Calamity Mandate

Fifty silver talents, twenty gold crowns, a pair of women's boots for travelling and seven Spirit crystals. Hearing Yuzu's list, everyone in the room couldn't help but think to themselves.

These offerings… aren't they a bit strange?

Chief Kagami was shocked by the list, but as someone who wasn't particularly versed in rituals he didn't immediately think the list was fake.

Naomi was versed in rituals, and her first instinct was to call out the ridiculousness of the list. What kind of deity accepted money and clothes as offerings? And why would a Goddess of Fate want exactly the number of Spirit crystals in her possession?

Was this an offering to the gods or a shake down?

Kai, standing in the corner of the room carried his usual nonchalant expression. He was fine with simply observing the proceedings with a mild curiousity. Rituals and prayers were not his forte, and so he didn't bother thinking too deeply on the situation.

For Firuzeh, a devoted follower of the White Maiden and someone well-versed in the Exalted world, this list sounded particularly strange. Her eyes narrowed in interest as she contemplated the meaning of these offerings. Perhaps the White Maiden is particularly attuned to spiritual metals? Though it's strange that there are no offerings with attunement to Fate in the offerings… Typically rituals avoid offerings from other domains due to the dissonance between their energies. If the White Maiden can make use of the Spirit crystals, perhaps that just shows how powerful she really is!

Though Yuima was a Nature Goddess, it was well known that she was closely aligned with Lord Matsuhara. And since Huan was home of Spirit Exalted, being able to make use of Spirit crystals was reasonable enough.

And Char Char…

It took every ounce of self-control for her not to bury her face in her palm out of embarrassment. While everyone was suspecting that this list was a pure fabrication of Yuzu's whims, Char Char knew this with one hundred percent certainty.

Are you trying to rip off the Chief and antagonize Yuima's priest?

Weren't we supposed to be here to help these people? This amount of money was enough to turn a pauper into a tycoon. Did the village chief even have access to this amount of gold?

"Like I said, this list is a bit strange." Yuzu acknowledged, "However, let me explain each component."

"The nature of the village's ailment lies in the corruptive energies that have invaded their spirits. This corruption is difficult to treat through normal means, however this is the very reason why Yuima has entrusted me with this task in the first place. I spent the evening assessing the spiritual state of the village and devising this ritual to cleanse the Wailing."

"To summarize, rituals have three fundamental requirements. Focus, Conduit and Appeasement."

"Gold is the most effective material to act as a spiritual conduit, it also is an effective ritual focus. Since we travelled here without sufficient time to prepare, I don't have the usual items needed for rituals, so gold coins are the simplest and most direct substitute. I understand that twenty crowns is a sum, but if we don't meet the minimum required amount, we might as well not proceed, as the amount of energy channelled won't be sufficient."

"To power the ritual we will need a source of energy. Spirit crystals will resonate with the natural environment here so they are an excellent choice."

"Silver is a sacred metal, whose primary property is Negation. Through channelling the silver the ritual will be able to weaken the corruption and expunge it from the villagers' spirits."

"As for the boots, no doubt you have realized that these are to be bestowed to me. To maximize the change of success for rituals, items must be offered for appeasement. In a sense, this is the 'cost' of the ritual. My Goddess is benevolent and caring, and so I believe that she will be appeased knowing that my most basic needs are met.

"I wanted to minimize the hardship that I placed on the village, so rather than going for the usual offerings of expensive herbs, rare gems and spiritual items, I think as long as I convey the gratitude that I feel toward the village for this offering, my Goddess will accept it."

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Hearing the nuanced and rational explanation for each of the offerings, the crowd was once more stunned. Just a moment ago, it sounded like Yuzu was a greedy scammer looking for the maximum payout, but now they could understand the place that each offering had in the ritual. It didn't just sound reasonable, it actually sounded like Yuzu had put a lot of thought finding the best solution for the lowest cost.

Out of everyone, Naomi was the most shocked. She had been ready to criticize Yuzu and attack her credibility, but now she found herself unable to come up with a good counter argument. While it was a simplified explanation, Focus, Conduit and Appeasement were indeed the backbone of any ritual, and each element would in fact fulfill the purpose that Yuzu set for it.

