Chapter 55

Level Up Heresy Inquisitor – Episode 55 (55/227)

Episode 55: Amaranth (2)

After spending quite some time grinding undead monsters to boost his stats, Ail headed back to the city after finishing hunting.

He had accepted a quest from the city administrator to slay five elite monsters and was heading there to claim the reward.

Since it wasn’t far from the hunting ground, he arrived in no time.

[Quest Completed!]

[Level Up!]

When Ail presented the proof of slain monsters to the NPC, he received a nice reward along with leveling up to 26.

“I still have plenty of level cap left, should I keep grinding?”

Obtaining stats by punishing heresy only applies to monsters or players below a certain level based on his own level, to prevent stat grinding on low-level mobs repeatedly.

However, the level 24 undead monsters Ail had been farming still posed no problem for increasing his Faith and Madness stats.

The increase in mana capacity compared to before was quite noticeable.

Though raising all stats evenly, the Madness stat didn’t show amazing effects when increased slightly, but meaningful changes could be detected.

Feeling satisfied, just as Ail was about to set off for more hunting, a system message popped up.

[New Mail Received!]

“Did Lisa already send it?”

Just as he entered the city, mail arrived. Ail headed to the mailbox to check it.

* * *

Clang!

The sound of swords clashing echoed from a rooftop in the densely built city center.

While fights were uncommon in Warode cities with powerful guards, they weren’t unheard of.

Fights could happen unnoticed by guards, and legal duels were allowed even in the streets.

Ching!

A sharp sound rang out as the man’s sword flew backward.

Losing balance, the man tumbled down, and his opponent sheathed his sword and helped him up.

“Geez… you did it again.”

This wasn’t directed at dissatisfaction with his friend who was the duel opponent.

“Why? Did you hesitate again?”

“Yeah, I opened my inventory mid-fight to change weapons and lost strength in my arm.”

“For heaven’s sake, why would you change weapons mid-fight? Even rankers rarely do that… You’re always so reckless…”

“No, shut up! It’s not just weapons, this is the problem. Like this, how am I supposed to drink potions during raids?”

The man exclaimed in frustration.

Due to congenital low coordination, he struggled with fine operations in-game, though gross movements weren’t affected.

Though imperceptible to most normal players, there were subtle differences in movement and reaction speed based on coordination.

“Ah, we bet on drinks… Is this even a game?”

“Hmm, what was your coordination percentage again?”

“19%…”

The man replied sheepishly.

“Average is 43%, that’s pretty low. Be thankful to Warode developers. In the past, you wouldn’t have even been able to play.”

“That… is true. Wait?”

Suddenly, someone tapped his shoulder from behind and walked away.

Dressed in dark attire with a mask covering his mouth, the man briefly glanced at them before waving them away impatiently.

“What the hell…!”

“Hold it, stop!”

Recognizing the person, his friend quickly grabbed his shoulder to stop him.

Then the man got a better look at his opponent.

A violet flower insignia on a circular emblem.

It was the guild mark of Amaranth, clearly engraved near the shoulder armor.

The man who was about to confront stepped back hastily upon recognizing them.

Their name was well-known throughout Warode, even silencing the member of a decent medium-sized guild.

“Frustrating to be transferred to Esmayer suddenly, and now meeting all sorts of troublemakers.”

As they hurriedly descended from the roof and disappeared, Lucas of Amaranth frowned slightly while muttering.

But his gaze soon turned serious as he scanned the surroundings.

There was a reason he came to this empty rooftop.

‘There.’

A user checking mail at a mailbox below.

The target of this contract, Ail, was standing there.

Being only around level 20, he’d be an easy kill for Lucas at level 137, even unarmed.

But Lucas didn’t rush in recklessly.

Instead, he took a photo of the target from afar and sent it to Toolong, the squad leader.

The reason for sending a photo was for identity confirmation.

Given the nature of contract work where mistakes can cause big problems, this step needed to be precise.

Killing someone with ties to major guilds couldn’t be resolved simply on personal responsibility.

Ding!

A reply came regarding the photo Lucas sent.

The initial check came back positive.

They had confirmed the target with the client.

But it still wasn’t time to move.

“Leader, it looks like the right one.”

– Don’t use ‘certain’ lightly, rookie. Whatever you did elsewhere, once in Amaranth everything must be handled accurately.

“Yes, yes.”

Sure enough, a firm response came from Toolong, making Lucas shake his head.

“Always so meticulous…”

Even after thorough investigations using their network and surrounding NPCs, they proceeded with additional checks using the newly obtained photo.

To find any related guilds or connections.

Without hacking the developers, it’s impossible to know everything perfectly, but thoroughness was their job.

Definitely different from most contract guilds that just hunt targets and collect money.

But for Lucas, making such a fuss over capturing a mere level 20 was annoying.

“Well… at least the pay is good.”

The reason he joined Amaranth despite the competition?

The money was reliable despite the risks.

With each job, individuals could secure tens of units easily, and considering the dangers, there was nothing better than this immediately.

Moreover, this job came with extravagant options requested by some rich client, allowing them to earn much more.

“That poor guy, getting involved with a crazy person and being completely marked for death until deletion.”

Lucas clicked his tongue looking at Ail.

The target seemed completely unaware that he was being watched from both sides.

Though tempted to shoot an arrow through his forehead right then, the stationed guards were problematic.

Especially since the city was located near the border region between the six major guilds, elite NPCs from Nightmare were patrolling armed, so it was best to avoid unnecessary commotion.

He was merely instructed to keep watch until the squad leader approached and subdued the target.

Swish swish.

Sitting casually on the railing, Lucas idly maintained his bow while observing below.

Even if he wouldn’t directly participate according to the plan, it helped pass the time.

About rookies questioning whether sitting so openly was too conspicuous, this was actually more natural than trying to hide awkwardly.

Among the many people gathered in the square, noticing someone on a tall building was impossible, and even if spotted by chance, realizing they were being watched was unlikely.

Before joining Amaranth, Lucas had handled countless jobs with other guilds, yet never encountered such situations.

“Hmm?”

The target began moving away from the mailbox.

The natural movement suggested he hadn’t noticed anything, heading towards the auction house it seemed.

– Confirmation complete. I’m going.

Toolong, blended among the crowd below, started moving.

Apparently, there were no issues found with further checks on the target’s background.

Though annoyed by the nagging, the squad leader’s skills were reliable, and this seemingly innocent face would only be seen again in 48 hours.

And would repeat death endlessly.

Just as Amaranth members, including Lucas, unconsciously let their guard down…

Thud thud!

Suddenly, Ail started running through the crowd.

“What the…!”

Startled, Lucas jumped up from the railing.

However, separate from his surprise, his instincts kicked in, and he instantly drew his bow toward Ail cutting through the crowd.

Whoosh!

“Damn!”

Though Lucas’s arrow shot quickly, Ail’s upper body disappeared from sight as he rounded a corner at full speed.

It barely grazed his ankle, definitely not a fatal strike.

Rushing down using skills, Lucas sprinted after Ail.

Following the alley where he disappeared and turning the same corner…

“…”

But upon reaching the street, there was no sign of Ail anywhere, nor any trace of where he went.

Not even a single bloodstain, vanishing without a trace.

“Damn it! Where did this guy go?”

Looking around frantically, Lucas realized there was no time for leisurely investigation.

Having initiated combat against another player, elite guards in black armor, much higher level than regular ones, were already converging from all directions.

– Get out of there! We’re retreating outside the city!

“Shit!”