Chapter 442: Promise

"Contribute? But..."

"We barely have anything, Priest Khali."

"How can we—"

As the crowd voiced out their opinions one by one, Khali interrupted them with a kind smile, "My brothers and sisters, your offering, whether they be copper coins, bread crumbs, or even scraps and metals, will be used to build a sanctuary."

Hearing his words, some of the people couldn't help but get teary-eyed.

Khali continued with the same gentle tone, "Our sanctuary will be a beacon of hope and protection in this chaotic city."

He paused for a moment and noticed that he had gripped everyone's attention. Then, he added, "By giving whatever you can, you not only secure your place in the grace of the Red God but also ensure the safety and prosperity of your loved ones.

"Remember, the more you give, the more you shall receive. The Red God sees all, knows all, and rewards those who show true commitment. Your sacrifices will not go unnoticed. Those who contribute generously will receive divine blessings and protection beyond measure!"

Hearing his words, the people present felt a passionate feeling course through their veins. If earlier they were hesitant, now they were completely convinced.

Why wouldn't they be? After all, they only had to sacrifice material things in return for the promise of divine blessing.

Khali's speech tapped into their psychological and emotional triggers such as fear, hope, and most importantly the desire for security.

For these people who had never seen the light of the day in the dark lives they lived in the slums, the name of the Red God brought them a ray of hope.

It let them see a way to a brighter and better future.

At once, these people got to their feet and surrounded Khali, enthusiastically asking him about how they could contribute toward the sanctuary that he spoke of.

Seeing such an incredulous scene, Rowan was greatly taken aback. He couldn't believe that these people would fall for something like this.

But in hindsight, he could understand their motives. Perhaps, if it wasn't for the experiences that he had experienced since childhood, he too would be very susceptible to other's words.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but say to himself, They say the grass is greener on the other side, but little do they know...

The grass is greener where you water it.

Suddenly, amidst the loud clamor, a deep sigh was heard that echoed all around the room.

When the people present heard this, their eyelids slowly started to feel heavy. Drowsiness gradually took hold of them before they finally fell to the ground and went into deep slumber.

Everybody inside the room except for Khali and Rowan was knocked out unconscious.

"W-What is happening?!" Khali shrieked in fear as he saw the people drop to the ground one by one.

His back was drenched in cold sweat as he witnessed this ridiculous scene. His eyes then fell on Rowan, who was the only person other than him standing at the moment, and asked, "I-Is this your doing?! W-W-What do you want?!"

Rowan remained silent as he gazed at this old man, his eyes carrying anger and contempt. "Don't you feel any remorse taking things from these people who already have nothing to their names?"

Khali's eyes widened in shock, but he soon found his composure. "That's ridiculous!" He then looked around at all the people peacefully sleeping on the ground before asking in fear, "D-Did you do this?"

"Not me," Rowan said flatly before pointing behind the old man. "Him."

Khali hurriedly turned around and his gaze landed on two figures, a human and an elf, dressed in black, standing a few meters behind him.

"W-Who are you?!" Khali's legs lost their strength and he fell to the ground.

"Hehe, the Red God, was it?" Adam stepped forward, clasping his hands behind his back. "You sure are creative, ya old bastard."

"C-Creative?" Khali stuttered. "T-The Red God is real! I'm not making things up—"

SLAP!

Adam squatted on the ground before giving the old man a tight slap across his face. Seeing blood and teeth splatter on the ground, he smiled kindly, "Hehe, old bastard, are you sure you're not making things up?"

Khali coughed out a mouthful of blood as he glanced at Adam in absolute fear. "I-I-I am not making this up—"

SLAP!

"Hehe, think again." The smile on Adam's face bloomed like the flowers in the spring season.

Seeing such a kind and amiable smile on Adam's face while he was beating the lights out of Khali caused Rowan to tremble. This was a side of Adam that he had never seen before.

He couldn't help but scream inwardly, No matter what... I must never piss my lord off!

"Kuacckk!" Khali spat out another mouth full of blood and teeth.

He weakly lay on the ground and gazed at Adam, "Please... please, f-forgive me."

Adam was about to raise his hand and slap him again but Daneli stopped him. "You're going to kill him at this rate," he said.

"Oh, but I intend to," Adam glanced at the elf and spoke matter-of-factly.

Daneli couldn't help but shake his head. He then looked at Khali and stated, "You hear that? If you don't wish to die then speak the truth. I promise to let you go if you do so."

"Y-Y-You promise?" Khali asked with hopeful eyes.

Daneli simply nodded. After that, under the fear of death, Khali decided to come clean.

It turned out that this was all a scam. The old man wanted to deceive these poor and hopeless people into giving him money so that he could sustain his own luxurious life.

There was no Red God. It was simply a product of Khali's creativity and imagination.

"Tsk, tsk, what a waste of time." Daneli shook his head and walked out of the room.

On his way out, he stopped by Rowan and asked, "You're Adam's informant?"

Rowan snapped out of his daze and hurriedly bowed, "That is right, my lord."

"Hmm, good job." Daneli nodded ever so slightly before leaving the room.

Meanwhile, Khali looked at Adam with pleading eyes, "I've told you the truth... Now, please, let me go... You promised me!"

Adam sneered, "I didn't promise you anything." He then looked over at Rowan and instructed, "Close your eyes and pretend to be asleep like the rest. You don't wanna see this. When all this is done, I want you to leave with the rest of the people without raising any suspicions."

"Y-Yes!" Rowan nervously replied before closing his eyes and lying on the ground.

What he heard next, sent chills down his spine.

...

After about ten minutes, the people in the room slowly started to wake up. They were disoriented and puzzled, wondering why they had suddenly passed out.

Rowan too pretended to wake up at this moment. Suddenly, he heard the blood-curdling screams of the people at the front.

He hurriedly turned his gaze in that direction and what he witnessed made him want to immediately puke.

Khali's corpse lay lifelessly with his cold back pressed against the wall. On the wall above him, a simple word was written in Acaros. Moreover, it was written in blood—Khali's blood.

It read...

Swindler.