Chapter 22: Chapter 22

It had been ten days since Karnak and Varos arrived in Derat City.

As usual, the first thing they did after leaving the inn was visit the Adventurers’ Guild.

Their routine these days involved checking out new information and then exploring the local eateries.

“Welcome, Baron Karnak.”

A teenage boy greeted them with a polite attitude in the lobby. It was Hans, an apprentice guild member working as a receptionist.

“Would you like to check the requests?”

“Yes, anything useful today?”

“Unfortunately, not much…”

Hans handed over a stack of papers with an apologetic expression. Even someone as young as him could tell that the guild’s information was garbage.

“It doesn’t matter. I wasn’t expecting much anyway.”

Karnak casually replied as he took the documents and skimmed through them.

As expected, there was nothing worthwhile today either.

Varos, who had been peeking over his shoulder, frowned.

“Seriously, blaming the ‘Doom of Darkness’ for a wife running away after getting beaten by her drunk husband? Isn’t that a bit much?”

Of course, the husband insisted that his wife, who had always stayed quiet no matter how much he beat her, must have been tainted by darkness if she suddenly left him.

“If she had really gained the power of darkness, do you think she would’ve just run away? She would’ve torn that husband apart.”

“Exactly, it’s just more nonsense.”

Hans cautiously asked, “You instructed us to collect any information related to the Doom of Darkness, no matter how trivial… Should we start filtering them out?”

“No, keep doing what you’re doing. You never know what might turn up.”

Karnak, who had reached the pinnacle of necromancy, could detect even the faintest traces of darkness that even the highest-ranking priests couldn’t perceive.

Even information that seemed worthless at first glance might reveal something suspicious to him that others would miss.

The problem was that, so far, there hadn’t been any clues, not even minor ones.

“Looks like we’re out of luck today as well.”

Varos tried to console the disappointed Karnak.

“Why don’t we head to Seral Street this time? I heard there’s a bakery there that makes incredible baguettes.”

“Let’s go. My mouth’s already watering.”

The two of them, their eyes gleaming with anticipation for a new culinary delight, were about to leave the guild together when a deep voice echoed from across the lobby.

“How can you not believe me? I’m telling you, an evil necromancer has appeared!”

Varos and Karnak exchanged astonished looks.

“Young master, did he just say necromancer?”

“No way. Could it be that our timing is this perfect?”

* * *

The one who had shouted was an ordinary farmer who appeared to be in his early thirties.

He claimed to be from a small village called Gelfa, located about a day’s journey from Derat City.

“So, you’re saying a necromancer appeared in your village, and you came all the way here to report it?”

The farmer nodded vigorously in response to Hans’ question.

“Yes! But no one would believe me!”

Because of the commotion, other adventurers had gathered in the first-floor hall, in addition to the receptionist. The adventurers exchanged looks and shook their heads.

“This sounds like a common tale, doesn’t it?”

“Right? Seems like he’s already visited the temple as well.”

The Church of the Seven Goddesses is always on high alert when it comes to incidents related to the Doom of Darkness. Typically, if a report were legitimate, one of the seven orders would dispatch personnel to investigate.

But only if it truly was an incident related to the Doom of Darkness.

“So, the church didn’t believe you?”

“I’m telling you, they didn’t!”

The farmer shouted, clearly feeling wronged by Hans’ question.

One of the adventurers tried to calm him down.

“Alright, alright! Let’s hear the full story. What exactly happened?”

The farmer began explaining, stammering a bit.

Not long ago, a mysterious outsider appeared in Gelfa Village. He settled in an abandoned villa that belonged to a noble family located in the village forest. Using some strange methods, he captivated all the village maidens, earning the resentment of the village’s young men.

“Even Emily, who had promised to marry me, fell for him!”

“I see. And then?”

“What do you mean, ‘and then’?”

The adventurers waiting for the next part of the story looked puzzled.

“Wait a minute.”

“Is that it?”

The farmer raised his voice as if wondering what more they needed.

“Emily was a diligent and virtuous woman. She’s not the kind of girl who would fall head over heels for someone she’s never met before!”

It seemed he was implying that the woman he had his eye on was suddenly enchanted by some random guy, and it must have been due to the power of darkness.

It was a story that had become quite common these days, but the adventurer decided to press further just in case.

“What does this person look like?”

Grinding his teeth, the farmer replied.

“He’s as handsome as a male courtesan.”

“How old?”

“He’s a young man in his twenties.”

“Has he swindled money out of the village maidens or anything like that?”

“No, he seems to have plenty of money, though I don’t know where it came from.”

The adventurers listening couldn’t believe what they were hearing.

“So, let me get this straight…”

“You’re saying there’s a young man who’s not only good-looking but also wealthy, and he’s charming all the women?”

“Does that really require the power of darkness?”

Varos, who had been listening from the back, stepped forward.

“So, the other villagers just left him alone? It’s only one person, so why did you have to come all the way here?”

The farmer slumped his shoulders.

“The villagers are all under his spell too…”

“What exactly did he do?”

“Well, he…”

In response to Varos’ question, the farmer’s voice grew quieter.

“He’s been hosting village feasts and giving medicine to the sick…”

In other words, the young, wealthy, and handsome man was also kind-hearted.

Hans spoke seriously, “From our guild’s perspective, we can’t accept your report. Unless, of course, you want to place a personal request?”

“I… I don’t have that kind of money…”

The farmer’s face turned pale.

There was no way a mere farmer could afford the large sum required to hire adventurers. He had likely come all the way to Derat City, relying on the Church of the Seven Goddesses to handle necromancer cases for free.

In the end, the farmer left the guild building, disheartened.

The adventurers watched his retreating figure with mocking smiles.

