Chapter 152: Goddess
The woman’s expression remained calm, though the faint smile on her face lingered for a moment, like she’d found something amusing about the fact that Rohan questioned her.
"You are not one of faith, nor do you serve any god for that matter... how curious." She replied.
Rohan blinked.
"Right..." He looked around the empty temple hall, then back at her. "I mean, that sounds fair enough. I’m definitely not one of those things."
Her lips curved into another imperceptible smile for a short moment.
Rohan opened his mouth, then closed it again. He genuinely had nothing to say past this. How was he supposed to respond after such an answer? Forgetting the confusing language she was speaking that he somehow understood, he was completely missing any and all context about this whole situation.
At some point over the last few minutes, he’d gone from ’What the hell is happening?’ to ’Is this even happening?’, as he was apparently talking to a genuine Goddess in the flesh right now. Yet, strangely enough, the second state of mind seemed easier to manage.
Though he guessed it all came down his instincts. Humans were most fearful of the unknown, and now that Rohan had at least some answers regarding this situation, he felt far less threatened. ’Funny my emotions work this way when I’m still faced with a real fucking Goddess!!’
Perhaps it was because there was only so much confusion one person could contain before it started curdling into numb acceptance. Or perhaps it was because the woman — no, the Goddess — standing before him wasn’t acting like some terrifying divine judge ready to smite him for breathing too loudly in her temple.
’The closest thing I can relate her to would be the Ancient Greek gods due to her striking anthropomorphism and clear emotions. But if she’s anything like them...’ Rohan shuddered to think about it.
Every story he read about those gods made them out as more divine devils than benevolent gods.
’Gulp...’
If anything, right now at least, this Goddess seemed much more passive. Her expression remained patient, curious even, and far too gentle for the kind of god he was making her out to be in his mind.
The fact she was being so patient with him even now as he stood there in thought was a good sign.
So rather than flailing about with bad guesses and increasingly desperate rationalisations, Rohan did what any sensible person in his situation would do.
He decided to take the opportunity for what it was.
After all, how many people in the history of humanity had ever stood face to face with a living Goddess and gotten the chance to ask questions? ’Zero.’ Was Rohan’s guess. Even if every S ranker in the Federation came tearing through the Origin Realm to find an opportunity like this, he doubted they’d ever get an opportunity like this.
Rohan exhaled slowly, rubbed one hand over the back of his neck, feeling every bead of sweat that had gathered there in his nervousness, and let a slightly sheepish answer tug at his mouth.
"I should probably start with the obvious," he muttered. "Sorry for intruding."
The woman tilted her head slightly.
"You did not intrude in the ordinary sense. Your passage was permitted."
Rohan furrowed his brows. ’What on earth does she mean by this?’
"But you looked surprised to see another person here after you finished... praying."
’Do gods pray?’
To Rohan’s surprise, she chuckled.
"Yes. Both things can be true. I may not have expected your presence here, but the fact that you ARE here proves that your entry was permitted. Though it is most curious that someone of no faith was permitted to this realm, of all realms."
’There it is again. She keeps talking about faith.’ Rohan wasn’t used to this kind of conversation, but she was a Goddess, so he didn’t put much thought past that.
"So anybody can enter this place if they come across it?" Rohan asked.
The woman nodded. But she did have to tilt her head and have to think for a second before doing so. ’Perhaps it’s the same with me. She doesn’t recognise my language either, so the translation might be a bit icky for her too.’
Rohan didn’t even factor in her Goddess status into his reasoning... The idea that a divine being would struggle with language barriers seemed absurd.
Silence followed.
As it turned out, conversing with a stranger that also happened to be a Goddess was harder than he’d thought.
"You seem... calmer than I expected."
At this point, Rohan was just grasping at the first thoughts that came to mind just to keep the atmosphere from falling into silence.
But the moment his thoughts turned into words and left his mouth, he felt immediate regret.
The woman’s brows rose ever so slightly.
"Expected?"
Rohan winced internally.
"N-not in a bad way," he hurriedly clarified. "I just mean — well..." He gestured to vaguely between her and the statue.
