The palm reading (?) ended more simply than expected... but it didn't.
Wiiiiing! Zzha-zhang-zhang! Zzha-zhang!
"......."
Wooaaooong! Poo-ssurarruk-dullkkung-kulkkung!
"......."
Burrurrun! Kwaoaooo!
".... Excuse me."
"Yes, speak up, Sir Kim Jangcheol."
"Is this supposed to be this loud?"
Unable to hold back, he asked.
But for the Archbishop, was this noisy inspection process something ordinary, something trivial?
"It's always like this. So, most people who get their first inspection are usually startled. Like you are now, Sir Kim Jangcheol."
"Ha...."
He would have trusted a blood test or a urine test much more. No, at least if it had been a vision test, would he have sighed like this?
'What is palm reading, what is palm reading...'
A famous church, they said.
Determining the existence of prophecies, they said.
And yet, this ridiculous (?) situation of reading palms and making noise like this.
Kim Jangcheol felt his trust in the church and the Archbishop evaporating with a sizzle. But he endured it. Whether they were a cult or not, he just needed to make sure to get what was promised.
'Yeah. Palm reading or whatever... if I just get the gold bars, it's all good.'
How long had he been thinking like this?
Pibbit!
Finally, the palm inspection ended.
Kim Jangcheol, who pulled his hand from the altar, watched the Archbishop's reaction.
"Did the inspection results come out?"
".... Hmm."
"Archbishop?"
"Uhhh..."
Why was this happening?
The Archbishop stared at the upper surface of the altar, the finely sanded upper part of the sand, for a long time. But the sand showed no changes.
Soon, the Archbishop spoke with a somewhat perplexed frown.
"The inspection itself went smoothly, but... this result... is a bit strange."
"Strange? How?"
"I've never seen a result like this before."
"......"
Never seen before?
A slight unease crept up from the vocabulary the Archbishop used. Or rather, it made him feel a little suspicious.
'Don't tell me... they figured out I'm the Demon King?'
Just as that thought crossed his mind.
"The inspection results... haven't come out yet."
"The results haven't come out?"
"That's right."
The Archbishop frowned at the bridge of his nose.
"Normally, as soon as the inspection is finished, the results would come out in 30 seconds at the latest. In this place, the results would be engraved in letters and pictures on the sand."
"Something like that?"
"Not now. It's as if the altar is pondering, as if it has fainted... it's fallen into complete silence. This is really something I've never seen before."
"......."
Is this like a computer or electronic device malfunctioning? He was about to ask if they should force it off and turn it back on, but he held back.
Instead, he said this.
"Well, I guess, if we wait, the results will come out eventually, right?"
"I hope so. Otherwise, maybe we should just turn it off and on again."
"There's a function to turn it off and on?"
"Yes. There is."
The Archbishop nodded as if it was obvious.
"So, Sir Kim Jangcheol? Could you wait for another hour?"
"One hour?"
"Yes."
"Why?"
"To turn off and on the inspection function of the altar, it will take one hour."
"You're not going to do another palm reading, are you?"
"Yes. Because we need to see the results."
"Well, I don't want to."
Kim Jangcheol immediately shook his head without even taking a breath.
Before the Archbishop could respond, he quickly pulled out a sheet of paper from his inner pocket and unfolded it.
"Here. What does it say in the contract we wrote earlier, that we agreed upon? It says that after I follow the Archbishop to the church headquarters and undergo the Saint of Ten evaluation that you requested, once that's done... the Archbishop is supposed to give me the gold bars, right?"
"Uh, that..."
"It says one inspection, right?"
"But still, the results of the inspection haven't..."
"It says one inspection, doesn't it?"
"...."
The Archbishop was left speechless.
A confident smile spread across Kim Jangcheol's lips.
"Then, I have already fulfilled the agreement as written in the contract, right? I've cooperated by completing one inspection, regardless of the results. So now, it's your turn, Archbishop, to uphold your side of the contract."
"......."
"Then, please make sure to prepare the gold bars by the agreed date in the contract. Now, I'll be going."
Bow!
He swiftly bowed and turned around before the Archbishop could say anything and quickly walked away. He exited the grand chapel and safely escaped (?) from the church headquarters.
'Phew, I made it.'
Only then did Kim Jangcheol exhale in relief.
To be honest, when the Archbishop had mentioned a never-before-seen result earlier and frowned, he had felt a little uneasy.
Was it possible that he had been exposed as the Demon King?
That his identity would be revealed forcefully?
'If that happened... it would have been chaos, right?'
If his identity as the Demon King had been exposed in front of the church's ultimate weapon, built with the sole purpose of stopping the Demon King's second invasion.
He would probably have been impaled and crushed by that 63-meter tall, 1,200-ton statue, right?
'Well, but I wasn't caught.'
The altar that read palms had collapsed.
So, there was no chance of being exposed as the Demon King.
Finally feeling relieved, Kim Jangcheol moved toward the inn.
No, just as he was about to move...
"Sir Kim Jangcheol? His Majesty is looking for you."
