Me, a priest? How could that be!

Chapter 39 Tea Bag Goddess

Charlotte clicked her tongue in displeasure.

I really didn't want to say it, but I knew perfectly well that if I didn't, Aqua would definitely pester me relentlessly. After exchanging a glance with Kazuma Sato to confirm, I reluctantly began to speak.

"380W".

"3,380W...!? You cabbage thief!"

"Watch out or I'll slap you!"

He didn't steal anything; he just worked hard with Kazuma Sato to make a small fortune.

It's not just the two of them.

The other adventurers were in similar situations.

Huihui changed to a new magic wand and rubbed it against herself while riding on it, looking somewhat erotic; Darkness collected some cabbages that had bumped into her and fainted and sold them, which also gave her armor a brand new look.

Not to mention Kazuma Sato.

After the bounty was divided equally, it amounted to a full 160 million, which was already a considerable fortune. Considering that Charlotte also had to pay Wiz for magic items, he was the richest among them.

So why not go find him?

"Mr. Charlotte—!" Aqua's voice suddenly became shrill, and she said in an affected tone, "I thought so before, how should I put it, anyway, you're such a nice person!"

"roll."

Charlotte had dead fish eyes.

She scoffed at the silly, coquettish goddess.

To him, the two twists and turns were no different from a catfish shaking off its roe, and he had absolutely no interest in them.

"Charlotte!! Don't say that. Aren't you my follower? It wouldn't hurt to offer me a little something, would it?! Actually, I expect to make a lot of money, but I still owe nearly 10 here. This bounty alone won't be enough to pay it off!"

She suddenly pressed herself against him.

Charlotte's body stiffened, the soft touch instantly clouding his mind until he silently repeated "This is Aqua! This is Aqua!" several times before calming down. Pretending to be a Sigma man, he pushed Aqua, who was clinging to him, away.

"Who cares about you! Didn't we agree that joining the church wouldn't let you do whatever you want? Don't be ridiculous!"

And she's still considered a goddess?

They worship such a dubious goddess.

The Aksis followers are truly blessed.

"Besides, this money is going to be very useful." Charlotte sighed and said, "Those gauntlets were a bit expensive; at least half of the bounty will be spent on them. Also, I don't feel secure with just a pair of gauntlets; I'll need to buy other magical items as well."

There are some other issues as well.

For example, Charlotte still lives in the stables and wants to move out.

There may be some misunderstanding, so I would like to emphasize here that the Church of Eris does not provide accommodation, or rather, it only provides accommodation for bishops and other priests who are needed to maintain the church's operations.

Although they were both priests, Charlotte, who had just joined the church and had not yet made any contributions, was the lowest-ranking altar priest.

However, there was nothing to complain about.

The principle that you have to give something to gain something has always been the basic tenet of the world. Just as the old man said, Charlotte went there every day like an emotionless waiter working in a tavern, so there was no sincerity or contribution involved.

And it's probably just their nature.

He wants to buy a house.

Generally speaking, adventurers don't buy houses because they don't seek stability and are constantly on the move.

Of course, very few adventurers succeed, and most people don't have much money, barely enough to make ends meet, which is also one of the reasons.

Seeing that Charlotte really didn't have any extra funds, Aqua turned around and pestered Sato Kazuma again.

But Kazuma Sato was equally adamant, stating that if she had said she would each keep her own bounty, then she would have to bear the consequences herself. This cold refusal made the foolish goddess burst into tears.

"Speaking of which, since we don't have any money, let's just do some missions. Everyone has money these days and doesn't want to go out, so aren't there missions for everyone to choose from?"

Charlotte spoke up.

The suggestion was immediately met with enthusiastic approval from Huihui and Darkness.

"Let's hurry up and do a raid quest, and pick one with a ton of mobs! I want to test the power of our new magic wand!"

"I want to test the new armor's defensive capabilities! I need to find a monster that's incredibly strong, whose attacks are both heavy and satisfying!"

"No, let's find a task that can earn money. I still owe the guild 10!"

The three women were shouting.

Even if things can't be fully integrated, there should be a limit.

They rushed to the mission board and began selecting suitable missions, eventually choosing one that was particularly suitable for Aqua and focused on her.

—Purify the lake.

The lake, one of the water sources for the town of Axel, has become inhabited by ferocious alligators due to deteriorating air and water quality. A commission has been made to purify the water, with a reward of 30 Eris.

This task is closely related to Huihui.

Because she frequently went up the mountain to unleash explosive magic, causing landslides, the lake's water quality deteriorated, and monsters took over the area.

Kazuma Sato moved closer to him and said, "Charlotte, why don't you come along too?"

Why?

"Because only if you're with her can Aqua stay out of trouble. I'm worried she'll cause trouble again."

"What does it have to do with me? I don't care—"

"The compensation will be split equally."

"Go! How can I not go? It's not that I like money, I'm just worried that something might happen to you, so I'm helping you."

Charlotte readily agreed.

Only after leaving the city with them did he belatedly realize that something was wrong.

Given Aqua's stingy nature, how could she possibly be willing to share her rewards equally with others when she's the main player? Besides, if five people split 300,000 Eris, each person would only get a few coins.

That doesn't make sense.

"Hey Kazuma, what exactly do you want from me joining your team? I have a feeling you're up to no good."

"...What do you take me for? It's just that Aqua said it would take half a day to purify the water, and there are monsters in the lake. Megumin and Darkness are unreliable, so I felt uneasy and that's why I brought you in. If you don't want to, I'll go find someone else."

"No way! Who wouldn't want free money?"

Kazuma Sato plans to borrow a steel cage from the guild, have Aqua sit inside it, and then throw the entire cage into the lake. This way, Aqua can purify herself by touching the water, and the steel cage can also protect her from monster attacks.

Charlotte and her friends only needed to throw the iron cage into the lake at the beginning and retrieve it afterward, which was obviously an easy job.

Accept the task and borrow the iron cage.

The group set off immediately.

A little further from the town, there is a large lake next to a mountain, from which water flows continuously... Just as the order form says, the lake water looks a bit murky and there is some siltation.

Upon reaching their destination, the group immediately threw the iron cage and Aqua, who was sitting inside it, into the water.

She looks like an extracted tea bag.

About two hours later, Aqua was calmly soaking in the lake, leisurely without any sense of danger.

Darkness and Megumin were very disappointed.

"Even the brutal alligator didn't come."

"If only it could end peacefully like this."

It looks like a declaration of war.

Then, as if triggered by this, a slight ripple began to appear somewhere in the lake.

"B-Everyone! It looks like something's coming! It looks like a lot of things are coming!!"

Aqua trembled.

At this moment, hordes of monsters emerged from the water and swam toward Aqua's location. In terms of size, they were roughly equivalent to the average size of a crocodile on Earth.

However, it is a monster after all, and it is somewhat different from crocodiles on Earth.

The skin color is darker and more ferocious.

They opened their gaping maws and began to gnaw at Aqua... The iron cage creaked and groaned, and the stupid goddess inside screamed in agony.

"Help...help! There was a 'bang' sound! The cage just made a sound it shouldn't have made! Noooooo—"

Aqua kept crying and screaming.

The ferocious alligators surrounding her didn't even glance in their direction.

Charlotte chuckled through her nose.

"Having never cultivated any good deeds in my life, I always sneer at people without flinching. Suddenly, I straighten my back and display myself in the iron cage. Oh no, the lake crocodiles are attacking! Aqua, you have nowhere to hide!"