"You’re a Goddess. Or at least that’s what the statue says, and from what I’ve seen, I’m not really in a position to dispute it."
However his attempts to recover seemed to have done the opposite. The woman’s expression shifted to amusement at first, but after Rohan started speaking about her statue and his deductions, she showed genuine surprise and confusion for a split second.
"Has it been so long down there that you no longer recognise me...?" She asked.
After a few seconds of hesitation, Rohan shook his head. "Should I?"
"Yes."
"..."
"And what did you expect?" She suddenly shifted back to the original topic of his concerns.
Rohan opened his mouth. Then paused. ’Should I speak?’
Because there was no saving himself with dignity anyway, he answered honestly.
"An incomprehensible being, some thunder or divine pressure. Maybe being struck dead for tracking mud over the floor..."
Her gaze dipped briefly toward his boots.
Rohan followed it and his heart tightened.
"Maybe that last assumption is more accurate than you thought." Her face suddenly fell flat.
"Just kidding," she returned to her calm, curious self, "This temple has endured worse than your boots."
’Gah, does she have to play with my emotions like that! I almost thought I was a dead man for a second there.’ Despite this being the Origin Realm where he’d be revived back in the outside universe upon death, Rohan held zero expectation for that to happen if a Goddess wanted him dead.
But at this point Rohan was starting to get used to conversing with her. Even though they’d only conversed for a small bit, he had an idea of her easygoing, sometimes joking personality now.
"I have to say," he admitted, "seeing a statue of someone and then immediately realising they’re standing right in front of you is... a lot."
"You have adjusted rather quickly."
Rohan snorted softly.
"I think it’s more that my brain still hasn’t come to terms with this situation."
Every answer Rohan gave seemed to genuinely interest her.
"You speak strangely."
"I— what?"
"Your phrasing." She considered for a moment. "You speak casually."
"You carry a great many questions." She continued.
Rohan caught himself in a laugh.
"You have no idea."
"I suspect I do."
’Can she really read my mind?’
"Can I ask a question?"
"You haven’t been already?" She responded in mock surprise.
Rohan shook his head.
"Am I in danger here."
His question seemed to shake her from her teasing, amused state. As if asking this was blasphemy.
"Not from me." She eventually responded.
Even though it was only words, something about her response made Rohan feel relieved.
Then, because there was no use pretending otherwise now, he gave in.
He had a chance here. Perhaps the only one he would ever get in his life. He could keep circling around this confusion forever, or he could ask the things that actually mattered.
So he straightened up, let the last of his defensive awkwardness settle into something a little more respectful, and said, "Then... there really are things I want to understand. About this place. About the outside universe. About the Origin Realm."
Everything seemed to click with the woman, except for the last part.
Her brows drew together. "The Origin Realm?"
Rohan nodded.
"Yes. I wish to know its mysteries. Why it exists, why not everyone can be an Awakened, why it’s so stingy with information. Everything, basically."
Her confusion deepened.
She answered with complete sincerity. "I’m sorry, but I’m not understanding your meaning."
Rohan paused. ’What’s there not to understand about the Origin Realm? Everybody knows it! The world would riot if a Goddess of all people claimed ignorance of it...’
"Do you mean the Great System I created?" She suddenly added.
Rohan stopped dead.
It was his turn to be confused now. "The... what?"
"The Great System," she repeated, looking at him the same way he’d been looking at her only moments ago. "Everyone has it."
"Now I’m not following. I don’t have anything called the Great System."
This caused her to frown. Rohan could understand. ’She said everyone has it, so for me to say I don’t know what she’s talking about is basically like spitting in her face.’
"But you do." She responded.
But before Rohan could ask what she meant, his status showed up without him prompting it to.
[Status]
[Titles: Rabid Wolf Slayer I]
[Rank: — ]
[Class: — ]
[Attributes: — ]
"This should be impossible... How can you have no rank, no class, not even any attributes?" She suddenly blurted.
But Rohan barely even registered her words.
"You can see my status!?"
