I Became a 6★ Gacha Character-Chapter 552: Orc Must Die...? 2

Back in the day, when Han Se-ah was barely learning intermediate magic and I didn't even know what a holy sword was, I was leading her rookie party as a senior adventurer.

The Orc Chieftain, the boss monster of the 20th floor forest, was a clever monster capable of human speech. Of course, being just a 20th floor boss, the orcs he summoned were swept away by a single Heaven-Earth Storm from the old man Antenor, 5★ 'Truth Seeker'. But still, the chieftain had some brains.

Just like the Full Moon Wolf's subordinate wolves that rampaged through the city, he tried to exploit the Tower's gate to infiltrate the royally blessed Auvergne Forest with his minions to assassinate the human king.

Considering the level of the royal knights, there's no way the small fry summoned by a mere 20th floor boss could succeed, but still, he did manage to send troops outside the Tower.

"Those orcs survived and made it all the way to the Empire? How?!"

-Wait LOLOLOL we thought reinforcements were blocked because of the Four Heavenly Kings, but it's orcs? LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

-What is this, a religious drama produced on the spot? LMFAO

-A group of orcs who found enlightenment during their pilgrimage from the Kingdom to the Empire LOLOLOLOLOLOL

-I was wondering why you called us here so suddenly LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL

-But does it really matter if orcs convert? Seems like an overreaction

The orcs who had killed soldiers and tried to kidnap female knights were dealt with, and we left the remaining stragglers to the royal knights for cleanup. That was around the time our party met the Goddess and received our Tower conquest mission.

But now I was hearing that those orc stragglers had somehow crawled from the heart of the Kingdom, across the northern mountain range that humanity had given up on, all the way to the Empire. And they'd even shaken off the royal knights' pursuit.

...Does that make any sense?

It's like saying a North Korean defector evaded border patrols, walked through Mongolia and all the way to Russia. The massive mountain range separating the Kingdom and Empire is so treacherous that humans had given up even climbing it.

"So, why are the orcs a problem?"

"It's not our problem, but it's a problem for the Temple."

"Katie's right about that."

As I struggled with the conflict between my 'common sense' as a gamer and my 'common sense' as a high-rank adventurer, Katie started explaining the situation to Grace, who didn't understand at all.

Viewers mocked them with comments about a kid teaching an older woman and role reversals, but despite her childish appearance, Katie had received a high-level political education as the daughter of a ducal house. ...Which was why she ran away in the first place.

And so the explanations to Grace and Han Se-ah began.

"If orcs can convert to the Goddess's faith, and if their faith is genuine... then what about other orcs?"

"Oh, I see what you mean."

Manaashi, our acquaintance from the Tower, was a 'naga warrior' who converted to the Goddess. But that wasn't a problem because, sadly, Manaashi was the only 'naga' around.

Orcs, however, are as numerous as roaches or goblins. If you shouted "Monsters are coming!" to the people of this world, 60 out of 100 would imagine goblins, 39 would picture orcs. The remaining one would be someone who already feared ogres or wyverns in everyday life.

If these abundant orcs could be an intelligent race capable of converting to the Goddess's faith, wouldn't we have to classify them as 'natives' rather than 'monsters'? The reason orcs were classified as monsters was because they couldn't be civilized... but converting to the Goddess's faith suggested they could be.

"I get it now. Doctrine is... complicated."

"These are matters that need to be discussed by the Temple's theologians, not ordinary believers."

"In other words, it's serious enough that all the higher-ups need to gather and debate it?"

It's no wonder the Temple was getting headaches over potentially reclassifying a species from monster to native. But they couldn't just kill off followers who carved Goddess statues and prayed just because they were inconvenient.

So even the Temple knights heading to the Kingdom got temporarily tied up. Since the hero party wouldn't fall to wraiths without Temple knights anyway, the converted orcs were considered more important than the wraiths.

Though they called it a matter of priority, it was probably more about curiosity regarding sacred doctrine and the desire for theological debate. Honestly, who wouldn't want to see orcs proving their faith through the pilgrimage of crossing mountains and converting to the Goddess?

"Well, I suppose if we could just borrow the lich's head or some other sacred item, we could set up a barrier and sleep safely."

"Yes. If battles don't drag on, I alone can protect the tent. Though that would make extended exploration impossible."

"Should... should we go see them? We could get there immediately if we use the gate."

