Chapter 101
Chapter 101
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 101
Chapter Title: Chapter 21: Grave Robbers (1)
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Rashar wasted no time chasing Alens out as soon as the new year dawned.
Fortunately, his squires, Walter and Jeremy, received their knighthoods.
However, the two did not remain in the Bennet family's knight order.
- I acknowledge your efforts so far and will grant you knighthoods, but I have no intention of keeping you around on salary.
That was what Rashar told them when she summoned the pair.
Heeding her advice, the two left the knight order without protest.
They had become free knights—titled, yet unattached to any house.
Time continued to flow steadily even after their departure.
‘Three months already since the servers connected.’
In that time, Bihar had undergone slow but certain changes.
The most notable was that 99% of players had now chosen their factions.
The resistance had disbanded, and the military reorganization centered on the church orders was complete.
Not only the former resistance forces guarding the borders with polluted zones, but even some imperial troops from the rear had been rebranded under the church armies and fully equipped.
Under the world tree emblem symbolizing unity, the forces of the seven great church orders had taken shape.
Other changes included territorial recovery from purifying polluted zones.
‘Habon isn’t slow, but in terms of purification speed alone, the Lobile side takes the lead.’
The central region would likely soon begin relocating its forward base.
Next came the shift in attitudes among Bihar’s residents.
At the very least, those on the front lines had grown accustomed to the presence of players.
‘And the formation of the Player Association is a remarkable achievement.’
The top players I’d been in contact with had enlisted in the church orders suited to their roles.
With so many of them, they’d spread across all seven orders.
Leading them, an association was formed to provide information to players and coordinate their efforts.
It didn’t appear in the system’s affiliation tab, but they’d officially posted about it in the community.
‘It’s not making any bold moves just yet.’
Even so, the mere existence of a group representing players held meaning.
And the fact that players knew of them.
‘That alone makes it worthwhile.’
I hadn’t been idle while changes swept through Bihar.
I’d steadily accumulated mana to reach silver rank and gained additional buffs from the Palaou Church.
‘Attribute mana amplification is now at 20 percent.’
And that wasn’t the end of it.
With Ahel’s help, I’d learned to manipulate mana through the four elements, and after much hardship, I’d even formed a core.
I’d advanced beyond the condensation stage, where mana gathered in uncertain, misty forms, to the crystallization stage, where I could shape it as smoothly as glass.
‘Though proficiency is a bitch to raise.’
Even so, in just a few months, I’d attained qualifications equal to this world’s upper knights.
Considering it often took Biharans years at best, decades at worst, it was an outstanding accomplishment.
To achieve all this, I’d spent my days in a frenzy with barely a moment to breathe.
Of course, things wouldn’t slow down anytime soon.
Even today, I had to head out for external business.
After finishing my preparations, I descended to the first-floor hall, where Centler was waiting.
He had something to say before I left, and since he wouldn’t see me for a while, he’d come down to see me off.
‘He said he was going to the marquis’s territory.’
Facing Centler, I posed the question I’d been meaning to ask.
“Do you know when Rashar might return?”
Centler gave an awkward smile in response.
“She came home at dawn today.”
I glanced up toward the upper floors.
“Even if I went up now, it’d be hard to meet her, right?”
No answer came, but I didn’t need one—it was obvious.
For a full week now, Rashar had been avoiding me with all her might.
More precisely, avoiding the words that might come out of my mouth.
The odds of her granting an audience today were slim.
After a moment’s thought, I decided to pull back for now.
“How’s the external schedule looking?”
“To my knowledge, nothing for the time being.”
That was a relief, at least.
‘I’ll hold off for now and find an opening when I get back.’
With Centler seeing me off, I left the mansion.
But I hadn’t gone far before I had to stop in my tracks.
The moment I passed through the entrance, a *thwack* sounded, and my head throbbed.
Gritting my teeth, I turned around.
“Let’s keep the greetings normal. Normal.”
As I shot a glare, a *tsk* and a scolding followed.
“To think you didn’t notice even that much presence. Pathetic.”
It was Shamelle who’d appeared out of nowhere and smacked the back of my head.
‘This old hag again.’
Just recalling the past two months rolling under her tutelage made my blood boil every time I saw her face, teeth grinding on instinct.
But damn, could she teach.
After training with Shamelle, my spear use in real combat had skyrocketed.
These days, I never set it aside for another weapon.
With changes and results plain to see, what could I do?
I just had to endure this unjust violence disguised as education.
Only then could she stick close and squeeze me dry to the bone.
“Leaving already?”
Shamelle clicked her tongue as if I were hopeless, her tone irritated.
“Yeah, the location’s tricky, so I’m heading out early.”
“With that level of skill, wandering around... You’ll be lucky not to die screaming somewhere.”
Left alone, she’d nag for at least an hour straight.
Pretending not to hear, I started walking again.
Centler had the carriage ready, so I planned to depart immediately.
Of course, Shamelle didn’t give up easily and trailed after me, yapping nonstop.
I let it go in one ear and out the other as I opened my inventory.
What I pulled out was a magic tool enchanted with facial recognition disruption: the Face of Shadows.
‘It’s a bit floppy, but...’
It had become an essential for outings now.
The moment I equipped it, the disruption magic took effect.
A plain brown-haired white man with maroon eyes reflected in the carriage window.
I stared at the now-familiar face for a brief moment.
Then, turning to Shamelle, who cleared her throat with a *ahem*.
“I’ll be off.”
“With that skill, I wonder if you’ll even come back alive. Give it your best shot.”
