Chapter 102
Chapter 102: Three-Way Conflict (4)
"What's wrong with my teaching?"
Riferoze's fingertips trembled.
Startled by that gesture, Ruelle let out a sharp "Eek!" and fled with the children to another floor of the orphanage.
Erik stared blankly at his master.
Then.
"What do you mean my teaching was wrong?"
Riferoze asked the question first, exercising patience.
'People really do change.'
Erik was impressed.
Normally, she would have called him presumptuous and struck him without hesitation...
'She's definitely very conscious of me.'
Erik laughed inwardly but kept a blank expression on his face.
Speaking with such gravity, he recounted the details to his master.
In summary, it was a story about how the 1st Prince, who had received proper education in the Labyrinth, had disrespected Riferoze.
"A brat who claims to have learned properly dares to strut around this church as he pleases?"
"...That impudent red bastard."
Having heard the full explanation, Riferoze burned with great anger.
"It feels like I've been disrespected."
Erik kept fanning the flames of her anger.
Though it was true that he was also quite frustrated.
'Where else can you find someone with as much loyalty to the Empire as me?'
Erik genuinely loved the Empire.
Wasn't that why he even taught the children about the Empire's greatness?
And yet, that Imperial General treated him like a traitor, and the Prince listened to such words...
'He's being treated as Crown Prince, but the official investiture hasn't been conducted yet.'
Since the 1st Prince hadn't undergone an official Crown Prince ceremony, it was difficult to say he had firmly established his position.
Hadn't he just emerged from the Labyrinth?
'There's the 2nd Prince, the Princess, and other alternatives.'
Moreover, wasn't Erik in a position to have enough influence to back a specific imperial family member, even if he couldn't directly control the Imperial Family through force?
And now, a supreme powerhouse of the continent was accompanying him.
"I wasn't inclined to go to the Imperial Palace, but I will make sure to go with you when you go, Erik."
It felt like he had ten thousand soldiers at his back.
"I look forward to it."
After expressing his gratitude, Erik examined the item Seri had handed him.
A small jewel box and a note.
After storing the jewel box in his [Inventory], he unfolded the note.
'Indeed... when things start going well, everything flows according to my wishes.'
[Emperor's Northern Expedition]
This was also good news.
Erik's intelligence organization was primarily composed of the first generation of the orphanage.
The director of the Imperial Daily News.
Seri, the president of Erwell, a luxury brand managing the Imperial Family's wardrobe.
And others who held positions within the Continental Unification Army.
'They're all thorough because they learned through beatings...'
They were docile lambs before Erik, but each of them had quite a temperament.
"The mind forgets, but the body remembers forever!"
Master Riferoze beat Erik.
It was under the guise of loving discipline and a master's teachings.
"Keep getting beaten until you improve. How would I know? Because that's how I learned."
Erik beat his orphanage cohorts.
It was an event where he taught them modern knowledge and shared the martial arts he had learned from his master.
In the world, this was called "passing down the beatings."
"What's on that note that makes you smile like that?"
Erik mentioned that the first generation had grown up and each secured a position in the Empire.
"Indeed, bonds forged on the battlefield do last long. I never expected the Imperial Daily News to be formally incorporated into the Imperial Palace."
These were bonds formed through passing down the beatings, friendships solidified through exchanged blows.
A fresh smile appeared at the corner of Erik's lips, and Riferoze looked at him with satisfaction.
It was the gaze of someone observing ripe fruit.
"Ahem. Master, aren't you curious about the contents of the note? There's content that would be quite interesting for you."
Erik smoothly changed the subject.
Riferoze nodded, and Erik provided the details.
"Apparently, the Emperor has been away from his seat."
"The Emperor left the Imperial Palace?"
"It seems he went north. Since the Archduke headed to the battlefield, it appears the Emperor took that position in his stead."
"Watching out for the Undead, is he? Tsk tsk, when you look at it, the Emperor is just like the Pope. He could have sent others to do the dirty work..."
