Subscriber of the Gods Chapter 408 - Closing Ceremony (2)

Mason, Ron, and Yuna participated in the closing ceremony event.

However, two people remained behind.

“I hope I didn’t cause any trouble. I came in a bit late. Have I become your proud disciple?”

Roanna’s question resembled Oz’s.

“Of course. Especially you, Roanna.”

Ethan looked at Roanna.

“You’ve become free.”

Roanna’s worry had been the Prochet family itself.

Her talent exploded after the Prochet domain issue was resolved. Without worries, she could focus more on magic.

Moreover, Ethan had unleashed her talent in a different way.

‘Roanna’s obsession with magic formulas was because of the domain.’

Now, Roanna had become a magician who found interest in magic itself.

‘If I introduce Yerica to Roanna, she’ll develop even further. Frighteningly so.’

Of course, Yerica would also be positively influenced.

“My distracting thoughts have disappeared. It’s all thanks to you, Teacher Ethan.”

“You should enjoy today’s closing ceremony as much as you’ve worked hard, right? Everyone, have fun without holding back. It’s been a long race. We’ve won, and we deserve to celebrate. You two should have fun too. The winners have a duty to go and tell others how they won and how they trained.”

“…Yes!”

Roanna left too, and now only Oz remained.

“Oz, you too. You’ve set your goal now, right?”

“…Yes.”

“That’s right, whether you run or walk, go at your own pace.”

At your own speed.

Oz pondered those words from Ethan and smiled.

“I will do so, Teacher.”

***

As the students dispersed, it was now the teachers’ turn to seek out Ethan.

“I saw all the exchanges Teacher Ethan participated in. You were truly amazing. Oh, and congratulations on receiving the Master title! I sincerely congratulate you!”

“You were so cool! As of today, Teacher Ethan has become my goal!”

“I’d like to have a deeper conversation about entomology. I’ll definitely visit you someday.”

“I want to discuss herbs with you.”

“Congratulations, Teacher.”

“Congratulations!”

Numerous congratulations followed. Ethan smiled and greeted them. Now, even if Ethan stayed still, these people would raise his reputation on their own.

Having seen Ethan’s skills firsthand, they would also be the ones to prove how incredible it was for Ethan to become a Master teacher in just one year.

‘There’s no need to be cold to them.’

Moreover, Ethan was in quite a good mood.

‘I should enjoy this.’

As he had told the students, he intended to enjoy this moment a little. After all, he had been running for quite a long time for this exchange festival.

After the teachers from each academy left, it was now the turn of other representative teachers to seek out Ethan.

“I hope we can have more conversations later. Now that we’re both Master teachers and have the same mentor.”

Ethan nodded at Draxler’s words.

“Is Nathan causing you trouble? I’m truly grateful.”

“If it weren’t for Nathan, we would have lost to Vogue Academy. It was that incredible of an exchange festival. We were quite relaxed last year after winning, but we paid dearly for it. Next year won’t be like this.”

Draxler said with a smile and left.

The next to come was Wigen.

“Please forgive the rude behavior I showed before.”

Wigen apologized for the rudeness he had shown during the dungeon conquest exchange and left, saying he hoped they could meet again.

After socializing with various teachers, he finally had some time to rest alone.

“Phew.”

“Ethan Whiskers.”

But that was short-lived.

Someone approached Ethan as he was drinking a beverage in a quiet place.

“I greet you, Sword Saint.”

“To call me Sword Saint. Would you still call me Sword Saint if Jed Ramsdale and I were together?”

Mad Sword, the principal of Freya Academy, greeted Ethan with a smile.

“Of course. I apologize for not greeting you first.”

“Oh, that’s not why I came. You see.”

Mad Sword looked around, confirmed that Ghost Sword wasn’t there, and grinned.

“My hobby, you know. It’s fighting strong guys. Everyone jokes about it, but that’s the reason I took charge of Freya Academy.”

Mad Sword revealed his true colors. His face was flushed with excitement.

“I’ve been watching you. You were amazing. Could you spar with me once?”

Ethan was silent for a moment at that proposal, then said,

“It’s been difficult to control my strength lately, Sword Saint.”

For a moment, Mad Sword saw an illusion. Instead of Ethan, he saw a massive mountain before his eyes.

Could he climb it?

As soon as that thought occurred, the illusion vanished.

“Mad Sword! You rascal, I warned you so much! Didn’t I tell you not to bother our Teacher Ethan! You’ll get hurt!”

Ghost Sword, arriving with perfect timing, stood between Ethan and Mad Sword.

“I’m sorry, Teacher Ethan. You must have wanted to enjoy the finale.”

“Not at all, Principal.”

Ethan said with a smile.

“I’ll take Mad Sword away. Ah, and congratulations again. Who would have thought Princess Evangeline herself would bestow the Master title here!”

