Chapter 212

“What the hell…?”

The situation automatically makes me want to curse. And for good reason, because the request the Saintess made to me was something I never expected.

“Damn it, why? Why do I have to investigate this place?”

It’s not like I didn’t understand, but the place she asked me to investigate was personally incomprehensible, so I couldn’t help but curse.

“Why another church?”

When I went to the location written on the note the Saintess gave me, I was so dumbfounded that I couldn’t help but laugh.

“A church that worships Metatron.”

In the Holy Kingdom, there is a Pope, but there isn’t just one church.

Of course, if there’s a church that worships Aitas, the God of Time, there are also churches that worship other gods.

Naturally, among the many churches, the Aitas Church is the most powerful and has the largest number of followers.

But that wasn’t the issue. The problem was that the place the Saintess asked me to investigate was another church.

“…Are the churches not on good terms with each other?”

Otherwise, it doesn’t make sense.

But I did understand why the Saintess said she couldn’t mobilize the church to investigate.

“Well, of course. It would be weird for churches to investigate each other.”

If the Metatron Church heard that the Aitas Church was investigating them, they obviously wouldn’t take it well.

“Ugh, damn it…”

I wanted to cancel the agreement with the Saintess right then and there. Because it seemed dangerous.

Not physically dangerous, but politically and diplomatically dangerous.

I’m clearly here as a guest in the Holy Kingdom.

If it gets out that I’m investigating one of the churches in the Holy Kingdom in this situation, my position would become very awkward.

“Should I bail or not?”

I don’t even know why I’m being asked to investigate this place, and it’s incredibly frustrating.

“And this isn’t even the main building of the Metatron Church.”

The place I came to investigate is located in a fairly remote area of the Holy Kingdom.

“It’s definitely a Metatron Church building, but why is it here?”

It feels like looking at a small church in a rural village.

Yoon Yeon, who was next to me, quietly spoke up.

“…Hey, are you sure we’re supposed to investigate this place? Did we come to the wrong spot?”

“Sigh, I don’t know either, but according to the note, this is the right place.”

Yoon Yeon continued with a suspicious look on her face.

“Is this not some trap set by the Saintess to screw you over?”

“There’s no way they’d do something that stupid…”

Honestly, even though I answered Yoon Yeon like that, I wasn’t entirely confident either.

“It’s weird, though. And doesn’t the Holy Kingdom reject Dark Sorcerers? Isn’t this a trap set by the Saintess to mess with you because you’re a Dark Sorcerer?”

“…No, if they were going to do this because I’m a Dark Sorcerer, they wouldn’t have healed my arm back at the Training Facility.”

No matter how I thought about it, there was no reason for the Saintess to betray me now.

If they had any intention of antagonizing me, they wouldn’t have healed my arm at the Training Facility, nor would they have given me the resources Kang Seong-jun handed over to the church.

“Lee Yun-seong. Maybe it’s better to return to the Neutral Country…”

Wi Ho-yeon seems to want me to go back to the clan in this situation.

Above all else, since she prioritizes my safety, it seems Wi Ho-yeon isn’t too fond of the current situation either.

“…I can’t go back.”

If I want to prepare for the future, I need to meet Aitas no matter what.

And the only person who can connect me to Aitas is the Saintess.

“No. I have no intention of returning to the Neutral Country.”

“Lee Yun-seong, but…”

Ignoring Wi Ho-yeon’s worried face, I continued.

“…Please respect my decision. It won’t be dangerous. Let’s start with the investigation first.”

******

For the next few days, I started acting like a regular adventurer who comes to the church to pray.

“Oh my, you’re here again today.”

“Ah, of course, Sister Res.”

Since the sister greeted me first, I also bowed my head slightly in return.

Players generally don’t visit churches or cathedrals to pray as often as the indigenous people, so she must have remembered my face quickly.

“Did you come to pray again today?”

“Haha, it’s a bit embarrassing, but yes. Praying to the gods just makes me feel at peace. Though I’m not sure if someone like me should be praying in such a holy place.”

“Coming to pray regularly is a good thing. Metatron will surely welcome a new brother. Don’t worry.”

“Thank you for saying that, Sister. Ah, and here…”

When I took out a pouch of money and handed it to the sister, Sister Res’s eyes widened as she asked.

“I noticed that this church provides free meals to those in need around here. It’s a small amount, but I hope it can help the church in some way…”

‘After all, no one hates money.’

Especially since churches engage in relief activities and volunteer work, there are plenty of places where money is needed.

Having grown up in an orphanage myself, I knew firsthand how much money goes into relief efforts.

Sure enough, the sister looked at me with moved eyes.

