***
After spending the night in the capital, Ruel and his party found the reception desk.
Adventurers from various regions had gathered, and there were already more than ten lines just waiting at the reception.
The line stretched long like a snake, seemingly endless, so Ruel decided to step out early and wait nearby until it was their turn.
—This body can’t count anymore.
Leo’s head was spinning as if overwheld by the crowd and his own paws.
Leo only had ten paws in total.
Although tempted to tease Leo with a number ga starting from one and ending at ten, Ruel was also overwheld by the many sounds around him and decided against it.
“Would you like so water?” Cassion offered, extending a bottle of water subtly.
The one standing in line was Ganien, who occasionally shot him dissatisfied glances, but Ruel didn’t have the energy to wave his hand.
He weakly responded to Cassion’s offer and reached out for the water.
“Uh.”
“Would you like to wait at the inn instead?”
“Yeah, that sounds good,” Ruel replied, feeling unwell.
Despite the seemingly swift movent of the line, he hadn’t anticipated such a long wait, which was why he had co to the reception desk in the first place.
If he had known, he wouldn’t have left the inn at all.
—Huh? Leo tilted his head, looking at Ruel.
—Where have the spirits gone?
Lost in observing the crowd, Leo hadn’t noticed the spirits’ disappearance.
A sudden chill ran down Ruel’s spine as he scanned himself and his surroundings.
‘Where are the spirits…?’
Despite the bustling crowd, not a single spirit was in sight.
It should have been a safe place, unlike outside.
While he could have assud the spirits were hiding once again, it had beco a routine after gaining Jan’s power to have spirits erge and curiously watch him.
Where could they have strayed off to?
“What’s wrong?” Cassion asked.
“Just a mont,” Ruel replied, deep in thought.
‘The absence of spirits could an that corruption is occurring nearby?’
But Leo, being a Great Purifier, was unaffected by corruption.
‘It’s not corruption.’
If there had been a Corruption, Leo would have said to himself, ‘I sll sothing out of the natural order.’
‘What else could explain the absence of the spirits?’
Ruel stopped his thoughts.
It seed he would need to ask Jan about the situation once they got to the inn.
As he stood up, Leo’s eyes widened.
—Ah!
Leo began sniffing the air, tilting his head.
—There’s an unusual scent. It’s so overpowering that it initially confused this body, but indeed, it is the scent of sothing out of the natural order!
“What about black water?” Ruel whispered, prompting an imdiate reaction from Cassion.
He narrowed his eyes and scanned the surroundings carefully.
—No.
“Then is it a black-blooded man?”
—No. It’s very faint.
Leo jumped down from Ruel’s lap.
—Follow this body.
“Cassion.” Ruel called out, and Cassion nodded in response.
“I’ve got your back, no need to worry.” With Cassion’s reassuring presence behind him, Ruel confidently trailed after Leo.
“Let Ganien know about the situation.” Following Cassion’s directive, a lurking shadow quivered slightly.
They ran for about five minutes.
As they were passing a narrow pathway, Cassion caught Leo, who was dashing ahead, and then grabbed Ruel as well.
—Let go of this body. It’s over there.
Leo struggled, flailing his front and back paws, but couldn’t escape Cassion’s grip.
“Why?” After inhaling Breath several tis, Ruel finally asked.
“It’s a trap,” Cassion stated calmly, passing Leo back to Ruel.
“A trap?”
“I need to confirm it properly. Please wait here for a mont.” Cassion faded into the shadows against the wall.
Ruel leaned against the wall, regulating his breathing and inhaled Breath again.
—That was close. Aris always told this body to be careful when walking down the street, but this body forgot.
Leo’s ears drooped, and his tail lost its usual energy. Ruel patted Leo gently.
No matter who brought him here, Aris seed to have raised him well.
“Who are you?” Ruel finally turned around, prompted by Hina’s voice.
A man stood there.
“I’m not your enemy. I’ve been led here by death,” the man, clad entirely in black, spoke calmly even with Hina’s dagger at his throat, “Aren’t you also led by death?”
“What are you talking about?” Ruel furrowed his brow at the gibberish.
