The Irony of Faith
The Sadique Order had arrived in the Auston Kingdom completely ignorant of the local situation, giggling to themselves, “Hehe, look at Sadique’s flames rising! This must be a divine revelation!” For them, what followed was nothing short of a bolt from the blue.
The players, who were on the verge of losing the sanctuary they had barely managed to build all because of Sadique's Flame, were absolutely blind with rage. They had barely managed to escape! From then on, they had to hide their identities.
“We need to raise the Sadique Order's influence, but...”
To raise the order's influence, they had to enter cities or castles, build rapport with NPCs, complete their quests, and convert them to the order. Doing all of this while hiding their identities raised the difficulty exponentially! Burford sighed. Could they really pull this off?
“Gasp!”
Burford instinctively ducked. A face he felt like he had seen somewhere before had just ridden past on horseback. It was none other than Tae-hyun.
Why on earth is that bastard here?
Burford walked with his head hung low. Even though he was disguised, he couldn't help the terror that gripped him. It was a fear carved deep into his very bones!
In the past, he had blustered about getting revenge and reclaiming what he had lost, but not anymore.
Please, just don't shatter the last meager bowl I have left!
He had been burned so many times that he didn't even want to be associated with the man anymore. Fortunately, Tae-hyun rode off without noticing Burford or the rest of the Sadique Order.
“Isn't that guy Kim Tae-hyun?”
“It is! The mortal enemy of our Sadique Order! I shall slay him and prove the glory of Lord Sadique's name—gack!”
As the Sadique Paladin recognized Tae-hyun and reached for his sword, Burford delivered a swift, brutal blow straight to his solar plexus.
“What was that for?!”
“You idiot, have you learned absolutely nothing after everything we've been through? Do you honestly think attacking him right now will end well?!”
Overwhelmed with emotion, Burford grabbed the Sadique Paladin by the collar and roared.
“I want to tear him apart too! But attacking him now is pure suicide! Do you still not get it?!”
“Ugh, u-ugh...!”
“We must bide our time and gather our strength! Until the day we can actually defeat him!”
The two embraced each other, shedding hot tears. Passersby gave them bizarre looks, but they couldn't care less.
“So, what do we do now?”
“First, we need to get close to the locals... Let's wander around and clear some quests.”
Burford looked around as he walked. Come to think of it, which religious orders were established here in Canaan Castle?
“?!”
Burford froze in shock. Usually, in any city or castle, there was a designated street where all the temples were located. To see which orders were present, one simply had to visit that district...
“W-What is this? What is this incredibly gaudy building?”
“No kidding.”
Typically, a temple's exterior reflected the characteristics of its deity. Some were simple and modest, while others were rugged and solemn... But the one standing before them now...
“What kind of lunatic built this?”
It was a temple that looked as if it had been designed by someone with absolutely zero aesthetic sense! It was a design where they had simply slapped on anything that looked expensive and shiny. While one could call it luxurious or high-end, at this point, it was just gaudy.
Temple Identified.
[This is the Temple of the Archisus Church.]
“…….”
Should I burn it down? Burford seriously contemplated it. If he set fire to this place, he would have to completely abandon any future quests here... But even taking that risk into account, the urge was incredibly strong. That was just how much Burford had suffered at their hands.
No, calm down. Calm down. I have abandoned my desire for revenge. I have abandoned my desire for revenge...
Slap! Slap! Burford slapped his own cheeks. After getting wrecked by Tae-hyun, and then by that bizarre heavy-armored Vampire warrior who had appeared out of nowhere, hadn't Burford attained enlightenment?
Revenge was bad for one's health! Instead of obsessing over getting revenge on Tae-hyun, he needed to focus on his own path. That was what was best for him.
I forgive Kim Tae-hyun. I forgive him. I have forgiven him...
Barely managing to steady his trembling heart, Burford knocked on the temple door. His plan was to slip inside and gather some intel!
There is currently no priest in the temple. Entry is denied.
