Chapter 149: Chapter 149

Indeed, Soress knew about Edia.

Contrary to expectations, she had been a key target of the Wellard branch.

“From the start, Lady Edia was the real target? Not the Altas merchant group?”

“Yes.”

Karnak and his group had initially believed that this kidnapping was merely a power struggle between merchant groups.

They thought Tekas merchant group was using Owent to swallow up a smaller merchant group.

But the situation seemed a bit more complicated than that.

“The first target was Owent Altas. He was considered to possess exceptional business talent, so there was an order to bring him into the religious order.”

Frowning, Karnak continued questioning.

“Owent is just the head of a small merchant group who started as a peddler. Why did you think of him as such a talented merchant?”

“I don’t know. It was just an order from the higher-ups…”

Karnak and Barros exchanged glances.

[This seems like…]

[Something someone who knows the future would do, right?]

However, once Owent was brought in, they realized he wasn’t as sharp as they had thought.

No matter how leniently they looked at him, he didn’t seem like someone with outstanding business acumen.

After investigating further, they discovered that the real operator of the business was his wife, Edia, while Owent was just a figurehead.

“So, you decided to kidnap Lady Edia instead?”

“Yes.”

Because of that, she was currently under the direct supervision of Hugot, the highest-ranking member of the Wellard branch.

She was constantly made to attend services where they would cast bewitching spells on her, attempting to brainwash her into becoming a follower of the cult.

Even when awake, she was always under watch, and at night, she was isolated in a solitary cell to prevent her from escaping.

“Being in a solitary cell might actually make it easier to sneak her out.”

Millia’s eyes gleamed.

“Mr. Laven, you mentioned you found a map earlier, right?”

While the rest were interrogating Soress, Laven had been busy searching through his room.

As the chief administrator of the residential area, there were plenty of documents and ledgers in the room.

He had found detailed maps of the Maleficus Dungeon, controlled by the cult, as well as documents about food supplies and other necessities.

These alone could give them information about the male-to-female ratio and the number of people there.

By reverse-calculating weapon distribution, they could also estimate the total combat power of the cult.

Since the group’s original mission was to assess the total strength of the cult, they couldn’t overlook such details.

Holding up the map he had found earlier, Laven asked, “Where is Lady Edia located?”

“Her location is…”

With a vacant expression, Soress answered all their questions without resistance.

Once there was nothing left to ask, Millia’s eyes sparkled mischievously.

“What should we do with him, Captain Karnak?”

She seemed to have developed a habit of burying cult members alive.

But since they couldn’t afford to make too much noise by digging through stone floors, her suggestion was dismissed.

“Knock him out and stuff him in the closet.”

After getting rid of Soress, Karnak paused for a moment, deep in thought.

Now that they knew Edia’s location, the only thing left was to wait for everyone to fall asleep and rescue her.

But where should they hide to avoid being detected by the cultists?

Looking around the room, Karnak gave a wry smile.

“There’s no place better than here.”

Soress had sternly warned everyone not to enter his room until the next morning.

Why he had done so was understandable, though not pleasant to consider.

“As long as we stay here, we won’t get caught—unless someone higher-ranking than Soress shows up.”

Fortunately, Soress’ room was spacious enough to accommodate the entire group.

Everyone found a suitable place to sit and rest.

Without much thought, Karnak suggested to Millia and Laficel, “Wouldn’t it be more comfortable for you two to rest on the bed?”

Both girls’ faces twisted in disgust.

“That bed?”

“…Absolutely not.”

“Oh, right.”

Nodding in understanding, Karnak was surprised by how easily he had accepted their reaction.

[Wait, am I understanding their feelings?]

[Me too, young master. Perhaps we’re becoming more human?]

Serati gave them a vague smile as he watched the two.

Is that really what it means to become human?

‘Well, they do say the first step is the hardest.’

***

The day came to an end. Most of the magic lights and torches were extinguished, and a quiet darkness settled over the entire residential area.

Edia lay alone in her solitary cell, which was no better than a prison.

‘What am I supposed to do now?’

She lay on the shabby bed, staring at the ceiling.

She tried her best to keep her mind intact, but it wasn’t easy. The more time passed, the more distracting thoughts crept in.

Maybe these people weren’t so bad after all?

This was still a place where people lived, wasn’t it? Maybe she could pretend to follow the cult, gain their trust, and escape later?

She shook her head fiercely.

‘No, I can’t do that.’

Regardless of her true feelings, once she crossed that line, she would be considered part of the cult. She wouldn’t be able to return to her old life.

‘I don’t know why I keep having these thoughts.’

Edia forced herself to refocus.

‘No, these people can’t be good.’

Otherwise, why would they always have someone watching her during the day and lock her up in this solitary cell at night?

There was, of course, an official explanation for it.

The person beside her wasn’t a guard. They were a mentor and guide for new cult members.

And the solitary cell? It wasn’t confinement—it was a special privilege, giving her a private room.

“Ha!”

She scoffed.

‘If that were the case, why does the door lock from the outside? If it really were a private room, it should be locked from the inside.’

As Edia glared at the door’s lock, something unexpected happened.

The lock turned silently.

‘Huh?’

It was so quiet that she even doubted whether she had seen it correctly.

But that wasn’t the end of it.

The door slowly opened.

