Genius Gamer Reborn into a Family of Heroes

Chapter 60

The Mage Days

After Archbishop Manfred left with the Holy Knights, taking Harang with them, Pastor Ezakt, who had been released, punched the wall.

Thud…!

Blood oozed from his fist, but he couldn’t feel the pain at that moment.

“Damn it. To be thwarted like this again…”

It had always been this way. Archbishop Manfred constantly interfered or took credit whenever Pastor Ezakt tried to do something for his future. He would intrude, threaten, and sow discord whenever Ezakt worked for the poor and powerless, even taking away whatever little money they had.

This time was no different.

Pastor Ezakt had been genuinely praying for Harang. He sincerely wanted to cure his incurable disease and also wanted to plan for the future with the talented boy.

“But now, once again…!”

Thud! As Ezakt ground his teeth and pounded the wall of the prayer room, the priests outside knocked and called for him.

– “P-Pastor Ezakt?”

– “Are you all right?”

– “We want to hear what happened!”

The priests had probably seen Harang being taken away as well.

The people were bound to be anxious, seeing the boy who had attended the cathedral every day for a month, bringing small happiness to people with his smile, now being captured by Archbishop Manfred.

“…Come in.”

No matter how angry he was, he couldn’t show his emotions to others. Ezakt adjusted his clothes and allowed the priests to enter the prayer room.

However, it wasn’t just one or two who came.

Including the Holy Knights and four other pastors, even the high-ranking priests had all come to see Ezakt.

Was Harang really that popular?

‘…No, that’s not it.’

Harang was undoubtedly a unique boy who, despite being a mage, had earned the affection of the priests, but that alone couldn’t have moved all of them.

“Pastor Ezakt, is Archbishop Manfred plotting something suspicious again?!”

“Tell us! We can’t stand it any longer. We already know he’s been doing shady things with the citizens!”

“Pastor Ezakt, you’re the only one who knows in detail what Archbishop Manfred is up to.”

“If you take the lead, we will follow!”

Indeed, Archbishop Manfred had been committing evil deeds for far too long. In contrast, Pastor Ezakt, though his influence was small, had steadily built up a reputation and gathered people’s trust.

‘…I’m not exactly a clean person either.’

Pastor Ezakt was a man with strong ambitions for success and money. He was far from the pure and diligent priest they believed him to be.

But because of that, he knew how to use anger, opportunity, and the situation to his advantage.

“Yes… I know. I know exactly what Archbishop Manfred has done so far. And right now, I also know where he is and what he’s planning to do.”

Originally, a mere pastor had no authority to command the Holy Guardian Knights under a bishop’s jurisdiction.

But… if the Holy Knights chose to follow the pastor on their own, the situation changed.

“Let’s go. I can no longer tolerate Archbishop Manfred’s tyranny.”

The Holy Knights looked at Pastor Ezakt with determined expressions. Unlike Archbishop Manfred, who had long since fallen into corruption and defiled his soul, the pure and burning passion in Ezakt’s eyes had a power that moved the hearts of the Holy Knights.

* * *

The Holy Knights followed Archbishop Manfred, their eyes silently observing the small figure of the boy walking ahead.

His arms were bound behind him by ropes, and he had been dragged here without offering any significant resistance, let alone using magic.

‘What kind of crime could such a small child have committed…?’

The Holy Knights harbored such doubts but couldn’t voice them aloud.

‘What a truly unpleasant place.’

The place they were heading to was accessible through a manhole in the Harana Canal, leading them down a secret underground passage that stretched far toward the sea.

The sight of garbage scattered everywhere, people passed out from drug use, and bodies soaked in blood lying around was anything but pleasant.

“Bishop… where are we?”

Archbishop Manfred clicked his tongue in disapproval.

“You still lack faith. How do you expect to receive the Holy Spirit’s blessing with that attitude?”

“…I apologize.”

The Holy Spirit’s Blessing was a special blessing that only an archbishop could bestow, and most of the Holy Knights were bound by it.

Receiving the Holy Spirit’s Blessing was the only path to success as a Holy Knight.

After walking deeper inside, they came upon a space cluttered with rusted, foul-smelling oak barrels.

The Holy Knights shuddered, their hands instinctively moving to the hilts of their swords. In that space, a group of thugs with dirty appearances, each armed with a weapon, were glaring at them!

“Bishop, what is the meaning of this?!”

No matter how devout a Holy Knight was, by this point, it was clear something was terribly wrong.

These street thugs were not even at the level of a first-rank martial artist, but their sheer numbers made it difficult even for the Holy Knights to handle them easily. Moreover, there was something unusual about these thugs—they emanated a strange and unsettling aura.

Although their bodies didn’t appear to be trained in martial arts, oddly enough, there was a palpable surge of aura emanating from them!

“Oh, you really brought him!”

The man sitting at the very top of the stacked oak barrels grinned widely as soon as he saw Manfred, his dirty expression lighting up with delight as he approached.

“As expected of you, Bishop! Hahaha!”

The Holy Knights were in disbelief. The fact that their bishop was associated with such lowly thugs was unfathomable to them.

Even more alarming was the fact that dark energy was radiating from him, raising the Holy Knights’ level of vigilance even further.

“Galik, will you be able to create the Bloodstone today?”

Archbishop Manfred wasn’t just being friendly with this dark sorcerer—he was casually asking him about the creation of a Bloodstone.

The Bloodstone was one of the most wicked substances, formed only after an offering was made to a demon. The fact that the bishop desired such a thing left the knights utterly baffled, unable to comprehend the situation.

