Chapter 428
“We need more local scriptures and priests who can a.n.a.lyze them. It is not that the scale is small now. To advance at the speed you want…”
The voice that had been following stopped as the scene of mutilated corpses unfolded before us. They had been torn apart and devoured. At first glance, they resembled as if they had been attacked by wild beasts.
Everyone, including me, thought it was definitely the trace of Declans. They were the only ones who could rip apart bodies deliberately and had the power to destroy bones into fragments.
The expedition team members scattered with torches in their hands. Rather than tracking the Declans’ traces, they were collecting the belongings that the corpses couldn’t take with them to the afterlife. The priests began to pay their respects to the deceased individuals, and knights started to prepare for a possible attack by the Declans.
“Remember. The profit distribution is five to five.”
The person who had been walking next to me was the exploration team leader named Ipo. Perhaps it was because he could handle Mana himself, but he didn’t hire an a.s.sistant. That didn’t matter as long as his skills were outstanding.
He added as he watched others collecting accessories from the corpses’ bags.
“Don’t worry about your share. I will create a ledger to match the retrieved items so that you can compare them. Of course, only if you want to do so.”
The deads’ clothes were torn and soaked in blood, making it difficult to recognize their original appearance.
However, it was evident that these were not ordinary individuals, not only from their attire, but also from the scattered belongings. This was why Ipo had already mentioned the terms of the contract.
At that moment, one of the team members brought a flag and unfurled it in front of us. It was merely a blood-soaked piece of cloth without a flagpole, but I recognized the inscription on it. Enclosed within a large square frame was an emblem of the Barien Empire on the left side and an emblem that the former Emperor Barien had given to his successor.
The positioning of a silver star at the right upper part indicated that the deceased were members of the successor’s royal family. While it was an unexpected windfall for the exploration team, Ipo didn’t seem happy about it.
“s.h.i.+t.”
His face contorted, filled with distress. The corpses looked as if they had perished less than a day ago, and there were only about two bodies of the knights who were supposed to protect the royal family members. There would have been many more people. I wondered what had driven them to this point, and what had caused them to flee to the area where Declan emerged.
The answer lay in Ipo’s stiffened face. He was s.h.i.+fting his gaze toward the direction in which the dead might have fled from.
The South.
“The Demon King’s corps must be close. I knew the Barien Empire was under attack, but I didn’t expect it to be this severe.”
Ipo looked at me with a questioning expression, wondering if I knew about this.
“Are you afraid of the Demon King’s corps?”
“We need to reconsider our expedition. Please hear me out. I know you are powerful and possess great wealth. But, bear in mind that the Demon King’s corps is dangerously close to us. No matter how strong you are, confronting them is out of the question. No matter how much money you have, persuasion won’t work.”
He gulped and then continued.
“Look. We haven’t secured enough resources. I guarantee that our exploration speed cannot be improved beyond this point. But let’s a.s.sume we continue with the expedition in this state. Let’s also say there is a significant relic hidden somewhere around here, as you suspect. Which option would be faster: us finding the relic or the Demon King’s army finding and attacking us before we can escape?”
I whispered, “Then what did you think I was?”
His eyes expanded to the extent that they appeared on the verge of bursting at any given moment.
***
One of Ipo’s hands instinctively headed towards his sword. His pupils trembled with all kinds of calculations in his mind. Soon, he removed his hand from the sword because he witnessed the s.p.a.ce distort where I had shown my clenched fist. The distorted area stood out clearly against the backdrop of the night sky, appearing as a circular void.
As the brief moment of condensed pressure subsided, the surrounding s.p.a.ce returned to its normal state, as if nothing had occurred. Ipo couldn’t take his eyes off from the once extraordinary void that now appeared normal.
I stated, “I will protect you from the Demon King’s corps. I will fulfill my promise of reward. The Declans will not be able to launch an attack against us. Just focus on the exploration for now.”
“...Can you…guarantee that?”
He was asking whether his life could be a.s.sured even after the completion of the expedition. If the team could uncover more relics like the battlefield where Doom Entegasto and Saint Jayden fought, then I could have guaranteed more than his life.
Anyway, the reason I disclosed my ident.i.ty to Ipo was because I didn’t want him to be a disposable resource. Several conditions had aligned.
Even without Yeon-Hee’s help, I could easily turn him to my side due to his desire for revenge against the Atreus Empire. The story of him falling from a famous explorer to a sword-selling vagrant became a famous tale that reminded others not to be like him. The Greenwood species often talked s.h.i.+t about him behind his back.
“Do you know a guy named Onir?” I asked.
“If you mean the King of Mercenaries…who would not know…him?”
