Eleena's Spear of Victory had completely crushed the little courage the goblins had left in the first place. The goblins that were left with less than half of their original strength were no longer as violent and brutal as before, and they all abandoned their armor and began to flee.
Marni Wilf breathed a sigh of relief. Aside from feeling that his merchant group was safe, he couldn't help becoming curious about which church the five boys and girls were from.
Even though they dressed like hill-folk, hill-folk couldn't learn sacred arts. Even the most basic of them would have to go to the sacred sites of the gods (in other words, churches, temples and the like) and undergo a long period of study to learn them.
Moreover, the sacred art that they called 'leveling' was even more wondrous. It could instantly recover all wounds and stamina, and only a few bishops of the Brilliant White Church could wield such a sacred art.
What shocked him even more was that while the boys and girls appeared innocent and ignorant of the ways of the world, they were actually watertight and didn't reveal any useful information from start to finish. Even casting the sacred art 'leveling' was done very discreetly, and even with his eyesight that he had gained from traversing the Empire, he couldn't immediately tell which of them had cast it.
"Mister Wilf." Just as Marni was feeling troubled by the enigma that was Eleena and the others, one of the mercenary guards he hired came to him. "Something's not right."
"What is it?" Marni immediately became wary. "Did those brats do something?"
Could they be the minions of some evil god, and are trying to silence us because we've seen through their abilities?
"No, they're still huddled together, discussing things like 'rich quest rewards' and 'skill tree' that I don't understand." The mercenary shook his head. "What I'm trying to say is that our men found out that the corpses of the goblins they killed are gone when they were cleaning up the battlefield!"
"What?"
He looked in the direction where Eleena and the others were, only to find that there were no corpses of goblins around them. Instead, the goblins' teeth, nails, and loincloths were scattered all over the ground. It was a messy sight.
Marni couldn't help frowning. While the corpses of goblins weren't worth much and they had no intention of bringing them along, it was too bizarre that all the corpses were gone … Coupled with the strange behavior of the boys and girls, Marni felt that there was something strange about the whole thing.
Just as Marni was left utterly confused, Eleena and the others received a new quest.
[Ding! Side quest activated: Missionary Caravan]
[Quest Explanation: The God of Games has prepared a paradise in the mortal world for his believers. However, everything is difficult at the beginning, and without the help of merchants that trade goods with the outside world, the village would have a hard time developing quickly. Please follow the guidance of the God and spread his gospel to the merchants you saved, and have at least one become a believer of the God of Games.]
[Completion Reward: Shop Construction Blueprint (Quest Item), Experience Points (Depends on Quest Completion Rate), Ring of Gospel (Excellent)]
[Remark: Quest of 'Our Lord's Radiance Illuminate the Land' series of Quest]
"Mister, may I have a moment of your time?" Marni watched as Edward suddenly waddled up to him, and said with an expression as if someone in a casino was looking at a fat sheep, "I hope to tell you about our Father and Savior, the God of Games."
Marni: "???"
☆
"We're finally here!"
While Eleena and the others were doing their best to promote the God of Games' Church, Angora had arrived at his own fief, the unnamed town outside the Valley of the Tragic Dead.
The town looked very gloomy and run-down. If it was before Angora got the game system, even if the old coachman was still alive, he would have been so scared that he would have abandoned his fief and fled back to his hometown.
But things were different now. He even felt an incredible sense of familiarity and belonging to this run-down town.
"This is my fief …"
"Foreigner, what are you doing here?"
An old voice suddenly spoke, startling Angora.
He turned his head in the direction of the voice and saw a skinny old man standing a few meters away from him with the help of a walking stick.
Even though his face was so thin that it was almost out of shape and resembled a skeleton at first glance, his eyes were as sharp as knives, causing Angora to feel a stabbing pain when he was being stared at.
"I'm the new liege of this place, Angora Faust!"
Angora took out the letter of appointment from his bag. "From now on, this town and the lands around it are my territory!"
The old man gave Angora a long look.
It was only when Angora felt his scalp tingle that the old man shook his head. "As you can see, this land is barren, and the people who live here are poor. They can't even afford food, and can only eat tree barks and grass to fill their stomachs. You can't even squeeze a single copper out of this place."
Angora knew that the old man was warning him, just as he understood that it was dangerous for him to take up his post alone. He could be 'killed by an accident on the road' if he was not careful, which was why most lieges would bring guards when they took up their posts.
That was why he tried to appease the old man. "I won't exploit my people."
"You don't understand me, child." The old man shook his head. "Half a month ago, the royal army had set fire to the forest outside the Valley of the Tragic Dead to stop the undead from advancing further. That conflagration had spread to this area, burning the fruits of half a year's labor into ashes. If there's no solution to the famine, you, a liege acknowledged by His Majesty, would become the target of everyone's anger. "
"The royal army isn't compensating the town?"
Angora asked in surprise.
"Of course, child." The old man said slowly. "Who do you think the 'Tragic Dead' in the name of the Valley of the Tragic Dead refers to? The corpses of the undead creatures in the valley? Of course not. "
He pointed at his chest with his free hand and said bitterly, "It's us. The civilians who died in the battle between the army and the undead are the real 'Tragic Dead'! "
Angora's entire body gaped at the old man's words.
Although he had already prepared himself for hardship and poverty in his own territory, he did not expect the reality to be so much crueler than he imagined.
How was he supposed to survive in this wretched land when he was a mortal who didn't know magic, combat, or divine arts?
At that moment, he once again thought of the mysterious being that had saved his life.