Chapter 169
Chapter 169
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 169
Chapter Title: Chapter 32: Tail Chase (1)
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Fortunately, the distance wasn't too far, so I could hear them.
"A while ago, you told me to let you know right away if anyone from Santorna showed up..."
The lower priest's words made Garonik's shoulders twitch and tremble.
The moment I saw his head start to turn, I twisted my body.
I turned slightly away from Garonik's direction and looked at Kim Yul.
It was the kind of sudden move that might raise questions.
But Kim Yul, as if he'd prepared for it in advance, glanced around the conference hall and muttered.
"He's not coming out... What should we do? Wait?"
It was perfectly natural content, even if we were standing here.
Even if Garonik overheard our conversation while leaving the conference room, it wouldn't raise any suspicions.
'This guy's instincts are sharp.'
He synced up perfectly with my actions without needing any explanation, and I was liking it more and more.
"Do whatever."
I swallowed a smile that almost escaped and focused on the sounds coming from behind me.
A moment later, the footsteps, now quicker than before, began to fade away.
And soon, the sound grew muffled.
'He turned the corner of the corridor.'
I turned to check, and no one was standing in the straight corridor ahead.
Only then did I follow the path Garonik had taken.
They'd hurried ahead, so in that short time, the two had gone quite far.
But the gold plaque's senses could still pick up their voices from a distance.
"...This should be far enough. What did the visitor look like?"
"He was wearing a hood..."
"That'll do."
"Um... What about the banquet in the Imperial Palace today? Lady Giselle has been asking repeatedly. She wants an answer soon..."
"Tch, annoying... No, wait. Actually, this works out well... I need more invitations, so contact Giselle."
Right up to there, I arrived at the corridor's corner and had to stop without going further.
Because there was no guarantee Garonik wouldn't look back after turning this corner.
From where I stood, turning sideways led to a long straight corridor that would take about five minutes to walk.
I'd passed it on the way to the conference room, so I knew for sure.
Even if I used invisibility, the symbol above my head would remain, and there was no structure to hide it.
'No need to risk getting caught tailing him.'
I stood at the corridor's corner, ears tuned to their receding voices.
"Ah, yes! But about attending..."
"I'll attend, so stop nagging! This isn't the time—first, send the telegram."
"Th-then, what robes should we prepare..."
A moment later, their voices grew quieter than the noise from those left in the conference hall.
After that, I couldn't make out their words clearly.
'Santorna, Imperial Palace, banquet, Giselle, attending, telegram...'
As I extracted key terms and etched them into my mind, Kim Yul approached and spoke.
"...Pretty fast, huh?"
Far from pretty.
"Super fast."
"Think those guys over there... got mixed up with your side?"
"Not certain."
I hedged, but the possibility was high enough.
Kim Yul's eyes darkened slightly.
He was probably recalling the horrific scenes from the past.
"The church folks must suspect it too, right? They can't be totally clueless."
Kim Yul's voice was huskier than usual.
"Who knows..."
I crossed my arms, leaned against the corridor wall, and sank into thought.
'Traffickers colluding with the monsters isn't a huge shock.'
Just scum doing scummy things.
Not worth words like disappointment or shock.
But if church officials were tangled up with the defectors...
I swallowed a sigh amid the complicated feelings and looked up to see a massive world tree statue carved from white marble.
This enormous sculpture, rivaling a ten-story building, was visible everywhere in the central temple.
Its presence was intensely commanding.
'So what now.'
The seven great churches, meant to unite under harmony, were a mess.
How much did the seven gods know about this fiasco?
The unanswerable questions piled up again, but I couldn't stop.
I lowered my eyes slightly and organized my thoughts.
'Some churches colluding with the traffickers is certain.'
At least some high-ranking officials in Senato and Agnotia were definitely in on it.
No way they'd lie when their players' lives were on the line.
'Church officials colluding with defectors is too early to confirm.'
No clear evidence.
'Unlike before, no testimony.'
Still, too many suspicious points to dismiss entirely.
'Leaving it to the church to investigate would be a bust.'
Garonik's backers would squash it anyway.
And I had no means to investigate him myself.
'Mess this up, and today's meeting could be pointless.'
No guarantee his backers wouldn't pressure church HQ.
Sitting idle might get us hit from behind.
I furrowed my brow and tapped my forehead with my fingers.
Lost in chasing thoughts, I didn't notice my external senses dulling.
"Hyung."
Only when Kim Yul nudged me did I snap back.
