Rupegia Ch. 04: Nour's Gift

What the hell?

There's a man flying around on a literal carpet. He's darting along the street while making quick turns and barrel rolls.

What's the matter Aladdin, looking for Jasmine?

Once the passersby start to stop to stare at him, the man lowers near the ground and stands up on the carpet.

"Good day, gentlemen and gentlewomen!" He exclaims in a loud voice that has the characteristic buzzing of someone talking on a microphone. He waits a moment to make sure that everyone is looking at him, then he continues, "I have shown you all just a small glimpse of the newest magic tool developed! The true [Fly] stone! This gem is incomparable to that common fake jewel that only allowed you to slowly float around. Now you can fly as graciously as a bird, turn so fast a dragon would be envious, and make tricks that could impress even the Emperor! This gem is the bleeding edge of technology. Even the imperial army is buying it in droves to construct a new generation of the dream of every adventurer: the airships!"

Ooooh, airships, my nerd heart is pounding.

"Come to the Quizzical Emporium at the Bazaar for the latest [Fly] gems. We have magic tools so big you can build airships that can hold as much as eight people! I hope to see you there, honorable citizens!" And he darts away, this time for good.

The street starts buzzing with people excitedly talking, and I even feel like clapping my hands. I add this flying gem to my notes as research options. Airships and the [Golemancy] skill are the two things that I'm most eager to research about.

Wait what was I thinking about?

Uh... oh yeah, I think that I could even tell the truth about my origin to the Blood Slave. It's risky, but if I make a contract of at least twenty years, it might be enough to get the trust or goodwill for them to keep quiet about it. At that time, I might even find a way to deal with it if the word gets out, and if I acquire enough power, I might be able to squash the rumors, too.

But do I have to tell the truth...? It's not like a slave needs to know everything about their master, they're just there to serve. I also can't just tell them that I came from another world and leave it at that. If I tell them the truth, then I'll need to tell a lot more than just that to answer their doubts. It's not a kind of conversation that makes me very excited to have.

Regardless, I see little reason to not buy one.

I don't really have an idea what the price of one might be, so I should go look for the value of the rose coin.

The banker is near the Nobles' Quarters, so I need to go across the town. I'll first go to the temple, eat something nearby, talk to Ciel about the gods and slavery, and then go to the banker to see the value of the rose coin.

I think I might visit the slave trader tomorrow morning. It's near the castle in the north, so it's another long trip there. It's a bit tiring walking everywhere, so maybe I should look for the price of that magic carpet. I also don't feel like paying for a space mage transport; I always hated taxis.

--

I look for a better restaurant this time, and I find one serving Great Boar meat. They aren't commonly found here, but a hunter expedition deep into the Sea of Trees found a pack there, so some restaurants have a lot of Boar meat to offer for the next few days.

The beans are good, but I miss rice, too. I'm a Brazilian who immigrated to Canada, and I miss the staple food of my homeland once in a while: rice, beans, and Brazilian-style barbecued meat.

I waste some of my time in a tea shop. They serve something similar to black tea with an unidentified citric fruit. Is this Earl Grey? It tastes similar, but it's closer to the average orange than the bergamot. They serve a few simple butter cookies that go really well with it.

Then I go into the temple and search for Ciel. I take a walk around the outer ring looking for her while also taking a closer look at the statues, but she's not down here. I ask a standby priest and he tells me she's at the orphanage. Luckily, today isn't her free day.

The orphanage looks exactly the same as the priests' living quarters, with the only difference being that instead of priests, there are children entering and leaving all the time.

The orphanage is a large, box-shaped white building with a brown tiled roof, which looks a little expensive for a religious institution. It has flowery carvings covering all of its walls, and the channels are filled with a gradient of colors. The orphanage and the quarters seem to be the only buildings where some decoration is allowed. It's quite pretty, and makes me feel like I'm looking at one of these "trendy" and "artsy" places back on Earth.

There's only a brown picket fence surrounding the orphanage and the priests' quarters, but is it really okay for me to enter uninvited?

