CH 298

The Pope and his aides did not speak. There was only one user among the people present, and that user was also quietly observing the situation.

“Still, I don’t know if it’s okay to hope a little since they were able to kill Crolang. Did you say they were your students, Browless?”

At the Pope’s words, Browless’ expression softened slightly.

“That’s right. They are the ones who have followed my, Brown’s…… and Elizabeth’s footsteps. They still lack a lot, but-”

“Kidd, Luger, and Ha Leeha-ssi are not lacking skills. In terms of personality, I will admit that they are missing some screws somewhere.”

“Hmmm? How do you……?”

Browless looked at the user with a surprised expression.

“It’s because I have met all three of them. Nice to meet you, my name is Fernand.”

The most famous user of Ezwen, and the only user in the Vatican, replied with a grin.

“Fernand Magalias! He is the adventurer with the nickname Pioneering King.”

“Ha! You know him? Hmm, hmm, his fame rose again not too long ago, and he is still definitely famous now.”

When Browless recognized him, Fernand was delighted. He was a citizen of Ezwen who had nothing to do with the war, and he explored unexplored territories even during the national war. There were several areas and ruins that he had pioneered and excavated, and his reputation continued to rise.

“We cannot waste any more time if Bluebeard has already moved. We must prevent him from waking the other large races up and giving them mana to turn them into demon nobles.”

The pope interjected into Browless and Fernand’s conversation.

“You’re right, Your Holiness. However, tracking a Fragment of the Demon King is never easy. Even a top tracker-”

“The top trackers can’t, but the number one tracker can.”

The Pope put his hand on Fernand’s shoulder. Fernand drew the sign of the cross and bowed his head toward the Pope.

“The best adventurer and tracker on the continent is here. Bluebeard has the pure power of a Fragment of the Demon King, and as long as he uses it, he is bound to leave a trace.”

“And if there are any traces, it’s not too difficult for us to chase after him. Chasing after a living being is better than finding artifacts from 500 years ago.”

Fernand took out a small magnifying glass from his pocket and held it while expressing his confidence.

“Indeed…”

“Browless, convince the king. It’s good to negotiate borders and occupy cities for Fibiel’s interest, but if the peace treaty isn’t signed, the fire of war between Biel and Minis can rekindle at any time. And in order to focus on Bluebeard and the Fragments of the Demon King, we must finish the war quickly.”

“I understand. I will try my best.”

Fibiel and Minis are on a temporary truce at the moment. It was a state where they could fight with each other before the peace treaty was signed. With the Pope’s warning, there won’t be an all-out war, but small skirmishes and local battles can recur at any time.

“We must move first. I will talk to Minis, so please do your best in Fibiel.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

Baaaang-!

The moment Browless lowered his head, the door to the Vatican was violently thrown open. Fernand, who was surprised, grabbed the whip that was wrapped around his waist.

“Urgent- urgent report!”

“What is it?”

“Pardon, haaa haaa, pardon the rudeness, Your Holiness.”

The man who appeared to be a messenger came running in front of the Pope and knelt, he was out of breath. The Pope touched the man’s shoulder with a benevolent smile.

“It’s okay, calm down and tell me.”

“A monster believed to be a Fragment of the Demon King has appeared in the Sentinel Mountains!”

The messenger closed his eyes and reported what he heard.

The expression of the Pope, as well as Browless and Fernand, changed rapidly. Browless was the first to speak before the Pope could. 

“A Fragment of the Demon King?! Is that really true? Bluebeard, Count Le, is in the Sentinel Mountain?”

“I don’t know if he is. However, it is said that there was a large-scale appearance of monsters in the Sentinel Mountains.”

“Isn’t the Sentinel Mountains originally a place with a lot of monsters? There’s an orc and ogre colony-”

“T-that’s right- that’s the situation I have heard about. This is the urgent report from Berfort Village in Fibiel. Afterward, we even received news that Berfort’s personnel had participated to subdue monsters and defeat Bluebeard.”

If it really was Bluebeard, a small number of people would not be able to stop him. Rather, it will only increase the damage! Upon hearing the messenger’s report, Browless’ expression distorted.

“Your Holiness!”

“Go back, Browless. And Fernand, you go as well. There must be some trace.”

“Understood, let’s go, Browless-nim.”

Fernand and Browless moved immediately.

Toward Berfort, a village at the foot of the Sentinel Mountains in the direction of Fibiel.

***

“Huuuu…. Now I’m a bit free.”

“I didn’t know it would be so hard just to say hello to you.”

“Sorry. If it wasn’t for Kijeong, I wouldn’t have known who was who.”

Leeha and Kijeong, still in formal attire, took a breather with champagne glasses. In the Royal Garden, where countless users and NPCs gathered together as if it was truly a festival, there were, of course, a lot of people who wanted to say hello or even take a picture with Leeha, who was the main character of the day.

