Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 63

63. Luck, Skill, and Destiny (3)

The crisis that could have wiped out the party was resolved in an instant.

However, despite defeating the monster, an awkward silence filled their party.

Danram and Purion realized that Aile was an Inquisitor of the Order of Light because of the skills and actions he had shown.

He had clearly entered as a swordsman and had blatantly lied to deceive them.

“……”

Tense, they glanced at Aile, watching his every move.

They were well aware that players belonging to the Order of Light were capable of all sorts of crazy things.

However, they owed him their lives from just now, making it difficult to get angry, and they were completely overwhelmed by the image Aile had shown.

‘Fortunately, things are going as expected,’ Aile thought, observing their reactions.

The atmosphere had changed even though he hadn’t said much.

The leadership of the party had instantly shifted to Aile.

Aile had anticipated this from the start, which is why he hadn’t shown his Inquisitor-exclusive skills from the beginning, but rather a little later.

Along with a bit of showmanship, needlessly beheading a common monster.

“Danram, you don’t need to protect me. If a monster goes for Purion, take care of it immediately. Prioritizing not letting any monsters slip past is the top priority, but if four or five suddenly rush in, there’s no helping it.”

“Understood. I should have anticipated it, but I was too flustered… I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. No one died, and we learned exactly what to watch out for in the previous battle. Ah, and Purion, please bind one monster with a binding spell at the start of the battle. Reducing the number by one will ease the burden on the front line and make it much easier.”

“I see……”

“Aile, should I give you the party leader authority?” Danram, who was the party leader, readily asked for Aile’s intentions.

However, Aile shook his head and replied.

“No, there’s no need for that. But please follow my instructions to some extent in each situation. This isn’t an easy hunting ground.”

“Understood.”

The party members, nodding earnestly, began to walk behind Aile.

They didn’t even think about asking about his class, fearing he might be displeased.

They had heard that users of the Order of Light were supposed to mercilessly attack users who violated the teachings, so they were just relieved that they weren’t included in that range.

The next number of ghouls that their party faced was five in total.

An even greater number than in the previous dangerous hunt.

However, this time Aile didn’t hide his abilities as an Inquisitor and proceeded with the strategy, giving instructions to the party members one by one according to the situation.

As a result, even though the number of monsters had increased, they were able to finish more smoothly than before without any dangerous moments.

“Got the last one!”

“Wow… much better than before?”

‘As expected, they’re not completely incompetent.’

They were just flustered by the unexpected situation earlier, but they weren’t lacking in basic skills or sense.

Once they adapted to some extent to the patterns the monsters showed, they were each fulfilling their roles more than adequately.

Of course, they showed many shortcomings as low-level users lacking experience, but it wasn’t to the point of hindering the hunt that Aile was leading with direct orders.

From Aile’s perspective, it was a bit frustrating, but it was good to see them doing their part according to his instructions.

However, that was only Aile’s thought.

It didn’t seem that way from someone else’s perspective.

[‘Light’s Judge, Ru’ is frustrated as if she ate a sweet potato.]

[She wants you to get rid of your useless companions as soon as possible.]

The status windows that appeared in front of him urged Aile.

Even though they were quite decent among users of the same level, her standards were high, perhaps because she was a god.

She probably thought they were uselessly sticking by Aile’s side, only consuming experience and rewards.

She would probably be satisfied if he found better companions or devoured the hunting ground alone.

“Even so, the expression ‘useless’ is a bit harsh……”

“Huh? Sorry, what did you say?”

“Ah, it’s nothing.”

Aile quickly mumbled.

He thought he was speaking quietly so no one could hear, but it seemed like he was muttering to himself.

It seemed necessary to refrain from talking to ‘Ru’ as much as possible when others were around.

‘Of course, if Alisa were in the back, the speed would be much faster.’

Aile thought absentmindedly, recalling Alisa.

She should have used the purple skill book by now and learned a new skill.

Even if the two of them had come here, the speed would have been faster than the current party of three.

