Ch.402Side Story. Greyfond

“Wow, look at that, it’s not stopping.”

“Is that why he sent them out? Bastard.”

Despite the guard’s visit, Shinwoo Kim and Stella were still making love inside the carriage.

As evidence, the carriage was shaking violently, and Findenai and the Dark Spiritmaster watching from atop Greyford’s walls clicked their tongues.

Since the two couldn’t show their faces, they were infiltrating separately after leaving the carriage.

In truth, calling it infiltration was generous as they’d adopted rather crude methods—the Dark Spiritmaster simply flew in, while Findenai climbed straight up the castle wall.

No matter how excellent Greyford’s defenses were, it wasn’t wartime, so finding gaps in surveillance was easy enough.

While crossing over, they casually checked on the carriage and found it shaking intensely.

It was obvious—Stella must have seduced him once they were alone, and Shinwoo Kim had awkwardly given in.

“Sheesh, once they got a taste, they just keep going.”

“Who? Stella? Or Shinwoo Kim?”

“Both.”

“But you’re the same way.”

Findenai frowned at the Dark Spiritmaster’s implication that they were no different.

“From what I know, you’re not much different either.”

“I am different.”

The Dark Spiritmaster’s confident response was quite irritating to Findenai, who was trying to act cool.

“Hey, how are you different? I heard all about what you learned from Illuania this time.”

“…How did you know?”

The Dark Spiritmaster turned away embarrassed once her secret was exposed. Findenai shrugged and answered.

“Everyone has the same thoughts.”

While Shinwoo Kim was becoming more skilled through his semi-forced daily encounters with women, they sometimes had to wait their turn or missed opportunities.

And when they finally got their chance, Shinwoo’s skills had improved dramatically…

“I was just trying to learn something.”

She had sought advice from Illuania, who was practically a master when it came to relationships.

“Shit, she just told me that getting dominated is what turns me on. What nonsense.”

She couldn’t help but grumble while scratching the back of her head. The Dark Spiritmaster beside her seemed to feel some sense of superiority, puffing up and cupping her breasts inward with both hands.

“I learned quite a bit. He’ll be feeling so good his brain will melt.”

“Having breasts that big should be a capital offense. It’s like you’ve eaten too much.”

“I’m already dead, so it doesn’t matter!”

Even as they chatted, both women’s gazes remained fixed on the carriage.

To be honest, they were somewhat envious, but since they’d both had bad experiences with Shinwoo in carriages before, they weren’t extremely jealous.

In the midst of these mixed feelings…

“Hmm?”

Findenai sniffed the air, looking around as if she smelled something.

“Have you truly become a dog now?”

The Dark Spiritmaster mocked her behavior, but Findenai didn’t respond, indicating how serious she was.

“Hey, don’t you feel something?”

“Have you reached the point where you feel things even without Shinwoo…”

“Stop talking nonsense and be serious.”

“Can’t take a joke. And what am I supposed to feel… oh?”

Following Findenai’s lead, the Dark Spiritmaster looked around and truly did feel something strange, like something was pricking the back of her neck.

It was similar to when they met the Great Demon Rodron in Clockwork.

It felt like someone was watching them from somewhere.

“Hmph, look at these bastards.”

Tracing the gaze wasn’t difficult.

For someone of Findenai and the Dark Spiritmaster’s caliber, detecting and locating someone’s gaze was simple.

The problem was…

“Ooh?”

There were beings watching them from all directions throughout Greyford.

Something not human.

They seemed too bland to be Great Demons, appearing to either lower their tails or crouch while looking for an opportunity.

Whatever they were, they clearly weren’t happy about Shinwoo Kim’s arrival.

“Do you know what they are?”

In response to the Dark Spiritmaster’s question, Findenai sneered in the direction of the gazes and answered.

“What else? I can see several gazes coming from the temple area.”

Greyford was home to worshippers of various gods. It was also where the Saintess resided, so the beings watching Findenai and the Dark Spiritmaster now were…

“Gods, I suppose.”

The gods who expanded their territories or increased their followers in the Republic of Clark were, frankly speaking, somewhat pathetic.

The very fact that gods would make efforts to increase their followers was not much different from begging while following humans around.

But on the other hand…

What about gods who had already firmly established their positions on the continent?

At first, they might have traveled the continent having various experiences, enjoying new things and freedom.

However, gods were beings accustomed to being worshipped.

Just as one might go looking for an inheritance left by parents, it was inevitable that they would seek out their worshippers.

“They must be living quite comfortably.”

