Chapter 186

Chapter 186. Fishing (6)

“The only difference is that it was much larger and clearer than the one I received.”

I had been staring at the glass shard for a while and then decided to hold the golden glass shard in my hand.

「Part of Palao’s Divine Fragment that lost its owner」

A simple system window appeared, devoid of any rank or description.

‘Lost its owner, huh…’

This implied that something had gone wrong with Palao, the original owner of this divinity.

‘I suspected as much when I heard that the priests were no longer receiving blessings.’

I couldn’t help but feel the presence of Rashar behind me, a moment of distraction.

“Tsk.”

I clicked my tongue inwardly and postponed my conclusions, closing the lid of the box.

With a sharp “clack”, the divinity that had been emanating from inside vanished instantly.

There seemed to be some mechanism embedded in the box.

While I calmly inspected the box, Rashar expressed blatant anger.

“How could the Order of Agnotia hold the divinity of Palao?! Did Agnotia harm Palao?! This is impossible! I will officially protest through the Order!”

“Mind your words. Agnotia only found it in the place where Palao’s traces disappeared.”

“Then why didn’t they inform our Order immediately upon discovery?!”

“Hah, with the current divine affairs being so unclear, how could we know what’s happening within the Order, and just hand it over?”

“That.!”

“And besides, Agnotia was instructed to give it to this Outsider, not the Order of Palao. There must be a reason for that.”

Watching this farcical dialogue unfold, the corners of my mouth involuntarily curled upward.

‘In a world with gods, the value of divinity cannot be low.’

As proof, Rashar was furious just at the fact that this was in the hands of Agnotia.

But handing it over so easily?

And in front of Palao’s apostle, giving a piece of Palao’s divinity to an outsider affiliated with Palao?

‘There’s no way Rashar was compelled of their own will.’

Eventually, it meant they were coercively pushed into doing so.

Whether they were told to gut themselves, or roll on the floor while whining.

Rashar, who couldn’t use force on the priests, had no choice but to back down in this situation.

‘To come all the way here on their own and give Palao’s divinity…’

What could be the motives behind such an overt, not to mention crude, action?

‘It’s surely a legal transaction attempt with me.’

Attempting to halt ongoing investigations by offering Palao’s divinity as a bargaining chip.

I doubted there could be any other reason than to push such a precious item in front of me.

‘But how unfortunate for them.’

A terribly late move.

I already knew what they planned to do with me.

Once Somir Isha was locked in a pitch-black solitary cell for about ten days, he confessed everything.

“There’s a reason solitary cells are used as punishment in prisons.”

Especially when darkness was a factor.

Darkness is more brutal and intimidating than one might think.

Especially when it’s so dark that you can’t even see your hands or feet.

‘The greater the discordance when you can feel but not see.’

Your senses do not function properly.

In such a situation, when left alone for a long time, one inevitably begins to doubt their own existence.

At that moment, most humans arrive at a similar conclusion.

‘When you think that the only value is to get out of there.’

It’s because they wish to reconfirm their own existence.

Someone raised in a historically noble family, well-fed and raised, holding a high priestly position wouldn’t last ten days in the darkness.

It’s impressive that they didn’t go mad.

Ultimately, Somir Isha, unable to endure solitary confinement, confessed everything he knew.

‘Initially trying to maintain dignity by attempting a legal plea bargain.’

But when they tried to drag him back into solitary, he desperately pleaded and revealed everything.

The reason for attempting to kidnap me and the personal details of those involved.

There was even a surprising name among them.

‘Reitan Protoram.’

I recalled Reitan’s face, whom I’d seen only once in Atar Empire’s Imperial City.

‘I keep getting oddly entangled with him.’

What’s going on with him?

As I continued to toy with the box without speaking much, Romeo spoke up first.

“Agnotia instructed that it must be passed on to K himself.”

As I turned my gaze fixed on the box, Romeo began pouring out words continuously.

