"Emily, where have you been?"
Sasha's voice snapped me out of my daze as I arrived at the meeting place.
I wanted to answer, but my mind was still reeling.
Even the shopkeeper... How?
Every time I said the name out loud, everyone around me would stare into my soul with a grin, adjusting a monocle over their right eye.
I wanted to cry. I really did.
But I swallowed it down. For now, we had a serious mission from headquarters—retrieving a lost artifact from the church.
After that, maybe I'd have to visit that Seraphim and risk courting death just to figure out what the hell was happening to me.
"Emily?"
A voice broke through my spiraling thoughts.
I turned back to see Lance, flashing that annoying grin he always used.
"Emily, can you not daydream? It makes you look so cute I can't focus on the mission..."
"Hmph. Flirt somewhere else, you two," Mark muttered.
Sasha ignored them and got straight to business.
"First, this artifact is dangerous. It's a tactical-grade artifact."
She handed each of us a document.
Item Name: Coin of Deceit
Artifact detail: 3-011
Item details: Once a common copper coin, its previous owner regarded it as a lucky charm. He was involved in numerous scams, always claiming it was the coin that made his lies work. After his death, the coin began displaying abnormal properties.
Effect Introduction:
When within its vicinity, any lie told becomes believable.
.....
.....
The team consisted of one Rank 7, three Rank 8s, and one Rank 9.
To climb the ranks, one needed either the approval of their god or to forge a new path and ascend to godhood on their own.
Believers argued the latter was impossible—a heresy, a desecration of the divine order.
Every Rank 9 was someone who had received a blessing from their chosen faith. Without faith, one could never receive divine blessings and, consequently, never increase their rings.
Each individual possessed rings, and every ring required divine blessings to be filled. However, not all were born equal.
• The Chosen Ones could have up to ten rings.
• The Lucky Few barely had one or two.
• The Unfortunate had none at all—and no chance of ever being blessed.
Emily and the team, led by Sasha, arrived at the church to complete their mission: retrieve the artifact 3-011 from the Church of the Sun.
The Church of the Sun worshipped the Sun God, and unlike some faiths, their god's presence was undeniable—questioning it could get you burned alive on the spot.
On the massive door of the church lay a neat copper coin, seemingly out of place. Yet, the team exercised caution.
"How do we contain it?" Emily asked.
Sasha shook her head. "It's easy. Just place it in your wallet. And don't even think for a second that this is the Coin of Deceit."
A silence followed.
The team stared at her, unamused.
"...Easier said than done," Lance muttered.
Emily crossed her arms. "Honestly, you could've just told us to replace that coin without mentioning it was a mission."
Without hesitation, Sasha pulled out a wallet, strode forward, and picked up the coin.
"Thanks for the service," she said, slipping it into the wallet like it was nothing.
The team exchanged confused glances.
Where was the danger?
No one spoke as they followed Sasha, who walked in a trance-like state, leading them straight back to headquarters.
"Another dud."
A man sat in a dimly lit room, holding the copper coin in his palm, his expression filled with disappointment.
________
"Master, I'm surprised."
Mary stood before her mentor, her expression unreadable. "He grows all the herbs together, yet not a single one has withered. He may tell himself that you took care of the plants, but we both know that's far from the truth."
The old man chuckled, his voice carrying the weight of experience. "Hoho, don't you understand? He calls me over from time to time not because he needs my help, but because he wants my company. That's why I sent you there, Mary."
Mary lowered her gaze, deep in thought.
"You're already a Rank 6. Perhaps this is the opportunity you were destined for—to ascend to Rank 5."
She clenched her fists.
"When I do, I'll be waiting for your orders, Master. The cultist activities near the coast have been growing stronger."
Kaido nodded.
She hesitated. "Master, his shop... there's something—"
"Shush," Kaido cut her off, his gaze turning sharp. "Don't delve into things you won't come out of alive."
Kaido leaned back, staring at the ceiling as memories surfaced—his first visit to Luthian's shop.
Like Mary, he had been fascinated by the sheer number of artifacts hidden in that unassuming place. Curiosity had led him to pick up a pocket watch, and in that instant, he had suffered an injury from a Seraphim's energy.
Wounded and desperate, he had needed a rare herb to heal. And 'coincidentally,' the very herb he sought was in the garden behind the shop.
That was when the idea struck him.
To stay close, he set up an alchemy shop in town, conducting questionable dealings just to get closer to Luthian. Eventually, he managed to gain Luthian's trust and was invited to visit the garden.
At first, he had considered stealing the herb, thinking it the easiest solution.
But something had stopped him.
And in time, he realized discarding that thought was the right choice.
Because Luthian—that strange shopkeeper who treated dangerous artifacts like mere trinkets—was far beyond his understanding.
Instead, Kaido found himself drawn into the act of gardening.
A decision that, perhaps, had been more fate than coincidence.
___________
Back at the shop, I walk out with two cup of coffee which I had made for special occasions as this.
Handing Marcus a cup of coffee, i took a seat beside him.
This was only our second meeting.
Bearded, muscular, with a scar over his left eye—he looked intimidating, but that didn't bother me. What did was the missing fore limb.
He said he was an adventurer, a treasure hunter who sailed the seas in search of fortune. Last time he came, he left me with a few bags of gold coins.
Probably why it's worthless here, must have been a foreign currency from some far-off land.
I couldn't help but stare at the stump where his arm used to be.
"It'll regrow," he said casually, as if reading my thoughts.
I raised a brow. "Right. And what was people like you called again?"
"Beyonders," he replied curtly.
Beyonders… That name stirred something in me. The same name, the same concept. If only I could join a religion that worships The Fool—but alas, that belongs to a masterpiece in a book, not this world.
"So, tell me about your adventures this time," I said, taking a sip of my coffee.
Marcus exhaled, his expression darkening. "I nearly died." His voice deep and laced with bitterness.
He reached into his coat, pulled out a worn, familiar gold coin, and turned it over in his fingers. "If not for this, I'd be drinking coffee with the demons in hell by now."