Chapter 77
Chapter 77
The Duhein Family’s Demonic Beast (1)
A day had passed since I submitted the bracelet to the Lofty Order. Fortunately, I received a reply from their side saying that I was allowed to participate in the auction.
“It must have been worth quite a bit.”
“It’s probably because it’s a desert religion they don’t get to see easily.”
Winter said that with a gentle smile. Certainly, compared to other religions, those of the desert had far fewer specimens.
“I didn’t expect them to be this interested in other religions.”
Modern religions did not show much interest in the religions of others. But the religions here were a little different. Their nature was subtly different.
“If you think about it, they’re all connected.”
“All connected?”
Winter brought up something interesting.
“Religion refers to a culture that reveres and worships divine beings. And the ones who become those divine beings were actually figures who existed in ancient times.”
“Real figures?”
Winter continued, sounding excited.
“In the ancient era, powerful beings lived—giants, fairies, dragons, divine beasts, and so on. When their rank rose and they entered the realm of spirits, they became immortal and thus gods.”
“So that’s the mechanism.”
“Mecha… what?”
“No. Anyway.”
At the unfamiliar word, Winter asked back. I waved my hand vaguely.
She tilted her head, then continued.
“In the ancient era, the entire continent was united as one. Then a massive calamity called a meteor fell and the continent split apart. Before that, everything was connected, so there are many links between each other.”
I already knew roughly about it from investigating Anaye. The ancient era had been a tribal society. There were many invasions, and just as many alliances.
“Sometimes a history that doesn’t exist in one god’s records can be found in another god’s records. So it’s impossible not to take an interest in other religions.”
“I see. Anyway, I’m glad the bracelet got registered.”
Winter nodded briskly. After becoming an auction consignor, she had regained her composure and returned to her daily routine.
I intended to inform Worden as well, but for some reason, he was nowhere to be seen.
“Hey.”
“…….”
Suddenly, someone barged into the chapel.
The person who entered boldly, without even the courtesy of knocking, was definitely not from the Order.
“What is it?”
The one who came in was none other than the infamous Bereninche. Davide greeted her with a displeased look.
“No, seriously, what is this?”
With a bright smile, she headed toward the sofa where Davide had been lying.
Davide stared in disbelief at Worden, who was slung over Bereninche’s shoulder like a sack of luggage.
“Move. I need to sit.”
“No, what happened to Worden?”
Bereninche shrugged. Worden dangled limply, as if unconscious. I even wondered if he might be dead.
“Is there a problem?”
“You think there isn’t?”
“There isn’t. Isn’t it a relief that he’s alive?”
When she put it that way, Davide found himself at a loss for words.
Come to think of it, if Worden had messed with Bereninche, then the fact that he was still alive was indeed fortunate. That is, if Worden had been the one to start it.
“Why are you bullying him again?”
I couldn’t imagine Worden picking a fight with someone first.
He liked danger, sure—but he valued his own life just as much. He wasn’t an idiot who would jump into a natural disaster like Bereninche.
“I asked him to drink with me, but he kept playing hard to get.”
“…….”
Davide hurriedly checked Worden’s condition. His forehead was grotesquely swollen, protruding like a dolphin’s snout.
“A flick to the forehead?”
Judging by it, it was likely an injury from a finger flick. With swelling like that, I wondered if his brain had taken a hit too.
“It’s not a concussion or something, is it?”
“He won’t die from that. If he does, it’ll be because he trained too weakly.”
That wasn’t something the person who had essentially struck his forehead with a sledgehammer should be saying.
“Move. Let me sit.”
“Well, look at that.”
Though Davide spoke curtly, he made space for her. Winter secretly welcomed Bereninche’s sudden appearance.
Worden, who had become a cold piece of baggage, didn’t seem to be noticed.
“Winter. Sorry, but could you prepare some tea?”
Bereninche spoke to Winter in an exceptionally gentle tone. She even used the word “please.” It seemed she quite liked Winter.
“The point.”
“You’re impatient. I heard you’re participating in the religious auction this time?”
As Davide persistently demanded the main point, something that could only be called confidential slipped from Bereninche’s mouth.
Davide’s gaze turned to Winter. Her pale white skin flushed even paler as she shook her head.
The way she frantically waved both hands made her look faintly pitiful.
“That wolf girl told me.”
The culprit was Canis. It was something I had overlooked out of familiarity—that Canis wasn’t particularly tight-lipped.
But the strange thing was that Canis avoided Bereninche to a chilling degree.
“You wouldn’t have even caught her in your sight.”
“You think I wouldn’t be able to detect someone like that?”
“Uh… wasn’t that the case?”
Bereninche’s eyes gleamed. I shrugged. It seemed some unexpected incident had occurred.
Probably her fault.
“There’s something I absolutely have to buy at this auction.”
“……I heard the auction items are confidential.”
“It’s not easy to keep your mouth shut in front of money and power.”
She casually brought up something illegal. Davide glanced at Winter. The same Winter who had insisted that illegal actions were unacceptable now fell silent.
“That’s fine.”
I could roughly guess. Bereninche was asking for help to secure that item completely.
“So you want help obtaining it?”
“There’s that, and also—if you find any decent items with that unknown knowledge of yours, let me know.”
