Goddess Kaleidoscope

In short, Ludwig temporarily closed the third level of the labyrinth, citing its "excessive danger," prohibiting ordinary adventurers from approaching. There were protesters, but after witnessing those who had entered vertically and emerged horizontally, they all wisely chose to obey orders.

When everyone returned to the ground, it was already the afternoon of the next day. Lud met with the dwarf chieftain Gulig, who had just arrived from the ancient city. Previously, he had been unable to leave and had sent his nephew to oversee the situation. Now, he had finally found the time to be there in person and learn about the situation from Lud.

"Very dangerous?"

"It's even more troublesome than I expected, beyond the capabilities of ordinary people. However, one thing is almost certain: this maze is not a stronghold for demons to invade, but a playground for 'playing with people'—what an incomprehensible twisted sense of humor!"

Without batting an eye, Lude berated himself, and then he and Gulig exchanged ideas on how to effectively manage the labyrinth. Although this world had always been plagued by demons from beyond the realms, and demon-infested lairs appeared from time to time around the world, a labyrinth like the Spiral Abyss was a first.

Gulig was well aware of the greed inherent in human nature, and he believed that as word spread, even more adventurers would come seeking this place. Gulig felt both apprehensive and hopeful about this location.

After all, even dwarves are very tempted by such good things as gold and silver!

For Lud, more than half a month has passed since the maze opened, and the profits generated are far higher than he had expected. He has reaped both financial and spiritual rewards, which can greatly boost the local economy of Pine Town. It is a large project that can be operated for a long time.

However, many problems arose as a result. What concerned Lud was not the excessive difficulty or the incomplete middle and lower levels, but rather the fact that as the number of people entering the maze increased day by day, a new faith was quietly emerging within the maze.

When Lude entered the labyrinth himself before, he discovered that a light gray ball of faith floated inside the labyrinth. It was mainly generated by the adventurers who were searching for treasure in the labyrinth. Moreover, the more they were tortured, the more they produced, as if it were a materialized "masochistic soul".

Rud was startled when he first observed this belief, thinking that he had unintentionally turned the old thief into a demon as well, and that the adventurers had been tortured into believing in demons.

However, Lud soon discovered that these light gray orbs of light seemed to be different from faith. He, who possessed the primordial fire, could not actively absorb or control them. They only existed in the labyrinth and were only generated on adventurers who entered the labyrinth. They would stop abruptly as soon as they returned to the ground.

This remarkable discovery immediately piqued Ludwig's interest.

End of this chapter

In the following days, Lud entered the labyrinth several times, ostensibly to heal the wounded and rescue adventurers who were being tortured to the point of near death by traps and mechanisms, but in reality, he was observing the changes in the light gray faith within the labyrinth.

During this time, after receiving Lud's helpless reply, the Navarro family hurriedly left with the vegetative-looking body of Terin.

The captain of the guard, eager to atone for his crimes, planned to first travel to the capital to seek help from a major sect like the three founding families, hoping to cure Terin. Rudd didn't interfere much, displaying neither indifference nor excessive concern, much like a hidden mastermind.

However, a very awkward problem now lies before Lud: he has no idea where the necromancer Dick has gone!

Logically, the entire labyrinth belonged to Ludd, and the three sisters responsible for monitoring it could use their spying eyes to observe every corner of the labyrinth at any time. Even so, Dick mysteriously vanished after being stabbed by the old butler's aura avatar, and has not reappeared since. Besides Dick's disappearance, his surviving undead slaves have also vanished without a trace.

What is certain is that this guy definitely didn't leave through the main entrance, but if he's still inside the maze, there's no reason why the three sisters shouldn't be able to find him.

"How strange!"

As more and more adventurers are drawn to the labyrinth, a large camp covering hundreds of acres has now formed outside the entrance. Accommodation conditions are also being upgraded step by step, and even wooden cabins have been built.

Inside the newly built cabin at the outpost, Lud munched on a roujiamo (Chinese hamburger) he had just made, pondering his next move. With Trin becoming a soulless vegetable and Dick nowhere to be found, his "incitement plan" had fallen into an awkward predicament, making it difficult to continue.

Fortunately, there is still some time before the captain of the guard returns to Yanmu City with Terin's physical body, which should give him enough time to come up with a new plan.

As Ludd was pondering the problem, the sound of raindrops pattering on the roof began to appear. A short while later, Hume and Shanes ran in from outside, both of their clothes soaked with water.

"This darn weather, it starts raining suddenly."

Shaking the water droplets off his hair, Hume casually took off his coat, then sat down opposite Ludwig and reported on the situation near the camp.

It's early August, the rainy season in the north of the kingdom, and this year's rainfall has been exceptionally abundant, causing the rivers near the camp to swell dramatically. If this trend continues, there's a high possibility of flash floods.

Although the maze entrance is on higher ground and shouldn't be able to get up there during a flood, the surrounding low-lying areas would inevitably be blocked if flooded. Ludwig couldn't summon Nidhogg's "Dragon Aviation" yet, and he didn't want to be trapped here for ten days or half a month.