From somewhere, suddenly, an authoritative voice unexpectedly pierced his eardrums.
Accompanied by the orderly sound of metal clanging.
Clunk!
Familiar faces.
The shining armor of the royal guard.
The captain of the royal guard leading them.
They were sending stern, solemn, and serious glances towards him at the entrance of the church headquarters.
"... Uh, hello?"
"Right now, immediately."
No pleasantries, no jokes, nothing worked.
The royal guard captain, who ignored his greeting, walked forward briskly. Then, he gestured with his eyes, pointing to his side.
"Please follow me."
"......."
It seemed like the King had caught on to something.
'That bearded dumpling, he must know I met with the Archbishop.'
That's why he was making such a fuss about calling me right now.
And his guess was spot on.
Following the royal guard captain into the palace, Kim Jangcheol was once again summoned before the King. As soon as the King saw him, he shouted with a trembling voice.
"Sir Kim Jangcheol? I trusted you...!"
"I, too, deeply trust Your Majesty."
"But how could you! You, with someone like the Archbishop!"
"What's wrong with the Archbishop?"
Unfazed by the scolding pouring down on him, he boldly asked instead.
The bearded dumpling King, his chubby and plump cheeks shaking, spoke.
"Wrong? Of course there is! The Archbishop has been opposing my plans for exploring the abandoned lands for a long time, and he is one of the key figures in that."
"I had no knowledge of that at all. Furthermore, today's meeting started when the Archbishop unilaterally visited my residence."
"....So, what did the Archbishop ask of you?"
"He asked me to refuse Your Majesty's command to explore the abandoned lands."
"Exactly! So what did you do?"
"So, I accepted his proposal."
"Exactly... what?"
The round eyes of the bearded dumpling King widened in surprise.
But Kim Jangcheol wasn't bothered.
On the contrary, he became even more shameless.
Thus, even more dependable.
"Thanks to deceiving the Archbishop, I was able to acquire additional gold ingots, which will greatly help in carrying out Your Majesty's mission to explore and develop the abandoned lands."
"....What?"
The King, no, His Majesty, was in shock.
And doubted his own ears.
Has his hearing gone bad recently?
No, it couldn't be.
Then, what in the world was that nonsense he just heard?
While he pondered, Kim Jangcheol's oily words continued smoothly, sticking to his lips.
"As I just said, I deceived the Archbishop, and thanks to that, I secured additional funds necessary for the exploration and development of the abandoned lands."
"What... kind of crazy talk is this?"
"I know it's crazy talk myself. I also know that Your Majesty will look at me with suspicious eyes. But I didn't care."
"Didn't care, why?"
"Because, regardless of any accusations or suspicions I might face, the additional funds will increase the chances of success in the exploration and development of the abandoned lands, which will spread Your Majesty's glory across the land."
"... What....."
Splash!
Unknowingly, the King felt his tears welling up. But he was the King of all. He couldn't let his dumpling-like, juicy eyes, no, his tears, fall recklessly in front of everyone!
He forced his tear ducts shut, and with a trembling voice, he asked Kim Jangcheol.
"Is what you just said true?"
"It is true, Your Majesty."
"Then, why...?"
"Why, you ask, do I foolishly devote myself so wholeheartedly to Your Majesty's mission?"
"Yes, yes. Why, why..."
"There's no special reason. It's just that I—"
"You?"
"I'm not sure."
"You're not sure?"
"Perhaps, it's because Your Majesty's sincere desire to develop the abandoned lands touched my heart," Kim Jangcheol said, as if contemplating.
"........"
"That's all, Your Majesty."
..... Chiiing.
The King's nose tingled. His round, dumpling-like cheeks wobbled more intensely.
Kim Jangcheol's praise flowed like a river.
'O, oh…..... Ohhh! To think I have such a loyal subject...!'
The King bit his lip tightly.
Then, he asked Kim Jangcheol.
"I am... curious. Why, why do you devote such foolish, unwavering loyalty to me?"
"I don't know either, Your Majesty."
"Then I am even more curious. How did you come to understand my true feelings so dearly?"
"Honestly, I'm not sure."
"Then I am even more sorry. I'm sorry for doubting you, for being so foolish and not realizing such sincerity."
"No, Your Majesty, please don't apologize."
"Don't apologize, why?"
"Because, Your Majesty, you have no reason to apologize to me."
"Why...?"
The King, holding back rising emotion, asked.
At that moment, Kim Jangcheol thought.
Right now, I can lie about anything.
To get the King's support, the Archbishop's gold bars, and the benefits of both, I could say whatever dirty things I needed to.
I could do anything.
It's for the sake of feeding my children.
It's for the sake of their meals.
So...
"That's... my loyalty...!"
" ...!"
Boom!
With Kim Jangcheol's final blow (?), the King's tears burst open!
Thanks to that, that day, Kim Jangcheol was able to obtain an additional 100 kilograms of gold bars from the King, the same as promised by the Archbishop.
And so, Kim Jangcheol thought.
Ah, with such solid support from the King, should I jus
t go ahead and properly develop and reform the abandoned lands now?
[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 ]