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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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Chapter 164
"Leon, if this gets out to the public…"
"Want me to be honest?"
"I have a feeling I know what you'll say, but… go ahead."
"If word spreads that Orichalchum is being mined, a war could break out immediately."
Any excuse could be made to justify it.
The value of an Orichalchum mine was practically astronomical.
It was the only Orichalchum mine in existence.
That alone spoke volumes.
"I want to keep this under wraps for now. Does anyone else know about this?"
"At the very least, the manager from the Vergal Association knows."
"Damn… That association openly shares information with other factions."
It wasn’t too concerning, though.
Raida owed Leon a favor, so asking him to report that the mine's issue was resolved by natural causes would be enough.
"That side won't be a problem. The manager is somewhat favorable toward me."
"Good. How much do you think the deposit holds?"
The most important thing now was the amount of Orichalchum available.
"I can't be sure, but since Orichalchum is created through layers of coincidences, it probably won't be much."
Even knowing the principles behind it, creating Orichalchum was impossible.
It wasn’t particularly efficient or practical in terms of production or technology.
Yet, its value was undeniable.
"So this is Orichalchum… I never thought I’d see it in my lifetime. But… do we even have the technology to process it?"
That was the core issue.
Orichalchum wasn’t an ordinary metal, and few possessed the skills to handle it.
"Even most master dwarven blacksmiths wouldn't have experience working with it, but they could probably forge a decent sword for you."
"You're not keeping it for yourself?"
"I considered it, but my enchanted sword suits me perfectly."
Leon casually pulled the handle of his enchanted sword, Elekstra, from his dimensional storage, revealing it slightly.
Seeing this, she simply nodded.
With the limited amount of Orichalchum available, they would be lucky to forge a single sword.
"Yeah, with a sword like that, you probably don't need an Orichalchum sword."
Leon had handled Orichalchum swords several times before.
But even compared to those, Elekstra didn’t feel outmatched.
There was no reason for him to switch weapons—at least not for now.
However, he was already planning to pocket a small amount of Orichalchum for a special project.
"I'm going to sneak a bit for myself later."
"You deserve it. Do whatever you want. Honestly, you're the only one who can even process it right now, and even if you took all of it for yourself, I'd understand."
It wasn’t as if he was taking it without cause.
And surprisingly, Leon realized that Melissa's trust in him was far deeper than he had expected.
"Hm? A letter from the Holy Kingdom? From the Saintess?"
"Ah. I almost forgot. It arrived while you were at the mine…"
She let out a brief sigh.
"It seems things have worked out, and she no longer needs your help."
Huh?
It wasn’t a big deal, but just a short while ago, she had insisted the situation was urgent.
Now, all of a sudden?
"Did you verify the handwriting?"
"Yeah. It seems to be her own writing, as far as I can tell…"
Leon narrowed his eyes, staring at the letter.
The content claimed that the issue with the Hael Tribe had been resolved smoothly.
It was good news.
But he couldn’t shake the feeling of unease.
Just in case, he ran the letter over the Heart of the Machine God artifact.
And he was certain.
"This isn't ordinary paper."
Without further hesitation, Leon teleported to his workshop, grabbed a special reagent, and poured it over the letter.
Then, he returned to Melissa’s office and briefly held the letter over the fireplace.
"Hey… Hey?! What are you doing?!"
The letter quickly caught fire, but strangely, only the surface burned away—the letter itself remained intact.
Once the flames died down on their own, Leon casually brushed the soot off the letter.
"There was hidden writing."
"What does it say?"
"Coordinates. And a time."
"……"
Melissa took the letter and scanned it with a stunned expression.
The hidden message contained nothing but a specific location and a time.
What the hell?
Why was she sending such a cryptic summons?
Leon couldn't help but feel dumbfounded.
"Why make a simple meeting request so dramatic?"
Still, since it was from the Saintess, it was only right to respond.
* * *
The appointed time written in the letter was about three days later.
It was an event they would have missed entirely if they hadn’t discovered the hidden message.
Did it mean it didn’t matter if they showed up or not?
Or was she forced to deliver the message in this roundabout way?
If it were the latter, Melissa's concerns about a potential conflict with the Holy Kingdom were justified.
If things went wrong, they couldn't expect help from the Bata Kingdom.
For Melissa, the Margrave and ruler of her territory, it was an unavoidable burden.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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* * *
"Is this the right place?"
The meeting location wasn’t on the route to the Hael Tribe but in the opposite direction—on the outskirts of the Holy Kingdom.
It was at a fortress housing a direct branch of the Inquisition's headquarters.
It was one of the Holy Kingdom's most renowned natural strongholds.
Typically, heretics were imprisoned there.
It was famous for its extreme security measures, but its imposing architecture also made it a minor tourist attraction.
