Level Up Inquisitor [EN]: Chapter 97

Night fell, and only moonlight illuminated the sky.

Aeil, standing before the city gate, briefly looked around.

Having just arrived in Queens Blonde [a city known for its canals and vibrant nightlife], he could take in the beautiful sights of the canal city.

It was as magnificent as he remembered.

With the day and night completely reversed in this game setting, lights illuminated various parts of the city.

Buildings with lights visible through the windows and streetlights illuminating the streets created a captivating night scene, turning even ordinary streets into exquisite landscapes.

Unlike the real Middle Ages, where people lived in darkness at night, *Warlord*, set in a fantasy world, didn’t need unnecessary historical accuracy since users needed to be able to play smoothly at any time.

Queens Blonde was even more famous for its night scenery, just as he had heard.

Some people even came specifically to see the night view, so the main streets were still lively.

‘But it feels like there are more troops than before….’

Aeil thought, observing the number of elite soldiers patrolling the city’s night streets.

The Nightmare’s elite soldiers, clad in black armor, were high-level NPCs [Non-Player Characters] protecting Queens Blonde, and they were not easy opponents even for users of a certain level.

But it seemed that the number of such soldiers had increased.

Of course, even Aeil couldn’t be completely sure, and it wasn’t a significant difference from before.

However, that slight difference subtly touched Aeil’s senses.

Whether it was troop redeployment or self-augmentation, if it wasn’t just his imagination, there was much room for interpretation.

However, there was no mention of this in Aeil’s intelligence network, and he had other priorities right now.

Aeil crossed a bridge to address the reason he had come here.

Then, Aeil entered a relatively deserted alleyway next to the canal where the river flowed and sat on the edge of the street.

He watched the river flow for a while.

Suddenly, Shinhyung appeared from behind and sat down next to Aeil.

“It’s been a while. I didn’t expect you to come to me first.”

A red-haired woman appeared from the shadows.

The light from the streetlamp illuminating the riverbank shone on her familiar face.

It was Severa, the branch manager of the Bloody Hands [a shadowy organization, likely an assassin’s guild].

“I didn’t expect the busy branch manager to come out to greet me in person.”

“I can’t just send anyone to greet a client representing the Order [likely a religious or knightly organization]. By the way, you’ve improved a lot. At least the boyish smell is gone.”

She said generously after examining Aeil’s appearance.

However, Aeil responded with a nonchalant attitude.

“Should I say thank you?”

“You’re welcome.”

Severa, who had taken her hand out of her pocket, fluttered a letter.

It was Aeil’s letter containing the details of this request that had been sent in advance.

“The sooner we get to the point, the better, right? A request to track down a heretical mage who has dabbled in forbidden magic. It’s not a simple case at all.”

Aeil nodded at her words.

A heretical mage hiding in the shadows.

The Order was skilled at hunting such individuals, but since they couldn’t move to eliminate the Twilight Council [a group likely associated with dark magic] right now, it was most effective to commission the tracking to those in the same shadows.

It was a problem that it cost a lot to entrust the request to the Bloody Hands, but since it was carrying out the Order’s mission, the Inquisition [an internal organization of the Order] would cover the cost, so it didn’t matter much.

And above all, Aeil had a reason to come to the Bloody Hands, even if it wasn’t just about tracking.

“A heretical mage named Mute was using a black stone containing magic… a Soul Stone. It was definitely related to forbidden magic. There was also a Soul Stone in the cave where the bandits were hiding. What is the connection between those guys and the last request?”

“Sorry, but the requested task didn’t go that far, did it? That question is beyond the scope of the request. It’s not something you can buy with a few coins.”

Severa shook her head and put a pipe in her mouth.

“I don’t want to be at odds with the Order, but I can’t get too involved because I have my own circumstances. I didn’t hire you to deal with those bandits in Hard Rock Cave for nothing.”

“Was that so…….”

Until now, Aeil had not been able to come up with a proper guess as to why they had first entrusted the request to him.

He wondered why an organization like the Bloody Hands would entrust the handling of a small bandit group to an external adventurer, but now he understood.

‘They haven’t decided on a route yet.’

The Bloody Hands seemed to be taking a stance of avoiding direct involvement in this matter as much as possible.

In the midst of a large-scale world quest, they were trying to straddle both sides so that they could switch to either side.