So the next morning, Lud set off back to Pine Town. When he returned to town, he received the first news from Aina, who had stayed behind: Kumirard had left without a word three days earlier, leaving only a letter.

Lud took the envelope, opened it, and found only a few words. Kumirard said he was going to the Empire to see some old friends and expected to return next year, telling Lud and Little Xiuxiu not to miss him too much.

Ludwig and Hume, who were named by her, both breathed a long sigh of relief.

"Oh my goodness, that old lady is finally gone."

"Don't be too happy yet, she said she'll be coming back next year!"

"At least we can have a good New Year, right?"

Although Kumirad kept emphasizing to Lud that he was neither friend nor foe, but only interested in Lud's deification efforts in Pine Town and wanted to stay near him for close observation, the other party soon became more than satisfied with simply looking around, which greatly troubled Lud and the others.

Now that annoying fellow is finally gone, even if it's just temporary peace and quiet, Lud is so happy he wants to set off firecrackers to celebrate.

Let's go out for barbecue tonight!

Besides Kumirad's departure, two other things happened in the days that Lud was away from town.

First, a new member arrived at the temple. The snake girl Hydra joined the temple as Rud's fourth disciple, and her cultivation of becoming a human officially entered the practical stage.

The townspeople, out of affection for the newcomer, were naturally very friendly towards her. However, her arrival also led to some private banter among the townspeople, who remarked that the priest's criteria for accepting disciples were remarkably simple: his four female disciples were all quite mature!

Another matter concerns the old lady, Si Lina. Three days ago at noon, she formally tried Maine and his gang for treason. She publicly hanged the masterminds, including Maine and his son, in the town, and then sent the remaining henchmen to hard labor.

Once she regained consciousness, the old lady displayed the decisiveness befitting a strong woman, showing no mercy to the Mayn father and son simply because they were relatives. It's worth noting that Lud had initially intended to spare Mayn's son, Monk, by sending him to the quarry to work as a bricklayer. But the old lady was determined to eliminate them both, resolved to send them to their deaths together.

Lude later learned that one of Maine's cunning advisors, in order to save his own life, had revealed to the old lady Maine's sinister plot that Maine had not yet had time to carry out. The plot was to kill the old lady, then arrange for the Baron to die unexpectedly, so that his son Monk could marry his daughter Lisa and complete the takeover of the Baron's house.

Such a vicious plan completely enraged the mother.

Fortunately, the old lady's ruthlessness was only directed at such wicked relatives who attempted to plunder and kill for money; she was very gentle when dealing with the townspeople in her territory.

After taking over the administration of the territory, the old lady first abolished the various exorbitant taxes that Myne had previously imposed, and also reduced the town's taxes for the second half of the year as compensation for the townspeople who had suffered at the hands of Myne and his gang.

This move directly reversed the townspeople's negative impression of the lord's family and solidified their popularity in the area.

It is worth mentioning that the old lady was originally a follower of the Holy Light Church, but she recently converted to the Church of the Medicine God. Ludger himself conducted her baptism ceremony, which earned her great favor from the local townspeople.

It is not hard to see from this series of actions that although the old lady has been devoted to her husband and children for decades, her abilities are far more than just being a housewife. She is a capable woman with both courage and skill.

In the foreseeable future, Pine Town will continue its rapid development, becoming increasingly prosperous and a rising star in the northern border of the kingdom.

However, with its growing prominence, the Pantheon under Luddite leadership will no longer be a small, inconspicuous entity that can remain in a remote corner. It will gradually begin to attract the attention, vigilance, covetousness, and even hostility of other traditional religious sects.

In fact, the name of the Medicine God Cult had already been established earlier in the first half of the year when Ludwig saved Oyster Harbor. However, due to the limited communication speed at the medieval level, the news was still spreading slowly.

Lud still has a lot of preparations to make to meet the many new challenges that are about to come.

End of this chapter

Inside the warm room, Hydra was fast asleep, curled up like a cat in the soft, comfortable blankets. Her peaceful sleeping face had the corners of her mouth occasionally turning up slightly, as if she were having a happy dream.

However, this simple and insignificant happiness did not last until the blissful moment of waking up naturally, and was soon shattered by Aina breaking down the door.

"Junior sister! Time to get up and work!"

Startled awake, Hydra sat bolt upright, staring blankly at her white-haired senior sister carrying a large broom outside the door. Her brain, not yet fully activated due to her low body temperature, took a full minute to process the name, but she still couldn't retrieve it from her memory.

"You... Aba aba..."

What are you babbling about?!

Hydra was groggily pulled out of bed, and it wasn't until a damp face cloth was rubbed against her face that she finally fully woke up.

I'm no longer a monster!

Less than two months have passed since the official start of the "human internship," and this snake girl, whose true identity is a monster lord, has now fully adapted to her new lifestyle and is enjoying it immensely.

