by Park Saenal
Nobles had high pride. Nobles had no reason to bow down to a person lower than them. But Earl Steim could honestly apologize because he valued responsibilities more than his fellow peers.
‘He’s a better father-in-law than I thought.’
Grid felt pleased as he asked Earl Steim, “If you are sincerely sorry, can I ask you for one favor?”
Earl Steim smiled at Grid’s words.
‘He isn’t an easy person… Truly the descendant of a legend.’
He liked that ambition.
Earl Steim nodded. “In the first place, you deserve a reward for creating the Sword of Self-transcendence and rescuing Irene. Yes, whatever you want. I will do my best.”
“I heard that Earl Steim has a good relationship with the Rebecca Church. I need to see the pope of the Rebecca Church… Can you write an introduction for me? I might be able to meet the pope if I have your introduction.”
Earl Steim nodded.
“I understand. Aren’t you the one who defeated Malacus? The pope will gladly welcome you.”
After that, the banquet was cancelled due to the turmoil. Grid left the castle after agreeing to marry Irene and receiving the letter of introduction. There was someone waiting for him when he returned to Khan’s smithy.
“Are you Grid?”
It was a man with a strong body and tattoos on both cheeks that were reminiscent of animal claws. His grey hair rose into the sky like he had been struck by lightning, attracting the eye. His ID was ‘Toon.’ He was one of the six new rankers who joined the Tzedakah Guild not long ago after passing a high strength test.
He commanded Grid.
“I heard you are a great blacksmith? Make a weapon for me. Do you know the one who smashed the Giant Guild on the street before? I want to fight him, but I think I need a better weapon first. So make me a weapon. I will use my new weapon to fight that person. Kyaaack~ spit!”
Toon spat while talking, looking like a typical neighbourhood gangster. Grid was reminded of the Mother’s Heart is Happy employees who harassed him. Grid glared at him like he wanted to kill Toon.
“Do you know where you are spitting right now?”
“Hah? Hahahat!”
Toon blinked at Grid’s words. He checked the guild information window and saw that the blacksmith’s level was in the early 100s, so he couldn’t help finding it cute.
“Hey, your blacksmith skills are great so you can join any guild… But I am different. The reason I joined the guild was to approach that butcher. I will leave the guild immediately after fighting him. Do you understand? Do you know the atmosphere now? Unlike the others, I’m not going to curry favor with you. If you don’t want to die, make me a weapon quickly. Eh~? Kyaack! Spit!”
“…”
The six new guild members didn’t know that Grid was the helmeted person who destroyed the Giant Guild. It was because the guild wasn’t willing to leak information about Grid to those they couldn’t trust yet.
“Hey, do you know the ID of that butcher? The other guild members won’t speak no matter what I ask. Why do they need to hide it from me? It is just a bother trying to find him… Kyaaack~~ spit!”
Grid’s patience reached its limit.
Ah… He was tired from acting nice in front of nobles, and an annoying bastard now appeared in front of him. “Hey, you $~@!#.”
This smithy was a very precious place to Grid.
It was the place where his connection with Khan started and the place where he started to work earnestly as a blacksmith. He had lots of memories here and would continue using it in the future. To exaggerate it a little bit, it was his place of destiny. Grid couldn’t stand by when this person kept spitting in here.
He was seriously angry as he pulled out the Ideal Dagger.
“You will be punished for defiling my sacred space.”
“Pfff!” Toon grabbed his belly and started to laugh. “Puhahahat! Hey~ Doesn’t this blacksmith seem really angry? Sacred space? Kuhahaha! I will kill you once!”
Clink!
Toon swung his right hand vigorously. Then three blades sprang out from the wrist blades at his wrists. Toon approached Grid with a menacing look in his eyes.
“You dare take a weapon out in front of me? Die.”
He was serious. Toon was determined to kill Grid once so that Grid wouldn’t argue anymore.
Chaaeng!
