Adopting the Male Protagonist Changed the Genre - Chapter 86

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 86

* * *

After Belinda left the inn upon receiving an invitation from the temple.

Cesar’s quiet gaze swept over the village scenery before fixing on the low mountain behind it.

The inn keeper had said that thanks to the holy relic, the village was unusually warm, warm enough to gather spring herbs from the backhill even in winter.

Though his words were somewhat exaggerated, it was certainly true that the weather was strangely mild.

However, the problem was that within that warm air, there was a trace of dark magic so faint that only Cesar could detect it.

Cesar rose from his seat to find the source of this impure energy.

But then he soon realized that he was not alone.

His eyes fell upon Leo’s round head as the child rested his chin on the windowsill, waiting eagerly for Belinda’s return.

He couldn’t leave the child alone in an unfamiliar place.

But it also wouldn’t be appropriate to take him to a place where unknown dangers might lurk.

After some consideration, Cesar decided to ask Leo for his opinion.

“I’m planning to quietly look around the village. Would you like to come with me?”

Leo blinked at Cesar’s words and pinpointed exactly the key point.

“‘Quietly’?”

“Yes, quietly.”

Leo looked around to see if anyone was eavesdropping, then whispered in a hushed voice.

“It’s an undercover investigation!”

Undercover investigation? Where on earth did he learn such words?

He was about to say that wasn’t the case, but upon reflection, it wasn’t entirely wrong.

The sudden lockdown had made the villagers’ nerves sharp.

Therefore, he planned to investigate this matter while avoiding people’s attention as much as possible.

“…You could say that.”

Then Leo gave him serious advice.

“But Knight, if you’re wearing a mask, anyone would recognize that you’re a knight. Then it wouldn’t be an undercover investigation.”

“…”

That was correct. It might be different in the vast and bustling Royal Capital, but in a small village like this, Cesar’s mask would certainly stand out wherever he went.

After pondering for a while, Cesar finally brought his hand to his mask and spoke.

“Today’s outing must be kept secret from Lady Blanche.”

The market in Porbett Village was bustling with an unusual atmosphere.

“Just thinking about that thief makes me so angry I can’t sleep even in the middle of the night! Of all things to steal, how dare he take the saint’s holy relic!”

“You couldn’t sleep not because of anger, but because last night was unusually warm, wasn’t it?”

“How heartbroken Priest Mellio must be. I should visit him this evening with some food.”

Whenever the villagers gathered, they were busy cursing the thief who dared to steal the temple’s holy relic.

While they were venting their frustration, a middle-aged man stamped his feet and accidentally bumped into a passing pedestrian.

“Oh my, I’m so sorry… Gasp!”

An exclamation burst from the man’s mouth when he saw who he had bumped into.

It was a handsome father and son who looked as if they were made from the same mold.

Unlike the son who looked completely harmless, the father emanated an intimidating presence that sent chills down one’s spine.

Cesar nodded to accept the man’s apology and asked.

“Is the backhill of the village normally without snow like that?”

“The mountain, you say? Well, it’s winter, so there should be snow… Huh?”

The man’s face showed confusion as he looked back at the mountain behind the village at Cesar’s words.

Thanks to the holy relic, winter was mild, but this was still a village close to the Northern Territory.

So the snow on the mountain shouldn’t have melted, yet somehow the mountain was showing patches of dark red soil.

“Well, now that the holy relic has been stolen, perhaps heaven is angry. The weather is certainly strange. It’s warm enough to melt the snow on the mountain.”

That answer was sufficient.

Cesar immediately took Leo’s hand and headed toward the backhill.

Leo followed Cesar with quick steps while glancing up at his mentor’s face.

‘Knight really looks like a knight.’

Was this what the knights in the fairy tales he vaguely admired looked like? Leo couldn’t take his eyes off Cesar’s bare face.

‘He’s so solid and shining. He’s definitely not soft like me.’

