Once I am done with setting up the trap, all that remains is to wait for the results, so there's nothing special to do except check on the situation from time to time.

It's still early in the season to do farm work, so I have relatively free time right now.

I think I should move on to other things while I still have time.

In the future, this village will welcome human resources and increase its population.

In order to create a safe and secure place, it is important to eliminate anxiety as much as possible.

I have already explored the village, with the exception of some concerns.

Partly because I'm the only one living there, I've been putting off investigating, but I think it's time to make up my mind.

Places that remain unsettling are the incomprehensible relics and the locked room.

There is no deep meaning in not investigating.

I put it off because I was simply busy and had a bad feeling about it.

What I need to investigate is both in the room with the waterfall in the church and in the altar room.

Other than that altar room, everything was normal, and there were only a few things a little out of place.

The locked room to the right of the waterfall, the altar in front of the goddess statue, the sitting golem...

The golem in particular is frightening as it seems like it will move anytime, which is the biggest source of my anxiety.

My skills have been strengthened since before, my physical abilities are progressing steadily, and I've even made weapons from the fangs and bones of large beasts.

Even if the golem starts moving, I can at least run away while keeping it in check with weapons.

I think it's okay, but I think I should eliminate any concerns before the number of people increases.

(But scary things are scary.)

I went to the church where I was already accustomed to living and made up my mind to move to the altar room.

Up until now, I've been trying to keep my distance and not get close to it, but I'll put an end to that today.

First, check the locked room.

Maybe I can get some information about the altar and golem.

In the small locked room in the altar room of the village, there was the iron weapon that I still use, books such as scriptures, and jewelry, so if I go into this room, there's a possibility that there will be valuables left.

However, unfortunately, most of the text was illegible, so even if there are books, the chances of getting information are low.

I would like to study writing if I can secure human resources, but it may be difficult because the literacy rate in the village is low.

I hope that there are at least materials that show pictures or diagrams, as I think it would be a little helpful.

The reason I put off investigating the room was because, unlike the other two, it was simply locked and I couldn't open it.

Now, it would be possible to get inside by destroying the door using mana manipulation or a hammer.

But that is the last resort. I would like to open the door and enter normally as much as possible.

I checked around the door, but there was no keyhole like there was on the door in the village.

Instead, there is a groove about 1.5cm wide and 10cm high on the right side of the door, but it's too dark to make out the structure even when I look into it.

Even when I forced my finger or stick into the groove, there was no particular change.

Even when I tried to craft a piece of bamboo to fit the size of the groove and push it into the groove, there was no reaction at all.

(The size of this groove looks familiar...)

When I gave up and thought about destroying the door, I remembered something that bothered me a little.

I returned to the room I sleep in and took out my companion, which I hadn't used for a while.

It's the dagger I took from the village.

I feel like it fits right in in terms of size.

(If this doesn't work, I'll probably destroy it.)

Grabbing my dagger for the first time in a while, I returned to the door and gently inserted the dagger into the groove.

I felt a faint sensation when I was about to finish inserting it and was able to easily open the door.

The fact that the village's dagger can be used as a key means that the residents of this village may have immigrated and created that village.

I went through the door I was finally able to open and proceeded with my investigation.

It was left alone for a long time, but the door opened smoothly.

The area beyond the door was not very wide, similar to the structure of the village church.

This room, like the one in that village, seems to be a room for storing important things, and it's not that deep, just about 5 tatami mats in size.

There is a shelf inside the room, and there are some books and scrolls stored there.

There were also canes, swords, and daggers that seemed to be used for ritual purposes.

There were several items that appeared to be jewelry—more treasures than I expected.

The question remains as to why these items were not brought out.

(I don't think they are cursed or anything...)

I pick up a book or scroll and look inside.

The material is half parchment and half paper.

I had never seen any books other than the Bible in the village, so books must be valuable items.

I can't read the writing very well, so I randomly checked the contents.

Although it appears to be quite old, it was well preserved, and all of them were in good, readable condition.

There was a Bible, but most of the others seemed to be records of some kind.

There is one book that seems to explain something, and I'm curious about it.

After a series of letters that looked like explanatory notes, there was something that looked like a crest or mark, followed by a description that seemed to be an explanation.

