The Evil God's Raid, Part V

A few days had passed since the raid on the Bruton Auction.

After spending some time playing with Nisyona, who clung to her even more tightly as if making up for the days they had been apart, Seraphina returned to her office. Inside the Saintess's private office, a massive hoard of valuables plundered from the auction house lay piled high. Staring at the glittering gold, Seraphina fell into a pleasant dilemma.

'How should I use all of this? If we can source food from the Continent, we can increase the rations for our believers. Maybe we could even hire professional staff, like a chef...'

Since the auction house had been a notorious fixture of the underworld, the personal belongings of its attendees were uniformly exquisite. There were bracelets that kept the wearer's body clean, chokers that prevented hoarseness, rings that detected poison, and various workshop-crafted artifacts that absorbed ambient mana to provide semi-permanent effects.

Of course, in this magic-starved other world, they were nothing more than pretty trinkets. But if she took them back to the Continent to sell, they would easily fetch prices paid in gold coins.

"Hmm... Should I look into a merchant guild first? I wonder if there's a guild willing to trade with us," Seraphina murmured.

It was a monologue uttered with no expectation of an answer. Yet, an unexpected voice chimed in.

"Aaaah, no! Absolutely not! Trying to sell stolen goods to a regular merchant guild?!"

A clear, melodic voice—unfamiliar even to Seraphina, who recognized almost every believer's voice—drifted in from beyond the office door.

"Selling these exquisite items without getting their full value! My—my pride as a merchant won't allow it!"

The office, originally a private room in an underground facility, was partitioned by exceptionally thick walls. Consequently, its soundproofing was superb. Yet, the mysterious, beautiful voice was loud and desperate enough to pierce right through it.

This piqued Seraphina's curiosity. It was a scream that demanded attention from all sides. Even the gaze of the Evil God seemed to look beyond the wall, as if amused.

"What is going on?" Seraphina rose from her seat and opened the door.

Outside, two armed believers were forcing an elf woman to her knees. At Seraphina's inquiry, one of the believers bowed his head and explained.

"Ah, Saintess. Our apologies. She is a newly admitted believer, but she's been causing a scene, insisting she must speak with you. We told her it goes against protocol, but she kept making a fuss..."

"No, I'm telling you I can help! S-Saintess! Please, just hear me out for a second!"

The sight was rather comical: two burly beastman men pinning down a single, petite elf woman. Yet, in contrast to the flustered expressions of the believers, the elf's face burned with absolute determination.

Seraphina studied the elf's face and searched her memory. A petite frame that looked like an adult elf scaled down to seventy percent of her size. Cropped green hair. Silver eyes. She was part of the looted goods brought back when they rescued the believers from the auction house—an elf who had been slated for sale as a slave.

"Your name was... Shellin, correct?" Seraphina said, reaching a hand out toward the kneeling woman.

Shellin grabbed her hand with both of hers, clinging to it as if it were a lifeline.

"Yes, Saintess! I haven't even had the chance to thank you for saving me, but I am finally able to pay my formal respects!"

It was a sudden, effusive expression of gratitude. The Seraphina of the early days might have felt a flush of embarrassment, but she was experienced now. Drawing upon the poise she had cultivated over months of acting as both Saintess and Pope, she replied gently.

"But haven't you been staying with Merlin, Shellin? I recall Merlin taking you with him to discuss past events..."

"Ah, yes! I had a wonderful chat with Lord Merlin! Despite my appearance, I've spent quite a long time rolling around in the merchant world, so I've crossed paths with most of the famous figures at least once! Lord Merlin was delighted!"

Shellin immediately began boasting of her exploits—the details of her conversation with Merlin, what kind of person the head of the Solbairn family from three generations ago (who had supposedly ascended to become a constellation) was, and so on. Woven between her tales were subtle attempts to promote her own worth.

Seraphina, fully aware of this, decided to test the elf's intentions.

"Oh, how impressive. But Shellin, is that the only reason you wished to see me?"

Shellin answered immediately. Without making the slightest attempt to hide her true purpose, she cried out urgently.

"Ah, right! S-Saintess! My ears are actually quite sharp! So, I happened to overhear... you're planning to sell the goods from the Bruton Auction, aren't you?!"

The elf woman perked up her ears proudly. Her long, characteristically elven ears had ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠been brutally cropped, as if someone had tried to force them into a human shape. Vivid scars lined the rounded edges of her cartilage. Yet, Shellin seemed entirely unbothered by it. It was as if the treasures in Seraphina's possession mattered far more to her than ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠the marks of abuse etched onto her own body.

"You absolutely, positively cannot do that! You'll get ripped off to high heaven! Especially if you try to sell them now—everyone will immediately realize they're stolen goods from the Bruton Auction. If they blackmail you with that, you won't even get a fraction of their actual worth!"

"Hmm. Then what do you suggest we do?"

"If I had acquired those stolen goods personally, I would sit on them as long as possible and sell them off one by one! That way, no one can trace their origin! But since you have military power and manpower, Saintess, the best course of action would be to establish a new merchant guild—"

Shellin continued her explanation, growing increasingly excited. She rattled off the benefits of founding a new guild: stability, the influence they could exert on the Continent, and her own pitch on how she could manage the transition phase for them.

"To think such a wonderful place existed in this other world I'd only heard rumors of! Just releasing a few of these items onto the Continent would cause an absolute sensation! And since we'll essentially hold a monopoly on the raw materials, oh my... I can't even begin to calculate how many gold coins we'll make...!"

