"Join me and be my ally" Zalruk offered.
"Huh?" I stared at him blankly, taken aback by his offer. "Why would I join you? Are you crazy?" I inquired incredulously, furrowing my eyebrows in confusion.
"There is a war brewing, young man" Zalruk answered, his voice calm and collected. "The Church Of Astalah is rising in power and their influence is growing rapidly." He explained seriously, his gaze unwavering.
"The Church Of Astalah? Like the one on the mountain?" I asked.
"Yes, indeed" Zalruk confirmed, nodding his head slowly.
"Aren't they supposed to preach the word of God or something like that? Aren't they supposed to be worshipped for good?" I questioned, raising an eyebrow.
Zalruk smiled faintly, shaking his head slightly. "That's what they want you to believe, young man" He revealed.
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"The Church Of Astalah is not as innocent and holy as it appears" He explained. "They are actually a cult that worships an evil god, trying to summon it into our world" He revealed gravely.
"How do you know all this?" I asked suspiciously.
"Because I was part of the cult before" He confessed bluntly, smiling wryly.
My eyes widened slightly in shock, staring at him incredulously. "Why did you left then?" I inquired curiously.
"I have my reasons " He responded vaguely, averting his gaze briefly.
"I see..." I trailed off thoughtfully, contemplating quietly.
"You may not realize it but you are already a part of this war" He replied seriously, gazing intently at me. "The church is after the grimoire and they won't hesitate to kill you" He added, his eyes narrowing slightly.
"So they the one who sent those lunatics?" I asked curiously, tilting my head slightly.
"Yes, those are merely their lackeys" He replied, nodding his head.
"So what's the deal with their sacred text got stolen?" I questioned curiously.
"Sacred text? Ahh yes, they regard the grimoire as the sacred text from their lord, but I managed to get my hands on it and took it away" Zalruk revealed smugly, grinning widely.
"Then you sell such thing to me for 55 Ninar?" I inquired incredulously.
"Well, I was desperately in need of money...." He admitted sheepishly, averting his gaze. "Also I knew you would come here back"
"Huh.." I uttered blankly, sighing heavily. "Alright, so what's the point of joining you?" I asked, regarding him skeptically.
"To survive" He answered bluntly. "They will come after you relentlessly. They won't stop until they have the grimoire back and that's the last thing I want " He warned, his gaze unwavering.
"I suppose" I mumbled reluctantly, scratching the back of my head.
I still don't really trust this Zalruk guy. I had only just met him, and he seemed pretty shady and dangerous. However, this isn't really a bad deal considering the circumstances.
Now that things have gotten so complicated, I will need more information and a plan to protect myself. If he also wants to protect the grimoire, then why shouldn't I allow him? It would definitely be better than fighting a battle I'm not sure I can win against by myself.
If I take him up on this deal, I might be able to learn even more about the grimoire and there's bound to be hidden secrets about this world that I didn't know. I'd much rather find out these secrets than die without ever finding out anything. I guess that's just natural curiosity.
"It doesn't seem like a bad idea to me but..." I began, looking at him in the eye. "How can I know I can trust you?" I asked him honestly, studying his expression closely.
He nodded his head in agreement, his eyes flickering solemnly. "Understandable" He acknowledged.
His expression remained unchanged and he stared back at me calmly without any trace of deception present. This whole situation was beginning to become increasingly interesting.
"In that case..." He trailed off, grabbing an object under the counter.
He place it on the counter for me to see. It was a scroll , a piece of white paper that was tied in a knot with engravings that showed some sort of symbols that I couldn't comprehend. However, I recognized it immediately as a magic seal of some kind.
"Let's make a contract" Zalruk declared boldly, gazing straight at me.