"K, you haven't left yet."
"Yulia Priest-nim."
Yulia's group had approached from the conference hall without me noticing.
Smiling mildly as always, he glanced at the conference hall and said.
"Everyone seems to be getting up."
Meaning we should head back now. His way of being considerate.
I'd told the other priests we'd leave right after to avoid transfer talk.
Sure enough, priests began pouring out of the conference hall.
Yet my feet wouldn't move easily.
I glanced back at the corridor where Garonik had vanished, pondering.
'He definitely said he'd attend the banquet at the Imperial Palace.'
No guarantee tailing him there would catch anything, and I had no way to get to the Imperial Palace anyway.
So chasing Garonik wasn't even an option.
But replaying his words left a nagging unease.
In the end, even as priests spotted and approached me, I stayed put and spoke up.
"Sorry for the sudden question."
"What is it?"
"Any way I could get to the Imperial Palace?"
"The Imperial Palace?"
Yulia looked surprised at the abrupt request.
But immediately exchanged troubled glances with Lario.
That said enough.
'As expected, no dice.'
Makes sense—in a world where the emperor lives, freely entering the Imperial Palace isn't easy.
No players had entered the Atar Empire's Imperial Palace for good reasons.
'Some have come to Gemail via portal.'
But those were sightseeing trips.
Even then, the player symbols drew stares, so they left quickly.
Before Yulia could awkwardly refuse, I tried to withdraw the request.
"The Palawo Order cut ties with the Atar imperial family after the second prince mocked the goddess's disappearance."
But someone else spoke first.
"The emperor subtly mocked us too, making it easy to sever ties."
The unfamiliar voice came from the conference hall's opposite side—the direction Garonik had gone.
A man with disheveled blond hair and golden eyes stood there.
His worn cloak and mud-caked boots contrasted sharply with his piercing gaze.
'Mid-fifties, maybe.'
The sword at his waist marked him as a knight.
Fortunately or not, I knew his identity without introductions.
"Gretman, you're back."
Yulia named him directly.
"Yes, Lady Yulia. I hope you've been well."
The man called Gretman approached us and Yulia without a sound.
"Thanks to the goddess's grace. And you?"
"I too have been safe by her grace."
I fixed my gaze on the man conversing with Yulia.
'Gretman Rohil Angrimart.'
Direct imperial descendant of the now-fallen Angrimart Empire and the Palawo Order's first apostle.
But the most striking descriptor wasn't his origins or affiliation.
Lowering my eyes slightly revealed his sword—the flashiest, most threatening part of his background.
'Strongest human in Bihar, they say.'
The only human who could stand toe-to-toe with powerhouses like Horpe from other races.
'At that level, is he even human?'
Even now with the gold plaque, I couldn't imagine gaining the upper hand against Horpe or Breche.
They started from a different baseline than humans.
Having more mana doesn't automatically make you rival other races.
Yet this man bridged that vast racial gap with a single sword.
'I heard he's rarely at the church, so hard to see.'
Who'd have thought I'd meet the pinnacle of human swordsmanship like this.
'Sudden, but not bad.'
The priests slinking toward us from the conference hall halted en masse.
Gretman glanced at them, and they averted eyes and turned away.
"Ants everywhere you go."
"Gretman, I always say this—mind your words. The goddess watches."
Yulia scolded him, but I wholeheartedly agreed with his bluntness.
A involuntary chuckle escaped me.
Reacting to the laugh, Gretman's gaze turned to me.
My shoulders twitched. Besides his eyes, something else swept over me.
No need to wonder what.
'He's using divinity.'
Identical to the sensation I'd felt several times meeting Rashar first.
Back then, I didn't know it was Palawo's divinity scanning me.
Now, after experiencing it, I could clearly distinguish Palawo's divinity.
'No way he sees much charitable potential in me.'
For some reason, Gretman kept using divinity to scrutinize me.
The prolonged stare created a standoff atmosphere.
We couldn't just observe silently forever.
"I'm K. Thanks for saving me the hassle."
"Blunt one, aren't you? And you know who I am from your face."
I greeted first, and he responded with a handshake.
I shook his hand, nodding.
"Yes, Lord Gretman. I've heard a lot."
"I've heard plenty about you too."
Afterward, his golden eyes continued scanning me up and down.
"What is it?"
"Hmm... Want to go to the Imperial Palace?"
He dodged my question instead of answering.
I resisted glancing at Yulia and shook my head.
"No, just curiosity..."
"I could take you."
Damn system