As Riferoze said.
The Emperor and the Pope did share some similarities.
They didn't shy away from difficult tasks.
And they were the strongest of their respective groups.
"The Imperial Family is truly great."
Erik welcomed this wholeheartedly.
The Emperor—one who understood human will and fulfilled his duty as a strong one.
If there was one regret...
"But with your help on educating his children, that should be resolved."
At those words, Riferoze laughed loudly.
"Hahahaha!!!"
***
Life is relentlessly busy.
For Erik, now past fifteen, life was particularly so.
There were countless tasks to be done immediately.
Erik prioritized and proceeded through them sequentially.
At this point, the most important matter was work related to GP.
'GP is more troublesome than Gold.'
Thanks to experiencing the battlefield of the Eastern Great Forest, Erik had come to understand the structure of GP more concretely.
GP's numerical increase varied depending on how much believers or those with faith resonated with him.
'The more favorable to me or the greater their faith, the more it increases.'
Moreover, that numerical value was affected by intimacy or faith.
No matter how grand a miracle was displayed, if faith or intimacy was lacking, GP wouldn't increase significantly.
As with Park Chang-ho and the three Possessors.
'The three Possessors who spent GP and purchased believers increase less...'
Of course, the matter of the three Possessors was one of the issues to be resolved.
If it was the same for other Possessors, then increasing Possessor believers with GP wouldn't be of much help.
Though there were such minor issues, this wasn't entirely bad.
GP acquisition worked systemically on beings other than believers as well.
'Those who praise Ruelle.'
Those who attended Ruelle's prayers were, truth be told, more like "superfans" than believers.
And as much as they cheered for Ruelle, Erik gained GP.
'It's similar to how one becomes a believer of the Astia Church through an Archbishop's prayer.'
God and agent.
The agent offers faith to God.
God grants divine power through the agent.
'I'm in a similar position.'
Through this series of flow, the first task Erik undertook was placing a [Breaking News Article] in the Imperial Daily News.
"There, bro. Approval came through right away."
Jang Du-sik, who had gone on an errand, tossed the newspaper down.
"According to the flunky, this is the draft for this breaking news edition."
Erik received and unfolded it.
[Breaking News: Consecration Prayer Ceremony Hosted by Ruelle, the Empire's Saint, at the Imperial Capital Central Church]
On the front page of the Imperial Daily News, the first page carries praise for the Imperial Family.
Directly below, news of Ruelle's consecration prayer ceremony was printed.
"Since the world is falling apart, the Imperial Palace approved it readily!"
The breaking news article was scheduled to be distributed throughout the Imperial Capital in an hour.
So now it was time to head to the next destination...
'Why did that bastard come alone?'
Riferoze followed Jang Du-sik.
Her reason was to meet Mark, Erik's cohort, and see the Imperial Daily News.
They had clearly left together, yet for some reason Du-sik returned alone.
"Where's the master?"
When Erik asked, Jang Du-sik scratched his head vigorously, his eyes widening.
"Well, you see. The Imperial Daily News director is interrogating brother about you. Asking how far you and Sister Ruelle have gone..."
Erik's spine went cold.
Not only did that master desire him, but she was also obsessed with him...
'But it's better that she moves according to my will.'
It would definitely be a great force in this chaotic era.
He would receive help even going to the Imperial Palace right now.
'The general apparently has a negative view of me...'
The old man hadn't completely blocked his entry, but Erik had managed to overhear some of the general's conversation.
He was emphasizing his danger to the Prince, he heard.
"According to Sister Rielle, we should meet again at the church."
"...What time?"
"Would Sister care about such things?"
Erik rubbed his temples.
Her freedom was indeed controllable to a degree, but it still remained.
Or perhaps it was more impulsiveness than freedom.
'She used to recklessly poke around everywhere back then too...'
Erik recalled the past—the chaos caused by the Black Mage.
