The Return of the Genius Ranker of All Times - Chapter 97

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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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Episode 97

Chapter 97.

Click.

Taksinel and Jerdic, who had nodded at Gildeti’s signal, locked the door.

The assembly hall had only one central door.

In other words, this place was now a sealed room.

“What…?”

“Huh?”

Before they could even be confused by the sudden action, Taksinel drew the sword at his waist.

The eerie metallic sound rang out clearly.

The tense priests flinched, but they too were people with considerable power. Some were even Caretakers from other religious orders.

No one would tolerate such treatment.

An elderly man in blue priestly robes who had been watching the situation stepped forward.

It was Verjid, a Caretaker from a renowned temple in Brion.

“…What exactly are you doing, Caretaker Gildeti.”

“Please bear with us.”

“Bear with you? Since when do we call locking doors and drawing swords by such words?”

“Do you know Article 71 of the doctrine?”

Even at the reasonable retort, Gildeti remained calm.

Gone was his previous benevolent appearance, replaced by a cold, machine-like voice.

“Article 71… surely that’s… when someone commits a taboo, the most influential priest can execute punishment… Wait. A taboo? That means…”

Caretaker Verjid, overwhelmed by the atmosphere, muttered then asked in surprise.

A taboo serious enough for another priest to execute punishment?

Such things certainly existed. But it was practically a non-existent provision.

To meet those conditions, one would have to be an evildoer who disrupted an entire city.

Article 71 had been invoked only twice in thirty years.

And both times were for the same reason.

“One who contracted with the Abyss.”

“…Crack.”

At someone’s entranced murmur, Jerdic ground his teeth hard.

Blood flowed from his clenched fist, running down his sword.

The priests stepped back at Jerdic’s bloodshot eyes filled with murderous intent and protested.

“A-Are you saying there’s someone among us who contracted with the Abyss!”

“Th-This is speculation! What evidence do you have…?”

“That’s right. To suspect us just because there were no traces in the Foul-Smelling Rock Forest!”

“Before that, are you doing this based on just that person’s word!?”

However, those protests were quickly silenced.

Because of the box Gildeti took from his chest, or more precisely, the black substance contained within. When the Caretaker gestured, an intense white light appeared on the surface of the black substance.

“Do you know what this is?”

“…That’s definitely.”

“Yes, divine power. And quite dense at that. This level would require at least a high-ranking priest.”

“You already confirmed it before calling us…”

“…Then don’t tell me you invited us to…?”

At the priest’s gulp and question, Gildeti didn’t bother to answer.

He simply spoke the words he had to say like a duty.

“This is a detection orb specially crafted by an excellent alchemist based on my detection abilities. It senses impure energy. I’ve completed preparations in advance, so I should be able to measure everyone here.”

“…”

“I hoped the moment to use this would never come. I wanted to believe the divine power was accidentally acquired over time, and the truth lay elsewhere. That’s why I asked the noble guest, but… there’s no choice.”

Gildeti’s voice, which had shown genuine regret, turned cold.

“From now on, take turns placing your hands on the orb and channeling your energy.”

A white flash means normal.

Staining with black energy means an Abyss contractor.

After briefly adding those words, Gildeti placed his hand first.

Then white light flashed and disappeared.

“I’m normal.”

Then he signaled, and Jerdic took the orb.

Jerdic’s appearance, with burst blood vessels in his eyes from suppressing his fierce killing intent, was chilling.

It seemed like he would strike without a moment’s hesitation if even a hint of black appeared.

“Caretaker Verjid.”

“…Huh?”

“Please be measured.”

Overwhelmed by that presence, the somewhat hesitant Verjid squeezed his eyes shut and placed his hand on the orb.

Whirr-.

The orb flashed and absorbed the mana from his hand.

Then the detection orb turned white before returning to its original state.

“You pass.”

“Phew…”

As Jerdic moved aside without looking back, Verjid unconsciously let out a sigh.

