Chapter 290: Church of Death

The central part of the Arth continent.

Teros Plains.

The regional's specialty resided on the horizon, where the sky and ground touched.

The Unbreakable Mirror!

This giant, unbreakable mirror lay atop a flat stone. Many players believed that there was something more to the mirror, and tried to figure out its secret. Thus far, no one had been successful.

However...!

People suddenly came out of the mirror. It was Cyndia and the Church of Death's paladins.

"Look at the Unbreakable Mirror!"

"W-What's going on?"

"Who are they?"

"They look like priests and paladins... But I've never seen their flag before."

"It doesn't matter! Let's record it!"

The Teros Plains were a hunting ground sought out by many level 150 players.

"To think there'd come a day that I step foot on the continent," Cyndia looked around and said. She was born in the Goddess's Land, and she'd never once left it.

"That goes for me as well," Muhawk said.

The other paladins shared the same sentiment. No one else had ever used the mirror, aside from the goddess's first followers.

"Where are we going?" Muhawk asked.

"First... Let's find a guide." Cyndia looked at the nearby players and smiled.

* * *

A flag with a snake head on either end, or an amphisbaena, fluttered through the air. This was the Great Temple of Sabra, the Goddess of Contracts!

While most gladiators served the God of War and Victory, Rakan, merchants, who sought profit and bought/sold goods, worshipped the God of Contracts, Sabra.

The Sabra's Contracts they sold were used by merchants, civilians, and players alike. However, a unique customer had come to the Great Temple of Sabra.

"Thank you for guiding us, Mr. Claw Hammer." Cyndia bowed her head. She wore priestess robes adorned with a black ring.

"Please don't mention it. It was an honor to be able to guide you here!" The player, 'Claw Hammer', grinned. He'd been hunting in the Teros Plains, but had guided her and the paladins here when she'd asked for his help.

"This is the reward I promised." Muhawk passed him a pouch of gold coins.

"Thank you. If you need me to take you anywhere else, then feel free to call me, Claw Hammer!" Claw Hammer strongly emphasized his name.

"See you later. Shall we go, Miss Cyndia?" Muhawk accompanied her, and ninety-nine paladins followed him.

Obviously, they drew the attention of the players visiting the Great Temple of Sabra.

"It looks like another church has come for a visit."

"The black ring on their flag... I've never seen it before. What church are they from?"

"The paladins look really strong. Look at their equipment!"

"Is this some new event? It'd be nice if it was... Man, I'm bored."

"Let's keep watching."

The players weren't the only ones interested. Sabra's priests suddenly appeared in front of Cyndia's party!

"Hello, I am Lady Sabra's faithful servant, Crenova. But..."

When they were visited by an important guest, Crenova's role was to be the first to greet them.

"Did you really come from the Church of Death?"

He knew that the black ring was the Goddess of Death's symbol. But the Church of Death rarely made a showing, so he needed to be absolutely certain that they served the Goddess of Death.

"That's correct. We are the Primordial Goddess's faithful servants. And we came to complete the Supreme One's task," Cyndia said calmly.

Because their conversation wasn't exactly a secret, the people watching could hear everything they were saying.

[The Church of Death, which serves the Goddess of Death, Deborah, has finally made an appearance!]

"Holy crap! A new church has shown up!"

"Didn't the Goddess of Death exist before the continent was even formed?"

"A church that worships the Primordial Goddess! This is the first time they've appeared, right?"

Once it became noisy, Crenova said, "Please follow me."

"Understood."

Although they followed Crenova into the temple and disappeared, the players remained interested.

"To think they're from the Church of Death!"

"Let me into the Church of Death! Please!"

"Excuse me!"

Bad news travels fast. Rumors that the Church of Death had made an appearance spread like wildfire.

The High Priest, Luina. She was the leader of the Sabra Church.

"Welcome to the Great Temple of Sabra. My name is Luina. I am the High Priest here."

Her age clearly showed. It was only natural. After all, she was over seventy years old.

However, she looked much younger than seventy. She looked between forty and fifty. Priests that served a god aged slower than others.

"My name is Cyndia. I am a priestess from the Church of Death who serves Lady Deborah. Thank you for the warm welcome." Cyndia slightly bowed her head.

"I never thought I'd be able to meet a priestess who serves Lady Deborah. It's a huge honor," Luina said. Her voice was calm and relaxed, but also nice to listen to.

"The honor is mine."

The Goddess of Death, Deborah, was Sabra's mother. That was why Cyndia had come here first. She believed that Sabra's followers would do their utmost to help them with their mission!

"Did you come from Despia?" Luina asked.

The Great Temple of Sabra still possessed a lot of information on the Goddess of Death. That's how they knew that the Church of Death was located in Despia, and that several of the goddess's followers had moved there in the past.

"That's right."

"It must have been hard to travel all the way here."

"No, it wasn't. The Supreme One herself gave me this task, so it wasn't difficult at all."

