Chapter 162: Class Change, Solaris Cleric (3)

The cozy island located in the sky was a mysterious place where fountains adorned with angel sculptures emitted rainbows.

Kai had visited this place once before when he transitioned to Solaris Cleric.

“The Celestial Garden. It’s been a while.”

It truly lived up to its name as a garden in the sky. Standing at the edge of the island, he could see thick clouds stretching beneath him.

Now... where’s Helik?

Kai turned his head and searched for him. Since Helik wanted to converse with him, he expected the god to show himself. It was also a chance to gain a new special title.

However...

—You have arrived, my young lamb.

The voice came from far away. Very far away.

When Kai turned in the direction of the voice, he saw a statue of a middle-aged man wearing a robe with a sun circlet resting atop his head. He appeared so majestic that anyone would easily believe he was a god.

After seeing the statue, Kai had a thought.

I want it... I want that statue...

It appeared far more luxurious than the one he had seen during his first class change! The previous statue was Legendary grade, so the one here in the Celestial Garden would be...

Could this one be Legendary too? No, maybe it’s Eternal Legendary, like the holy relics.

But it wasn’t just the value of the statue that tempted him. It was like seeing a masterpiece in a gallery and wanting to buy it.

No, this isn’t the time to think about that.

Snapping back to his senses, Kai asked the statue, “Are you Helik?”

—Indeed, I am Helik.

Kai began to move slowly toward the statue, but as he approached, doubts started creeping into his mind.

Why would he call me here for a conversation... but not show himself?

There was a table and a single chair in front of the statue. Kai looked at them briefly before looking up at the three-meter-tall statue.

—Take a seat, my young lamb.

“Okay.”

Kai obediently sat down and waited for Helik to speak.

—You must know why I summoned you here.

“To appoint me as a true apostle, I assume.”

—Correct... or rather, yes. You cannot save this world with the current half-complete power you possess.

“Even with the power I have now?”

—How arrogant... Ahem, yes. Although you have grown rapidly over the past few months, you are still only on par with a kingdom’s elite knight.

“

Oh,

I see...”

For Kai, who believed himself to be quite strong, this was a sharp rebuke.

—The Church of Muldine has not fully resurrected either. That’s why they haven’t deployed their elite forces yet. This time, they are being cautious. Very... cautious.

“I’ve certainly realized that through this recent incident.”

The Church of Muldine aimed to collapse not only the non-human races but also the Solarian Church from within. That only indicated one thing.

"Perhaps their influence has already reached the core of other kingdoms, or even the empire itself."

—Your assessment is sound. If you plan to walk the path of a true apostle, you must purify all forces tainted by the influence of the Church of Muldine.

"I will not leave a speck of dust behind."

Kai did not say such things like: he would do his best or he would give it his all.

I need to show my confidence and win over Helik.

After all, no one would want to hire someone who was already intimidated before the task even began. In the current situation, Kai was a job applicant in an interview with Helik as the interviewer. Now was the time to convince the interviewer to trust in him.

With a satisfied voice, Helik continued,

—Your aspiration pleases me. The path ahead will be lonely and isolating, and at times, it may be so difficult you’ll want to give up. Even so, do you have the resolve to silently carry the burden of being an apostle and continue walking that path?

This is a test.

Realizing Helik’s intention immediately, Kai stood up from his seat and knelt on one knee.

Words flowed naturally from his mouth, "I swore this oath when I first became a cleric. I swore to save those who suffer from evil, to punish those who commit evil, and to spread your teachings across this land to eradicate all evil.”

—Wow, that’s excellent... no, truly excellent.

Helik’s voice slightly trembled, as if deeply moved.

At the same time, Kai’s tightly closed eyelids slightly opened.

But... isn’t a god supposed to have a more majestic way of speaking? What were the developers thinking when they set this up?

Kai subtly glanced up at Helik’s statue. Helik, the god of the sun and mercy, had a masculine and commanding presence. Yet, his way of speaking sometimes seemed so casual and flippant that it was hard to get used to.

—Hmm? Judging by your expression, it seems there’s something bothering you... Go ahead, speak your mind.

As Kai hesitated about Helik’s gentle tone, Helik urged him again.

—It’s fine, speak up.

"... No, it's nothing."

—Just say it.

“It’s really nothing.”

—Come on now, don't worry about me and say it.

Why... Why is he so persistent?

Helik was surprisingly stubborn in unexpected ways!

Now sweating nervously, Kai continued to shake his head.

There’s no way I can say it. How could I?

If he dared to comment that Helik’s speech was too feminine, Helik would surely think Kai was mocking him. In such a case, his class could be stripped away under the charge of blaspheming a god! Yet once Helik set his sights on something, his persistence was impossible to ignore.

—Tell me what you're hiding. If you don't, I'll take back all your holy power.

"What?! You can't do that!"

—Oh, but I can. After all, it’s power I granted you, isn’t it?

“Wow... that's so petty,” Kai muttered in frustration.

At that, Helik continued,

—So hurry up and tell me. I can't focus on anything once I'm curious. Are you going to take responsibility if a great trouble falls upon the continent?

"You don’t usually do anything anyway. You just watched while the Church fell apart."

—W-what did you just... no. Why are we talking about that now?

"Then why are we talking about whether I'm hiding something?"

—You...!

As Helik’s voice filled with anger, Kai suddenly came to his senses.

