Why must the devil be Defeated?
Chapter 575: Could this be jealousy at work?

Chapter 575: Could this be jealousy at work?

"Boom, rumble..."

As Shane and Merica stepped into the Temple, the heavy stone door behind them let out a sound, slowly closing.

"Thud!"

After a loud noise, the stone door closed completely, excluding all external light sources and plunging the Temple into darkness.

But the darkness did not last long.

"Clang!"

The moment the stone door closed, a hazy glow shone from within the Temple, dispelling all its darkness.

"————"

Shane and Merica felt a sudden blackout before their eyes, followed by a brightness that let the entire interior of the Temple come into view.

It was only then that they could see everything inside the Temple.

"What is this...?"

Shane couldn’t help but be startled.

For the sight that met their eyes was somewhat breathtaking.

They saw that inside the Temple was a very beautiful garden.

Yes.

A garden.

Here, flowers of myriad colors were in full bloom.

Here, a variety of vegetation was spread out.

Butterflies danced gracefully.

Fairies chased after one another.

This beautiful sight, surprisingly present within a Temple, seemed somewhat inconceivable.

Even more incredible was that at the deepest part of the garden stood a huge statue of a god.

The god statue was situated in a large fountain, where the purest water flowed from the sleeves, with a Light Tree behind it emanating a blurred glow.

The light that had driven the darkness from the entire Temple came from this Light Tree.

The light from the Tree illuminated the entire interior of the Temple, like a sun spreading its warm sunshine on the ground, so pleasing and delightful to behold.

The arrival of Shane and Merica did not disturb anything here.

They merged into this scene as naturally as Adam and Eve born into this world, blending into this sight at the fastest speed.

No, to be more precise, it was not Shane and Merica who melded into this place, but rather this sight that welcomed them.

Merica, looking at all this, spoke with a voice filled with nostalgia and joy.

"As I thought, nothing here has changed."

Merica’s face lost much of its nervousness and unease.

"You’ve been here before?"

Shane asked subconsciously, then quickly realized he had asked a foolish question.

Of course, Merica had been here before.

"After being reborn as an Elf, I was brought here once by Sister Carol and received the Goddess’s Blessing," Merica said happily and wistfully, "But I haven’t been back since that time."

In other words, Merica had only been here once, and that time was more than a hundred years ago.

"It’s genuinely my first time here."

Shane shrugged his shoulders, lifted his gaze, and looked towards the god statue in the fountain.

It was a statue of a Goddess.

The statue was not carved delicately but still allowed one to discern its outline, thereby recognizing the Goddess’s sanctity and solemnity.

"Is this the statue of the Nature Goddess?"

Shane asked with curiosity.

At that moment...

"Welcome to my Temple, my dear child, and honored guest from the Otherworld."

A voice as clear as water and as comfortable as the breeze echoed, reaching the ears of Shane and Merica.

"Hum!"

Before Shane and Merica could react, a rich Natural Magic suddenly appeared inside the Temple.

It was magic from Nature itself.

It was the power from every blade of grass, every flower, every tree around them.

It was as if everything there began to tremble, as streams of Magic started flowing out from all these elements, converging like green qi streams towards the fountain.

"Whoosh!"

The next second, the water from the fountain suddenly rose up, turning into currents that gathered above.

Shane witnessed with his own eyes the water flows gradually intertwining, forming a streamlined body of water.

The water body then started to solidify, eventually shaping into an exquisite form.

Just like that, the Goddess appeared.

From Nature itself.

Revealed by the flora around.

She was...

"Nature Goddess Nudura..."

Merica murmured as if she were in a trance.

At that moment, Nudura, one of the Three Great Goddesses and the Goddess of Nature, descended.

"I’ve been waiting for you for a long time."

The Goddess gently descended from mid-air, alighted before the fountain, standing with her back to her own statue, and revealed a smile to Shane and Merica.

It was an extremely dignified, polite, elegant, and beautiful smile.

"Nudura... Goddess..."

Merica had forgotten her nervousness, forgotten her unease, and with a deep excitement and emotion, she reflexively knelt towards Nudura.

But as soon as Merica moved, a soft force brushed against her like a breeze, passing over her body, and assisted her to stand.

"There’s no need for such formalities, my child."

