novelraw Chapter 177: The Temple Mission
Chapter 177: The Temple Mission
Immediately after, Ron dismissed the Conspiracy state with a casual gesture. Hathaway, in her capacity as Head of Household, issued an order at once — spare no expense and construct the One-Star Temple before month's end, or in the shortest time possible.
It wasn't a particularly daunting task. Four-Star players were terrifying in combat, but they were no less capable when it came to manual labor.
And all the necessary foundations for building a One-Star Temple were already in place.
Leon's Title Task actually included the One-Star Temple — but this was the difference between eighty points and a perfect hundred. Two One-Star buildings would get you eighty; three would get you a hundred.
But eighty points was enough to trigger a settlement.
George didn't need to get involved in any of that. Armed with an axe and accompanied by a mercenary, his job was simple — go chop down One-Star quality lumber.
Ron took a team to quarry Two-Star stone. Hathaway led another team to dig the foundation at speed.
All three groups moved at once, and the efficiency was nothing short of extraordinary.
Of course, proper sentry coverage was also essential — but a single Four-Star Hunter like Little John was more than sufficient for that. There was also Cabin Station No. 2 at the front line; the Mad Baron's army couldn't simply charge over the mountains directly.
That evening, Level 2 Priest Joseph regained consciousness. The passive properties of a One-Star Fortress were genuinely impressive.The moment he woke, George, Ron, and Hathaway rushed to his side. This was a pivotal story character — every word he spoke carried weight.
Joseph at this moment was swollen all over. His face looked like a bloated dumpling, and his eyes could only open the slimmest of slits. With great effort, he swept his gaze across Ron and Hathaway before finally letting it rest on George.
"Ah, young man — it was you. Praise the gods above, it was their radiant glory that guided you to rescue me, was it not?"
George had no idea how to answer. He hadn't seen any divine radiance. This was the kind of topic that could easily trigger a Bad End where the world's deities were concerned, so all he could do was give an honest, slightly dim-witted smile.
Joseph didn't seem to mind. His eyeslits drifted over to Hathaway, and even through that narrow crack, George could sense the complexity of his expression.
"Hathaway — it really is you, Hathaway. I thought my eyes were deceiving me!"
"My lord, we need to know what happened inside Kakh City. Why did Mad Baron Mark suddenly lose control?" Hathaway asked directly. Kakh City had been issuing bounties and hunting Witches just recently — and then, overnight, everything flipped.
"Ahem — it's a long story, and part of it was my error. I misjudged how quickly the Blood Plague mutation was spreading through your mother, which allowed Baron Mark to lose his reason. He ultimately fell under Luna's control and became her puppet of war. I am sorry, child — your mother and your sister are, in truth, living dead. The Blood Plague is terrifying and insidious. Now, both the Mad Baron Mark and the two of them have joined forces, and every day they can use the Blood Plague to create one Fallen Garrison Knight and three Fallen Blood Wolf Cavalry."
"By mid-next month at the latest, Kakh City will have at least fifty Fallen Garrison Knights, fifty Fallen Blood Wolf Cavalry, and no fewer than a hundred Fallen infantry. Catastrophe is upon us. You must act — you must break through Kakh City and slay the Mad Baron before that point. Or at the very least, you must kill the Blood Witch Luna. I can offer modest assistance. I can suppress the Grand Witch Luna's power to a degree — as long as she dares appear on the battlefield."
"Don't hesitate, young man. What is needed now is not deliberation — it is decisiveness."
"Oh — and there is news, whether good or bad I cannot say. While I was imprisoned, they captured the head of Victor Town's merchant caravan — a poor soul who apparently goes by the name Delta. His caravan had brought back an enormous quantity of goods: high-quality steel, superior wheat, exceptional leather. He said he had discovered, deep within the mountains, a land blessed by the gods, as though from a dream."
"The people there are welcoming and generous, clever yet simple — extremely easy to deceive."
"The Mad Baron is extremely interested in this god-blessed land hidden deep in the mountains. If he dispatches troops to raid it and returns successful, we are finished. You will have no path left but to flee across the Great River to Weir City."
When he finished, Priest Joseph closed his eyes — utterly indifferent to whether George and the others agreed or refused.
In the next instant, a line of grey text materialized before every household member's eyes.
【Temple Mission! You may choose to accept or decline.】
【Warning: If you decline, Priest Joseph will travel to Weir City and petition Duke Weir to march south with an army. However, at that point, this will no longer concern you.】
【Mission Requirements: Level 2 Priest Joseph requests that you muster your forces in ten days and launch an assault on Kakh City, slaying the Mad Baron. He will persuade Sir Tuck to conscript eighty soldiers to fight alongside you, and he personally guarantees that he will suppress the Grand Witch Luna on the battlefield.】
【Mission Rewards: All combatants will receive Temple Reputation. Killing a Fallen mongrel dog yields 10 Reputation. Killing a Fallen Blood Wolf or Blood Raven yields 100 Reputation. Killing a Fallen infantry soldier yields 50 Reputation. Killing a Fallen Blood Wolf Cavalryman yields 150 Reputation. Killing a Fallen Garrison Knight yields 300 Reputation. Killing the Mad Baron yields 10,000 Reputation. Killing the black-robed Witch Mixi yields 3,000 Reputation.】
【Reputation earned may be exchanged at the Temple in Victor Town, at a One-Star Temple built within your camp, or at the time of Mission Settlement.】
【Exchange options fall into three categories: spending 1,000–3,000 Reputation can upgrade a Title by one level; spending 500–1,000 Reputation allows a piece of equipment to be randomly upgraded by one level; spending 500 Reputation permanently increases one attribute point by one.】
—
'Holy hell.'
