Be Careful When Agreeing to Terms and Conditions - Be Careful When Agreeing to Terms and Conditions chapter 41

5. Signora (5)

Mond’s morning dawned. I came down the stairs, yawning as usual. I was a little concerned about my unkempt hair, but I had already been traveling with Lumine and Fissle for a long time and showed off my bad side. I wasn’t embarrassed.

In the hall, Lumine, Paimon, and Fissle were the ones who woke up first. Normally I wake up a little earlier and make breakfast, but it seems I ended up oversleeping today. I guess it’s because I woke up early yesterday morning.

Lumine and Fissle, who were repairing their respective weapons, greeted me in the morning.

“Did you sleep well, Siwoo?”

“Wow, after the twilight time, I am once again trapped in the chains of fate.”

The expressions of the two were different, but the content was the same. I slowly raised my hand and returned their greeting.

“Everyone slept well, right?”

Then, suddenly, something jumped out in front of my eyes. It was Paimon, a spirit that looked like a small girl with silver hair.

She rested her chin and began to observe me closely. As I looked at Paimon with a look of ‘What is he doing again?’, His small mouth immediately opened.

“It’s strange, it’s rare for Siwoo to oversleep… “Did you go out somewhere last night?”

It was the night before that I went out, and only then did I feel a scene passing through my blurry mind. It was a short conversation between God and man that took place in the backyard.

Yes, it was. Venti was the real ‘Barvatos’ god. As soon as that fact occurred to me, I pinched the cheek of Paimon who was floating in front of me.

The soft texture felt good. Paimon’s cheeks stretched out as if he was pulling a glutinous rice cake.

“Siu, Siu! Oh, it hurts! Arun Notch mother?!”

“Paimon, are you hiding anything from me?”

Paimon was complaining of pain with a somewhat slurred pronunciation, but he stiffened as if something stung something in my words. I added, narrowing my eyes.

“…… “Something like Venti’s identity.”

Paimon’s eyes widened at those words. Paimon asked in a dazed voice, perhaps embarrassed.

“Oh, well…” … ?”

I sighed after seeing that reaction. And he let go of Paimon’s cheek that he was pulling. Then, Paimon’s elastic cheeks instantly plumped and returned to their original positions.

“Ouch!”

Pai Mon cried as he stroked his cheek, feeling the sting of the pinched area. But what can you do? The ones who hid Venti’s identity from me were Lumine and Paimon, but since I couldn’t pinch Lumine’s cheek, the only way was for Paimon to do it.

I spoke to Paimon in a tired voice.

“Let’s talk next time…” “By the way, if it wasn’t about Venti’s identity, what were you hiding that made you react like that?”

As I glared at him with a fierce glare, Paimon started squirming with his two fingers intertwined. Paimon avoided my gaze and smiled awkwardly.

If you think about it, it was strange. When I mentioned Venti’s identity, Paimon reacted as if that couldn’t be possible. So, it was like I was saying something that I had never even imagined in the first place.

In that case, the fact that he flinched before that meant that he was hiding something else. In the end, Paimon raised the white flag in response to my silent questioning.

“Well, that’s it… I woke up in the morning and it looked like there was something delicious in the refrigerator, so stop… ….”

Refrigerator, it may be a surprising fact, but the concept of ‘refrigerator’ also existed on the Tivat continent. This is why the majority of fresh foods can be traded across borders.

I heard that it was made based on the power of the ice element, and of course, as I have money and cook often, I also spent a lot of money on the ‘refrigerator’ right after renting out the inn.

Come to think of it, I put ‘Haengin Tofu’ in the refrigerator yesterday. Originally, ‘Haengin tofu’ was served hot, but when eaten cold, it had a pudding-like texture and was fun to eat as is.

It was for the same reason that I served cold ‘Haengin Tofu’ to Sister Gamwoo last time. I remembered that I had put that ‘hangin tofu’ in the refrigerator to serve as dessert after breakfast today.

“…… “Have you eaten?”

“Ehehehe… ….”

There was no need for an answer. Because Paimon’s hearty laugh was nothing short of a confession. I gently applied some pressure to Paimon’s small forehead and fed him some chestnuts.

Paymon’s head was pushed back slightly with a bean sound. Paimon cried again and held his forehead.

“Aya! “Oh, it hurts!”

“I said it hurts, so of course…” “I have to make breakfast, so I’m waiting patiently at the table.”

Paimon, who was protesting to me with tears in his eyes, immediately erased his complaints as if he had been tempted by the sound of ‘morning.’ Instead, he flew to the table and was gulping down his saliva.

Indeed, when it came to material greed and gluttony, he was like Paymon, and there was no one in our group that could rival him. That childlike aspect is also Paimon’s charm, so I can’t help it. I began to walk briskly to the kitchen with a half-glazed look on my face.