His body, which had been tense from the young knight’s killing intent, relaxed.

The other priests weren’t much different.

“Haa.”

“Whew…”

Every time Jerdic announced a pass, everyone wiped cold sweat and sighed with relief.

All had the same reaction except for a few elders and Caretakers.

Dohyun, watching the scene from a distance, nodded.

A Quest window was floating in front of Dohyun.

[Rat in a Trap]

-Grade: Rare+

-Description: All the renowned high-ranking priests are now gathered in the assembly hall of Laire Grand Temple.

Gildeti is certain there’s an Abyss contractor among them.

When someone is judged as a contractor or attempts to flee, a bloody battle will immediately break out.

Pass the measurement safely.

-Quest Success: Linked Quest ‘???’ generated.

-Quest Failure: Hostile relationship formed with the Priests of Brion.

[A forced linked Quest is currently in progress. You will be forcibly linked until all Quests are completed.]

‘So this is why he told me to investigate the traces.’

Gildeti probably knew from the beginning.

That divine power could be felt in the Abyss traces.

Even so, sending Dohyun was just groundwork. Groundwork to gather everyone in one place.

While there might have been an element of thorough investigation just in case, nothing would be more interesting to high-ranking priests than a foreigner knowing about the Abyss.

‘Well, he probably hoped it wasn’t true too…’

The key point was that he kept it secret even from Dohyun.

Not even giving him a hint meant his trust in Dohyun wasn’t at that level yet.

There was probably some testing purpose in sending him to investigate.

Whether he truly had abilities worthy of being Raven’s top graduate…

Dohyun had passed that test, and now he just needed to safely complete the measurement.

‘It won’t be difficult.’

Dohyun was Kashiyar’s successor, who could be said to be in an adversarial relationship with the Abyss.

There was no way Abyss traces would appear.

He just needed to watch for any Abyss contractors that might appear, or anyone who tried to flee.

An easy Quest compared to the warning message that appeared.

‘Since the forced chain Quest isn’t just one… the aftermath might be dangerous.’

Or maybe an unexpected situation will arise in this Quest that seemed easy.

Dohyun’s eyes sharpened.

‘I don’t know when something might appear. I need to watch carefully.’

‘Yes, Owner.’

‘Risa!’

Leaving the two Guardians with determined expressions behind, Dohyun focused his gaze.

It’s so quiet you’d wonder if all those people are really gathered there.

“Pass.”

“Phew.”

Only Jerdic’s low, cold voice and faint sighs occasionally echoed.

But if you listened carefully, you could hear several people chattering in whispers.

“What sudden misfortune is this…”

“The Abyss is a taboo matter that must be prioritized above all else, so what choice do we have.”

“I somehow suspect Elder Vizeta.”

“Certainly… He’s had a face like he’s being chased by something lately.”

“Isn’t Caretaker Serdi also suspicious?”

These were people who had passed the orb of death.

It seemed those who had been confirmed as definitely innocent were gathering to theorize about the culprit.

Since about half had finished the measurement by now, there were many such groups. Among them were those who suspected Dohyun.

“I suspect the foreigners.”

“Honestly, we have years of history together… Those foreigners are more suspicious than us.”

“After ‘that incident,’ we’ve managed things so carefully, how could more contractors appear?”

“Shh, they’ll hear. Lower your voice.”

“Hmph, we’ll know soon enough.”

It wasn’t something to feel bad about – it was natural.

He would also suspect complete strangers rather than those he’d been close with.

Moreover, unlike them who were residents of this world, wasn’t he a foreigner?

There was no need to worry about such things – he could prove it with results.

That’s what he thought.

“Surely black mana will flow out.”

“Let’s watch carefully so they don’t escape.”

“Don’t worry about that. Sir Taksinel is there, isn’t he? Don’t you see those fierce eyes?”

“…Ugh, just looking at them is creepy.”

Until he heard those words.

‘…Wait. Black mana?’

