"Miss Viri helped me before. Since her people are in trouble, it's only right that I lend a hand. There's no need to be so formal."
Sifa set down his wooden cup of juice and smiled at the elders.
As a direct descendant of Miss Viri, Merinda trembled slightly, as though every pale-blue scale on her body had flared open. She looked at Sifa with barely contained excitement. "Lord Savior, y-you can communicate with the First Ancestor? Have you met her?"
"You can call me Sifa. That's my name. Please stop calling me Savior."
Sifa smiled and said, "As for Miss Viri, yes, I can communicate with her, and I've met her."
He did not tell the Scaled Folk that their First Ancestor was his messenger, lest it deal them a blow.
Merinda was excited at first, but then her expression dimmed. "Although the First Ancestor still answers our prayers, she no longer appears before us. We often find ourselves wondering whether the one answering us is really still the First Ancestor."
Adarus sighed. "The First Ancestor had little choice herself. Back then, she had to leave the archipelago and enter the Spirit World for a certain reason. If she appeared, she would bring unpredictable disasters upon us. That's why she has never shown herself."
"But whatever the case, the First Ancestor sent Lord Savior-oh, Your Excellency Sifa. The First Ancestor still sent Your Excellency Sifa to help us. This proves that she's still protecting us," another Scaled Folk elder said loudly.
Sifa nodded gently as well. "Miss Viri cares deeply about you. Otherwise, she wouldn't be so worried, nor would she have asked me to help."
"However, although I cleared out the monsters on the islands for you today, I can't stay here for long. You must understand that."