At least Kijeong, who had been playing Middle Earth for a long time, helped Leeha by distinguishing who was who, what role they played, and whether they were users or NPCs.

“Hu, thank you. We can’t show how absent-minded Fibiel’s hero is.”

“W-When did I do that? Not to that extent.”

“Kilkil, is that so?”

His cousin laughed at him. As Kijeong said, Leeha, who was Fibiel’s hero, felt a sense of accomplishment that made his heartache. He felt confident that he could do it, with the pride of having done it running down his spine.

“Anyway, your reward isn’t very good.”

“Reward?”

“They said there were no other achievements from 4th to 10th. Isn’t it too much that you only get stats and gold.”

There was one thing that Leeha felt regretful about. That the comrades he suffered together with, did not receive sufficient compensation. There were also Tale and Biyemi, who were not even listed as contributors at all, but he also thought that Kijeong, who had struggled and worked hard to lead them, seemed to be treated too poorly.

“It can’t be helped… Perhaps the achievement came from those medals. Still, the reputation of Byeolcho Guild rose tremendously. We were originally quite famous, but now, wouldn’t this really make our guild one of Fibiel’s top guilds? That’s enough for me-”

“No, no way.”

And Leeha knew how to take care of the people around him.

“If not, what will hyung do?”

“I will get you an item.”

“Huh?”

“I could get three items from the palace using this medal.”

“Y-You’re giving me one of them?”

Kijeong’s eyes widened However, he immediately managed his facial expression and waved his hands.

“No, it’s fine.”

“Oh? Don’t you want me to give you one?”

“You take care of yourself. I would prefer it if you got stronger and more famous.”

“Kijeong-ah…”

Leeha was rather surprised. Eoh-ah!! You’re the best!! Kijeong, who He thought would say those things, turned down the gift. However, it was the same as Leeha underestimating Kijeong.

Although he had a dog-like personality that usually followed Leeha, he was definitely a Semi-Ranker level expert of Middle Earth. He was a man with the mindset of a guild master.

“Because if hyung gets really strong, I could just take it easy and get some alms.”

“Huh? This jerk… is your brain working?”

“Hyung, I’m a business major, right?”

Leeha also smiled as he saw Kijeong joking around until the end because he was embarrassed to show his respect for his older cousin.

At least for today, he wanted Leeha to enjoy it without any worries. However, Middle Earth wasn’t a game that allowed people to relax.

A man in a coat wearing a hat approached Leeha and Kijeong, who were avoiding people in the corner of the palace.

“Have you been contacted?”

“Oh, Kidd-ssi. Come over and have a drink. It’s non-alcoholic champagne, but it tastes pretty good-”

“A notification just popped up.”

“Huh? Notification? From whom?”

Maybe because he was the only person who participated in the awarding ceremony without formal clothes, but he had already pulled out his revolver and was loading rounds.

“Director Browless is calling everyone together. Luger has already arrived in the Sentinel Mountains.”

“Huh? Why didn’t it-”

Before he could finish speaking, a notification window popped up for Leeha as well. A simple notification was different from a quest.

Leeha knew that if he went to an NPC after receiving this notification, he would receive a certain quest. One day, when he was doing a quest to wait, he got a call from Browless this way.

“Berfort……  Isn’t that the village on the base of the Sentinel Mountains?”

“The director, who had been to Ezwen, immediately went to the Sentinel Mountains and called the three of us……. Do you understand what that means?

“It has something to do with Bluebeard.”

“If you know, let’s go.”

Kidd took out a scroll. Standing next to him, Kijeong hurriedly grabbed Leeha.

“W-wait, hyung?! Are you just going to leave?”

“Yes. I have to go. It must be a quest related to the 3rd Human-Demon war. Shouldn’t we get information that we could use later? I’ll be going then, Kijeong-ah! Clean after yourself!”

“W-what about Shin Nara-ssi? The Ram sisters were also looking for hyung earlier!”

“So, you have to wrap up well.”

“How could I wrap up-”

“I will go first.”

While Leeha and Kijeong were bickering, Kidd tore the scroll. His body disappeared in an instant.

“W-wait, Kidd! Hey, I haven’t saved Berfort, so let’s go together. Then I’ll really go, Kijeong-ah!”

Then using a return scroll, he headed to the vicinity of the warp gate in Aelstock, and Kijeong, remaining in his seat, sighed with a gloomy face.

“Haaa……. I’d rather catch monsters, how should I deal with those three women……!”

Shin Nara, Ram Hwayeon, and Ram Hwajeong.

What should he say when the three women pounce at him and ask where and what happened to Leeha? Kijeong shook his head.

(To be continued…)