45
Chapter 45
To think that man back then... was a demonic human.
What would have happened by now if I had accepted his offer to travel together?
Reading something in my expression, Sir Rusein asked carefully.
"Do you know him, by any chance?"
"No. He just looks like someone I've seen before."
I decided not to mention that we had actually met.
There was no need to invite unnecessary suspicion.
"I see."
Rusein replied briefly and reached out after a moment of silence.
"Anyway... a letter at a time like this...."
He slowly pulled out the envelope closed with a wax seal.
The red seal clearly bearing the crest of Sereon
faintly gleamed under the light.
He carefully broke the seal and took out a piece of paper from inside.
It was fairly high-quality paper.
The ink was applied neatly, and the margins were generous.
But outwardly, there was nothing particularly remarkable about it.
It simply contained text cleanly written by someone's hand.
"Oh my......."
Sir Rusein's expression darkened rapidly as he skimmed the contents of the letter.
Just what was written inside?
A moment later, he raised his head.
"This... is not a simple greeting or an administrative notice."
I nodded quietly.
Catching a glimpse of the back of the letter, a few words caught my eye.
Phrases like 'no response', 'superiors' roster', and 'possibility of defection'.
Rusein let out a low breath and lowered his voice.
"Actually, two months ago, I submitted an investigation regarding an entity believed to be a demonic human. I even attached witness statements, records, and parts of a corpse."
Was there already talk about a demonic human two months ago?
Of course, this was the first time I was hearing about it.
"However... that report vanished from the headquarters, who claimed there was 'no record of receipt'."
He held up the letter.
It was written cautiously, yet distinctly.
[According to the headquarters' records, your report has not been logged into the system. Possibility of omission during transmission or intentional concealment.
There is a possibility that someone internally is ignoring the existence of the demonic human or systematically covering it up.]
"...It means there is an internal traitor."
Rusein muttered quietly.
The weight carried by those words was quite heavy.
"Refrain from contacting the outside for the time being and report the situation on the ground in secret. Future communication will be conducted through a trustworthy route."
Rusein said as he folded the letter again.
"For this incident as well, rather than the existence of the demonic human itself... who tried to hide it will be the core issue."
I nodded wordlessly.
Honestly... it was a matter that had little to do with me.
I was not a hero tasked with protecting this world,
nor did I really know what was going on here.
No, it might be more accurate to say I didn't even care.
Just surviving... and returning home.
That was my only goal.
When I nodded expressionlessly, Sir Rusein cautiously spoke up.
"Could you deliver a letter reporting on this matter? As you know, things have gotten complicated."
"Understood."
To get the reward anyway, I had to return to where I was.
Delivering one letter on the way wouldn't be a problem.
But... that wasn't the end of his requests.
"I have one more request. To investigate this matter, I think I'll need the help of my old colleagues. Could you perhaps stop by their place as well?"
"Pardon? Where is that?"
Rusein hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"It's the Lahazah Desert. Those friends of mine should be running a merchant guild there."
Lahazah Desert.
I had definitely heard that name somewhere before.
Hmm... Ah, the Blue Magic Tower. I remember hearing the Blue Magic Tower was in that desert.
I recalled Baldic mentioning something like that once.
"Hmm... I can do it, but are you sure about leaving something like that to me?"
"Since you're someone Luna entrusted with a job, I believe you are a trustworthy person."
Luna, huh. They must be quite close.
But Sir Rusein also looks quite young, so exactly how old is he?
"Besides... aren't you an inheritor?"
"Pardon? An inheritor?"
When I blinked at the unexpected words, Sir Rusein asked back with an even more puzzled expression.
"Earlier at the fire scene... weren't you using a relic to check the people's locations?"
"Ah..."
Inheritor.
It seemed that was what they called people who used relics.
I finally understood why Rusein was under such a misconception.
There was no need to go out of my way to correct his misunderstanding.
"Yes, well... something like that."
"In that case... could you take on the request?"
With his face still scorched from the fire and untreated, asking so earnestly... it honestly wasn't easy to refuse.
However, I was a modern person accustomed to capitalism.
"By any chance, what about the reward...?"
I asked the most important thing.
He could have frowned at the mention of money, but without any hint of disdain, he simply nodded calmly.
"As I am a cleric... it's difficult for me to compensate you financially. Instead, take this."
He undid a bracelet on his arm and carefully handed it to me.
A silver ring and a worn knot.
At first glance, it was an old-looking bracelet.
"It is Margane's Bracelet of Protection."
"Bracelet of Protection?"
"Once a month, when a threat approaches the wearer, it unfolds a magic force field to protect them."
A shield that activates once a month... I thought that was a bit ambiguous.
I didn't know how useful it would be, but from the perspective of someone who could use the Water Barrier, I didn't have high expectations.
"I just bought it out of vanity before starting my life of faith, but it has saved my life several times. The same goes for this incident."
"Is this a relic?"
At my question, he slowly shook his head.
"No, this is just a magic tool made by the Margane Workshop."
"A magic tool?"
Margane Workshop magic tool... it was a name I was hearing for the first time.
From my rough guess, it seemed to be a workshop that specialized in making magic tools.
"Yes, a magic tool. It's an item made by a workshop with quite a reputation. I bought it when I was young, so I don't remember the exact price, but I believe it was about one gold coin."
One gold coin... even accounting for depreciation, it was plenty for a request reward.
"Understood. I'll accept the request."
It might look a bit shallow of me to only accept the request after confirming the reward.
But well, what could I do? I was a mercenary driven by pay in the first place.