When we dealt with the Forest Guardian, Bereninche had taken note of my knowledge. She seemed to believe I had the ability to uncover such information, and so she casually demanded intel again this time.
“If I end up opposing you, it’ll definitely be a headache.”
After some thought, I gave a small nod. If bidding competition broke out at the auction, the expenses would soar.
If there happened to be overlap, reaching an agreement beforehand wasn’t a bad idea. More than anything, I had no desire to see Bereninche’s reaction if she lost something she wanted to me.
“The catalog?”
“Here.”
As if she had been waiting for that, Bereninche pulled a sheet of paper from her chest. It was the list of items in this auction.
I read through the list one by one. Soon, a fierce smile formed on my lips.
“There’s something we want too. On the condition that you don’t touch that.”
“Fine. Of course, the information better be solid. If I can’t make a profit reselling it, you’ll have to be prepared.”
“That depends on your ability to sell it. The items I point out are guaranteed to be worthwhile.”
A naturally formed conspiracy. It felt somewhat uncomfortable, but refusing something that could be resolved this easily would be foolish.
If anything, Bereninche’s proposal was more beneficial than harmful. A few tempting items had already caught my eye.
“This was in here too.”
I found one particular item that stood out to me.
“Then the winner of this auction will be the Duhein.”
Bereninche smiled attractively. If things went as I expected, it would be worthy of being called the Duhein Family’s Demonic Beast.
***
“Senior.”
“What.”
I headed toward the shopping district with Winter. At the very least, proper courtesy was required for a gathering of religious figures on the island.
“Where are we going right now?”
“To pick up your priest robes.”
I had requested Winter’s priest robes in advance for this very reason. No matter what happened, I had intended to take her along.
“Ah. So I’m finally receiving my priest ro—huh?”
“What now?”
“How am I supposed to receive them? They need to take my measurements and tailor it.”
“I asked Canis, and she told me all of them.”
“……?”
I could understand Winter’s puzzled expression. I had casually mentioned that we should get her priest robes tailored, and suddenly Canis had written down all her measurements.
“How did she…?”
“How would I know? Maybe she snuck into your dorm room while you were sleeping.”
How she knew all that, I truly had no idea. To be honest, I had seriously considered reporting it to the Imperial Knight Order.
Winter’s expression grew even more serious.
“Want some?”
“No.”
I offered her what I was eating as her face darkened further, but she shook her head and refused.
Dried garlic I had asked the grocery store to prepare. It was a shame much of the garlic’s aroma had faded, but its distinctive spiciness remained, and I liked the fluffy texture, almost like steamed potatoes.
“…How did she know my measurements?”
“Who knows. But if it’s that little devil, she probably knows Soloven’s measurements too.”
“How would she know about Senior Soloven?”
“I told you, I don’t know.”
As we chatted back and forth, we arrived at the workshop before we knew it. I stepped inside without hesitation, but Winter paused briefly.
“You’ve come….”
It was probably because of the time I had smashed the shop apart with a Divine Axe. When Winter entered, the owner’s face darkened as well.
A strange relationship where we poked at each other’s trauma. I didn’t think it was so bad.
“The item?”
“Here it is.”
The owner tossed over a neatly folded set of clothes. I caught it stylishly and immediately helped Winter put it on.
Unlike me, who wore it like a coat, Winter fastened every single button. I thought it might look stifling, but it suited her better than expected.
“Maybe because she’s so pale, but it suits her better than I thought.”
“Right?”
Unlike my entirely black priest robes, Winter’s had much more white. It was her first time receiving priest robes, and as she became absorbed in them, the owner and I looked at her as if evaluating her.
Since she had a small and cute image, I had worried priest robes might not suit her. But the aura of a religious devotee showed well.
“Her pale skin helps.”
It suited her better than I expected. More than that, my eyes were drawn to Winter’s face as she looked delighted like a child.
“I’ll bring the others later.”
“……You know that child’s size but not the others’?”
“Sorry, but I received a tip as well.”
The owner gave me a suspicious look, but I had nothing to hide. Judging by the sly expression spreading across his face, he seemed ready to tease me.
“And the weapon?”
“Do you think that thing is light work? It’s progressing smoothly.”
“I’ll leave it in your hands. Then we’ll be going.”
I decided to slip out before anything else. After a brief farewell, I led Winter out; she had been staring blankly into the mirror.
“What do you think? The priest robes.”
“They’re absolutely, absolutely amazing. Really.”
“Good.”
Winter smiled as if she couldn’t be happier. I patted her head a few times. She nodded without a word.
“Hmm.”
Come to think of it, it was rare for Winter to be happy about receiving something. The only things I could recall were these priest robes and the Holy Brush.
“Other than religion.”
“Yes?”
“Is there anything you like?”
I grew curious. I wanted to know what Winter liked.
At my question, she seemed slightly flustered, then fell into deep thought.
“I’m not… sure.”
“Is that so.”
I nodded calmly and shrugged at her awkward smile.
It was remarkable how few preferences Winter had. She had been the same when she appeared as a religion-related NPC in the game.
‘She’s peculiar.’
She wouldn’t speak about topics unrelated to religion, and unless someone shared the same religion-based class, she wouldn’t even respond.
Yet the current Winter was, in many ways, like an ordinary girl.
“You can figure it out slowly.”
I gave her shoulder a light pat.