Chapter 65: Demon Worshippers (1)

Chapter 65: Demon Worshippers (1)

When Lapin died, the resisting bandits mostly surrendered.

Their faces were uniformly lifeless.

It seemed they were shocked that their leader, whom they trusted and followed, had indiscriminately burned both his allies and enemies.

Thats the terrifying aspect of a weapon imbued with demonic power.

A weapon charged with a demons energy blurs the users reasoning.

It transforms them into monsters that not even their friends or family could recognize.

Dale gazed pensively at Lapins corpse, who had clutched the relic cannon tightly until his dying moment.

Suddenly, an enemy from a previous battle came to mind.

A woman who wielded a relic staff.

Just like Lapin, she too had been obsessed with her staff which was imbued with demonic power until her last breath.

Could there be a connection between that incident and this one?

Dale thrust his gauntlet into Lapins body and started absorbing his life force. Along with his lingering soul, fragments of Lapins memories seeped in.

The memories revealed a hunched-back figure wearing a white mask.

This hunched-back figure personally collected the sacrifices prepared by Lapin and then handed over the relic cannon to him.This chapter is updated by nov(e)(l)biin.com

A white mask?

Those who hide their faces behind masks are often up to no good, especially those who deal in demonic weapons by collecting sacrifices.

Could it be a demon worshipper?

Dale realized that these memories were relatively recent.

This meant that the demon worshipper who had provided Lapin with the weapon might still be in the vicinity.

While Dale was piecing his thoughts together,

The employees of the merchant guild were busy assessing the situation.

How bad is the damage?

There are 19 dead and 23 seriously injured.

What about the carriages? They caught fire earlier.

Three were completely destroyed by the fire, but we managed to save half of two others.

Despite the efforts of Dale and the priests, the damage was significant, with half of those involved in the supply convoy either dead or severely injured.

Even some of the carriages were burned to ashes.

The damage was enormous.

Naturally, the expressions on the faces of the employees in charge of the caravan and Rebecca were far from pleasant.

However, even so, there was much to be done at the moment.

Repairing carriages, collecting bodies, gathering equipment dropped by both the bandits and allies, and taking rest among other tasks.

People had to move diligently.

Under normal circumstances, the most labor-intensive task would be dealing with the bodies.

Handling corpses outdoors was always a troublesome issue.

But this time, Dale made a difference.

After the employees of the merchant guild had cleared away the bodies of their allies, Dale spread a black mist around the area.

The mist lightly enveloped the surroundings.

When the mist cleared, all that remained were dried corpses.

Its convenient that I dont have to absorb them one by one.

Life force and soul force filled his body.

The quantity was substantial. Perhaps upon returning to the temple this time, he could look forward to greater growth.

Those who witnessed the scene wore complex expressions.

Hmm, this is somewhat

But at least he made it easier like this.

If it werent for him, we might have been the ones dead. Lets not speak badly about him.

The sight of harvesting life force and soul force from the bodies, even if they were enemies, did not sit well with many.

But regardless of what anyone said, Dale was the main contributor to this victory.

No one openly grimaced at Dale, except for a few priests.

My goodness!

By the gods.

For those deeply devout, it was a scene they found hard to accept.

A few priests approached Dale, intending to reprimand him.

Had it not been for the huge wolf passing by, the situation could have been quite troublesome.

Whoa!

Aaah!

The priests were greatly surprised by the sudden appearance of Harty.

Harty looked at the priests disapprovingly before approaching Dale with dignified strides.

The wolf nudged Dales waist with its blunt nose; its usually half-closed eyes were now sparkling.

You only act friendly when you want something. Do as you please.

With permission granted, Harty began to gnaw on the dried corpses.

This sight further horrified the priests.

Harty growled in annoyance under their gaze, as if to say, Stop staring while Im eating. The priests then reluctantly turned away with uncomfortable looks on their faces.

Rumors about Dale would now likely include tales of a cannibalistic wolf.

Huh?

Harkin was taken aback by the sudden question and started scratching his head.

I was indeed at the front lines, but I stayed in relatively safe places. I was lucky, so Ive never actually seen a demon.

Really?

However, I have seen a few who claimed they had seen demons. Those people were all broken in one way or another. Some had their minds damaged, while others went mad and even sided with the demons.

Their minds were either damaged or they ended up joining the demons.

Dale was reminded of Fishers vacant stare.

Just the memory of demons was enough to torment him with extreme fear.

It seems demons are quite the fearsome ones. In fact, Quill and I rushed back to Irene at the first opportunity because we didnt want to end up like that.

I see.

Its understandable that soldiers on the front lines, who have been facing such terrifying enemies for decades, might change.

The balance will break soon.

The precarious balance that was maintained now will not last much longer.

The period of relative calm will end, and the demons army will resume its advance at any time.

The rampant bandits in the rear and the demon worshippers lurking in the shadows were evidence of that.

I need some time still.

Dale wasnt strong enough yet. He still couldnt win against a demon if he encountered one.

He needed time to grow.

The current precarious balance had to be maintained.

For that reason, he wanted to eliminate the demon worshippers rumored to be in the vicinity beforehand.

Not only should they not be left alone but the lucrative rewards for hunting them were also enticing.

A prey he couldnt afford to miss.

Demon worshippers, huh.

But not all demon worshippers were the same.

The type and magnitude of power they wielded varied depending on the demon they served.

In this case

A relic cannon. A white mask. Contagious green flames.

Dale slowly recalled the clues he had gathered.

Each demon had unique traits.

Having played the game several times, Dale remembered most of these traits.

And by identifying the traits of the demon worshippers he had just seen, he could guess the demon they served

Surprisingly, the answer came quickly.

However, Dale found himself unable to readily accept it.

This is a bit strange.

It was an unexpected result.

***

Following that, the caravan moved without significant issues and arrived at their destination, the Castle of Kaelum.

Situated midway between Irene and the 4th Legion, the Castle of Kaelum was a gloomy place.

Even at noon, the fog was so thick that sunlight struggled to penetrate.

As a result, the faces of the residents appeared almost unnaturally pale.

It was as if they were in a castle inhabited by vampires from ancient tales.

Moreover, the castle was eerily quiet. Not a single soul was seen moving about at the castle gates.

This sight made Rebecca furrow her brow.

Its too quiet. Unnervingly so.

Has it always been like this?

Of course not. Even on gloomy weather days, it wasnt this silent.

The caravan approached the city gates.

Several soldiers stood guard.

As the caravan neared, the soldiers commanded with grim expressions.

Halt! Identify yourselves!

Rebecca stepped forward and announced,

I am Rebecca, the head of the Merchants Guild from the outer districts. I have already informed Count Kaelum of our arrival.

One of the soldiers nodded his head in acknowledgment after verifying her documents.

My apologies!

Thank you. I know its tough. May we enter now?

Ah Well

The soldier looked uncomfortable.

However, Rebecca who assumed they would naturally be allowed entry continued to lead the caravan into the city.

But then

Someone emerged from within the city and shouted.

Halt! No one may enter or leave the city without our permission!

Clad in a bright red robe over a well-toned physique, with a white band on the left sleeve and a red one on the opposite.

Recognizing the figure, Rebeccas face contorted in displeasure.

It was a heresy inquisitor from the church.