Chapter 48

Even with Grant effectively running the entire Adventurer’s Guild for him, there was a surprising amount of paper work that made its way onto Tom’s desk. Although to be fair to Grant, most of the substance of that paperwork were things that only Tom could do. Not only was Tom the founder of the A.G., but he was also the only living Controller, with a unique subclass that gave him powers unlike any other Controller for generations.

Which meant that he got a long stream of petitions to customize dungeons, now that his ability to do so was common knowledge among the upper class. It wouldn’t be long before he would have to undertake another journey to add a growing list of dungeons to his network.

He had created a form letter explained to all of the nobles and city officials who were asking to join his growing network the detriments of doing so. There were a few clear downsides, such as the fact that the financial system that most of the kingdom ran upon would be stripped out of a Core if it joined Tom’s network. Property records, testimonies, and the other informational services that the Cores provided were sometimes also affected.

The form letter deterred some of the inquiring parties, but far from all of them. Unfortunately, not all of the inquiries were requesting things which Tom could practically deliver.

Tom put aside the letter from a certain lord requesting that he build a tower dungeon and fill it with beautiful sirens. An above-ground dungeon, one that went up instead of down, was an interesting concept, one that he’d have to explore at a later date, but it was clear that the man’s interests were not practical.

A knock at the door, and one of the office assistants stuck her head into Tom’s office. “The woman you asked for has arrived, Lord Weaver,” she said.

“I’m not a lord,” Tom reminded her. “Not yet, anyway.”

“Of course, My Lord,” she said. “Shall I show your guest inside?”

“Yes,” Tom answered. “I’m the one who asked her to take time out of her day to visit, so it would be impolite to keep her waiting.”

“As you say, My Lord,” the assistant said, quickly vanishing.

Tom frowned. He had enough problems without people confusing him with the aristocracy. He was a kid from a small village without a drop of noble blood in his veins as far as he was aware. That would change when he married Rowena – something which he was increasingly realize was going to be a real thing – but for now he had no noble title to his name.

He sighed and stood. In one corner of his office was an icebox, the interior kept cold by enchantments, and from there he pulled a pitcher of ice tea. He was setting the pitcher on his desk when the door opened again, and Nora Simmons, from Earth, arrived.

“Thank you for coming,” he said. “Would you like some iced tea? Perhaps a biscuit?”

Nora smiled at him and accepted the offering. Tom knew from her file that, like many of the summonees from earth, Nora had been in the later years of her life on Earth. She had reported that she had passed away from breast cancer after a long illness. The summoning magic had restored her to youth and health, and she was now a beautiful woman with blond hair, green eyes, and an empathetic face.

“Might I ask why it is that you’ve asked to speak with me?” Nora asked after she had settled in. She took a polite sip from the tea, but hadn’t touched the biscuit he’d given her yet. “I rather feel like I’ve been called to the principal’s office for doing something wrong.”

Tom frowned, and Nora took a moment to explain the reference. Tom’s own education had been in a one-classroom schoolhouse with a mixture of all of the children in the village, but after imagining getting called to the front of the class by Elder Lukan he could empathize with the woman well enough.

“I’d like to say that there’s nothing wrong,” Tom said. “It’s just, well, I’ve heard that you’ve been preaching your religion on the streets lately.”

“Is that a problem?” Nora asked. “I checked before I started, and I was told that so long as I don’t preach treason, I was free to share my beliefs.”

“I didn’t call you here to tell you that you had to stop,” Tom explained. “I may have summoned you to this world, but it’s not my place to tell you what to do with your second life. It’s just, well, I don’t know why I asked you here, honestly. Someone at the ball last night told me that your religion was getting conflated with the massive eye that appeared in the sky during the summoning and that it was causing unrest. I know I don’t have the right to ask you to stop, but I thought you should be aware of the impact your having.”

“I see,” Nora said. “I wasn’t aware that I was causing problems for anyone.”

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

“You were some sort of priestess in your last life, correct?” Tom asked.

“I was a Luthern minister,” she confirmed. “It’s a certain flavor of Christianity. I won’t bore you with all the details, since I’m not even certain that all of them matter in this world. But I had a small congregation in my old world. The truth is that this street-preaching is a little uncomfortable for me, but I’m trying to establish a new congregation in this world. I understand that my religion isn’t entirely unknown in Welsius, and I was hoping to find a few like-minded people among the crowds. I’m trying to establish a new church, but to be honest I have no idea where to start. The funds that you’ve promised us won’t be nearly enough.”

Tom considered for a moment. “What exactly would you need for your church?”

“Well, a church, obviously,” she said. “A building to serve as the worship center. And to spread the word among the people as to its existence, so that those who are curious about my religion can find me to be educated on the matter. Traditionally the church gets by on donations from it’s congregation, but I’d need a congregation willing to give donations in order for that to work, so in the mean time I am sort of stuck accepting your charity and working for this organization you’ve founded.”