The orphanage is in the middle of the plot, covering most of the available land. At the front, there's a simple grass garden with a cobbled path towards the entrance, but I can see some sort of small flower garden behind the building. On this grass garden, there's a metal swing, a merry-go-round, and a raised goal where the children are playing some sort of game of hot potato with a small leather ball.

I gather some courage and enter the area. A few boys look interested in my sword while the rest ignore me. I quickly enter the building and look around. The inside is made of gray square stone, while the floor is made of light brown wood, with the only decoration being some wooden pillars around. Just as I finish observing my surroundings, an old male priest walks by.

"Oh, hello, can I help you?" The priest asks as his small eyes look at me warmly. His voice is so gentle that it tickles my ears.

"I'm... looking for Miss Ciel," I respond, a little mesmerized by him.

His expression brightens and he smiles. "Oh! The sister is in the kitchen. I'll call her over for you. What's your name?"

"Wolf Ryder. Uh, if she's busy, I'll just come another time; it's not urgent business."

He shakes his head gently. "She's not really busy, so don't worry. Come sit here on the sofa while I call her over."

He takes me to a guest room with a really cozy atmosphere. There's a few simple sofas around a low coffee table; a small fireplace that cackles with burning logs, yet I smell no smoke; and a "Last Supper"-style painting of the multiple Humanoid Gods hanging above it. I like this painting more than the one on Earth because it's full of different, colorful races and people, and has both genders instead of just boring, bearded men.

After a few minutes, Ciel comes into the room carrying a tray with a tea set and cookies.

Oh, no, I just drank tea, but I don't wanna deny her hospitality, so I'll just pretend I'm not full.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Ryder. I was wondering when you'd come back," she says while pouring tea for me.

"I spent the last few days training in a dungeon, and I only came back last night," I respond with a gentle tone.

She nods and smiles warmly. "I'm glad you're okay. Every day-cycle, we have news of someone disappearing inside a dungeon, so please, be careful."

I smile awkwardly. "My motto is 'don't die,' so I have no plans of dying soon."

She chuckles softly and sits, then sips her tea. "So, what you wanted to talk about?"

I swallow heavily. There are a few things I want to ask about, but I'm sure she'll be thinking I'm a weirdo after I ask them.

Fuck it. Curiosity wins.

"There are a few things I want to understand better. The first thing is, what's a day-cycle?" I ask.

She exhales loudly in amusement and raises her eyebrows in surprise as she says, "Oh? Well, a day-cycle is a period of ten days, a half-cycle is five days. Every day-cycle you are advised to deeply bathe once, every day-cycle you are advised to pray once, every day-cycle you should make merry at least once, every half-cycle the town watch goes out to cull monsters, every half-cycle you should make love to your partner at least once, every half-cycle the meals should change."

"How about months and years? How many days a month has and how many months a year has?"

"A month has thirty days and a year has ten months, so a year has three hundred days."

So, a day-cycle is equivalent to an Earth's week. Perhaps ten days is chosen because of the ten "base elements" in the Tale of Creation. I don't know why thirty and three hundred are chosen, though. Maybe it was made this way just so it's somewhat similar to Earth. I don't think the Japanese believe there's anything special about the numbers three or ten.

I look at Ciel and see that she seems both amused and confused by these questions.

I nod in thought and respond, "Ah, I see. On my homeland, we say weeks, instead of day-cycle and it was seven days, not ten."

She knits her eyebrows and holds back a chuckle. "How curious..." She mutters.

I quickly change the topic to not let her think too much about it. "Anyway, I also heard about Blood Slaves, and I got curious about why would the Gods get involved with this matter."

Her face softens as she starts thinking more seriously. "An interesting thought..." She spends a moment thinking, then assumes a teaching tone as she answers, "The Humanoid Gods are chosen to be our guides. They keep us on the correct path so we don't make a mistake too terrible that we destroy ourselves. We need to keep united and strong so we can always put a front against the Monster King. Therefore, it's their reason of existence to get involved with every aspect of our lives."

I'm not sure how safe it is to push these sorts of questions to a priest of all people, but I need to get a "feeling" about how slavery is treated in this world. "But why do the Gods accept slavery?"

