WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

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Chapter 135: The Moment of Choice

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When Rombel swung his axe with force, Elbridge recoiled in alarm.

"Rombel, what are you doing...?!"

Sonia and Marcus said nothing to Rombel. They merely stood half-crouched, ready to run if things went wrong.

The elves were even more flustered than Elbridge's group.

They had fled after seeing Starwave, then cautiously returned once things seemed to have settled down. They, too, shouted at Rombel.

"What do you think you're doing?!"

The elves didn't know why the sacred tree existed, but they had spent their lives believing it had to be protected. Jin and Bella had carved that belief into the elves' minds over thousands of years.

Just as the elves were about to erupt in anger, Rombel roared.

"Don't you know the Goddess of Thornbush gave her permission?!"

The elves hesitated.

The oracle from earlier had been a public oracle, so they had heard it clearly.

"Even so..."

One young elf bravely tried to object.

Rombel snorted and cut them off.

"Hmph! Even so? That sounds like something only someone defying the Goddess of Thornbush would say. Go on, spit it out."

"..."

Objecting now would mean resisting the goddess's will, an irreverent act.

The problem was that allowing the sacred tree to be cut down felt irreverent as well.

There was no good choice. The elves looked up at the sky, hoping the Goddess of Thornbush would settle the matter for them.

- ...

Yet the Goddess of Thornbush couldn't easily issue another oracle.

It wasn't because she truly wanted Rombel to cut down the sacred tree. The problem was her standing.

Believers wanted the god they served to be omnipotent and perfect. That was especially true when their relationship was built on pure faith rather than a transaction.

The Goddess of Thornbush couldn't simply take back what she had said moments ago. Reversing her decision so easily would damage her authority.

While she struggled with the impossible situation, Rombel shouted confidently.

"See? The Goddess of Thornbush isn't saying anything either. Right?"

As he spoke, Rombel swung his axe again. Thud.

When the blade sank almost halfway into the base of the tree, a horrified elf cried out.

"At least explain why you're trying to cut down the sacred tree!"

"Do you know that Jin and Bella are the goddess's parents?"

A truth almost every elf had been unaware of came spilling out.

The Goddess of Thornbush cried out in alarm.

- Wait...!

But the irreverent dwarf didn't stop.

"Jin and Bella achieved great deeds and earned a chance to ascend to heaven. But they pleaded with the Chief God and had their daughter undergo Ascension instead."

"...!"

It was a brief summary of a secret from three thousand years ago.

The elves could only gasp, unable to say anything.

"That's why Jin and Bella couldn't ascend, and why the Goddess of Thornbush did. This sacred tree is a kind of wedge. If we pull out the wedge, everything should return to its natural course. Those who can't remain in heaven will return to the earth, and those meant to rise to heaven will ascend."

Rombel's voice sounded full of certainty.

Still, it was only Rombel's hypothesis.

Even so, Rombel didn't hesitate.

Elbridge asked Rombel with his eyes and the shape of his mouth.

'Rombel. What if it doesn't go the way you planned?'

'I'll apologize.'

'...'

Like Marcus and Sonia, Elbridge took a half-crouched stance in preparation for the worst.

The young elf from before shouted.

"So in the end, you're saying you'll drag the Goddess of Thornbush down from heaven!"

Rombel answered as though nothing were wrong with that.

"Two people can ascend in exchange."

There was one rule about bullshit: definite bullshit was harder to refute than bullshit that was only vaguely wrong. Rombel's words were exactly that.

The young elf stammered.

"No, is the number really what matters...?"

"Of course it matters. What could be clearer than numbers? There'll be one more elf god!"

Rombel made an exaggerated gesture as though he had just realized something, then berated the young elf.

"Don't tell me you don't want Jin and Bella to ascend? Did you want both Sentinels to die like this? You wicked bastard..."

As though he had found a weakness to exploit, Rombel began pressing the young elf.

While the elves struggled with the unexpected situation, Elbridge quietly offered a prayer.

"Goddess of the Rusted Shield. Is Rombel right?"

The Goddess of the Rusted Shield wasn't in a position to answer calmly.

- Elbridge. Try to calm Rombel down for a moment. I'll secure the secretary position first...!

But it was already too late.

With a loud crack, the pure white sacred tree fell.

Elbridge and everyone else present felt something invisible being released. Suppressed divinity, perhaps. Or a warped divine presence.

That something left the sacred tree and seeped into the unconscious Jin and Bella.

Their wounds healed rapidly.

Bones returned to their proper places, and new flesh grew over them. It was far faster than even the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss could heal wounds. Even their clothes, which had been reduced to rags, returned to normal.

Only then did Jin and Bella regain consciousness and mutter.

"What in the world...?"

Then two brilliantly shining stairways descended from the high sky and reached the ground before Jin and Bella.

Rombel shouted in excitement.

"See? I told you I was right!"

Elbridge looked at Rombel.

Intense curiosity and a thirst for knowledge shone in the dwarf's eyes.

Only then did Elbridge understand why Rombel had done this.

Rombel's dream was Ascension.

