NOVEL NEXT WORLD Chapter 14: Chapter 14: Real Target
"You have no idea what your actions will bring to this village. Do you understand how many innocent people will be taken by the Inquisition because of your decision?" The Village Chief ignored the warnings from the girl and looked at Steven with eyes filled with resentment, expressing the cost he believed Steven's decision would impose on the village.
The Inquisition came down to this village all because of this guy, and now he was standing there as if nothing had happened.
Perhaps it was because of Steven's relaxed and no-care attitude, or maybe it was the frustration from his disrupted plan, but the anger the old man felt towards Steven seemed to surpass even that of the girl from the Inquisition.
But Steven didn't care.
"You talk as if I have to obey your orders. Whether I get caught or not is my own business. If others get involved, isn't it because you guys did something shady?" Steven questioned, his tone mocking. "Or do you think by saying these things, I'll feel guilty, and then you can morally manipulate me?"
He sneered, showing no signs of carrying a psychological burden. Although, according to the old man, if Steven were taken by the Inquisition, the village would be investigated, and eventually, a group of people would be taken away.
The issue was, even without Steven, it seemed like the village was not free from the influence of the so-called Church of the Deep.
The premise of moral manipulation was that Steven had some morals in that aspect.
And well, let's just say trapped all by yourself in a game world filled with monsters that are trying to kill you 24/7 is not mentally healthy for anyone.
"Save it. The more you talk like this, the more I feel you're hiding something. You might as well learn from the little girl of the Inquisition over there. Use practical actions to prove yourself, don't you think so?"
Steven pointed at the old man, suggesting that he had sensed something off about him from the beginning.
Steven's attitude was entirely provoking, leaving the girl, who had initially hoped to extract useful information, with a furrowed brow.
She couldn't understand how Steven, seemingly not involved in the matter, could maintain such a nonchalant attitude.
"Don't look at me. If you want to catch him, go ahead. I think he's just trying to buy time. Who knows when he's going to run away?" Steven shrugged, continuing his provocative remarks.
However, this time, his speculation turned out to be correct.
The old man, who had just expressed his grievances, bolted as soon as the girl's gaze shifted towards Steven.
His frantic escape, aided by the crutch he had been using, didn't resemble an elderly person at all; he moved faster than a frightened dog.
Moreover, a new group of villagers appeared around them, seemingly coming out of their houses to help the old man's escape.
It looked like they were intentionally creating obstacles to prevent the girl from catching up with him.
"See, I said he was going to run." Steven grinned.
"Can you stop talking now? You're now half a suspect. If you continue, I'll have to take some extreme measures against you!"
Even the seemingly composed girl from the Inquisition couldn't tolerate Steven's mouthy behavior any longer. After giving him a stern warning, she once again picked up her weapon, ready to face the villagers who were obstructing her.
She certainly wouldn't let the Village Chief escape so easily just because of Steven's sarcastic remarks. Letting him go was a tactic to see if he could lead them to more people.
However, this didn't mean she could tolerate Steven's continuous provocation. Setting aside everything else, at least her temper was genuinely flaring up.
Had this person not spoken to anyone in hundreds of years, given how loose his mouth was?
"No, I might go insane," Steven replied with a grin, showing no embarrassment about it.
But the next moment, Steven, who had been laughing, suddenly had a long sword in his hand, swinging it towards a blind spot in his vision.
A pair of hands reaching out from the shadows towards the watching Gladiia were severed, blood spraying out. Gladiia, who had been huddled like a little rabbit, managed to dodge the sprayed blood.
Steven looked towards the figure hidden in the shadows. To everyone's surprise, it was the Village Chief, whom they had thought had escaped long ago.
Even Steven was momentarily stunned, but he quickly figured out why the old man had done this.
It all made sense now.
"So, the reason you advised me to leave wasn't because you were afraid of the Inquisition finding something, but because of this girl, huh?"
"Let me guess, the real answer to the question I asked you earlier was also because of her, right? You bunch of bastards."
Shaking off the blood residue from the sword, Steven squinted his eyes, and his smile gradually disappeared.
If these guys had been after Gladiia from the beginning, everything that happened afterwards was clear.
First, they dared to risk receiving them, the two Aegirians, and then used the villagers to give themselves a good impression.
This included the seemingly unintentional expressions of goodwill and deliberately guiding him to misunderstand the Inquisition. All of it was probably to lower his guard and find an opportunity to harm Gladiia.
Unfortunately for them, no matter how well they planned, they ran into Steven, who didn't understand anything and had come out just for the sake of having some fun. All their plans had gone down the drain.
Of course, the appearance of the Inquisition probably wasn't in their calculations, which explained why the old man was in such a hurry to persuade him to escape.
Now, unable to persuade him, they probably wanted to take Gladiia away during the chaos.
Regrettably for them, although Steven hadn't noticed how this guy approached, he was able to clearly see a slowly approaching red dot in the upper right corner of his field of vision.
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