To survive in a place like this, I had to make sure I got what was owed to me.
"Thank you. I will write the letter myself and deliver it to you today."
"By the way, are the burns on your face alright?"
"Hmm... Ah, the situation was so urgent that I..."
As if just remembering the burns on his face, he suddenly put on a reverent expression and quietly offered a prayer.
Hum-
A faint white light slowly rose from his body and clung to the burns on his face.
The white light gradually covered the red hue, and before long, the traces of the burn completely disappeared, leaving only a faint redness behind.
I couldn't help but drop my jaw as I watched him heal in an instant.
'So that's a real healer.'
Even the hemostasis Baldic used was amazing, but to think this level of recovery was also possible.
If a head priest is at that level, I figured it wasn't a low position even without knowing much about the religious hierarchy.
"Phew, I should get going to write the letter now."
After finishing his short prayer, he quietly disappeared among the residents.
...If he could heal himself immediately like that, why didn't he do it right after the work was done?
Don't tell me he delayed it on purpose to win my sympathy?
Nah, there's no way a cleric would be that cunning.
Shaking off the random thoughts that popped into my head for a moment, I directed my steps toward Eileen.
"Riv!"
Eileen, who had been waiting from afar, hurriedly ran over after confirming that I was done.
The worry was evident on her face.
"Eileen."
"Are you okay? You aren't hurt anywhere, right?"
I only had some soot on me; I wasn't hurt anywhere.
I reassured her and calmly recounted the conversation I had with Sir Rusein.
After relaying the whole story, I handed something to Eileen.
"This is..."
"It's the bracelet I received earlier. I have magic, so it's better for you to wear it."
"..."
Eileen stared at the bracelet silently for a moment, then slowly put it on her wrist.
I could feel her eyes waver slightly before they soon firmed up.
"Thank you, Riv...."
I smiled and nodded at her gratitude.
***
It was around the time the sun was setting.
Step, step.
I heard the sound of footsteps approaching from the temporary campsite.
"Is it here? Is anyone there?"
It was the small and clear voice of a young child.
The one who poked her head out through the bush was a young girl who looked to be around elementary school age.
Vigilance toward an outsider could be seen on that young face.
"Sir Rusein sent me. He asked me to deliver this letter."
"Sir Rusein did? Where is he right now?"
"He said he's taking care of the sick."
"I see..."
I nodded, recalling Sir Rusein's kind nature in a corner of my heart.
He really is an amazing person.
"Here you go."
The child took out the letter envelope she had hidden in her arms and handed it to me.
The envelope was slightly crumpled, showing just how tightly she had tried to hide it.
"Ah, right! And he told me to give you this, too!"
Suddenly, the child pulled a small metal badge out of her pouch. It was a yellow badge depicting a sword crossing through a flame.
When I gave her a questioning look, the child mumbled as if deep in thought for a moment before finally recalling what to say.
"He said to show this when you find his colleagues!"
"Is that so? Did you happen to hear the name of the merchant guild?"
I had forgotten, but I never heard the name of the merchant guild his colleagues were running.
If the child didn't know, I would have to go and ask him myself.
"It's the Flame of Purification."
"Huh?"
"It's the Flame of Purification Merchant Guild."
To think the merchant guild's name was 'Flame of Purification'.
No matter how you looked at it, it sounded like a Paladin Order's name; they definitely weren't just ordinary merchant guild people.
"Alright, thank you."
"Yes, goodbye!"
As soon as she received the jerky I handed her as a token of gratitude, the child ran off in a hurry.
...She seems quite easily frightened, yet he managed to send her here.
Eileen, who had been quietly watching from the side, asked softly.
"Are you going to the desert first?"
"No, let's head to Mondak first. The desert is quite far away. We need to restock our supplies, too."
Honestly, just the word desert made a list of things to prepare flash through my mind.
Sandstorms, high temperatures, lack of hydration, and the resulting magic power consumption.
The risk was too great to just go blindly.
"Then are we leaving right away?"
At those words, I turned my head and looked at the coachman dozing off on one side of the campsite.
He was still sitting next to the carriage, nodding off to sleep.
"...Let's leave tomorrow."
***
The next morning.
The sky was clear, and the air was cooler than yesterday.
We stood in front of the temporary shelter outside the village again to exchange our final farewells with Sir Rusein.
"May the blessing of God be with you on your journey."
Sir Rusein offered his farewell with his usual dignified demeanor.
His tone was always restrained, free of unnecessary emotion, which ironically made it feel all the more sincere.
"Yes, I hope you stay healthy as well, Sir Rusein."
After a light handshake, we loaded our luggage onto the carriage and finished our preparations to leave.
The coachman adjusted his grip on the horse's reins and looked at us. It was probably a silent sign saying 'let's get going now.'
Like that, we left Riverton Village behind and headed for Mondak once again.
"Man, it's such a shame I couldn't even sell my goods properly."
The coachman lamented with a disappointed expression.
"Are there any villages worth stopping by on the way?"
As if he had been waiting for that, the coachman rattled off the names of several villages.
It seemed his losses were quite significant.
Since we had also been camping for over a week, we wanted to rest somewhere for a bit.
We had intended to stay in Riverton for a while, but an unexpected incident ruined our plans.
Therefore, there was a need to soothe our bodies and minds for a moment in the next village.
"Then, let's head to the nearest village."
"I suppose we should head to Rahilside Village."
The coachman said as he lightly pulled the reins.
It was only after two days of traveling like that that we were finally able to arrive at Rahilside Village.