Chapter 55
Chapter 55
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 54
Chapter Title: Setting the Trap
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Agno safely returned to the temple and reported everything he had experienced in front of the high-ranking priests, including Clero. The church acknowledged Paris Emporus as a pseudo-contractor.
However, Paris Emporus completely denied the accusations.
The missing item wasn't with him, and since the assassin who had infiltrated Sios Domain had escaped, there was no evidence besides the child's word.
Paris Emporus had come in person for protection, yet he protested to the temple, expressing displeasure at being casually suspected and monitored.
At the same time, he claimed they were framing him as a criminal to boost their achievements.
Using this as an excuse, he left the grand temple. The church couldn't do anything about it and simply assigned a few holy knights to escort him before letting him go.
"On the surface, that is."
Abyss, who had been stuck to the desk, picked up some documents and moved to the sofa as he spoke.
That's right. On the surface, it looked like the church couldn't touch the baron, but this was a strategy to lower his guard.
"They know that killing Baron Emporus alone won't solve the problem."
Even if Paris Emporus were killed, the contract wouldn't disappear. Nor could they go around harming everyone with the Emporus name just to eliminate the contract.
Enoch acted as a messenger, relaying Rachel and Abyss's opinions to the church, and the church assigned him to handle this matter as the one who had proposed the solution.
"With the royal family getting involved, the temple side accepted it too."
"As expected, the temple and the king—urk!"
Abyss was mid-sentence when Enoch's holy relic stamped on his foot, shutting him up.
"Oh dear. My holy relic has fallen again."
Enoch smoothly picked up the relic. Rachel felt a sense of déjà vu but deliberately ignored it and changed the subject.
"My letter should have arrived by now."
A few days ago, Rachel had sent a letter to Baron Paris Emporus.
Roughly, it said she'd heard recent news about her uncle but didn't believe it, so she wanted to meet him in person to talk.
She'd heard from the adults that he was hosting a banquet and asked if she could visit secretly without her mother's knowledge.
"They've found the token too, and since I'm coming in person, he can't refuse."
"No matter how suspicious he is, he can't ignore this trap. Especially since he blindly trusts his own judgment."
Paris Emporus, who had succeeded his whole life, would never imagine this as a trap. No, he was the type who would charge in even knowing it was a trap, believing he'd come out unscathed.
"He's solved everything with money so far. He'll think this time is the same."
Just then, the office door burst open with a bang.
The bespectacled harpy named Bang-gul appeared, holding a rolled-up bundle of paper.
"Boss, it's decided!"
"The Second Prince acts fast. So, who is it?"
"The person you respect, boss!"
"Jesty the Judge?"
"Correct! As a reward, this harpy will give you a massage."
"I refuse! That's no different from torture!"
"No refusals allowed!"
The harpy placed the paper bundle on the table and wiggled her fingers as she approached Abyss. Abyss flipped over the sofa to evade her.
"Don't run around in here! The documents are flying everywhere!"
Rachel nagged as she stood from her chair. She picked up the bundle of documents the harpy had placed on the table.
"This person seems trustworthy."
At Rachel's mutter, Enoch glanced sideways at the documents and asked,
"Do you know him?"
"Yeah, doesn't it click since it's someone this guy respects?"
"He must be capable, then."
Enoch had come to know well what kind of people Abyss admired. Recalling his talent-collecting obsession, he nodded reassuringly.
"By the way, Enoch, you're impressive too. Moving the Second Prince with just one letter! Enoch, you're totally a capable guy! Or is it Karl who's capable in this case?"
At Rachel's question, Enoch's face turned pale.
Abyss, who was being forcibly massaged by the harpy, let out a hiccup as he looked at Enoch.
"Hic!"
"Either laugh or say it hurts. Pick one."
"He must be mentally worn out from all the work."
"True, it's enough workload to drive anyone mad. Anyway, what about that thing I mentioned last time?"
Rachel asked Enoch.
A few days earlier, Rachel had proposed to Enoch mass-producing items that neutralize curse mediums, inspired by how divine power purified curses.
Dispatching priests was a good method, but there were few priests who could detect curse mediums, and they had plenty of other duties.
It wasn't for no reason that they prioritized dispatching to nobles who donated generously.
Sending priests only to the nobles on Rachel's list was one option, but some of them didn't donate to the temple.
Other donating nobles might complain, so Rachel had suggested an alternative to Enoch.
"We confirmed that curses weaken with holy water. Purifying them might be hard, but if we find a material that holds divine power, we could weaken them."
Holy water was expensive, and materials that could hold divine power were limited to pricey gems.
Most of the nobles dying from curses were high-ranking, so the price wouldn't be an issue for them, but bluntly telling them they'd die from a curse would just get them kicked out as bad luck.
The initial costs were too high for the temple to cover entirely, and even if produced, getting nobles to carry the items was another matter.
Gems made great jewelry, but nobles who wanted to flaunt their wealth and status wouldn't stick to one piece.