Lumine, who was listening to the conversation between me and Paimon, was looking at me. Rumi followed behind me as I entered the kitchen, and she clung to me.

“Siwoo, are you angry?”

Lumine’s fingers gently grasped my arm, and her dejected voice. I sighed again. I couldn’t go out strong against Lumine at all.

“…… No, something surprising happened yesterday. “It’s actually not a big problem.”

“What happened with Venti yesterday?”

A look of concern filled Lumine’s amber eyes. I recalled her last night’s memory from her Lumine’s question. The memory of seeing that turquoise jewel, the ‘Eye of God’ in front of me.

“…… ‘Eyes of God’ or something like that?”

Venti’s eyes, which asked that question, were sunken so deep that it was impossible to tell the end. I couldn’t read what was inside. Those would have been the eyes of ‘Barvatos’, not ‘Venti’. Seven great beings who look down on humans.

I was silent. When I had the ‘eyes of God’ in front of me, I didn’t know what to say. What the ‘Eye of God’ symbolized on the Tivat continent was diverse. And as complex as it was, it had great meaning. Among them, the simplest meaning was a token of being ‘chosen by God.’

At some point, when earnestness reaches its peak, God’s gaze sometimes falls upon human prayers. That moment is the moment of being chosen by the ‘eyes of God.’ The ‘God’s Eye’ cannot be used by anyone other than the chosen owner, and even if lost, it will come back as if it were fate.

A person with the ‘eyes of God’ possesses power beyond ordinary humans based on the power of the elements. Didn’t Fissle and Mona handle lightning and water freely? Even their physical abilities were superior to mine.

If I could get the ‘Eye of God’, it was good to get it. It was an immutable truth. Nevertheless, I answered God.

“…… No, it’s okay.”

The corners of Venti’s eyes drew an arc. It was an expression of fun.

“Why?”

“There is no power without a price. “I have never heard of anyone receiving the ‘eyes of God’ in that way.”

And then there was silence again, and Venti and my gaze met in the air for a while. But the standoff did not last long.

My body was thrown back to the ground with a loud thud. It was a sudden fall, but it didn’t hurt because the soft wind supported my body like a cushion right before I hit the ground. I was just dazed.

Venti was placing a bluish-green jewel, the ‘Eye of God’, on her index finger and twirling it tightly.

“It wasn’t a bad answer, Siwoo. But that’s not an honest answer.”

Venti, who had been looking at the ‘eyes of God’ for a moment, turned his gaze back to me. And she grinned.

“Are you confused?”

I was speechless at those words. I felt frustrated because I felt like I had been stabbed in a deep part of my heart that even I had not thought about.

After a while, what I said was a grumble. Because I couldn’t deny what Venti said.

“…… “Does God even know how to mind-read these days?”

“hahahahaha, no way. But when you become a bard, you become sensitive to the audience’s reaction. “If I don’t think about how that person feels when listening to this song or how that person feels about the story contained in the melody, there are many times when I can’t even get an apple.”

Diririn, the harp cried once again. At the same time, Venti smiled mischievously. It was a smile like that of a bad boy, something I saw briefly at dinner.

“…… But Siwoo, there is one thing you are mistaken about.”

Suddenly, the ‘Eye of God’ fell in front of me. It soon turned into a bluish-green light and began to disperse. It seemed like it was flying somewhere.

“The ‘Eyes of God’ is like a kind of fate. Just because you want to receive it doesn’t mean you can receive it, but just because you don’t want to receive it doesn’t mean you can’t receive it.”

I was silent. All he could do was rest his butt on the ground and look up at the face of the bard sitting on the stone.

The bard’s light green eyes widened. It was a charming smile.

“Someday you will have to make a choice, Siwoo. And if you make choices, one day the ‘eyes of God’ will respond to your fate.”

“No, I don’t want to receive it…” ….”

Venti burst out laughing at my words. That was my honest feeling. The ‘God’s Eye’ was certainly useful, but at the same time, it was also involved in something dangerous.

Power brings danger. Moreover, the ‘Eye of God’ turns into a valuable treasure when its owner dies. This is because each person is given the opportunity to challenge the ‘God’s Eye’ that has lost its owner once. An opportunity to be recognized with ‘God’s eyes’.

I already had a lot of work to do. And above all, I didn’t like the word ‘fate’ at all. It could be said that it was an instinctive rejection of the suspicious sound contained within.

Venti said in a voice that she was having fun.

“Then, try resisting that ‘fate’.”

Then, he strung the Venti strings again. Soft rumbles began to fill her backyard again.

“That would also be ‘freedom.’”

Yes, that night I met the god who rules Mond. In the end, I rejected ‘God’s Eyes’, but it was an encounter that complicated my mind just from that meaningful conversation.