“?!?!?!”
For a moment, Burford thought he had misread the message window. A temple this massive and luxurious, and there wasn't a single soul inside?!
“What the hell is going on?!”
He shouted, but no one answered. He knocked again, but no one came out. It felt as if they were being haunted by ghosts!
What on earth was Kim Tae-hyun thinking when he built this place? No, even if he did build it, why is it completely empty?
No matter how grand a temple was, it was utterly meaningless without people. Burford couldn't begin to fathom what Tae-hyun was plotting.
Is it a trap? Is there some incredibly complex scheme at play? Am I about to get scammed again?
This was the common trait shared by everyone who had been thoroughly deceived by Tae-hyun: they would let their imaginations run wild, spinning elaborate theories even when Tae-hyun hadn't given the matter a single thought.
Just like the members of the Suning Guild who had ransacked an entire castle searching for non-existent bombs, Burford agonized over the mystery all by himself.
“Ugh... Let's just focus on clearing quests first. Is there anyone around who looks like they need help?”
“Let's ask around.”
Forcing friendly, gentle smiles onto their faces, the Sadique Paladins began stopping passersby to strike up conversations.
“Excuse me, but is there anything troubling you or causing you hardship lately?”
It was highly ironic for the Sadique Order, a faction devoted to an evil god, to be performing such acts of charity, but what choice did they have? When an order lacked power, they had to do whatever it took!
Even as they asked, Burford didn't expect a quest to pop up immediately. This kind of legwork required an immense amount of patience.
Usually, you had to keep stopping people until you finally stumbled upon the one NPC who actually held a quest.
“Actually, yes!”
“Ah, as expected, there isn't... Wait, what?”
“I said yes, there is!”
“?!”
To think the very first person they stopped would immediately offer a quest. Burford was taken aback, but he quickly regained his composure.
“P-Please, tell us! We are highly skilled adventurers, so we can certainly help you!”
“Really?”
“Absolutely!”
“Lately, that bastard First Prince has been bleeding us dry!”
The Tyranny of the First Prince
The First Prince of the Auston Kingdom was never a great leader, but lately, his behavior has grown noticeably bizarre. By extorting gold from wealthy merchants to construct a lavish temple, he has driven the citizens of Canaan Castle to the brink of outrage.
Quell their discontent and guide them to place their faith in the name of the god Sadique.
📍 Location: Canaan Castle
🎁 Reward: Increased influence for the Sadique Order within Canaan Castle.
“……?”
Burford was thoroughly bewildered. Looking at this, it clearly seemed to have something to do with Tae-hyun...
Why would Kim Tae-hyun do something like this? Why would he actively ruin his own reputation?
Acting out in such an unhinged, tyrannical manner was the kind of thing the Sadique Order would do! No matter how he looked at it, it didn't seem like something Tae-hyun would pull.
“Hey! So, are you going to help us or not?!”
“Ah, of course we will help!”
Burford nodded. Confusion was one thing, but a quest was a quest.
“For starters... well, here is some gold. Please take this for now...”
“Thank you! You really are a wonderful person!”
Quest completed.
Your reputation within the Sadique Order has increased.
Your reputation within Canaan Castle has increased.
The Sadique Order's influence within Canaan Castle has increased.
There were many ways to resolve a quest. Since they couldn't exactly march up to the First Prince and demand, “Cease this tyranny at once!” the only thing they could do was compensate the extorted merchants with gold! Fortunately, the Sadique Order possessed a rather substantial slush fund.
“Whew. What on earth is that bastard Kim Tae-hyun thinking...?”
“Excuse me, adventurer! I heard you're helping folks like us, is that true?”
“Pardon?”
The moment they finished one quest, other NPCs began crowding around them!
“Please help us too!”
“W-Wait a moment. Let me calculate the gold...”
“You're not saying you'll help others but leave us out, are you?!”
