Chapter 214: Search and Rescue (2)

While Eve felt as if her nose were falling off, Ria faced her own kind of trouble.

Her destination was the slums.

It was literally right next to where Eve was—the Residential Area to the west, but slightly to the north. There, she glimpsed the “dark side” of the Empire.

Although the main roads were wide, bright, and lively, the slum area stood in stark contrast. Dark, narrow, and filled with the scent of decay, Ria frowned as she stepped into that place.

More than disgust, she felt… sadness.

She saw children about her height, but they were little more than skin and bones. Some lay by the roadside, uncertain whether they were even alive.

Before she could feel pity, one thing struck her: the absence of resignation.

Even at their last legs, the eyes of the inhabitants burned with a fierce will to live. So intense was their determination that, despite knowing they couldn’t see her due to her robe, Ria felt her life was in danger. It was an instinctive sense, fueled by their strong, singular focus and desire.

To survive today and welcome tomorrow.

’This is a scene I could never imagine back in Wisteria…’ She thought.

Although Wisteria was struggling to fend off the demons, barely managing to hold their front lines, there was no area in their cities that resembled this one.

For the inhabitants here, life holds greater value than merely spending a few coins. They would sacrifice millions of Colts every month if it meant preserving even one life.

Given this context, her next action wasn’t surprising.

After arriving at the main plaza—or a space that could be considered as such—she initiated something that would likely astonish the others.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

She struck a large pot before her, the sound echoing in the silent slums.

As if it were a magic signal, not only did they finally notice Ria’s presence, but they also caught a whiff of something delicious wafting from the pot, which was almost as tall as she was.

“Everyone! I’m handing out free food! Line up and get your share!” She smiled and shouted loudly. “If you don’t line up or try to cut in line, you’ll end up paralyzed for five minutes, so watch out~!”

Of course, nobody paid attention to her words.

The hungry people of the slum only had one thing on their minds—food!

People rushed forward, their momentum so intimidating that Ria felt a twinge of fear. Nevertheless, the smile on her face never faded.

Soon, one after another, those who didn’t follow the rules…

“Urk…?!”

Suddenly halted in place, unable to move.

Seeing that her setup was working well, she nodded. “I told you. Line up properly, or you’ll end up paralyzed! You can see the line in front, right? Follow it nice and easy~!”

Of course, a few lucky ones “coincidentally” stood in the line and reached the table, staring at Ria with eyes full of hunger and greed.

“G-Give me all that food!” the man growled. “All of it!”

“Alright, here’s your portion!” Ria acted as if she hadn’t even heard him.

She simply handed him a plastic bowl filled with the thick soup she had prepared—purchased straight from the shop, of course.

The man didn’t seem to appreciate her attitude.

He swatted her hand and shouted, “I said, all—!”

But then he noticed something strange.

He slapped Ria’s hand, but it remained unmoved; instead, his own wrist began bending in an unnatural direction!

“A-Arrrgh!” the man cried in pain, collapsing to the ground.

Ria’s smile never faltered as she walked around the table and patted the man’s head. “I told you, behave. If you don’t behave, you will get hurt,” she said.

In the next moment, the man’s wrist healed.

It was as if a video were being rewound; a green light enveloped his wrist, mending his injuries. Not only that, but also his limping leg, his difficulty in breathing, and even his slightly blurred right eye—all healed within moments!

He didn’t understand what had just happened.

It wasn’t a spell or a strange potion affecting him. It was simply Teruria’s touch.

The man was bewildered. All he recognized was the warm smile on Ria’s face and the gentle hand extended toward him, offering a bowl of soup.

“A-A goddess…”

Nobody knew who spoke first, but soon everyone believed it.

Ria was a goddess who had descended to save them! To uplift them and grant them a more meaningful, abundant life!

After her display of strength and compassion, everyone lined up properly. No one dared to challenge the “goddess” anymore. Even those who had been too “heated” and paralyzed returned to the end of the line as soon as they could.

And just like that, her “feeding program” commenced.

Of course, she didn’t forget her main goal either.

As some of the kids and adults remained close by while eating the thick soup—more than enough to fill a grown adult with just half of it—she asked them some questions.

She inquired about whether the military passed through this area regularly or if they had seen captives with red eyes.

However…

“Sorry, Goddess… We haven’t seen anyone like that here.”

In the end, she didn’t find the captives in the slum.

However, her effort wasn’t wasted at all; she did gain something valuable.

After the people of the slums volunteered to help distribute the food, the process became much faster. In just an hour, all the tens of thousands of people in the slums managed to get their fair share, eating until they felt like throwing up from being too full.

For them, eating until full was a luxury.

But for Ria, it was just a casual act of kindness that cost her less than a million Colts in total.

After listening to their troubles and worries, she ended up discussing their plan to revolt against the Empire and replace the current leader.

It was honestly a slip of the tongue, something Ria didn’t do intentionally; however…

“We’ll support the goddess!”

“Just say the word, and we’ll do what you tell us to!”

“For the goddess! For the good food!”

“E-Everyone…”

Just like that, even though Ria didn’t succeed in locating the targets, she ended up rallying a total of 35,302 additional supporters.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep