Chapter 29: Nice to Meet You
Chapter 29: Nice to Meet You
There is a special metric applied only to cultists managed by the Church of Harmony.
“Kar, from now on, please actively accumulate Ore of Trust on the Scales of Harmony.”
Valentin, the vice-commander of the Spear of Order, continued speaking with a bright smile that made one curious about his dental care routine.
“As long as the weight of the Stones of Sin placed on the opposite side does not become heavier, you will receive not only external requests but also thicker Armor of Blessing.”
It was a tedious explanation full of terms only he understood, but the point was simple.
If cultists managed their credit score well, they would receive many benefits from the Church of Harmony.
“Do not be surprised. Among the privileges we offer is even a one-on-one meeting with the Saint.”
I deliberately flinched.
“Is that truly possible…?”
When I even asked with disbelief, just as expected, Valentin’s nostrils flared slightly.
Working under Section Chief Choi—the sort of demon who dumps mountains of overtime work on you if you respond indifferently, then makes you redo everything the next day—naturally teaches you how to tailor conversations entirely to the other person’s mood.
If I asked another question here, he would surely be pleased.
“To be able to meet the Saint in person! That gives me yet another reason to live diligently in harmony within Arteine’s embrace. How can one accumulate Ore of Trust?”
“Ahem! That’s simple.”
The bright-toothed holy knight now looked ready to pick me up and dance while kindly explaining.
“You accumulate it whenever you achieve accomplishments as an explorer. As you did in the past three labyrinths—by discovering Arteine’s arrangements, by clearing an unexplored dungeon for the first time, or by achieving a feat that spreads your name throughout Pletika.”
In other words, by simply continuing my activities as an explorer, I would naturally receive the benefits offered by the Church of Harmony.
Which suited me just fine.
I had no intention of conducting ordinary labyrinth explorations.
“Thank you for the detailed explanation.”
“Do you have any further questions?”
“Arteine’s guidance has already reached my mind.”
“Then I will explain external requests in detail. Ilia, bring it out.”
The holy knight standing behind Valentin’s right shoulder—who had been staring straight ahead with an unusually clear gaze—turned toward me.
“Nice to meet you. Cultist Kar of the Twisted Truth.”
《Ilia (Human, 22), a holy knight from District 6 who was once a vagrant and received the blessing of “Order.” After committing various vicious crimes and being captured, his mind became filled entirely with justice, good deeds, service, and sacrifice. The followers of that hypocritical goddess are truly terrifying….》
“It’s such a pleasant day with warm sunlight. I hope you’re having a wonderful day as well.”
The tone sounded like something straight out of an elementary school ethics textbook.
It was as if an AI were speaking through a conversation algorithm.
In truth, what had happened to him and the result were quite similar.
“It’s nice to meet you as well, Holy Knight.”
As the most well-behaved cultist in District 6, I could not show prejudice just because he had once been a vagrant.
So I extended my hand politely.
The holy knight grasped it and shook my arm at a perfect right angle before handing me a stack of documents.
“This is the list of external requests.”
While I skimmed the papers, Valentin added an explanation.
“With the Ore of Trust you currently possess, the only tasks available to you are recovering or disposing of bodies left inside labyrinths.”
In other words—
Working as a labyrinth cleaner.
The Church of Harmony mediated requests from across all districts of Pletika for the disposal of dead explorers, assigning them to cultists.
Beginner Evil-God worshippers might wonder how this counted as a “benefit.”
But in reality, it was an extremely thoughtful arrangement.
“Recovered corpses must not be offered as sacrifices, but corpses designated for ‘disposal’ may be used freely.”
An opportunity to receive free corpses.
In other words, it was like a large corporation opening work opportunities to smaller businesses.
In reality, many cultists lost their sanity under the wrath of Evil Gods—or degenerated into indescribable creatures judged to be monsters—because they failed to obtain bodies for human-sacrifice rituals.
In that sense, the Church of Harmony was not much different from faith-based biologists struggling to preserve the survival of Evil-God worshippers.
“Everything here is interesting.”
Each request was tempting enough that I wanted to take them all.
But greed was dangerous.
After reviewing the entire list carefully, I found a request that perfectly matched my needs.
“I will take this one.”
[District 3 — Battlefield of Bloodbirds: Corpse Recovery]
[Client: Tavirek, Guild Master of the Gemlord Guild]
Pendrick.
A swordsman with overwhelming talent.
This quest was perfect for recruiting a future companion.
The Church of Harmony, which worships Arteine—the Goddess of Wisdom and Protection—is the largest and most prestigious religious organization in Pletika.
A doctrine that is not hostile toward other religions.
A devout lifestyle pursuing harmony among all people.
And above all, Mysteries that greatly assist labyrinth exploration.
Considering all that, it would actually be strange if it were not Pletika’s primary religion.
“You said you will depart to fulfill the request today.”
Faith in Arteine was viewed positively in every district.
That meant building connections with high-ranking members of the Church of Harmony ensured you would not be treated poorly.
“Here is the permit verifying your identity that you requested yesterday, Kar.”
Valentin had arrived early in the morning and handed me a document.
In the center was a large seal bearing Arteine’s sacred beast—the owl with the All-Seeing Eye.
《A permit approved by the Archbishop. You now have the freedom to stay overnight outside. Even the holy knights of that hypocritical goddess can be useful at times.》
When I asked Valentin for a permit to make my explorer activities easier, he produced it within a single day and even delivered it personally.
Which proved that even someone nicknamed the Heretic Crusher posed no reason for fear—as long as you were a harmless cultist like me.
Of course, cultists who offered innocent people as living sacrifices should run the moment they encountered him.
“Additionally, I have arranged it so you may enter other labyrinths while carrying out this request.”
“Thank you very much.”
Once again, I felt how beneficial the philosophy of harmony truly was.
Our Lord Lidni, meanwhile, only demanded petty acts like harassing others with newly learned Mysteries.
《Your expression suggests you are harboring extremely irreverent thoughts. The Wise One is suspicious.》
Zap.
《Please refrain from interpreting the will of that filthy Evil God. It must surely be a ridiculous accusation!》
Ignoring the pointless squabble, I saw Valentin off and returned inside.
“You’re leaving already?”
Marlin, who looked a little tired from waking up early for training, asked.
“You’re lucky. I heard District 3 has lots of places to play and tons of food!”
“I’m not going there to play.”
The expedition for recruiting a companion consisted of two members.
Myself and Rosalia.
While I was gone, Butler Sergius and Maid Charlotte would look after the children.
“Don’t slack off while I’m gone. Train hard. And don’t forget your labyrinth studies.”
I placed the wide-brimmed hat I bought earlier on Marlin’s head, and she smiled brightly.
Abel, who had been dozing beside her, finally lifted his head.
“When you return, you will be surprised by how much we have improved. I will prepare a meal for you then.”
“I’m looking forward to it.”
After ruffling both siblings’ hair once—
I headed toward the western checkpoint bordering District 5.
Because the city structure placed six districts around the central district, there was no direct path to District 3.
Fast travel through teleportation circles existed, but it required higher credit scores.
I would probably need to clear at least five more labyrinths.
“……”
On the way, Rosalia rose silently from the shadow of a building and joined me.
Unlike usual, she wore a hood covering her pointed ears.
Crackle.
The filthy sovereign of the sky suddenly sent a will filled with delight.
Since that being favored anyone handsome regardless of gender, the contents were predictably indecent.
What an exhausting deity.
“Are you ready for our outing?”
“….”
Rosalia firmly shook her head and tapped her temple.
“You’re telling me to remember that we’re going to recruit talent? Don’t be so strict.”
I lightly nudged the stern elf’s arm with my forearm.
