Chapter 96

The next day, Kaint visited the temple with his ten siblings.

‘Acting like he wouldn’t come?’

He was truly a man who hesitated at the wrong times when progress was needed, yet took giant leaps without hesitation when steps should be taken gradually.

Well, ships were faster than carriages in this era, so it wasn’t strange to advance rapidly when conditions allowed.

I welcomed Kaint with a smile.

“Welcome, Admiral.”

“I didn’t send word of our visit, so I didn’t expect to be greeted so promptly.”

Kaint blushed slightly, appearing somewhat flustered, and greeted me respectfully.

“Did you foresee this as well?”

“…I am the Divine Master, after all.”

The truth was that I hadn’t expected this at all and had slipped while getting out of bed, but that was a secret.

‘Since Kaint seems to have no trust in me, it might be better to play the role of the extraordinary divine representative rather than an ordinary human to build affection.’

I looked at the ten children gathered behind Kaint. When our eyes met, I could see them swallowing nervously.

“Hello, Ken.”

“Y-you know me?”

The eldest, Ken, asked me with a surprised expression.

He must have heard from Kaint that I knew their names, but he didn’t expect me to recognize his face.

“I am the Divine Master. I’ve known all of you for a long time.”

“Divine Master…”

“Kiara is on the left, and Kate is on the right, correct?”

“Wow! Yes!”

“That’s right!”

The twin sisters, Kiara and Kate, squealed and clasped each other’s hands. Though they had identical faces, their hair was parted in opposite directions, making them easy to distinguish.

‘In-game media, distinguishing twins by the direction of their hair parting is the standard rule.’

Of course, it’s hard to tell whether this game is faithful to clichés or if it’s trying to subvert them, but it ended up breaking and going crazy.

As I called each child by name, their faces turned red. Meeting the Divine Master they had admired and having me recognize and call them by name seemed to be an exciting and joyful experience for the children.

“Corin. You don’t need to stay back there. Come closer.”

“…Yes.”

I thought it would take time to get close to this shy child, but surprisingly, Corin nodded, squeezed through his siblings, and extended his hand toward me.

“Divine Master. M-my precious key disappeared.”

“Huh?”

“I-I was keeping it to give to you when I met you. B-but it disappeared.”

“A key? Um…”

The key Corin gave me in the previous playthrough. Being a bound item, it seems it didn’t return to the child’s hands even after going back in time.

“Don’t worry, Corin. I’ve already received it.”

“W-what?”

You from the previous playthrough gave it to me.

…Since I couldn’t say that, I decided to speak in a way that would preserve the child’s innocence.

“I am the Divine Master, so I can understand when Corin earnestly wishes for something. I’ve wanted to meet you ever since I received your gift.”

“R-really?”

The child looked up at me, half in doubt.

“Do I look like I’m lying?”

“N-no! That’s not it! I just c-can’t believe it. I’m not doubting you.”

“Hehe. Good. Then I’ll make you believe.”

I straightened my back and activated the skill window.

I intended to properly demonstrate the Divine Master’s abilities in front of Kaint’s siblings. Then Kaint wouldn’t be able to look at me with disdain, calling me an untrustworthy traitor!

‘Come forth, Scales of Judgment!’

You cannot currently use [Skill: Scales of Judgment].

‘Huh?’

Scales of Judgment

Usage Condition: Reputation 100 or higher, can be activated once per quarter (Currently unavailable)

Would you like to spend 30,000 gold to reset the usage count of [Skill: Scales of Judgment]?

Ah, I forgot it could only be activated once per quarter. Not once a month, but once per quarter—isn’t that an unconscionably long cooldown for a skill? But it’s futile to expect conscience from this system anyway.

‘How am I supposed to earn 30,000 gold?’

Selling items would incur more fees, putting my account in the negative. Maybe I should borrow from one of the characters I’m pursuing.

‘Should I have accepted the 5 billion from Cedric?’

It would have been lost with the bad ending and not saved anyway, but I felt a bit regretful in hindsight.

