Ranking System

[Constance POV]

Sleep... I have never felt this lonely waking up by myself. Rest was important, but this loneliness took a toll on my mind. Once I woke up, I fixed my appearance and left the inn I rented for the night.

Heading outside, I found myself looking at the town. Compared to the previous hub that I was at, this one was incomparably safer. While it was safer, it doesn't mean that it was safe. The first thing I needed to do was check the rules.

I sighed in relief, knowing that killing and stealing were illegal. There were other crimes that others could commit, but two of my main concerns had disappeared.

Before I leave this hub, I wanted to check what this place had in store. In the medieval setting, I wonder how the people will act.

Wandering around town, I could see that the people here were lively. Occasionally you would see two people fighting with spectators added to the mix.

Spectating the people fighting, I could tell they were leagues above me. I was surprised to see how sturdy the hub was. Even when they fought, nothing broke, and the barrier around them caused all the shockwaves to disappear. Cheers around the duel had livened up the battle. Even I couldn't help but marvel at this display.

"Are you new here?"

A voice called out when I got too absorbed in the battle. Hearing the voice, I turned my head to the person beside me.

"Yes. Do you need anything from me?"

The caller's voice was a female nun like me. What a coincidence. Even if she was a nun, there was no need to talk to me.

"It's nice to see another nun around here."

"Are they rare around here?"

From what she said, there seem to be a few nuns around here. But was there so much of a need to talk to me?

"From what I know, there are only four of us. Can I ask which God you believe in?"

Which God? Being a nun, I could see why she was curious. For me, there was only one God. The rest are only tales left to be told by those who want to believe in something. There's nothing wrong with that, but I find it a shame to believe in something that wouldn't help.

"What I believe in is the system itself."

A sigh could be heard from the nun beside me. It looked like this wasn't the answer she wanted to hear.

"What about you?"

"Me? I serve my lady Venus--the goddess of beauty."

The nun started to ramble about her God. Sadly I was used to this. I would have hated this in the past, but I learned to deal with it.

"How about it? You can join me and worship, lady Venus."

"Sorry, but I can't change my faith that easily."

"Really? It's a shame to devote yourself to the system. You won't get much out of it if you don't worship a genuine god."

"???"

Didn't I have the same thought earlier? It can't be true when I receive the system's power and guidance to go to Charles.

"What do you mean?"

"When you worship the God of your choosing, you will receive their blessing. The system itself doesn't do that. So you will only be wasting your time with that."

"..."

Blessing? That was the first time I heard of it... Access to information was hard. It should be more accessible now that our world has ascended.

"Even so, I will stand firm and believe what I want."

That should back her off. It would be annoyingly hard to convince the other party when a nun says something like that along the line.

"I see... Then I hope this mini-discussion won't ruin your image of me."

"Being passionate on a subject isn't something terrible."

The nun smiled, seeing that I wasn't bothered by such a thing.

"We haven't introduced ourselves yet. Let me start first. I'm Grace. It's nice to meet you."

Does the blessing from Venus enhance one's beauty? I could see why Grace herself was invested in a goddess such as that. Her introduction was flawless. Anyone would be charmed if they weren't careful.

"I'm Constance, it's a pleasure to meet you."

While my introduction won't be as great as hers, I wouldn't embarrass myself. From our talking, the battle between the two had ended. One of them was knocked out, but the crowd cheers roared in the excitement of the sheer amusement they had watched.

"Since the battle is over, why don't I show you around? It will be better if you know the place."

Grace offered me a tour which I was grateful for. It was easier to navigate my way with someone leading it.

"Then let's get going, shall we?"

Following Grace around, I could tell that she was extremely popular. There were many times when we were stopped by people that were acquainted with Grace. I had a chance to talk to a few of them, and most were rather pleasant to speak to.

From what I could tell, this hub was lacking compared to our world. I don't want to say that Earth's pleasurable culture spoiled me, but this hub lacks many things to compete with Earth. Maybe I was just homesick. I bought some food, and it was pretty bad.

"Is something troubling you? As a nun I'm pretty good at listening."

"I'm just a little homesick. That's all."

"Homesick? Is there something preventing you from going back?"

Before I revealed anything, the memories of what got me into this situation appeared. Revealing this information wasn't safe. I had only met Grace today, so all I could do was lie.

"No, I have a task to complete. Before you ask, it's a secret."

"Really? Not even a little hint?"

"Sorry, it's something I can't tell."

Grace didn't like that I kept it a secret, but that was that. We then continued to explore the hub.