She raises her eyebrows in surprise for a moment and asks, "What do you mean by that? Why wouldn't they accept it?"

I awkwardly scratch my head as I think this question again.

It's better to be direct.

I breathe in and ask, "Isn't it cruel to chain innocent people into servitude regardless of the reason? Isn't it too much to have absolute control over someone's life? To be able to toy with their bodies, to force them to do anything and everything you want against their wishes, even if it's not immediately harmful, why should anyone have this much power over others?"

She leans forward, and her face becomes serious as she asks, "Do you believe people should be able to sell their bodies?"

I'm taken aback a little. "You mean... like... prostitution?"

She shakes her head. "No, not just that. A bodyguard is someone who sells their sword and their health to protect someone or something important. A craftsman is someone who sells their hands to their employer. A slave is someone who sells their time and loyalty to their master."

"But... are all slaves voluntary?"

She nods, and her face softens. "Most are. Debt slaves, criminal slaves, and war slaves are involuntary, but they make for bad workers and they lack loyalty, so they aren't as popular."

Wait... this world's slavery is the inverse of Earth's.

I blink blankly and ask immediately, "Why wouldn't they be popular? It's free labor."

She knits her eyebrows in worry as she responds, "They're being forced to work in something they don't like and to a master they hate, of course, they'd be horrible workers. Because of this, the masters have to spend more making these slaves happy than voluntary slaves."

Make them... "happy"...?

"Can't they 'motivate' the slaves to work harder with lashings? By that I mean, can't they punish the slaves if they don't work hard enough?" I question.

She frowns and her tone becomes serious, making me think that I might be pushing too far. "I sincerely hope you aren't thinking that slaves should be treated like that, Mr. Ryder. We aren't in Bestiaram; committing the Sin of Torture is punishable with death."

I force an apologetic smile and respond, "N-no. I was just asking to satisfy my curiosity. It's hard to truly understand things without asking questions from all angles."

She opens her eyes wide and looks away awkwardly. "Ah, I see. It's always good to be curious..." -She turns to me and lowers her head for a moment- "I apologize for doubting you. I didn't realize what you were doing, and it's bad form to assume the worst of someone during a discussion."

I wave my hand. "It's fine, it's fine. I should've been careful with my wording." And we share a smile.

Her tone becomes more casual and amused. "Are you sure you shouldn't call yourself a scholar? I've remembered going through these same arguments when being taught about philosophy and morals."

I blush faintly. I only have a surface-level understanding of philosophy, but it might be above the average for the commoner in this world.

I shake my head and answer, "I'm not a scholar, I'm just a curious person."

She smiles warmly and takes another sip. "Then continue as so. The Gods like people like you."

I nod and continue, "So, why would anyone sell themselves voluntarily?"

"To have a better life; to serve a better purpose; to aid a better person. The reasons are endless."

I frown. "A 'better person'? What do you mean by that?"

She assumes a teaching tone and answers, "We aren't all born as equals, but we all have a capacity to grow. Some people grow faster and further than others, so it's your duty to find these people and aid them. Those who can protect others, lord over those who can't, and the weak aid the strong, so that the strong can protect the weak."

Okay, I like the last part, but...

"Why is it our 'duty' to aid others?"

She smiles smugly like a teacher about to lay unto their students a long lesson. "We are all children of the God of Creation. Regardless of where you're born and what you believe, our mission is to survive and keep the cycle going. That is our main purpose, our reason of existence. But we've inherited the will of the God of Creation, so our second purpose is to create as many new and interesting things as possible. Lastly, we've also inherited the will of the God of Change, so our third purpose is to keep civilization moving forward and progressing.

"Do you understand it now?" She asks with expectant eyes.

I nod in understanding. "It's the will of the God of Change. If you can't aid others, then at least aid someone who can."

She smiles brightly like a mother who's proud of her son's school grade, making me blush again. "Perfectly stated."

I cough and recompose myself, then I continue, "But what if we want to abolish slavery and institute a democracy?"

She chuckles once. "The strong serving the weak? That wouldn't work very well. The Gods won't stop you from trying, but you'll have to face the consequences if you fail."

"'Consequences'?"

