Karnak and his group, who had escaped in the middle of the night, headed back to Derat City.
Alius, who reunited with the group, was overjoyed.
"Truly, this must be the guidance of Hatoba!"
He was so overjoyed that Karnak felt rather embarrassed.
"...Is there some benefit to you, Mr. Alius, if you recommend us?"
"I'm in a position where I can't ignore my performance, you see."
Of course, he had already accumulated enough achievements up to now. That's how he had managed to become a first-tier Inquisitor at such a young age.
But human greed knows no bounds.
"If three of my recommendations were to join the King's Order, my evaluation would also improve significantly. If I'm lucky, I might even reach the rank of Special-tier."
Serati spoke as if surprised.
"That's unexpected."
She had only thought of Alius as a good person and hadn't expected him to have such ambition for advancement.
But, as expected, he was a good person.
"If I become a Special-tier Inquisitor, I'll have greater authority, which means I'll be able to save more of the faithful. How could I not desire that?"
In truth, Alius was quite disappointed.
Having just earned the rank of First-tier, he had yet to recommend a Darkness Hunter to the King's Order. This was his first time, so he was especially careful in choosing people.
Those were Karnak and his group, who participated in the Trist City operation, along with Serati and Riltein.
But then Serati became Karnak's knight, causing him to lose three of them.
On top of that, even Riltein gave up joining. He had lost confidence after facing Shutraff.
Well, considering how he was utterly defeated without even being able to put up a fight, it was understandable.
So, he quit being a Darkness Hunter and went back to his magic training?
"I can't tell you how happy I am that the three of you returned. This increases the chances of saving the faithful from the cult."
Baros and Karnak exchanged a magical telepathic message in secret.
[Alius really is a good guy after all.]
[Isn't she better than him though?]
Their gazes turned to Serati. She wore a puzzled expression.
[Why are you looking at me?]
Since she had become Karnak's subordinate, she was now included in their secret magical telepathic messages.
While the three of them secretly conversed, Alius swiftly wrote the recommendation letter.
"Of course, this is only a recommendation letter and doesn't guarantee entry..."
As he handed over the document, he wore a confident expression.
"But I believe you all have a good chance. May Hatoba's blessing be with you!"
***
The northernmost region among the frontiers, the Jestarad Barony.
From here to Derat City, the largest city in the north, it takes three days. And from Derat City to the capital of the Kingdom of Yustil, it takes an additional ten days.
It's by no means a short distance, and considering the dangers of traveling in this era, not even Karnak and his group could afford to let their guard down!
...Or so they thought.
"We made it without any trouble, huh?"
Baros grinned as he looked at the vast city of Drunta, the capital of the Kingdom of Yustil, spread out beyond the plains.
Karnak replied indifferently.
"How could anything major happen in a small kingdom like Yustil?"
Serati, who was listening nearby, asked in disbelief.
"...Nothing happened?"
On the way, they encountered a band of thieves once, caught two necromancers, and handed them over to the nearby church. Every time they visited a city, they encountered pickpockets and robbers so frequently that they stopped counting.
Serati, who had been clicking her tongue the entire time at how chaotic and crazy the world had become, asked in exasperation.
"How can you say nothing happened?"
"Huh? That kind of stuff is just routine when you're traveling, isn't it?"
"What kind of lives did you two live in your past lives?"
Karnak and Baros reflected on their memories.
"Come to think of it, weren't we usually the ones doing the robbing?"
"We were necromancers, after all."
"We did the robbing and pickpocketing, never got robbed."
They had seen such scenes so often during their travels that Karnak hadn't really thought much of it, but in reality, it was he himself who had been the one creating those very scenes.
It goes to show that, except for these two scoundrels, the world was actually quite peaceful.
"Ah, so the world really is in a state of chaos right now."
"That's why we need to resolve this situation quickly."
As they resumed walking, Karnak took in the view of the grand city, the royal capital of Drunta.
"So, should we head straight to the King's Order headquarters?"
***
The capital of the Kingdom of Yustil, Drunta, was the largest city in the kingdom, built along the Jaltan River.
At its center stood the royal castle, and the city was dotted with towers and churches everywhere. Most buildings were two or three stories tall.
Countless citizens thronged through the grand city. Being the capital of a kingdom, its population was no joke.
As they passed through the crowds, Serati looked around in awe.
Derat City was well-known in the north, but compared to the capital, it looked like a rural village.
"Wow, as expected of the place where the king lives, it's truly enormous."
On the other hand, Karnak and Baros were unimpressed.
"It's still a modest town."
"And still a small city too. But it's quaint, which is nice."
"…What exactly are you comparing it to?"
"Thea Crahan."
"Rontoras."
Thea Crahan was the capital of Lacaenia, and Rontoras was the capital of Felmyre, the strongest kingdom in the Seven Kingdoms Alliance.
Both had far greater national power than the Kingdom of Yustil, so naturally, their capitals were much larger.
"Well, those two cities were also small compared to Necropolis."
Serati chuckled at Karnak's somewhat boastful attitude.
"Necropolis, huh? You can tell what kind of place it is just by the name."
It's rare to give a city such a sinister name. Most likely, it was the capital of the undead empire Karnak had built in his previous life.
Karnak scratched his head.
"Was the name too obvious? But when it came time to name it, nothing else really came to mind."
"Thanks to that, everything was 'Necro' something in our past lives. Necropia, Necropolis, Necro Wall, Necro Cross. There probably wasn't a single road sign without 'Necro' on it."
"Hey, back then you agreed that the names were fitting, Baros!"
"We only realized afterward how hard it was to find our way around when everything started with 'Necro.'"