“B-Bishop…?”

“No matter how lowly the commoners may be, if it’s discovered that they were used as sacrifices, the homeland will establish a tribunal.”

“Keh keh, of course. Bring him over.”

“Yes, boss.”

At Galik’s command, the thugs approached. The Holy Knights began to draw their swords in resistance, but Manfred, wearing a look of annoyance, spoke up.

“You fools still don’t get it? This is why I can’t stand clergy.”

“How could this be…”

The Holy Knights could only watch in dismay as the thugs roughly dragged the boy mage towards Galik.

They were too shocked to move, paralyzed by the realization that the bishop they had trusted and followed was colluding with a dark sorcerer.

As the thugs took hold of Harang and led him to Galik with their rough hands, the Holy Knights, their hands trembling, reached out and asked:

“Bishop… have you truly betrayed your faith?”

Manfred didn’t answer.

He merely walked over to Galik and stood by his side, gazing at the Holy Knights with a look of irritation.

“All this time, you’ve worked hard following my orders. Unfortunately, I can no longer grant you the Holy Spirit’s blessing.”

Then, spreading his arms as if bestowing salvation upon them, Manfred said:

“Instead… I have made a contract with a ‘Guardian,’ and I will gain a new power. It will be a power far beyond anything like divine energy. It’s exactly the kind of power you knights desire. So, will you follow me?”

“Damn it, we cannot betray our faith!”

“Manfred, we will cut you down!”

Schring!

As the Holy Knights drew their swords, Manfred shook his head.

“Can you handle this?” he asked.

At Galik’s signal, the thugs armed themselves and stood up. Their weapons were crude, and their stances were sloppy, betraying their lack of martial training, but the rising red aura made the air thick and oppressive.

“Keh keh, time to stretch a bit!”

“Holy Knights, you were so arrogant when you oppressed us before, weren’t you?”

“Let’s see if you can still act like that now!”

As the thugs began to encircle the Holy Knights, Galik grabbed Harang by the nape of his neck and lifted him off the ground.

“Hmm, this is… beyond expectations.”

Galik muttered, genuinely impressed. A child with such an exquisite appearance was a rarity, even in the Harana Canal.

Manfred, standing beside him, asked:

“What do you think? Does he have enough value as a sacrifice? Although, it bothers me that he’s a boy, despite his beauty.”

“Bothers you? Pfft, you don’t know what you’re talking about. That’s why you still have a long way to go, Manfred.”

“…What did you say?”

Galik flashed his grotesque teeth, whispering slyly:

“For the most perverse of top-tier demons, a beautiful boy is considered an even more valuable sacrifice…”

“….”

Manfred briefly frowned at the vile remark but quickly brightened, realizing that this meant they could obtain even more Bloodstones.

“That means…”

“Yes, Bishop Manfred. You might be able to contract with an even higher-ranked Guardian. If you play your cards right, you could summon a top-tier demon!”

“That sounds wonderful! Quickly, let’s head to the altar. We must hurry and perform the ritual!”

At the moment when Manfred urged Galik with a face full of delight—

…Boom!!

The ground above shook violently, and dust fell from the ceiling in clouds.

“W-What’s going on?!”

As Galik panicked, a thug who had been watching the outside from afar came running in, covered in blood.

“B-Boss! We’re in big trouble! Holy Knights have lined up outside and are searching everywhere like a swarm of bees! This place will be discovered soon!”

“What? How did they…!”

Galik’s expression instantly twisted into a scowl as he looked at Manfred, but Manfred shook his head, equally horrified.

“N-No, it wasn’t me! Think logically! Soon, you and I will fulfill our desires, so why would I do something like that?!”

“Damn it! Hold off those Holy Knights! Once I offer this sacrifice and contract with the demon, I’ll awaken and slaughter them all, so just hold them off!”

“Y-Yes, Boss!”

There were over a hundred thugs stationed there, so even the Holy Knights wouldn’t be able to break through easily. Each thug had black aura infused within them, possessing the power equivalent to 2-star to 3-star warriors.

“That should be enough to keep them at bay. Bishop Manfred, follow me! I’ve hidden my ‘Force Vessel’ in a place they’ll never find. We’ll conduct the ritual there, so stop talking and come on!”

Galik grabbed Harang and hurriedly ran deeper inside.

Manfred, panting as he ran after him, anxiously shouted.

“C-Couldn’t we just move the Force Vessel and altar to another place and perform the ritual there? It might take a little more time, but it would be safer… Gah?!”

“You bastard.”

With a genuinely enraged expression, Galik grabbed Manfred by the collar, the veins in his arm bulging.

“No matter how much of a thug I am, do you think I’d abandon my brothers? I’m different from trash like you. Understand?”

“Ugh…!”

Manfred had many things to say, but he was utterly overwhelmed by Galik’s murderous glare and couldn’t utter a word.

Slam! Galik released Manfred’s collar and took the lead, running ahead. Manfred followed with a bitter expression on his face.

‘Damn it, this lowlife thug…!’

Even for Galik, this was a dangerous gamble. The ‘Force Vessel’ was the source of a dark mage’s dark power and thus a critical weakness he didn’t want anyone to know about. But it didn’t matter.

‘It’s not like this kid could do anything even if he knew about the Force Vessel.’

Until that moment—

Galik hadn’t noticed it yet.

Snap, crack!

That the ropes binding the young mage’s arms were slowly coming undone…