Seeing a new inquisitor approaching Tylene, Messai immediately realized that things were developing toward an extremely bad direction.
The reason why Messai was thinking this way was not because of that inquisitor’s overflowing killing intent. Instead... it was because that inquisitor had overturned a Hearthstone arcade machine as he walked toward Tylene!
And, most unfortunately of all, Messai knew the two players sitting before that arcanotech device...
One of them was named Sir Lorian. He was a knight from the Nation of Steel. He was also someone who would frequently invite Messai to a couple Hearthstone matches.
But, the person who caused Messai such headache was the other player seated across from Sir Lorian!
The Prince of the Nation of Steel, Kaos Von Otto. He was also rumored to be the person with the greatest possibility of succeeding as the Nation of Steel’s next king.
Messai believed this prince only appeared in the Hearthstone Tavern a couple weeks ago. Perhaps it was her guess but she felt like this prince came to the Hearthstone Tavern because of the Succubus Ynor.
But, whatever the case might be, that inquisitor’s action of overturning the table had provoked an enormous trouble upon himself.
Prince Kaos seemed to have just opened a rare golden card from the ‘Goblins vs Gnomes’ expansion pack. But, that inquisitor overturned the arcanotech device he was using.
A Hearthstone arcade machine being flipped to the ground was something that has never occurred before in the tavern.
Even the hot-headed dwarves would not do something that rash. The most they would do was to accidentally splatter their ale on the screen.
It was the first time ever for a Hearthstone arcade machine to be handled so roughly. As expected, it started malfunctioning.
Still immersed in the joy and excitement from opening a golden legendary card, Kaos has yet to react to what had just happened.
He looked to the floor beside him. A crack had appeared on the glossy originium crystal. He stared at the arcanotech device that had lost its projection in a completely stunned state.
He seemed to be saying with those eyes of his...’Where’s my legendary card? Why did my legendary card suddenly disappear from the screen?!’
Messai was able to understand what Prince Kaos was feeling right now. What happened was no less serious than being in a crowning ceremony and, when the crowd was about to be placed on his head, a random lunatic ran out and knocked his crown onto the ground, shattering it in the process.
Something like that... if it happened in the Nation of Steel, beheading would be a light punishment.
Unfortunately, the inquisitor walking toward the frost elf had lost his senses. The servant beside Prince Kaos has been angered by that inquisitor’s reckless actions.
Prince Kaos’ servant was a knight donned in heavy armor. Messai was able to tell that he was an expert with the sword.
“Stranger! Your actions have violated His Highness Kaos!”
He directly walked toward the inquisitor with the intention of grabbing onto his collar.
But, when he grabbed the inquisitor’s collar, he was unable to feel the tactile sensation of cloth in his hand at all. Instead, he felt like he was grabbing onto the flesh of some sort of soft-bodied creature. Furthermore, that flesh was filled with oily liquid.
With the collar slipping through his hand, the knight decided to use his sword hilt to strike at the inquisitor’s knee. He thought that was sufficient to make him kneel. But, the inquisitor still didn’t show any reaction.
When the surrounding inquisitors saw the heavy-armored knight attacking their companion, they wanted to step forward to aid their companion. But, the moment the five inquisitors drew their weapons...
Chaotic magic powers filled the entire tavern. Over a hundred rune inscriptions appeared in every corner of the tavern.
Immediately, the five inquisitors’ movements grew stiff. At this moment, over a hundred mages around them had taken out their staff at practically the same time and were aiming at them.
Dangerous runes were moving around the tip of their staffs. It seemed as if the five inquisitors make any movement, those magic attacks will engulf them whole.
To inquisitors, they do not fear low-level magic attacks at all. But... the air was filled with fretful and restless magic elements. It made it clear that what the mages aimed at them were not low-level magic attacks.
This...
Seeing this scene, Messai was unable to understand why those mages would move with such unanimity. It was as if they had planned all of this.
But, some tens of minutes earlier, these mages were only Hearthstone players that came to purchase card packs from the new expansion.
Messai noticed that the mages all had an owl-patterned button or a badge on their clothes.
As Messai had joined the Mage Forum, she knew of the implication behind that owl pattern. They were the most lively bunch in the Magic Research sub-forum — the mages from the Owl Penpal Society.
At this moment, Messai had an urge to open the Mage Forum and check to see if someone had posted a ‘The Heresy Tribunal is going to surround and attack the Hearthstone Tavern tonight’ sort of post.
But, when Messai saw the Chaos Demon walking toward her, she gave up on that thought.
“Thank you for your help, Miss Messai.”
Joshua had walked over to the female templar. The situation in the tavern reached a deadlock. Gray Mage Lursk was currently commanding the members of the Owl Penpal Society present.
In other words, these mages were chanting their magic and checking out the post on the mage forum at the same time.
But, with the help from the Gray Mage Lursk and the Owl Penpal Society, they’ve managed to contain the inquisitors that had infiltrated into the tavern. Albeit, it was not all the inquisitors.
“I don’t need your thanks. Furthermore, my mission today is not to rescue this frost elf.”
Messai’s expression remained cold when facing Joshua. She placed her hand on her sword hilt to remind Joshua that her current identity was his enemy.
Her cold expression only lasted for a short while when the roots of the World Tree finished healing the wound on her shoulder.
Her healed shoulder felt very limp and numb. That numbness triggered this female knight’s ‘sensitivity.’ But, it only lasted for a short moment.
The roots of the World Tree withdrew from Messai’s shoulder. Then, a leaf was left in Messai’s hand.
“It’s fine if you don’t need my thanks. But, the World Tree seems to be quite fond of you.”
Joshua was looking at the leaf in Messai’s hand. The World Tree would not pull out its own ‘feather’ for no reason.
“All the things you’ve done have been witnessed by those inquisitors. Perhaps to them, you’re nearly the same as me.”
Joshua tried to ‘capture’ this knight lady. Even though she stood opposing the demons, he was able to have her become Tylene’s bodyguard.
From the reaction of the inquisitors, they seemed to possess some sort of hostile relationship with the World Tree. Once they knew that Tylene possessed the World tree, they wouldn’t let the last frost elf live.
“Attacking one’s comrade is an intolerable crime. I will return to the Holy Church and accept my trial and punishment! My apologies... I stand different from you.”
Even though Messai had a cold expression on her face, she was not as hostile as when she first met Joshua. It was like how she was now able to have casual conversations with Ynor.
But, Messai knew that she would not be able to stay in Norland the moment she turned her sword against the inquisitors. Messai had decided to voluntarily return to the Holy Church to receive their interrogation.