Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 40



Only Noblemtl

Episode 40 Golden Idol Top (3)

A large number of people gather at the business meeting.

Among them, there were merchants who came from long distances, and there were people who needed to be treated with the utmost respect by the merchants, so it was natural to run lodging facilities. If it is a small merchant, they may set up a separate inn, but the Golden Idol Merchant Association is one of the largest merchant associations on the entire continent. Of course, there were lodging facilities inside.

‘hmm… … Still, in this day and age, they provide a private bath.’

Isaac soaked in hot water for the first time in a long time and melted away the old grime. Come to think of it, it was almost the first time he had bathed in hot water since he entered this world. As he soaked in the hot water, he felt the tension that had been building up on his face softening.

Since the hot water was heated by burning firewood, the longer Isaac bathed, the more money he had to spend. But no one noticed or urged Isaac.

When I went out after washing up, a maid was standing there holding a towel. The maid stopped, her eyes wide, as she handed Isaac her towel.

“what’s the matter?”

“Oh, no!”

The maid’s face turned bright red and she hurriedly handed over the towel and hurried ahead. I followed the struggling maid and found myself in a restaurant. There was a table in the middle that seemed to be empty for Isaac. As Isaac walked towards there, eyes began to focus on him.

“Hey, look at that.”

“No, that… … .”

The crowded restaurant turned into a noisy atmosphere.

Among them was a merchant whom Isaac had saved. But even they didn’t recognize Isaac. When Isaac, who was covered in grime, took the time to wash himself, his appearance that captivated the crowd began to shine.

‘this… … .’

Isaac slowly felt pressured, but did not show it and sat down. It had been difficult for him to feel reality because he walked around in a messy manner and bumped into familiar faces all the time at the monastery, but when he actually experienced it, he realized that this was quite a burden.

‘When I think about it, while everyone else is using the vanilla appearance, I’m the only one with the mod installed and a face with charm level of 99… … .’

Enjoying this look is something you only do in games, so trying to do it in real life was embarrassing.

Fortunately, the food came out as soon as Isaac sat down. Grilled pork with spices and honey, chicken marinated and stewed in wine, and freshly baked white bread came out first. Each dish had great flavor and no sparing use of ingredients was made.

Instead of paying attention to the stares, Isaac started eating his food. It seemed like it had been almost two weeks since I ate something that had been exposed to fire. And soon people’s eyes began to admire in a different way. How on earth can all those dishes fit into that slender body?

While Isaac was filming a medieval-style eating show in front of merchants, he was lost in his own thoughts.

‘It’s too much of a treat for someone who saved the merchants.’

Isaac gave a passing grade to the hospitality score at the top of the Golden Idol. But he also knew that the Golden Idol never did anything to lose money.

For them, trading, bargaining, and exploration were beliefs and doctrines.

‘Golden idol, one of the nine faiths… … It’s the faith of merchants.’

And it was also the faith that Isaac had the last ending with before coming into this world.

The top of the golden idol had a unique structure.

The Red Grail, made up of conspiracies and secret associations, also has a central point: the Walaika Kingdom. However, there was no country at the top of the Golden Idol as a focal point. There were cities here and there that were treated as trade bases, in fact ruled by the Golden Idol merchants, but their only interests were taxes and regulations.

In the first place, the country did not mean much to them as they crossed all kinds of borders for trade. Rather, there was a high possibility that it would only cause unnecessary tension.

Instead, they controlled capital.

They lent money to those who needed it, distributed logistics, bribed those in power, or bought peace by giving money to those who opposed them.

As a result, countries of any faith accepted the top of the golden idol.

Even in the Black Empire, a country made up of undead, the top of the golden idol could be found.

Of course, what must be secured for commerce to develop is public security. Therefore, the Golden Idol Merchant Marine was the most prosperous in the Baekje Kingdom, where public security was relatively good.

Although not all merchants were believers at the top of the Golden Idol, it was clear that they could not escape its influence.

