Goddess Kaleidoscope

Noticing the other person's reaction, Lude remained outwardly unmoved, but inwardly added another "lecherous" label to the guy, while feeling a slight displeasure.

Trilling was clearly unaware of this. After Shanis put down her tea and left the reception room, he asked Ludr impatiently.

"Priest, does your religion offer services to break curses?"

End of this chapter

"Curse removal service?"

The term "unspell" used by Trin was relatively unfamiliar to Lud, easily conjuring up images of religious rituals involving exorcism and purification. However, judging from the other's expression, it was clear that it referred to something else entirely.

Elwin, a true local veteran, knew what the term meant and immediately became embarrassed. He quickly coughed twice to remind Trinn to be careful with his words in front of Lud.

The so-called "uncurse breaking" or "physical curse breaking" is essentially a form of sexual transaction disguised as religion. Some monasteries, under the guise of helping people break curses, have young nuns or charming monks solicit clients, who then indulge in their whims at the behest of wealthy and powerful high-ranking members of the Fire Church.

This is not a widespread phenomenon, but it is not uncommon.

Moreover, compared to ordinary prostitutes, the status of clergy adds extra allure to these nuns, thus their prices are much higher. They belong to high-end clubs that only the "upper class" can afford, and are not open to the public. Most ordinary people are unaware of them, and those who do dare not speak of it casually.

Ironically, the vast majority of these nuns who come out to solicit customers are orphans adopted by the convent from a young age. They grew up in a religious environment almost completely isolated from the outside world and are extremely devout to their God. Long-term brainwashing education has made them trust the nuns' orders without question, and they truly believe that they are doing good deeds, using their pure bodies to help people break curses.

The gods who gain more faith from them turn a blind eye to the deception and suffering they endure.

Of course! Not all traditional gods are so cold-blooded. The Holy Light Cult of the three founding families explicitly prohibits such behavior. Lord Caius of Light can be said to be the most righteous among the gods.

Another exception is the Cult of the God of War. The God of War, Feigolai, is not a god who respects women. This arrogant battle maniac always believed that beauties are only for the strong, and that strength can get everything.

Therefore, the Cult of the God of War has nuns who provide "special services" and are known as "Goddesses." Every three years, the main cult, the City of Aegis, hosts a God-Fighting Tournament, inviting the strongest warriors from across the land to participate. The victor not only receives divine weapons and the blessing of the God of War, but is also invited to the idyllic paradise of Pleasure Island.

The Cult of the God of War has prepared a full one hundred goddesses here. The champion can enjoy their beautiful bodies at will, but there is one condition: all one hundred goddesses must become pregnant before he can leave Pleasure Island.

The children born to these goddesses will be raised by the War God Cult, receiving martial arts training from a young age, and joining the War God Cult's most elite War Mad Legion upon reaching adulthood.

Lud didn't know much about this, so at first he really didn't understand what Trillin meant. But Trillin, who couldn't forget Shanis at first sight, saw that Lud was silent and clearly misunderstood him. He directly ordered his men to take out a bag of jingling gold coins, saying that it would only take one night.

At this point, even if Lud were an idiot, he would understand what Trin was up to. Lud thought to himself, "If you don't mind messing around with Shanis's 'second form,' then I can really arrange it for you."

If it weren't for the fact that the next "show" required the other party's cooperation, Lu De would have really wanted to splash the tea in his hand on this spoiled brat's face, then grab his fire unicorn and "respectfully see" him out.

So Ludwig didn't get angry, but instead kept a straight face and spoke in a tone that clearly revealed his displeasure.

“Young Master Telin, although my sect is not a prestigious one, the goddess teaches us believers to respect and cherish ourselves. I am not so poor that I need to humiliate my disciples. I don’t want to hear what you just said a second time, otherwise I will have to see you out.”

Realizing that Lud was genuinely angry, Trilling realized he had inadvertently offended him. Although he cursed Lud inwardly for his "hypocritical arrogance," he still put on a very apologetic expression and apologized to him.

In an attempt to ease the awkward atmosphere, Erwin stepped forward to try and change the subject.

"By the way, Master, do you know anything about divination?"

"I know a little bit about it. What, are you interested?"

"It's nothing. It's just that on the way to Pine Town, Young Master Terlin mentioned divination quite a bit, so I thought that you, Master, are very knowledgeable and should know a lot about this."

When Erwin mentioned divination, and Lud said he knew a little about it, Trin became interested. The reason he had gone out was because the necromancer Dick had the good fortune to obtain a token from the legendary diviner Merritt, and asked her to perform a divination for him, which led him to find out the whereabouts of the God of Thieves' artifact.

Although Trillin learned about the matter afterward by bribing an intermediary, the intermediary only knew that the necromancer had obtained the information he wanted from Merritt, but did not know the specific content of the divination. This is why Trillin could only follow Dick like a shadow, unable to get ahead of him.

So, with a try-it-and-see attitude, he also made a request to Ludwig.