'That is a serious reward.'
Even Hathaway and Ron's expressions shifted — because over the course of this mission, they had accumulated a substantial amount of Temple Reputation. The question was — was it time to go all in?
Ron beckoned with a hand. He took George, Hathaway, Carson, Roddy, and Snape back up to the second floor of the tavern. Fila made a move to follow, but Hathaway's gaze intercepted her like a blade.
'You're a civilian filler. Don't insert yourself into this.'
Once inside, Ron activated the Four-Star Conspiracy Card again.
But the first one he turned to wasn't George or Hathaway — it was Roddy, Carson, and Snape. These were his own people, after all.
"What do you all think?"
"Boss — do you want the honest version?" Carson asked.
"Of course." Ron nodded.
Carson exhaled. "This one's on me, at least in part. I didn't explain things clearly enough to Joffrey. I underestimated how calculating that kid was — how far his methods reached. It dragged down your Four-Star Lord Mission, and it even got our own logistics head personally involved. As it stands, we're essentially fighting on Internal Affairs' turf. The way I see it, Black Wolf's position is straightforward — this failure doesn't mean much. You've only failed once."
"And since our buddy George here happened to unlock a hidden storyline, I think — if Hathaway is willing to offer enough, we can choose to help her."
Huh?
Was Carson actually Ron's chief strategist?
Ron nodded in agreement. "He's right, Hathaway. Things are a complete mess right now. If we keep fighting each other, we'll both get dragged down. And now that the Temple's divine power has officially intervened — if we can't wrap up this mission storyline as fast as possible, and Duke Weir actually marches south with his army, roping in the royal family — I think we'd both have to resign in disgrace."
Hathaway nodded. "Agreed. And there's no way that merchant caravan just 'happened' to stumble upon Joffrey's camp and linger there for two months — that absolutely reeks of divine interference. We need to move fast. But did any of you notice just now — the Grand Witch Luna wasn't listed among the kill targets. What does that tell us? It means the gods want to preserve her. I have no idea what consequences that might bring — it could involve a much higher-tier struggle—"
"Watch your words, Hathaway. That is not a game we're part of."
Ron cut her off and steered the conversation elsewhere.
"Since we're both aligned in principle, then let's settle it here. Kakh City goes to you — that lets you complete the Four-Star Lord Mission. But in return, you must trade all the Temple Reputation you earn in this battle over to us, and pay us a lump sum of five thousand gold coins upfront. Does that work? It's a fair price — our department head's expenses in arranging all of this came out to roughly the same figure. We owe him that much." Ron said, his tone measured and firm.
"Agreed. Done." Hathaway didn't even haggle. Then she and Ron both turned toward George. The two parties alone had the authority to decide this Conspiracy session — but given how things had unraveled, every ally that could be secured, had to be secured.
Especially since George's character Joffrey — no, George — could still keep the black-robed Witch in check.
"George — in this battle, as long as you don't pull any tricks, we will handle the black-robed Witch for you. The Rookie King title is yours — that's guaranteed. In addition, any Temple Reputation you personally earn in this battle is entirely your own. Our only demand is this: don't pull any tricks. I mean it. If I fail this time — if my Four-Star Lord Mission collapses — believe me, I will put a bounty on your camp followers across every server of the Chaotic Killing Battlefield."
Hathaway said it with her teeth slightly clenched, as if George had some kind of unsavory track record she was thinking of.
"Come on — when have I ever pulled tricks? You can relax. I want to leave this world even more than you do." George sounded genuinely sincere. And he was — Carson's earlier remark about the gods of this world personally intervening had sent a genuine chill down his spine.
He liked this world well enough. But he was also very, very afraid of it.
"Let's hope that's really the case."
Hathaway glanced at him, then turned to Ron. "We have eight days until month's end. I recommend abandoning the Temple construction entirely and redirecting everything toward building siege equipment."
"Agreed — though I'd actually prefer we set out tomorrow morning. Under the pretext of escorting Priest Joseph, we head to Victor Town. There are more craftsmen there who can help manufacture siege equipment. As for our friend George — I'd like to ask you to stay behind with two mercenaries and Fila to hold the camp. We won't be joining the monthly family meeting, and there's no need to file an impeachment against Hathaway — at this stage, many of the usual formalities can be set aside."
"But please — make sure to recruit three additional mercenaries. On the ninth day, join us for the campaign."
"We have to go on the offensive. We absolutely cannot give the Mad Baron and Grand Witch any more time to develop their forces. What happened last night cannot happen again. Understand — we have now reached the point of direct, mortal confrontation. If we fall, you don't just lose the Rookie King title. You fall too."
Ron clearly wasn't entirely convinced, and warned George one more time for good measure.
"Understood. I'll cooperate fully."
George gave a solemn promise — while privately feeling quite differently about it.
His actions the previous night had genuinely been reckless. Leveraging Ron's and Hathaway's forces as a screen for his own operation without even bothering to notify them beforehand — that was, in all honesty, treating his allies like they didn't matter.
But then again, the reason he had zero trust in either of them in the first place — wasn't that squarely their own fault?
If he'd actually notified them in advance, there was a very real chance he'd have had to share a large chunk of the credit.