The Empire and the Three Kingdoms.
A terrible war with Black Mages mixed in.
"Master, you disappeared for days, but what's with this corpse field? And those are the armies of Lu-Solace..."
"They called me a heretic, a white witch."
She had thrown Erik into the middle of the warfield and then disappeared for days.
He had painstakingly tracked his master's traces and, as a result, found Riferoze among the corpses of the Solar Holy Army.
'But things are different now.'
If she disappeared for days on her own whim, it would be problematic.
So Erik decided he should provide Riferoze with some sort of mobile communication device that allowed real-time contact.
"Or I could attach a Possessor to her."
To implement that, he set his destination to Earthtown.
"Well, the master will find her way here anyway..."
Swish!
Erik suddenly moved his body to the side.
Thud! Something collided.
"Eek! You too!"
Ruelle was startled.
From the sudden collision, her curved body bent backward like a bow.
Erik caught her.
'This really works.'
Erik had asked his master for the secret method of finding Ruelle.
"Ruelle's nature is like that of a black cat."
In simple terms, it meant one shouldn't look for Ruelle when she disappears through concealment.
So.
"You must observe things outside of Ruelle."
When Riferoze first found Ruelle, she was sitting on Erik's shoulder.
At the time, Erik had Jang Du-sik slung over one shoulder, but he noticed it because his clothes moved subtly...
In summary, it was about observation.
'If you develop this to the extreme, you become like the master.'
Erik had found Ruelle by following his master's advice.
"In other words, by observing how the grass moved like this, I was able to find Ruelle."
Erik explained this discovery to Ruelle.
"My goodness! Then should I only step on stones to walk?"
Ruelle pondered a solution with a serious face.
"Hmm. Wouldn't flying work?"
"How would you do that?"
Erik smiled and extended his hand to Ruelle.
"Let's try using a Possessor."
***
Erik headed to the Possessor Management Bureau with Ruelle.
Jang Du-sik, along with Park Chang-ho, Nishida Ryo, and Kang Pung-ho, headed toward the walls of District 4 to conduct preliminary inspections.
"Um... Du-sik."
On the stairs climbing the wall, Kang Pung-ho called out to Jang Du-sik.
The strong wind hitting the wall made Kang Pung-ho's short hair flutter.
"Well, what?"
Jang Du-sik stopped, looking at Kang Pung-ho's round eyes.
The two standing still against the wind blowing along the wall looked more serious than usual.
Like they were about to confess.
'Why am I...?'
Park Chang-ho clenched his fists.
Was it jealousy?
'That's a man in his mid-40s, Kang Pung-ho.'
His mind thought that way, but his body was honest.
"Well, originally if you were a man, what's the difference? We went through all this hardship together, so call me comfortably!"
The great upheaval experienced in the Labyrinth.
At that time, Kang Pung-ho was permitted to use the form of address "Du-sik oppa."
'The two of them seemed unusually close...'
Moreover, Kang Pung-ho had even met privately with Priest Ruelle, hadn't she?
Sweat seeped between Park Chang-ho's clenched fists.
"Why can't those guys talk to Sister Ruelle at all?"
Fortunately, the next words differed from Park Chang-ho's concerns.
And so did Jang Du-sik's actions.
Thwack!
"Yelp!"
Jang Du-sik struck Kang Pung-ho with a club.
"If those bastards so much as say a word to Priest Ruelle, they'll die by brother Erik's hands."
Speaking as if it were obvious, Jang Du-sik muttered while scratching his half-shaved head.
Kang Pung-ho smoothed down her hair and followed him up the wall.
'Should I ask if she's okay?'
Park Chang-ho tried to call out to Kang Pung-ho.
But faster than that.
"Oh, oh so that's why I get the Death Sense!"
Nishida Ryo shouted.
"I wondered why I kept getting Death Sense whenever I got near Priest Ruelle!!! What about you, Chang-ho?"
