Chapter 100: Acolyth of Luna

POV Eliza

“The decision, or rather two of them, will not be easy for you, but they are necessary. I am about to present you with a choice that you are free to make. There is one option that I would like you to choose, but in order not to influence you, I won't say which one.” <Luna>

“That's unfair now. Then how am I supposed to know if it's the right one.” <Eliza>

“Don't sulk, I was just teasing you. Let me have my fun too. There's no right and wrong, but they all have different effects on you and your further development. Just as there is no right or wrong, affinity alone never determines whether someone becomes good or bad. For example, someone with a light affinity can become both a ruler or a saint. There are many areas within light magic that you can specialize in. However, the whole subject should not be trivialized. Light mages are less likely to become criminals than dark mages, but they do exist. Magic itself is always neutral, it's much more important how someone uses it.

You now know that there are magic affinities among the elves and that they are unevenly distributed. The only affinity I haven't told you much about is the dark affinity. Like the light affinity, it is also something special and is now quite rare among the elves. Just as light elves are usually the rulers, dark elves also have a task that they perform particularly often.” <Luna>

“Really, which one?” <Eliza>

“The dark elves have chosen the priestly profession particularly often. I have to tell you something about the religions and the gods they worship at this point. To put it simply, every major race has its own deity that it worships. The humans have Lumos, the dwarves have Angrim and the elves have Feylania, while the Beastfolk worship Leon and Leone. Lumos among the humans in the Empire is monotheistic and no other gods are tolerated. Angrim among the Dwarves is almost monotheistic, but this is mainly because Angrim is seen as there progenitor and other gods simply have a very minor role. They are tolerated as long as no one tries to convert a dwarf. The religion is probably rather polytheistic with an extremely dominant main deity. The elves have Feylania and it is similar there, although not as pronounced as with the dwarves. Leon and Leone are a married couple and dominate the Beastfolk.” <Luna>

“And what about you?” <Eliza>

“That's a very good question, albeit a rather sad one. I have very few followers left. There aren't a hundred left on the continent, as far as I know. I only have two priests left with whom I have contact. Freyna, the one you told me about, wasn't one of them. She's just a lay priestess. The wandering elf she spoke of is one of them, though. How nice that Ayla is still alive. I haven't heard from her in a while.” <Luna>

“Does that mean that when others touch your statue in the shrine, they can't talk to you? Otherwise you would know about it?” <Eliza>

“Yes, that's right. Only people with a certain connection to me can do that. You must have been touched by my power, which usually means that you have received my consecration. You, however, have been reborn through me. Obviously that counts as influenced by my power." <Luna>

I felt her smile again. My blush intensified.

“It will also make me eternally grateful to you.” <Eliza>

“I'm glad to hear that. I have very few followers these days and because I have no contact with anyone but you at the moment, I know almost nothing about the current situation in Narran. I only know what the other gods tell me. But it's good to hear that Ayla is still actively spreading my faith. You don't need to be afraid of her either, even if she has a wild personality. She will test you in some way when she meets you. And she will recognize you immediately. Her senses are extremely keen. She can sense the remnants of my power that lie dormant within you.” <Luna>

“I still don't know what that has to do with my problem.” <Eliza>

“Sorry, I'm rambling again. I so rarely talk to mortals and you're my champion, so I have to take advantage of that. About your problem. As you now know, the elves mostly worship Feylania, but not all of them do. There are essentially two groups that only do so to a very limited extent. These are the light elves and the dark elves. The light elves are drawn to the god of the sun, but since he is Lumos and doesn't like non-humans, that's a problem. This is another component of the light elves' madness. For all these reasons, most of the light elves don't live with the other elves, but have their own city high in the eastern mountains. Feylania is very sad that Lumos has an additional negative influence on the light elves, further alienating them. This city is also where the light dungeon is located.

The other group are the dark elves. Although they get along with the other elves, unlike the light elves, most of them do not live with them. They once had their own city, but it was destroyed by the humans a long time ago. Some of the light elves probably played a decisive role in this. But I'm digressing again. In the city of the dark elves, I was worshipped as the main deity and my priesthood consisted exclusively of dark elves. After the destruction, the survivors dispersed among the surrounding peoples. Only a few dark elves still live on Narran, at least as far as I know. The only other priest apart from Ayla lives in the demon realm, but he hasn't been in touch for a long time. Through our connection, however, I would know if he had died, so he must still be alive.” <Luna>

“Luna, on topic please. I don't have many MPs left.” <Eliza>

“Oh, sure. Let's get straight to the decision. Actually, there are two that I want you to make. About the first one, I want you to become my priestess. You are already my champion and when you receive my consecration, you can contact me with a ritual even without my statue. Perhaps Freyna can tell you how to do this. Otherwise you have to find Ayla. In the first step of the consecration, you will receive as your second class acolyte. What do you think?” <Luna>

I didn't have to think for long. For one thing, it was a way of showing my gratitude, and for another, the advantages of a second class were undeniable. The sooner I got it, the more and faster I would reap the benefits. What's more, Priestess was a magic class and therefore a good complement to Scout. Besides, I couldn't learn a second class from humans anyway, as they prefer to change their classes. I had learned that from Lirella.

“Is there a disadvantage to that?” <Eliza>

“Only one. You can't change your second class, but that shouldn't be a problem. Lumos doesn't like second classes, so there are hardly any humans with a second class. Only highest church officials have one and I expect the other heroes will get one. Even Lumos can't argue away the advantages.” <Luna>

“Then that's what I'll do. Let me become your priestess.” <Eliza>

I could feel the statue warming up. This warmth spread from my hand to my entire body. In my head, I suddenly had the knowledge of how to perform various rituals. I would have to look at what had changed in my status later.

“What is the second choice you want me to make?” <Eliza>

“The second choice is how much you want the effects of your loss of control to affect you.” <Luna>

“I don't understand that. Please explain it to me.” <Eliza>

“But I'd love to.” <Luna>