Tom considered. “If it’s just a building, I can get you that easily enough. I can just create a building at command, after all. The problem will be the location. If you want to remain in Profons, then the easiest place for me to build you a church would be near the edge of town in the area claimed by Other Westone. If you’re okay with waiting, then we might also be able to build you a church in Fisherman’s haven, to the southeast of town.”

Nora was surprised at Tom’s willingness to help her. “Are you certain that’s something you’re willing to do, Lord Tom? Real estate investment ... I understand that with your abilities --”

“I’m not a lord,” Tom interrupted. “Not yet anyway. I was born a commoner, and although I guess if the king has his way I’ll end up being a duke or something, so far I’m just a person with a very rare class. Nora, when I summoned everyone, I promised that I’d set them up with opportunities to excel in this world. I’m telling you that crafting a building is no big deal to me, so don’t worry too much about it. I’ll talk with Grant about finding you a location that’s affordable but not too far out of the way. In the mean time, why don’t you sketch out what your ideal church looks like?”

Nora considered. “I’m terrible with drawing. I’ll do a basic floor plan, but it might be best to ask Elisa to draw a church or two to give you an idea as to the style of the building that I’m talking about. I’m just a little curious why you’re willing to do this for me, however. You’re not a christian, are you?”

“My family isn’t religious,” Tom admitted. “The truth is, Nora, that I sort of just think that the easiest way to get you to stop preaching in the streets is to give you a church so that you have someplace to do it in private.”

“I see,” she said. “Well, I suppose I can accept that.”

“Otherwise, how are you adjusting to this world, Nora?” Tom asked. “I imagine that this is not what you were expecting when you died.”

“Indeed, this afterlife is quite different from what my religion promised,” Nora agreed.

“And that hasn’t challenged your faith?” Tom asked.

“I’d be lying if I said no,” Nora admitted. “But in another way, it has only confirmed what I believe. While I was expecting and hoping for the afterlife of my religion, I am choosing to believe that my god has a purpose for me to fulfill in this world instead. In the meantime, however, I’ve gotten the confirmation of the existence of a soul, which is a topic that has been highly debated on my world. The knowledge that something of a person survives after death, that thing which you are able to Summon and package into a new body, is a matter of great comfort to be. It gives me hope that once I’ve completed whatever task my god has set out for me, my lord will be able to find my soul and call me home.”

“And what exactly do you think you’re supposed to accomplish for your god?” Tom asked. “Do you think you’re supposed to spread Christianity in Welsius?”

Nora shrugged. “Possibly. I’m not certain it’s so grand as that, however. As you’ve noted, my religion isn’t completely unknown to this world, but while spreading the good word might be part of my purpose in this new life, it could also just be to minister to the few who have come through from Earth. The majority of the others are christian, after all, and they’re all in the same boat as me, questioning this afterlife and their new purpose. I’ve met with everyone who would speak with me, and I believe that speaking of our shared beliefs and experiences has helped us all.”

“I see,” Tom said. “Grant knows about this?”

“Tom, Grant was one of the first ones to seek me out after learning that I was a minister,” Nora informed him. “He wasn’t Luthern, but in the grand scheme of things that’s a minor detail. He asked me to pray with him and administer communion.”

“Oh,” Tom said, surprised. “He didn’t say anything about it to me.”

“Grant keeps his faith close to the chest, but I believe he’s a true believer,” Nora said. “I wouldn’t have told you this if I didn’t have his permission, of course, but we’ve talked often in the days since I arrived. He already offered to help me get backing for my church, so you’re not the first one who’s offered. The only reason I’m out in the streets is to sort of test the water.”

“I didn’t know that about Grant,” Tom admitted. “He’s never spoken with me about religion.”

“Grant is a politician, and on my world religion can be a bit of a dangerous topic. He’s not looking to start a religious movement in Welsius. Neither am I for that matter. The fact that there is such religious diversity in this world is a bit of a surprise. Especially since so many of the gods are the same as the ones in my world, although I guess that’s not too surprising when Controllers like you have been regularly summoning people from Earth throughout the ages. But the fact that there are Christians in this world means that we should be able to found a small church, if nothing else.”

Tom nodded. “Well, like I said, I’m not going to tell you that you can’t. I just, I don’t know. I feel responsible for you. All of you who turned up when I Summoned you. I just wanted you to be aware that things are getting a little heated, and that maybe now isn’t the best time for your street sermons.”

“Thank you for the warning,” Nora said. “Is there anything else?”

“No. Thanks for coming. Like I said, I’ll coordinate with Grant to try to find land for your church.”

“Thank you, Tom,” Nora said, and she rose to leave. They shook hands and said farewell, and once she was gone, Tom went back to his paperwork.