"Do we… need to decide which one of us gets to live? In that case, I want Erebus to live. But I also want Nyx to live… what to do…"

"M-Me too. I want Eon to live. I-I and Erebus can go away…"

"…"

The kids were trying to keep it together, and it was a heartbreaking scene to see. But even more heartbreaking was the fact that none of these kids had any hope. They looked lost and frustrated.

Their guardian griffin gave me an angry and helpless look, clearly telling me that I needed to do something about this situation at hand.

Luckily for him, I was on his side, and I coughed to grab everyone's attention.

The kids looked at me with their huge shining eyes, and I felt like I could not let them down.

"You are all in luck. Goddess Helia told me to help you out, and she also told me that someone interfered with the prophecy, so it was no longer valid. No one has to die because of this misunderstanding."

I told the kids, and the light came back to their eyes.

"R-Really—! We don't have to die?"

Nyx asked, her small and beady eyes looking at me with trust. The more these kids looked at me, the more uncomfortable I felt.

I turned my head away from them and instead turned toward the guardian.

"I had a small talk with Goddess Helia, and she assured me that as long as we get to connect together during the ceremony tomorrow, she will help us out. However, the Cardinal told me that the Goddess told him something else when she talked to him…"

The guardian griffin's eyes widened, and he shook his head. He suddenly seemed to know what was happening.

"So that's what it was… For the past few days, I have been hearing a voice in my head that sounded like the goddess as well, but her words sounded different from the command I had been given. Now I am sure that it was someone's trick, and I am not the only victim."

The guardian told me, and things were starting to become far too complicated for me to handle.

I longed to go back to my shop and do nothing but laze around the whole day. I did not want to put my life on the line either.

But here I was, doing exactly what I told myself I was not to do.

"If that voice managed to even fool me, the guardian born of Goddess Helia's power, then the priests likely held no chance against it. At this rate, I am not sure whether they would even connect to Goddess Helia or not during the ceremony… or maybe, the ceremony is just an excuse…"

The griffin seemed to trail off into his own world as he muttered more and more possibilities I could not understand.

Nor did I want to understand what was going on.

My only mission was to take these kids to safety and then have the goddess uphold her part of the deal.

"So, we can conclude a few things here. First, these kids were the likely targets of the false goddess, but not the only ones. Second, the ceremony is being used to fulfill their purpose. Now all we need is a solution."

I told the griffin, and he looked grim.

"Well, there is one solution. I can burn all the faith in my body and break through the ceremony barrier to connect to the Goddess Helia and give her a chance to interfere. But I am not sure I can get her to pay attention in the first place. She must be incredibly busy to not even notice what is happening…"

The griffin told me, and he sounded convinced.

But something inside told me that rather than being busy, the goddess was more uninterested in anything that did not catch her eyes.

Even that prophecy—it seemed as if the goddess knew about it since forever but only decided to do something about it once I came along.

But I refrained from saying anything, lest someone take offense and decide it was time to end my life for offending them.

"So, are you saying that as long as the goddess pays attention to what's happening, you will be able to connect to her?"

I asked, and the griffin nodded.

"Yes. I will likely exhaust all of my faith and life force, but if it gives these kids a chance to live, I want to take that. In return, I have a favor to ask of you, Shopkeeper. Will you listen to it?"

The griffin asked me, and my bullshit meter started to beep.

I had a sudden feeling that I should not hear this request because it would cause me too much trouble, and based on the pattern of how the conversation was going, I already knew what I would be asked.

'No, don't ask me to look after the kids. I can barely look after myself here. I cannot afford more bodies to look after. Someone—! Anyone—! Help me out!'

"Master, jump back. We are being attacked."

I asked in my mind, and just then, the bushes ruffled and a burst of energy cut between me and the griffin.

Both of us managed to dodge in time as the dust caused us to be separated.

A flash of green jumped toward me, and my body moved on its own to get out of the way. The assassin in green attacked, and the griffin quickly looked around, checking if there were more people nearby.

"Shopkeeper, please take care. I will take the kids to safety. Please, find a way to have Goddess Helia pay attention to us for a second. A single second would do…"

The griffin told me as he took the kids back.

'Traitor—! That griffin just left me to die—!'

I cried out in my mind as Fenrir attacked the ankles of the assassin in front of me.

Logically, I knew that the griffin made the right decision to protect the kids in this situation. That was his task, after all.

But just because I logically knew it did not mean I wanted to understand it either.

"Master, don't worry—! I will protect you."

Fenrir told me as he let go of that leg and came back to stand in front of me.

The assassin he had bitten limped a little but was still able to move.

However, I was more afraid of more assassins being around than this single one. Just how many could we even take before Fenrir was overpowered?

'Is there really nothing I can do about it? What about Fenrir's employee sheet? Where is it...?'

A dire wolf was a dangerous creature most people feared. But Fenrir was still a pup and needed time to unlock his potential.

I had a duty to protect him…

'Huh—! What's that? Skill sets…? I can unlock them now? When did Fenrir grow… and how expensive… 250 faith points for each? I can only select one for now.'

Once again, the system was hell-bent on exploiting me… and once again, I was ready to pay up the price for my life.

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