As I was lost in reminiscing for a while, Lumine became more and more restless. When I came to my senses, there was a slightly dangerous light in Lumine’s eyes.

“…… In the end, Venti is the problem, right?”

‘Then,’ Lumine began to mumble something of her own. When I saw her hand gradually moving towards the ‘Sword of the Sky’ hanging on her waist, I immediately realized that something was dangerous.

“No, it’s really nothing. I’m just a little tired… So you don’t have to worry too much.”

At my words, Lumine’s hand, which was moving towards the sword at her waist, stopped. Lumine still had a questioning look, but eventually she sighed and withdrew her hand completely.

“Siwoo, don’t keep your worries to yourself. “You have me, right?”

At the same time, Lumine held my left hand with both her hands. He had a worried face.

I ended up with a faint smile. Now that I think about it, I wasn’t alone. There was Lumine, there was Fissle, and there was Mona. The friends I could consult with about my concerns were Mr. Dairuk, Mr. Palm, and Tartaglia.

I was grateful for that fact. At first, I thought I was the only one, but soon people started standing next to me, starting with Lumine.

It was a time when I was trying to comfort Lumine with warm words.

“Hwiyu, is it hot in the morning? So, when is breakfast?”

At the counter leading from the hall to the kitchen, there was someone bending over to look at us. As can be inferred from that playful voice, his identity was Venti.

Lumine was startled and took her hand away. And she soon started growling.

“Venti! What did you do to Siwoo yesterday?! “Si-woo is worried!”

From Noble mtl dot com

Venti smiled mischievously. He whistled as if to distract him.

“Well? “We had a conversation where we got to know each other deeply.”

Lumine was startled by those words and opened her eyes. However, it didn’t take long for him to realize that Venti was teasing him by deliberately using his strange tone of voice. Lumine’s body began to tremble.

“Venti, you… ….”

“hahahahaha, no matter how attractive I look, isn’t it too much to be jealous of me? Well, as long as it’s okay with Siwoo, I don’t really care.”

Lumine’s face became bloodthirsty. I flinched and trembled at that cold spirit. It looks like a dangerous switch has been switched on.

But Venti just casually narrowed one of his eyes, slightly raised his hand in greeting to me, and left.

“Okay, then I’ll just leave. “Please have an apple for dessert~”

Heh heh, I smiled helplessly. Does that mean he is the same person as the ‘Barvatos’ I saw last night? No matter how I look at him now, he just looks like a playful loser.

But what woke me up from my thoughts was a terrifying murmur coming from next to me.

“After all, no matter how male you are, risk factors must be eliminated in advance… ….”

Suddenly, the shadows disappeared from Lumine’s eyes. I covered her face with both my hands. What kind of chaos is this this morning?

It was the day I realized how eventful a day can become just by adding one person.

***

After Lumine put an end to the Wind Demon Dragon incident, I became very busy. This was because the remaining daily necessities had to be disposed of, and recruitment activities had to begin in earnest to form a top group.

Fortunately, most of the merchants stopped moving upward, so it was not difficult to find experienced talent. The only remaining question was whether or not we could trust and entrust that person with the work, and since it was a new business, we had no choice but to gradually strengthen it.

Just like that, one day passed in an instant. It was two days later that I met Lumine and Venti again.

Soon, rumors were spreading around Mond Castle that the Wind Demon Dragon incident had been resolved. The wind demon dragon began to fly in the sky again, but unlike before, it was not showing any aggression towards Mond Castle or passers-by.

Lumine had strange powers. It was a power that purified ‘pollution’, but it seemed that the wind demon dragon was temporarily controlled by that ‘pollution’. It was a beautiful story in which Lumine used her power to cut open the ‘contaminated’ part of the Wind Demon Dragon, and in the end, the Wind Demon Dragon came to its senses.

At this point, it was only a matter of time before an announcement was made at the level of the Knights of Pebonius. For me, I didn’t have any major regrets since I had just finished everything I had to do, but it was still a burden to have to rush the formation of the top group.

Still, it was something that could not be helped. Just by first hearing that the Wind Demon Dragon incident had been resolved and taking action, I was able to greatly benefit from information superiority. And by taking advantage of the Wind Demon Dragon incident, my capital exceeded 1 billion Mora, so it would have been overly greedy to be more greedy.

I was heading towards the cathedral. This was because I heard from Lumine in the morning that they were going there and returning the sacred object of God Barbatos called the ‘Harp of the Sky’. Venti was also said to be going along, and I wanted to see at least once a funny scene where the god Barbatos returns the sacred object of the god Varvatos.

However, the timing was not right, so I decided to stop at the line to meet them. On the way, I decided to go to the market with Lumine for the first time in a while. I’d like to introduce you to the stores I’ve been friends with so far. The store owners would also be quite happy if the famous ‘Honorary Knight of the Order of Pebonius’ visited.