Dohyun’s gaze instinctively turned to the side.

Then he saw it.

Jihad’s appearance, his complexion pale white and completely rigid. It was the first time Dohyun knew Jihad’s skin could turn so white.

‘…O-Owner. What do I do?’

It was that serious a matter.

Because Jihad’s mana was black mana itself.

Mana as black as pitch, incomparable to dark attribute mages.

Unlike them who had attributes, Jihad’s mana was inherently black.

If he placed his hand on the detection orb, it would surely turn black. Emergency lights went off in his head.

‘Damn…!’

How should he get through this?

Dohyun’s urgent gaze quickly swept the surroundings.

Jerdic, measuring while glaring at each high priest with murderous eyes.

He was ready to draw his sword at any moment.

Taksinel?

Standing firmly in front of the door, he was already gripping a drawn sword.

Breaking through and escaping from him, the Vice Captain of the Laire Order of Knights, in one go was impossible.

The moment they crossed swords, the high priests would immediately surround them.

Then Jerdic would quickly join in too.

‘…There’s no answer.’

No matter what he did, there was no solution.

Those who seemed harmless just moments ago now felt like enemies.

Right now, he was standing in the middle of an enemy base.

‘Force won’t work. Escape is impossible too.’

Was he confused by Dohyun’s urgent appearance that he’d never seen before?

‘Owner…’

Shaking pupils, as if scared shitless, were looking up at Dohyun.

Still, perhaps he’d used his head somewhat, as the guy who’d been reading the situation cautiously asked.

‘Can’t you just cancel my summoning?’

‘…No, that would make us more suspicious. Once reverse summoned, I can only summon you again after 8 hours, and suspicion will only grow during that time.’

There were already dozens of wary gazes directed at them.

If Jihad suddenly disappeared, they would surely be suspected. It was obvious they’d face incitement and witch hunting.

In the end, he had no choice but to persuade them with words…

Would they really believe his words?

‘No way.’

His head shook involuntarily.

How would they know about the characteristics of the Black Clan called the Forgotten Clan?

Right now, even Dohyun himself didn’t know whether that was a characteristic of the Black Clan or just Jihad’s trait.

It was a crisis.

He’d thought unexpected situations might arise, but he hadn’t thought of something like this.

If he died now, it wouldn’t simply end with Quest failure.

-You will become hostile with all Brion Temples.

The formation of hostile relationships as a Quest failure penalty.

The moment that proceeded, Dohyun wouldn’t even be able to set foot in Brion.

That wasn’t all.

Since his job Quest had started and Brion was a city where one communed with gods, Brion’s influence wasn’t at the level of just some passing city.

Since it influenced even the Empire, if hostile relationships formed, inconvenient situations would inevitably arise in the future too.

He couldn’t let that happen.

‘But how?’

Honestly, he didn’t know much about Jihad’s black mana either.

No, before that, was it really true that Jihad wasn’t connected to the Abyss?

‘I don’t really know anything about this guy. What if the Black Clan is a clan connected to the Abyss?’

What if that’s why they became an extinct clan now…

Damn, it sounded too plausible. Then Dohyun paused at a memory that suddenly flashed by.

‘…Or not? Gamillion had no reaction.’

Gamillion hates gods and the Abyss.

If he’d sensed traces of the Abyss from Jihad, there surely would have been a reaction.

The same when they encountered Kashiyar before that.

Far from disliking Jihad, Kashiyar had found him interesting.

Thinking of how he seemed to know something about Jihad’s identity, it was clear Jihad had no connection to the Abyss.

‘Phew…’

Thinking that way made him feel much more at ease, but even so, it was back to square one.

In the end, he still had to prove it.

It was while he was lost in such thoughts.

“Pass… Everything is normal.”

“Then the person remaining now is…”

Jerdic’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt.

And when he raised his head at the sound of rustling clothes, countless eyes pierced into him.

Everyone was looking in his direction.

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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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