D-did I go too far?

Now that he thought about it, he realized that the one he was dealing with wasn't just some interviewer. This was an immense being, akin to the chairman of a company!

Quickly assessing the situation, Kai's shoulders slumped. “No, what I meant was...”

—Enough! No, never mind. I don't want to hear it anymore!

Helik shouted in a voice that clearly sounded sulky to anyone who listened to it.

Then, a brief silence followed.

Taken aback by this, Kai cautiously attempted to make peace. "H-Helik, are you really that upset?"

—Not really. But now I'm reconsidering whether I should appoint you as an apostle. Someone who keeps secrets from me as an apostle... hmm. It’s something serious to consider.

... How can a god be this petty!

Kai wanted to protest this absurdity but couldn’t gather the courage to do so. Instead, his tone turned sweeter and soft.

“I don’t have any secrets. I was just briefly overwhelmed by your majestic presence, that’s all.”

—At least wipe your mouth before speaking such lies.

"It's the truth. In fact, the statues of you on the ground fail to capture even a fraction of the grandeur and dignity that you possess."

—... Is that so? I tried to hire the most skilled sculptor on the continent at the time.

"Come on, no human craft could truly capture your essence. Did you make this statue yourself?"

—Yes. I made it when I was bored.

"Of course, you are truly remarkable. Do you know what surprised me the most when I arrived at the Celestial Garden?"

—... Was it perhaps my statue?

Helik muttered with a hopeful tone.

With a grin, Kai shook his head. "No. It was everything I could see! This place truly deserves to be named Celestial Garden. Living here forever would be the greatest blessing, wouldn’t it?"

—A-ahem.

As the saying went, praise could make even a whale dance! And today, Kai learned that this also applied to gods.

With a slightly softened tone, Helik cleared his throat and bluntly said,

—Alright, enough of that. Rise to your feet, Cleric Kai.

“Okay.”

Kai’s bent knee slowly straightened. Soon, a massive beam of light struck his fully upright body.

Following that, Helik's majestic voice echoed in his ears.

—Remember this. You are the envoy of the Solarian God’s will on earth, the one all evildoers will fear, and the pillar on which all the weak may lean.

“I will keep that in mind.”

When the radiant light subsided, Helik finished with a brief statement,

—From today, you grasp the glory that only three before you have ever attained.

Then, a notification window popped up before Kai.

Ding!

[You have been acknowledged by the Solarian God Helik.]

[All abilities of Solaris Cleric (Mythic) have been unlocked.]

[You can now visit the temple of the Solarian Church to learn exclusive class skills.]

[Special title acquired: Mythic Player]

[Special title acquired: Fourth Apostle]

[You have obtained the quest: The One Who Dispels Darkness II]

“...

Phew.

”

It had been a long journey. A really long one.

It was... about three months.

Out of the twenty-two years and ten months—274 months of his life—just three months had passed. Yet, they felt more valuable than the last three years for Kai.

I can’t believe I did all this just for a game.

How could something like this make a person feel this way?

Feeling something akin to accomplishment, or perhaps fulfillment, Kai let out a small chuckle.

—You seem to be in a good mood.

“I’m in a great mood. I feel like I could fly.”

It wasn’t just words. His once incomplete class had now formed into a perfect whole, though he didn’t yet know what new abilities had emerged. Regardless, Kai could feel his senses sharpen, like the tip of a spear.

I feel like I can do anything now.

Of course, whether that was true or not was still unknown, but there was one thing Kai was sure of.

“Helik, how about coming out now?”

Helik responded in a bewildered tone to Kai’s unexpected request.

—W-what are you talking about all of a sudden?

With a playful smile, Kai shrugged and said, “I like this apostle thing. It’s like having a radar in my head.

Oh!

It feels like what I’ve heard about Rangers’ passive skill, Enemy Detection.”

Kai’s eyes were focused on the giant statue before him, but instinct told him that behind it, there was something far greater.

It must be Helik.

Of course, it didn’t seem like the Solarian God was willing to fulfill his request so easily.

—I'm not sure what you're talking about. But I've said all I need to, so hurry and return to the surface.

"Then, would it be alright if I circled around the statue to offer a prayer before I leave?"

—N-no! There’s no need for that. You can pray just fine after you return to the surface!

"I’m afraid that won’t do. You see, I’m a devout follower, and I want to offer my prayer right now."

Helik’s urgent voice couldn’t stop Kai’s determined steps.

I can’t miss out on getting a special title from meeting a god.

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝐰𝚎𝕓𝐧𝚘𝘃𝗲𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝕞

Kai swiftly grabbed the statue’s ankle and poked his head around to look behind it. “Helik, why are you hiding back here...

Huh?

”

The smile lingering at the corner of Kai's lips vanished, and his eyes slightly trembled. The imposing, dignified middle-aged figure he had imagined was nowhere to be seen, and instead...

“

Sniff

... I... told you... to return... to the ground...”

In place of the great god was a little girl, crouched and on the verge of tears.

At the same time, a message that delighted Kai appeared.

Ding!

[Special title acquired: Witness of the Sun]

Swallowing hard, Kai glanced between the message and Helik, whose eyes were full of tears.

Then, Kai awkwardly smiled and said, “... Th-this is fun.”

“

Sniff

...

Waaaaah!

”

“Shoot... I messed up.”

Unfortunately, there didn’t seem to be a title for making the Solarian God cry.