Findenai sighed, tapping her forehead. Shinwoo Kim was still outside Greyford, busy with Stella, but once he entered, he wouldn’t be able to ignore it.

“What do you think Shinwoo Kim will do?”

“What else? He’ll assess, judge, and resolve it.”

That was his nature, after all.

“Ugh, I came to see Owen, but now I’m getting caught up in something strange.”

“Honestly, I didn’t like those bastards anyway.”

Findenai, who had been thinking they needed to teach them a lesson, pulled out a cigarette and put it in her mouth.

“So you’ve come.”

A woman approached the wall where the two were standing. Though her greeting was sudden, Findenai and the Dark Spiritmaster weren’t particularly surprised.

They had known she was coming, after all.

“Scales and sword… the goddess of justice, Justitia?”

The Dark Spiritmaster’s voice changed dramatically.

Until just now, she had sounded like a playful child, but now her voice was sharp, both chilling and ominous.

‘Crazy bitch.’

Findenai clicked her tongue watching the Dark Spiritmaster. Seeing her act cute in front of Shinwoo Kim when she was like this sometimes made Findenai want to tear her heart out.

Anyway.

The goddess of justice, Justitia, holding scales and a sword. She was the goddess worshipped by the current Saintess, Lucia Saint, and could be considered the most influential goddess in Greyford at present.

After all, many followers tended to worship the same deity as the Saintess.

“What brings you here?”

Despite the Dark Spiritmaster’s hostile glare with her smile completely gone, the goddess Justitia seemed to have expected this reaction and didn’t back down, explaining why she had come.

“May I ask why you’ve come here?”

“Answering a question with a question. Do we need to explain that to you?”

Whatever the case.

The Dark Spiritmaster was quite adept at this back-and-forth with the goddess Justitia.

It was hard to believe this was the same woman who had whined about sitting next to Shinwoo Kim yesterday.

“Many gods are anxious. You said you would no longer interfere with this world.”

They had declared they would no longer interfere with the continent.

They did remember making such a declaration, but…

“That doesn’t mean we can’t come out, does it?”

“…”

“You don’t think you’ve imprisoned us, do you? A tiger enters its cave to sleep, not to flee.”

Purple eyes pierced through Justitia. Though the Dark Spiritmaster had grown stronger, she still wasn’t powerful enough to overwhelm gods.

But the being behind her was someone even gods had to be wary of.

“I don’t know why you’ve come, but the gods are anxious. They fear what you might do next.”

“He is fair. Being human, there will inevitably be subjective elements in his judgment, but even accounting for that, he tries to see situations from multiple perspectives.”

In a way.

“More so than you who claim to be omnipotent.”

Goddess Justitia sighed at this blatant insult. It meant there was no room for negotiation in any situation.

“I understand your feelings. But I’d appreciate if you would at least talk with us.”

Despite Justitia’s request, the Dark Spiritmaster crossed her arms and replied.

“Stay as you are. If he thinks there’s no problem, we’ll simply pass through.”

“…And if there is a problem?”

The Dark Spiritmaster didn’t bother answering Justitia’s question. She just smiled faintly and warned.

“Move quickly. If you’re going to flee, do it soon. He shows not a shred of mercy to non-humans.”

“Sigh.”

Goddess Justitia finally left.

She seemed to have been pushed forward as a representative of the gods and had quite a hard time.

“Hey.”

Findenai, who had been listening to the conversation, put another cigarette in her mouth and asked.

“Did you actually know what you were talking about?”

They had just arrived and knew nothing except that gods were staying here.

So Findenai couldn’t help but question why the Dark Spiritmaster was acting so boldly.

“I don’t know.”

The Dark Spiritmaster had already reverted to her foolish self.

“…Do you understand what you just said?”

“It was a declaration of war. If they’ve done strange things to humans, they’ll all die.”

“Why are you the one making it?”

“Oh, it’s fine. We have Shinwoo Kim.”

“Huh.”

Realizing further conversation was pointless, Findenai blew out cigarette smoke and turned her attention back to the Greyford landscape.

She could sense the urgent movements of gods.

“See? This is a psychological net.”

The Dark Spiritmaster gave a thumbs up, looking satisfied as she gazed in the same direction.

“Anyone who moves now is guilty!”

“Hmph, so you do use your brain, magician.”

She acknowledged that this time, she had to give credit where it was due. Shinwoo Kim, who had unknowingly declared war on the gods through her, was… well, she glanced over to check what he was doing.

“That bastard is still thrusting away.”

She clicked her tongue at the still-shaking carriage.

“…Poor Stella.”

She offered her condolences to Stella, who was probably screaming in ecstasy inside.