Ch.64Chapter 64 – Strategy Meeting

Thanks to Eterna, it’s now certain that some rather unsavory forces have set their sights on me.

Not just the Demon Cult, which could be considered the worst in this world, but various other criminal organizations might also be targeting me.

In that case, what I needed to do was use my abilities to recruit reliable allies who could protect me.

“So Lord Pathos’s true ability is being able to fix anything?”

“That’s correct.”

“So it’s not an ability to destroy something, but to fix things…”

Upon hearing about my ability, Eterna momentarily showed a disappointed expression.

What? Why are you disappointed that it’s not an ability to destroy things?

“Then how did you end up destroying the demon sword?”

“That’s what I’d like to know.”

I mean, I thought using an ability that fixes everything on a corrupted holy sword would purify it.

I never dreamed it would cause the corrupted holy sword to be destroyed.

“There must be some special secret hidden in your ability that we don’t know about, right? That’s it, isn’t it?”

‘I want to say no, but I’m afraid if I deny it, some special secret ability I didn’t know about might actually appear later…’

I’m not sure what kind of ability Epitrina gave me, but for future’s sake, I think I have no choice but to brazenly go along with it.

“I cannot tell you the details.”

“Well, that’s fine. They say it’s safer to keep some of your skills hidden anyway.”

Fortunately, Eterna didn’t press the issue and just let it go.

She probably had her own special abilities that she was keeping secret from others.

“You’re currently attending the Academy, right?”

“That’s correct.”

I did transfer in the middle of the term, but I am attending nonetheless.

The situation is a bit awkward though, since I originally attended the Academy to obtain noble status and a title.

But after curing the Emperor’s baldness and achieving the feat of destroying the corrupted holy sword, I suddenly found myself about to become a Count.

This meant that continuing to attend the Academy was no longer an attractive option for me.

I explained this fact to Eterna.

“Hmm. If I were you, Lord Pathos, I would continue attending the Academy rather than graduating early.”

“Is there a reason I should?”

“Of course! The security at Glesius Academy is world-class!”

Eterna shared her experiences with me, explaining how thorough the security at Glesius Academy was.

“The barrier at Glesius Academy can’t be penetrated by ordinary magical beast attacks. Moreover, the massive magic formation covering the entire Academy not only detects outside intruders but also relays their positions to the Academy’s defense forces in real-time.”

What Eterna said was information I already knew.

But wait, didn’t the Academy get attacked several times as the story progressed? Is it really impenetrable?

“But shouldn’t we consider the possibility that the Academy’s barrier could be breached?”

“No way! Unless Headmaster Regina was away, what lunatics would try to infiltrate Glesius Academy while the Headmaster is present?”

“Is she that powerful?”

“If the title of Archmage could be earned through card games or political maneuvering, wouldn’t the Tower Master have received it? But right now, the title of Archmage belongs to Marquis Iellon Sandrios.”

Iellon Sandrios… wasn’t that Elena’s father?

Elena’s father must be quite remarkable. I didn’t know because I wasn’t particularly interested.

“Is the title of Archmage inherited? Or is it periodically reassigned?”

“It’s passed down from the previous Archmage to someone qualified. Marquis Iellon Sandrios probably received the title from the previous Archmage. Well, I don’t know much about magical history, so I don’t know who the previous Archmage was.”

She seems to know more than I do.

If I hadn’t played Erasto Chronicle, I would have struggled a lot.

‘Come to think of it, I also received help from an organization called Black Feather.’

I wondered if I could get help from Black Feather, so I asked Eterna if she knew about them.

“What? Black Feather? You have connections with the continent’s top information broker organization?”

“I happened to form a connection with them.”

I told Eterna about what I did in Oak Village, and after hearing everything, her expression was quite a sight to behold.

“…Excuse me, but were you strong enough to take down a troll by yourself?”

“Not quite.”

“Wow… they really were right when they said ignorance makes one brave.”

I have to admit that. Back then, I was… somewhat reckless.

“You went to a tavern to ask for directions to Glesius Academy? Didn’t you know how reckless that was? You could have been mistaken for a spy from another organization and had your head chopped off just like that.”

Eterna then explained the rivalries between information broker organizations, and wow, I realized I could have actually died if things had gone wrong.

“It seems like a high-ranking official from Black Feather misunderstood something, which is why things worked out well…”

Eterna suddenly trailed off mid-sentence.

Does she suspect something?

“Is there something strange about it?”

“Honestly, it doesn’t make sense. Unless the Great Goddess’s blessing was truly upon you, it can’t be explained.”

Hearing her say that without Epitrina’s blessing, what happened to me couldn’t be explained, it seemed plausible.

Did Epitrina really protect me from harm?

‘I wonder if I should visit the temple and offer some tribute.’

“Hmm, if you’re going to offer a tribute, she says she’d like some flavorful food.”

“Huh?”

I was just thinking about offering a tribute when Eterna suddenly mentioned something related to it.

“Who says that?”

“The Sun God says so. The Great Goddess asked if you’re going to offer a tribute, please make it something delicious. The tributes from the Great Goddess’s order are all just ingredients, so she says she’d like some prepared food for a change.”

Oh, um, is that so? Can you even offer that kind of thing as a tribute?

“Usually, food isn’t among the items offered as tributes. Even if it is, it’s mostly ingredients.”

“I see.”

Well, if she’s been protecting me all this time, I should give something in return.

“Then, would something from the market be acceptable?”

“She says it doesn’t matter. She just wants regular food, not ingredients.”

And she added:

“Sometimes she’d like homemade food too.”

“Understood.”

Yes. It’s actually easier for me if she specifies exactly what tribute she wants.

It would be embarrassing if I went to the trouble of finding rare items to offer, only for them to be rejected.

It’s much more convenient when someone says, “I need this, so offer that.”

◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈

In the palace of the Sun God Sola.

There, the Sun God Sola was kneeling before the Great Goddess Epitrina.

“I-I’ve delivered everything.”

“Have you? Good job.”

Epitrina was pleased to know that Sola had relayed all her messages to Pathos.

“I’ll overlook the mistake your apostle made to him last time.”

“R-really?”

The Sun God Sola brightened with joy at Epitrina’s words.

“Your apostle will need to stay by his side for protection for the time being. And tell her I’ll be sending an important revelation soon.”

“An important… revelation?”

The joy on the Sun God’s face was replaced by darkness when the words “important revelation” came from Epitrina’s lips.

“Yes. An important revelation related to the fate of this world. That’s why this revelation must not be made public. It would cause great chaos in the world.”

Epitrina spoke to Sola in a firm tone.

“Tell the leaders of each order to manage this carefully. If this revelation leaks to the Demon Cult or similar entities…”

Epitrina looked at Sola and said:

“Then I will personally descend upon this land.”

“I-I understand…”

The Sun God Sola felt terror at Epitrina’s final words.

The direct descent of the being who governs this world would mean… the end of the world.

After Epitrina left, the Sun God Sola hurriedly contacted the other gods.

If this revelation were to leak and evil beings learned of its contents?

‘The world’s destruction could truly come.’

The world’s destruction would mean their own extinction, which made the Sun God’s mind race with worry.