Ghost Sword was quite gleeful. An official Master teacher had been born at Ivecar Academy.

Moreover, it took less than a year for that Master teacher to achieve this status.

It was the shortest time ever for someone to become a Master teacher.

Next year, Ivecar would be flooded with new students.

Following that, numerous talents from across the continent would gather to become teachers.

Ivecar had essentially reclaimed its position as the continent’s top academy.

In fact, Ivecar Academy had gained so much through this exchange festival.

Ghost Sword took care to protect Ethan, who had accomplished all of this.

“Rest!”

Ghost Sword urgently dragged Mad Sword away.

“I told you so. Your timing is impeccable. You approached our Teacher Ethan while I was in the restroom?”

“…Ghost Sword, perhaps by getting hurt, you mean?”

When Mad Sword quietly asked, Ghost Sword sighed.

“I told you from the first day, didn’t I? The one who’ll get hurt is you, Mad Sword.”

“……”

Though he expected him to burst into anger, Mad Sword was oddly quiet.

“…Maybe you’re right.”

***

-The number of believers has increased.

-The number of believers has increased.

-A new prayer site has been established!

“They’re doing well.”

With every breath, the number of believers increased, and Ethan’s power grew stronger with each new believer.

Was a growth-type job this terrifying?

‘I did want to fight Mad Sword once. It’s fortunate I refused.’

As he said, his power increased with every breath, so Mad Sword could have been seriously injured or even killed.

Ethan sought out Princess Evangeline, who was about to leave.

“What is it, Count Ethan?”

“I have something to discuss with you. It’s a confidential matter.”

When Ethan said this, the princess dismissed not only her guards but even Black Sword.

Ethan was a trustworthy person. Black Sword also bowed to Ethan and disappeared.

“What’s this confidential matter?”

“Princess, are you by any chance a believer of the Holylight Order?”

The princess immediately nodded at Ethan’s question.

“The Holylight Order is the state religion of our Holy Empire. Even His Majesty, while leading the empire, is also a believer of the order. That’s why he sometimes talks informally with the Pope.”

Therefore, the princess had also believed in the Holylight Order since childhood.

“His Majesty chose for himself. But you didn’t, did you?”

“……”

The princess fell into thought for a moment at Ethan’s words.

In fact, she had never thought deeply about it.

She had believed in the Holylight Order and the Holylight Goddess since birth.

The Holylight Order was good enough to be selected as the state religion.

“…Indeed, I never chose it myself. But I really like the Holylight Order.”

“Is that so? Then that’s fine as it is. I like the Holylight Order too.”

Ethan said this and extended his hand to Princess Evangeline.

“I’m not asking you to abandon the Holylight Order.”

The Holylight Goddess is generous.

She has similarities with Moonforce. Moreover, the Pope had already approved the Moonforce Order.

“I came to ask Princess Evangeline to become an apostle of the Moonforce Order.”

Increasing the number of believers would increase his chances of survival.

The apostles Ethan had selected so far were doing their jobs very well, and the results directly led to Ethan’s survival.

But there were still many apostle positions left.

If there was someone near Ethan who was most suitable for that position, it was Princess Evangeline.

If she, who had firmly established her position as the successor as soon as she regained her health, became an apostle of the Moonforce Order, she could attract believers like crazy.

‘Princess Evangeline will soon be the highest person in the Holy Empire.’

She was sure to become a high-performance believer farming machine.

Princess Evangeline tilted her head at Ethan’s sudden suggestion.

“Why are you suddenly trying to entrust me with such an important position?”

“This is actually like an honorary position.”

Ethan said.

“I’m not suggesting this because you’re about to ascend to the throne. I just want to have a deeper exchange with you, Princess.”

Ethan said this and smiled gently.

Suddenly, Princess Evangeline’s expression hardened.

‘I was wondering whether it would work or not, but this doesn’t seem right.’

Princess Evangeline clearly had feelings for him.

But he couldn’t tell if it was romantic love.

‘This is the only way to select Princess Evangeline as an apostle.’

Any other reason he tried to come up with seemed unnatural.

This was the most natural approach.

‘…Persuading through charm offensive.’

It was a slightly embarrassing method, and in fact, an uncertain one.

Nevertheless, he did it.

‘If it doesn’t work, so be it.’

Looking at her expression, it seemed to have failed.

But soon, Ethan smiled inwardly.

He could tell by looking at the princess’s face.

A blush.

Her cheeks were slightly reddened.

At that moment, Princess Evangeline fiercely grasped the hand Ethan had extended.

“Alright, if it’s an honorary position. And, and if you want to have a deeper exchange!”

As she said this, the princess smiled.

-You have selected the fourth apostle of Moonforce!

‘This actually worked.’