warrior party (1)
“I am Heinrich Saint Landguard, the first sword to follow the will of the Lord. Thank you for taking the time to visit us despite your busy schedule.”
“It is an honor to meet you, my saint. I am Isea Pristine of the Azerion Empire. The savior of the continent chosen by the Lord is calling, so of course you have to come.”
A man and a woman faced each other in a drawing room at the Rosellia Great Hall, exchanging greetings.
A one-on-one meeting between the candidate and the saint was arranged for the interview.
“Saint? Before we begin, I have something to tell you…”
However, even before the full-scale conversation began, the first topic Lee Se-ah brought up was about the unpleasant energy and sense of alienation she sensed from Harley.
‘Still, I thought I hid it well, but it’s not easy.’
Of course, what he would say about it had already been decided.
“You don’t have to worry about him. It is a fact that we are already aware of, and above all, he is someone we can trust.”
“As expected. If the church judged it that way, I was worried for nothing.”
After dispelling her concerns so confidently, the topic returned to the main topic.
Since the main pillar of the ‘Hero Party’ to oppose the Immortal King was the saint and hero Heinrich, this case was being carried out with full power by him.
In this case, even the saintess was merely a helper, and all decisions were entirely left to her personal judgment.
“…So, I am very grateful for the high evaluation of me, but I don’t think I can be of direct help due to various circumstances. I’m really sorry.”
And now.
Heinrich was facing the third rejection in the third interview.
‘Because I knew that everyone wouldn’t be willing to do it in the first place. Most of them have been recommended for political reasons.’
Lee Se-ah, who calmly continued her conversation, bowed politely and apologized.
There was an atmosphere that could not help but soften anyone’s heart in that respectful and sincere expression of apologetic expression.
Even more so, isn’t her appearance that of a young and delicate girl?
Regardless of my actual age, I couldn’t help but feel weak when dealing with him in person.
Heinrich also nodded with a soft smile as if he understood her feelings.
Of course, as a master of acting in life, his innermost heart was different.
‘You’re older than me with this face? No matter how you look at it, this woman seems to be from Earth.’
He analyzed her slowly while conversing for persuasion.
With a face that does not age and an oriental appearance, even the name is strangely Korean.
Just a while ago, I had met Andrew, the Awakener of Earth, so there were many things that took me too far to simply dismiss it as a coincidence.
‘So I checked once when I shook hands with Harley…’
It was only a brief moment of shaking hands with her, but it was enough time for Harley’s keen senses to grasp the condition of her body.
Of course, since the opponent was a great wizard, he did not use energy separately, but it was not a big problem for him, who was already an authority on the body of a living being.
From the minute tremors of muscles, the bioelectricity flowing through the body, the movement of internal tissues including the heartbeat, to the changes in blood pressure, body temperature, and respiration.
The human body itself contained a lot of information, and through 「Mutation」 and 「Physical Transformation」, Harley had the ability to analyze it beyond its limits.
The result of doing so was…
‘Ambiguous. Perhaps because he’s a wizard, he doesn’t have any distinctive features on his body like Andrew’s. There is no way for Harley to know if you have increased your mental or magical abilities with Karma.’
The evidence was insufficient.
In the beginning, it would have been advantageous to raise her physical abilities a little to survive in this harsh world, but she was just a little healthy at the level of normal people.
Of course, at this level, if you use magic and strengthening magic, you will show physical abilities that exceed that of a moderate warrior, but wouldn’t that be the case at the beginning of entering another world?
‘I’m not sure if the 5th princess had a hand in it or not. In this world, personal information is not managed as systematically as on Earth unless you are a high-ranking person…’
It was only for about three years that she received the nobility.
All that can be found is that about 8 years ago, ‘a young princess brought and sponsored a talented commoner mage’.
‘Although it’s certainly amazing that he’s grown enough to receive the title of nobility of the empire in only five years after receiving sponsorship.’
He was truly a talented person, like a model of a self-made artist.
And, that made me even more suspicious.
Make sure to read from noble mtl com
Meanwhile, the conversation between the two continued.
“…As the Holy Son probably knows, my circumstances are not so good. After all, not everyone will follow the cause.”
She spoke candidly about her situation.
Since the main church is a force with formidable information power, they didn’t even turn around, assuming they already knew it.
‘It’s because of the crown prince.’
Hearing her words, I suddenly remembered Prince Simon’s skinny face.
Throughout the summit, his words and actions that were intrusive by subtly politicizing and his evil deeds learned through background investigations.
‘The competition for the throne between the crown prince and the 5th princess. Besides, the crown prince is in a much more advantageous situation…?’
Suddenly, bad… no, righteous thoughts began to rise in his mind.
It was still only in the conception stage, but I was determined to remember it and use it later.
“All right. The Church never forces personal sacrifice. If you change your mind later, please feel free to contact me.”
“Yes, I am very sorry. If I had the opportunity, I would have been with you. As a person who seeks magic, I cannot tolerate a black magician who abuses it.”
The moment when the seat is broken and I hear her ceremonial words.
A thought flashed through his mind.
“ah! Viscount Pristine? Come to think of it, there is one piece of advice I would like to ask for. It’s a matter for which our church has not come to a conclusion, so I’d like to hear the opinion of the Archmage.”
“If that’s the case, it doesn’t matter. I know that the leader of the Mage Tower is also here, but wouldn’t it be better to ask him for magical advice?”
“hahahahaha, of course I already asked him too. I want to hear from as many people as possible.”
Heinrich took out a pen and notebook from his formal dress while looking around.
Then, holding a notebook in one hand, slowly drawing something, he opened his mouth to her in a non-trivial tone.
“It is a matter of divided opinion among us, but we have not yet come to a conclusion. Not only theological scholars, but also the sorcerers and shamans who have asked for advice are not convinced.”
