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Chapter 36 – The Sun God’s Inquisitor (4)
Aquaz leaned back against the sofa, staring blankly into space.
She felt drained.
How long had it been since she last felt this exhausted?
Despite the countless curses, hatred, words of apostasy, and demonic whispers she had faced, her mind had never wavered.
Yet, a conversation lasting only a few minutes with the barbarian had pushed her to her limits.
‘The Barbarian of the White Snowfield… is it?’
Just thinking about it made her head hurt.
She even wished the barbarian had been a divine oracle instead.
“You seem troubled.”
the lord remarked sitting opposite her, chuckling softly as he lifted his teacup.
The lord was terrified of this inquisitor.
The Inquisitor of the Sun God.
Aquaz.
A person of countless renown and achievements.
Although she wasn’t as individually powerful as Cain, her devotion to serving the deity made her unique.
Moreover, she was an inquisitor.
As a tool of the divine, she had killed and dealt with numerous heretics.
To the lord, Aquaz appeared more like a transcendent being than a fellow human.
However, seeing her react similarly to himself regarding the barbarian made him realize Aquaz was human too.
Aquaz finally spoke.
“Who is he?”
“I don’t know. He arrived in the territory recently and has been living here. He claims to come from the White Snowfield, but there’s no evidence.”
“That has been confirmed. Although we couldn’t obtain any information about the Snowfield’s interior, he is indeed a Barbarian of the White Snowfield.”
“Really?”
The lord’s eyes widened.
Ketal had previously claimed this, but the lord hadn’t believed him.
The Barbarian of the White Snowfield was something out of legend.
But Aquaz had confirmed it.
It truly meant the existence of the White Snowfield.
“If this gets out, it’ll cause quite a stir.”
Many seek to explore the White Snowfield.
Especially the emperor, who desires to conquer the world, including the Forbidden Lands.
If the emperor took action, what chaos might ensue?
The mere thought gave him a headache.
“You needn’t worry about that. We will handle Karthos and ensure the barbarian remains unknown to the public.”
“That’s a relief.”
“…Are all Snowfield barbarians like him?”
“Probably not. This one is likely unique. If they were all like him, they would’ve left the Snowfield and conquered the world by now.”
Though it sounded like a joke, it wasn’t.
There were many barbarians in the world.
Their martial prowess was significant, placing them at the top tier collectively.
But they were also foolish.
Not foolish, exactly, but simple-minded, which was almost the same.
It was an innate limitation of barbarians.
The lord suddenly recalled something.
“By the way, they say the current king of the barbarians is different. That he possesses both strength and intelligence.”
“You mean the king of all barbarians. I’ve met him once, and he certainly was unlike the typical barbarian.”
“Really? It would be interesting if the two met.”
“I wouldn’t say that.”
Aquaz gave a wry smile.
The relationship between barbarians and the faithful was not good.
The rise of barbarian power was not a matter Aquaz could laugh about.
The lord took a light sip of his tea.
“I know what you’re worried about, but… At least from what I’ve observed, there’s no problem. He is remarkably good-natured. Astonishingly so.”
He resolves menial tasks no one else wants to handle with a smile and shares the rewards of unexplored dungeons with his party without hesitation.
Ketal had never once caused harm to others.
He was, in fact, kinder and more polite than anyone the lord had ever seen.
“Cain said, as long as we don’t provoke a peaceful beast, we’ll be fine.”
“If Cain said so, it must be true. But…”
Aquaz bit her dry lips.
From what she saw, the barbarian was intelligent and rational.
He was considerate of others and did not cause trouble.
But that was only because he had no personal issues.
He was considerate because it had no negative impact on him.
Even beasts don’t hunt when they are full.
But if something external tried to restrict his actions.
Or if something piqued his interest.
He would move.
That barbarian was such an entity.
A beast won’t rampage if left alone.
But what if the beast itself finds something interesting and starts moving?
‘…Soon, many changes will come.’
The chaos and aftermath he would bring were already giving her a headache.
“By the way, did you achieve your goal?”
The lord asked, trying to change the atmosphere.
Aquaz nodded.
“Yes. There was no issue regarding that.”
“I’m curious. What was in the oracle that required you to speak with him alone?”
“I needed confirmation.”
“Confirmation?”
“To see if he was a pure human or something pretending to be one.”
“…What did the oracle say, exactly?”
A moment of silence fell.
The lord swallowed nervously.
Aquaz opened her mouth.
The lord’s eyes widened in shock.
* * *
The next day, Ketal visited the lord’s castle.
“We meet again.”
As Ketal entered the reception room, the lord was already waiting.
Ketal smiled warmly and extended his hand.
“How have you been?”
“Well enough. And you?”
The lord asked vaguely, and Ketal smiled broadly.
“I’ve been having delightful days. Thanks to you for creating such a wonderful domain.”
“…I appreciate that.”
Ketal sat down on the sofa opposite the lord.
“So, what brings me here today?”
The reason Ketal was meeting the lord this time was simple.
The lord had summoned him personally.
“As the lord, there’s something I must tell you.”
The lord bowed his head slightly.
“I must thank you. You saved this domain.”
Lich Karthos.
If he had acted properly, this small domain would have collapsed in an instant.
The barbarian was nothing short of a benefactor.
“Is that so?”
But Ketal himself looked puzzled.
“I heard from Aquaz as well, but honestly, I don’t get it. My party members could have handled it without any problems.”
