The Life of a Wise Cult Leader - Chapter 52

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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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Fire

[Penalty Reroll Ticket: Faith 1000]

-Would you like to reroll?-

Just perfect

An option needed exactly for times like this

Let’s set aside any doubts

‘If there’s such a supportive feature, why not give me a decent penalty from the start?’

I bought the penalty reroll ticket for the cost of 1000 faith while harboring slight dissatisfaction.

‘Please, just not a duplicate…’

I felt sad about the reality of rolling gacha in a fantasy open-world game, but I didn’t show it outwardly.

[Would you like to use the reroll ticket?]

[Recalculating Sacred Relic non-recovery penalty…]

Still, since it’s the five senses, there are 5 options instead of many, so the odds should be decent.

I just now remembered the old days when I had bad luck and hit the ceiling every time I did random gacha. I had forgotten that memory since my random draw luck has been pretty good lately…!

‘Taste or touch…! Smell would be fine too! Please, anything but a duplicate or hearing!’

[Penalty: Touch!]

It came up!!!

[Prepare for the penalty.]

[04:49]

“Then shall we have a meal and resume the lesson afterward?”

I accepted the meal time with a much more relaxed mind. Touch, touch of all things. What a wonderful penalty this is.

“Shall we?”

Hehehe. Even if I can’t feel touch, it would just mean my senses becoming dull.

It would be inconvenient not knowing where injuries are if I get hit, but I’m now in a Saint’s body.

What bold fool would dare strike a Saint? I even have instant healing prayer, so the penalty doesn’t really apply as a penalty.

The Central Church teacher who was conducting the lesson left, and a meal was delivered to the room. The Central Church meals are more modest than the banquet hall meals. Of course, since it’s a ‘banquet hall,’ that’s only natural.

It’s already been 2 days since I’ve been staying here, and feeding me only withered weeds can certainly be considered modest.

To think Antonio would eat what he wouldn’t give me. If the tableware wasn’t high-quality, I would have believed it was picked from some field.

‘I suppose this is how they feed all Saints.’

Sernuan Lumiere ate everything well anyway. Of course, the original me wasn’t particularly picky either, but continuously eating grass and tasteless wine while staying at the Central Church was getting tiresome.

During my meal, I noticed the ring on my finger.

It was the one they didn’t take when fitting jewelry earlier. I should return it later… I didn’t want to be caught for theft as a prospective Saint and end up in a cell again.

While removing the ring, my hand slipped.

Damn, the penalty made my fingertips numb-

“Ah.”

Plop.

The ring fell into the wine chalice.

Since I’ve roughly finished eating, I should pour it into the rice bowl. Then wash it in a water cup before returning it, wouldn’t that be fine? If I purify it, it would become incredibly clean anyway.

When I poured the wine into the rice bowl, the ring had turned pitch black.

‘Huh… this wasn’t originally a black ring, was it?’

When I carefully picked up the ring and consciously drew out purification power, the ring regained its original color as if it had never been discolored.

So…

Was I… being poisoned…?

*

Crash!

The wine bottle containing white wine struck the attendant’s head directly. Transparent wine and red blood mixed and flowed down.

“Agh…! B-but I clearly confirmed he finished the entire meal… That…”

“If you’re going to say he’s fine, shut your mouth.”

He scolded the attendant while sharpening his keen flamberge.

“If the poison gradually accumulates in his body, we should be able to kill him before the appointment ceremony.”

“You clearly said it was poison that could kill a hundred people with one drop. That’s why I paid a fortune to obtain it, yet he still hasn’t collapsed – do you truly not understand what this means?”

An unusual storm was approaching beyond the window. Rain pounded the glass violently.

“I apologize. B-but for now, I can only suggest waiting patiently until the poison accumulates in his body- Hk, hkak!”

Rage surged up. Especially when holding a sword.

But was that wrong? Those with power could do as they pleased.

He swung his sword without hesitation. Blood splattered through the air.

“Rather than wagging that useless tongue, wouldn’t it be better to become food for my sword?”

