She then demonstrated her second and Third Soul Skills in turn: "This is the 'Swift Blueberry Cake.' Eating it can increase movement speed by about 60% for the duration of a meal. This one is the 'Purification Fruit Cake.' It can remove some common negative statuses, like poisoning or weakness. You'll feel more energetic after eating it, and all attributes are temporarily increased by about 20%. The effect only lasts for a little while." She introduced them quite casually, and the values were rough estimates; as long as they worked, it was fine.
Neuvillette looked at the sweet-smelling cakes of various shapes and was silent for a moment. "So, the spread of the 'Axis Cult' faith relies primarily on... giving away these desserts with special effects?" His tone sounded as if he were confirming the details of a very serious judicial case, even though the content was still a bit beyond imagination.
"Exactly! Food is the first necessity of the people!" Furina said righteously. "After eating my cakes and feeling the tangible benefits, they'll feel grateful for the Water God's grace, and won't faith just follow? It's simple, direct, and effective! And look," she lowered her voice, "our doctrine is so harmonious—no fighting or brawling, just giving out cakes and helping people. How wonderful! It's much more noble than those Sects and Families that fight and kill all day over resources!"
Neuvillette seemed to take some time to digest this religious model centered on food distribution and assisted Awakening. He spoke slowly, asking the key questions: "Then, how are the internal organizational structure, believer registry management, resource allocation records, dispute mediation processes, and... the production cost accounting and efficiency optimization of the 'sacred objects' currently being conducted?"
"Uh..." Furina's expression froze, her eyes began to wander, and her fingers unconsciously twirled her hair. "Well... haha... currently... for now... it's mainly handled by me... personally! I go by feel! Plus Mademoiselle Crabaletta and the others help out occasionally..." Her voice grew smaller and smaller, clearly lacking confidence.
Neuvillette understood. He looked around this courtyard, which had no planning to speak of and was littered with miscellaneous items, and formed a preliminary judgment on the extent of "personally" and "going by feel." This was practically equivalent to having no management at all.
"I see." He nodded without saying much more, but his eyes already carried a sense of "urgent need for systematic reorganization."
Just then, a growing commotion began to drift in from outside, sounding like a large crowd gathering. It was the believers who came every day at a fixed time to collect cakes, as well as adults from nearby villages bringing their children to try for Spirit Master Awakening.
Furina slapped her forehead: "Right! This is the perfect time to introduce you to everyone! Let's give you a grand entrance!" Without another word, she grabbed Neuvillette's sleeve (not daring to grab his hand directly) and walked out.
As soon as she pushed open that creaking, broken wooden door, a dense crowd of people came into view. Most were sallow-faced commoners in patched clothes, their eyes filled with expectation and a hint of numbness. Seeing Furina come out, they immediately became restless, shouting "Lord Pope" and "Water God's Grace."
Then, their gaze fell upon the figure behind Furina.
The noise came to an abrupt halt, as if someone had seized them by the throat.
Everyone's eyes widened as they looked at the man standing beside their Pope.
That man wore clothes they had never seen before—so magnificent they didn't seem to belong to the Mortal world. His long white hair was groomed meticulously, and his face was handsome yet cold as a sculpture. His cerulean eyes swept over the crowd with a natural, breathtaking majesty. Simply by standing there, he formed an incredibly sharp contrast with the dilapidated surroundings and the ragged crowd, as if a Heavenly God had wandered into a slum.
The air was terrifyingly quiet.
Furina cleared her throat, trying to make herself look very solemn: "Um... citizens of the Water God! Today I'd like to introduce a new friend! This is Mr. Neuvillette! He is... he is my Special Envoy! He's here specifically to assist me in managing the cult's affairs and helping everyone! In the future, if you have anything and can't find me, you can also report to him! Mr. Neuvillette is most just and reasonable!"
As she spoke, she peeked at Neuvillette out of the corner of her eye, fearing he would pull the rug out from under her.
Neuvillette's face showed no particular expression. He simply took half a step forward and nodded slightly to the silent crowd. His voice was steady and deep, clearly reaching everyone's ears: "Greetings, everyone. I am Neuvillette. From now on, I will assist Miss Furina in handling the cult's affairs. If you have requests, you may present them in an orderly fashion."
There were no extra words, but that powerful aura and that indescribable majesty—completely different from ordinary Spirit Master nobles—caused the crowd below to freeze for a few seconds before suddenly erupting into even more heated discussion.
"Water God Special Envoy?" "Heavens... such poise..." "He looks so powerful..." "Even a Special Envoy has come to help us?"
There was doubt, there was awe, and more than anything, a strange excitement and anticipation. Though they didn't understand, they felt this Special Envoy looked especially reliable! Much more reliable than their occasionally flighty Lord Pope!
Furina sighed in relief as she watched the reaction of the believers below, feeling a bit proud. She nudged Neuvillette beside her and whispered, "See, everyone welcomes you! From now on, I'll leave maintaining order during cake distribution, registering the names, doing the accounts, and mediating arguments to you!"
Neuvillette looked at this group of emotional, eager people and was silent for a moment. Assisting in the management of a religious organization centered on distributing special-effect cakes and attempting Awakening was indeed a responsibility he had never imagined in his long life.
But he still nodded, a hint of undetectable helplessness and... perhaps a very faint sense of responsibility flashing in his cerulean eyes.
"Understood." He responded, his gaze already turning toward the crowd, which was starting to become a bit disorganized. "Let us begin today's affairs. Everyone, please maintain order and proceed in turn."
The Iudex's re-employment in another world began with maintaining the order of the line for cakes and Awakening. His first task might be to figure out exactly how many of those children eager to Awaken actually met the 'age' standard—after all, some of them looked like it was a question whether they were even four years old...