The merchant NPC glared, eyes wide! When money was on the line, a merchant could project an aura far more intimidating than any seasoned warrior. Burford swallowed hard and shook his head.
“Did you hear? The adventurers who showed up recently are incredibly kind.”
“I know! They take way better care of us than that Archisus bastard, or whatever his name is.”
“That guy—no, that gentleman mentioned some god... What was the name again?”
The Archisus Church, extorting gold in the name of the First Prince to erect a lavish temple!
The Sadique Order, handing out gold to help the victims of extortion!
The two factions were acting in ways completely opposite to their actual divine natures.
“Second Prince! I have brought the soldiers!”
“Well done, Count Kim Tae-hyun. You have done what was expected of you.”
“…….”
There were a hundred ways to say the same thing, and the Second Prince possessed a unique talent for phrasing everything in the most obnoxious way possible. Yet, Tae-hyun endured.
Just wait until this meeting is over. I'm going to squeeze every last penny out of the people in your name!
The Second Prince prattled on endlessly about how everyone had a preordained social status from birth. However, he did have one redeeming quality: as long as you didn't cross him, he didn't care! So long as his personal wealth remained untouched, he couldn't care less if Tae-hyun went out and extorted the merchants or bled the lower nobility dry.
You have disguised the First Prince's soldiers and presented them to the Second Prince.
If this deception is discovered, your relationship with the Second Prince will deteriorate severely.
Like I care. Dismissing the message window, Tae-hyun smirked inwardly.
“Second Prince, I have discovered something of great import while scouting the First Prince's castle.”
“And what might that be?”
“A blind spot in their castle's defenses! If we dispatch a carefully selected squad of elite soldiers through that gap, we can deal them a devastating blow.”
“Bwahaha! Splendid! Count Kim Tae-hyun, you have my full permission to proceed as you see fit!”
With his high affinity, contribution points, and faction reputation, these princes would probably believe Tae-hyun even if he claimed that water flowed uphill.
His reason for driving a wedge between the First and Second Princes was simple.
I need to buy time.
Time to build temples in the names of both princes, hire paladins and priests, and dispatch them in all directions to safely siphon off their wealth!
On top of that, by playing them against each other, Tae-hyun received faction contribution points as quest rewards from both princes.
Of course, neither prince would actually let him withdraw items from the royal treasury using those contribution points. They were just arbitrary numbers! However, those points served to solidify the princes' absolute trust in him.
“Stand up straight, architect! Why is the temple construction still incomplete when I specifically ordered it to be finished before my arrival?”
“W-We tried, but... the Second Prince ordered us to repair the castle walls first...”
“You architects always have an excuse! When you are given an order, you execute it! Do you not realize that with such laziness, the Second Prince will never ascend the throne?!”
Tae-hyun squeezed every last drop of labor out of them, refusing to let them rest for even a single second of their spare time! The architects in the Second Prince's castle hung their heads low, desperately begging for forgiveness.
“Ah, I've got a real dilemma here. A massive dilemma.”
“What kind of dilemma?”
Cain tilted his head in confusion. How could he possibly have any worries in a situation like this?
“I wonder if there's a way to pull off an even bigger heist...”
“……”
Cain thought Tae-hyun was joking. But looking at his face, Tae-hyun was dead serious.
This guy is seriously... built different!
The sheer scale of his greed was on an entirely different dimension!
“Excuse me, are you Count Kim Tae-hyun?”
“?”
Someone called out to the walking duo. It was an NPC shrouded in a thick cloak.
Tae-hyun scanned his surroundings before asking, “Are you an assassin?”
“What?! No, of course not!”
“Didn't you just say 'yes'?”
“T-That was just a slip of the tongue because I panicked! Why on earth would I try to assassinate you, Count?!”
“Hmm...”
Tae-hyun mentally reviewed his recent actions in the Second Prince's castle. Honestly, it wouldn't be surprising at all if the NPCs had pooled their money to hire a hitman.
“Haha, well, if you're not, then whatever. So, who are you?”