He lowered his voice, looking around cautiously.
“I heard his swordsmans.h.i.+p is as swift as lightning. His ability to absorb Mana is also fitting for his reputation.”
He didn’t seem to have realized why I was mentioning Onir.
“If you unearth more artifacts, then I can offer you that as well.”
The method behind this possibility was not crucial.
Ipo held his breath. He fell silent while observing the Lacryma priests casting spells on the corpses and his subordinates that he recruited wandering about. He might have thought my offer was a deceitful serpent’s manipulation. However, what I presented to him was an unparalleled opportunity.
I added, “I will give you time to think.”
He stuttered, “W…wait. Then… I will set up camp…here tonight.”
I shrugged. “Sure. You are still in charge, Ipo. Nothing has changed.”
After saying that, I watched Ipo walk away. He appeared extremely burdened, but no one paid him any special attention. The scene of deceased members of the royal family who met their demise while fleeing told a tale that weighed heavily on everyone, not just Ipo. The coffers filled with valuable gold and jewels meant nothing as they couldn’t be carried away after death.
The distant cries of wild beasts echoed the night. However, the Declans’ cries were absent as they had all fled from me. If I had the ten thousand-year-old spider, then there would have been the rumbling of spiders digging and prowling underground.
I had sent the spider to Jonathan through Yeon-Hee. Considering that multiple attacks from enemies were aimed at Jonathan, it would be more useful to him than to me. Therefore, the sounds of beasts were unusually loud.
Those noises then faded away. My thoughts suddenly got interrupted by the b.a.s.t.a.r.d’s messages.
[h.e.l.lo, sir. This is Lunea. How have you been? I have been investigating Dragorin Red with all my means, but I have not found any traces yet. But please don’t worry. I am putting in a lot of effort, and I am confident that I will bring you nice news soon.]
[There is something important I must inform you about. Hehe. Doom Entegasto wouldn’t want Osiris to obtain the final volume of the Book of Death either. There might be a conflict between the factions loyal to Doom Entegasto and the Vampire Corps, so I thought I should give you a heads-up. I apologize for interrupting your precious time. Hehe. Please be aware that Lunea is always on Doom Man’s side. I will leave to allow you to rest then.]
[With respect and love ( ŏ ӟ ŏ)੭~♡ To Doom Man.]
I could not trust anything this a.s.shole said. I could only accept a necessary extent and discard the rest. There were no magic towers or Declans nearby.
Just as I was about to regain my focus, I noted a drone in the distant night sky. A red light from the night vision lens was fixed upon us. The approaching drone meant that the other Awakened group would soon discover the expedition team.
***
“Everything we find is empty. What is going on? Is there supposed to be a Declan in some cave here?”
“It is not that others took them. It appears the Declans have moved their residence for some reason.”
“So what is the f.u.c.king reason? How many have we found so far?”
“Nineteen F-cla.s.s and four D-cla.s.s mana stones. Five F-cla.s.s drop items. It is barely enough to cover our daily expenses.”
“Keep chasing. Even if we encounter an army-scale group, the Caliber will be interested. If we negotiate well, we might be able to get away without a fight.”
“None of us are Korean, sir. If we approach recklessly…we will be screwed.”
“That is another problem. Should we start learning Korean now?”
“Mary has joined the war as well. To enter their inner circle, it would be better for you to learn Korean. If you do that, it will be easier to gain Caliber’s favor at least.”
“Ugh, Mary. I don’t even want to think about her.”
“I was under Osiris.”
“I heard Osiris rarely appears on the frontlines, right?”
“Isn’t that the same for Mary?”
“We were forced to face death. You and I…it is clear who had the worst times just by looking at the number of survivors. The b.i.t.c.h had to die in the Final Stage. If ‘he’ had not appeared… she could have disappeared forever. f.u.c.k.”
“I am so sorry for bringing up a useless conversation. Ah, we found new traces… It’s a campsite. It seems like they had crossed over from the Atreus border area, but no emblem was found.”
“Then, they must be refugees or explorer groups. They have no guts. Zoom in… They are an explorer party, and…priests. I heard expedition teams bring priests with them.”
“What should we do? Should we attack them now?”
“Who knows if they have Saint Ca.s.sian’s archives.”
“They do have many soldiers, though.”
“Let’s try to make up for it in one go.”
“How many prisoners should we secure?”
“We have fewer than three days until the next entry. Can we afford the maintenance time?”
“Then, we will leave only one priest and one explorer party. We will swiftly deal with the rest and continue tracking the Declans.”
“Do you need me?”
“Nope, they are easy to handle, sir.”
“Proceed.”
“Yes, sir!”