She nods sternly. "The nobility exists to protect us, but if they fail, they have no reason to exist anymore, so they're deposed, if not outright killed as punishment."

Oof, that's harsh...

She seems amused with my surprise and continues, "Just like the God of Creation is a subordinate of the God of Change, we are subordinates of the God of Creation, and the slaves are subordinates to us. To abolish slavery would be meaningless since we'll always be compelled to serve our betters due to our reasons of existence. You can run and hide from that reason, but the gods will find a way to guide you back to the path or simply kill you. 'Slavery' is just a system to aid us in fulfilling that purpose."

"What do you mean by 'kill you'?" I ask with a worried frown.

Her gentle voice seems a bit incongruent with what she says, "Exactly that. The Genderless God of Existence is a subordinate from the God of Creation that watches over us and kills those who stand in the way of our reason of existence."

"What do you mean by 'stand in the way'?"

Her voice becomes serious, giving me a chill. "Those who only want to spread chaos, those who cause the realm to wither, the Sinners who go too far, and the heretics that stand against the Gods. These are the kinds of people that are killed by the God of Existence."

So, being smited by the Gods is a real possibility. I better not antagonize them... but wait...

"If they can do that, why doesn't the Gods govern us like a king does?" I ask.

She seems slightly amused at my question. "Because that goes against the main purpose of the God of Change: to keep things moving forward. If a God, who exists only for a single purpose, is given the power to govern us, then civilization will be forever bound to that God's mentality, impeding us from growing or evolving."

"And that would be the wish of the God of Order? To have things stagnate and decay?" I question tentatively.

She nods and smiles. "Indeed, but remember, the God of Order and Destruction are still Gods, so we can't ignore their wisdom."

"Huh? What you mean?"

She seems very much amused by my confusion. She assumes her teaching tone again and answers, "They may be trying to destroy us, but their essence is still very important to us. Just because our purpose is to create, doesn't mean that we can't destroy. It's necessary to kill a monster or an animal before you can cook a delicious steak. Just because we are to change, doesn't mean it has to be every single aspect of us. A kingdom needs peace to be allowed to grow and build. The Overseer created the Gods to maintain the balance on the realm so that the cycle could continue, therefore, we must preserve this balance, too."

Oh, I understand... they don't see the God of Order and Destruction as "evil," only as an "opponent."

I grab my chin in thought and say, "So it's all a hierarchy. No matter how we're pitted against one another, we're to keep the balance, not eliminate the other."

She nods, very pleased. "Precisely. It goes from the Overseer, to the God of Change, to the God of Creation, to the Genderless God of Existence, to the Humanoid Gods, to the royalty, to the nobility, to the commoner, to the Blood Slave, to the normal slave, and finally, to the criminal slave.

"The God of Order rules over the God of Destruction, who rules over the monsters. They're opposed to us, but that's just their nature, so we accept that their presence is necessary to force us to adapt and grow."

The structure of this society is controlled by the gods, and if we wanted to change it, we'd basically have to destroy half the gods in this world. Social progress must be truly stagnating because of this.

"Going back a little, do the gods specify when they intervene?" I ask.

She takes a sip and observes me intently as she answers, "To prevent people from abusing the line if the criteria are known, we're never told exactly why someone received Godly punishment."

This is a bit worrying, but I kind of understand the reasoning.

"So, the only safe choice is to keep being as good as you can to avoid punishment?" I question.

She smiles warmly and says, "Exactly."

"But what does it mean to be a 'good person'?"

The happy and energetic way she talks about these things is quite cute. "Well, you basically follow the teachings of the Humanoid Gods. Don't waste food, don't hurt others for pleasure, don't commit crimes like theft or extortion, help others whenever you can, things like that. It depends on the God, and there are many, many teachings, but you aren't required to follow them all perfectly. The Gods are reasonable, you won't be punished just because you wasted a piece of food, but if you keep doing it, then the Gods will send messages and warnings, and if you still defy them, then you get punished."

Alright, reasonable, but inflexible. Morality really is defined by the gods, but since they're chosen from the mortals, then, in a way, morality is actually defined by us. It just depends on the criteria of how the gods are chosen.