Chapter 84
Chapter 84
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 84
Chapter Title: Followers of the Forgotten God (6)
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Kadim sat astride a dusty chair, his muscles tensed and ready to hurl his axe at a moment's notice. Ilenia stepped down from the desk and sat before him.
"While I'd love to start by saying how nice it is to see you again after so long... I doubt it feels that way to you, mercenary."
"Good that you know. Now explain just what the hell kind of mess this is."
Kadim jerked his chin toward the melted fake humans. Ilenia interlaced her fingers and let out a faint breath through her nose.
Her complexion looked somewhat more fatigued than the last time he'd seen her. Faint shadows lingered beneath her long eyelashes, and her thin lips had paled slightly. She was still strikingly beautiful, but after slaying over twenty identical copies of her, Kadim felt no stir of emotion.
The archaeologist closed her eyes and sank into silent contemplation before finally speaking.
"...To start with, I can't tell you everything right now."
"... ."
Grip. His hand tightened on the axe haft. Ilenia met Kadim's gaze steadily, unflinching.
"But I promise you this: once this matter is resolved, I'll tell you everything. Who we are, what our goals are, why we helped you in that way, and why we kept it hidden."
In other words, she couldn't reveal any of it just yet.
Kadim scowled. It was true she'd helped him greatly before. But this time, he'd nearly lost his life because of the silver coins she'd given him and the fake humans that looked just like her. Whether he could trust her words remained an open question.
The silence stretched on, precarious as a cliff with no wind.
Kadim came to a quick decision. Putting out the fire at his feet took priority over digging into murky secrets. He pulled a silver coin etched with strange markings from his pocket.
"I asked the bastard who kidnapped Duncan, and he said this was a holy relic of the 'Forgotten God.' What was your intent in giving it to him?"
Ilenia averted her eyes and blushed faintly.
"...That was purely my mistake. I meant to give him a 100-luden silver coin as payment for his help, but I grabbed the wrong one because they were similar in size... I'm truly sorry for dragging you into this unintentionally."
"... ."
Kadim shot her a brief look of pity. He withdrew it quickly, realizing it was pointless.
"Fine. Those bastards were gunning for my life anyway. Tell me who they are and why they're after this coin and me."
Ilenia turned her gaze back and composed her expression. She rubbed her arms as if gathering her thoughts, then spoke.
"If I may ask... how much do you know about the 'Forgotten God,' mercenary?"
Kadim replied that he knew enough. It was knowledge he'd naturally picked up progressing through the game's main story and his first playthrough.
There were more than just Elga and Atala among the absolute beings called gods in this world. In the mythic age, before elves and dwarves had vanished, there had been five gods ruling the world: Elga, Atala, and three others.
The god of dwarves, governing metal and bitter cold. The god of elves, governing nature and repose. And... the 'Forgotten God,' governing darkness and chaos.
But these three had far less prominence than Elga or Atala. After the mythic age ended and humans seized hegemony over the continent, their followers were all driven to the fringes or slaughtered.
And among them, the Forgotten God had fared the worst—its followers exterminated by the Elga Church, its very name erased.
"It's said in the world that the Elga Church destroyed the Forgotten God's nation and wiped out its followers completely. But that's not true. They survived. Just like the dwarves who fled to the frozen ends of the earth, the elves who hid in great forests, and the wild priestesses who vanished into the wilderness somewhere... they lurk in the shadows where no light reaches."
Kadim recalled his interrogation of the kidnapper.
"I grilled one of the kidnappers, and he said their group was called the 'Night Raven Faction.' Seems like that's one branch of those surviving followers—is that right?"
"Yes, exactly. You've already uncovered that much... However, the 'Night Raven Faction' needs to be distinguished from the other orthodox church branches. They're a heretical force that twists the god's revelations to their own whims and seeks revival and prosperity by taking divine power without fulfilling their duties."
"...You seem more knowledgeable about them than even those 'inquisitive wild priestesses' of the wilderness, archaeologist."
Kadim's words struck unexpectedly. Ilenia gave an ambiguous smile and brushed it off.
"...Well, archaeologists do need broad knowledge, after all. In any case, until recently, the 'Night Raven Faction' hasn't wielded much influence. The other branches have kept them in check to prevent reckless actions. But... things have changed lately."