As the distant conversation ended, I noticed Ipo chatting among the night watch, probably because he couldn’t fall asleep. He was forcing himself to laugh at the boring stories. However, the more he did, the more the atmosphere surrounding him sank deeper into a swamp.
I called out to him, “They are coming. You better prepare except for the night watch.”
Ipo couldn’t detect the drone in the night sky or hear the sound of a group of Awakened rapidly approaching us. He looked around with serious eyes before hurriedly getting up. He asked before taking an action in a polite tone.
“Is it okay to reveal…your ident.i.ty to the party members?”
“Yes, they should know who they are working for now.”
“Are you…thinking of killing the priests?”
“That is up to them. You can meddle if you want since there are more explorers. If you don’t want to clean up the mess, then you better hurry.”
Ipo moved the night watch back, and they did as they were told without questioning Ipo’s serious look. They quietly drew their swords.
The Awakened were indeed fast as their red eyes soon appeared in the bush. There were forty-six eyes of a butcher who had dealt with countless remnants. In other words, there were twenty-three of them. They had surrounded the camp from all directions, examining the structure of the site once again.
I heard Ipo’s voice from the back as if he had discovered one of the Awakened.
“...Please protect us, sir. We will do anything you order.”
Although he was a knight who could handle Mana, he was no different from a prey animal in front of predators about to hunt.
“P…please… Please protect us, sir.”
The night watchmen followed Ipo without question.
I lifted my hood back and turned my head. In that direction, the Awakened in the mid-platinum section was watching me attentively. The group consisted of Awakened without mercenaries. The one who met my eyes was the one who had the most authority.
I gestured to specify one guy. In response, it was not only him but all the Awakened also stood up from the bushes. They reacted in a way that showed that the situation was developing in an interesting manner.
Nonetheless, those who had seen my face at least once were petrified as soon as they saw me. Their faces turned ghastly pale as if they had stared at their own souls. They didn’t even blink.
Their leader was one of them. Those who had not recognized me started to grasp the situation. They first looked at the color of my hair, then my eyes. Their glances were contrasting my current look with Odin’s impression they had heard of. No voice had yet come out to tell them that I was Odin.
I pointed to the leader. The guy collapsed as he knelt down in front of me, but it was not due to my power. He lowered his head to the point that his forehead touched the ground.
“Oh… Oh….”
Then, the trembling voice that burst out right after was so loud that it woke everyone up.
“It’s an honor to see Odin!”
“It’s an honor to see Odin!”
“It’s an honor to see Odin!”
The expedition members, knights and priests came out of their tents. The general workers who couldn’t get a tent allocation were just rubbing their eyes as they had woken up from sleeping bags outside.
The leader quickly realized my intentions as I nodded my head.
Ssssst-!
Three Awakened who received his gaze flew toward the priests, and the rest spread out all at once. Fear settled quickly. Of course, it was not something that could be seen with the eyes or carried as a tangible material.
However, it could cause s.h.i.+vers like a rash to those who had not been trained in such a situation, even to sword fighters who boasted of mastering the swordsmans.h.i.+p for half their lives. The members of the expedition team knew that I was the protagonist of this terrifying stage. They unintentionally looked at me and avoided my eyes when they met.
I commented, “Caliber seems to be nearby.”
“Yes, sir.”
I continued, “Tell him to come here.”
As soon as I gave them an order, one Awakened disappeared into the darkness.
I asked, “Is this area under your control?”
“F…five groups have intertwined interests here.”
“Tell the leaders of the groups to not even approach this area. I will pay the usage fee separately.”
“Ah…okay, sir.”
“Bring all the local doc.u.ments. If you find any records of Saint Ca.s.sian, do not send them to the a.s.sociation, but include it in the file that would be handed to me. I will pay the price for each one.”
“Yes, sir.”
“Bring everyone, including the priests and those who can decipher the doc.u.ments. As long as they are cooperative, the number doesn’t matter. I will also pay you per person as well.”
“Yes, sir.”
“The same goes for mana stones and artifacts. Bring them directly to me without going through the a.s.sociation. Each mana stone will be valued according to the costs guaranteed by the a.s.sociation, and the artifacts will be evaluated at the current market price of the exchange.”
The above instructions were sufficient. However, if I didn’t take the lead and set an example first, how long could this atmosphere be maintained?
If I broke the vibe first, then the powers would rea.s.semble with a focus on the strong at one point, and they would chase after something more than money, eventually forgetting what they were afraid of in the first place.
“Add up the costs and include the rewards for your efforts. I will calculate everything here on the spot.”
Money was an excellent means of controlling them, even better so than fear.
“It will be a c.u.mbersome task. Seek advice from your affiliated group.”