Chapter 351

Haruto calmly pushed the application form back across the counter.

"No, thanks. We just want to use the hot springs normally."

He was exasperated, but he had no intention of finding another inn.

This was the headquarters of the Axis Cult, after all. Most of the hot-spring inns in Alcanretia were probably run by its followers.

Changing hotels would most likely lead to the exact same situation.

"I see..."

The innkeeper’s enthusiastic smile immediately collapsed, disappointment filling his eyes.

"What a shame. Another perfect opportunity to gain a new follower for Lady Aqua wasted..."

Disappointed or not, the innkeeper still had some professional standards.

He did not throw them out simply because Haruto refused to join the cult. Instead, he promptly took out three admission tags and handed them over.

"All right. The men’s bath is this way, the women’s bath is over there, and of course we also have a mixed bath."

"The hot springs are open twenty-four hours a day, so feel free to stay as long as you like."

Haruto accepted the tags and nodded.

He handed the women’s bath tags to Kagura and Kanna.

"You two go to the women’s bath. I’ll use the men’s side. Once you’re done, wait for me in the lounge."

As far as Haruto was concerned, when separate men’s and women’s baths existed, a mixed bath might as well count as another men’s bath.

"Okay!"

Kagura took the tags, grabbed Kanna’s hand, and hurried toward the women’s bath.

Haruto headed for the men’s entrance.

The moment he slid open the wooden door, warm steam rolled over him.

He changed, stored his belongings in a locker, wrapped a towel around himself, and walked to the hot-spring pool.

The moment he sank into the water, soothing heat enveloped his entire body and drew a long sigh from him.

Haruto took out a few snacks and drinks and settled in to enjoy himself.

The warm spring water carried a faint sulfurous scent, and its heat gradually seeped into every pore.

After soaking for a while, Haruto slowly rose from the water, droplets running down his back.

He ran a hand over his arm.

His skin felt unusually smooth.

"Definitely lives up to its reputation."

The hot springs of Alcanretia were more than ordinary geothermally heated water. They contained a variety of trace minerals beneficial to the body, helping relax tired muscles and nourish the skin.

After changing back into his clothes and leaving the bathing area, Haruto waited a while before Kagura and Kanna emerged as well.

Both still had a faint rosy flush on their cheeks from the heat.

Once they regrouped, the three booked two spacious suites at the inn.

They would definitely be staying in the city for the night, and having somewhere comfortable to return to was always worthwhile.

After the rooms were arranged, Haruto suggested, "Since we’re already here, we might as well properly explore the City of Water and Hot Springs. We can also see if there’s anything interesting to eat."

Kagura had no objections.

Kanna nodded as well.

The three left the inn.

Moisture hung pleasantly in the air, while pedestrians strolled leisurely through the streets with relaxed expressions.

The entire city seemed wrapped in a lazy, comfortable atmosphere.

Following the main road, they soon arrived at the central plaza.

A tall white marble statue stood in the middle.

It depicted Aqua, Goddess of Water.

The goddess held a sphere in one hand, her posture elegant and her expression holy. The statue made her look solemn, beautiful, and dignified.

Haruto stared at it and could not stop himself from thinking,

’What does this have to do with that useless goddess? Other than both being women, where exactly is the resemblance?’

Comparing Aqua’s usual behavior with the noble, sacred statue in front of him created such a violent sense of contradiction that Haruto could only shake his head.

He stopped thinking about it and continued wandering through the plaza with Kagura and Kanna.

Eventually, without realizing it, the three reached the deepest part of the city.

An enormous and elegant building appeared ahead of them.

"What’s that castle?"

Kagura looked at it curiously.

"It’s really beautiful."

It was the first time she had ever seen such an ornate castle-like structure.

Haruto looked at the building with a subtle expression.

"That’s the Axis Cathedral, headquarters of the Axis Cult."

"The Axis Cult..."

Kagura frowned.

After witnessing how fanatical its followers had been earlier, she had instinctively become wary of the entire religion.

Any curiosity she might have had about going inside disappeared immediately.

She tugged on Kanna’s hand.

"Then let’s get out of here."

Haruto completely agreed.

The last thing he wanted was to get surrounded by even more Axis Cultists.

Unfortunately, just as the three turned to leave, the cathedral doors creaked open.