***

When Isaac had finished eating, Vihik came.

Isaac welcomed the beer in his hands more than his face. But when Vihik saw Isaac’s face, he froze for a moment.

Isaac, who was thirsty, didn’t pay attention to Vihik’s attitude and took the beer glass from him and downed it all in one mouthful.

Vihik managed to sit diagonally from Isaac.

“You’re more exciting than you look.”

“I’ve swallowed a wolf in one bite.”

Bich laughed as if he thought it was a joke. But when Isaac didn’t smile, she looked away with a shocked expression.

Just then, a middle-aged woman who he had been waiting for approached him.

Vihik quickly introduced her.

“This is Catlin Shiver, the branch president of our store.”

Catelyn stared at Isaac and said what everyone wanted to say but couldn’t.

“This is my first time seeing an angel who eats so well. “I guess they don’t provide food in heaven, right?”

“It’s Isaac. From Ariet Monastery.”

Catelyn narrowed her eyes for a moment at Isaac’s short tone.

“It looks like you have no intention of treating your elders. Paladin.”

Vihik’s eyes widened at the word paladin. I thought he might be a knight based on his skills, but he didn’t seem to have thought about becoming a paladin. Her child looked at her as if she was amused.

“Did you at least check the equipment while I was taking a bath?”

“I wouldn’t commit such rudeness. However, the information here is also a bit fast… … .”

Catelyn said, tapping the buffalo skull symbol coin on the table.

“… … I just know that the newly appeared young and beautiful Grail Knight has saved our people a few times. And I also knew that the route was naturally heading towards Soeur.”

“Were you ‘the’ Holy Grail Knight?!”

All eyes in the restaurant were focused on the sound Vihik made reflexively.

“‘That’ Holy Grail Knight?”

It was actually Isaac who asked back. Bich stammered.

“There was a rumor going around among merchants that a new Holy Grail Knight had appeared and was active. As you know, with the exception of Elil, the Holy Grail Knights were considered to be virtually extinct. I thought it might be a rumor… … .”

The Holy Grail Knight was an exciting topic among the general public. This was especially true because the concept of a Holy Grail Knight was a profession that only appeared in legends, except in the Kingdom of Elil.

It was a more famous story among merchants passing through remote or dangerous places.

‘Because it’s a time when entertainment is lacking.’

In other words, Catelyn knew Isaac would arrive even before Vihik reported it. Of course, he never thought he would come visit her in person like this.

Only then did Isaac understand the reason for this generous treatment.

“It seems like he thought it was a worthwhile investment.”

“The top of the Golden Idol has traditionally been the patron of the Holy Grail Knights. Please think of it as repayment for saving our people.”

‘Sounds that don’t even exist in my heart.’

Isaac thought, smiling to himself.

Golden Idol’s strategy was to make a difficult request while complaining when the burden was lightened and the atmosphere was comfortable.

However, it is not a lie that the top of the Golden Idol is the sponsor of the Holy Grail Knights. When a Holy Grail Knight is stranded in a foreign place, when circumstances arise and need to hide his identity, or when he urgently needs capital, the only place he can turn to is the top of the Golden Idol.

‘In games, there were many cases where lives were saved thanks to merchants who appeared appropriately in dungeons or enemy areas… … Well, since it’s a game, it’s probably expressed that way.’

Of course it’s not free. Once the debt is cleared, the Golden Idol Merchant asks the Holy Grail Knight for protection or military power in exchange for money. The very fact that they can ask a paladin of another faith is their privilege.

“Don’t do that, let’s get to the point.”

Isaac said, pushing the empty bowl aside.

“Don’t you have something to ask me for because of Lorecus?”

***

The three finished eating and moved to another location. It was a market built near the Sanghoe.

Catelyn and Isaac walked along, soaking up the excitement of the market.

As a large city that is a trading base, the size of the market in Soeur was enormous. Isaac could smell the scent of Lorecus, as thick as the heat inside.