However, Aile soon shook his head and dismissed the thought.

They were working hard, so there was no need to weigh and compare them.

In the first place, hunting here alone would be too burdensome, so he wouldn’t be able to reach his full speed, or he would have to experience the risk of dying several times.

It was also realistically impossible to find better companions around him right now.

Aile wasn’t so careless as to freely give experience and rewards to others for no reason; it was something he had planned because it was clearly necessary.

The most important thing in Warlord was stability, and even one death was fatal.

Whether it was a mistake or arrogance, it was unacceptable in Aile’s position right now.

“Four ghouls on the right have spotted us!”

“Let’s fight right away. Just like before.”

Even though they had just fought, the party continued to hunt while maintaining their speed.

It was important to keep the momentum going without losing rhythm.

So they went to the center of the hunting ground and fought every ghoul they encountered, and there was no break except to replenish their health and mana with potions and healing magic.

Of course, the party members showed signs of fatigue in the midst of the arduous march.

However, because of Aile’s focused appearance and his consistently serious attitude towards hunting, they couldn’t bring themselves to suggest taking a break.

They could only grit their teeth and endure, thinking that Aile’s sword could fly at them at any time.

And after a long time.

The party came out to one of the few safe zones in the hunting ground to fill their hunger that was about to bottom out.

Since monsters didn’t appear at this point, they didn’t have to worry about being attacked even if they settled down and rested.

‘The seal isn’t coming out at all.’

Aile thought, chewing on the bread in his mouth.

So far, not a single ‘Torn Royal Seal’ item had appeared, and there was nothing to distribute among the party members.

Of course, it wasn’t a completely unexpected situation.

He had heard in advance that the probability of obtaining it was low.

Even though a week had passed since this method was created, only a few people had actually completed the seal and faced the royal family.

However, it was a difficult part for Aile, who needed some luck.

‘I need to speed up a bit.’

As soon as the meal was roughly finished, Aile got up from his seat without delay.

“Now that we’ve filled our stomachs, everyone get up.”

“Yes……? Are you kidding?”

“I think we’ve really gone crazy. Let’s rest a little?”

Purion looked up at Aile with pleading eyes, and Danram next to him nodded in agreement.

It was inhuman to make them roll around the hunting ground for nearly three hours and then push them even further.

However, Aile answered very firmly, unlike before.

“That’s not possible.”

“Th, then the break time is…….”

“What break? We’ve only just started.”

“Yes……?”

Purion and Danram’s faces turned pale at Aile’s words.

A hellish march awaited them.

* * *

“It’s definitely not something to be taken lightly.”

A man walking inside the half-collapsed fortress slowly opened his mouth.

The sky was dark as the sunset disappeared and night fell, but his red hair and handsome face were illuminated by the flames that were still alive here and there.

The man handed the confirmed report back to the blonde woman.

“Most of the top 12 guilds have already taken action. In particular, the Red Moon, which failed in the raid a while ago, seems to be betting everything on this. It’s definitely deeply connected to the royal family’s branching point, and especially the Bloody Hands, the Black Brotherhood, and Morak Dun. These three major forces are moving all at once. That means…….”

“Yeah, those NPCs have an amazing sense of smell for being NPCs.”

A huge stream that shakes the world of Warlord, a world quest.

Of course, world quests were always created periodically, but this one had ominous signs in many ways.

The royal family at the center of this incident, as well as the three major forces that dominated the back alleys of Warlord, had all begun to move, and even non-human race forces were moving, involving a considerable number of named NPCs.

Unusual movements occurring throughout the kingdom.

“Seeing that some from Oracle have also started to get involved in the quest, it’s an unprecedented scale among the world quests that have happened so far. What should we do, Guild Master? Originally, there’s no need to get involved in such a dirty game, but…….”

“We still need to watch. Send up reports on a daily basis.”

“Understood. I’ll tell them to do so.”

It was not yet known whether it was worth it for them to move as a guild.

However, it was worth paying special attention to as many forces were involved.

