9 – Steal the hearts of the temple people!
I extended a heroic gesture to the believers.
“In the Church of Ur, there are rules to be followed.”
Rules.
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In simple terms, it meant not to commit murder, theft, adultery, and other moral rules.
It was like saying, “Stop living like a barbarian in the Middle Ages!” which the religious community had emphasized to stop. I was determined to faithfully abide by this.
“Rule 4 of the Church of Ur! Drink alcohol in moderation! However, I believe that moderate drinking alone is not enough. According to the will of the Great Ur, I solemnly declare in front of my fellow believers that I will not touch a drop of alcohol for 100 days!!”
“!?”
Surprise spread across the faces of all the believers crowded in the church.
Especially religious folks like it when you believe in what they believe in!
Drinking alcohol in moderation is the teaching of the Church of Ur.
I didn’t just follow that teaching; I declared that I would follow it perfectly!
“Haha, I’m terrible with alcohol. I’m not even the type to enjoy it! There have been times when I didn’t drink for a year. It’s easy for me.”
I like carbonated drinks like cola, not alcohol.
Following the rule of drinking alcohol in moderation was very easy!
But to those who equated drinks with alcohol, I appeared like a monk practicing abstinence.
“To not even touch alcohol… a rule that is almost impossible to keep… to that extent?”
“Wow… Mr. Bath, that’s amazing!”
“Argh! This Lara, as a former member of the Hero’s Party, has taken a vow as a priest.”
“Ugh… I haven’t kept it yet. We’ll see after 100 days… I can’t believe what that colored barbarian is saying…”
The reactions of the believers were mixed, but generally positive!
Father James, who had introduced me, patted my shoulder with a satisfied expression, even shedding a tear.
“Excellent, truly excellent. Kim Chul-soo! I apologize for ever doubting you. Making such a big decision, you are a devoted follower of the Church of Ur!”
“Haha… It’s alright.”
Indeed, James had doubted me.
It was all thanks to the training with Miss Catherine to become a follower of the Church of Ur!
Otherwise, I could have been labeled a heretic.
“I need to be careful from now on!”
It was because Father James liked that I was following the rules, not because I was doing something heretical!
I needed to work hard to earn his favor so that even if I did something suspicious, it could be overlooked.
Anyway, the first impression was good, as after the morning service, the believers gathered around me like a swarm of bees!
“Welcome, Brother Kim Chul-soo!”
“Hello, Mr. Bath!”
People from the Evergreen Castle that I often saw!
I successfully completed my debut as a follower of the Church of Ur amidst their enthusiastic welcome.
* * * *
Just going to the temple once won’t clear me of suspicion of heresy!
I visited the temple occasionally after that.
Because I wasn’t a rare sight at the temple, among the believers, I was elevated from being seen as a “colored barbarian” to just “the man next door”!
Now, my image had become quite familiar, and the believers didn’t pay much attention to me when they saw me.
Ah, that guy’s here. Something like that?
“Haha, perfect.”
It’s just right not to stand out too much, yet not to blend in too much either.
I participated in the morning prayer with a sense of satisfaction.
One thing I noticed during my time in the temple is that there are many skin diseases here as well.
But there were definitely people who didn’t catch them.
People with strong divine power didn’t suffer from skin diseases.
The majority of believers with weaker divine power suffered from skin diseases.
As evidence, Father James had clear skin and didn’t scratch his body.
Most believers had a lot of acne on their faces and scratched their bodies often.
“If you have strong divine power, your body stays clean even without washing.”
Divine power has a disinfecting effect.
Well, it’s not certain yet, but I had a strong feeling about it.
“Divine power sounds tempting.”
Disinfection is crucial for medical professionals!
If you have divine power, you probably don’t need separate disinfectants.
In this era, there are naturally no disinfectants, and I vaguely remember something about how to deal with alcohol, so I’ll skip that!
I honestly never thought about disinfectants because the priests’ divine power was so strong.
“Let’s gain divine power!”
According to Miss Catherine, if you have strong faith, you gain divine power by praying hard, right?
If not, I was thinking of hiring priests with strong divine power.
Scanning the believers as if searching for something!
People with clear skin are probably strong in divine power.
Perhaps because I haven’t had a drop of alcohol, those who met my gaze gave me a faint smile.
“Could you focus on the worship? Looking back is quite rude.”
Of course, there are still people who don’t like me.
Was it Malboi?
From the moment Malboi, whose name sounded a lot like Malfoy who was heavily cursed in Harry Potter, arrived at the temple, he was hesitant, labeled as the “colored outsider.”
