Episode 278
Tursons. B-class mercenary. 34 years old.
An unlucky man who threw his fist at me and ended up falling to the bottom of the basement.
However, this guy, perhaps because he was quite strong or because he had neglected his training, seemed fine despite having crashed and fallen on the floor.
This means that he is naturally strong and perfect for being a mercenary.
“You said you saw a corpse?”
“exactly.”
A corpse under a private house… … .
It was an appropriate setting for the introduction of a thriller novel, but unfortunately, considering the behavior of the cult, it is not surprising.
“How many bodies were there in total?”
“Six in total. however… … .”
“… … ?”
“You believe me right away.”
You’re saying strange things.
Tursons said as I looked at him with puzzled eyes.
“We know how inadequate our mercenaries are in the eyes of your heroes. Maybe that’s why. On missions like this, even simple reports are often met with suspicion. Are you really sure you saw it correctly? … .”
“Well, that’s true. “Didn’t you say you were B-class?”
“exactly.”
“If you are a B-class mercenary, you can do your job wherever you go. A veteran with extensive experience and performance. That kind of guarantee is enough.”
At least it meant that they weren’t so pathetic that they would panic just because they saw a few corpses.
I passed Tersons, who was looking at me with strange eyes, and headed towards the gaping hole. He squatted in front of it and looked down.
Sniff.
Even if you focus on your sense of smell, you won’t smell a rotting corpse.
In fact, if that smell had been in the air, I would have noticed it as soon as I entered this building.
So it’s one of two things.
‘Either the mercenary saw something wrong. Or something was done.’
Since I have already denied the former possibility, the second is more likely.
Whatever it is, I will have to see it with my own eyes to know.
I said looking at Sandra.
“Did you check underneath?”
“for now. Still, I couldn’t look at it in detail. It felt a bit uncomfortable, and it was too dark. Still, I saw the body. There… … .”
Sandra, who hesitated for a moment, shook her head and said.
“no. “I would appreciate it if you could see and judge the rest for yourself.”
“great. And I have one favor to ask of you.”
“what?”
“Our clan leader and village chief will be in this village’s chief’s house. Could you please go and check to see if anything is going on? If possible, also arrest the village chief.”
“Sure.”
Unexpectedly, Sandra obediently followed my words.
He immediately nodded and left the house.
“Okay then… … .”
I threw myself down the gaping hole.
fault.
The underground space was larger than I thought.
The light coming out of the hole was not enough to illuminate everything, but I naturally used the power of the divine beast to remove the darkness.
“… “This place looks like a warehouse.”
It was a place where sacks that were presumed to contain grain, tools that had rusted from not being used for a long time, old clothes, rope, candles, and other household items were piled indiscriminately.
After looking around for a moment, I saw that there was another hole underneath.
“aha. “It was structured like this.”
It seems that there was originally a second basement level.
In other words, this seemingly ordinary basement level is disguised.
Perhaps if the force I put into the ground was even a little weak, the space underneath wouldn’t have been exposed.
The hole leading to the second floor seemed much deeper than the previous one, and with my snake eyes, I could clearly see the landing point.
It is approximately as deep as a well.
“You fell all the way down there, but you were fine.”
A mercenary named Terson.
He may be a stronger talent than I thought.
Anyway, I was prepared and it wasn’t a height where I would get hurt if I jumped, so I threw myself down again this time.
thud.
And this time, I immediately realized that the atmosphere had changed from the moment I landed.
It’s cold.
Unlike the first floor, where some warmth remained, this place was so cold that your breath came out… … .
The corpse the mercenary mentioned was immediately visible.
“… … .”
Is this a corpse?
At first glance, it looks like he’s just sleeping. When I looked up close, I could tell it was a corpse because the blood had drained from its face.
In other words, it was in an amazing state of preservation.
Just because it’s cold here?
no. It is true that cold prevents decay, but there is a degree. It’s strange that there isn’t even a bad smell even though no post-processing was done.
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I walked around the body without touching it.
And then I realized that the seemingly random location of the corpse might not actually be that way.
Although it is faint, there is a magic circle engraved on the floor. I couldn’t interpret it, but the shape was slightly familiar.
A magic circle that feels like the uncleanness I saw at the Academy… … . In other words, a black magic circle.
‘Is it a ritual? This body is a sacrifice.’
Of course, all I can do is guess. Black magic is not shallow enough for an untrained eye to understand.
In order to figure it out accurately, I think I’ll have to get help from Reese like last time.
Anyway, I think the reason the corpse doesn’t rot is because of that magic circle.
‘and… … .’
I turned my attention to what interested me more than the corpse.
That is, the door that is suddenly embedded in the wall.
“… … .”
It’s bizarre.
In this dark, underground space filled with corpses, there is a stone door so large that it takes up half of the wall.
The stone gate gave off an atmosphere that could not be expressed in just one or two words, and I thought I knew why Sandra had told me to see it for myself.
Tuk.
