Chapter 8
The statue of Malliant was located behind the altar in the temple’s sanctuary.
It was about twice the height of an average person, though not very wide. Its form resembled that of a dignified man raising a hand in blessing.
Because the statue was placed away from the congregation’s seating area, and I had already cleared out the surroundings in advance, I didn’t hesitate.
With a light swing of Lilith’s sacred hammer, the statue shattered easily.
Crash!
Thankfully, it broke into large pieces instead of scattering into dangerous shards.
“Wh-What’s all this commotion?!”
“Elly?!”
Pelles and Seria came running, breathless, eyes wide as they looked at the crumbled remains of the statue.
“Lady Elias, what in the world…?”
“Oh my…”
They both stared at me with shock.
“Why are you so surprised? This temple is being turned into one for Lady Lilith. Naturally, the old god’s statue has to go.”
I said it flatly, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
“But still… it was a sacred statue! What if you’re punished by the gods for this?” Pelles exclaimed, clearly shaken.
I folded my arms and replied coolly.
“If that god had truly been watching over his own temple, none of this would’ve happened. So even if divine punishment does come, I don’t care. I have Lady Lilith with me.”
If the god Malliant had ever truly existed, he should have intervened long ago when everything began to fall apart.
But even after multiple disasters within his temple, there hadn’t been a single sign from him.
Makes sense. He was probably a false god all along.
I gave one of the statue’s fragments a little kick and walked over to Pelles.
“Please arrange for laborers to come clear this out soon.”
“Yes, understood. Also, I visited the authorities, as you instructed.”
“Oh? And?”
“The conversion from Malliant’s temple to Lilith’s temple has been approved. It went smoothly.”
Seria let out a sigh of relief, and I nodded. As expected.
There were many religions in this world, and temples often changed hands and patrons. It wasn’t rare.
Though I feel a little bad using Pelles for all these tasks…
Still, there was no one more suited to handling such matters.
A five-year-old like me couldn’t exactly recruit laborers or file government paperwork.
Even if I tried, who would take me seriously?
It really was a blessing to have trustworthy adults around.
“We also posted a notice that the temple is undergoing restoration due to religious conversion,” Pelles added.
“Great work, Pelles,” I said with a small smile.
It might be sad for the old believers, but surely they’d understand.
Still… now we’ll need to find new followers.
Hmm.
That could be sorted out gradually. For now—
Oh right. This morning, I received wonderful news.
The children who had left the temple a few days ago had all arrived safely at their destinations.
Thanks to Lady Lilith’s power, the children were able to reunite with their families or find new homes.
I could picture their smiling faces so clearly, as if I had seen it myself.
I also had a feeling their letters would be arriving soon.
It’s only been three days, and yet they’re all safe. I’m so relieved.
During those three days, Pelles, Seria, and I had worked hard to clean and reorganize the temple.
We removed every symbol and relic of Malliant, cleaned the priests’ quarters, and gathered all the valuables into one place to sell later.
With all the trash cleared out, time had flown by.
It was a lot of work.
Thanks to Lilith’s blessings, I had plenty of strength to handle it all.
But Pelles and Seria weren’t so lucky.
Pelles, being an adult, had more stamina than Seria, but he was busy running errands and dealing with officials.
Seria, still young and physically weak, tired quickly.
I told her to rest, but she never listens.
She had worked beside me almost nonstop for three days.
I walked over to her and gently held her hand.
“Seria, everything urgent is done now. Please take a break.”
“Mm… I still want to help more… Sorry.”
“It’s okay. Don’t apologize.”
I gave her a soft pat on the shoulder and turned away.
Should I place Lady Lilith’s statue where the old one used to stand?
It’s easier to maintain the structure by reusing the space.
Tearing the whole temple down and rebuilding would be costly and time-consuming.
Luckily, Lady Lilith had approved of the current temple’s structure.
So the first step was clear.
We need a statue of Lady Lilith.
These days, I had been communicating with her almost daily. The conversations weren’t long, but I’d gotten a sense of her preferences.
Since this temple now belonged to her, naturally, it should reflect her taste.
She had said to keep the general layout but replace the statue.
But do we even have a sculptor capable of capturing Lady Lilith’s beauty?
Her beauty was otherworldly—someone with real talent would be required.
“Pelles,” I called out as he was sweeping up broken fragments.
“Do you know of any skilled sculptors? I need someone to create a statue of Lady Lilith.”
“A sculptor? Hmm… there is someone who lives nearby.”
“Oh, really?”
“Yes. They’re known for their craftsmanship. But I’m not sure if they’re still active…”
“Why not?”
“I heard their husband has been seriously ill…”
A talented sculptor living nearby, huh?
“I see. Got it.”
After finishing our conversation, I headed into the temple’s prayer room.
And then, I prayed.
“Lady Lilith, are you there?”
—Yes, my child.
“I was wondering… is it possible to heal someone using your power?”
—Of course. As long as you use the strength I’ve granted you, it’s possible. It all depends on your will, Melly.
“I understand. Thank you so much!”
I finished the prayer with a gentle smile.
I didn’t yet know if the sculptor would accept my offer, but I hoped to entrust the statue’s creation to someone nearby.
Of course, only if they’re truly skilled.
As soon as I stepped out of the prayer room, I turned to Pelles.
“Can we meet that sculptor right away?”
And so, Pelles and I left the temple.
Seria was still exhausted and needed rest, so we decided to go without her.
Now that I think about it… this is my first time leaving the temple since regaining memories of my past life.
Somehow, I felt nervous.
We walked across the wide courtyard, down the hill where the temple stood, slightly apart from the village.
How beautiful…
The path to the village was stunning. Trees I’d never seen before lined the way, and birds sang in the distance.
Following the well-trodden path downhill, we soon reached the edge of the village.
It felt oddly familiar, like déjà vu.
And then—
“Such fine folks. What brings you all the way out here?”
I lifted the corners of my lips into a soft smile.
To be continued