Perhaps intoxicated by the vision of a golden future, Shellin's voice grew breathless and tremulous. Seraphina quietly observed the woman's dramatic reaction. Misinterpreting her silence, an increasingly anxious Shellin began to plead.

"S-so, Saintess! Won't you please give me a chance? I! I will absolutely bring you wealth and glory! I might have slipped up once and ended up like this, but my merchant's intuition is screaming at me! This is a guaranteed success!"

"..."

"Most of the prominent orders on the Continent sponsor at least one merchant guild anyway. If you could just provide me with a small amount of starting capital and labor—"

As Shellin continued her endless self-promotion, Seraphina suddenly sensed an anomaly. The gaze of the Evil God, which had been fixed on Shellin, shifted in an instant. Its focus turned toward a much higher point.

'...Has something happened on the surface?'

Seraphina tilted her head at the sudden sign. The cause of this shift was explained by Merlin, who arrived right on cue.

"Saintess! Please, come this way for a moment! Wait, Shellin, why are you here? No, regardless! Saintess!"

The old man rushed in breathlessly, searching for the Saintess. He faltered for a moment upon seeing Shellin pleading before Seraphina, but quickly shook it off and cried out.

"An eviction notice has arrived!"

"...An eviction notice? Who on earth would try to evict us from the headquarters ordained by the God Himself?"

"According to the document, it's from an organization called the Haninhae... ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠You must come out and see for yourself!"

Merlin's expression was unusually grim. He had dealt with countless Iron Masks attempting to seize the church's headquarters before, to the point where ordinary forces wouldn't even make him blink. Yet now, a faint trace of anxiety clouded the old mage's face.

Realizing the gravity of the situation, Seraphina immediately wrapped up the conversation.

"Shellin, I have heard your proposal. However, given the circumstances, it would be difficult to make a decision right now. Let us speak of this again later."

Gently brushing aside the spellbound Shellin, she followed Merlin. They emerged from the underground facility and headed toward the church's surface buildings. Standing there was a single man.

He wore the distinct black-and-white attire of this other world with his sleeves rolled up. A massive moon blade was slung across his back, and a straight sword hung at his waist. He looked at Seraphina and called out.

"Are you the person in charge? I have come to deliver an official document from the Haninhae!"

The man's voice threw Seraphina into confusion. It was because of the language spilling from his lips. His clothing and mana circuits were undeniably foreign to the Continent. The immense magical power radiating from his body was wild, unrefined by continental mana cultivation techniques. Naturally, she ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠deduced that this man must be an Iron Mask or a native of this world.

"Currently, you and your unrecognized religious organization are illegally occupying Korean territory. This is in direct violation of Article 3 of the Haninhae Land Act, which mandates immediate eviction and liability for damages to the original owners..."

Yet, the words flowing from his mouth were in the clear, common tongue of the Continent. It was a fluency that neither the Iron Masks nor Nisyona—whom she was currently teaching—could ever hope to match.

"...Accordingly, the Haninhae has delegated enforcement authority to me, Yeomyeong, as the legal representative of the Land Act. You are hereby ordered to immediately vacate these illegally occupied facilities. Failure to comply with this eviction order may result in forcible measures."

That alone was more than enough to raise Seraphina's guard. Though she understood barely half of the proclamation mechanically read by the man who introduced himself as Yeomyeong, his intent to drive the church out was crystal clear.

Seraphina immediately rallied her believers. Sending a prearranged hand signal to Merlin, she mobilized their combatants. Within moments, dozens of fighters armed with the Evil God's gifts trained their weapons on Yeomyeong.

Seraphina gestured to her followers and spoke aloud.

"I am afraid that surrendering the land bestowed upon us by our God is utterly out of the question."

"I see. Then I shall deem the primary eviction order non-compliant."

Their words dissolved into the empty air. The moment Seraphina moved her hand, the believers unleashed a thunderous volley of gunfire all at once. Simultaneously, Yeomyeong drew the blade at his waist. His sword began to glow with the soft, ethereal light of the moon.

"Ah... damn it. Of all things, why does it have to turn out like this?"

I bit my nails as I stared at the monitor of the celestial observatory. Two figures dominated the screen. One was, of course, the ruby-eyed girl who was the light of my life, my salt, my sweet rain, and my hope. The other was a young man I had often watched before I met her—a genius who showed unparalleled talent in the Acquisition of martial arts and techniques.

Watching them point guns and swords at each other, I let out a deep sigh.

"Sigh... I had a bad feeling about this. The president suddenly went all starry-eyed over that strange woman. Tsk."

Clicking my tongue, I leaned back in the pilot's seat of the celestial observatory. Honestly, I wasn't in a great mood. If watching Earth through this observatory was like watching a long-running anime, those two were easily among my absolute favorite characters.

I felt like cursing out loud. Dear Author of Earth, why on earth are you writing the script like this? A priestess from another world suddenly seducing the president? Does that plotline even make sense? Her motives seem completely impure to begin with.

"Sigh... whatever. What's the point of complaining? It's not like presidents haven't listened to shamans in the past. At least I prepared for this."

Of course, regardless of my frustration with this terrible plot progression, this scenario was still one of the contingencies I had prepared for. I had been getting ready ever since that woman in priestess robes emerged from the Mongolian Gate a few months ago and made her way to South Korea.

Adjusting the display of the celestial observatory, I activated a program I had created by allocating a portion of the observatory's processing power.

If I didn't do at least this much, the entire church would be wiped out by Yeomyeong alone.