I placed my finger on the tip of the stone door.
I can feel the cold, rough texture of the surface. And also the movement of air beyond that.
I could feel the wind blowing between the stone gates.
First of all, the space beyond this is quite large, and there is a high probability that it is connected somewhere.
“… … .”
I don’t feel any special presence, but on the other hand, I don’t feel the need to open it.
Wouldn’t it be better to prepare a little more first and then open it when several people gather?
The village chief might know something, so interrogate him.
First of all, is it like this?
“Save me… please… … .”
At that moment, a faint voice was heard beyond the door.
The faint voice that seemed to break up belonged to a child.
I clicked my tongue and immediately pushed the stone door as hard as I could.
Kugugu… … !
The door opened with a loud noise, and a cold wind blew as if the sealed winter had been liberated.
I reflexively fastened my collar tightly.
Fortunately, the cold wind died down quickly and the scenery beyond was revealed… … .
“… … .”
It was an ice cave with nothing particularly strange about it.
Of course, the village chief could not have dug a cave like this underground, and it appears that the village was originally built on top of the underground cave.
‘Isn’t this quite dangerous?’
There is such a large underground space under the village… … . At any moment, I thought that I might not be able to withstand the load and that the entire village might collapse.
“who… Isn’t there… … .”
I quickly ran to where I heard the voice. After a short walk through the cool underground cave, I saw the figure of a little boy almost buried in the cold snow.
His condition seemed serious as his complexion was pale.
It seemed like I didn’t even have the energy left to shake, but I immediately wrapped myself in the cloak I was wearing and opened fire.
“Huh… … .”
The kid then took a deep breath and looked up at me with frosty eyes.
“are you okay.”
I nodded my head slightly to reassure him, then picked him up and quickly returned the way I came.
* * *
As I climbed up the building, I saw Oimer with a surprised face.
“Are you here? Uh, that body… … ?”
“Are you still alive? Please warm up your body first. “I think my whole body is frostbitten.”
“Oh, I understand.”
The head of the northern branch would know how to deal with situations like this much better than me.
I left the kid in the care of Oimer and was about to go straight to the village chief, but Oimer, who was standing behind me, said,
“Wait! Do you want to go to the village chief?”
“however?”
“Sandra is already back.”
“is it so? “What about the boss?”
“The Corrupted clan leader and village chief also came. First of all, Sandra is interrogating the village chief… … .”
“I am here.”
Lanfero came down from the second floor of the building.
For some reason, it feels like the dark spots under my eyes have become more evident.
“You’re here, boss. “Have you figured out the situation?”
“Roughly. “Just as I was suspecting the village chief, a hero named Sandra intervened, cornered the village chief, and even subdued him.”
“ah. is it so?”
Even if he is rotten, he is still the clan leader. You were already suspicious of the village chief.
I thought maybe the reason Lanfero sent me was to measure the village chief in his own way.
“But where did you get that kid?”
“That… … .”
I explained to Lanferro exactly what I saw underground.
“hmm… … .”
“This is just a feeling, but it seems somehow related to the mission that Senior Feed was talking about.”
“okay. Even though the North is large, it is still time.”
“What was the village chief’s attitude?”
“He seemed calm. It seems like I’m giving up… … . It seemed like he was still up to something. “I don’t know exactly what he’s thinking.”
Lanfero continued speaking with his arms crossed.
“First of all, looking at the circumstances, it is almost certain that Snero is a member of the church. But that doesn’t mean he can be treated as a member of the church.”
“Yes. “There is a difference between being almost certain and being 100 percent certain.”
I thought for a moment and said.
“First of all, I need to talk to that guy.”
“Okay. I’ll go to the hunter’s mansion and bring back my clan members. “I told you to gather information from outside, so they might have found something.”
“please.”
Lanfero left the mansion, and I entered the room that had temporarily become an interrogation room.
When I opened the door, I saw the village chief who had just been captured. He was wrapped around a tight rope, and his upper body and ankles were tied like a prisoner.
I looked at Sandra, ignoring the village chief, and Sandra, who was sitting across from me, got up from her seat and came towards me.
Just looking at the irritation and fatigue on his face, it looks like he’s quite stressed.
“Did you get anything?”
Normally, this kind of conversation should be held out of sight… … .
The other person is a church member.
I couldn’t leave the room without knowing what he might do when I was out of sight.
That’s why I whispered in a low voice that even I couldn’t hear, but Sandra, who managed to understand, answered.
“I tried to console him with words, comfort him, and threaten him, but it didn’t work. “He keeps repeating what he said like a parrot, and to be honest, it’s annoying.”
“Did you use drastic methods?”
“… okay. To be honest, I did use some violence. “It didn’t really have any effect.”
Sandra sighed in frustration.
“He is an old man who has eaten enough to live off his old age, so if he acts too aggressively, he could die quickly. “It’s a very difficult situation.”
“I’ll be dealing with you from now on, so why not get some rest?”
