It was decided that I would go and get Live Fogg early tomorrow morning since I would have to prepare for it.
Once I parted with Nelgliffe, I decided to continue gathering information in Palgas village.
While I was gathering information here and there, there were always two or three Levi followers following me around, as if they were trying to keep an eye on me, which made me feel uncomfortable.
I was invited about ten times to convert to Levi Church just while I was gathering information.
This is not a village I would like to stay in too long.
Iāve memorized the names and faces of those who were particularly persistent, and Iām thinking of tipping them off to Nelgliffe.
I donāt owe him anything, so itās easy to refuse, but from the point of view of the villagers who are receiving treatment, they probably canāt say no.
It would be better to assume that the entire Palgas village has already fallen into the hands of Levi Church.
The gathering of information did not go very well.
The believers were either dodging the question or showing hostility.
We could not hear much useful information from the villagers, and the only person who seemed to be able to talk to us about this and that seemed to be busy, and we did not hesitate to talk to him more than necessary.
I tried to set up an Ortem to disperse the disease in the church hall, but the Levi Followers threw it outside.
I desperately tried to resist, explaining the usefulness of the Ortem, but the atmosphere was getting worse and worse, and Mea interceded, and the situation was somehow settled, but we decided to abandon the installation of the Ortem.
I didnāt have much useful information, butā¦ā¦ I was able to get a rough idea of the atmosphere of the village.
The Levi Church is completely rooted in the village, and there was an atmosphere of fear that if they tried to leave the village carelessly, they could be erased in order to avoid leaking the status of the Palgas village.
None of the letters and messengers sent out from Palgas Village had reached the Fage territory.
That much would come.
For now, I got permission from Fleur, the daughter of the Village, Heil, to rent an empty house, and decided to take a restful sleep in preparation for tomorrow.
The next day, Nelgliffe called me to the square in front of the church building.
When I, Mea, and Elia arrived, there were already nearly fifty Levi followers in number.
This still wasnāt all of them, and there were still about ten people who were still attached to the sick in case they suddenly got worse, or who werenāt here due to other commitments.
āAugen, Kamla, Sophia, come out.ā
With that, Nelgliffe calls out the three names.
ā¦ā¦ For now, I was relieved that Chloe wasnāt in it.
Two of them came out of the crowd of Levi followers and appeared in front of me.
āIād like to introduce you three as my companions in the search for Live Foggā¦ā¦ How about that? All three of them are still young, butā¦ā¦ they have experience as adventurers, and we decided that they are suitable for the search for Live Fogg. They are motivated and have been under my direct supervision for a long time, so they are three trustworthy people.ā
The first was a big man with a shaved head, which I could see through his robe.
I remember meeting him once yesterday.
Iām pretty sure heās Augen.
His arms seem to be at least twice as thick as mine.
He had slender eyes and a good-natured smile.
āYo, nice to meet you, brother! Also, little girl!ā
Augen walked up to me graciously as he said it, and somewhat forcefully took my hand and tied it in a handshake.
āHa, hahaha ā¦ā¦ hi, nice to meet you.ā
ā¦ā¦ He doesnāt seem like a bad person, but he might be the type Iām bad at.
He looks pure and doesnāt seem suspicious, so I donāt have to worry about it as much as I should.
Even if itās a subordinate that Nelgliffe trusts, Chloe, who is beside him all the time, is already suspicious, so even for me, I canāt relax.
Itās not surprising that among the three of us, my watchdog, who is receiving orders from the mastermind behind the invasion of Palgas village, could be mixed in.
If it will show itself far away from the village, we can extract the information from that person by narrowing it down, which is fine with me, but Iād like to have a target in mind from the start.
The second person was a man with orange long hair.
He was wearing the formal robes of Levi Church somewhat out of place.
He has the impression of being somewhat frivolous, but he doesnāt have the vibe of a scoundrel.
āYes, yes, Iām Kamla. That Live Fogg has been trapped for a long time. Really, Iām glad to have the opportunity to capture him again. The vanguard will be Me and Augen, so I leave the support to you.ā
But somehow, these two ā¦ā¦ are really normal people.
I was expecting someone a bit more like, someone who seems a bit more like a suspicious, but they are really normal people.
I may have been a little too cautious and defensive.
āHuhā¦ā¦ Um, that leaves one more personā¦ā¦ Uh, where is Sofia-san?ā
āHmm? Ohhh, if itās Sophia, sheās thereā¦ā¦ hey, hurry and come on out of there! Youāve got travelers waiting for you!ā
Kamla called out somewhat roughly.
Looking ahead, I see a short woman hiding behind the taller woman, sticking to her back.
āIām a bit nervousā¦ā¦ So-, sorryā¦ā¦ā
She runs over to us with her face slightly down.
āIām, Iām Sophia Fuseir. Today, I have been nominated to run for the position of White Magician to accompany you in the search for Live Fogg! There are many peculiarly toxic demons in that vicinity, so I think I can help you! ā¦ā¦Um ā¦ā¦and ā¦ā¦Um ā¦ā¦ā
Maybe itās the nervousness, but she seems stiff ā¦ā¦ No, thatās fine, but ā¦ā¦
āā¦ā¦Somehow, Sheās a very normal person.ā
Mea comes over to me and whispers in my ear.
Itās a very rude thing to say, but itās a legitimate question.
Iāve been wary of the Levi Church for a while now, so Itās a bit of a letdown.
The only thing that makes them trustworthy is that they seem to be as pure as Nelgliffe.
I might have been thinking a little too much after allā¦ā¦
N, no, letās not loosen up.
But I was wondering if they would send out a white magician when they were short on manpower, but an expert in detoxification.
There are few people who like to approach the mountain range that borders the Riveras Nation and so on, so there is little information about that area within the Dinrat Kingdom.
So there was a nasty, poisonous demon.
I thought I could handle it on my own, but itās still reassuring to have someone who knows it well.
The mountain itself isnāt too far away.
This time we were going to head into the mountains on foot, so we had to leave the carriage behind.
Elia will be house-watching at Palgas Village.
āThen Iām counting you. Everyone, support Abel-dono single-mindedly.ā
Howeverā¦ā¦ I was aware that I had accepted Live Fogg so easily and cheaply, but I didnāt think that they would expect me to do so much.
I didnāt realize that Nelgliffe thought so highly of me.
I have to live up to his expectations.
The Levi followers saw us off as we left the Palgas Village with Me, Mea and three Levi followers.
As we walked, I had a bad feeling about this, so I looked back.
ā¦ā¦ Elia was being held firmly by a smiling Levi follower with both shoulders.
Theyāre talking to her about this and that, but itās probably related to the solicitation anyway.
Elia didnāt take up the invitation but just looked at us with a tearful face and her mouth kept flapping open and close.
Iām sure it was something along the lines of, āSir Customer, please come back quicklyā.
I made a small cross with my hand and prayed.
āDid something happen, Abel?ā
āā¦ā¦ No, I thought Iāve got to get back soon for the sake of those suffering from the disease.ā
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