Park Chang-ho's hand, which was heading toward Kang Pung-ho's shoulder, stopped.
Park Chang-ho answered Nishida naturally, as if nothing was wrong.
"I get my sixth sense going too."
This feeling came from Kang Pung-ho's appearance.
So he had to endure it.
Park Chang-ho's inner thoughts were complicated.
But outwardly, he showed no sign of it.
"Ha, well. Possessors are quite useful, aren't they."
Right after climbing the wall.
Jang Du-sik let out continuous exclamations.
Beyond the walls of District 4, Erik's Earthtown came into view.
"Du-sik, that's modular construction."
Kang Pung-ho stood beside Jang Du-sik.
The wind blew, making Kang Pung-ho's hair flutter across her profile.
Behind that were five-story villa complexes.
"We haven't built apartments yet, but at least the minimum capacity is there."
"How does that even work?"
Jang Du-sik blinked, to which Kang Pung-ho quickly provided an explanation.
The workers in charge of construction had volunteered for 24-hour shifts...
"Since Skeletons work 24 hours, it gets built like that."
"24 hours? Don't they sleep?"
"They'd take quick naps. Simple repetitive tasks continue even while the skill user sleeps."
"But they don't get paid, so why work that hard?"
Possessors were essentially unpaid slaves.
"Because their circumstances improved."
Hadn't they been reborn from experimental subjects, from things that needed to be eliminated, into beings that would live in an isolated city?
"How is that—"
"Come on, Du-sik. You spent years locked in a cell about 2 pyeong, and now you're out. Unless you're crazy, you'd never go back."
"Is that so?"
"Of course!"
When Jang Du-sik was sufficiently convinced, Kang Pung-ho explained the villa complex in detail.
"Over there will be where the slum dwellers from District 5 originally lived, and the villas inside this divine barrier will be where the Possessors stay."
The divine barrier drawn around the districts remained as before.
The slum dwellers were happy, saying they were blessed, but the Possessors working there grew weary and avoided the place.
'For those who couldn't become Erik oppa's believers, this is no different from a prison.'
Watching that sight, Kang Pung-ho felt a slight bitterness.
"Well, it was an interesting story. So, Pung-ho, you don't have any questions?"
"Pung... ho?"
Kang Pung-ho's eyes glistened with tears.
She looked at Jang Du-sik with emotion, covering her mouth.
"Sister Ruelle told me to call you that."
"Sister Ruelle did...?"
Overcome with emotion, Kang Pung-ho recalled a question she'd been curious about.
"My child left me."
Kang Pung-ho knew Ruelle's narrative that had appeared as an NPC in the game.
So she wanted to ask.
'Erik and improving their relationship is necessary!'
It was an intention to subtly narrow the distance between them.
"...I heard sister raised Erik oppa from a young age. Is there still distance because of the child sister gave birth to?"
Ruelle's child had left for some reason, and what she met as a result was Erik.
So perhaps the two of them hadn't developed into lovers because of that, the question went.
To which Jang Du-sik corrected a fact.
"Well, you see. The child Sister raised wasn't born from her."
"What?"
"In the slums of Peran, it's common to pick up abandoned children and raise them. I grew up that way, and so did Sister."
"Then... does Erik know?"
"Brother knows Sister had a child."
"Does he also know it's not biological?"
Jang Du-sik had once had this kind of conversation with Erik.
At that time, Erik was a 1-meter-tall brat.
But from back then, Erik was sincere.
Jang Du-sik knew well.
He had wanted to tell him that Ruelle was actually unmarried.
"Well, brother. About Sister Ruelle's child—"
Thwack!
"Du-sik, matters of the past are what only cowards worry about. Don't go bringing up other people's histories and just do your own work properly."
At that time, Erik had suddenly cut him off and struck Jang Du-sik.
Thwack!
Recalling that experience, Jang Du-sik struck Kang Pung-ho.
Then he added a simple remark.
"That's not something important. Well, I think that's what brother was saying."