The two passed through the roughly torn-off secondary gate and entered the guild building in the center of the fortress.

Inside the building, which was in a mess in places, a flag with the Velona Guild’s emblem was torn and lying on the floor.

Velona, which had independently occupied the fairly useful territory of ‘Fortress,’ was a large guild with about 1,900 guild members and had considerable influence.

However, that was only before the declaration of war that took place 13 hours ago.

The territory that was their pride was completely suppressed and filled with the corpses of Velona guild members.

“Were there any casualties on our side?”

“Excluding the guild NPC forces, the total number of deaths among the guild members mobilized in this battle is ‘0’.”

“I asked just in case… but that’s right.”

Thud!

The two entered the office located in the center of the guild building.

Six users were standing in the moderately sized room, and as soon as they saw those who entered the office, they moved to the left and right to make way and slightly bowed their heads.

Their identities were rankers [top-ranked players].

They were skilled individuals within the top 1,000 of the official Warlord rankings, and they were top-level players who were at least level 200.

Each of them was a big shot that even large guilds couldn’t easily deal with.

However, the man simply gestured lightly with an indifferent expression, and they nodded and left the room.

“P, please. Just the territory…….”

Unlike the corpses piled up on one side of the office, the only man who was still alive pleaded with a trembling voice.

It was a guild that he had poured everything into, even taking out loans as the guild leader, and it was the result of all his efforts.

However, he was intoxicated by a moment of complacency, and everything changed overnight with just one mistake.

He had stepped on the dragon’s tail that he should never have touched.

“I didn’t know it was an item related to you… it was a mistake! Please!”

The man, spitting out words as if struggling, looked up.

Solo of Dawn.

The guild leader representing one of the six major guilds, and the undisputed strongest fighter in Warlord, ranking 3rd overall.

However, Solo’s cold eyes looking down at him remained unchanged.

Kwaak!

The man’s life was cut short along with the thick blood vessels scattered on the floor.

Then the blonde woman standing next to Solo smiled and asked.

“Did he really not know?”

“If he didn’t know, he should be ruined even more.”

He answered simply.

A guild leader couldn’t just be strong.

It wasn’t enough to simply have a wide network, a lot of money, or a high level.

If the decision-maker who determines the direction of the guild lacks the ability to read the game, the guild can never grow beyond a certain stage.

Especially in Warlord, where a single wrong decision can cause the guild to collapse and disappear at any time, there was no way that a moron who couldn’t use his head properly would be sitting in that position if he had overcome the fierce competition and occupied the territory.

Clearly, the amount offered to steal the item was so great that he was willing to risk being exposed to the six major guilds, even if it meant being caught.

Of course, in the end, the item was recovered without any problems, and it only led to their demise.

“Nightmare is already annoying enough with his self-made plays, but the incidents don’t stop. How much time is left until the next raid schedule?”

“Two hours left. Are you going right away?”

“Let’s do that.”

There was only one raid schedule caught nearby, and in the first place, pushing down a guild of this size wasn’t something they would bother to stop by for.

With that, Solo left first, and the blonde woman remained in the fortress for a while to finish the cleanup of the scene.

Even if she continued with the remaining work, she would be able to arrive on time without being late for the schedule.

Just in time, the guild members who had been waiting for her approached her as she came out of the building.

“Arie, everything is ready.”

“Thank you for your hard work, everyone.”

The woman said with a light smile, and the guild members waited for the next order.

A fortress on the border of the frontier.

Although it was a medium-sized base, the geographical location was very inconvenient, and it was somewhat far from the bases owned by Dawn.

Of course, it was a great thing from the perspective of ordinary guilds that were focused on one territory.

However, from the perspective of the six major guilds, Dawn, which occupied all the central bases, it was a region that had no particular meaning when considering the cost of managing it.

Rather, in the event of a full-scale war with Nightmare, it would only be more difficult to cope with the attack.

Then the solution was simple.

“Now, let’s erase this place cleanly from the map.”