Chapter 221 – Mission debrief.

A gentle breeze flew past his hair while he glanced into the distance. The rumbling of the horses had already calmed down but the conversation he had with the inquisitor felt like a dream. How could such a person have appeared before him just like that and be involved with his father Wentworth Arden?

His father was a famous knight that had gained power almost exclusively through military conflicts. Even though his age was close to eighty he still looked like someone in his late forties. The increase in his levels allowed him to keep his body youthful and battle-ready.

The inquisitor seemed to know him well and looked to be about the same age. This was even harder to pinpoint as besides having a high level he was a Paladin that had contact with various divine artifacts and elixirs that could prolong one’s life even more. In which conflict the two had met he had no idea but they had certainly worked together.

‘Did they take part in some skirmishes with other cults in the past?’

Roland tried to think back to some conflicts in the past that his father could have taken part in and where the church was involved in. Yet while he was contemplating this issue the people around him were getting rowdy.

“Did that Inquisitor wipe his mind with that interrogation skill?”

Orson asked while Darlak quickly replied while the two stared at Roland.

“Did he? Not like he talks a lot, to begin with, just give the lad some time.”

His stoic responses were already known to the adventurers but after seeing him surrounded by a shell of divine energy it wasn’t surprising. An inquisitor picked by the church had certain skills that could force people to talk. In their eyes, the inquisitor had interrogated Roland by the use of some mind-affecting skill that could have caused mental damage.

“Did his brain turn to mush? Can I get his magic items if he doesn’t recover?”

Asked Senna which caused Roland to furrow his brows when looking at the halfling.

“You know that I can hear you, right?”

Senna just smiled while skipping away as if she was scared. Soon everyone looked toward their temporary leader. It was clear to him that they wanted an explanation but he surely would not disclose that the inquisitor knew his father or that he was a noble. It wouldn’t be hard to lie about the exchange as everyone had preconceived notions about the people from the golden order.

“I don’t know, he used some skill on me, and then everything went dark. The next thing that I remember is him walking away.”

“Damn bastards doing what they want.”

Grisalde’s loud voice was heard by everyone as she slammed her fist into the side of the wagon. The others could just nod at the explanation which made a lot of sense.

“Wayland looks fine though? Maybe the rumors about those skills being dangerous were false?”

Orson commented while looking between Roland and the mad Grisalde.

“At least they left without throwing us into the dungeon, I don’t know about you but I’m famished let us depart toward the city.”

Darlak said while looking toward Roland. It was as if he was waiting for a confirmation from the leader.

“Yes, we should go, those soldiers were probably sent here by the merchant.”

“I hope that bastard still intends to pay us!”

This time around Senna was the mad one, she along with Grisalde nodded at each other while agreeing. The two didn’t seem to like each other but when it came to money they were quick to see past their disagreement. The other participants from the caravan were all tired too without needing to tell them twice, they all soon departed towards the city of Reeka.

Thus they finally arrived at their final destination. This city was a massive hub of commerce through which many caravans like this one came through. They would stock up on all sorts of items and head out to the smaller towns to bring in vast amounts of profit.

A nearby port with access to fast ships added to the city’s prosperity but this was not all. This area was purposely created in a place a dungeon had sprung up which hastened the progress and made a lot of money flow in for the city’s development. Even now as Roland and his companions were approaching the city gates they could see the results.

“So this is Reeka the city of merchants?”

“Did it have that name?”

Orson asked Senna that brought up the name.

“Yeah, that’s why don’t even think about heading out alone, you’ll probably get scammed by some whores like last time.”

“Hey, you said that you wouldn’t bring it up again!”

“I’ll stop bringing it up when you stop acting like an idiot, why did I even decide to join you two simpletons. One is a drunkard and the other is a pervert…”

“A dwarf is not far away from his liquor.”

Darlak just laughed from the side while Senna was grumbling and didn’t seem to mind being called a drunkard.

“This place is run by the merchant guild, it’s more similar to the thieves guild if you ask me. Those bastards will squeeze everything out of you if they can…Then there are the nobles…”

Roland was on the side listening to the banter between the two adventurers. It seemed that this was the first time they were here as well. Senna was clearly the information gathering type that knew a few things about the island they had arrived on.

This was nothing new to him as he had stayed on this side of the kingdom for a few years already. This city was a bit similar to Edelgard but instead of craftsmen, there were various other venues that brought in money and exotic wares.

“Halt! Let me see your papers.”

After arriving at the gate the soldiers asked them for their identification. Being the impromptu leader Roland had to deal with it. Thankfully the city had been alerted to the cult drama that had been happening and he only needed to show his adventurer card to explain himself.

With the help of smaller merchants that had also survived the journey, it didn’t seem that they would have trouble with going in. While conversing with the soldiers the large Valerian Noble crest on the entrance gate didn’t go unnoticed. This was a large city that brought in vast quantities of money, this money could be quickly spent in the auction houses that the noble family was known for.

This book’s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

“You seem to be speaking the truth, we will escort the carts to where they can be examined by the merchant in question, it would be best if you report to the adventurer’s guild and inform them.”

The guard said while letting them through, with this their journey was almost over but a few things needed to be ironed out.

“We need to make a report to the guild, they should help us clear things out with that merchant.”

Roland commented while checking if he did not leave anything behind. Besides the satchel filled with some money, magic crystals and his notes he still had his runic weapons. The staff he used was recovered but had been bent out of shape. His armor’s runes had degraded due to overloading them and using the mending skill but he would still be able to protect himself.

“They better, they should pay us double for what we went through.”

Grisalde said with a grimace on her face, even now the barbarian was unsure about being paid. Darlak that was walking behind her and chuckled.

“You’re a big dreamer my large friend!”

“Shut up dwarf.”

‘After a contract is signed there won’t be any increase in the wage even if the adventurer suffers greatly.’