"Master, how about this? Consider that bag of money as payment for the divination, and in return, please show me your skills."

"Oh! What do you want to have divined?"

"To divine what I am looking for."

After a brief eye contact with Trin, Lud suddenly revealed a mysterious smile. He looked at Erwin beside him and asked if he had any copper coins, preferably old ones, to lend him eleven for now.

This was the first time Erwin had ever heard of using copper coins for divination, so he took out his purse, pulled out eleven coins, and handed them to Rud.

Lud took the copper coin, had Trillin hold it with both hands, and then explained as he placed it down.

"My divination technique is a secret art passed down by a female shaman, requiring only old copper coins. Because copper coins are the most widely circulated and have come into contact with the most people, they have gradually become spiritual, possessing the ability to communicate with the heavens and the earth. Young Master Terlin, I will teach you a spell. After I place these eleven copper coins in your hand, you should recite it three times. Then I will recite another spell, and you should naturally release your hands, scattering these copper coins onto the table. Be careful not to drop them on the ground, otherwise you will have to start over. Do you understand?"

"I understand now, what is the incantation?"

"The spell is very simple, listen carefully... Thank you, Brother Fly (Cantonese)."

Because he didn't understand Earth's language, Trin didn't know what the spell meant, but he was fooled by Lude's mysterious attitude. After Lude put the copper coin in his hand, he seriously imitated the pronunciation and said "Thank you, Brother Fly" three times.

After he finished reading, Lu De pretended to make a hand seal, and then casually uttered the characteristic curse he had long wanted to say to this second-generation gangster.

"You're going to eat shit!"

End of this chapter

Lud had absolutely no knowledge of divination, but that didn't stop him from using his superb acting skills to thoroughly fool Trin!

After Lud finished chanting the "spell," Trin tossed eleven copper coins onto the cashmere mat spread out on the table. Lud then pretended to stare at the scattered coins, first running his left hand over all the heads-up coins, then his right hand over the tails-up coins.

Trilling couldn't understand Lud's methods because divination in this world didn't have fixed rituals. Crystal balls, skulls, and even compasses were all used, and Lud wasn't the only one using coins as props.

However, this profession is a mixed bag; nine out of ten fortune tellers are frauds. There are indeed some real masters, but these extraordinary individuals are mostly legendary figures and are rarely seen.

However, Lud is a well-known priest in the northern part of the kingdom, and he also has the title of "saint". With this series of halos, his words naturally have a higher credibility.

After gesturing at a pile of coins for a while, Lud's expression grew increasingly serious, as if he had gleaned something from them. However, just as Trillin was starting to get impatient, Lud suddenly looked up and questioned Trillin in a reproachful tone.

"You're looking for a magical artifact! Why didn't you say so sooner?"

"I……"

When Lude revealed that the object they were searching for was a divine artifact, Trinn was stunned into silence. Lude, meanwhile, reached out and flipped over a woolen cushion, covering all the copper coins. Then, with slightly trembling hands, he picked up a teacup, took a large gulp, and lay back in the soft chair, closing his eyes and rubbing his temples, looking as if he had exhausted himself.

"Master, are you...are you alright?"

"Nothing happened? How could nothing happen? Divine artifacts are creations of the gods, and divination is a forbidden practice that goes against the will of heaven. It is a grave taboo for mortals to use forbidden methods to pry into the possessions of the gods. If I hadn't reacted quickly and stopped in time, I would probably be punished by the heavens by now! You young man are so unethical. I am already sixty-nine years old, and you almost killed me! If you had said earlier that what you were looking for was a divine artifact, I would have used a different divination technique that was more suitable."

With a face that looked like that of a seventeen or eighteen-year-old, Lude rambled on and on like an old man for a full five minutes, which made Trillin very frustrated, but he could only meekly agree without daring to say a word. Because what he had just witnessed had completely convinced him that Lude was very likely a legendary fortune teller whose skills were no less than those of "Lady of the Heavens" Merritt.

Trilling was indeed an arrogant playboy, but he still had some self-awareness. He knew that there were always people more powerful than him in this world, and that some real big shots were not only untouchable by Trilling, but even his father would have to kneel down in their presence.

And so, just like a chameleon, Trinn's attitude toward Lud became respectful in an instant.

"Master, I'm so sorry! I didn't expect it to be this serious, but you just mentioned another divination technique that can be used to find divine artifacts. Please lend me your help. If you can help me find this artifact, my Navarro family will reward you handsomely!"

In front of Lud, Trinn introduced his family for the first time. Although the Navarro family was not a noble family officially recognized by the kingdom, their influence in the southern border was comparable to that of a duke, and they had very deep connections in both the legitimate and underworld circles. Even Erwin, who was standing to the side, showed a hint of surprise after hearing Trinn introduce himself.

Lude continued rubbing his temples with his eyes closed, and after a long while, he spoke slowly and deliberately in a slightly tired voice.