“If we have time, we could visit the night market, tour a museum, or listen to a wandering bard troupe’s performance.”
The reply was an extremely vulgar glare.
If I pushed further, it looked like she might strangle this delicate cultist with her eyes alone.
So I quietly continued walking.
Because my companion was excessively silent, I focused only on walking and soon passed through District 5—with its ecological park—and the gloomy District 4.
“Identity confirmed. May Arteine’s blessing guide your peaceful journey.”
After passing the inspection by the Royal Peacekeeping Force guarding the district border, the scenery of District 3 finally came into view.
“As expected, District 3 is crowded.”
Large and small buildings lined every direction.
The streets were packed with people of many races.
Laughter and conversation filled the busy streets even in the early morning.
Unlike the quiet District 6, this was the district where numerous guild headquarters were located.
Tap.
While I was looking around, Rosalia nudged my arm.
Her gaze remained fixed on the southern road.
“You mean we should go to the southern street where many inns are located? That was my plan anyway.”
Since we would stay in District 3 for several days, we needed to secure good lodging before it became too late.
“Let’s go.”
Walking along the road that followed the outer city wall, I began to see buildings marked with Arteine’s shield emblem.
The area was called—
“Dreaming Path.”
It was the neighborhood where lodging facilities and explorer training schools thrived most in District 3.
Tap, tap.
The silent assassin nudged my arm again and tilted her head.
Following her gaze, I saw a luxurious inn that looked extremely expensive.
“You mean that staying in a luxury inn for high-income explorers would prevent troublesome pests from bothering us?”
The elf nodded slightly with a satisfied expression.
Then she rummaged through her shadow and pulled out a money pouch filled with gold coins.
《About 500 gold. Financial support from Odilon for recruiting talent.》
“Pocket money from the young master, I see? Hand it over. I will manage the money for you.”
I politely extended my right hand.
But the silent assassin stared at me and firmly pushed my hand down.
“……”
“Fine, fine. Stop glaring at me like that. It’s not even your money—why be so stingy?”
Still clutching the pouch, the miserly assassin began walking ahead.
After a short distance, she stopped before a large building built in a mysterious architectural style.
《Radiance Inn. A luxurious establishment for wealthy explorers with a daily fee of 200 gold. That point-eared assassin clearly has a serious spending problem.》
So she was Gatsby, not Scrooge.
I hurriedly blocked the elf who was confidently about to enter.
“Wait! We don’t even know how many days we’ll stay. Why choose such an expensive inn?”
“……?”
Rosalia looked at me as if she didn’t understand.
Then she took out the money pouch again and showed it to me.
As if asking, What’s the problem when we have this much?
《Rosalia (Wood Elf, 29), an assassin lacking basic financial sense. As you said, she truly is an elf who only excels at assassination.》
“Please follow me. I already have an inn in mind….”
Grabbing Rosalia’s arm while she kept glancing back at the luxurious inn, I examined the surrounding buildings.
There it is.
A wooden building with a triangular roof.
A real shield hung above the entrance, decorated with a cute sheep winking on its surface.
[The Sheep’s Roar]
The name reminded one of a thriller movie based on a novel.
But it wasn’t run by a high-IQ psychopathic murderer, so it was safe.
“Here it is. Let’s go inside.”
I turned the sheep-horn-shaped door ring and entered.
Like most inns, the first floor also served as a dining area.
Most tables were empty.
《Almost no guests. Only the smell of sweat fills the air. Should we burn it down and reduce it to ashes?》
While the Eye That Sees Truth casually suggested arson, an employee hurried over carrying dishes left by customers.
“Welcome!”
A worker wearing a sheep-horn hat—the inn’s uniform—with black hair and purple eyes.
Though it was our first meeting—
I was glad to see him.
《Pendrick (Human, 20), an aspiring explorer. He works at the inn to earn living expenses. Is this the talent you were looking for?》
Pendrick.
My first meeting with the swordsman who had received the developer’s greatest favoritism.