But even that mont was followed by the man’s shocking words.
“O Great Purifier and Devotee of Darkness.”
—Huh! He recognised this body!
Leo was montarily shocked but then burst into laughter, his tail starting to wag once more.
“Who are you?” Ruel questioned sharply.
Until now, the only ones who accurately knew about the Great Purifier were the Guardians and the Spirit’s Progenitor, Jan.
Ruel didn’t think that the man was one of his guardians.
A smile crept onto the man’s lips hidden under his hat.
“I am a servant of death. People often refer to as a warlock.”
“A warlock?”
Despite Ruel’s extensive research, this was the first ti a warlock had voluntarily approached him.
Was it re coincidence?
“Back off, or you’ll lose your head.” Hina swiftly reacted to the man’s slight movent, tightening her grip on the dagger.
Red blood dripped from the wound on the man’s body, cut by Hina’s dagger.
“Hina, wait a mont.”
Hina frowned at Ruel’s command.
“I don’t want to hear any orders to step back.”
“I’m not giving an order to step back. Just wait there.”
“Yes.”
Hina sheathed her dagger, remaining vigilant in her spot.
‘His outfit perfectly portrays a warlock.’ Ruel slowly scrutinized the man.
“I must admit, my approach was rather hasty. Please grant the opportunity to prove myself, Devotee of Darkness.”
Once again hearing the title ‘Devotee of Darkness,’ Ruel furrowed his brow.
It was a discomforting title, reminiscent of the distasteful moniker of ‘Noble of Darkness’.
“Go ahead,” Ruel smirked.
“Maybe your darkness will accept .”
With a smile still on his face, the man moved his fingers.
In an instant, his shadow appeared to writhe and a familiar figure suddenly appeared in response, colliding with the warlock’s body.
As the man staggered, Cassion swiftly delivered a final swift kick that sent the man crashing against the wall behind him, where he slowly slumped down.
Thud!
—Whoops!
Leo jumped a beat too late, his tail stiffening upright.
“Ruel-nim.” Cassion’s purple eyes glowed ominously as he walked towards the man and grabbed his neck.
“You seem to attract quite the attention, Ruel-nim. Who is this guy?”
Cassion’s gaze t Hina’s, and she lowered her weapon.
“F-Firstly, he’s a warlock,” Ruel stated, stuttering slightly.
“I’ll conduct a thorough investigation later. For now, let’s take this man to the inn,” Cassion declared, releasing the self-proclaid warlock and holding up a second man he’d captured to Ruel.
“What about this one?” Ruel inquired.
“He was setting a trap. He was waiting for sothing. Hina.”
“Yes.”
Cassion retrieved a crest from one of the captives and tossed it to Hina.
It was not a noble crest of the Kran Kingdom.
“Investigate this.”
“Understood.”
“Can we head that way now?” Ruel pointed in the direction Leo was trying to go.
Cassion glanced in that direction, then answered neatly, “Of course. I’ve taken care of the traps they set.”
—Can we go now?
Leo asked eagerly.
Once Ruel set Leo down, he took off running excitedly.
—This way!
After running for a while, Leo suddenly stopped.
—Here!
Leo scratched the wall with his front paw.
—There’s a sll here that goes against the natural order.
Ruel inhaled Breath, calmly surveyed his surroundings. The alley extended left and right.
‘There are three exits.’
It was a perfect setup for an ambush.
Ruel turned to Cassion, “Cassion, were the enemies waiting on both sides?”
“Yes.”
“Leo.”
Next, Ruel called Leo.
—Say it.
“Purification cannot be perford while concealing your form, correct?”
Thus far, Leo had purified only after revealing himself.
—This body is unsure… huh!
Leo suddenly seed to rember sothing and approached Ruel with shining eyes.
—Are you curious, Ruel?
“Yes.”
—This body understands! This body will try it right now!
Leo smiled, clearly excited at being able to help Ruel.
—This body has disappeared.
After hearing Leo’s words, Ruel looked at Cassion, “The beast isn’t visible.”
—This body will now purify what is tainted on the wall…
“No. Refrain from purifying the corruption on the wall, simply use purification.”