I checked it all over, but since I can't read the text, I don't know what it says.

(Since there is mana, it would be nice to have a magic book.)

I'm glad that I was able to obtain weapons, jewelry, books, etc., but to be honest, I can't think of a case where I would use them for the time being.

If the number of people increases, it will probably be used for religious ceremonies.

Perhaps they left it here in the hope that the ritual would be revived.

I put what I found back where it was and went out through the door.

When I pulled out the dagger, the lock was firmly locked.

This room looks like it could be used as the village's treasure house.

One of the three investigations that had been postponed has been completed.

Let's take care of the remaining two.

I decided to investigate one of the remaining ones, the altar in front of the goddess statue.

However, the only thing to investigate was the large transparent sphere on the altar.

I've been trying to stay away from it as much as possible out of fear of the unknown, but I'm determined to find out.

The sphere is placed on a pedestal above the altar.

It looks exactly like a crystal ball used by fortune tellers, but it's quite large.

(Maybe something like Dragon Ball from Planet Namek.)

The sphere is highly transparent and creates a mysterious atmosphere.

I gently touch the sphere.

I tried touching it with determination, but no change occurred, or I felt it.

I tried to use a little force to move it, but it seemed to be firmly fixed to the pedestal and wouldn't budge.

In addition to touching it, I also tried pushing it and tapping it lightly. There were no particular changes.

(It looks like it's okay.)

I stopped doing physical research to try something a little different.

I held the sphere up with both hands outstretched, moving my palms to look at it like a fortune teller would do in front of a crystal ball, peering in to see if I could see the future or other places.

I also tried various other things, such as trying to flow mana while touching it and placing some of my harvest in front of the sphere, but no noticeable changes occurred.

(Maybe it's just a decoration or something like a sacred object.)

It might be a divine object, so at the end, I put my hands together in front of the sphere and prayed to the goddess.

(...?)

It was a small feeling, but it felt strange.

When I prayed, it felt like the sphere was sucking in the mana around it.

It may have been just my imagination, since it felt so brief.

As for the altar, I can't think of any other way to investigate it, so I'll end my investigation.

Finally, the last one. I have a bad feeling.

The last thing is to check the golem, which looked like it could move anytime, but nothing had changed for a little over a year.

I don't think it will move now, but out of anxiety, I ended up doing the investigation at the very end.

Enough procrastination; let's make up our minds and do some research.

With that in mind, I finished investigating the altar and turned back towards the sitting golem a little further away.

...

"Wow"

Holding back the urge to scream, I opened my eyes and tried to understand the situation.

The golem, which had been sitting for a long time, suddenly stood up and approached me!

(Oiiiiii)

A situation that I have imagined many times before but never turned out the way I imagined is happening now.

My heart beats faster.

While breathing heavily, I tried to remain calm.

Fortunately, the golem's movement speed doesn't seem to be fast.

I quickly distance myself from them, but even though it's a large room, there is a limit to how far I can be away from them.

(Why does something that hasn't moved for almost a year suddenly move?)

The golem seemed to see me running away, and it slowly moved his hand as if pleading for something.

It thrusts its right hand forward and upward, as if to ask me to wait.

(It kind of makes sense, but who would wait?)

I can't keep my cool due to sudden events.

I stepped back while keeping my distance from the golem.

I regret not having the weapon I took so long to make.

(Where should I run away?)

Should I escape by the stairs to the top of the waterfall or the entrance to the room?

Even if I managed to escape, there would be no escape from there, so I headed for the entrance on the opposite side of the golem.

Fortunately, the golem doesn't move that fast.

I cautiously kept a certain distance and moved in a circular motion as I approached the entrance.

The golem seemed to notice my actions and stopped in that spot with his hands raised in the air.

It looks like it's surrendering.

(Still, I don't feel like approaching it.)

As soon as the golem stopped, I ran at full speed towards the entrance of the room and escaped.

The golem moved again to chase after me.

It still feels like a human being...but I run as fast as I can outside the church.

(I think it's quite fast.)

I walked out of the church and ran about 20 meters before looking back.

It looks like I was able to distance myself, but I can't see anything.

I waited for a while, but there was no sign of the golem following me.

"Huh?"

I took a deep breath. It seems that safety has been ensured for the time being.