Chapter 145 - Runesmith Dexter 1 (2/2)

However, the current situation was very different from the past, so he thought it would be better to keep watching for a while longer.

“Take this. Let me know as soon as you learn any useful information regarding the Holy Aperian Empire.”

“Is it a communication artifact? I understand.”

King Philip II fiddled with the apple-shaped artifact with great interest.

[Steve's Surprising Apple]

Type: Personal Item

Effect: Text and voice messages can be sent to people registered as friends (the other person must also have an apple). In addition, it is possible to check the other person's location in real time and has a recording function (range can be increased by using a separate accessory developed by magic engineer Steve).

He had found this item in the shipwreck where Allen and Reina were located.

Since the name of the creator was included, Steve must’ve been quite a famous magic engineer, just like Jake.

“You seem to like it.”

“Ah, it looks classy and elegant for some reason. If I get the chance, I would like to invite this man named Steve to the palace.”

He believed that Steve would be able to produce innovative artifacts far better than this one with enough investment.

When King Philip II's eyes lit up, Woohyuk nodded at him.

“If I end up meeting him, I will pass on that message. I am also quite interested in magic engineering.”

“Thank you. Make sure to ask him.”

As the conversation kept heading that way, Reina, the elven woman, tilted her head.

“Are apples precious amongst humans here? Although it was cold in the north, the weather seems quite mild here.”

“Hmm... Should I call it an instinctive attraction… Designs with apples were quite popular in the world where I originally was.”

Allen coughed and mentioned the Apple electronics.

He was a pretty emotional man, unlike his intelligent wizard-like appearance.

***

With the help of King Philip II, Woohyuk and his party were able to obtain a mercenary position in the Norton Kingdom.

Their destination is Baloa, a military city in the northeast.

Their task was to provide food for the soldiers.

“It's been a while since I've been to Norton. When I was young, my father and I explored the ruins along the northwest coast of this area.”

Helena spoke as she watched the snow fall.

She was escorting the wagon filled with food.

“Life must’ve been difficult for you since your parents passed away early in your childhood.”

“It would be a lie to deny that statement. But my relatives took good care of me, so there was no problem with my life.”

According to Helena, Solomon's descendants lived in small communities scattered around different regions.

Their reasons for not having too many children was to prevent their important secrets from being leaked.

Pronoia and the Golden Rose Society had been persistently seeking them for thousands of years, and Helena's parents were one of the victims of their schemes.

“Isn’t Pronoia just looking for Solomon's treasure? The last time I saw Rosenkreuz and his argument with Eteria Rodinus, he didn’t seem to know the truth.”

“Rosenkreuz is the head of Pronoia. There is no way he doesn’t know about us. There is another reason your lie detection ability wasn't triggered last time.”

Helena described Rosenkreuz's dissociative identity disorder.

His personality was divided into two after receiving severe brainwashing education from an early age.

A fanatic who only accepted the scriptures as the truth, and the original personality who knew the truth.

The fanatic personality indulged in finding and killing heretics, while the original personality focused on increasing their influence within the empire.

The timing at which the two personalities would switch was not known, but it seemed that they each had their own control method.

“So he really had a mental illness. No wonder I felt that he was a bit odd.”

“It’s best not to taunt him too much. It's too difficult for you to deal with Aleister already.”

Although it hadn't been revealed yet, Aleister had Masters belonging to the Golden Rose Society.

They had enormous financial power, technology, and human networks to control not only various small kingdoms but also empires behind them.

Woohyuk could not look down on them since they were behind the monster breeding substance and the Clipport's Fruit.

“Is it possible to mass-produce the Clipport's Fruit? Since those pirates had it, it seems to be getting distributed in the Enoa Kingdom.”

Reina intervened in the conversation with a worried expression.

They were afraid that the Kazak race would use the Clipport's Fruit to trample their own race.

“It looks like they can produce a decent amount, but have some limits. It requires special ingredients to make it.”

Woohyuk had already witnessed the Memory Garden where the memory flowers, which served as an ingredient, were produced.

While he wasn’t sure, there were probably at least dozens of such places on the Eeth Continent.

To prevent pronoia's scheme, it was important to develop a potion that could cure the side effects of the Clipport's fruit, but there was also a need to destroy the means of production and hinder their supply of materials.

“Hmm… I'll have to report it to Lady Orphelia later. Such dangerous substances should not be used by our people.”

Reina didn't have the means of contacting Orphelia right now.

They were worried that their people on the mainland would be harmed by the pirates by using them as hostages.

Therefore, when the pirates came aboard their ship, they threw all the items that could be used to contact their homeland to the sea, or tampered with them so that it wouldn’t connect to the Enoa Kingdom.

That was why Steve's Surprising Apple that Woohyuk had given King Philip II could not connect with Orphelia.

“Anyway, it looks like we've almost reached our destination. I can see the wall there.”

Allen, who had been silent, pointed forward with his staff while the party continued their conversation.

The military city of Baloa was standing in front of them.

“Wow, it’s bigger than I expected. Are humans fighting against each other in such a harsh climate?”

“Wars between humans are rare here. If we don't unite our forces, we’ll be beaten by the undead army.”

Norton Kingdom was originally a land of the dead.

Reina's facial expressions tensed upon Woohyuk's explanation.

“U-undead? Is there a being who rules them?”

”Of course there is. We better avoid him at our current strength.”

Lich Lord Nigel.

He was the ruler of the impregnable castle Dreadlore. The successor of Nakron, the King of Fallen Wizards.

Woohyuk turned his head and looked northwest towards Dreadlore.