"Three days! Come back to me in three days. Divination is not a technique that can be used continuously. At best, it will shorten your lifespan; at worst, it will cause you to die on the spot. Moreover, what you are looking for is a divine artifact, which requires the corresponding divination technique and a specific time. Come back on a dark night three days from now!"

Waving for Shanis to see the guests off, and dismissing Trinn and his group, Ludd sat on the recliner in the reception room with his eyes still closed. He had intended to steal a moment to take a nap, but the quiet room was suddenly filled with the crisp sound of coins clinking together. Ludd opened his eyes and saw that Hume had somehow taken up the seat opposite him, sitting with his legs crossed, flipping coins.

"Honestly, I think if there were a God of Deception, you would definitely be the number one choice. I really can't find anyone in this world who is better at deceiving than you."

"Is that a compliment you?"

"Yes, it counts!"

Hume smiled, tossed the copper coin to Ludwig, and then casually took off his over-the-knee boots in front of her, stretching out his small, delicate feet.

Hume had been keeping watch for two days straight without sleep or rest, so he naturally didn't have time to change his clothes. Fortunately, the gods have a special constitution, able to sweat without producing any odor, otherwise the scene at this moment would hardly be described as "fragrant" or "erotic".

Lude knew that Hume had been having a tough time lately. While she was working so hard for herself, she had also been doing Lude a lot of help.

"You've worked so hard these past two days."

"Hmph! Since you know I've worked so hard, shouldn't you reward me properly?"

"Um... how would you like me to treat you?"

"I want to eat that milky white stuff from last time."

She deliberately used a very ambiguous phrase and even licked her lips. Although Lude subconsciously thought of something else for a second, she quickly realized what Hume meant... She wanted to eat ice cream!

Ice cream is a new dessert that Lude came up with on a whim last month, and to him it's something he "ate in his past life".

At Lud's suggestion, Pine Town built its own ice cellar last year. The method is actually quite simple: once the river is completely frozen in winter, there will be an inexhaustible supply of ice blocks, which can be scooped out and stored in specially built ice cellars. As long as the water inside is drained, the ice blocks can be stored throughout the summer.

This year, the town introduced more than a dozen dairy cows, providing a supply of fresh milk. So, Lu De tried making his own ice cream, which was immediately praised by all the goddesses in his family.

Hume also loved this cool dessert, but unfortunately Ludd only made it once because the cows' production was still very limited.

Lude had commissioned the merchants to order these dairy cows from elsewhere to improve the nutrition of his students. There were supposed to be twenty cows, but only fifteen arrived alive, and of those, only eight were adult cows capable of producing milk.

Unlike the modern dairy industry on Earth, the breed of cows in Lud's farm is incomparable to those on Earth, and the yield from hand-milking is very low. With hundreds of students at the school, each student can only be given a small cup of 150 milliliters on Mondays, so Lud is quite reluctant to part with it.

However, considering that Hume had indeed been working very hard lately, Ludd decided to make an exception and cook it for her again as a special treat.

End of this chapter

Using her homemade hand-cranked ice cream machine, Ludwig made a special serving of juice ice cream for Hume. She had intended to make more so that everyone could have some, but unfortunately, it was Monday and most of the milk had been delivered to the school. Ludwig had to carry a wooden bucket to the ranch to squeeze out a little milk and barely manage to make one bowl.

There was clearly not enough ice cream for everyone, so Ludwig had to let Hume secretly eat it all. If Aina found out, they'd be sulking for at least half a month.

"Sigh! It seems I'll have to do some research on whether I can use divine magic to stimulate milk production in cows, otherwise the yield is just too low."

"Hey, you're supposed to be a priest, can you please stop trying to do weird things with your divine magic?"

While enjoying his delicious ice cream, Hume grumbled about Ludd's ever-present blasphemous ideas. Using divine power to stimulate milk production in cows—what a ridiculous thought!

However, the bowl of ice cream was quickly finished, and Hume even scraped the bowl clean with a spoon, still feeling somewhat unsatisfied. This made Hume, who had just been criticizing Luddite for abusing divine power, suddenly find using divine magic to induce milk production in cows not so unacceptable.

"Speaking of which, you bought more than a dozen dairy cows, and then you gave all the milk to the children at the school for free. It's so difficult for us to even have an ice cream. Is it really necessary to go to such lengths to do good deeds?"

“You’re mistaken. I’m not doing good deeds, I’m investing in the future.”

"Investing in the future?"

"Yes, a future that will be better than the present."

Without offering much explanation, Ludwig didn't expect Hume to understand his thoughts at that moment. As a transmigrator, Ludwig always felt a sense of loneliness in this world that he couldn't easily share with others, which was why he put so much effort into establishing the school—he was placing his hopes on those children.

Three days passed quickly, and Terlin finally arrived at the temple early on Thursday night when the moon was dark, bringing his men to meet Lud.

Contrary to his expectations of a mysterious ritual, Lud did not set up any complicated or mysterious altar. Instead, he took out a black metal plate engraved with many ancient characters and numbers, and a small circular object.