“I’m sorry! P-please spare me…! Next time, I’ll definitely, definitely k-kill him!”

Rumble!

Lightning struck.

“If he doesn’t die within nine days, you’ll be the one dying.”

The attendant groveled at his feet before clutching his bleeding hand and fleeing.

“Hah… There’s no choice…”

He tended to his sword that glowed ominously from drinking blood.

This was the precious sword that had made him a ‘Marquis.’

He needed to eliminate Sernuan Lumiere to rise higher. Only then could he solidify his position without being threatened by anyone…!

He would become a power holder of the Empire. Then end this war, conquer the Demon Realm, and pray for his comrade’s soul.

‘Since the widow defended him… she’ll surely suffer considerable damage when he’s gone.’

Deliberately creating controversy to cunningly bring someone down wasn’t his style.

Like when he cut down enemies and monsters with this sword on the battlefield, like when he earned his title – with dignity.

Acting without shame before reaching paradise.

Flash.

The sword gleamed in the lightning that struck beyond the window.

Flames in the fireplace greedily devoured dry firewood.

He pondered deeply about the strange man he had seen at the banquet hall.

“Sernuan Lumiere…”

He was certainly a peculiar man. To think he was hiding such madness while constantly showing a quiet, lake-surface-like demeanor.

Moreover, it was strange that he could withstand that deadly poison when he had nothing to avoid poisoning.

He didn’t know what sorcery was used, but he was clearly different from ordinary men.

Only he, who had experienced everything on the battlefield and earned the title of Marquis, could tell.

The scars covering his body warned him to be wary of that man. Those fools at the banquet hall chattered happily without knowing this.

And those white, long hair and pale eyes were like a gorgeous appearance warning that wild things are poisonous.

‘I need to kill him quickly…’

He raised his flamberge.

*

It’s already been 11 days since preparing for the Saint appointment ceremony at the Central Church.

‘At this rate, I’ll just evolve from a moth into a poison moth.’

I deliberately didn’t return the silver ring and kept testing it with every meal, and there wasn’t a single day when poison wasn’t found in the salad dressing and wine.

I was fine even after entering that Poison Lake, so how could something like this work on me now?

Even the most deadly poison becomes ordinary water the moment it touches my lips.

‘Couldn’t they give up soon…?’

It’s not like they’re trying to balance things out because I’ve been using regeneration power a lot recently.

Since purification power has been constantly spinning lately, I was getting tired too.

Even trying to find the person who poisoned me was difficult since people were attached to me all day and I had a busy schedule to handle.

I had been using weakness detection on all attendants whenever the cooldown finished, but I couldn’t catch any clues.

I only saw bare inner thoughts like ‘I’m hungry.’ ‘I want to go home.’ ‘The Saint is the best.’

There were other options available.

I could boldly announce that I was being assassinated.

But since I hadn’t confirmed how far the Central Church had rotted, it was a bit awkward to talk about it…

They might think ‘This bastard noticed!’ and send assassins instead of poison.

Just continuing to eat like this without noticing was the safe choice, but…

‘Just staying like this is also… annoying.’

What did I do to deserve eating poison every day like this?

Of course, I did do many things. I am a fraudulent cult bastard who deserves to die…!

‘I should meet with Kalebrin.’

I decided to call for Kalebrin. The task was easy.

When I hinted that she would also participate in the appointment ceremony, they agreed and called her to start preparing her appearance.

If I had known things would go this smoothly, I should have called for her earlier.

‘No. This also worked easily because I had built up some goodwill. If I had asked to call her from the first day, the attendants wouldn’t have even passed it up.’

Kalebrin, exhausted after finishing her preparations, came to my room with a completely tired face.

“It’s been a while, Sister Kalebrin.”

“Please don’t call me twice…”

She must have been tired from receiving the full course of preparations (skin, hair, outfit, hand and foot care, etc.).

“Haha… Unfortunately, Sister Kalebrin will be accompanying me as a guard during my Saint appointment ceremony.”

