"Depending on how generous the church's compensation is... wouldn't the probability of me quitting the mission I received from the king halfway through go up?"
"........"
"Hehehe."
"......"
Wow, this bastard.
Watching Kim Jangcheol laugh maliciously, the Archbishop thought. Then, frowning deeply, he asked again.
"So, what you're saying, Sir Kim Jangcheol, is... that if the level of compensation we give you is sufficient, you'll cancel the mission midway and run away?"
"Yes, that's right."
"So, you're saying that you're receiving the king's mission... and also receiving compensation from us... taking what you can from both sides... and then running away and disappearing halfway through... Is that right?"
"Yes. You're quick to understand."
"........"
The Archbishop didn't want to quickly understand such a vile, or even subhuman, plan.
He felt a brief wave of intense frustration.
With a sigh, he spoke.
"Well, fine. Abandoning a mission and running away isn't the same as failing in the exploration and development of abandoned lands. The saint wouldn't be agitated about it, I suppose. I admit that."
"Then, will you give it to me?"
"... Hm."
"Preferably gold bars, I think."
"Excuse me?"
The Archbishop doubted his ears.
Gold bars?
Gold bars?
Kim Jangcheol's shameless demand continued.
"If I were to abandon the king's mission halfway and disappear, using checks might feel a bit risky, so how about gold bars? Gold bars that are eternally valuable, so they can be used anywhere, anytime."
Kim Jangcheol thought.
Let's stockpile gold bars now.
Let's use that as insurance for the abandoned land.
'Yeah. Everyone needs insurance at some point in life.'
That's the truth.
Living only on the 'prayer meta' without even basic insurance is too harsh in this world.
And life on the abandoned land? It's even worse.
If a single season's harvest fails, everyone would starve to death. He had been living like walking on thin ice all this time.
But what if he stockpiled a large amount of gold bars?
The story would change completely.
'If I have gold bars, I can get through a crisis. Even if there's a bad harvest season and crops fail, I can buy food with gold bars when I come to the human world.'
Gold bars make that possible.
Gold, which has unchanging value anywhere, anytime!
While reminiscing about this unchanging law of human history and national rules, Kim Jangcheol rubbed his palms together ten times quickly.
"And... You know, right? I only accept 24k gold bars? I don't take 18k or 14k, no way?"
"...."
"Uh, Archbishop?"
"...."
"Answer, please?"
".... Yes, my mind just... is a little... I was surprised by the request."
"So, Archbishop? Will you give it to me?"
".... I will. But there's a condition."
The Archbishop nodded.
With his cold, sharp gaze, he looked at Kim Jangcheol and said:
"If you go with me to the church's headquarters and cooperate with one thing, I will grant your request."
"Go, to the church's headquarters?"
"Yes."
"What do you want me to cooperate with there?"
Kim Jangcheol asked.
The Archbishop answered.
"It's simple. I want to properly confirm if you're really the Saint of Ten."
"Pardon?"
"You might not know this, but the Saint of Ten is a very significant matter for our church."
Actually, it wasn't just significant.
If it turns out to be true?
It would be a monumental event, the biggest in history, where the prophecy of a being, like a legend or myth, comes to life, fundamentally changing the church and the world's justice.
"Of course, I'm not naive enough to believe such a prophecy will easily come true. I don't think the probability of Sir Kim Jangcheol being the Saint of Ten is very high. But... honestly, I've never seen anyone with this much potential. So, I'd like to confirm it."
"Sigh, I'm really not the Saint of Ten or whatever."
"Even so, it's just a confirmation, so wouldn't it be okay to visit the headquarters without any burden?"
"Sigh, you know, people who preach 'Do you know the path?' always use that line about visiting without any burden."
"It won't take long to visit."
"Sigh, the line about it not taking long is exactly the same."
"......"
"Really... it's becoming more suspicious."
"......"
The Archbishop felt slightly wronged.
So, without thinking, he asked:
"Who exactly is this 'Do you know the path?'? I've never heard of a church that preaches like that."
"Ugh, it's not a church. It's a cult."
"I'm not such a cult."
"Everyone says they're not, though."
"......"
"Ah, sigh. Really making me more suspicious."
"......"
Kim Jangcheol thought.
This Archbishop keeps asking if he's the Saint of Ten. I want to confirm it. Keeps trying to get him to go to the church headquarters with promises it won't take long.
It really sounds just like the typical line from a street cult preacher!
"... But if I go with you... you'll give me the gold bars, right?"
"Of course."
"How much?"
"10 kilograms, how does that sound?"
"That's too little."
"50."
"Sigh."
"... 75."
"Just a little more, please."
"80, this is the last offer."
"You're so stingy."
"..... How much do you want?"
"10 kilograms of 10 bars, a total of 100 kilograms, how does that sound?"
"...."