If Han Se-ah, corrupted by the internet and dopamine, couldn't resist, how could medieval people?

※

In the Empire's ambiguous rural domain—not quite the frontier but not a well-developed city either—there was no Magic Tower. That's exactly where we had gone to catch the witch last time, and naturally, without research material, no magicians gathered there.

But the orcs being escorted under Temple knight supervision were obviously headed to a major city. They might not have gone all the way to the Empire's capital, but they would have headed to the nearest large city. Over a hundred Temple knights couldn't take dozens of converted orcs to some rural domain.

So the orcs traveling north from the Kingdom clutching a Goddess statue, and the Temple knights gathering from the Empire to help the hero, converged on Erpheso, a major southern city of the Empire.

"Feels like we're visiting the Empire pretty often. You really do have to experience life to understand it."

"Pfft, what's that? You sound like a grandmother."

Erpheso was so prosperous it could be called a maximum city rather than just a major one, and that was naturally because of the Kingdom. While the east, west, and north were busy developing and fighting monster waves, the south was firmly protected by the Kingdom, maintaining steady exchange.

Han Se-ah couldn't stop smiling as we headed toward the clearly visible, massive white Temple in this luxurious city with wide-open avenues and tall buildings that made you wonder if this was really Sabaody Archipelago.

She was probably grinning at the combination of guaranteed high-view content featuring converting orcs plus the bonus tour of the Empire's southern metropolis.

"The Temple is... right there. Should we head straight over?"

"But is it okay to just show up without any notice?"

"Who cares? We're not trying to join their faith debates, just want to see the orcs' faces."

"Yes, even the Temple's highest officials wouldn't be so authoritarian about that. The Temple is open to all who believe in the Goddess, after all."

Coming out from the tall Magic Tower, the road was so well-paved with neatly polished stone that it seemed trucks could drive on it, not just carriages. Following that straight road, we could see the white Temple in the distance.

As we walked along the comfortable road, we noticed crowds of people heading toward the Temple. It seemed the rumors about the converted orcs had spread throughout the city.

"Hey, did you hear about that?"

"That's why I'm going."

"My goodness, weren't you supposed to be going to the bathroom?"

"At least I made up an excuse to get out. Weren't you heading to the storehouse?"

It made sense—in this major trading city known for commerce with the Kingdom, over a hundred Temple knights had arrived with dozens of orcs in tow. With merchants roaming everywhere and laborers numbered in the thousands who could make up dozens of tall tales for just one beer, this was only natural.

We joined the flow of laborers playing hooky and merchants with plenty of time and money, approaching the Temple. In front of its white walls, crowds of people had gathered.

While wealthy merchants could enter with the excuse of making donations, the laborers who had skipped work didn't dare to enter the Temple, causing the crowd to split. It wasn't that the Temple discriminated against people, but these medieval people, steeped in superstition, seemed to think entering the Temple on false pretenses (playing hooky) was inexcusable.

'Accidentally' seeing the Temple while passing by during work might allow them to deceive their conscience, but deliberately entering the Temple to gawk at orcs would make them undeniable liars.

"Let's go through."

"Don't push, I can't see either... Oh, you're actual visitors."

After pushing through the crowd, we entered to find a spacious, tranquil Temple vista. Beyond the pristine white walls that seemed to be maintained by magic without a speck of moss or dust, there was a beautifully maintained garden and a vast hall beyond it.

And at the entrance of the Temple, worthy of a southern metropolis with its small fountain, stood a large orc gazing in our direction.

"...Wow, he really does have a star rating. Is this similar to Manaashi?"

Standing at least 2m tall, but with a body too skinny to match the name 'orc.' Limbs as thin as old trees, sunken cheeks, and tusks that looked even larger because of his emaciated frame—these were his most striking features.

Over his skinny body, he wore rough plant-fiber cloth draped diagonally, looking more like a monk than a priest, and he smiled gently as he turned his head toward us. Simultaneously, Han Se-ah's system precisely identified him.

5★ 'The Enlightened One' Akutuhum

In other words, 'Buddha' Akutuhum lightly clasped his hands together and bowed politely in our direction.

"My, what a precious connection I have been granted. This too must be the Goddess's guidance."

It was a sight unfamiliar even to a top-rank adventurer with 12 years of fantasy life experience who had been through every imaginable situation.

Enjoy the chappy!