Toon swung his wristblades like they were a beast’s foot, aiming at Grid’s chest. Grid defended with the Ideal Dagger and was half pushed down.
‘Three or four times?’
Grid was confused. After the Malacus raid, his strength had grown steadily from making unique and legendary items, as well as repeated level ups. Therefore, it was now above 1,000. He was confident that he could compete with anyone in strength.
But he was completely pushed in this match against Toon.
Kikik! Kkikikik!
The dagger shook as the wrist blades pressed down on it. Grid eventually stepped back as the tip of the longest blade touched his chest. He tilted the dagger and flowed around the wrist blades, avoiding the attack and opening some distance away from Toon.
‘It is hard to win against him in strength.’
Grid was fully aware that he was strong. He was confident that he was stronger than Ibellin, the weakest in the guild, before Ibellin obtained the Thorn of Deep Grievance. Ibellin was defeated by the Giant Guild, but Grid was overwhelmingly victorious.
However, he didn’t have a chance to accurately assess his strength against the other guild members. So Grid didn’t know for sure how his skills would go against the top rankers. And Toon was 40th on the unified rankings.
Toon whistled. “Hwiik~ what, you? You managed to stop my attack? Isn’t this great?”
Ssik.
The corners of Toon’s mouth went up. He noticed that Grid wasn’t just a blacksmith and felt interested.
“Interesting!”
Flash!
Toon’s eyes became tinged with red. Then grey hair started to sprout from his muscular body. At that moment, an explosive energy was emitted and Grid shrunk back.
‘What tremendous power…!’
Grid decided that he needed to fight properly. He prepared to take out all the items in his inventory, including Dainsleif and the Frostlight Orc Chief’s Helmet.
Peeeong!
Suddenly, a kick came from the side and Toon went flying.
“Cough!”
Kwaduduk!
There was the sound of breaking bones and the whites of Toon’s eyes were exposed as he fell.
“Crazy…! This bastard!” After cursing, Toon turned to see who was attacking him. Then he discovered a smiling Regas. “What is this, Regas? A cowardly surprise attack from behind? I thought you were a Taekwon Master.”
Toon said sarcastically as he glared at Regas.
“Toon, if you do anything impolite to Grid one more time, you will lose your head.”
Regas was always smiling and friendly. This was the first time that Grid saw him angry. Toon was also confused.
‘The man who is rumored to be mild-mannered… His anger is frightening.’
Toon stood up quietly. His waist, which had been twisted in a bizarre direction, recovered normally. It was a phenomenal recovery. He put away his wrist blades.
“Taekwon Master Regas… One day I will have a fight with you, but not now. That blacksmith is a little surprising… To be honest, I think 2 against 1 is hard. Well, I’ll see you later.”
“Hey you bastard! Clean up before you go!”
Regas stopped Grid, who tried to chase after Toon. “That person, he is quite strong in beast form. He will be a hard person to fight again.”
“No! I have to beat him up right now! And why was he accepted into the guild in the first place? His behaviour is completely out of control! Shouldn’t the guild members be checked carefully?”
“His way of thinking is extremely simple, so Jishuka can easily control him. However, you don’t need to worry abo
ut that. I have found the Divine Shield.”
“…!”
Regas had been searching for the Divine Shield since it was stolen until now, and he finally found it. Grid forgot all about Toon as he asked excitedly.
“Where? Where is it?”
Regas’ expression wasn’t good. “Well… One of Rebecca’s Daughters has it. I asked to meet her and she refused. She seems reluctant to return the shield.”
“Rebecca’s Daughter?”
Grid was reminded of the beautiful girl in the blue dress who burst through the wall and confronted the Yatan followed who stole the Divine Shield.
‘Her name was Isabel? I remember the Yatan following being shocked that she was Rebecca’s Daughter…’
Grid asked.
“What is a Rebecca’s Daughter?”
Regas explained what he knew.
“It is the title that refers to the top three paladins in the Rebecca Church. They received sacred weapons from Goddess Rebecca and it is said that their power is comparable to the Second and Third Servants. They are a relatively small force, but few people can threaten the Rebecca Church thanks to Rebecca’s Daughters.”