I’d been through this enough times to know it was her unique way of cheering and worrying.
She repeated the nagging, scolding, lecturing, and belittling daily, but she didn’t hate me.
Just seeing her follow me out here to see me off proved it.
Shamelle didn’t dislike me; her personality was just prickly.
‘Acting all tsundere like this... Can’t fully hate her.’
She leaned more toward dislike, but it was ambiguous enough not to call outright hatred.
With a shallow sigh and a shake of my head, I said,
“Yeah, yeah. I’ll come back alive and shove this annoying mug in your face, so look forward to it.”
Shamelle grumbled one last time, but ignoring her, I climbed straight into the carriage.
The carriage left the mansion and soon entered the bustling main street teeming with people.
Over half of them were players.
Closing my eyes and tuning my ears, the conversations outside sharpened.
“Katra gear set? Isn’t that kinda pricey?”
“But it’s black iron. They say it holds up fine even against evolved monsters.”
“You really buying?”
“Hey, that guy over there looks like he’s shopping for gear.”
“How big’s his party?”
“Should we fleece him?”
“Let’s wait and see.”
“Argh! What’s the point of inventory if I have to repack my bag every time!”
“Seriously, what kind of hassle is this every damn time?”
“They should patch this. They were updating like crazy at launch, but now it’s dead quiet.”
“When do new polluted zones open?”
“Who knows... A few outposts opened last month, so...”
“Why the long face?”
“Chaos mismanagers. They pick fights whenever they get a chance.”
“Should we push to 2-star?”
“Are you nuts? Wanna die?”
“Don’t you know high risk, high return? No risk, no reward.”
“Heard Lobile’s relocating their garrison this time...”
The tangled chatter was peaceful. A contradictory term, but the most accurate.
It meant players had fully adapted to this game.
Even I no longer found the streets full of players strange.
The sight had become normal.
All these were changes over the past three months.
Gazing at the serene scene, I sank into thought.
‘Three months...’
Much had changed, but what I’d watched most closely, with greatest interest, was something else.
‘The Palaou Church’s resurgence.’
Reviving the church was essential for my own safety.
‘For now, it’s just hunting in low-grade polluted zones.’
But eventually, I’d fight in full-scale war alongside Bihar’s forces.
I needed to bolster the church to prepare.
‘The final decision-makers can’t be allowed to use Palaou’s troops as meat shields.’
Powerless minorities are always first pushed to sacrifice.
How many volunteer for it?
Most are forced into it.
To avoid that, even as a minority, we had to become an unignorable force.
Jordaan thought the same.
‘That’s why he’s working to restore the church’s name and influence.’
The first use of the money from Bellegos’s vault was gathering scattered believers across the continent.
Not only investing heavily to aid those in hardship, but also relocating those near dangerous frontlines inland.
‘Mostly elderly who can’t move well or young believers who lost guardians.’
As if repaying those who never abandoned Palaou, the support was blatant and generous.
‘Not bad.’
Palaou’s name was rising in people’s mouths again.
The church, once tipped to ruin, was doing what others wouldn’t.
They shouldn’t have abandoned Palaou.
They used to be Palaou believers too, so give them aid supplies.
Mostly shameless voices, but the church’s presence was undeniably reviving.
‘Still not enough.’
Bellegos’s vault brought in decent funds, but limits existed.
Caring for current believers worked because their numbers were small.
Add player support, and we were burning through all available funds.
To expand influence outward, we needed more money.
But the church’s fixed income was paltry.
That’s where the recommended missions scattered in polluted zones came in.
The system’s guaranteed rewards—the golden stars on the map—were far from meager.
‘Just raiding polluted zones right nets billions in no time.’
I’d tipped off the church about high-risk zones I couldn’t enter.
Ones I could, I cleared myself, claiming the spoils.
Thanks to that, the church’s finances improved daily.
One reason for today’s outing was clearing a recommended mission.
“Mr. K, we’ve arrived.”
Right on cue, the coachman announced our arrival at the temple.
After a word of thanks, I headed straight inside.
Through the gate yawning wide atop the world tree, my destination was the northern outpost, Bicheta.
* * *
It was about two days from Bicheta Castle to the target.
“Tsk.”
Arriving at the polluted zone heart, smack in the middle, I couldn’t help clicking my tongue.
‘Of all places, underground.’
The polluted zone I’d targeted seemed to be below ground.
Just in case, I checked the map again, but nothing changed much.
I was definitely standing where the golden star marking a recommended mission shone.
Yet no matter how I scoured the Mesio markers, no Mesio appeared.
Then I found a tunnel leading underground—what else could it mean?
Squatting before the tunnel mouth, I let out a deep sigh.
‘Rushing in like this is iffy.’
Two 2-star polluted zones overlapped nearby, swelling the field mobs.
‘Roughly triple the usual, just eyeballing it.’
The black dots on the map crawled thick.
Ignoring them to dive underground wasn’t smart.
If the surface ones swarmed below, I’d be a rat in a trap.
Without knowing the underground layout or environment, better to go in prepared.
Worst case, fighting inside could collapse the ceiling.
Not a huge issue—my abilities could handle it to some extent.
‘Good thing I took mana lessons from Ahel.’
Thanks to his steady instruction, I could now decompose attribute mana into the four elements.
Earth attribute meant no pointless burial.
‘But running dry before escaping would suck.’
To minimize risks, I’d clear the surface variables first.
“What a pain.”
Muttering under my breath, I stood, leaving the tunnel behind.
Damn System