“It’s just a loser jealous of someone better than him.”

“Pathetic.”

“Still, this kind of thing is happening so often these days, it’s no surprise.”

Karnak and Varos also left the guild with similar smirks on their faces.

But as soon as they turned the corner of the alley, their expressions changed completely.

“Suspicious, right, young master?”

“Very suspicious.”

“That sounds exactly like something you would do.”

“I’ve actually done similar things before.”

At first glance, the story didn’t seem strange at all.

But upon closer consideration, there were some questionable aspects.

It wasn’t unusual for village maidens to be attracted to a young, handsome, and wealthy man who was also kind.

But if you think about it the other way around…

Why would a man with such abilities go out of his way to seduce simple village maidens?

“If he’s truly capable, wouldn’t he target a noble lady instead of a plain country girl?”

Nodding, Karnak muttered, “A true con artist wouldn’t find much value in a country maiden.”

However, there is a realm where an innocent country maiden holds significant value—specifically, her *soul*.

“Could it be black magic?”

“That’s what I’m thinking.”

Of course, the world is vast, and there are plenty of eccentric people out there, so it’s not impossible that this person is genuinely interested in village maidens. But it was certainly worth checking out.

“He said it was Gelfa Village, right? Let’s go.”

“Since everyone else just laughed it off, we won’t have to worry about troublesome adventurers getting involved. We can investigate without any hassle.”

* * *

Although the farmer mentioned it was a day’s journey, that was based on traveling slowly on foot. For Karnak and Varos, who were traveling on horseback, it only took half a day to reach Gelfa Village.

They climbed a nearby hill overlooking the village to assess the situation.

It was a typical rural village, with nothing unusual at first glance.

However, Karnak was pleased.

“We’ve come to the right place.”

Varos asked, “Do you see something?”

“I’ll show you.”

Karnak summoned his chaotic magic, lightly covering Varos’s vision. As a result, faint black lines appeared, connecting beneath the village’s scenery.

“Oh, a barrier.”

The dark power, hidden from view, was intricately woven like a spider’s web through the village underground.

It was so discreetly concealed that even a high-ranking priest would struggle to detect it.

“Not bad. Seems like someone learned this the proper way.”

Having seen nothing but amateurs for so long, Karnak was almost pleased to witness some proper necromancy.

As he continued observing the village, Varos asked another question.

“So, it’s related to the Doom of Darkness?”

“We won’t know until we catch him.”

The nature of darkness can only be fully understood by probing its very essence. That’s why, during the Fred incident, Karnak couldn’t identify the nature of the darkness until he had extracted and absorbed it himself.

“There’s a chance it’s just a regular necromancer.”

“That’s possible.”

In any case, they needed to confirm it. And confirming it wasn’t difficult at all.

No one was watching, and there were no allies to worry about.

They could simply head to the noble’s villa where the suspect was staying and deal with him immediately.

“Judging by the barrier, he seems to be somewhat skilled, but that’s hardly a problem.”

Karnak was about to confidently pull the reins to move forward.

“Let’s go finish this quickly…”

Suddenly, both of their expressions changed.

They sensed someone approaching from the other side of the hill. What’s more, the presence was heading straight toward them.

“Huh? Someone’s coming?”

While Varos merely sensed the presence, Karnak was genuinely surprised.

“A high-ranking priest?”

Necromancers and priests are highly sensitive to each other’s presence. The person approaching them had a significant amount of divine power.

“A priest of this level in such a rural village?”

As Karnak watched in bewilderment, a figure appeared in his sight.

It was a young man in his twenties, dressed in green robes adorned with a mountain emblem, holding an oak staff.

As he approached, the young man shouted to the two of them.

“Ex-Excuse me! You there!”

* * *

The young priest who had run up to them caught his breath for a moment before immediately launching into speech.

“You’re adventurers who’ve come to investigate the strange occurrences in this village, right? Perfect timing! I was just about to do the same!”

It was a bit bewildering how he jumped to conclusions without giving them a chance to say anything.

Varos cautiously asked, “…And who might you be?”

Realizing his oversight, the priest quickly corrected himself.

“Oh, I haven’t introduced myself yet. I am Alius, a priest serving Hatoba.”

“So, you’re from the Earth Church.”

Pretending to understand, Varos introduced himself as well.

“I’m Varos, a knight of the Zestrad family. And this is our lord, Baron Karnak.”

Alius’s eyes widened at the mention of the baron title.

“You’re not adventurers?”

Karnak, finding the priest’s confusion puzzling, asked in return, “Why did you assume we were adventurers, priest?”

“Well, just from your appearance, you both seemed to be quite capable…”

It dawned on the two what had happened. They had dressed in a way that made them look like formidable adventurers to avoid unnecessary trouble, and Alius had misunderstood because of it.

Realizing his mistake, Alius cautiously asked, “…So, you’re not here to investigate this village?”

Varos sent a magical message to Karnak.

[What should we do?]

While exchanging glances could work for a while, it wasn’t a reliable way to communicate in the long term. So, Karnak had used chaos magic to establish a secret messaging system with Varos.

[It seems like we can’t just say we’re passing through at this point.]

[Exactly. This priest seems determined to dig deeper into this village no matter what.]

It seemed best to give a vague answer for now.

Karnak spoke in a careful tone, “We didn’t come here specifically to investigate. We were just passing by when we heard something strange and decided to take a look.”

“Is that so?”

Alius looked relieved, as if this was what he had expected.

“In that case, would you be willing to assist me? This is also a holy duty for the goddess!”

Though Karnak already knew what Alius wanted, he played along and asked innocently, “A holy duty?”

Alius glanced around nervously before speaking in a low voice.

“…There’s a possibility that an evil necromancer is operating in this village.”