When he opened the door and went out, Kudan was standing like a wall blocking the way. Before Osian could say anything, Kudan glanced slightly inside the room and then stepped aside to make way.
As Osian came out, Daver tried to have another fit, but it was closer to an action imprinted by fear of a traumatic presence rather than anger.
Other members of the Blood Brotherhood seemed curious about what conversation Osian had with Grace inside.
"Is the conversation over?"
Malina approached Osian and asked. As the person who brought him, she was thinking of taking responsibility and handling everything else herself.
"Yes. It ended well. Further discussion would be pointless, so let's get in touch again later."
Osian said he didn't need to be escorted out and left the hideout. Krollakia, who had been quietly watching him, stuck out his snake-like tongue and said,
"Shouldn't we go after him right now? He noticed the location of our hideout. Weren't we supposed to eliminate witnesses as much as possible?"
"That's a different case."
It was Kudan who answered Krollakia's question."Elder sister personally invited him. He came as a guest, and he also behaved as a guest, so we should show appropriate courtesy."
"Do we even need to maintain such honor in the first place?"
Eren, the doppelganger hybrid, objected. They already had an irredeemable reputation in Tirna. Adding one more life wouldn't make any difference.
"That's not acceptable. It's not about how others evaluate us, but about our own mindset."
Delford, the werewolf, spoke in a low voice resonating through his mask.
"Even if others designate us as terrorists of the century, it's fine as long as we don't sink into that label ourselves. If we act accordingly to someone else's evaluation, that's when we truly fall."
"That's too idealistic."
"Because reality is harsh and cruel, we must pursue ideals. Otherwise, do you think we can survive in this reality?"
The question Delford threw back unexpectedly pierced the core of the Blood Brotherhood. The Brotherhood was bound by blood. Because no one reached out to them, they became pillars supporting each other.
If no one would acknowledge them, they would at least understand and embrace each other.
They survived not by compromising with reality. It was by never compromising with reality and fighting to protect their values.
Knowing this, neither Eren nor Krollakia could say anything more.
At that moment, Grace walked out of the room. Looking perfectly normal, she smiled at her siblings and said,
"I'm sorry, everyone. I should have been more careful."
"Did the conversation not go well?"
Malina asked. Even if she hadn't fought with Osian, they shouldn't expect a positive outcome.
"That's not it. But I can't say it was a satisfactory result either. Still, I found it somewhat interesting."
"Interesting?"
"He said that if we want his help, we should formally request his services as a fixer. Isn't that funny?"
Wasn't he saying he would accept requests from a terrorist organization with a red wanted status in the city?
Grace knew that Osian wasn't talking nonsense. He was sincere, and if they submitted a request, he would be willing to accept it.
While the entire city was searching high and low for them, how many fixers would be willing to accept requests from them even after discovering their hideout?
Ironically, it was possible because he was a fixer who would take any request as long as the money was right.
But what was even more interesting was that Osian knew the name and existence of the outer god. That man knew about records that couldn't even be found in ancient documents as if it were completely natural.
What was even more amazing was the indelible feeling that this wasn't knowledge learned from external media, but something he had experienced directly.
She knew he wasn't ordinary, but the more she learned, the more he seemed like an endless quagmire.
"I need to prepare to go out."
If I want to submit a request, he said to come to Violet Fox, right?
As soon as Osian left the Blood Brotherhood's hideout and came out to the street, he was met with the hot enthusiasm of the bustling crowd.
In the midst of it, he suddenly realized that he was in District 32.
Conversations about relics and artifacts could be heard everywhere, and merchants were selling items related to relics. There were sightseers, adventurers, and even Archeology Federation members all around.
He watched the scene of everyone busily going about their lives. All those vibrant, living and breathing things appeared beautiful to Osian.
'I've suddenly become sentimental. Is it because I heard troubling stories?'
It might be because he had encountered the Red Eternity.
'A difficult one has appeared.'
When Osian was playing the game, Red Eternity did not appear directly. Of course, since it was an outer god, it wasn't convenient for it to appear in a world filled with divines at that time.
While all sorts of mysteries and monsters threatened the lives of humans living on the continent, they also served to protect the world from external beings.
But even in such circumstances, Red Eternity subtly spread its influence throughout the world. The most notable example was creating people who would follow it.
People who tasted the sweet fruit of immortality became fascinated and worshipped it. And at the same time, captivated by that almost maddening fascination, they repeated cruel sacrifices, killing others and offering blood for blood.
'What I fought were corrupt humans who had fallen into Red Eternity.'
They called themselves the Eternal Faith. They wore red robes like blood, sacrificed people, and piled up altars of corpses.
Fitting the dark background of the world, corpses that were hanged, tied, or skewered with spits everywhere would have been quite disgusting scenes if seen in vivid graphics.
'And like minions of an outer god, they would grotesquely transform at times.'
Among the corrupted ones of the Eternal Faith, those at the priest level would undergo mutations influenced by Red Eternity. When that happened, tentacles like red anemones would tear through their flesh from inside, and their bodies would twist and change grotesquely.
Like those horrible appearances you might see in classic SF horror. That terrible form was exactly the kind of immortality they so desperately wanted. Normally, one would rather die than live like that, but there were many people who wanted to live even in such a state.