Ruel stopped Leo from purifying the wall.
Cassion identified it as a ‘trap.’
The corruption stained on that wall was not accidental, nor was it sothing that happened by chance.
So removing the corruption from the wall would be like walking foolishly into a trap.
—This body understands.
Leo smiled brightly and raised his front paw to create a silver bead.
“I can see the beast.”
Ruel spoke as Cassion pointed it out.
“That’s enough. Now let’s return to the inn. I’m still feeling dizzy.”
***
“…Ha.”
As soon as Ruel lay down on the bed, he let out a groan.
He had no idea he would be so exhausted just by the presence of so many people.
Leo, with wide eyes, ca into Ruel’s view.
—Ruel, Ruel. Are you tired?
“I’m just exhausted.”
“Although we arrived early in Kran, the travel fatigue cannot be ignored. Still, you seem to be much healthier now.”
Cassion, contrary to his words, pulled out a heat patch and placed it on Ruel’s forehead.
Ruel pointed at the heat patch, “But I’m not feeling hot right now?”
“You have a slight fever.”
“Where is the delegation now?”
“I received contact from Aris this morning. They are likely just about to leave the neutral zone. So far, things are going smoothly.”
Ruel inhaled Breath while fiddling with Leo’s ears.
“Leo.”
—Say.
“You mustn’t rush at the corruption recklessly like you did earlier.”
—A deviation from the natural order isn’t right. Aris hadn’t said such things.
“That’s a trap.”
—What kind of trap?
Leo tilted his head in confusion.
Ruel took a mont to think about how to explain it.
Given the circumstances and the fact that the Great Purifier couldn’t hide when using purification, the traces of corruption on the wall were a lure.
A bait to draw in a naïve Great Purifier, like Leo.
It seed that other Great Purifiers had disappeared from Kran.
Ruel had a headache.
“Do you rember how Noah sets traps to catch rabbits?”
—This body saw it.
“What happened to that rabbit?”
Leo imdiately looked sad.
—Ruel… ate it. So, if this body gets caught in a trap, will this body be eaten too?
“Yes.”
—Oh, this body understands! This body won’t chase after anything at all. This body will stick close to Ruel!
Leo trembled and burrowed into Ruel’s arms.
‘It’s good he’s so innocent.’
Ruel felt a sense of relief and gently patted Leo.
“Ruel-nim,” Cassion said, drawing Ruel’s attention.
“I’ve contacted Ganien for now.”
“Right, he’ll just be grumbling by himself again.”
“Then, what do we do about those guys?”
“Hina.”
Without even looking at the ones Cassion was pointing to, Ruel called for Hina.
“Yes.”
Ruel, sitting up straight, handed Leo over to Hina.
Despite her puzzled expression, Hina’s hands instinctively reached out for Leo.
“Leo.”
Rather than responding, Leo appeared on the verge of tears. It seed he sensed the separation.
“Hina doesn’t know my preferences. So, Leo, you choose for like before.”
—Are you talking about snacks?
“Yes.”
—Understood! This body will choose for you!
Leo’s tail wagged.
That was it.
Leo would no longer have to listen to what those guys had to say.
“Hina, please go and return.”
“Understood!” Hina responded with more energy than ever and left the inn.
Cassion waited a mont before speaking again.
“Ruel-nim, I apologize for pushing you. However, we now have proof that the Great Purifier’s have disappeared from the Kran Kingdom.”
“I know. I’m just not prepared yet.”
He still couldn’t bear to witness the tears Leo would shed.
“Let’s begin,” Ruel said calmly.
Cassion slapped the cheek of one of the n who had targeted the Great Purifier, who lay unconscious.
Slap!
With a sharp sound, the target hurriedly opened his eyes.
Cassion pressed firmly on the assailant’s mouth and quietly asked, “Do you have any intention of telling why you targeted the Great Purifier? Nod if you do.”
The assailant struggled, but he couldn’t overco Cassion’s strength.
“Or perhaps, dying like this wouldn’t be so bad.”
The assassin, who also worked as a butler, smiled, “The choice is yours.”
With words that could determine life or death.
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