"We need to find cheap ores that take divine power well, or make expensive ones appealing enough for nobles to seek them out."
Rachel fell into thought for a moment.
"Abyss, any ideas?"
"I'd appreciate it if you could at least make a prototype and ask around."
"If we get word that something usable is made, I'll let you know then."
"Yes, please!"
Enoch closed his eyes briefly, then opened them as if remembering something.
"I almost forgot."
"What?"
"The literature curator said Amaimon is a finicky demon. It only accepts offerings from midnight to 2 a.m.—exactly two hours—and only through the contract circle it specifies."
"So there are restrictions on time and place?"
Enoch nodded. In other words, the baron couldn't kill Rachel at any random time or place.
'I can use this!'
As Rachel smiled triumphantly, Enoch added one more thing.
"But how long are you staying here?"
After returning from the temple, Rachel had been staying at the information guild's branch.
Rachel scratched her cheek.
"I was planning to go home once the workload lightened..."
Her gaze turned toward the desk. Enoch followed her eyes and sighed.
At the end of their gazes was a pile of stacked documents.
Abyss cried out to Rachel.
"Don't leave! I can't imagine this office without you anymore."
"That's what he says. Maybe this guy didn't die because of his uncle but from overwork."
Rachel clicked her tongue and sat at her own desk. Abyss had been so enthusiastic about recruiting her that he'd set up a dedicated spot for her in the information guild branch.
"Can't be helped since it's a secret society. If it weren't for the baron, we wouldn't have to move so covertly."
There was a royal intelligence department, but the toughest opponent for Abyss's information guild wasn't them—it was Paris Emporus.
With his solid capital base, plus his trading companies and guilds spreading his people across trade routes and villages, avoiding his eyes was difficult.
On top of leading illegal activities, he was proactive in cover-ups, so Abyss, who sought accurate info, must have been a thorn in his side.
"If we topple the baron this time and ally with the Second Prince, things will get much better. I won't hold you back then."
"You're saying that so easily, as if making me work until then."
Rachel retorted sarcastically, but sadly, her hand was already gripping a pen.
She wanted to escape this document hell, but this pile was a treasure trove of information.
She couldn't leave because she could access far more info directly than through letter exchanges with Abyss.
"You're one of my kind, miss. You can't just pass by this information!"
Rachel sighed again at Abyss's words, which strayed further from her first impression of him.
Enoch, watching from the side, silently infused her with divine power.
***
The awaited day arrived. Paris Emporus smirked wickedly.
"Finally, today is the day."
The contract would finally be fulfilled. There were holy knights monitoring him, but only about ten.
His private soldiers numbered fifty times that, and the mercenaries he'd separately hired were ten times more.
A skilled knight was said to be worth a hundred men, but his mercenaries were no slouches either.
"Above all, the Third Prince will be coming..."
As a royal bodyguard knight, his martial prowess would be exceptional. He had no fear of the holy knights watching him.
"Soon, I will become the greatest."
Then he'd have no need for the Third Prince's help.
There would be opponents, but if he successfully completed the demon contract, the black sorcerers would aid him.
He would erase the name Cudas and establish his own new kingdom.
Paris Emporus lost himself in ecstatic imaginings.
After receiving Rachel's letter saying she would visit, he'd felt everything was moving in his favor.
"I've cherished that child all this time. Of course, since she'll make me king. It's hard to believe she came from that detestable woman—she's such a good girl."
He'd sent her a location near the destination so she could come. With a note to keep it secret from others.
As he hummed a tune, a knock sounded. When he told them to enter, his wife came in.
"Dear, is this really okay?"
His clueless wife looked at him with a frightened face.
Was it a woman's intuition? Even without telling her anything, she seemed to sense something and asked.
She'd borne two sons but ultimately failed to give him a daughter.
There was no affection. If she had birthed a daughter, he could have killed her anytime.
"No problem at all. It's an issue from the previous generation—I haven't touched black magic."
"Right? It must be my unfounded worry."
"Then stop fretting needlessly and keep the servants in line."
"I'm sorry."
Leaving his apologizing wife behind, Paris Emporus left the room. She was far too lacking to become a queen.
As he stepped out, tongue-clicking, he saw his two sons standing in the entrance hall.
"Father!"
"Chris, Mars."
"Father, the atmosphere has been tense lately—are you still going to work?"
"This is exactly when I need to show I'm fine. If I shrink back because of bad rumors, the ignorant will spew even worse."
He had no affection for his wife, but it was different for his blood sons.
If he became king, his sons would be princes. A smile naturally spread across his lips.
"You're amazing, Father. So composed even in this situation."
"It's all thanks to experience. Stay home. When I return, I'll bring a huge gift."
"Yes."
Pleased, he stepped outside.
In front of the mansion stood a carriage as splendid as any high noble's.
Before he even approached, the servants opened the door and placed the step stool. He boarded with impeccable poise.
Soon, the carriage departed.