Still, there was no sound. When she had opened it, there had been a creaky metallic noise.

A faint but familiar voice broke the silence.

“Lady Edia, are you there?”

A group entered the room.

Seeing the black-haired man at the front, Edia couldn’t believe her eyes.

“…Lord Karnak?”

It was unmistakable. It was Baron Karnak, the largest investor in the Altas Merchant Group.

“How did you…?”

“We’ve come to rescue you. Thankfully, you seem to be unharmed.”

Edia’s body trembled slightly.

“Aah…”

She was a capable merchant. She knew full well what would happen to the Altas Merchant Group if she were to disappear.

Even so, they had come all the way to this distant country to rescue her, trusting solely in her value as a merchant?

Had anyone ever recognized her worth this much before?

Overwhelmed with emotion, tears began to flow down her cheeks.

Laven clicked his tongue.

“She must have gone through a lot.”

The others were sympathetic.

How much had she suffered for her to break into tears the moment she saw her rescuers?

Except for Karnak.

‘Uh oh, she has messed with the bewitching spell.’

Edia had been resisting the cult’s bewitching spells all this time.

But the moment her heart softened, the blind loyalty that the Cult of the Dark God had painstakingly built up began to collapse, redirecting itself.

‘What should I do about this?’

After a brief moment of contemplation, Karnak made up his mind.

‘Let’s just leave it be.’

It wasn’t as if he had anything to lose.

‘If she’s going to be loyal to me, that’s not a bad thing, right?’

Keeping an eye on the hallway, Serati said, “Let’s get her out of here.”

“Wait, just a moment.”

Stopping them, Karnak pulled out a magic wand.

“Just in case, we should check.”

Edia had been an important target under close supervision. It made sense that the cult would have placed a tracking spell on her.

‘If I were in their position, I would have.’

Karnak scanned Edia’s body with the wand, but the results were unexpected.

There were no spells or necromantic power placed on her.

‘Maybe she wasn’t as important as we thought? Or perhaps they didn’t expect an outsider to infiltrate this far?’

In any case, it was now safe to proceed.

‘Come to think of it, do we need to rescue Owent?’

Thinking back, the kinds of people who declared justice usually saved both husband and wife.

So just in case, he asked, but Edia’s response was firm.

“We don’t need him.”

“Excuse me?”

“That bastard is neither my husband nor anything else to me. Just leave him.”

Her expression was so fierce that Karnak didn’t ask further. Instead, he turned to Serati.

[Is this really what it means to live properly?]

[Uh, well, more or less?]

It seemed even Laven and Millia were nodding in agreement, as if it was the natural course of things.

‘Well, I don’t really get it, but if everyone thinks so…’

Karnak gestured toward the door.

“Let’s escape.”

***

The underground passage was a mix of natural caves and stone walls.

Karnak and his group moved through the thick darkness without making a sound.

Leading the way, Laven checked their surroundings and gestured.

‘This way!’

Up ahead was a lone cultist standing guard.

He wasn’t a necromancer, just a common follower.

If it were the outer area of the dungeon or the residential area’s perimeter, those with combat abilities would naturally stand guard, but for something like this, they couldn’t spare such people.

Karnak cast a spell on him.

“Sleep.”

The sleep spell was simple, merely causing drowsiness for a moment. Even a regular person could resist it with enough focus.

But it was strong enough to knock out someone who was already tired.

“Yawn…”

The cultist, struck by the spell, yawned and leaned against the wall, closing his eyes.

He likely thought he was just taking a quick nap because of exhaustion.

Even with a group of people quietly passing right in front of him.

As they safely passed by, Laven whispered, “Having the internal map sure makes things easier.”

What made it particularly convenient was that the map also showed the guard shifts.

Since Soress was in charge of the residential area, he had arranged the guard shifts as well.

Thanks to this, they had a clear understanding of where and when the guards would be stationed.

“That pervert has been helpful in several ways.”

Karnak smirked and continued forward.

After moving a bit further, they arrived at a large space that was likely an auditorium in ancient times.

If they passed through the collapsed gap on the other side, they would reach the non-residential area again. From there, it was just a matter of dealing with a few monsters, like they had on the way in.

“Hold on.”

Laven pressed against the wall and peered into the room.

“There’s a gargoyle.”

Indeed, there were petrified creatures under the power of necromancy scattered around the auditorium.

Karnak focused for a moment.

‘It’s not a spell that triggers automatically upon movement.’

He had anticipated as much.

An automatic-trigger system couldn’t be used in the residential area. It would activate every time a resident passed by.

These were statues that would activate when a specific spell sent a signal.

‘There’s no need to make unnecessary noise.’

Though it seemed safe to pass through, overconfidence was never a good habit.

“I’ll cast a concealment spell, so gather around.”

After taking precautions, Karnak and his group moved forward.

They reached the center of the auditorium when suddenly—

“Ah?”

A faint light shot up from beneath Edia’s feet.

Fwoosh!

The light formed a black magic circle, spreading toward the statues on all sides!

The statues began to awaken, letting out roars.

“Graaaah!”

“Kaoo!”

“Graaaah!”

Baros, startled, turned to Karnak.

“What’s going on? Didn’t you check everything?”

Karnak was just as shocked.

“I did! I swear there was nothing wrong!”