Jaron's smirk widened as he twirled the knife between his fingers. "Cophey don't do business with nobodies. What makes you think you're worth his time?"
Lucius reached into his clothes slowly, pulling out the divine charm from his neck and letting it dangle from his fingers. The golden glow was faint but unmistakable about its divinity.
Jaron's expression changed and his smirk vanished, replaced by a sudden wave of seriousness. His eyes locked onto the charm, surprised.
"Where the hell did you get that?"
Lucius noticed the shift in his mood but held his chuckle. "Took it off someone who didn't need it anymore."
Jaron let out a low whistle. "You're either very good or very lucky." He sheathed his knife.
"Alright, I'll pass a word to Cophey, but don't get your hopes up, he's picky."
"How long will it take?" He asked, slipping the charm around his neck once more.
"Could be tonight, could be never." Jaron shrugged. "Stick around Rusty Nail for a while. If he's interested, someone will find you."
Lucius nodded, "Alright, I'll do just that then.."
Seeing no other reason to stick around, he turned to leave but was pulled back by a sudden call.
"Hey," Jaron called after him. "You kill whoever had that charm?"
Lucius glanced back at him, his expression cold.
"Does it matter how I got it?"
Jaron grinned, clearly impressed. "Nahh, just wanted to know if you had the balls for what you're walking into."
'Typical'
Lucius didn't respond. He just walked away, leaving Jaron chuckling behind him.
—-----------
Lucius returned to the Rusty Nail and rented a room for the night as instructed. Ten copper for a bed that smelled just as bad as the sweaty men in the tavern and a door that could barely click shut.
He sat on the edge of the bed, pulling up his status window.
[STATUS WINDOW]
Name: Lucius Arkebold
Level: 1
HP: 100/100
MP: 0/0
STR: 48
AGI: 31
VIT: 52
INT: 37
Skills:
• Absorption (Grade A, Rank D)
• Basic Survival Knowledge (Passive)
• Local Geography (Passive)
• Streetwise (Passive)
• Appraisal Lv1 (Passive)
• Steady Aim Lv1 (Passive)
• Survival Instinct Lv1 (Passive)
Kills: 5
Title Progress: Slayer (5/50)]
He stared at the screen for a long moment. 'I'm stronger than I was a week ago. But still nowhere near ready to fight a god.'
The Divine charm interrupted his thoughts, pulsing faintly on his chest.
'Cophey better come through. I need to find the Sun God before Heaven finds me.'
He lay back on the bed, staring at the cracked ceiling. Soon, everything will change and he could feel it.
□□□□■■■■□□□□■■■■□□□□■■■
Two days had passed since Lucius arrived in Hancock. Two days of odd jobs, gathering information, and waiting for Cophey's summons.
Just as he was starting to give up, it came on the third night. A folded note slipped under his door at the Rusty Nail reading:
『Midnight today
At the old shrine on the northern hill
Do well to come alone』
'Guess my ticket has finally arrived.' Lucius sighed, staring at the letter.
●●●●●
Lucius stood before the abandoned shrine mentioned in the letter as the clock tower struck twelve, midnight. The building was small, crumbling and covered in vines.
Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the walls and the collapsed roof. After a short while of thought, he stepped forward and the door creaked open before he could knock.
"Enter."
The voice was soft, feminine but carried an edge that made his Survival Instinct skill toggle on, involuntarily.
[Survival Instinct (Passive) - Triggered]
[Warning: High-level presence detected. Approach with caution.]
Lucius stared at the notification, before stepping inside the shrine.
The interior was surprisingly intact. Candle lights flickered along the walls, casting dancing shadows all over the place.
Symbols were carved into the floor, ceiling and walls, glowing softly with pale blue lights.
'This doesn't look old one bit. Was it renovated recently?'
At the centre sat a figure draped in dark robes, its face hidden beneath a deep hood. Only pale hands were visible, with fingers adorned with silver rings.
"You're the one Jaron spoke of." The voice was calm, and measured. "The unexpected outsider with the divine charm who sought a meeting with me."
Lucius nodded slowly, keeping his nerves calm despite the tension in the room. "And you're Cophey. The broker who can find anything."
A soft chuckle echoed through the shrine. "Point of correction, I don't find things, stranger. I point people in the right direction for a price. There's a difference."
"Name your price then, I can pay."
"Can you really?" The figure leaned forward slightly. "What I deal in isn't copper or silver as you think. Information has weight, secrets have value and Divine artefacts…." The hooded head tilted toward the charm around Lucius's neck
"....have consequences."
Lucius met the hidden gaze evenly as he responded. "Forget the artefact, I need to find someone. Someone…powerful and divine."
There was a short silence after his words. Then, slowly, the figure pulled back their hood.
'Huh?' Lucius blinked, his eyes widened.
Cophey was a...woman? in her mid-thirties at least, or maybe older. She had sharp features, pale skin, and eyes like polished obsidian that seemed to see through him. A thin scar ran from her left temple to her jawline and her beauty was otherworldly.
The system didn't hesitate, it immediately pulled out the appraisal message.
[Appraisal activated!]
[Target: Human Female - Cophey "The Seer"]
[Estimated Level: ???]
[Threat Level: EXTREME]
[Class: Oracle / Information Broker]
[Note: Do not provoke. Unknown abilities detected.]
She smiled faintly. "Your appraisal skill is quite rude, but it is to be expected." She gestured to a cushion across from her.
"Sit, let's discuss what you're really after."
Lucius was left astonished and numb from her reply, 'She….she can see my appraisal notification..?'
Lucius sat as she requested, keeping his posture relaxed but ready. 'If the system warned me not to provoke her, then I must do well to obey to avoid complications.'
Cophey steepled her fingers. "You want to find a god. Specifically, the sun God's reincarnation. Am I right?" Her obsidian eyes gleamed under the soft moonlight.
'How the hell did she figure that out by staying with me for barely an hour?' his expression remained calm, hiding his sudden spike of nervousness.
"Don't bother denying it. That charm only reacts to solar energy and the way you carry yourself, I can sense violence clinging to you like a second shadow, and that tells me you're not looking to worship him."
Lucius remained silent, saying nothing.
She continued regardless. "I can perform a divination ritual. It will show you where the sun God currently resides but…." She stopped midway.
"But?"
"I don't work for free as I said earlier and I don't trust strangers who walk into my shrine wearing stolen divine artefacts and reeking of dead, consumed souls."
'She knows about my skill too? Who the hell is she? Did I maybe do the wrong thing by coming here?'
Lucius's hand twitched toward his belt, and she noticed his movements.
"Relax, I'm not your enemy…yet." She leaned back. "But if you want my help, you'll have to earn it."