"... ."
"You know that Agon's Furious Horn and the Atalan warriors racked up great feats during the demon outbreak on the Golden Highway, right?"
Kadim's face hardened. Ilenia realized her slip and her shoulders trembled slightly, but she pressed on resolutely.
"The key figures who brought those warriors under Galentana and the council were the up-and-coming Agon doctors commonly called the 'Agon faction.' This incident shot their status straight to the top of Galentana. Meanwhile, their rivals, the veteran university doctors of the 'university faction,' saw their influence plummet."
"... ."
"So the university faction doctors started scouting people with 'special powers' to find a breakthrough. Your name was probably mentioned among the candidates, mercenary. And that's when... the 'Night Raven Faction' made contact with them. Knowing I had ties to the doctors, they created clones that looked just like me..."
"...So how does that connect Galentana's politicians and their brats teaming up to this mess?"
"It wouldn't matter if they were ordinary politicians. The problem is one university faction doctor had multiple holy relics of the Forgotten God—similar to the silver coin I gave you. The Night Raven Faction's bishop allied with the doctor, got his hands on some, and used their power to multiply my clones. Then he unleashed those clones and followers to hunt for more relics in earnest."
"... ."
Kadim's eyes widened. He glanced at the melted fakes, then stared thoughtfully at the coin in his hand.
"What kind of relic is this coin that it can create things like that?"
"Its name is... the 'Silver Coin of the Fallen Kingdom.' Right before the Forgotten God's nation fell and vanished, it was the last offering to the god, infused and sealed with divine power."
Ilenia answered solemnly, then furrowed her brow slightly.
"If a priest of the Forgotten God gets hold of that coin, they can borrow the divine power to wield dark holy magic. Creating clones like those, making lightless hideouts, summoning powerful beasts, twisting and warping space in bizarre ways..."
"Then I should keep this one out of sight for now. Can't let it fall into their hands."
"No, you mustn't! The reason they could clone me but not you is precisely because of that coin! Even without being a priest, possessing the relic grants resistance to dark holy magic."
"... ."
"But if they get more relics... they'll surely overpower that resistance with sheer force. Then the bishop will clone not just my doubles but yours too, and commit even greater atrocities than now..."
Kadim imagined dozens of hulking brutes identical to himself rampaging about. Just the thought made his skull throb and temples ache.
By now, he'd grasped the gist of the causal chain.
'One branch of the Forgotten God's followers, the Night Raven Faction, allied with Galentana's politicians to acquire a bunch of relics... And now they're gathering more using that power...'
Finally, he knew exactly who to interrogate. He even had a rough idea of what this archaeologist really was.
But one thing still didn't add up.
"Fine with the coin, but why are they after my life? When I grilled a clone, it called me the 'source of calamity.' The Elga Church is the one that wiped them out—why take it out on an innocent bystander?"
"...I'll explain that in detail once this is over. For now, all I can say is the bishop is deeply deluded and badly mistaken about something."
"... ."
There was nothing more to hear, then.
The demons were trouble enough, and new enemies popping up wasn't welcome news. But since they'd struck first, he couldn't leave without cleaning house. Never leave loose ends. He wouldn't forget his guiding principle.
Kadim stood abruptly.
"I'll go lop off their heads and come back. Where's the Night Raven Faction's base?"
"Pardon?"
His tone was as casual as if he'd said he was off to pick fruit, so it took Ilenia a moment to process his words.
"...In Galentana's northern slums, probably holed up with one of the factions there. The slum gangs are in bed with the university faction doctors, so they must've pulled strings. They'll be gathering relics and building strength there for a while."
"Exact location unknown?"
"We're still investigating that. I was planning to scout the slums today, but then my clones came swarming... I should have intel by three days from now at latest. Could you wait just a bit?"
"No need. I don't want to waste more time. Beat them all down, and one'll spill."
"...Pardon?"
"When I return, keep your promise to tell me everything."
Ilenia blinked in confusion again, failing to grasp his meaning. As Kadim bolted out without further explanation, she chased after him in a panic.
"M-mercenary? I must be misunderstanding—if you're saying you're going to wipe out every gang in the slums today...?"
"You got it right."
"... ."
Her golden eyes bulged wide.