“So, we quietly asked a member of the Protoram family, who were in contact with the Order, to arrange a meeting.”

“…”

“But he misunderstood, leading to an unfortunate incident.”

“…”

“Afterward, several attempts were made to meet K, but all visits were declined, making it difficult to formally apologize.”

I displayed no reaction.

Whether out of anxiety, Romeo’s words grew even longer.

“Initially, this matter was confidential even within our Order. That’s why Somir ordered a restriction via Vellego. From the start, Somir didn’t even know why such instructions were given. She must’ve exaggerated to cover her ignorance because she was afraid of what a low-grade priest might say without knowing the details.”

“Kuh.”

I genuinely struggled to hold back laughter.

The genuine chuckle that escaped caused Romeo’s face to crumple.

Before he could argue, I pinpointed the lie inherent in his speech.

“Unfortunate incident?”

“Well, previously, Priest Vellego attempted to….”

Romeo, in the midst of answering my question, hesitated, his body trembling.

The realization of his blunder was clearly visible.

“What did Priest Vellego do to me?”

His attempt to kidnap me was never brought to light.

“Officially, Somir Isha is under investigation by the Central Inspection Squad for bribery allegations.”

The briber was Vellego, and the claim was that the restriction was imposed to hide the bribery—this is the story the investigation team and Central Inspection Squad agreed upon and released.

This plot was crafted not to cover for Vellego but to bait and capture the head behind Somir Isha.

“No fool would confess to hiring a kidnapping and then silencing her with a restriction.”

Knowing this, they provided a plausible pretext to capture her.

Her arrest was meant to lure out the head that would tremble in uncertainty.

‘However, I never expected them to fall for it so quickly.’

I scrutinized Romeo with a slightly futile heart.

In the meanwhile, my hand continued to leisurely toy with the box.

‘I don’t need to reveal that I know all the circumstances.’

The notion that I, through Somir Isha, discovered something is likely suspected.

‘But they can’t be sure exactly what or how much I’ve discovered.’

Hence, there’s no need for me to volunteer this information.

‘Tracing the tail to find the head has concluded sooner than expected.’

Now, the question shifts to how to deal with them.

“Divinity, huh.”

I rubbed my fingers across the shiny surface of the box, making calculations.

‘Accepting this means I’ll have to accommodate their clumsy excuses.’

Even if from start to finish, their lies are evident, I’ll have to let it slide.

‘To me, who knows nothing, this is valuable enough.’

Did I need to watch the head I finally unearthed slip through my grasp, or should I simply seize it?

The deliberation wasn’t lengthy.

Mirroring Kim Yul’s usual bright expressions, I opened my mouth.

“With such sincere offerings, it’s hard to refuse.”

Romeo, worriedly biting his lips, widened his eyes in surprise.

It was shocking indeed.

“As you said, Priest Somir knew nothing. It seems, after all, to be confidential.”

Having just pinpointed the lies in his words, my now cooperative attitude threw him off.

My agreement effectively signaled my willingness to cover up the matters regarding Somir Isha.

With this assurance, Romeo’s complexion visibly relaxed.

‘I don’t know why they sent such an easily manipulated person.’

Yet, I decided to entertain their manipulative tricks for a while.

Smiling sociably, Romeo and I concluded the encounter smoothly.

I simply wanted him off my premises, while he wished to tidy matters swiftly in case of a change of heart from me.

“Soon, the misunderstanding regarding Priest Somir will be resolved. Accusing her of bribery, what a ridiculous misunderstanding it was.”

I assured them of compliance as long as their divinity was accepted.

Only then did Romeo rise to leave.

After Romeo departed.

“This is…”

As expected, Rashar, who had remained quiet since his initial outburst, reacted.

It seemed he refrained from interfering out of respect, waiting for my move.

“This isn’t a matter that can be settled like this. From the previous Vellego Protoram incident to Priest Somir now… I only found out about her involvement in the kidnapping a few days ago. Both then, and now, we shouldn’t sweep the injustices you faced under the carpet like this!”