In comparison, when Naomi conducted cleansing rituals for Yuima, she had to go to a lot of effort to prepare the offerings. Her rituals not only involved special artifacts that connected her to Yuima, but also used special formations to draw in spiritual energy from the surroundings to power the ritual. Furthermore, Yuima was known to be somewhat temperamental at times, and so a large amount of effort went into Appeasement. Her priests were known to carry around a bounty of spiritually imbued soil, herbs, nectars and other items for this very purpose.

For appeasement to consist of a pair of boots? This was a bargain of a deal!

Could this really be sufficient for a ritual to Akahi? Naomi found herself in deep internal conflict between the ridiculousness of the offerings and Yuzu's straightforward explanation.

"After hearing your explanation, I can see the logic in it…" She said with a frown, "But it bothers me that no sooner that Chief Kagami has presented me with seven Spirit crystals, you are asking me to provide it for this ritual. That is- I understand you need a source of spiritual energy, but it seems awfully convenient for the amount you need to be exactly what I am holding."

"Fate is the domain of convenience, after all…" Yuzu was about to say these words, but a feeling in her gut told her not to just blurt it out. Concerned, she quickly cycled forward to a future where she spoke these words and saw the Chief become aggravated and angry at the statement.

It seems that Fate is a taboo word in Huan… Yuzu realized, nodding internally. Given that Akahi was the nemesis of Yuima, it made sense that the people who worshiped her would also naturally gain an aversion to anything to do with Fate. Thankfully, I only used the words 'My Goddess' to describe the White Maiden so far… Kagami must think that I am referring to Yuima.

Thinking it through Yuzu quickly found another line.

"It's as if Yuima is looking out for us." Yuzu nodded sagely, "She must have known that we would need exactly this amount."

Following this Yuzu closed her eyes and muttered, "Praise be to Yuima."

"Praise be to Yuima." Naomi's eyes twitched as she could only reply in kind.

"We can set up the ritual as soon as we've gathered all the offerings." Yuzu said.

"Ah, certainly…" Chief Kagami nodded, then shook his head, then looked at Yuzu with a mix of concern and embarrassment, "It's just that… I am not sure if we have that sum of money."

"Go check what we can scrounge up first." Yuzu said.

The Chief nodded, sending his daughter to his study to gather his funds. He also excused himself and ran down the road to his office and the office of the mine and trade guild to gather the funds in the lock boxes there. The sight of his friends and fellow villagers despondent and near lifeless throughout the village steeled his will to gather the required offerings at all costs.

He even made a specific stop to pick up the nicest pair of women's boots in the general shop.

In short time, they returned and counted up the coins.

"Yuima be praised, we just barely have enough." Chief Kagami sighed with relief.

To the chief this was another miraculous coincidence. Of course, Yuzu had already cycled through the future and knew what his bottom line was.

"I believe it should be enough." She nodded.

Seeing that things were proceeding according to her read of the tapestry, Yuzu was confident she could take care of the next steps. The problem was, taking care of the Wailing was only the first step to really solve the problems with this village. It wasn't for nothing that she demanded the offerings that she did. Whether this amount was enough, though, that was the real question.

I wonder if Yuima is aware of the true plague affecting this village… Surely, she must be.

Seeing Chief Kagami eye the literal fortune in front of him with pain, Yuzu said softly, "It's for the sake of the villagers."

"I know." He said with a heavy heart. "If they can be saved, it will be worth it."

Even saying this, doubt still lingered in his voice. These coins represented every single piece of gold and silver in the village. This offering would bleed them dry.

But if the villagers couldn't be saved, what was the use of money?

"This is the village's entire fortune." Naomi spoke up, "Are you certain it's all needed for the ritual? Could we perhaps try with a smaller amount first? Otherwise if the ritual is only partly effective, how can the village bear this cost?"

It was a weak argument, but Yuzu could see Naomi was still trying her best to be annoying.

I've nearly gotten through to them. Even Naomi is having a hard time coming up with a direct counter. Yuzu noted. To finish off the sale, it's time for my secret weapon!

"A smaller ritual won't do. And you're right, if the ritual is effective, the items will be consumed. However, in the event that the ritual is insufficient to cleanse the Wailing from this village, all the offerings can be retrieved and returned to you." Yuzu said.

Still wondering if the price is too high for the service? If you're not satisfied, I'll refund your money, no questions asked!