Chapter 43: Deep Underground

I went up to the second floor, enduring the guild members’ piercing stares.

Only after entering a room with the Guild Master could I escape their gaze.

“Who are you? No, before that, where did you hear her name?”

The Guild Master pressed me even before we sat down, brimming with curiosity.

So impatient.

From his perspective, someone who seemed to know the whereabouts of the item he’d been diligently searching for had appeared.

He’d naturally want to confirm the information immediately.

But.

“Shouldn’t we draw up a confidentiality agreement first?”

“…Tsk. How do you even know I have that…? Here.”

The person in front of me wasn’t someone to be trifled with.

One couldn’t survive in the back alleys with ordinary abilities.

Therefore, one had to possess exceptionally strong abilities.

Or an extraordinary edge over others.

I had to be certain.

So, when dealing with this man, I needed to be more thorough than usual.

When I mentioned the agreement, he immediately took something out of his drawer and handed it to me.

A confidentiality agreement.

A kind of disposable artifact containing special magic developed by the Magic Tower.

It could activate magic that prevented information leakage through a contract or restricted actions.

Although quite expensive.

Its performance was guaranteed.

As I signed the contract the Guild Master handed me, I felt a strong magical energy sweep over my body.

Now, the conversation we had would never leak to anyone else.

“So, what are your conditions? You must want something from me.”

“Two conditions. One, you will find a place with the characteristics I describe.”

It would take some time to decipher the cryptic answers from the bookmark on my own.

So my plan was to shorten that time by using the Information Guild, which knew everything about the capital.

“And the other is to provide me with ‘Cain’s Tears.'”

“How do you even…! …No. It’s better for my well-being not to think too deeply about it.”

The other reason I came here.

It was because of an item the Guild Master possessed.

A special substance commonly known as Cain’s Tears.

It should be hidden somewhere in this room.

“Both conditions are within my power to fulfill. Alright. Then tell me the details of the first condition.”

“I’m looking for an old church. I suspect it’s in Ambrosia.”

“An old church…. There are a lot of ruined churches in that area. Are there any other clues?”

“Fallen wing. I don’t know what it means, but. It seems like an important clue.”

“Church, fallen wing….”

The Guild Master was lost in thought for a while, muttering the information I gave him.

Then, as if he finally remembered something, he took out a map.

“There is one place that comes to mind. This place. ‘Fallen wing’ probably refers to the broken angel statue here.”

The location he pointed to with his finger.

It appeared to be the innermost part of Ambrosia, located on the outskirts of the capital.

I immediately memorized the location.

“Now it’s my turn. Dora, tell me about her pendant.”

I had obtained everything I wanted for now.

If he gave me false information, I could cause a scene later.

“Do you know Baron Vermouth?”

“Of course. He’s a figure who’s been rapidly rising in the political world recently. …But what does he have to do with Dora?”

The Guild Master wore a puzzled expression.

“To be precise, his second wife, whom he recently married. Investigate her thoroughly. You’ll find something.”

“…….”

He seemed lost in deep thought after I finished speaking.

As I watched him, I looked at the box in his hand and said.

“It seems like we’re done with our business. How about handing that over to me now?”

“The information is accurate, right?”

“Of course. There’s no reason for me to lie.”

“…Then I’ll trust you once.”

With those words, the Guild Master tossed the box to me.

It felt heavier than I expected.

I opened the box and checked the contents.

A cloudy, teardrop-shaped jewel.

That’s right.

Cain’s Tears.

“Next time, I’d appreciate it if you made a formal request to the receptionist instead of causing a ruckus.”

“Hmm, what should I say?”

“Just say you’re here to see Damian.”

Looking into my eyes, hidden by the deep hood, the Guild Master spoke in a low voice.

“That’s my name.”

After getting everything I wanted and leaving the Information Guild, I went straight into the alley next door.

As I hid in the shadows, I immediately activated Stealth.

My body became instantly transparent.

No one would be able to see me now.

And a moment later.

“What the-! Where did he go?”

“He definitely went this way…!”

Not long after I activated Stealth, a group of people entered the alley with bewildered expressions.

Familiar faces.

They were the guild members who glared at me when I caused a scene in the Information Guild.

It seemed they intended to follow me.

“You guys search this way. I’ll check over there!”

Unable to find me even after looking around, they started scattering in all directions in a fluster.

Only after confirming they were out of sight did I deactivate Stealth.

“Those back-alley guys are always a problem.”

I clicked my tongue at their untrustworthy behavior.

Their purpose for following me was obvious.

They were probably acting on orders from their leader, Damian.

To obtain even a small piece of information about me, who was hiding my identity.

But for an Information Guild that should operate on trust to tail a client.

How could anyone trust them with future dealings?

Complaining about the Information Guild, I headed towards Ambrosia.

Following the map, I arrived at an old church in a remote location.

Perhaps due to long neglect, the church looked as if it would collapse at any moment.

‘Even homeless people wouldn’t come near this place, would they?’

Even for Ambrosia, a slum.

Even people sleeping on the streets would likely avoid this place.

If one slept here and the building collapsed, they’d be done for.

The church was in that bad of a state.

I reached for the doorknob to open the door of the eerie church.

But.

Click

“…?”

The doorknob simply came off in my hand as I applied force.

I stared down at the old doorknob in my hand with a dumbfounded expression.

Just how neglected was this place?

How long had it been since anyone set foot here for the door to be in this state?

The door, now missing its doorknob.

I had no choice but to kick it open.

Thud

Creak

The door opened heavily with a loud noise.

Then, the dust accumulated inside puffed out.

“Cough, cough.”

A cloud of dust rose into the air.

I waved my hand, waiting for the dust to settle.

After a while, the dust settled, revealing the interior of the church.

As if a fight had taken place, the floor was littered with debris.

The pillars and walls were cracked, looking as though they would collapse at any moment.

And a giant angel statue placed at the far end of the church.

But both its wings had fallen to the floor.

It simply held its hands together in a pitiful state.

‘Well, this is definitely it.’

Although Damian was a shady character, always ready to do something sneaky.

True to his belief of not selling false information, his information was accurate.

Anyway.

“It doesn’t look like Lisa is imprisoned anywhere here….”

There didn’t seem to be a place to confine someone here.

At best, there were only rooms where clergymen might have stayed long ago.

There was no sign of the prison-like place I saw in my dream.

Then what remained was….

The angel statue.

It could be related to the suspicious-looking statue.

I approached the dubious angel statue.

An intricate statue that seemed to be made of white marble.

It seemed that even this symbol of glory had lost its status over time.

In fact, it wasn’t just this statue.

The concept of religion itself was fading in this world.

Great and brilliant glory.

They were all things of the past.

The moment I placed my hand on the dust-covered angel statue.

Rumble

“Wh, what…!”

As soon as my hand touched it, a bright red light emanated from the scar on the back of my hand, and.

The angel statue began to move with a loud noise.

Startled, I stepped back and watched.

The angel statue continued to move sideways for a while.

It finally stopped after moving a considerable distance from its original spot.

And the place where the angel statue had been.

A dark hole was now open there.

A ladder connected to the hole.

I stared down at the ladder leading into the endlessly dark hole.

After a moment of contemplation, I carefully began to descend.