Ch.266Chapter 266 – The Demon Cult Has Not Disappeared

In a tavern in Oberonia, the capital of the small kingdom of Oberon in the southern continent, adventurers were having drinks since early afternoon.

Usually at this time, most adventurers would be out fulfilling requests.

So adventurers drinking during daylight hours typically fell into two categories.

One was those who had their day’s request canceled and had nothing else to do.

The other was those taking a break after completing a long request.

The group of adventurers drinking here today belonged to the latter.

“Hey, Leon. Have you heard that story?”

A balding adventurer with bushy beard called out to a man who appeared to be the tavern owner.

“What story?”

The brown-haired man called Leon looked at the bald adventurer with an indifferent expression.

Most stories told by adventurers were trivial nonsense anyway.

To Leon, who had been running this tavern for nearly 20 years, adventurers were people who always told boring stories.

“They say one of those magic towers collapsed far away in the Empire.”

“A magic tower?”

However, the story the bald adventurer brought up this time was something even Leon had never heard before.

“You know, that place in the Empire where they raise those bookish young lords and ladies. There’s a magic tower there, and apparently it collapsed.”

Leon seemed to know what magic tower the adventurer was talking about.

“You mean the Archenium Magic Tower.”

“Oh! Yes! That’s the name! The Arche-whatever Magic Tower.”

“A collapsed magic tower. That’s quite an interesting story.”

Since interesting stories always deserved free drinks, Leon promptly poured a cool beer and placed it in front of the bald adventurer.

“Ahh, that’s right. You’ve got to pay for stories, don’t you!”

The bald adventurer took a refreshing gulp of the beer Leon provided and let out an exclamation of delight.

“So the Archenium Magic Tower collapsed. Were there any injuries?”

“Injuries? Well, someone died in the accident, but fortunately, it seems no one else was hurt.”

“I see… that’s fortunate to hear.”

As Leon nodded and listened to the story, the bald adventurer became excited and shared a few more details.

“But you know what’s really strange? The tower—the collapsed tower—was rebuilt in an instant.”

“What?”

A collapsed tower rebuilt in an instant?

Leon doubted his ears.

If he hadn’t misheard, it meant the Archenium Magic Tower had collapsed and been rebuilt in less than a day.

“Are you making fun of me just because I run a tavern here?”

“I’ve been a regular here for four years now. Have I ever struck you as someone who makes pointless jokes?”

Leon had no rebuttal to the bald adventurer’s words.

Though the man was lighthearted, he had never once lied to Leon.

“That’s fascinating. A magic tower must be an extremely tall building. How could such a structure be built in just one day?”

“That’s exactly what I’m saying. But people who saw it firsthand say the building was literally rebuilt in the blink of an eye.”

Knowing the man wasn’t lying, Leon became curious about who had reconstructed the collapsed tower so quickly.

“Do you know the name of the person who rebuilt the collapsed tower?”

“What was it again? Some viscount or something. Ah, those noble lords in the Empire have such strange names, it’s hard to remember.”

At the mention of strange names, Leon thought of one person.

Pathos Severio.

The man with the “ability to fix everything” bestowed by the Great Goddess.

“Was his name perhaps Pathos Severio?”

“Oh! That’s right! That was the name. That Severo? Severio? That viscount fellow did something, and boom! The tower was rebuilt.”

Leon recalled the massive pillar of light he had seen a week ago.

The pillar of light soaring high into the sky had felt divine, beyond mere awe, even to him.

Perhaps that was why Leon now realized that the pillar of light was created when Pathos used his ability.

“He’s an amazing person. They say he can cure incurable diseases and even fix baldness.”

“Really? Damn, if I’d known earlier, I would have gone to ask him to fix my head too…”

As the bald adventurer rubbed his head, the people around him snickered.

Normally in such situations, the person being mocked would get angry, but since the bald adventurer had deliberately said it to make people laugh, his expression remained smiling.

“Is there anything to fix on that head of yours?”

“Well, you should go ask him to fix what’s between your legs. At least my equipment is still working fine!”

“Now, now, gentlemen. That’s enough. How about another round of beer on the house?”

“Ah! Innkeeper! You know how to do business! Give us some more snacks over here!”

As Leon offered complimentary beer to lighten the mood, the atmosphere in the tavern began to heat up again.

When evening came, Leon closed the tavern.

His establishment was meant for people who came to drink during daylight hours.

That’s why he maintained relatively good relations with taverns that operated in the evening.

After all, daytime drinkers and evening drinkers rarely overlapped.

After closing the shop, Leon returned to his home built behind the tavern.

His house was an ordinary dwelling.

A bed, desk, table, chairs, and a cooking pot with a hearth—just an ordinary home.

The presence of a fireplace and bookshelf indicated that he was somewhat better off than average people.

However, as Leon approached the bookshelf, changes began to occur in his house.

When he pushed a book back into place, the bookshelf slid backward, revealing a hidden space.

Behind the bookshelf was a ladder leading underground.

Leon climbed down the ladder to the basement.

With the help of dim lighting, Leon made the large stone door blocking his path disappear with a single gesture.

“I should replace the magic stone maintaining the illusion spell soon.”

This was because the stone door wasn’t actually stone but an illusion created through magic.

When the illusory stone door disappeared, it revealed a crystal ball for magical communication placed on a cylindrical altar.

As Leon approached the crystal ball, lights came on, illuminating the basement interior more clearly, revealing its details.

Hanging on the wall immediately visible from the entrance was a flag bearing the emblem of the Demon Cult.

Leon was one of the followers of the Demon Cult.

As Leon placed his hand on the crystal ball, it became transparent, revealing the image of another person on the other side.

“It’s Leon. Is everyone safe?”

[We are safe. The comrades who survived from the Kingdom of Tillasio and the Gelebrio Empire are adapting well now.]

“That’s good to hear.”

Leon breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing that comrades from other regions were safe.

Among the Demon Cult followers from the largest groups in the Gelebrio Empire and the Kingdom of Tillasio, fewer than 100 had survived.

Fortunately, they had managed to escape before the major crackdown, which was why they had barely survived.

“Have you heard the news about Pathos Severio rebuilding the collapsed magic tower?”

[Our side is also in an uproar about that story. It seems that man’s influence is greater than we thought.]

Leon and the man on the other side of the crystal were discussing Pathos.

This was because Pathos was currently the mortal enemy of the Demon Cult.

However, due to the transcendent powers of Regina and Cheon Hyeryeong who stayed by his side, the Demon Cult had essentially been forced to cease their attacks on Pathos.

“We must avoid getting involved with him at all costs.”

[We know that too. The moment we get involved with him, everything falls apart.]

“Has Lord Eldran said anything?”

[He hasn’t spoken recently. He seems to be troubled because of Pathos.]

Leon and the man were unaware that Eldran was dead.

This was because even the demon race living in the Abandoned Land didn’t know that Eldran had died.

This was because the space where Eldran resided could only be entered with his permission, and moving in and out of that place was only possible through Eldran’s power.

Therefore, they still believed that Eldran was alive.

If they had known about Eldran’s death, their faith in the Demon God would have been shaken, and the Demon Cult would have ultimately disbanded.

However, since they were still unaware of Eldran’s death, they continued to quietly gather strength while waiting for the day the Demon God would descend.

[By the way, we recently received a message from another branch.]

“What kind of message?”

[Do you know about the Potion of Fanaticism?]

And so, signs of another storm began to appear in the once peaceful continent.