“…The warrior, the thief, and the priest of the god of lies and deceit?”
“Yes, they are all excellent individuals.”
“…….”
From what the lord knew, they were still wandering as F-rank mercenaries, dealing with miscellaneous tasks.
The lord shook his head.
It was pointless to take this barbarian’s words seriously.
“Whatever the case, the fact that you saved the domain remains unchanged. As the lord, I must express my gratitude. And… apologize.”
“For what?”
“The fact that you defeated Karthos will not be made public.”
The lord’s face was filled with deep anxiety.
Defeating Karthos was a remarkable feat.
If this fact became known, Ketal’s name would spread across the entire continent.
But it must not be revealed.
If it did, the emperor would move personally.
Ultimately, it meant Ketal would not receive the honor he deserved.
While key figures in the kingdom and the Church of the Sun God would know about Ketal, it would still be a significant disadvantage.
“Is that so? As long as I am not restricted, it doesn’t really matter.”
Ketal spoke lightly.
He wasn’t particularly interested in honor.
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However, from the lord’s perspective, it was as if he was taking away what Ketal deserved, so he had to offer a fitting reward.
“Though it’s not much of an apology, you did save the domain. You deserve a reward for that.”
The lord pulled out an item from his bosom.
It was a luxurious leather pouch.
“Here it is.”
“A leather pouch?”
“It’s not an ordinary leather pouch. See for yourself.”
“Ho?”
Ketal’s face showed interest.
He took the leather pouch.
The material was quite luxurious.
Upon closer inspection, it bore some strange patterns.
“…Could it be?”
Ketal’s eyes widened.
The lord smiled and said,
“Check the inside.”
Ketal opened the leather pouch.
The inside was revealed, and it was beyond Ketal’s imagination.
The leather pouch wasn’t large.
It was only big enough to hold a few gold or silver coins.
But the inside was incredibly spacious.
A quick glance showed it could easily hold more than a single room’s worth of items.
Ketal looked at the lord with an excited face.
“Is this…?”
“It’s an artifact. A rather high-quality one at that. It’s a reward for saving the domain and keeping the secret. I hope you like it.”
“Like it? I love it!”
An artifact.
A genuine magical item.
It was the first time he’d seen one in person.
The lord smiled and said,
“It doesn’t have any particularly amazing effects. Just a vast space. That’s all.”
“That’s more than enough!”
When entering the recent unexplored dungeon, carrying all the prepared gear had been quite a hassle.
But with this, all those inconveniences could be resolved.
“The space inside is roughly the size of this reception room. Even if the item is larger than the pouch’s opening, it will fit.”
“Really?”
Ketal picked up his axe as a test.
The axe was quite large and didn’t look like it could fit into the pouch.
But as soon as he tried to put the axe into the pouch, it was sucked in as if being pulled by some force.
Ketal’s eyes widened even more.
“Ohhh!”
“To retrieve something, just reach in and think of the item.”
Ketal put his hand into the leather pouch and thought of the axe.
Immediately, as if pulled by a magnet, the axe flew into his hand.
As he withdrew his hand, the axe emerged from the pouch.
“Ooooooh!”
Ketal was extremely excited.
A real artifact.
The kind of artifact frequently featured in fantasy novels.
And of those, a pouch artifact!
This was the first artifact that protagonists often obtained.
To actually get his hands on one!
He felt like his head was going to explode with joy.
The lord smiled at his reaction.
Even though it was a reward he had to give, seeing such happiness made him feel good too.
“It was very difficult to obtain, so I hope you’re satisfied.”
“Satisfied? Absolutely!”
In terms of practicality and personal satisfaction, it was a top-tier item.
“But I’m curious. How did you get something like this? It doesn’t seem like a cheap item. Did you perhaps purchase it from the Mage Tower?”
“No. Not from them.”
The lord replied.
“I got it from a wandering merchant.”
“A wandering merchant?”
“You don’t know them? They are, literally, wandering merchants. They appear suddenly near people and sell all sorts of items. I bought it from them.”
“Are they human?”
“I don’t know. They’re always adorned with strange decorations, making it impossible to tell. They expect payment and give you the item once you pay the price. I got it from them.”
“Oh?”
Ketal’s eyes showed interest.
“You’ll probably encounter them someday if you travel around. They appear very suddenly, so you’ll have to rely on chance.”
“That sounds interesting.”
Ketal grinned.
After asking a bit more about the wandering merchants, Ketal soon left the lord’s castle.
Left alone, the lord leaned back on the sofa and pressed his fingers to his forehead.
‘At least this issue is resolved.’
He was relieved that Ketal had accepted it so easily.
Of course, the artifact was extremely valuable.
Items from wandering merchants were inherently very rare.
Additionally, their functionality was excellent, so they could fetch a high price if sold to the right person.
It was an artifact that Swordmaster Cain had brought as a gift when he became lord.
However, despite the artifact’s rarity, the barbarian was someone who acted based on interest.
He had considered the possibility of refusal, but fortunately, the worst-case scenario had been avoided.
But it wasn’t over yet.
A bigger problem remained.
“A prophecy… huh.”
The lord smiled bitterly.
“What on earth is happening in this remote domain?”
Lord Cain had said there was something happening in the world.
He came to warn him about it.
But if that was the case, he should have explained in more detail.
The lord grumbled inwardly.
The prophecy Aquaz mentioned came to mind.
‘Evil will descend. A great evil. It will descend here and spread across the world.’
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