“I don’t think I can be of much help with that kind of problem…”
“it’s okay. Just give us your opinion.”
After he finally finished the work, he looked at Lee Se-ah again with a serious expression and spoke.
“Do you know about the mask worn by Hannibal Strauss, the Immortal King?”
“Yes, they said it was a wooden laughing mask. There is no such thing as a bad taste when someone who wants to destroy the world has a smiling face. What is it but the mentality of a madman who wants to ridicule everyone?”
“Hmmm, that’s right. And this is the schematic design of the mask.”
Clearing his throat lightly, Heinrich handed her a notebook.
“I am not good at drawing, so there may be differences in details, but the overall impression will be the same. You can look at this and tell me what magical meaning you can think of.”
“okay. Well, a mask is also a medium often used in ceremonies…”
And the body of her who received the notebook and saw the picture.
As if time had stopped, it froze on the spot.
“…! Uh, this is…!”
A shrill voice leaked out of my mouth.
Lee Se-ah’s expression, which had always been calm, fluctuated violently.
It was not depicted in as much detail as it was lightly drawn on the spot, but its characteristics were clearly recognizable.
Curved eyes, thick eyebrows, fine wrinkles, and a large bullnose nose.
It was a mask that Koreans could not recognize.
“Why is that? Do you know anything?”
“Oh, no…? it’s nothing. It seems I was slightly mistaken. That… in the town where I lived when I was young…”
“Hmm, you mean there was a mask similar to this? Can you tell me where the town is? The Immortal King’s home might be that area…”
“No, no! That, a kid from the neighborhood made it just to pass the time! Yes, it was a toy substitute. Then I got tired of it and broke it as is. It just reminded me of old memories and overreacted. hahahaha···.”
I was excited to see her flustered during the entire interview, so I harassed her so much without realizing it—.
‘It just caught me.’
This made him sure.
‘As expected, this woman was also an Awakener on Earth.’
However, Heinrich nodded his head as if he was sorry, not showing it on the outside.
“Sorry. I was hoping there would be some clues.”
“…Yes, I’m not sure if there’s any special meaning to this. Sorry for not being helpful.”
Her agitation quickly subsided.
Although she momentarily lost her composure when she encountered information she could not have imagined at an unexpected moment, she is also a great wizard who has reached the extreme.
It was an instant to regain his cool and regain his new color.
‘Well, I’d be surprised if the Hahoe mask suddenly came in after living with no contact with Earth’s civilization for more than eight years.’
It didn’t just appear, it also appeared as the mask of the Immortal King, an absolute evil and death incarnate to destroy this world.
It was a natural reaction for Koreans.
‘Yes, if it’s Korean.’
Andrew, the first earthling he encountered, was an American.
However, if the second person he met was of the same nationality as himself, where could such a coincidence exist?
‘Anyway, information about Hans’s mask has no choice but to spread quickly. It’s not just one or two people who saw it.’
Having put such information to good use, this was a very satisfying result.
With this, I could definitely decide how to use her.
***
This world was a world without the Internet or a communication network, but as intelligence developed instead of science, the speed at which news spread to each province was not slow.
Of course, normally, the upper class, such as merchant guilds and local officials who are sensitive to information, would moderate the time when rumors spread to the public by controlling them for their own benefit, but…
The news about the Immortal King’s resurrection this time around was different in nature.
At first, the information, which was controlled for the stability of society, became impossible to hide any longer, and eventually became widely publicized starting with the undead’s riots and monster madness.
The vested interests also decided that in order to maintain the current system, it would be better to accept the widespread fear in society and focus the residents’ dissatisfaction on the steadfast ‘enemy’.
As a result, the story of the Immortal King, the source of all evil in the world, began to spread rapidly among people.
“Hey, did you hear the news? The Principality of Rohan, in the north of the Empire, was eventually destroyed.”
“Huh— is the country going to perish? I hope that…”
“Of course, that ‘Immortal King Hans’ did it. He himself led the monsters into the attack and turned it into a mess, but only hundreds of thousands of people died!”
“…Huh, can I live in the world of anxiety? Please, it should be safe here.”
With the fall of the Principality of Rohan, the news spread faster with exaggeration—.
“Jesse’s mom, did you hear about that? Well, the last time the village dam collapsed was not because of poor construction, but because Hans’s followers did it secretly!”
“Oh, there are people like that to kill. How many people have suffered because of it! ···wait? Now that I’ve heard it, it’s a little suspicious that they ruined last year’s farming, but didn’t they poison the fields too?!”
“Oh my, my! Oh my gosh! Really?”
There were even people who blamed all the misfortunes on him.
“Ugh~ Can I change my name? What are the kids saying about Hans…”
“Keuheum, no matter how much, changing the name is…”
“yes! I hope so. Stop being stubborn too! What is that common name? I’m going to catch him!”
“…it can’t be helped. Well, then how about Heinz as a name change?”
It did not discriminate between men and women, and even conservative parents rushed to the point of changing their children’s names.
His notoriety was inflated beyond imagination and was imprinted on people’s minds.
From big cities to small and medium-sized cities and small villages, as well as slash-and-burn villages in the mountains.
Even with only a difference in degree, the name started to spread in the Enamel Continent as well.
And in the end.
《Achievement Accomplished! He became the ‘enemy of the world’, receiving everyone’s resentment and hatred.
《More than half of the living intelligences of the Auterica dimension have judged you as an enemy. As a reward, the privilege “Extra Life” is granted.》
《You have achieved great achievements and have had a great impact on the world. Karma will rise further.”
After the official announcement, Hans’ influence, which gradually covered the continent, finally crossed a certain critical point.
Extra life? Is it time for the original Heinz to return!?