Otaku Witch

Two days later, the City of Sin suddenly became bustling, for a rumor had made these people, who had just found hope, anxious and uneasy.

"Sister Nun, is it true? Are you really leaving us?"

"Sister Nun, please don't go. What will we do after you're gone?"

"Sister Nun, did we do something wrong? Why are you abandoning us?"

"Take me with you, Sister Nun. I am willing to follow the Way of Mechanical to the death."

...

In a panic, people spontaneously gathered at the doors of the majestic church built entirely of steel, beseeching in such a manner.

In the past, amidst endless suffering, it was the Church of Machinery that gave these lower-class people hope for the future, and the short span of five months had been the happiest time in the lives of most people here.

There was work to do, food to eat, skills to learn, and their children could go to school. They no longer had to live in daily fear of being bullied or even slaughtered by passing wicked people, nor did they need to bow and scrape, for they were all workers following the Way of Mechanical, colleagues of equal status.

Although the Church of Machinery never advertised what they had done, people were not blind or stupid. No one knew better than them what the city was like before the Church appeared. All the changes had started only after this mysterious institution came into being. The gangs disappeared, and the previously ubiquitous wicked people suddenly became law-abiding, which surely wouldn't have happened without the intervention of the Church's higher-ups.

People can endure darkness because they have never seen the light.

The majority of those present had grown up in the City of Sin, this mortal Hell, because that was how their ancestors had always survived. Therefore, before this, although they were numbed to their miserable lives, they could still bear it.

But now it was different. With the arrival of the Church of Machinery, they suddenly realized that they too could live differently. They too could stand tall and live with dignity, rather than kneeling on the ground like dogs, begging for the mercy of the strong.

Once they had tasted what it was like to be human, their knees became somewhat stiff, and they were reluctant to kneel again and continue living like dogs.

Moreover, many people genuinely enjoyed being workers. The magical power of machinery was fascinating, and they longed to advance further on the Way of Mechanical.

It was their first chance to stand up and hold their heads high, to truly be human. It was also the first time they had encountered a career they genuinely loved and were willing to strive for. These two extremes of joy were intertwined and should have given birth to an even happier and better tomorrow. But why, why had things turned out this way? Why had the Church of Machinery suddenly decided to leave?

No one could understand it, nor were they willing to think about it. They had already grown accustomed to the life provided by the Church of Machinery, and their routines had become shaped by the Church's schedule. Without it, how could they go on living?

Though the news of the Church leaving was currently only a rumor and had not been officially confirmed—the Mechanical Monks had never mentioned it, and the two head nuns of the Church had not brought it up—people were still uneasy.

After all, this mysterious denomination had appeared so suddenly in the city, so its sudden disappearance seemed plausible as well.

In any case, everyone had now gathered here spontaneously, hoping to receive a definitive answer to ease their minds.

And as time passed, the crowd grew larger.

Many passers-by who hadn't heard the news, seeing the commotion at the church, thought there was some event taking place. But after pulling aside someone to ask, they learned of this disastrous news.

Suddenly, the shocked onlookers dropped the melons in their hands and joined the pleading crowd.

After all, they could only eat those melons thanks to the grace of the Church of Machinery. Without it, they would only be fit to grow melons for their wicked masters.

Up in the church's top-floor office, The Witches were also gathering.

"Ah, Sister, almost half the city is here now. It's quite frightening,"

Audrey, standing at the window, shivered at the sight of the densely packed crowd that had filled the streets below.

Although she wasn't really afraid of mortals, the sight of nearly a hundred thousand people was overwhelming, and her social anxiety began to flare up.

With that, Little Fox shrank her neck and fearfully clutched her fluffy, plush tail to her chest, saying this to her recently optimized Fox Doll that sat on her shoulder.

"I didn't think that just letting out the news of our departure would gather so many people. We don't seem to have done anything that remarkable, just a fair exchange of services...,"

Even Madeline, looking down at the scene below, couldn't help but reflect.

As the Disciplinary Committee Chairwoman of the Witch Academy, she thought of her Thirteenth Squad, her subordinates. They, too, had been quite responsible and hadn't really oppressed anyone. They had always tried hard to help the weak, but the reputation of the Disciplinary Committee had always been low. Harsher critics called them the lapdogs of the Angel Witch, which was rather disheartening.