It was the smell of greed.

The place where the market excitement was at its peak was definitely the Lorecus trading market.

They were selling not only the Lorecus bulbs that had not yet arrived on the market, but also the amount of flower buds that would bloom after the Lorecuses grew, the new bulbs that would come out from them, and the profit that would be made by selling those bulbs.

Not only locusts were being traded, but also fertilizers, farming tools, and wagons needed to grow locusts, and as so many people flocked to the area, the prices of other flowers were also rising.

‘Everyone is already out of their minds.’

Isaac was shocked by the situation, which was crazier than he expected.

At first, I thought about how I would use this.

In modern times, you could make money by predicting the drop point and betting short. However, the current economic system is not that complex, and it was difficult to guarantee whether recovery would be possible in the event of an incident.

‘Are you going to stop me like that? No, this is beyond anyone’s control.’

Human greed cannot be controlled. Even if Isaac boasts that ‘Lorecus will soon collapse and the empire’s economy will collapse’, it will be ignored. In fact, it is human greed that makes us jump into something knowingly, thinking, ‘I guess not.’

In the end, it was a predestined future for a slump and a collapse in the trading market.

“What do you think?”

Catelyn asked as they left the market. Isaac just shrugged his shoulders.

“People’s greed is just going crazy, so is there anything we can do? “I don’t know if the emperor would come and ban trade.”

“The upper management is very worried.”

“Because of the crash?”

“no. “Logistics was blocked because of Lorecus.”

Isaac seemed to know what I meant. All kinds of farming equipment and seeds were being traded at the market, but there was almost no seed or food to prepare for the coming spring. It was common knowledge that even Isaac knew that the spring, just before the first harvest after winter, was the most impoverished.

“Some farmers have seeds on hand for spring, but not enough. Because there were merchants who continued to supply quality seeds. Food is already scarce in spring. So the public sentiment of nearby residents is shaken.”

Isaac remembered the Barbary bandits attacking merchants. They wanted to kill the merchants more than Isaac. He may not have entrusted food to the merchants, but he was likely to hold a grudge if they only tinkered with the Lorecus for profit and did not deal with daily necessities. Moreover, most of them are probably living in harsh conditions.

“I know it’s an anxious situation, but is there something I can do?”

It would be better to secure another distribution network by persuading merchants and nobles. Isaac’s influence was still limited to that of a wandering swordsman.

But Catelyn had a clear business for him.

“I want you to investigate who is buying Lorecus in large quantities.”

“I heard that it is popular among flower collectors… … ?”

“That’s true to some extent, but there’s no way this level of demand could create this kind of madness. “There is something else behind it, but we can’t figure it out through our connections.”

“You didn’t figure it out?”

One of the tenets at the top of the Golden Idol is the exploration of the unknown. There’s no way they would have given up simply because they couldn’t figure it out.

Catelyn gave an ambiguous expression.

“So the people over there were murdered.”

They were trying to cleverly cover up the danger and lure Isaac into it. As Isaac’s face showed his displeasure, a look of nervousness passed across Catelyn’s face.

“I hope you don’t try to stay afloat by hiding this or that.”

“sorry. We just… … .”

Isaac thought for a moment.

Anyway, Isaac came to Soeur to look for the sacred relics related to the top of the golden idol. And he tried to get some information using the excuse of saving his merchants, but instead he asked Isaac for a favor.

When negotiating, it is better to be in the position of being asked rather than asking.

‘this… … It smells like a sacred object.’

Maybe the person behind it is someone related to holy relics.

Isaac was planning to accept Catelyn’s offer anyway, but he maintained a high-handed attitude and responded harshly.

“good. “There is just one condition.”

“All we have is money. “I can promise you enough money.”

It was a satisfactory answer. But the little boy answered politely so as not to look like he was crazy about money.

“I have some Lorecus in hand, and I hope that in a month, the Golden Idol Merchant will buy them all at the current price.”