Volume 7, Chapter 39 – The Invitation

“Ah.”

Suddenly remembering the child guides who had been waiting for her at the labyrinth entrance during the day, Yisi immediately opened the [Omniscient Map]. To her relief, although her group had spent more time than expected, the children were still waiting in the same spot and had not been taken away by their slave owner.

“Pepe, I’m heading over there. Come find me right after you turn in the quests, okay?”

“Don’t take too long.”

After letting her companions know, Yisi went straight to where the child guides were gathered. Although they were all squatting on the ground, looking listless like children abandoned by adults, their faces all lit up with hope the moment they saw her.

“It’s the noble lady! The noble lady is back!”

“See, I told you! Lady Enya is a cardinal of the Church; she wouldn’t lie to us. Look, she didn’t forget us after all.”

It seemed that because she had been gone for so long, the children had thought she was just joking with them.

Yisi gave an apologetic smile.

“Sorry, sorry. I got held up in the labyrinth for a bit. Are you hungry?”

“N-no.”

Although they said no, their eyes guiltily darted to the ground. Yisi also noticed that a younger girl standing at the back of the group was twitching her nose, sniffing the aroma of roasted meat in the air.

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Patting the head of the youngest girl, Yisi took out a silver coin and placed it in the hand of the oldest child.

“Go buy something good to eat over there.”

“What kind of food does the noble lady like?”

Yisi was stunned for a moment, then understood why the boy had said that.

They probably thought she was asking them to run an errand for her. Yisi couldn’t help but smile wryly.

“I’ve already given you this silver coin, so just buy whatever you like to eat.”

“Th… thank you, noble lady!”

Like a stone thrown into a deep pool, the boy’s loud thanks stirred up a wave of excitement among the other child guides.

“Let me touch the silver coin!”

“So this is what a silver coin feels like. It’s so heavy, not like an iron coin at all.”

“Stop dawdling! I’m so hungry I can’t walk anymore. Hurry up and go buy something to eat!”

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“I want an earth biscuit!”

“Who eats earth biscuits when we have a silver coin? They’re hard as a rock and break your teeth. Of course we’re buying meat.”

“Hmm… What about that spider meat over there? The last few times I came out of the labyrinth, I was so mesmerized by that spider meat I could barely walk.”

“M-me too. It looks so chewy.”

“It’s much cheaper than the other meats. The noble lady said she gave us the silver coin, which means the leftover money is still ours, right? We could buy spider meat several times with that.”

“Alright, then it’s decided! Spider meat it is!”

“Ohh!”

Hmm… if it’s spider meat, I have some ready in my inventory. But somehow, giving the food intended for the Cerberuses to the child guides felt wrong. Yisi consciously kept her mouth shut.

Just as Yisi was watching the children excitedly go to buy food, a group of people who slightly surprised her appeared in her field of vision. They had obviously spotted her as well and were heading straight for her with joyful expressions.

“Cardinal Yisi, so you were here!”

The person who appeared was Dominic. Other than the elf Nana, all the members of his team were wearing fine equipment, looking ready for battle at any moment.

“Dominic? Is there something you need?”

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“We had prepared a victory banquet tonight to celebrate breaking through the twelfth-floor guardian. But when we sent someone to the church to find you, we discovered you weren’t there. After searching for a long time, we finally learned from a staff member at the adventurer’s guild that you had entered the labyrinth. Thinking that you hadn’t brought any supplies like dry rations when you registered this afternoon, I assumed you wouldn’t go too deep into the labyrinth. But then Nana came back from the labyrinth tonight and told us that you had entered the tenth floor and even helped her fight off the people from the Divine Religion. Thinking that those people wouldn’t give up so easily, we were preparing to go down into the labyrinth to find you.”

He really is a kind person.

If this were a novel, Dominic would either be the protagonist or a close friend of the protagonist. In fact, Dominic was already the protagonist of Gota; all the adventurers trusted and followed him. Without a certain level of decisiveness and a spirit of sacrifice, it would be impossible to win the conviction of so many people.

Yisi spread her hands.

“As you can see, Dominic, I’m perfectly fine.”

“That’s wonderful to hear. Do you have any plans for tonight, Cardinal Yisi? If you go back now, Derrick and the others probably haven’t cleared the banquet table yet. As the person who saved a third of Gota’s core adventurers, your absence from the victory banquet would definitely be a regret for all the adventurers of Gota.”

“Is it alright? There will be a lot of people if I go.”

Although Dominic was a city lord and the son of a Marquis, he himself did not have much savings. He had even used the money for renovating the lord’s residence to subsidize the city’s finances. If she were to attend the banquet, she would definitely bring Camilla’s group and the child guides. If she didn’t introduce them, and the children had to explain themselves to the temple staff at the gate, they would surely be thrown out as liars by the fat priest. Rather than that, it would be better for them to go to the lord’s residence with her.

Dominic grinned and patted his chest heartily.

“Hehe, if I were paying for it myself, I’d definitely feel the pinch. But the one hosting the banquet is that guy, Marc. He’s always been rich. You not only saved so many adventurers, but you also saved me from my father’s grasp. It’s just a little food. I guarantee Marc won’t even dare to breathe a word of complaint!”

Just a moment ago he was like a righteous male lead, and now he’s become the best friend who screws over the male lead?

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Yisi couldn’t help but smile.

In any case, the food at the temple didn’t suit her taste. It wouldn’t be a bad idea to go along with Dominic and attend the banquet.

“Yes, yes. But I have to let my companions know first.” At this point, Yisi, who was about to turn, stopped in her tracks. “By the way, do you know what the Divine Religion is, Dominic? It’s the first time I’ve heard that name. In the labyrinth, they seemed to be trying to take Laxy.”

“Laxy?”

“The angel.”

Dominic interpreted Yisi’s words as concern for the future of the Ymir Church, and his tone was reassuring.

“Ah, it’s probably another one of their ‘revelations’. The people of the Divine Religion are always like that, using things like gospels and prophecies to bewitch people. But only those in the Norta Empire believe them. Most people in the Hels Kingdom still believe in the Ymir Church. You don’t need to worry, Cardinal Yisi.”

Revelation, gospel?

It sounded very much like charlatanism. But for some reason, Yisi’s intuition told her that these so-called prophecies might be more than just talk.

I hope it’s just a false impression. Although I am a cardinal of the Ymir Church, as long as I don’t actively seek out the Divine Religion, I won’t have any dealings with them. I have a feeling that getting involved with those people will become very troublesome. ¹ it is…

Without dwelling on it further, Yisi, along with her companions and the child guides, followed Dominic to the adventurer’s guild.