Chapter 457

Three Years Later, In a Corner of Vardmoi
Three years had passed since the suppression of the northern civil unrest.
In that time, I had done all sorts of things—like bringing the Kiblinki Saltas into my group, taking in Amira, and starting a school by happenstance.
It’s not quite the clothing shop I originally aimed for, but I’ve resigned myself to that—some things just can’t be helped.

As for my shop, Spider's Cotton Cloud, we now have branch stores in cities outside of Vardmoi.
I taught the graduates of the Vardmoi orphanage the techniques of magic tailoring until they became fully capable, and then, as their sponsor, I helped them open shops.
With additional support from the Trade Guild in managing the stores, it seems we’ve managed to keep them operating in the black.
They can’t match the low prices of my shop or operate on the same scale, but that can’t be helped.
Still, I’ve created an environment where children from the orphanage can find employment through these branches, so we’ve managed to increase job opportunities for them.

Also, The Spidnerling’s Nest has added two more branch stores in the city of Vardmoi.
These are also run by orphanage graduates and are receiving favorable reviews.
As a supporter, I’m truly glad to see that.

Now, as for running the schools...

"Ah, as expected, the green tea at Miss Lily’s home has a distinctly different flavor. We buy some green tea for our temple as well, but nothing with such a pleasant aroma."

"Thank you, Mr. Kouro. But... are you sure it’s okay? Today is Darkday, isn’t it? Don’t you have prayers at the Temple of the Eight Gods?"

"I’ve already completed the daily sermon. After that, it’s time for the participants to bring drinks and snacks and unwind. It wouldn’t be very pleasant to have a boring priest like me hanging around, would it?"

"... I see."

The one drinking tea at my shop was Mr. Kouro, the high priest of the Temple of the Eight Gods in Vardmoi.
He was a kindly old man with neatly groomed white hair and beard.
Over the past three years, he might have become the person I interacted with the most.
The schools I founded have an annex of the Temple of the Eight Gods, where the children are taught the temple's doctrines.
Though you’d think this would be a great opportunity for the temple to spread its teachings, they weren’t exactly eager about it.
According to them, the teachings of the gods should be sought out voluntarily, not forced upon people.
Even so, since the Marquis Vardmoi personally appointed them, they couldn’t outright refuse, and so Mr. Kouro was dispatched to Vardmoi to coordinate how much would be taught at the schools.
Basically, I, as the de facto school chairwoman, and Mr. Kouro, with his influence in the temple, were to discuss and determine how far the teachings would go.
… Is that really okay, Temple?

"Even so, Miss Lily, you really are generous. The children attending your sponsored schools receive lunch for free, after all."

"Well, you know, it’s hard to feel happy on an empty stomach. And while being full can make you sleepy and less focused on studying..."

"That’s true. Ideally, it should be the temple’s duty to provide for those in need, so it’s embarrassing we haven’t been doing that."

"Well, we each have our strengths. I can source plenty of ingredients through the network of my familiars."

Really, the network of the Kiblinki Saltas had grown incredibly strong over the past three years.
I’m not entirely sure how they did it, but the various Kiblinki Saltas deployed around the land managed to boost agricultural productivity across the board.
As a result, within the domain of the Marquis Vardmoi, we now have abundant grains and vegetables, and I, as the central overseer of it all, can buy them at relatively low prices.
With those, I provide free lunches at schools in various regions.
I’ve also tried to keep tuition fees as low as possible, and many children are attending.
It’s all good things.

"So then, Mr. Kouro. Did you come today just to drink tea?"

"That was the main purpose, yes, but there’s one more small matter I’d like to attend to. Do you have time next week, on Waterday?"

"Waterday? Yes, that should be fine. Is something going on?"

"Not exactly. My superior would like to express her gratitude to you. Since she’ll be visiting Vardmoi anyway, she hopes to see you."

… Is that really just a side errand?
Mr. Kouro, aren’t you mixing up the order of things here?

What do you think about this chapter?