“…Believer, thank you so much. May Metatron’s blessings be upon you.”

‘Somehow, my title has changed from ‘brother’ to ‘believer’ in this situation.’

“Haha, no need. Just as I’ve received salvation from Metatron, I felt the need to give to those in need. It’s nothing worth thanking me for.”

I’ve never seen Metatron or heard his voice, but whatever.

After receiving the sister’s thanks, I pretended to pray inside the church while observing my surroundings.

‘…Nothing unusual after several days.’

I’ve been closely watching the people coming and going from the church, but I haven’t seen anyone particularly suspicious.

‘Mostly just sisters, priests, and people coming to pray.’

– It smells disgusting. Metatron.





Why on earth are you visiting a place that worships that Tron guy?

‘Oh man, you scared me.’

– …You startled me. What if you just start talking out of nowhere?

– Why are you suddenly so scared? You didn’t even flinch last time.

– …I’m in the middle of praying.

– Just asking, but you’re not seriously praying, are you?

– Am I crazy? Of course, I’m just pretending.

– …But why did you suddenly come to the church? Did you develop faith while I was gone?

Suddenly, a decent idea popped into my head. Come to think of it, Aditi probably knows something about the Holy Kingdom, which is closely tied to the gods.

– I don’t have a shred of faith. I’m just here to investigate if there’s anything strange about this church.

– Investigate?

– The Saintess asked me to investigate this place in exchange for letting me meet Aitas.

– The Saintess, huh…

‘…Do you know something about the Saintess?’

It occurred to me that Aditi might know something about the strange things the Saintess had said.

– The Saintess said some weird things. It seemed like she wasn’t too fond of her position as the Saintess. Honestly, she didn’t seem like someone with strong faith.

– Seems like the bad habits are still around.

‘Bad habits?’

I was puzzled by the sudden mention of “bad habits.”

– What do you mean by bad habits?

– You said the Saintess doesn’t seem to like her position, right? That’s probably exactly how she feels.

– Huh?

– The Saintess has existed for a long time. Of course, the Saintess of the past and the present are different people.

– ……

– Let me ask you one thing. What do you think about the Saintess?

The exact same question the Saintess had asked me.

– You’re asking the same question she did.

– Hmm, what I’m about to tell you might be a bit shocking.

– What…

– The Saintess is created. By none other than the administrators above.

‘What?’

– …Created? Are you saying the Saintess is some kind of artificial lifeform?

– No, not an artificial lifeform. They just find a suitable child and grant them the abilities of a Saintess through a sacred mark.

– Then why is that a bad habit?

– Because the process of engraving that mark is horrifying and painful.

‘What kind of engraving is so terrible that you’d call it horrifying?’

– I’ll stop here. The rest is for you to judge with your own eyes.

– …You want me to judge? What do you mean?

– Well. If you keep investigating, you’ll find out eventually.

After that, Aditi didn’t say another word to me.

******

A week had passed since we started the investigation.

“I’m sorry, Lee Yun-seong. I haven’t found any useful information. It’s all because I’m not capable enough…”

During our information-sharing session, Wi Ho-yeon bowed her head, looking ashamed.

“No, it’s only been a week since we started. It’s natural that we haven’t found much yet. No need to blame yourself.”

“But… I always feel like I’m not much help to you in these matters…”

…I felt bad for Wi Ho-yeon, but I never expected much from her in this area to begin with.

That’s not to say she’s useless—it’s just that everyone has their own strengths.

‘Wi Ho-yeon is more than enough as a bodyguard.’

“It’s fine. You’re here as a bodyguard, after all. Just doing your job is more than enough.”

Turning my gaze to Yoon Yeon, she looked similarly unhelpful.

“I haven’t found much either… Haha…”

“…….”

Well, I didn’t have high expectations for her either. She’s a well-known figure on this continent, after all.

‘It’s probably not her forte anyway.’

“Choi Ga-in, have you found anything?”

I asked without much expectation, but her answer surprised me.

“Yes. I found something unusual. Though I’m not sure if it’s related to our investigation…”

“Anything’s fine. In the early stages of an investigation, the priority is to find anything unusual.”

“…From what I’ve gathered, there are periodic shipments of clothes for young girls to the church in this village.”

“Huh? Clothes for young girls?”

‘What?’

“Yes. Not clothes for boys, but specifically for girls.”

‘Are they donating clothes to the village?’

Something felt off.

Even if they were donating clothes, the village isn’t just full of girls—there are boys too.

“At first, I thought the church might be distributing clothes to the villagers, but it’s strange that they only bring clothes for girls.”

“Hmm… That is odd.”

Listening to Choi Ga-in, I had a strange feeling. This definitely needed further investigation.