After entrusting Emerald Cypress's happiness to the Divine Tree, Ron put on a show and prayed for a while longer.
Only after confirming that the Goddess of Harvest hadn't descended with real divine punishment for him borrowing her name to get things done did Ron finally feel at ease.
After all, he was a man personally stamped on the forehead by the Goddess herself. How could such a trivial matter possibly alarm her?
Compared to that, Ron felt that turning the Goddess of Harvest into a system interface skin was far more likely to invite divine punishment.
With the blessing complete, Ron stepped out from inside the fence and came to the entrance of the prayer house.
"The blessing has concluded. You may continue your prayers."
The believers respectfully bowed to Ron, the Chosen of the Harvest Goddess. After receiving his permission, they eagerly gathered toward the Divine Tree.
Ron returned to the prayer house and instructed the priest from earlier:
"After this blessing, the Divine Tree will gradually begin evolving and growing again."
"This process will be slow. It may take one or two months before visible changes appear."
"Of course, it might be faster. There's no fixed timeline."
"Other than maintaining it as usual, I have two additional tasks for you."
The priest nodded seriously. "Please go ahead."
Ron continued:
"First, starting today, collect all the leaves that fall from the Divine Tree. Store them separately according to date."
"Second, if the Divine Tree shows any changes, record them immediately. Compile the information and report it to the main church—deliver it to the convent."
At this point, Ron looked toward Sylvie. "Arrange for someone to take responsibility for this. Once feedback comes in, report it to me promptly."
Both the priest and Sylvie nodded in acknowledgment.
On the way back, Ron looked out the carriage window at the snowy scenery.
"I heard Bishop Morris advanced to Tier 6 a few days ago?"
"Yes."
When Ron had previously exchanged for a miracle from the Goddess of Harvest, Bishop Morris had also benefited slightly, loosening the bottleneck at Tier Five.
Now, after nearly two months, he had finally broken through to Tier Six.
"If I remember correctly, among Tier 6 wood-element spells, there's one called Soaring Timber to the Heavens, which functions similarly to the Plant Manipulation Spell?"
"Yes," Sylvie replied. As a veteran Tier Six wood mage, she had every authority on the matter.
"In that case, please pass along a message to Bishop Morris on my behalf. Ask him to cast Soaring Timber to the Heavens on the Divine Tree whenever he has time," Ron said after stroking his chin thoughtfully. "Explain the blessing to him clearly. Once the Divine Tree completes its evolution, the church won't be forgotten in the benefits."
"I understand."
Silence returned to the carriage, broken only by the faint sound of wheels rolling through slushy snow.
Ron noticed a tree by the roadside with a finger-thick layer of snow gathered on its leaves. When a few fresh flakes landed, the leaves could no longer bear the weight. They bent, shrugging off their snowy caps.
Watching the scene, Ron suddenly asked, "Sylvie, before I became the Acting Voice of the Goddess, was the convent always under the Archbishop's management?"
"Yes," Sylvie replied. "Though most matters were handled by us directly. We simply reported to the Archbishop once a month."
"I see…" Ron rested his right arm against the carriage window, lightly tapping the frame with his index finger. "The Archbishop has probably been waiting for me to take the initiative to return to the Royal Capital, hasn't he?"
Sylvie fell silent. After a long moment, she slowly nodded.
"…Yes."
"Is it because the Church of the Goddess of Harvest has been suppressed for so long, and the Archbishop wants to fight back? Or is there some other reason?"
Ron's tone was casual, like idle conversation, but his gaze was sharp. Sylvie instinctively avoided his eyes.
"Among all the races on the continent, only the human race primarily worships multiple gods. The Archbishop and the others… they have their ideals as well," she explained with effort.
Ron sighed.
To be honest, he had no desire to get involved in such disputes—just like the struggle for the imperial throne.
It was meaningless.
He wouldn't deny or belittle the Archbishop's ideals, but being used as a weapon didn't feel good either.
And this time, it was the system's main quest pushing him into that role.
Of course, he could choose not to go. The system hadn't given any time limit or penalty.
But as the Seventh Prince of the human race and the Chosen of the Harvest Goddess, some things were impossible to avoid.
Precisely because he understood this, Ron had decisively chosen to face the issue head-on and go to the Royal Capital.
"Actually…" Sylvie hesitated before continuing, "If Your Highness wishes to avoid trouble on the way to the Royal Capital, you could travel directly through a spatial teleportation array."
"The spatial magic array in the church connects directly to the main cathedral in the Royal Capital. With the Archbishop there, your safety would be guaranteed."
Ron glanced at her and chuckled. "But the Archbishop doesn't recommend that, does he? He probably even instructed you not to remind me?"
Sylvie lowered her head.
"Using a spatial teleportation array to transport living beings consumes tremendous energy. Especially for those of lower tiers—it requires even greater energy to protect them so they can pass through the spatial corridor unharmed."
"When the Archbishop used the array to descend upon the City of Chaos, it already consumed a significant amount. If Your Highness were to use it this time, the energy expenditure would be at least five times greater than that instance."
"Of course, if you prefer a more secure method of travel, the Archbishop would not begrudge the cost."
"No need." Ron shook his head. "I intend to travel north by carriage. It will allow me to see certain things clearly—and help the Archbishop see certain things clearly as well."
Right now, he was like a goldfish.
Those hiding in the shadows were like tourists standing by the fish tank, holding little scooping nets.
The moment he moved, impatient tourists would reach in with their nets to catch him, stirring up the water in the tank.
As a fish inside the tank, Ron could only see the nets being extended toward him.
But as one of the "tourists," the Archbishop could clearly see exactly which other tourists had reached out their hands.
In that regard, Ron and the Archbishop shared the same objective.
"Still," Ron said with a smile as he looked at Sylvie, "hearing what you just said makes me quite happy. It seems all those rounds of War of the Gods I played with you weren't for nothing."
Sylvie pressed her lips together.
Her words had not been motivated by the War of the Gods.
Though she was somewhat addicted to it, she remained rational in serious matters.
When she was young, she had been rescued from human traffickers by the Church of the Goddess of Harvest. She grew up in the seminary and the convent, deeply influenced by the Archbishop.
His ideas about revitalizing the Church of the Goddess of Harvest had long taken root in her heart.
But during her time in the City of Chaos, she had seen another possibility in Ron.
The nuns worked at the prayer house, harvested Chameleon Radish elemental cards, and played War of the Gods in their leisure time. In a single day, their smiles were more plentiful than in an entire month before.
Those elemental cards were then transported to the Human Empire, sold in the Eastern and Southern regions, and in the City of Chaos, gradually gaining influence.
Through the convent's communication network, all of this information passed through Sylvie's hands.
Though she had yet to grasp how this fundamentally differed from the Archbishop's ideals, she sensed something unusual.
So while she still stood on the Archbishop's side, she had quietly shifted a little toward Ron.
"Your Highness Ron, I will take full responsibility for the matters regarding the journey to the Royal Capital."
"Mm. I'll leave it to you."