It was a time when such fun plans were being made. The scene I saw upon arriving at the cathedral was unlike anything I had imagined.

The bard was panting. A boy wearing a light green hat and a cape. He was a person who always had a relaxed and mischievous smile.

He was struggling on the ground. A look of pain that could not be hidden was evident on his face. Nevertheless, he was smiling. With a mocking smile on his face, he was glaring at someone.

It was a woman. A woman with white blonde hair. Her rich, classically braided back hair and her side hair flowing down to the right revealed her pure white nape, giving off her alluring charm.

The light gray eyes were haughty and arrogant. She walked with grace. Every time that happened, a dark red cape fluttered. The pattern engraved on the cloak was that of the ‘Wooindan.’

Venti twitched the corner of her mouth. He said panting.

“That’s not because your aesthetic sense is so bad… “Gagging!”

But before the words were finished, the woman’s kick struck Venti’s abdomen.

Venti couldn’t even let out her breath properly. She just fell, rolling on her floor like a piece of wood that had been kicked.

It was an unrealistic sight. So I couldn’t react properly.

Venti is a god. He was the god ‘Barbatos’ who ruled Mond. He certainly lost most of his power in return for giving up his rule, but he was not at a level where he could be mistreated by someone like this.

But I heard a voice that instantly pulled my mind back to reality. It was a cry like a scream.

“Venti!!”

Lumine, as soon as that name came to mind, I reflexively looked away. There, Lumine was captured by men wearing a dark red hood and mask.

Lumine had an angry face. He had a sad look on his face as he couldn’t just watch Venti fall.

The moment I saw that face, I started running. But it was already too late.

The platinum-haired woman muttered something, and then her men who were holding Lumine stabbed the back of Lumine’s neck with the hilt of her dagger.

Lumine’s golden eyes fluttered. But there was no one who could withstand that blow. Lumine immediately threw her head back as if she was about to faint.

“Lumine!”

As I rushed toward Lumine in a huff, the eyes of the Friends of the Wolves, who had been walking without hesitation, turned to me.

After knocking out Lumine, one of her men, who was slowly following the platinum-haired woman, blocked me. It moved like a ghost. It won’t be normal.

“Hey, what are you doing… “Kwaaak!”

But soon her man let out a scream of pain. Because while I was pretending to dig into her man’s arms, I plunged her dagger into her abdomen.

No one could have predicted that a dagger would suddenly pop out of an empty hand. At least that was the case as long as I didn’t know my abilities.

I took advantage of her screams and immediately grabbed her man from behind and thrust the dagger into her throat. Her man’s pained breathing was heard.

A growling voice came out of my throat.

“…… “Prevent the wound.”

Otherwise, you will die from excessive bleeding. Even if I didn’t add to her comment, she covered her wound with both hands, as if she knew the man well. The hood and mask made it difficult to hold the knife to his neck, but as long as he was already caught, the story was over.

The man who attacked me was not the only one who was surprised by the sudden development. The group of friends who were with the platinum-haired woman seemed equally dumbfounded.

However, she smiled as if she was having fun just like the platinum-haired beauty. She didn’t like those looking down on her eyes.

“It’s fun, kid? Are you planning to threaten us with that? Unfortunately, I have to deal with incompetent subordinates…….”

“Kwaaak!”

It was before she finished speaking. I suddenly plunged the dagger she had been holding against the man’s neck into her shoulder. Although the bone was in the way, the dagger was successfully inserted.

Not worth being a hostage? Then you should throw it away. It was an action based on an extremely rational conclusion.

The man’s desperate scream rang out again. As if this was unexpected for the platinum-haired woman, her eyes widened.

I took advantage of everyone’s panic and ran to Lumine. Lumine was letting out her soft moans. When she sensed that I was popular, she opened her eyes slightly.

“Oh my…….”

“It’s okay, Lumine. “I’m taking a break.”

After hearing my words, Lumine fainted with a faint smile on her face. Only then did I breathe a sigh of relief. Lumine only fainted, but her life didn’t seem to be in serious danger.

I immediately looked around with wary eyes. The Friends of the Wolves were still standing there dumbfounded, just watching what I was doing, and the man with the dagger stuck in his shoulder was groaning and writhing on the floor, showing his survival. Although he was literally just alive.

In particular, the platinum-haired woman who had looked relaxed just moments ago had a completely mesmerized look on her face. Why are you doing that? A few seconds of me watching them without losing my guard.

Her woman’s mouth opened. Her voice was astonished.

“This is so…….”

At the same time, her woman’s eyes scanned me, Rumi, and her man where I had planted her dagger. Her expression was slightly crumpled.

“…… “Aren’t you a fool?”

That was the first evaluation given to me by the platinum-haired woman, or, as I later heard, the bailiff named ‘Signora.’