He simply wanted to watch and observe the process of becoming a god firsthand, gathering as much information as possible.

Even if his prediction was wrong and everything went badly, it wouldn't be Rombel who suffered. It would be the Goddess of Thornbush and the elves.

As long as Rombel could look away from his conscience, this was an opportunity with no reason to hesitate. At best, Rombel's conscience barely reached average.

"Hmm..."

Jin and Bella still hesitated, unable to climb the stairs.

What if the Goddess of Thornbush could remain in heaven if they didn't ascend? That thought held them back.

A moment later, a glow gathered around the fallen sacred tree. Within the light appeared a silver-haired female elf.

Rita, the elf who had been the Goddess of Thornbush.

The fact that the Goddess of Thornbush had already descended to the earth meant her fate had little to do with whether the two Sentinels ascended.

If anything, they needed to ascend so they could look after their daughter.

After giving Rita complicated smiles, Jin and Bella stepped onto the long stairway leading to heaven. Holding tightly to the railings along the edges, the two Sentinels walked slowly without rushing.

Their steps were slow and calm, but they rose to heaven quite quickly.

Once Jin and Bella stepped onto the stairs, the stairs began moving on their own and carried them toward heaven.

Elbridge muttered.

"Moving stairs..."

The Goddess of the Rusted Shield issued an oracle.

- That's called an escalator, Elbridge.

"That's an unfamiliar name."

- It is a technology the Chief God introduced after observing another dimension. There are restrictions requiring one to hold tightly to the railing and not run.

At last, Jin and Bella reached heaven and disappeared beyond the clouds.

Then silence fell.

Elbridge's group and the elves watched the sky without breathing.

What was happening in heaven now?

The Goddess of the Rusted Shield sounded a little proud as she deliberately issued a public oracle for everyone present to hear.

- Elbridge. Your goddess holds four votes, so I shall return after voting.

That was right.

As they had heard when Niserath's failure to become a god in heaven was explained, after being chosen by the Chief God, the next step was a vote by the existing gods.

The elves held their breath and waited for the result.

Amid the tension, Rombel whispered with certainty.

"If they pass, it'll be an overwhelming vote in favor."

"Why?"

"Imagine you're a god. If you're uncertain, some opposing votes might come out. But if it looks like it'll pass without trouble, the right answer is to vote in favor. You'll have to see each other face-to-face from now on. It'd be awkward if you cast an opposing vote for no reason."

A moment later, a dignified voice echoed from heaven.

- First agenda item. Of three hundred seats present, two hundred ninety-three votes in favor and seven abstentions. The Ascension of the elf Bella is hereby approved.

Rombel's prediction was exactly right.

Elbridge's group and the elves of Thornbush Forest trembled.

It was the first time any of them had witnessed the moment of Ascension.

- Second agenda item. Of three hundred seats present, two hundred ninety-three votes in favor and seven abstentions. The Ascension of the elf Jin is hereby approved.

Quiet cheers broke out.

The Goddess of Thornbush had descended from heaven, but with two elves ascending, the position of the elves' racial god would not be left vacant.

That same dignified voice echoed again.

- Given the unusual circumstances and the swift completion of the vote, the results have been immediately delivered to the site. The Ascension of the two gods will be announced to each order at midnight tonight. That concludes this matter.

The elves rejoiced at the two Sentinels' Ascension, but they were also confused.

Until now, elves had never needed to worry about choosing an object of faith. The Goddess of Thornbush had been the only elf in heaven.

As had once been the case for dwarves, nearly every elf, aside from a very small number, followed the Goddess of Thornbush.

But now the elves had two choices: Jin and Bella.

Whom should they serve?

The elves' gazes turned toward where the sacred tree had stood.

An elf with beautiful features and shining silver hair. An elf who had once been the Goddess of Thornbush.

Rita stood there.

Though she had descended from heaven, Rita had been a god in heaven until moments ago.

Like fragrance lingering where a flower had fallen, Rita was still, in some way, a guide to the elves.

No one knew what divine names Jin and Bella would receive. But one thing was certain.

Whichever god Rita chose would be regarded as the elves' racial god, inheriting the position Rita had built as the Goddess of Thornbush.

The elves remained silent, demanding a decision from Rita with their eyes.

"..."

Rita couldn't easily speak.

Who could make a decision in a situation like this?

During the brief silence, a familiar voice came from the air.

- Rita. The time to decide has come.

It was a public oracle from Bella, a Sentinel.

Bella's voice was soft and faint, though. She didn't yet have a single believer.

The divine power a god could wield was determined by the number of believers they had.

Gods with many believers could comfortably use a great deal of divine power.

That didn't mean gods without believers couldn't use divine power at all. Even a god with no believers could use a tiny amount of divine power. It could be called the mercy of the Chief God.

As had been revealed through oracles in the past, gods referred to divine power used in that way as a speed limit.

It had been only a one-line public oracle, but Bella's divine power was already exhausted.

Fortunately, Jin could issue one more oracle in Bella's place.

Jin forced a cruel choice on Rita.

- Between Mom and Dad, who do you like more?

Footnotes:

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