According to the information that was slowly being released on information sites as the quest progressed, Aeil was able to notice immediately that the power structure and progress direction of this world quest were divided into two branches.

Whether it was the 결사단 [likely a key faction in the game] or something beyond that, they were still avoiding deep conflict with the mastermind behind this incident.

It meant that Aeil had to solve any further information on his own.

Severa smiled and returned to the original request, throwing information at him.

“This is…….”

Aeil narrowed his eyes as he received the piece of map Severa handed him.

A cross-shaped knife mark marked one location on the map.

“I don’t know if it’s that heretical mage named Mute, but his colleague is holed up in this underground location. He’s exuding a strange magical scent. I don’t know exactly what he’s up to in the dungeon, but if you have ears to hear, you can guess roughly. How about it, is this enough of an answer for this request?”

Judging from the location marked on the map, it was located slightly away from Queens Blonde.

In particular, it was near Tully Village, which had been the subject of much talk these days. Tully Village was where a large number of undead had appeared and a raid event had taken place a few days ago.

Users in their 40s, mainly aiming for quests, were fighting a defensive battle against the monsters, and the battle surrounding the village was still continuing.

‘Another member of the 결사단’s location… I guess it’s related to the defense battle.’

Aeil quickly memorized the location on the map and got up from his seat.

Now that he had obtained definite information, the faster he acted, the better.

“That’s enough.”

* * *

Tully Village, a peaceful small village on the outskirts.

However, recently, an event occurred there, and a fierce defense battle was taking place, and a high wooden fence was set up at the entrance to the plains.

Even though it was a temporary defense facility, it was quite well-formed for something that was made in a hurry.

However, now, much of it was broken due to the aftermath of the fierce battle.

The corpses of the undead that had been scattered were now all cleared away, and traces of blood and flesh were still stuck here and there.

And between those traces.

A considerable number of users were resting on the top and bottom of the wooden fence, sitting together.

All of them looked exhausted because they had just fought a battle.

“Hey, did you get anything?”

“Of course. Both experience and loot are good.”

“Well, the rewards are definitely good… but the number of users dying in each battle is increasing little by little, and it’s getting more and more dangerous.”

The man leaning against the wooden fence grinned and trimmed his greatsword.

He had made a considerable contribution in the previous defense battle, and he was in a good mood because he didn’t have much left to level up.

However, his companion on the other side was thinking a little differently.

“It’s good for now. But I’m sure we won’t last long if we keep going like this.”

The number of undead monsters attacking was increasing.

However, compared to the increasing difficulty, the number of users participating in the defense battle was not much different.

Moreover, even the users participating were only interested in the rewards of the quest, and there was little reason to desperately defend the village.

First of all, this village, which is quite small in size, has no specialties that merchant users would covet, and it is located far away from other bases.

It was not a place where many useful quests were created because there were important NPCs, and it was geographically disadvantageous, so it was not visited much more.

That meant that the revenue generated in the village was small, and the large guild that nominally owned the village was currently neglecting the village by leaving it half-abandoned.

If guild members were stationed there, unnecessary manpower losses would occur, and even the NPCs guarding the area would incur maintenance costs, so it was a nuisance.

It was one of the few cases among the stronghold areas of *Warlord*, which are usually very precious.

“The defense quest only occurs when the village is alive. There may not be many times left like this.”

“Hmm……. But we don’t have a proper way, do we?”

“That’s right. Where are all these undead coming from…….”

Undead monsters swarming from the foggy plains beyond the wooden fence.

Some people broke through the monsters and went out to the plains to investigate the cause of the endless stream of monsters, but they could not find anything special.

They were just digging out of the ground from underground.

There were no special facilities around the plains, and the background of the place was not an old battlefield.

Even high-level users who stopped by out of curiosity were tired of the constantly swarming undead and just helped out for a while and left.

There were no outstanding drop items, and fighting low-level monsters was just a waste of time, so they had no choice but to leave.

There was no way out unless the guild or the royal army stepped up.

“Who cares, we just need to get the rewards.”

“Um… that’s right.”

The man who smiled and nodded as if the worries of just now were meaningless.

The village would be in danger if things continued like this, but it was not a big problem for the users who had come only for the quest.

Villages disappearing and reappearing like this was a natural phenomenon that happened more often than people thought, even though it was not noticeable to users.

But then, a voice shouting from above the wooden fence made them stand up.

“They’re coming!”

“Prepare for battle! Everyone take your positions!”