The Archbishop fell silent, shocked.
It was understandable.
100 kilograms of gold bars.
If you calculate it by the Korean stock exchange price?
It would be worth around 13 billion won.
Kim Jangcheol, who had dared to set such a condition, felt his heart beat loudly like a 16-bit traditional Korean drum pattern.
But he didn't show it.
'To survive an entire season while feeding everyone when a bad harvest comes... for that, if it's for emergency funds, this amount is necessary.'
Thanks to that, he was able to maintain a shameless, expressionless face.
Perhaps because of that...
A deep sigh escaped from the Archbishop's mouth.
"....I understand. I'll agree to the terms."
"Good thinking, Archbishop."
"I'm not sure if it's good thinking, but... well, shall we go to the church headquarters together?"
"No."
".....Pardon?"
"You need to write a memorandum first."
"A memorandum... you mean?"
"Yes."
Kim Jangcheol nodded as if it were obvious.
"Of course, we need to write a memorandum or contract about the terms we just agreed on. What if later you deny the agreement and say you never made such a deal?"
"But I'm the Archbishop of the church. My word is based on faith and... there's no contract that can be more binding than that..."
"In any world, there is no verbal agreement that supersedes a contract. A document is the best, always."
"......"
"Then, while we're trading 100 kilograms of gold bars, you were planning to just spit out a verbal agreement and move on? Were you planning to change your story later? Wow, I never thought you'd think that little of people."
"No, that's not what I meant..."
"Without a contract, I could change my story later too."
"......"
"Then, to move forward with trust, don't you think we need a document as proof?"
" ... You're not wrong."
Archbishop Rephelon let out a bitter smile.
Writing the contract was quick. After leaving the inn, they arrived at the church headquarters in no time.
"Ha..."
Was this how the grand cathedrals in European tourist spots looked?
The church headquarters building was massive, just as its name suggested. But that was just the beginning. The real thing was inside, in the grand chapel.
"This is our church's pride, the statue of the Archangel."
The Archbishop pointed.
In one corner of the grand chapel, an enormous statue stood.
Was it the combat-type golem from Daparachia? This one was much larger. Even from a rough estimate...
"The exact height is 63.5 meters, and its weight is about 1,200 tons. And, in case of emergency... it can move."
"Excuse me?"
Kim Jangcheol was taken aback by the Archbishop's explanation.
"This... it moves?"
"Yes."
A proud smile spread across the Archbishop's face.
His explanation continued, drilling into Kim Jangcheol's ears.
"The statue of the Archangel is not just a giant ornament. In fact, it's our church's ultimate weapon. It's here to prevent the same humiliation that happened 300 years ago."
"Humiliation from 300 years ago?"
"Yes. Don't you know about it?"
"Well, I think I know a little bit..."
300 years ago.
So, that was the time when Artanis had conquered half of the human world. In other words, the humiliation the Archbishop spoke of...
"Does it refer to the time when the demons took over the royal capital, and the church headquarters was trampled?"
"Exactly."
The Archbishop's smile faded from his face. Perhaps he was recalling the humiliating history recorded in the distant past.
His words continued.
"300 years ago, the Demon Queen who swept through the world suddenly vanished. But no one knows why. Perhaps she was defeated by an unknown hero, or maybe she is preparing for an even greater invasion."
"Uh, that... "
Was the previous Demon Queen perhaps lying in the inn, wearing cat ears on her head and a heart-shaped mouthpiece while rolling around on an old bed?
...If I said that, of course, they wouldn't believe me.
So, I just listened to the Archbishop's words.
"Anyway, that Demon King of terror will someday raise the flag of invasion again. This statue of the Archangel will react as soon as it detects the presence of that being and will fight under the flag of faith."
"Oh, yes..."
This statue... doesn't seem to detect very well, does it?
...But I couldn't bring myself to say that.
The Archbishop continued.
"Well, anyway, this statue is that kind of being. Of course, today, it will serve to determine if you, Sir Kim Jangcheol, are the Saint of Ten."
" ... Pardon?"
"Here, you'll see a hole connected to the statue's pedestal."
"Yes, I see it."
"Put your hand in that hole."
"... What happens if I do?"
"It will read your palm lines."
"Eh?"
"It will read them very well."
"Really... quietly?"
"That's it."
"That's it? Really?"
"Yes."
"That's... all?"
"Of course."
The Archbishop grinned widely.
"Since this is such an important task to determine the Saint of Ten, what could be more accurate than reading palm lines?"
"........"
Palm lines?
Kim Jangcheol, who was dumbfounded, closed his mouth tightly. And as he stared at the Archbishop, he thought to himself.
This bastard... he really seems like a cultist.
[T/L: I am not getting any support from webnovel platform, so please support me and read ahead chapters on my ko-fi page "RevengerScans" : https://ko-fi.com/revengerscans ]