‘Should I borrow from Hexion? But my basic funds were only 10,000 gold. Would Hexion even have 30,000 gold? Probably not?’

Kaint would likely have it, but suddenly asking to borrow money at his current affection level might lead to unpredictable results. Unpredictable, but neither curious nor promising, so let’s stop thinking about it.

‘It’s okay. If I can’t use the Scales of Judgment, I can use the Blade of Judgment!’

Since Hexion cleared his name on his own in this playthrough, I haven’t used the Blade yet. Being made of divine power, it’s not dangerous, so it should be fine to wield it in front of the children.

“Leave it to me. I’ll show you something good.”

I didn’t mind showing off my heroic side and hearing cheers from the children, so I cleared my throat and reached toward the altar candles.

‘Flames! Become my blade!’

Too embarrassed to chant the spell aloud, I just tensed my eyes and recited it internally, but a warning sound dinged and a skill cancellation message appeared.

You cannot currently use [Skill: Blade of Judgment].

‘Huh?’

Why not this time? What’s the problem?

Blade of Judgment

Usage Condition: Reputation 800 or higher, can be activated once per quarter (Currently available)

Current Reputation: 779 (Skill cancelled as conditions are not met.)

“….”

Oh no. I forgot to check the skill conditions.

‘The Blade requires a higher reputation to use.’

I didn’t know because I’d never had a skill cancelled due to reputation before.

Come to think of it, I almost used the Scales or Blade in front of the priests and holy knights to prove Baal and Venom’s betrayal, but if Hexion hadn’t appropriately stopped me, I might have headed for another bad ending.

Still, I only need 21 more points, so I could quickly fill that by demonstrating a small technique.

“Divine Master, what’s wrong?”

The children looked up at me with curious faces. I pretended to stretch, clenching and unclenching my hands, raising and lowering my arms, then patting my shoulders.

“My shoulders were stiff from standing too long, so I just stretched a bit. Now I’ll share a blessing with all of you.”

“A blessing? You just said you’d make us believe…”

“Ah, well, it’s a blessing that will make you believe in me.”

Feeling awkward, I forced a smile and placed my hand on Corin’s head. My clumsy excuse seemed to work, as Corin quietly accepted my touch.

His hair, warmed by the sunlight, gently tickled my palm. Indeed, stroking something soft and warm is the best when stressed. I momentarily forgot my embarrassment and enjoyed the healing feeling.

“Ah…”

Perhaps feeling the divine power flowing through my palm, Corin trembled slightly. When I removed my hand, the child’s cheeks turned red, and he smiled broadly.

“It really is. The Divine Master was right.”

I’m glad it worked. I almost died of shame in front of the children.

“Divine Master, me too!”

As Corin stepped back, Kelly suddenly thrust her head under my hand. Carol quickly lined up behind her sister.

Fortunately, the children’s reactions were positive, so I blessed all ten of Kaint’s siblings.

“How do you all feel?”

“I feel refreshed.”

“It’s warm and feels good!”

Pleased with their satisfied responses, I smiled warmly and looked at Kaint. His expression, which had been full of wariness, softened slightly. When our eyes met, he quickly lowered his gaze and bowed to me.

“Thank you for blessing my siblings.”

He was a man who knew courtesy.

That meant his affection had increased.

[Kaint]’s current affection level: 19

‘But why hasn’t my reputation changed?’

I had used the blessing skill on Kaint’s siblings, and their reactions were clearly positive. Yet strangely, there was no change in my reputation.

‘Why? Did these children, like Kaint, just politely thank me out of courtesy despite not being impressed?’

Wondering if there was an error causing a delay in updating, I stared at the reputation window and noticed some tiny text written below the reputation number.

I narrowed my eyes. This wasn’t an insurance policy—why would they make the text so small?

[Abnormal Status: Demon Contract] is in effect.

“….”

Somehow, this message seemed familiar. Now that I think about it, I remember complaining about some kind of shackle being placed on me while pursuing Marvis.