Once upon a time, Hydra, still in its monster form, held almost all humanoid creatures in utter contempt. It considered these "little ones" incredibly weak, destined to occupy the pitiful bottom of the food chain in this cruel world of survival of the fittest. Before its powerful self, they were like bite-sized snacks, completely at its mercy.

At that time, she knew very little about the human race and always thought that they were similar to the lizardmen who worshipped them, probably living in dirty and damp nests, starving every day, forced to struggle on the brink of death for a meager amount of food, and living a precarious existence.

It wasn't until she met Rudd, who forcibly transformed her into human form with incredible power and brought her into human society, that she realized how terribly wrong she had been for the past few hundred years.

As usual, after washing up and getting dressed, Hydra's first task each day was to clean the house with her two senior sisters. Afterward, they would go to the dining hall to eat the delicious breakfast prepared by their junior sister, Romian. The freshly baked coarse wheat bread and steaming pork bone soup were the most delicious things she had ever eaten in her life. Naturally, Romian, who could make such delicious food, became the second most respected person in Hydra's heart, after Lud.

Hydra knows her current identity in the human world: a nun who worships the goddess of medicine, Evelina. There are three other nuns in the temple, whom she usually addresses as "senior sister" and "junior sister."

Besides the four of them, this "tribe" is also inhabited by other diverse people and creatures. And Lud, possessing immense power, is undoubtedly the supreme "chieftain" of this tribe!

At least for now, that's how Hydra understands it.

Hydra was initially quite bewildered about her new life after becoming human, simply going with the flow and doing whatever Lud made her do. Obedience and fear, along with the unforgettable pain she experienced when she was forcibly turned into a human, were imprinted on her soul.

However, as she spent more time with him, Hydra gradually discovered that this great demon who had the power to mold her at will was not actually that terrifying on a daily basis. He could be quite gentle at times, and even a casual compliment would make her feel very pleased and happy for a long time.

During her time living in the temple, Hydra had no aversion to chores like cleaning. What truly gave her a headache was the daily "cultural lessons," which she initially thought were some kind of punishment!

However, Hydra wasn't actually unintelligent; among the four nuns, she was the fastest learner, simply a late starter. Furthermore, before Kumirard left, he told Rudd that Hydra actually had the talent to become a magician and suggested she try learning magic.

Ultimately, so-called "monsters" are actually animal mages, possessing a strong affinity for elements and thus able to use some primitive types of magic. Since Hydra was able to grow into a monster lord, its talent is naturally among the strongest.

However, before formally learning magic, Lud first needs to bring Hydra's cultural level up to a responsive level.

After breakfast, Hydra, as usual, went to the study to receive Lud's one-on-one private tutoring. It was currently the school's autumn break, so Lud could focus his main energy on educating Hydra.

It's worth mentioning that Snake Girl had previously skipped a class at the urging of her senior sister Shanis. When Lude found out, he immediately summoned her using the Book of Ashes.

After that, Hydra never dared to skip class again.

When Hydra arrived at the study, Lud was not there. She remembered that the three sisters had suddenly found Lud in the basement the night before, saying that there had been a problem during the construction of the fifth floor of the maze and that Lud had rushed over overnight to fix the bug.

We haven't seen anyone yet, so they probably haven't come back.

After confirming that no one else was in the room, the snake girl tiptoed to a corner of the bookshelf and skillfully opened the hidden compartment inside.

This place was told to Hydra by her senior sister, Shanis, who said it contained many of their master's treasured "treasures," all quite valuable. Hume was the first to discover it, then told Shanis, and now Shanis is telling Hydra—it's like a sweet, inherited legacy!

When Hydra first opened the hidden compartment, she thought the so-called treasure was some powerful artifact or something else. But when she nervously pulled it out, she found it was just a bunch of books and comic books.

Hydra had seen similar things before; Ludd had used these small picture boards with text and illustrations as teaching materials when he was teaching her to read. But these treasured by Ludd were clearly not "preschool books"!

Because of her limited literacy, Hydra couldn't understand novels written entirely in text, but she could easily read picture books that combined text and pictures. However, the contents of the picture books greatly shocked and puzzled the snake girl.

"Is this what human intercourse is like?"

When the snake girl first saw these picture books, she was mainly confused and puzzled. Although she had lived for hundreds of years, she was a demon with a congenital mutation. So when she grew up, her size was too large to mate with her own kind.

In fact, in the natural world of this world, many female magical beast lords like Hydra eventually end up having an affair with male dragons, which is how those sub-dragon species came to be.

However, in the vicinity of Hydra's territory, there is only one male dragon, Nidhogg. He was raised by humans, so he has a family and ethical view that most dragons do not have. When faced with a female who is not of the same race, his first reaction is "dragons cannot, or at least should not." In addition, he had a conflict with Hydra in the past, so he naturally had no chance to develop an "interspecies" affair.

End of this chapter

Since the labyrinth officially began "operation", Lud has felt increasingly busy, with more work to do every day than the Pope, yet without the Pope's power, inevitably leading to feelings of laziness.

To put it simply, Master Lu wants to slack off!