Not all undead were mindless puppets like zombies or skeletons. There were plenty of undead with self-awareness, like Death Knights, Vampires, and Liches.
"Because of that, we got a lot of petitions to change the names."
Serati asked in surprise at Baros's words.
"Even as undead, they still had complaints? I thought they were just completely obedient."
Karnak answered in his place.
"They were humans at their core. Whether alive or dead, a human is still a human. If they have self-awareness, it's only natural."
"I thought that once someone became undead, they'd be utterly loyal to their master."
"They are loyal. But loyalty and complaints are separate matters. Come to think of it, the more loyal they were, the more complaints they seemed to have."
"Why do you keep looking at me when you say that, young master?"
As they continued their conversation and walked, their destination slowly came into view.
The King's Order headquarters was located in the northern district of the capital, Drunta. Upon entering, Baros instinctively surveyed the building.
"It's just an ordinary official building."
Well, there was no need to fortify it like a fortress right in the middle of the capital.
Of course, the security was by no means lax.
The guards at the entrance were skilled warriors, and Karnak and his group were only allowed inside after the authenticity of their recommendation letter was confirmed. The letter was subjected to multiple layers of magic verification to guard against any possibility of forgery.
"We've confirmed that the recommendation letter is indeed from the Hatoba Religious Order. We will deliver it to the higher-ups shortly."
As he watched the guide walk away with the recommendation letter, Karnak smiled with satisfaction.
"They're very sensitive about the authenticity of the recommendation. Looks like there are many who try to forge it."
Serati was puzzled.
"Why are you happy about there being many forgers?"
"It means they're doing their job properly."
If the King's Order were just a flashy facade, there'd be no need for the cult to be concerned about them.
"I've seen too many so-called special agencies that were rotten to the core despite their grand titles, so I was worried the King's Order might be the same."
Baros waved his hand dismissively.
"Come on, the King's Order was only established about a year ago. How could it already be corrupt?"
Whether it's people or organizations, it takes time for something to rot.
"That's exactly why it's a relief. If we stay here, we'll be able to properly engage with the cult."
As they spoke, the guide who had taken the recommendation letter returned to the group.
"Please wait a moment. The Lord of Order will meet with you shortly."
***
Karnak's group waited on the first floor of the headquarters for a while.
During that time, a variety of people in different attire were constantly coming and going. Some were dressed in plain clothes, others in uniforms, and there were even those in mage or priest robes, but they all had one thing in common.
Baros clicked his tongue.
"They're all quite formidable."
Baros was experienced enough to gauge someone's strength just by looking at them. All of them were strong enough to hold their own anywhere.
"Sir Randolph would have gotten beaten up here."
Even the strongest knight from Deventor wouldn't have been able to hold a candle to these people.
The same went for the mages. Karnak, feeling tense, commented, "Most of them are above the 5th Circle. I can even see some at the 6th Circle."
Despite possessing the wisdom of great necromancy, Karnak's Chaos Power was still only at the 4th Circle. Of course, he was continuously growing his power, so he'd soon reach the 5th Circle, but still...
"They're surprisingly high-level. At this rate, we might not even make it."
Serati also seemed surprised.
"I spotted two Aura Users as well. They seemed to be at the red level, similar to me."
Until now, she had never seen another Aura User besides herself.
In Derat City, and even the surrounding regions, Serati was the only one who had awakened her battle aura.
"To think that Aura Users, who are so rare, are common here. The capital really is different."
Karnak scoffed at her admiration.
"Aura Users are indeed rare, but they're not so scarce that you'd call them uncommon. Especially at the red level."
"Is this another one of your arbitrary standards, Lord Karnak?"
"It's more a matter of perspective."
Aura Users are undeniably rare. In the Kingdom of Yustil, which has a population of over 800,000, there are fewer than 100 Aura Users.
But in truth, a population of 800,000 is not particularly large on the continent.
If you were to ask whether a group that has nearly 100 members in a small kingdom like Yustil is really rare, it becomes a bit ambiguous.
"Are you saying that perspective changes depending on the circles you move in?"
"There's also the fact that this is the capital of a kingdom."
As one's abilities grow, it's natural for people to seek greater wealth and fame, desiring to operate in larger arenas.
"Serati, you originally planned to head to the capital too, didn't you?"
The few Aura Users and high-level mages there were naturally gravitated toward the capital, where the money was.
"That's why it's even harder to find Aura Users in the provinces. High-ranking clerics are evenly distributed because the Churches of the Seven Goddesses manage them directly, but..."
The implication was that an Aura User couldn't expect to be treated as special in the capital. They might be recognized, but they wouldn't be fawned over like in the provinces.
Well, for Serati, it wasn't much of an issue.
"Ever since I got involved with Lord Karnak, I haven't been treated with special respect anyway. Hmph!"
Karnak and Baros looked at each other quizzically at her sulky attitude.
"Did we ever mistreat you?"
"Exactly. We've fully acknowledged Dame Serati's skills."
"The fact that you two don't realize it is the biggest problem."
As they looked around, they both began to feel a sense of unfamiliarity that they hadn't experienced in their past lives.
It was nervousness.
"Wow, could it be that we might actually fail here?"
"Maybe we should've built up more achievements before coming here?"
"It's my first time being so worried about how others evaluate me. It's a strange feeling."
"Same here."
Serati clicked her tongue as she watched the two grown men nervously fidgeting.
"How badly did you two live that this is your first time caring about what others think?"
Just as they were wasting time like that, the guide finally called for them.
"Thank you for waiting."
Finally, the guide called out to Karnak's group.
"Lord Erantel will see you now."
[T/L: Please support me: https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]