Was the waiting harder than anticipated?

Words spilled from him without pause, breathless.

I frowned slightly and spoke.

“Enough already.”

“What….”

“Stop assuming I am sacrificing myself for the Order, it’s your own fantasy.”

As the razor-sharp gaze hit, Rashar flinched and trembled.

“Why are you so certain that I would sacrifice and dedicate myself to you?”

“……”

“Why force your aspirations onto me, attempting to impose your expectations? Or are you just hoping to ignore your current predicament?”

“……”

“For whatever reason, this is the last time I’ll put up with it. It’s actually quite unpleasant being depicted as a saint above human in such unwarranted glorification.”

Startled by the stern warning, Rashar’s face turned pale.

Even so, after several hesitations, he finally spoke.

“Then why….”

Instead of a direct response, I reopened the box in my hand.

Time and again, repeatedly viewing, I confirmed it was indeed Palao’s divinity.

“Do you really think this is all?”

“What do you mean?”

The fact that Agnotia willingly brought this still nagged at my mind.

“No matter how Palao is a god of another Order.”

This was still divinity, the essence of a god.

Somir Isha had testified that delivering it to Agnotia was the ultimate goal.

Doesn’t it strike you as peculiar that something so significant was so easily surrendered?

“Those bastards must have more.”

Likely, a greater divinity compared to what they’ve given today.

Thus, if they gave this away nonchalantly, it would make sense.

“Retrieve everything they have left and completely thwart their plans.”

Avenging wrongs with tenfold retribution is only proper, no?

Entertaining their antics only until discovering the whereabouts of the remaining divinity.

“Providing them life support until the remaining divinity is found.”

The fate of Agnotia’s extremists was already sealed.

I smirked coldly, picturing the faces of Romeo and Reitan returning to the Order.

‘Run as much as you can.’

No matter how fast you sprint, you’ll remain within my palm.

I stood, concocting future plans.

Sneaking a glance, I saw Rashar with a somber expression.

Yet, neglecting her presence, I carried the box holding the divinity and exited the base.

“Wait, hold on!”

Only belatedly grasping reality, Rashar followed, but I didn’t bother to look back.

I proceeded to the temple, using the portal to arrive at the central temple.

This was to ascertain an idea I had upon recognizing it as Palao’s divinity.

The final destination was the sanctuary at the Order’s headquarters where Palao’s statue was enshrined.

Though not inherently powerful, it held significant symbolic meaning.

Not long after Lario came rushing to receive news of my arrival.

Upon reaching the sanctuary, the fabled Order Homepage Orb was floating.

Without hesitation, I approached the orb and opened the box.

“Gasp!”

A flustered Lario displayed his shock when I presented Palao’s divinity to the orb.

Moments later, Palao’s divinity slowly absorbed into the orb.

“I suspected this.”

I paused, gazing at the disappearing divinity, before asking.

“Have there been any changes in the management console? Such as additional points, new features… Ah, removal of admission limits?”

“We can increase the number of entrants.”

Swallowing nervously, sputtered Lario.

“It’s a point where the third batch of players is joining.”

Observing the frequency of posts on the communal board, it’s estimated that about two or three percent have completed entrance.

A fitting time to lift entrance restrictions.

“How perfect.”

Recruits of the Order of Palao were showing prominence across various battlefields.

Receiving structured training after filtering for talent led to this outcome.

Increasing their numbers during this period while equipping them adequately for missions specific to the Order.

“Enhancing elite forces to potentially surpass common players by half or even twice isn’t out of reach.”

Finalizing my thoughts, I resolutely declared.

“Let’s expand to the maximum.”

Since I was almost kidnapped, of course, I was the one who tracked down Somir and stirred up Agnotia’s Order.

I essentially acquired Palao’s divinity thanks to my effort.

Damn System