He wanted to become an adult like this.

For that goal, Leo resolved to follow Cesar’s teachings: not to be picky with food, get enough sleep, and train hard, as he hurried to keep up with Cesar.

Before long, they arrived at the foot of the mountain.

Cesar carefully observed the mountain’s atmosphere first. The ominous energy mixed in the air was flowing down from the mountain’s peak.

He grabbed a handful of the mountain’s soil. The ground that should have been frozen solid crumbled like dry sand.

That wasn’t all. Even for a winter mountain, it was eerily quiet. As if there wasn’t a single animal.

Finally, Cesar examined the yellowed, dying needles of the coniferous trees and spoke in a heavy voice.

“The land is dying.”

“The land is dying?”

“Yes, all the plants are withering from their roots.”

From inside to outside, the mountain was dying and withering away.

With this, Cesar could be certain.

“Something is sealed in the mountain.”

That seal was rapidly weakening, and the evil energy of whatever was sealed was flowing down to the village.

* * *

‘This is really driving me crazy.’

I held my head in frustration.

All the way back from the temple to the inn, I could only think that I was doomed.

I had hoped that the contempt that briefly flashed in Giuseppe’s eyes when he blessed me was just my imagination.

But at tonight’s dinner, I realized the reason for the hostility he showed me.

‘He suspects I’m a dark mage.’

I’m not a dark mage, but I am connected to dark magic – I couldn’t say that, so I had no choice but to keep my mouth shut.

But at the same time, I couldn’t hide my confusion.

‘Chaser said that the traces of dark magic remaining in me have almost disappeared.’

So he wouldn’t be suspecting me of being a dark mage because of traces of dark magic.

Moreover, the temple had certain procedures for identifying dark mages.

“Dark mages don’t go around shrouded in evil energy for priests to recognize them. To the eyes of those holy people, dark mages look no different from ordinary people.”

“Then how do priests distinguish dark mages?”

“They have what they praise as their great god’s divine power. Something like the ‘Eye of Truth.'”

‘Eye of Truth.’

It was like an upgraded version of lie detector glasses.

A divine power that clearly distinguished between lies and truth hidden in words.

Therefore, when a high-ranking priest with the ‘Eye of Truth’ held a sacred trial and simply asked the accused dark mage this question, everything became crystal clear.

“As God’s representative, I ask you. Are you a dark mage?”

No lie, not even brainwashing, could escape God’s divine power.

Therefore, Chaser had told me that as long as I avoided being accused of being a dark mage, there wouldn’t be any major problems.

But as always, life was about practice, and things in the world never went according to my plans.

‘Giuseppe showed no signs of using the Eye of Truth.’

I had no idea what evidence he had to suspect that I was connected to dark magic.

For now, I resolved not to carelessly bring out Cao in the village to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, and hurriedly went to find Priest Mellio.

It was to warn him that a landslide might occur and that he should be prepared to evacuate the villagers at any time…

“Not an avalanche but a landslide? That’s impossible. The ground in this region is frozen, so landslides rarely occur. What exactly makes you worry about a landslide?”

I couldn’t say anything in response to those words.

I couldn’t very well say that I had seen a future where a landslide would bury the village under piles of earth.

Moreover, Priest Mellio became particularly wary of me when I mentioned evacuating people.

At the dinner, I had been branded as a dark mage and suspect in the theft of sacred relics by Giuseppe.

If such a person suddenly brought up landslides and recommended escape… Yes, even I would be suspicious.

The only one with enough authority to warn about landslides and prepare the people was the Marquess, but he too had been pointed out as a suspect in the sacred relic theft, so I couldn’t rashly request a meeting.

‘First, I need to find out why the landslide occurs.’

I was returning to the inn, having decided to uncover the cause of the landslide first and then go back to Priest Mellio.

“I’ve looked into something separately, and I think you should know about it too.”

As if he had been waiting for my return, Penandel spoke up urgently.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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