"An order from the Supreme One..." She was briefly locked in thought and then continued, "It's been so long since the Church of Death last made an appearance. What kind of task could require your presence?"

"We're looking for an escaped convict," Cyndia said.

The Mayanes were unforgivable criminals, who rebelled against the gods and hoped to supplant them! This 'escaped convict' referred to Mayanes Krishan.

Luina remained silent, sporting a calm expression. She was waiting patiently for Cyndia to continue her explanation.

"The convict is one of the Mayanes. Her name is Krishan. She has large, white wings, red hair, and jade eyes. She escaped Despia and is currently hiding somewhere here. The Supreme One tasked me with finding her."

Luina attentively listened to Cyndia's explanation, her lips pressed together in a thin line.

"However, the continent is vast, and the Church of Death doesn't operate on the continent. So please help us."

Cyndia had finally revealed why she'd come to the Great Temple of Sabra.

"So you want us to help you find a criminal who's hiding somewhere on the continent," Luina said.

"Yes."

"Understood. I'll tell our believers to look for this Krishan. I'll let you know if we find out anything." Luina immediately accepted her request. After all, the goddesses they served were mother and daughter, so the Church of Death was no stranger to them.

"Thank you."

"But I've never heard of Mayanes Krishan before."

Luina had lived a long time. She was also very learned too. Despite that, she had never heard of 'Mayanes' or 'Krishan' before.

It was only natural. All knowledge of the Mayanes had been erased, and even mentioning them was forbidden. Thus, people had forgotten they even existed.

"Could you tell me more about the Mayanes and Krishan?" Luina asked.

"Krishan is extremely powerful, evil, and dangerous. She is also immortal."

"Immortal? That is a power only the gods possess... How?"

"I cannot tell you anything more. However, I can tell you that we have a way of bypassing her immortality."

"I understand. So we just need to find her."

"I'm counting on you." Cyndia deeply bowed her head.

"I'll do my best. Is there anything else that you require? Feel free to ask whatever you wish." Luina smiled kindly.

"My companions and I don't know our way around. Of course, we don't know the culture, the history, or the etiquette here either. So I'd appreciate it if you would provide us with a guide for these matters," Cyndia said.

"I see. You must be going to the other churches to ask for their assistance. You have to know how to get there." Luina accurately predicted Cyndia's next move.

"The Supreme One wishes this matter dealt with as quickly as possible," Cyndia replied calmly.

"I'll send for someone immediately. And may I give you a piece of advice?"

"I'll take it into consideration."

"Go to the Adventurer Guild and ask them to find Krishan for you. They'll definitely be of help to you," Luina said.

"Yes, I'll do that."

"I pray that everything goes as the gods will."

"As the gods will."

* * *

Kang Oh returned to Latnia City and gathered information on Geskal, who'd hid his fortune somewhere in the Goddess's Land. However, he wasn't able to acquire any information that wasn't already recorded in Radal's notebook.

"As I thought, it won't be easy to find."

If it was easy to find, then Radal or someone else would've found it already. Kang Oh decided not to rush things.

'Let's take what I can get first.'

He'd make a huge profit by monopolizing all of the dungeons, hunting grounds, and quests in the Goddess's Land! Kang Oh planned on searching for Geskal's hidden treasure while making a profit from those.

Flutter.

Kang Oh spread out his map. He'd already put an X through Clavik's Nest and Muto Cave.

'I think I'll go here next.'

Mt. Biden.

Level 400 - 450 beasts appeared on Mt. Biden.

He would encounter monster wolves, monster crows, and the Steel Tooth. The wolves were as large as bulls, the crows let out ominous cries, and the Steel Tooth were completely covered in metal!

The Steel Tooth were shrewd hunters that resembled leopards.

'Yeah, just like Baramut.'

Indeed, they were just like Baramut, the monster tiger he'd hunted so long ago! It had been a seasoned hunter, well-versed in ambushing and running away.

The Steel Tooth were exactly the same. They were clever, and excelled in surprise attacks and running away. When they chose to run, they were as swift as an arrow!

'Tch, they'll be a pain.' Kang Oh clicked his tongue.

Fighting the Steel Tooth was a waste of time. They would ambush him, Kang Oh would counterattack, and then they'd run away. Rinse and repeat.

He could stop a few of them from getting away using Darkness Chain, but it wouldn't be enough; more of them would get away than he killed.

'Eder would be great to have here.'

With his bone magic, he would be able to keep all of the Steel Tooth from escaping. However, it was pointless thinking about it; after all, he wasn't here right now.

Kang Oh skimmed through Mt. Biden, completed all of the quests there, and then left.

He'd pass on this place! It didn't offer him anything of value!

If there were a boss monster or a hidden dungeon here, then it'd be a different story. However, he couldn't find either of them here, so there was no point wasting his time fighting normal monsters.

Tramp, tramp.

He started walking. There were still so many dungeons he hadn't explored yet.