“…!”

Kalebrin made a despairing expression at the fact that she had to do this again.

“The reason I called for you, Sister… well, it’s not good news. I’ve been receiving assassination attempts lately.”

I lightly ignored her despair and said what I needed to say.

This time was also barely given free time, so I would have to go handle my schedule again soon.

“As-assassination…!?”

Her gloomy face was instantly colored with bewilderment.

“Yes… there’s been poison in every meal. Since I have God’s blessing, I was fine, but… it’s getting on my nerves since it continues.”

People should let me eat my meals. Of course, going without food for a few days wouldn’t hurt me.

“Poison…!”

“Whether you find out who it is and kill them or capture them, I’ll leave it to your discretion, Sister.”

“Um… I’ll try… It would be good if there’s food with poison in it. Do you have any?”

“I’ll set some aside during the next meal.”

“I can’t use magic… but with sorcery, um. If they’re of lower rank than me… I should be able to track their malice.”

“Sister, you really have various talents.”

It seemed like things would become easier.

“Then I’ll have to see you again tomorrow.”

Kalebrin’s expression turned deathly again, but she wasn’t extremely despairing.

“Yeah…”

*

The next day.

I handed her the poisoned wine.

Kalebrin, who had brought a large staff this time, placed the wine on the floor and drew a formation.

Soon the wine floated into the air and drew all sorts of sorcery characters. Red and purple glowing liquid swirled and wandered through the air.

“Um… this is snake venom from the forest in our hometown… You’re alive because you’re an ascetic. If it were someone else…”

It was a trailing sentence I could guess without hearing.

“Let me try to find the person who put in the poison…”

Kalebrin struck her staff on the floor again with a thud. The dark red liquid gathered together, then spun around swiftly and showed different sorcery characters in the air.

‘Wow~ I don’t understand it even when I look, but how does she do such things?’

It felt like visiting another team to report something and watching them code.

“Found it.”

Kalebrin interpreted the sorcery characters haltingly.

“The location is… um. Where is this…”

It seemed the location appeared but she didn’t know the place name.

Oh no. I overlooked the fact that Kalebrin’s geographical knowledge was low.

She tried to figure out where it was, then gave up.

“Roughly, he’s inside the castle.”

“Doesn’t it show the position like east or west?”

“Uh… um, I’m not sure… but he’s a man… in his 40s… pure Empire citizen.”

She began reciting his personal information.

Male, 40s, pure Empire citizen.

Probably meaning human? I don’t really remember encountering such a person.

‘If I at least knew his face, I could try using a skill. Or even his name…’

I pondered how to deal with the assassin who was trying hard to poison me. But no sharp solution came to mind.

While frustratedly browsing through other skill windows,

‘Huh?’

Was this always in the voice transmission skill window?

I discovered a small radar-shaped icon that I hadn’t seen before, whether it appeared after the update.

Suddenly, the update completion message from a few days ago flashed through my mind.

‘I’m sure there were minor convenience improvements besides the level system then. Though it wasn’t in [Details], the interface became subtly smoother, and the system’s guidance tone became friendlier than before…’

[Target Search: ] 📡

‘Is this… not a simple search, but a range scan function?’

I glanced at Kalebrin and quietly touched the icon in the skill window. Then a small description window appeared along with a skill casting phrase.

[Group target search range is limited to 20km. Do you want to cast?]

‘y’

[Searching…]

[Users within 20km: 28 people]

[Do you want to connect?]

‘It can even do this? Of course, the range is reduced compared to single connection… but that’s something that can be solved by upgrading. Voice transmission has become quite a useful skill, hasn’t it?’

Just as I was marveling at the new function.

Splash!

Suddenly the liquid lost its power and burst miserably on the floor.

It was a scene like a water balloon filled with blood had burst.

Kalebrin looked at the floor, then looked into my eyes and said as if reciting.

“He just died…”

Oh, this is awkward.

Should I be glad he died without me lifting a finger? Or should I prepare for a worse assassin to come?

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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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