"Hmm…"
After using a teleportation gate to reach a nearby city, Leon flew to the fortress using flight magic.
Upon seeing the massive structure, he let out a brief sound of admiration.
Regardless of the situation, the fortress itself was certainly impressive.
It also had an ominous aura, as if anyone caught trespassing would be declared a heretic on the spot.
Of course, this was just a branch of the Inquisition, not the main headquarters, and he wasn't a heretic.
There was no reason to be afraid of getting arrested.
If the Saintess was anywhere, it would be in the Inquisition branch at the fortress's center.
After verifying his identity to the Holy Kingdom guards, Leon was granted entry.
* * *
The inside of the fortress was pristine and restrained, its interior exuding a sense of disciplined order.
The headquarters and branch offices where the Inquisitors resided were all similarly strict and orderly.
On the streets, groups of two or three inquisitors, dressed in their uniforms, patrolled in formation.
Their presence exuded a commanding aura, a testament to their rigorous training.
However, despite it being peacetime, the level of security felt unusually tight.
“Hold it right there.”
A team of Inquisitors spotted us entering the city and approached.
“What is the matter?”
“Pardon us. We need to conduct an inspection. The woman over there—please remove your hood and mask.”
“I refuse.”
“A heretic recently escaped from the fortress. There were two of them—a man and a woman. Therefore, we are obligated to conduct a search.”
If heretics had escaped from a prison in this place, it was no wonder the Inquisitors were on edge.
I could feel Luna glancing at me briefly.
“Just cooperate,”
I told her.
At my words, she quietly removed her mask and pulled back her hood slightly.
The Inquisitors’ eyes widened in surprise.
Afterward, I presented the Cascadia family crest, and they finally backed down.
“Ahem! It appears you are not the heretics we’re looking for. Enjoy your travels.”
“Is something going on?”
Although I had already grasped the situation, I asked, hoping to gather more information.
One of the inquisitors let out a sigh.
“They say some heretics who committed heinous crimes escaped from the detention center. It seems they had outside assistance.”
“Hey.”
“What? They’re just ordinary citizens. We’re currently searching for them, so if you spot anyone suspicious, please report it.”
“Of course.”
It seemed our timing was particularly unfortunate, with a recent escapee causing a commotion.
As the inquisitors left, Luna quietly donned her mask again, and we resumed walking.
The city was brimming with divine power.
Though I had no prior experience wielding it, the presence was unmistakable.
We were heading toward the branch office where Saint Nadia was supposed to be.
“Found them!”
“Move!!”
The Inquisitors patrolling the streets suddenly grew frantic, and the atmosphere shifted.
The citizens, wary of being caught in the chaos, silently cleared the path, while the Inquisitors swiftly and methodically surrounded the area where the signal had sounded.
With the streets clearing, we were able to reach our destination without obstruction.
The Holy Kingdom never seems to have a quiet day.
Upon arriving at the Inquisition branch, a junior cleric at the reception greeted us.
“We’ve come at the request of High Priest Nabel. Is he here?”
“Nabel…? One moment, please.”
At my request, the cleric tilted his head in confusion and quickly flipped through the registry.
“That’s strange. There’s no one by the name of Nabel listed here. Are you sure about the name?”
“Yes, I am.”
Unless Saint Nadia had suddenly lost her mind, she wouldn't have disguised herself under the name Nadia Ten Lilibel.
“That’s odd… Hmm…”
As he swiftly scanned the records, his eyes widened in shock.
“Ah! Here it is. High Priest Nabel… Huh? Wait, this is the heretic registry.”
He frowned, glancing at us with suspicion.
“Are you certain about the name?”
“Yes. We came here because she requested assistance. Are you saying she’s a heretic?”
“……”
“If that’s the case, we’ll step away. There’s no reason for us to get involved with heretics.”
“…Understood. Since she was only recently declared a heretic, I’ll make an exception.”
Not wanting to get entangled with heretics, I drew a firm line.
Still, the situation was absurd.
“A heretic? Has the Holy Kingdom completely lost its mind?”
Of all things, they were branding the Saint herself as a heretic?
That would mean the heretic currently on the run was none other than Saint Nadia Ten Lilibel.
Luna had mentioned before that Nadia wasn’t particularly fond of the Stigma of Divinity, but that was a personal sentiment.
It was an entirely different matter from being branded a heretic.
The Holy Kingdom had no right to declare a saint, who bore the divine Stigma, a heretic.
To do so would be to undermine the very foundation of the Holy Kingdom itself.
If they had still gone through with it, then either they had collectively lost their minds, or Saint Nadia had committed a grave offense while still bearing the divine mark.
It could only be one or the other.
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HELHEIM SCANS
[Translator - Night]
[Proofreader - Gun]
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