In that sense, compared to the corrupted ones of the Eternal Faith, the ancient divine that infected the Smoldering Sisters might have been better.
At least when it infected fishermen in the coastal village, it kept their human form to some extent.
'I thought I had completely cut off the roots back then.'
Since the Eternal Faith was an enemy that had to be eliminated in the story, Osian cleared them out neatly. But as expected, as long as Red Eternity, which could be called the main body, was alive and well, it was useless.
'And it's become much more secretive than before.'
At that time, the Eternal Faith openly caused trouble everywhere under the name of propagation. Their influence was so powerful that an entire region became corrupted by them.
But now, the term "Eternal Faith" was nowhere to be found. Even that was discovered by Grace Seeker of the Blood Brotherhood while targeting enemies by chance, which explained how cunningly they were hiding in this city.
This was why Red Eternity was called an outer god. Unlike the Gray Fungus, which indiscriminately infiltrated to survive, it was capable of learning, maintaining reason, and seeping in stealthily.
'I can't even estimate how large the scale might be.'
He wondered if he should report this to the city government but Osian's contemplation didn't last long.
He immediately contacted someone he knew through the emergency line on his portable communicator.
The person on the other end answered before the signal tone had even rung a few times.
[Yes! What is the matter, Sir Osian!]
Amenora of Thousand Wings excited voice echoed loudly through the communicator.
"Amenora. I have something to talk about."
[The fact that you contacted me this way means it must be a very important matter.]
"Since it's not appropriate to discuss this on the communicator, let's meet and talk in person."
[I'll prepare right away. Do you remember what I told you last time?]
Osian tried to recall what Amenora had said.
"You said to come to the Heavenly Bell Sound?"
[Yes. I'll give you the exact location.]
After confirming the address Amenora gave him, Osian immediately ended the call.
Osian moved to where the Heavenly Bell Sound was located according to the address Amenora had provided. The place was in District 28, where the main branch of the Heavenly Bell Sound was said to be.
However, it was too modest to be called a main branch. Originally, the Heavenly Bell Sound wasn't a formal religious group, but more like an organization where people gathered to train themselves.
Osian boarded a train headed for the 28th district. How long had he been watching the passing scenery?
"Is this it?"
The place he finally arrived at was a mansion of considerable size, fitting for an area in District 20 range. As soon as he reached the entrance, Amenora, wearing a snow-white robe, welcomed him.
"You've arrived!"
"Were you waiting?"
"Yes. Since you rarely visit. Let's go inside. I'll guide you."
As it appeared from the outside, the interior was a very well-organized large mansion. However, there weren't that many people compared to the size of the mansion, which was surely due to the special nature of this place.
'Few people, but each one has a sharp aura.'
Everyone staying here would be part of the Heavenly Bell Sound. Naturally, they would be people who tried to overcome their limits through effort, and having gone through countless training sessions, they had achieved considerable accomplishments.
He thought there would only be humans, but surprisingly there were also beastfolk races. Beast-people were visible and even mutants.
"Lady Amenora. Who is this person?"
A middle-aged beast-man who seemed to have some authority in this place approached and asked.
"He is my guest."
At Amenora's words, the beast-man male stared intently at Osian. Since the other party was a beast-man, Osian thought there might be some trouble here, but it was the opposite.
He smiled slightly and suddenly praised Osian.
"Excellent."
Not understanding the reason, Amenora explained from beside him.
"These are people who wish to transcend their limits through self-training. In particular, Kaimak is the beast-man who has stayed here the longest. He has keen eyes for gauging others' abilities."
Kaimak, the middle-aged beast-man, looked at Osian with a favorable gaze. Within that gaze, there was also a slight competitive spirit.
"Kaimak. I need to discuss important matters, so I don't think I can spare any more time. I'm sorry."
"No problem. I unnecessarily detained busy people. I apologize."
Kaimak immediately apologized and withdrew. The Heavenly Bell Sound members who had been gathering one by one were personally dispersed by Kaimak.
Osian found this scene peculiar. How should he put it? It was a sight unbecoming of a city like Tirna.
Peaceful, perhaps, or an ideal scene that one might only see in stories. They seemed more rooted in the old-fashioned past than modern civilization. But it wasn't an entirely unpleasant feeling.
Thus left alone with Amenora, Osian sat facing her in the reception room.
"The reason I called you like this is because I recently heard troubling news."
"Troubling news. I'm very curious since you say it like that, Sir Osian."
"In this city, there are people who have joined hands with wicked entities."
Osian conveyed the information he received from Grace to Amenora: the outer god Red Eternity, and the corrupted ones who believe in and follow it, exist in the upper echelons of the city.
Of course, he concealed what needed to be concealed. The fact that the source of the information was the Blood Brotherhood or that he had directly met with Grace Seeker was problematic.
After hearing the full story, Amenora's expression became serious.
"That is truly grave."
"Do you trust this information?"
"Because it's you who delivered it, Sir Osian. Even if that weren't the case, it's true that there have been many individuals showing ominous movements lately. Rather, hearing your words makes me understand better."
With his fingers interlocked, Osian expressed his inner thoughts.
"I mentioned that day. That the severing of the knight's lineage seems to have involved external intervention."
"Yes. You did."
"I now suspect these matters might be connected."
No, it was closer to certainty.
The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!