‘No way.’

When I clicked on the abnormal status message, a helpful explanation followed.

For 30 days, you will receive full support and respect from all individuals in the Dark City.

Reputation gained from the demon race is doubled.

You cannot gain reputation from individuals outside the demon race.

‘I’m doomed. What can I do?’

While affection can be raised if it drops, if I can’t accumulate reputation, I won’t be able to use the Blade of Judgment. I only have two skills to begin with, and if one gets sealed like this, what am I supposed to do?

As I was grinding my teeth and glaring at the system window, Kaint asked me:

“Divine Master. I have one question.”

“Admiral?”

He was looking at me with a strange gaze.

“You said you received Corin’s gift, so where are you keeping the present my sibling gave you?”

“….”

Since it’s an item bound to me, it’s probably in my inventory, right?

I discreetly activated my inventory and glanced at the item list from the corner of my eye. However, there was no key icon in the green-marked slot.

‘What? Wasn’t it a bound item? Where did it disappear to?’

Did it vanish along with the data when the bad ending occurred? But if that were the case, shouldn’t it have returned to Corin’s hands since the previous data was carried over?

While I was frantically flipping through the item pages with my eyes, I heard a dull thud from far away.

“Huh?”

“Divine Master, look out!”

A large cloud of sand dust enveloped us with a heavy rumble.

“Wah!”

Hexion hid me in his arms, while Kaint urgently moved his ten siblings behind him for safety.

“Cough!”

Fortunately, it wasn’t a major dust storm, so it settled quickly. I pushed Hexion away to check on the small children who were still coughing.

“Is everyone okay? Kaint?”

“Divine Master…”

Golden eyes filled with anger turned toward me.

Kaint’s gaze was so fierce that I froze momentarily. Why was he looking at me with the face of someone confronting a heinous traitor? I didn’t cause the dust storm!

“Shin Joo-ah.”

“Eek?”

A sharp metallic voice rang out above my head. I tried to look up, but Hexion, who had grabbed me, kept me confined in his arms, blocking my view.

However, even without seeing, it wasn’t difficult to recognize who was speaking to me.

“Looking for this?”

The shadow of a man on the ground stretched out his arm. I could see the large hand shadow holding something small between the thumb and index finger.

‘A key-shaped… Ah!’

Now I remember—this inventory belonged to Marvis.

Even if the ownership was mine, if we were sharing an inventory, we could take out each other’s items. That’s how he was able to remove my shoes and put them in the inventory.

“M-Marvis.”

“I wondered what you were doing after abandoning me, and it seems you’ve opened a kindergarten. If you wanted to take care of children, you should have said so.”

Marvis, who had been standing on top of a massive pillar in the temple, jumped down and landed on the ground.

“Then I would have made you carry my child.”

Hexion, who had been holding my shoulders, changed his position to hide me behind him.

“Don’t come any closer, filthy demon.”

“The filthy one is you, who kidnapped my woman and violated her.”

There was a cracking sound when Marvis stretched his body.

He was certainly in front of Hexion, but strangely, I felt a chill down my back.

“Divine Master. So you’ve finally brought a demon into the Holy City.”

Kaint’s sharp voice came from beside me. When I turned my head, his golden eyes glowed fiercely.

“Did you intend to take my siblings as hostages?”

The children gathered behind Kaint were looking at me with anxious eyes.

It seems he’s misunderstanding. I didn’t invite the children to put them in danger!

“Ah, what’s this? I thought you needed a delivery man, but you needed a villain for a hostage situation? You want a lot, Shin Joo-ah.”

This side seems to be misunderstanding, too. I didn’t open the inventory to request Marvis to deliver an item! And I certainly didn’t want him to play the villain in front of the children!

“Shin Joo. There’s nothing to worry about. Leave matters like this to me, your foremost guardian knight.”

Hexion, who had misunderstood something else, gripped his sword hilt and declared proudly. Suddenly, the back of my head started throbbing.

It was the beginning of a chaotic three-way confrontation.