"This... This is Unbelievable!"
Tae-hyun was more shocked than anyone by what he had just done. Watching him, Pogalo was utterly dumbfounded.
This guy is an Apostle, so why does he have so little faith in his own Authority?
Normally, shouldn't an Apostle of a god strut around believing their deity's Authority is the strongest power in the world?
Sadiq... Was he actually a pretty decent god after all?
Carbanog notes that, come to think of it, Sadiq was indeed a fairly powerful god.
Back when the gods still walked the continent, Sadiq had been quite influential among the evil deities. It was just that after the gods departed, the remaining NPCs of his order had completely run it into the ground!
Actually, to be fair, the Sadiq Church NPCs hadn't exactly failed out of laziness. They had done their absolute best. They had lured the Atali royal family into their fold, plotted to assassinate the king, prepared to summon a fire giant, and meticulously set up all kinds of operations in the Valley...
From the Sadiq Church's perspective, they could proudly declare, "We did everything we possibly could!" If they had succeeded, the Atali Kingdom would have fallen completely into their hands.
But starting with the botched assassination, everything went downhill. A subjugation quest was triggered, their headquarters was obliterated... and from then on, it was just a non-stop parade of tears.
Carbanog's eyes well up with tears.
? Tae-hyun was puzzled. Why was Carbanog suddenly acting like that? Did something get in its eye?
Sadiq's Flame begins to melt Ice Duke Furneus's ice seal!
As Ice Duke Furneus's ice seal melts, his power may begin to leak out!
If the master notices, he will be enraged!
"!"
Sadiq's Flame incinerates Ice Duke Furneus's leaking power.
Ice Duke Furneus's power fails to spread.
Sadiq...!!
Sadiq! Sadiq!
Tae-hyun and Carbanog were deeply moved! Tae-hyun resolved that once he returned, he would offer a proper sacrifice to the tiny shrine of Sadiq tucked away in a corner of the Archisus Temple.
Ice Duke Furneus's ice seal has completely melted!
Reputation has increased significantly!
Holy power has increased significantly!
Rescue
📍 Status: Success
🎁 Rewards: Massive EXP, Reputation, Holy Power
Whoa. Tae-hyun was stunned. He had literally just blasted it with Sadiq's Flame, and he had leveled up twice. This had to be the easiest quest in the world!
But on second thought, the reason made sense. If I had received this quest directly from the Church, it would have been Legendary rank.
Infiltrating a Duke's castle in the Demon Realm to find heroes who had gone missing hundreds or thousands of years ago? Even top rankers would spit in disgust at such a ridiculously difficult quest!
"Ugh... What on earth..."
"Are we... free?"
The paladins and priests of the Church who had been trapped inside the seal looked utterly dazed, as if they hadn't fully regained consciousness yet. But Tae-hyun was brimming with anticipation.
They must be at least level 500 or 600, right?
High-ranking Church NPCs were traditionally symbols of absolute reliability. Paladins? They were sturdy, hit like trucks, healed, and cast buffs—basically the ultimate all-in-one package of the NPC world!
As for high priests, a single one could carry an entire party on their back... There was a reason players were always desperate to team up with high-ranking Church NPCs for quests.
If they were strong enough to venture into the Demon Realm before getting captured by a Duke, their levels have to be over 500 at the very least.
With that thought, the gear the Church NPCs were wearing suddenly looked incredibly powerful.
Your Blacksmithing Skill is too low to fully analyze this equipment...
Your Magic Skill is too low to analyze this equipment...
Your rank within the Church is too low to analyze this equipment...
"!" Just as he thought! Tae-hyun looked at the NPCs with a deeply satisfied expression.
One of the paladins looked at Tae-hyun, asking with a bewildered face,
"Who might you be?"
"I am Kim Tae-hyun, King of the Atali Kingdom and Pope of the Archisus Church. I have come to rescue you all."
Carbanog is deeply impressed by your ability to summarize your titles in such a short amount of time!
Mentioning both the Atali Kingdom and the Archisus Church to squeeze every last drop of reward out of these heroes! To think he had formulated such a scheme in a mere fraction of a second!
"Oh... Thank you. It must not have been easy to make your way all the way here... But, who did you say you were again?"
"...??"
???
Tae-hyun was taken aback, but he repeated himself.
"I am from the Atali Kingdom and the Archisus Church..."
"Ah... I see. Hmm. In that case, am I a paladin of the Archisus Church?"
"...?!!!"
Tae-hyun was dumbfounded. Then, a sudden realization struck him. Don't tell me these people...!
You have successfully analyzed the target's status using your Highest-grade Eloquence Skill!
The target's memories have been completely wiped due to a powerful curse.
The target's memories have been completely wiped due to a powerful curse.
The target's memories have been...
No hero could truly defeat the passage of time. The same held true for the heroes trapped inside Furneus's seal.
"......"
Carbanog grows anxious, worrying that you might have pulled a bad batch.
They had lost their memories, and their physical conditions were terrible... In the Demon Realm, which was teeming with powerful enemies, they were hardly ideal companions.
But Tae-hyun actually found this quite reasonable. Well, of course. Only with a catch like this would the eventual reward be worth it.
Tae-hyun suffered from a chronic condition where getting anything for free made him deeply anxious and suspicious!
"Excuse me, young man."
The paladin had a youthful face, but he spoke with the creaky cadence of an old man, creating an incredibly bizarre contrast.
"Yes?"
"Am I a paladin of the Archisus Church?"
"Uh..."
Faced with the question once more, Tae-hyun's mind raced at lightning speed.
Carbanog wonders if you are seriously about to...
"Yes!"
!!!
"I knew it. So I really was a paladin of the Archisus Church!"