Several cultists dressed in blue robes emerged.

Leading them was the Axis Cult’s High Priest, Zesta. Beside him walked Priestess Cecily and the church treasurer, Tristan.

Zesta immediately spotted Haruto and the others.

His previously respectable expression lit up with alarming intensity.

"Oh! Praise Lady Aqua!"

With a wildly exaggerated motion, Zesta rushed toward them.

"Three travelers from afar! You must have been guided here by the glorious radiance of Lady Aqua so that you could join the Axis Cult!"

"Come, come! Allow me to personally handle your registration!"

"Once you join us, you’ll receive Lady Aqua’s divine protection!"

Zesta spoke rapidly as he crowded closer, breathing hard with an almost fanatical smile.

Kagura’s expression immediately darkened.

She opened her wind fan and stared at him coldly.

"Stay away from us."

The man clearly looked unstable.

Haruto slapped a hand over his forehead.

He knew coming anywhere near the Axis Cathedral had been a terrible idea.

They should have taken a different street.

Just then, a gentle voice interrupted.

"High Priest Zesta, you’re being extremely rude. You’re making our guests uncomfortable."

Cecily hurried forward in her blue nun’s habit and stepped between them.

She first gave Haruto and the others an apologetic smile, then turned toward Zesta.

"You can’t force people to join the church."

Then Cecily turned around.

Her eyes immediately sparkled when she noticed Kanna standing beside Haruto.

She quickly approached, took Kanna’s small hands in both of hers, and smiled excitedly.

"Oh my, you’re such an adorable little girl!"

"Would you like to go soak in a hot spring with your big sister?"

"I know a wonderfully comfortable secret spring that only members of the Axis Cult are allowed to use!"

Caught completely off guard by Cecily’s enthusiasm, Kanna blinked in confusion.

Then she instinctively looked toward Haruto for help.

Haruto stared back in silence.

’There really isn’t a single normal person in this cult.’

Taking a breath, he spoke with absolute firmness.

"I’m very sorry, but we have no interest whatsoever in joining the Axis Cult, and we don’t want to visit any secret hot springs either."

"Please move aside. We have other things to do."

After such a decisive rejection, the smiles on Zesta and Cecily’s faces vanished.

Both looked deeply disappointed.

"Such a shame. Three promising believers lost..."

Zesta hung his head miserably.

"What a waste. She’s such a cute little girl too."

Cecily sighed and reluctantly released Kanna’s hands.

Haruto and the others thought they could finally escape.

Then Cecily suddenly looked up.

"By the way, are you adventurers?"

Haruto paused.

After thinking about it for a moment, he nodded.

"You could say that."

Their main objective was to collect ingredients rather than take random quests, but Haruto did intend to register with the Adventurers Guild.

The skill system in this world was particularly interesting.

As long as someone had enough skill points and found a person willing to teach them, they could learn all kinds of abilities with surprising ease.

Several practical skills had already caught Haruto’s interest.

"That’s perfect!"

Cecily’s eyes lit up.

"Then would you be interested in an escort quest?"

"For certain reasons, I need to travel to Axel. I was actually planning to hire some dependable adventurers to escort me."

"I’ll pay very generously."

The idea had obviously just occurred to her.

Originally, Cecily had planned to travel to Axel with a merchant caravan.

But now that she had run into Haruto and the others, hiring them suddenly seemed much more appealing.

And if they traveled together, she might even find an opportunity along the way to convince them to join the Axis Cult.

"Axel?"

Haruto raised an eyebrow.

That was convenient.

He had already been planning to leave Alcanretia and head for Axel.

Alcanretia was famous for its hot springs, but the surrounding region had very few monsters and consequently very little in the way of interesting ingredients.

Axel, on the other hand, stood near the frontier of human territory.

Its surrounding wilderness was home to all kinds of monsters and rare ingredients.

Haruto also had no intention of simply flying straight there.

Plenty of monsters roamed the wilderness between Alcanretia and Axel, which would give him the perfect opportunity to gather ingredients along the way.

Since they were heading there anyway, bringing Cecily along was hardly a problem.

Haruto nodded.

"Sure. We’ll take the job."

"Really? That’s wonderful!"

Cecily broke into a radiant smile.

"In that case, let me treat you to a meal! We can discuss the travel arrangements while we eat."