didn't speak too harshly. "Are you all under some kind of group illusion? I think it's time for your ramblings to stop, isn't it?"

"Do not."

He walked slowly towards us, his head bowed.

But his inner piety kept his voice low; he did not want to make a fuss in God's dwelling place.

“When you see it with your own eyes, you will know that it is our true God.”

"But the princess doesn't admit it, and that's not the truth."

"Princess Dandelion, when you summoned the true god, did she say which era she came from?" The melon-slicer's thinking was much clearer, because this was to vindicate the true god.

“...the heyday of the Poppy Queen,” Dandelion answered instinctively.

"The Poppy Queen? I've read history books and know that was 120 years ago. In comparison, our country's history is tragically short. Yet, coincidentally, at that time, the first Pope had just received divine blessings and enlightenment. Is that a coincidence?"

The three fell silent, but the one who cut the melon felt proud, believing that the true god would surely praise his powerful rebuttal.

I find it all rather baffling. What are these people even talking about... are we still going to fight or not?

Is she just here to chat? She might as well go fishing then.

Wait—the coffin carrier? That sounds familiar… Curious, she quietly pulled out her book from the black mist; it contained a lot of common knowledge about the human world.

The ancient Demon King clearly wrote that the most prosperous religions were built around the coffin bearers...

Her father even kindly added a note—

"Furthermore, I don't know where this 'coffin bearer' came from. I've searched the list of false gods in the divine realm and the Eden Bank, the abode of the true gods, and I haven't found such a person anywhere..."