Nudura looked at Merica with eyes as tender and kind as one would look at their own daughter.

"I’ve been watching you for a long time, Merica, a timid elf girl with a strong heart and unswayed faith. It’s really nice to meet you like this."

Nudura’s warm tone made Merica even more excited and moved.

"I... I’ve always wanted to see you too, to meet you whom we believe in, Lady Nature Goddess!"

Desire and adoration flooded out of Merica’s eyes, causing her voice to choke up slightly.

It was an expression of utmost excitement.

"I know, child. Your faith, your adoration, I’ve always felt it," Nudura spoke in a soft tone, comforting Merica: "Don’t worry, I’m right here, always watching over you, being with you. So, take a deep breath, let’s have a good talk."

Merica nodded vigorously and obediently began to breathe deeply, trying to calm the excitement within her heart.

Shane watched all this, observing the dignified, beautiful, and down-to-earth Goddess, suddenly understanding why everyone says this Goddess is the most perfect entity.

Because she was exactly as described, a flawless existence.

Her appearance was impeccably beautiful.

Her demeanor was impeccably graceful.

Her tone and demeanor were impeccably polite, melodious, and attractive.

If it weren’t for the natural aura that surrounded her, revealing her to be the Goddess in charge of Nature, Shane believed that anyone who met her would think she governed beauty, propriety, and was the most flawless Treasure Jade.

"Is this the last of the Three Great Goddesses?"

Shane couldn’t help but exclaim.

Nudura turned her gaze towards Shane, her face showing a beautiful smile.

"It seems like Lidas and Anima have been under your care, brave one from the Otherworld."

Nudura greeted Shane.

Shane wasn’t surprised.

"It seems you already know my identity, Lady Goddess."

Shane spread his hands in response.

"Yes." Nudura nodded generously, admitting openly: "Anima has already told me, so I have been watching you."

"Always..." Shane raised an eyebrow, recalling the strange presence he felt during his battle with Aridia, and asked, "Was that presence I felt really you?"

To this question, Nudura neither confirmed nor denied, but simply smiled warmly.

"I have observed you for a long time," said Nudura. "I am very clear about what kind of person you are and I’m well aware that you dislike unnecessary troubles. So, you don’t need to be wary of me, I won’t harm you."

"Is that so?" Shane looked directly at Nudura, saying, "Even if I, as the Hero, appeared inexplicably, and am unnecessary to the current Three Clans, even a seed of turmoil?"

Shane tentatively probed.

Yet Nudura’s smile didn’t diminish.

"Still the same," Nudura met Shane’s gaze, commenting, "No matter how you came to this world or how you were summoned, as long as you are the Hero, we, the Divine Race, will never harm you."

This was the trust that stemmed from the long-standing connection between the Divine Race and the Hero.

Anima had said more than once that the Divine Race had always held the Hero in high esteem.

"After all, strictly speaking, you are our helpers we take pride in as the Divine Race, and the saviors of this world."

Nudura offered Shane the highest degree of respect.

Of course, Shane wouldn’t forget his own surname just because of a few nice words from her.

"I hope so," Shane smiled and said quite casually: "At least, I don’t want to be enemies with the Divine Race."

It was the truth.

It wasn’t just because the Divine Race’s power was something current Shane couldn’t match, but also because Shane genuinely didn’t want to be seen as an enemy by the Divine Race.

It wasn’t that he was afraid, but it was unnecessary.

Otherwise, if he really came into conflict with the Divine Race, it would be terribly troublesome.

"We think the same," Nudura sincerely said: "Being enemies with the Hero is an unimaginable concept."

This wasn’t just because every Hero had terrifying potential, but also because the Divine Race and the Hero had always been one and the same, and a sudden shift to antagonism would be alarming.

Nudura was certain that any enmity with the Hero would immediately cause unavoidable instability within the Divine Race.

It could be said that, as a God, none had ever thought of the Hero as an enemy.

This was a deeply entrenched concept.

Yet even if...

"After a thousand years, the suddenly appeared Hero of this world not only distanced from the Divine Race but also established too friendly a relationship with the demons of the Demon Clan, it’s the same."

Nudura’s words made the atmosphere in the temple somewhat delicate.

Especially for Shane, who made a bizarre expression.

He couldn’t help it.

"This couldn’t be jealousy, could it?"