“…In a nutshell, that girl won’t return my shield?”
“That’s right.”
“…”
Grid had a headache. He needed to meet the pope, but now things became twisted due to the Rebecca’s Daughter. He had an ominous feeling.
Regas smiled with a gentle expression.
“You don’t have to worry. Aren’t you part of the Tzedakah Guild? If you need assistance at any time, then please call the guild members. Everyone will be willing to help you. The six new members are especially full of enthusiasm.”
“…I’ve heard that those six people are called psychos. It doesn’t seem to be a lie when looking at Toon… They seem useless.”
“Haha.”
Afterwards, Grid sent a whisper to Jishuka to explain the situation. Then Jishuka fully understood Grid’s position.
–Of course, your quest comes first. I won’t ask you to make any items for the guild members until your quest is finished. And if you need help, call at anytime. I will come running.
That night, Grid immediately left Winston. The destination was the Rebecca Vatican.
Chapter 118
Chapter 118
Like any game, the role of a healer was very important in Satisfy. They were indispensable for stable party hunting and the success of a raid. In Satisfy, the healers were priests who served Rebecca, the goddess of light. Only those who served Rebecca could become acquainted with Heal.
“Looking for a priest to finish the Dunpapa raid in two minutes!”
“Looking for a priest for a party that has an average level of 150~”
“Priests! Please join the party! You will have priority on items!”
The popularity of priests was unimaginable. Unfortunately, the number of priests was very limited. It was very hard to become a priest of the Rebecca Church. Dating was forbidden and there was a series of hardships such as praying for days, intermittent silence, and fasting.
There were jokes that the priest of the Rebecca Church were monks in reality. Therefore, most users were reluctant to become priests of the Rebecca Church and most Rebecca priests were NPCs.
“Sigh… There are no priests today.”
“We have to go to the temple again to hire a priest.”
Parties looking for priests had to visit the Rebecca Church. Then they had to pay a large sum in donations to hire NPC priests. These actions repeated, so the Rebecca Church gained tremendous wealth. The high priests of the Rebecca Church, known for their integrity, were overwhelming without knowing.
It was the current pope who led to all of this. Drevigo, the 13th pope of the Rebecca Church, was a far cry from the first clergymen. He was eager to meet his individual needs.
After he became the pope. He understood the market and built up wealth by turning the priests into a commodity. He provided incense to the high priests and corrupted them, committing all types of wrongdoings with them.
As a result, the Rebecca Church fell over time and became a symbol of decadence.
“There is no answer.”
In this place, there was a beautiful girl who had a habit of sighing. Her name was Isabel. She was one of Rebecca’s Daughters, the ultimate paladins of the Rebecca Church, and the master of the Lifael Spear.
She shuddered as she listened to the noises coming from the pope from her room.
“The supposedly divine presence is shaking his waist like a dog every night.”
The priest Cassus paid attention to her. “Shh. Your words aren’t appropriate for a virgin of sacred light.”
Isabel frowned. “Then what should I say? Our pope is engaging in sexual intercourse every night… Oof! Oof!”
In the end, Cassus blocked Isabel’s mouth with his hand. He nervously looked at the hot-tempered Isabel.
“I can’t speak in front of His Holiness, and now I can’t even complain behind his back?”
“…His Holiness has eyes and ears everywhere. Please be careful.”
“Che…!”
The two people were talking when the pope came to visit.
“It’s noisy. Were you cursing at me?”
The pope opened the door and appeared naked. His sweaty skin shone in the moonlight. Despite turning 60 the day after tomorrow, he had elastic skin and a healthy body.
Isabel and Cassus bowed.
“It is great to see Your Holiness.”
“Isabel, you look as beautiful as ever.”
Pope Drevigo smiled and touched Isabel’s hair like she was precious. Isabel felt ashamed and bit her lip. She wanted to shake off the pope’s hand. But she didn’t dare, so she swallowed down her rage. She carefully pleaded.