Rumors around said he was a tyrant who lived only in the temple.
Perhaps Father James noticed this, as he scolded Malboi as soon as the worship ended.
“Malboi! You’re insulting Kim Cheolsu! What makes you harass Kim Cheolsu with your arrogance!”
“Kuk… I don’t like having colored outsiders in the temple!”
“Shame on you! You want to repent!? The Urkyo believer has become narrow-minded! I will discipline you in the evening, so be prepared!”
“Nice one, Father James!”
Since I started the “no drinking” challenge, Father James’ favor towards Kim Cheolsu skyrocketed!
Kim Cheolsu’s status rose higher than that of an ordinary Urkyo believer!
“Tsk.”
Malboi, with a frown on his face, left the worship hall.
Honestly, Malboi didn’t really capture my interest.
The face was covered in acne, and the person scratched their body from time to time. They were just an ordinary believer who would pass by without causing any trouble.
“Why do you wash so often?”
As I was washing my body in the well, Malboi asked me with a curious look.
I always washed after helping at the temple and sweating, but the people at the temple never took showers.
So my behavior seemed questionable.
I burst out laughing.
“Rule 6 of the Urkyo Code: Be clean!”
“Huh? Doesn’t that mean to purify the mind?”
“Tsk! It’s not just about the mind. You have to keep your body clean too.”
“Does washing with water make the body clean?”
“Yes. Malboi, don’t you want to get rid of your acne?”
“Well… but…”
“Then wash up!”
While talking to Malboi, I gave him the solution with the intention of giving him one more piece of bread.
Compared to dealing with difficult patients at the hospital, Malboi was a gentleman.
“A great nurse has a strong mentality!”
I won’t be shaken by such a petty argument!
Anyway, my solution seemed to have caught his attention, as Malboi’s eyes shook violently.
“Is that… really true? You can get rid of acne?”
Whether it’s modern times or the Middle Ages, everyone wants to get rid of acne.
“Yes. Rub soap on your face to create foam and wash it off with water. Acne occurs when sebum accumulates, and Malboi, you’ve been sweating and not washing, right? Wash up to get rid of some sebum.”
“But soap is expensive and hard to get…”
“Tsk.”
I took out a bar of soap from my pocket.
I received a lot of soap from Count Roland.
Soap is definitely a luxury item in this era, used only by nobles.
I received an unlimited supply of soap from Count Roland with great favor.
“Use this.”
“Oh… no, this is too valuable!”
“I have plenty, so it’s fine.”
“….!!”
Malboi seemed deeply moved.
Trembling, he accepted the soap, his eyes filled with gratitude.
“I… I misjudged you! Your strict adherence to the Urkyo Code, your willingness to help even the unpleasant, you’re not just a simple foreigner!!”
“Oh, yes…”
“Thank you so much!”
Malboi bowed to me six times like a woodpecker and quickly disappeared.
“If there are people who don’t wash, tell them to wash like Malboi!”
There are so many people at the temple with acne.
* * * *
“Kim Cheol-Soo, is Malboi bothering you again? That guy was born and raised in the temple, clueless about the outside world! Even if I scold him, he doesn’t get it, tsk tsk.”
Uncle James provided aftercare.
It was about Malboi’s reason for racial discrimination, but it didn’t resonate with me since Uncle James himself discriminated when he first met me.
“That’s why you shouldn’t confine yourself to the temple. You should go out and about in the world! Anyway, if Malboi bothers you, let me know.”
“Um… that…”
“Oh, Kim Cheol-Soo!”
Malboi, noticeably with reduced acne, greeted me brightly as he passed by.
“Good morning, Reverend. And Kim Cheol-Soo, the method you taught me was excellent! I feel so refreshed these days.”
“I’m glad you’re feeling better.”
“Huh?”
Uncle James’s eyes widened.
It was utterly unbelievable that the temple recluse Malboi was showing me affection!
“Oh, how so?”
“Haha, Reverend. Kim Cheol-Soo is a very devout believer. There’s a lot to learn from him.”
“Malboi, what did you learn from Kim Cheol-Soo?”
“Yes! I learned how to follow the precepts from Kim Cheol-Soo.”
“Wow… even Malboi, who is so closed off, is being guided… Kim Cheol-Soo, you’re truly different.”
Uncle James exclaimed, mouth agape.
Uncle James seemed to be having some strange misconception, but well, good things are good things, aren’t they?
After that, the taunts of “colored barbarian” from the temple noticeably decreased.