Chapter 96
After discussing the food stall with Ronnie this morning, it was almost time for second period. Today's second-period class was history, so I was kind of looking forward to it.
Some time after class was supposed to begin, a very old teacher with a grandfatherly air appeared.
"I'll be teaching history. I look forward to working with you all."
And with that, history class began. No self-introduction or anything!? He was quite an old teacher, though. Was he going to be all right?
His back was very stooped, and his face was deeply wrinkled. Only his hair had retained its beautiful green color, though it was dry and frizzy...
Come to think of it, did people in this world not turn gray even when they grew old? I don't think I've met many gray-haired people before...
"Then I shall begin with how this country was founded. About five hundred years ago, there were no great powers on this continent, and small countries had sprung up everywhere. A country would be born, only to perish almost immediately. It was an age of war."
It was basically like Japan's Sengoku period, right? I was really glad I hadn't been reincarnated during that era.
"People died in droves. Even when children were born, they didn't survive to adulthood. Conditions were simply too harsh. The land was ravaged by the fighting, making it difficult to grow crops. The amount of food dwindled. That only intensified the conflicts, creating a vicious cycle."
That was way too awful... Was the situation really that bad? Humanity could have gone extinct.
"It was then that a girl was born in one small country. That girl was a divine apostle. The Apostle-sama was said to have mastered magic of every affinity and possessed knowledge from various gods."
It was the story of the Apostle-sama! Everyone had always been calling me one, so I was really curious.
"No attack could harm the Apostle-sama. The Apostle-sama could take objects out of empty space. The Apostle-sama could travel long distances in an instant. Many such legends remain."
The Apostle-sama was really that amazing!? She was nothing like me at all!
Still, being impervious to any attack sounded like a barrier. And taking things out of nowhere was an Item Box, while traveling long distances in an instant was teleportation, right?
This sounded like something out of a novel.
...Hmm? But this was a story about this world, right?
If so, did that mean those kinds of magic could be used in this world? Or were they limited to the Apostle-sama?
I want to try them sometime...
"That Apostle-sama brought the age of war to an end. She annexed many countries and founded the Kingdom of Raslasia. That was the beginning of this country."
From there, the lecture moved on to the Warring States era. I was quite interested in hearing about the Warring States period of another world, but I couldn't stop thinking about the Apostle-sama.
The story of the Apostle-sama ended rather abruptly, but I wanted to know more about what she had done. Someone with abilities like mine was bound to interest me.
I wondered if the library had any books about the Apostle-sama.
With that in mind, I headed to the library after class, ate lunch with Lucien, and then went inside. The lunch break was quite long, so I had time to spare after eating.
Hmm... The library really is nice. I entered and took a deep breath. Something about its atmosphere was calming.
Now, where would I find books about the Apostle-sama?
I wanted to find one on my own, so I wandered around for a while. When I couldn't find anything, I gave up and asked a staff member at the reception desk.
"Excuse me. I'm looking for a book about the history of the Apostle-sama. Do you know where I can find one?"
"Certainly. Please allow me to show you."
As soon as I asked, the staff member came out from behind the reception desk and showed me the way. Did library staff memorize where every book was? If so, that was amazing.
"Would this book be what you're looking for?"
The book in the place the staff member showed me was titled 'The Apostle-sama's Great Deeds.'
"This book will do. Thank you for showing me the way."
"Not at all. Please excuse me, then."
I took the book, sat in a nearby chair, and opened it.
The first few pages were filled with nothing but words praising the Apostle-sama. The person who wrote this must have worshiped the Apostle-sama.
Once that was over, it finally began discussing the great deeds the Apostle-sama had accomplished. The book kept veering off into praise for how amazing the Apostle-sama was, making it hard to read, but once I skipped those parts, there wasn't much to it, and I finished it quickly.
To summarize what I read:
Founded the Kingdom of Raslasia.
Established the aristocratic system and various other institutions.
Spread divine gestures such as bowing and saluting.
Spread the divine custom of eating three meals a day.
Taught people the words "itadakimasu" and "gochisousama" as expressions of gratitude to the gods.
Developed dairy farming and livestock raising.
Taught people that eating soybeans as-is and wheat flour in the form of bread would make them healthier.
Could use magic of every affinity.
Could use magic that did not exist in this world.
That was about it.
Um... What kind of person was the Apostle-sama? I didn't know if such a thing was possible, but could the Apostle-sama have been reincarnated from Japan, just like me?
No, surely that couldn't be the case... But I'd always wondered why bowing and saluting were the same as in Japan.
And it was the same with itadakimasu and gochisousama. I was surprised they worked in this world even though translation magic shouldn't translate words if there weren't similar expressions here, but I never imagined the Apostle-sama had spread them.
But what did it mean that eating soybeans as-is and wheat flour as bread would make you healthy? I'd never heard anything like that in Japan. Was it some kind of health regimen?
Come to think of it, was that teaching the reason this world had no pancakes?
And soybeans, too! Soybeans existed in this world, but I'd always found it strange that I'd never seen them prepared any other way than eaten as-is. It had to be because of this teaching.
If it weren't for that teaching, soy sauce, miso, and other seasonings might have been developed! Why did you have to go and do that, Apostle-sama!
I'm grateful that she spread dairy farming and livestock raising, though...
This world originally had vegetation and a climate similar to Japan's, but that alone couldn't possibly make people's lives Japanese too.
I think it's safe to assume that the Apostle-sama was involved in everything I'd seen so far that had seemed Japanese.
I had no way to confirm it, but I felt there was a good chance she had been reincarnated from Japan, just like me.
If that's true, then does that make me a divine apostle too, since I've also been reincarnated? But I've never met a god.
Hmm... Come to think of it, why was the previous Apostle-sama recognized as a divine apostle?
Was it because she could speak with God? Did she possess some kind of object as proof? Could she make prophecies?
It didn't say anything about that, and it wasn't mentioned in class either, so I didn't know. Still, she must have had some kind of proof that established her as a divine apostle.
Thinking about it that way, I'm not a divine apostle, am I? I have nothing that would make everyone recognize me as one, and besides, I've never met a god.
In any case, I won't figure this out no matter how much I think about it, so I'll stop. The thing that interests me most is the claim that she could use magic that didn't exist in this world. Could that mean the teleportation magic mentioned earlier?
Since I have all affinities just like the Apostle-sama, maybe I can use the magic she used too.
I want to try!
Maybe I'll make some time after school today and try it in the training grounds. There probably won't be anyone there.
Looking forward to after school, I put the book back on the shelf, left the library, and returned to the classroom. I can't wait for school to end.
"Leon, you're late! It's almost time for class to start!"
"Sorry, I went to the library for a bit."
"The library? Did you find a book you were interested in?"
"Yeah. I was researching the Apostle-sama."
I found a pretty good book. Maybe there were more good ones, so I should visit the library often.
"The Apostle-sama was the person who founded this country, right?"
"That's right. I became curious during history class."
At that point, the teacher arrived. After that, I focused properly on my afternoon classes.