“Your Holiness, surely you are busy with those prostitutes in your bed? Is it okay to leave them to come to talk to me?”
“Huhu, no matter your position, isn’t it too much to insult me?”
The smiling pope pulled his hand away from Isabel’s hair. The other person was the pope, so Isabel didn’t dare show her distaste.
“I have figured out why the Yatan Church wants the Divine Shield. There is a phenomenon where the Divine Shield can be imbued with dark magic power. Then the enormous divine power of the Divine Shield will be converted to dark magic. The Yatan Church are thinking of turning the Divine Church into their weapon.”
The pope showed interest. “Darkness dwells where there is light… In fact, doesn’t divine power and dark power have a good compatibility?”
“We must take steps to prevent them from ever getting their hands on the Divine Shield.”
“We’ll have to recall all of them back.”
The method of making the Divine Shield had been spread to some countries and families close to the Rebecca Church. In the first place, a Rebecca priest was needed to help make the Divine Shield. It was impossible for a blacksmith to make it alone, so the church grasped why, when, who and which priest was used to help build the Divine Shield. It wouldn’t be difficult to reclaim the Divine Shields.
“I will direct the paladins to collect the Divine Shield from each country and family.” Isabel said.
“Let other people do the menial work. I have something else for you to do.”
“…?”
The pope made a meaningful expression. “I received a divine message last night. Goddess Rebecca said that one of her daughters will betray me sooner or later.”
“What does that mean?”
What did he mean by that? Isabel had an ominous feeling and stiffened, while the pope ordered with a cool smile.
“Get Rin. She is surely the traitor that the goddess spoke of. I intend to punish her.”
Isabel didn’t agree. “Rebecca’s Daughters are only loyal to Goddess Rebecca and Your Holiness! There are no traitors among us.”
“Rin is at a temple in a small village and hasn’t responded to my call
three times. How can she do that unless she is thinking about betraying me?”
In the end, Isabel couldn’t hide her anger.
“Surely she has a reason for not responding to your call! Your Holiness! Are you sure the divine message given to you is correct? Your Holiness, I didn’t know you could hear divine messages!”
“How presumptuous!”
The pope grabbed Isabelle’s throat with one hand. Then he spoke in a menacing manner.
“My will is the will of Goddess Rebecca. Do you distrust me?”
Isabel had been raised in the church. Like any other priest or paladin, she had been trained to have absolute loyalty to Goddess Rebecca and the pope. It was a type of brainwashing, so she couldn’t defy the pope, even if she was inherently free-spirited.
“…I believe you.” Isabel barely managed to say. Then the pope released the hand that was choking her. He gave her a friendly smile that seemed creepy.
“I will give you two days. Bring Rin back here.”
Kwang!
The pope ordered her and left the room. Cassus, who had been bowing the whole time, hurried got up. He carefully reached out to Isabel and said.
“…What will you do?”
Isabel was silent for a while after the pope’s visit. Then she dropped her head and said in a weak voice.
“What can I do? I have to do as he says.”
Rin also a Rebecca’s Daughter. The pope might be garbage and the church fallen, but there was no way Rin would betray them. Rin probably couldn’t endure the rotten church and was wandering for a while.
Isabel knew better than anyone. But she was forced to follow the command.
“…”
Cassus was sympathetic to the suffering Isabel and quickly moved his gaze towards the window. He prayed towards the moon.
‘Goddess Rebecca… Please send a divine punishment towards the corrupt pope…’
***
It had been four days since Grid left Winston. In those four days, Grid reached level 130. It was all due to Malacus’ Cloak. Grid had been wearing Malacus’ Cloak since leaving Winston.
“This is great.”
Grrrung.
The border of the Eternal Kingdom and the Saharan Empire. Dozens of monsters gathered as Grid crossed the Suaz Mountains. They were drawn to the bloody smell coming from Malacus’ Cloak.