“okay. “Please.”
Sandra left, and only me and the village chief remained in the room.
I sat down in front of the village chief and carefully examined his expression.
“… … .”
A wrinkled face showing traces of time, eyes staring into space, and tightly pursed lips gave off a kind of stubbornness.
All of the elements combined made it reminiscent of an old tree rising in the middle of a snowy field.
I’ve never interrogated anyone, but I felt like I couldn’t simply persuade someone like this with words.
‘I don’t think any torture will work.’
So how should we attack this person?
You have to dig into your weaknesses.
A weakness that could break the old man’s composure.
I slowly put together the information I had gathered so far in my head, but I couldn’t find anything that could be a clue.
At that time, the village chief let out a deep sigh and opened his mouth.
“… “I don’t know anything.”
“… … .”
“I don’t know what happened in this town, but I don’t care. “You are persecuting innocent people, so release them now.”
“A body was found under the mansion you said you rented? “That’s six.”
“I don’t know.”
“okay? So why was Corrupted suddenly excluded? “I heard from Branch Manager Oimer that it was you who came up with the idea first.”
“That’s also a misunderstanding. I am… “I never said that.”
Her voice was trembling, and her eyes were red, as if tears were about to pour out at any moment.
‘It seems really unfair.’
Could it be that I got it wrong?
So, I thought that maybe even this old man had actually just been caught up in the church member’s scheme and was making a real mistake.
If so, we were making a big mistake.
I talked to Snero for quite some time afterwards, but the more we talked, the more I felt like I was falling into a labyrinth.
It seems suspicious.
It may seem innocent.
“Wow… … .”
Suddenly, hunger, thirst, and fatigue hit me in three waves.
When I think about it, I just arrived in the village today, so I couldn’t eat properly, wash, or rest.
We’re all just trying to make a living, but I sighed as I wondered what the hell this was.
It was then.
Sweet.
The door opened and an unexpected person appeared.
This woman dressed in neat monastic attire made eye contact with me and smiled slightly.
“Thank you for your effort. “I’ll take charge from here on out, brother.”
“ah.”
Now that I think about it, why didn’t I think about it?
We had an expert in heresy inquisition.
In my mind, this guy had a stronger identity as a colorless believer than as a heresy inquisitor of the 72nd Church, so I forgot about it.
“Are you okay? “He’s not an easy opponent.”
“Of course it is. “I have never conducted an easy interrogation before.”
Verita smiled brightly and sat in front of Snero. And then she stopped speaking with a soft smile.
“Hello, Chief Snero.”
“… “Are you the heresy inquisitor of the 72nd Church?”
“That’s right.”
“Then you have no right to interrogate me.”
“Why is that?”
Snero lowered his head. I was wondering what she was doing, but she was biting the necklace string with her mouth.
Since he couldn’t move both hands, it looked like he was trying to take out the necklace… …
What eventually emerged was a rosary shaped like an inverted cross.
This is the symbol of the 72 schools.
“I am also a believer of the 72 religions. “I was officially baptized.”
“… … .”
“Of course, I have no intention of claiming my innocence through this. Even among the believers of the 72 churches, some are in hiding… … . However, only high-ranking clergy have the authority to interrogate fellow believers and determine the truth. “It means that a mere Inquisitor has no right to persecute me.”
The village chief glared at Verita with strong eyes.
“And one more thing. “I swear to God that my position is truly honorable and that I will not give in to any threats from now on.”
The way he declared that and closed his eyes tightly seemed quite pious, so I was impressed without even realizing it.
“haha.”
Berita laughed lowly.
Then he shook his head slightly and said.
“You really don’t know anything, Chief.”
“what… … ?”
“Whether you are a member of the church or not, a member of the 72 denominations, or any other identity… “That has nothing to do with it.”
It’s the next moment.
Berita grabbed the village chief by the back of his head and slammed him into the desk.
Kwasik. Sounds like the nose bone may have been crushed. Ugh… … . A groan escaped from the back of the village chief’s head due to the belated pain.
Berita pressed her palms together and whispered in the village chief’s ear.
“… If I say you’re a heretic, you’re just a heretic. How dare you mention God’s name? 주제도 모르는 개새끼가.”
“… … .”
As I stiffened slightly, Verita turned her head and asked.
“By the way, brother. “I want to ask you something.”
“Uh, huh?”
“How much can I ruin?”
“what?”
Betira continued.
“So, this heretic. Can I kill you? Can I become permanently disabled? What about something that looks fine on the outside but just destroys the spirit?”
“uh… that is… “I’m not sure.”
“I’m telling you to figure it out. Well sir.”
Berita smiled at the village chief, whose face was still pressed against the desk, and then sat back down in his chair.
And the moment I covered one eye with my palm, my exposed eye was filled with a golden glow.
“ruler… Chief Snero, let’s take some time to get to know each other. There is no need to worry. “We have so much time left before the sun rises.”
fantasy,
