Chapter 232
After the breakthrough, not only had his strength and Espera leveled up, but his charisma had increased as well.
Exorcists were known to maintain eternal youth if they so desired. With each rank, they gained more vitality and power, granting them longer lifespans and youth.
‘I’m getting stronger faster than I expected,’ he mused.
‘Hmm, now that this is taken care of, I need to search for those things.’ A glint of purpose flickered in his eyes.
He had some items in mind even before coming here; those things were only present in the demon lands. He needed them for his secret weapon to be made.
He had already gathered quite a few materials beforehand. Only a few things were remaining.
Oliver, drawing on his knowledge from the novel, knew how many fortunes the demon lands held for both exorcists and demons.
It would be a shame to pass up such opportunities.
‘Moreover, there are quite a few important characters who should be pretty weak now, right?’
His grin broadened as he realized that the greatest treasure trove might be something else entirely, beyond just resources.
‘But first… survival comes before everything else.’
He walked out through the temple’s back exit. With his Abyss energy overflowing, he no longer feared the inquisitors finding him anytime soon.
As the inquisitors had planned, the entire city was sealed off, and there were no exits left unsupervised. The guards were suddenly on high alert, and the civilians panicked.
All they were told was that the inquisitors were doing a routine inspection, nothing more. But how could the civilians not worry when even the gates to their city were sealed off, as if to cage something inside?
Nevertheless, there was some unrest, but that was all. Most of the citizens had absolute faith in the inquisitors and felt at ease with three of them in the city.
Inquisitors had a great reputation and strength. It was not shocking that citizens were relieved, even though the entire city was suddenly closed with no prior notice or announcement.
‘Still, I have to stay cautious,’ Oliver thought to himself. ‘Faith in their power only means more scrutiny. I can’t afford to slip up now.’
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“Have you found anything yet, Vasoth?”
The red-haired demon from earlier asked his colleague.
The demon was tall with delicate humanoid features, but instead of ears, he had two long fins. His features were a mix of masculine and feminine, giving him a bizarre appearance for a male demon.
He resembled a beautiful man, if it had to be described.
“Not yet, Drul,” he smiled in a gentle yet ominous manner.
“Tsk! Where has the pest gone off to!? If I get my hands on him, I swear I will tear him apart limb by limb.” The red-haired Drul was fuming, his sandy eyes churning continuously.
Vasoth remained silent and maintained his polite smile, his eyes narrowed.
He stared at the cloudy sky, his red eyes slightly revealed as he thought to himself.
‘Impressive…’ he thought, his eyes glowing slightly under the yellow-tinged clouds.
‘One highly skilled… I can’t feel a trace of him, almost as if… he never existed in the first place. How impressive.’
Vasoth’s deep red eyes glowed under the yellow light from the sulfuric clouds as he found himself amused.
‘Just who are you, human?’
This was the first time a human had ever escaped his senses. His family was known for their terrifying tracking abilities. Despite being weaker, his senses rivaled those of the captains, even slightly enhanced.
He was extremely curious about the person who could deceive his senses. He really wanted to meet this human. He was sure the human was still in the city.
“Damn it!” Drul kept grumbling in anger as he looked around and saw something in the distance.
He walked forward, and soon enough, Vasoth saw what Drul was approaching.
There were two humans dressed in tattered rags, dirt sticking to their faces, their swollen features making them almost unrecognizable as human.
What stood out among the two were the thick metallic collars around their necks. Their hands were shackled together with chains, allowing little to no freedom.
“Disgusting slaves!” Drul strode forward and kicked one of the slaves in the chest. The impact from the demon’s kick was ridiculous, and the human man coughed out his insides before bursting into a bloody mess all over the road.
Thump!
The other human slave fell backward, his eyes filled with fear as he trembled, shivering under Drul’s dangerous gaze.
There was endless disgust in those sandy yellow eyes, as if they were looking at something worse than a worm.
“Filth like you shouldn’t even breathe near me.”
“How dare you get in my sight, you despicable wretch!” Drul raised his arm to kill the other human slave, but a hand stopped him.
He turned to see Vasoth holding his arm with a smile.
“What is it, Vasoth!? Let go of my hand, or I won’t care about your identity either.” Drul glared at him with a murderous gaze.
He couldn’t stand being looked down upon, and not to mention, he did whatever he wanted. No one had the authority to stop him except the captain.
“Drul, why bother with these slaves? Look, their owner seems scared silly.” Vasoth pointed at a fat demon with a patchy face and a fearful gaze, too terrified to step forward.
“You’ll only be destroying their property. Didn’t the captain ask us to improve the image of the inquisitors?” he added in a calm tone.
Upon hearing the word ‘captain,’ Drul snorted, shook off Vasoth’s grip, and walked away without looking at the slave again.
Vasoth simply smirked and turned to face the owner. “They belong to you, right?”
“Yes, yes, respected sir. I am just a mere slave merchant. These two slaves were recently shipped here to serve as breeding livestock.” The merchant hurried forward, his hands nervously clasped, his face dripping with sweat.
He didn’t dare speak too much or disrespect the inquisitor, fearing he might be charged with suspicion and tortured to death. Everyone knew how fearsome the inquisitors were.
“Hmm…” Vasoth’s face was dangerously still as he stared at the remaining human slave. A cruel idea flashed through his mind.
He looked at the slave merchant. “You know about other human slaves in the city?”