Ilenia stood frozen like a petrified statue, staring blankly at Kadim for a long while.
The city of knowledge, and the city of pleasure.
At first glance, these two titles seem utterly incompatible.
Yet Galentana had successfully embodied both. The gloomy slums in the city's north served as another great hall of learning for its citizens, rivaling even the university.
Genteel scholars seeking to explore the wonders of the human body with high-class courtesans, students with voracious curiosity for mind-elevating substances, tycoons learning nihilism at tables where gold and card packs changed hands, thugs with expertise in practical physics... The slums were always teeming with cultured folk eager to refine their erudition.
Perhaps sharing the bond of managing educational institutions fostered it. The slum bosses maintained highly amicable relations with the university faction doctors. The doctors always desperately blocked bills to regulate the slums, and the bosses repaid them with material and moral loyalty.
That was why the slum bosses had provided hideouts to a strange cult and even heeded the doctors' subsequent requests.
"...Hang on, boss. You want us picking fights with any barbarian we see on the streets?"
"Yeah."
"Not hard, but... why? Everyone's praising the barbarians for stopping the demon outbreak this time. Even that 'demon rapist' or whatever..."
"...It's slayer, not rapist, you shit-for-brains. When the higher-ups say jump, you don't ask why—just jump, fuck."
The burly thug scowled at the veteran's rebuke.
Even if they'd explained properly, he probably wouldn't have gotten it.
His intellect was too limited to grasp the political maneuver: Agon faction doctors had risen thanks to Atalan warriors, so university faction doctors needed to tarnish that fame by stirring up opinion that Atalans were violent and uncontrollable—hence the orders to provoke and cause multiple incidents.
But even his wits were enough to know the cursing grated. Grumbling in discontent, he stepped out into the drab streets.
"What're you staring at, you goblin-dicked runt?"
"Gahk!"
Breaking a drunkard's nose for no reason, pissing in a beggar's bowl, shoulder-checking every passerby he saw—it did nothing to vent his anger. Looked like he'd have to find a real barbarian and beat him bloody to feel better.
Lucky break. He spotted one lumbering down the street right then—a massive brute like a bear, with a fierce scowl, armed with axe and sword.
Any common sense would scream not to touch him. But if he had common sense, he wouldn't be a thug in a place like this to begin with. Fights always drew backup from his gang anyway, so no fear.
Grinning like he'd hit the jackpot, the thug rubbed his palms and beckoned the barbarian.
"Hey, you, dickhead. Come here a sec."
"... ."
"Yeah, you, you. What're you sniffing around for? I'm calling you, barbarian shit. What the hell are you? Merc? If you're a merc, go slit some goblin throats like one instead of lurking around here in broad daylight..."
In the end, the thug soon found himself rolling on the ground with a dislocated shoulder and crushed hand.
"Aaaahhh!! Aaaahhh!! Aaaahhh!!!"
"... ."
It wasn't even from a beating. He'd just shouldered the barbarian, tripped on his own momentum, grabbed the barbarian's kindly offered hand—and that was it. No excessive force that he could tell, yet the thug's hand was mangled, bones pulverized into limp dough.
The barbarian stroked his chin. He'd been pondering where to start, but this worked out nicely. He grabbed the thug's other hand and asked in a flat voice.
"Know anything about the Night Raven Faction? Or rumors of someone sheltering Forgotten God followers?"
"Aaaahhh! N-no, fuck!! I don't know shit!! Let go!! Let go!! Please!! Aaaahhh!!"
"Then tell me where your boss is."
"Aaaahhh! Th-there!! In the tavern down the alley!! Our boss is at the tavern! Aaaahhh!! Please, just let go!!"
"Thanks. Here, let me help you up as a reward."
The barbarian gripped hard and hauled the thug to his feet.
Crunch-crunch-crack—
His other hand met the same fate in the minor mishap, but the thug managed to stand. Whether from gratitude for the excessive courtesy or sheer agony, he collapsed screaming again.
"Gaaahhh!!!"
The barbarian—Kadim—was undoubtedly a man of etiquette and learning befitting this cultured slum.
He headed toward the tavern in the alley as the thug had indicated, both hands raised with his gleaming blue axe and blood-red sword at the ready. Prepared to deliver a lecture on anatomy if needed.