Evan D. Sherden. Hunting For Treasure (8)

Raihan left, saying that he would let the Church know of his will to join Evan. He seemed confident that he could get out of the Church whenever he wanted, but Evan, of course, didnt think it was that easy.

Even if he was a Paladin, he still had to perform his duties as a priest. The Church would protest and would not let him go easily.

So, are you really asking for him? You want him?

The Marquis of Sherden, who was more interested in the fact, asked Evan. Evan wanted to bring a new person aboard again. His purple eyes were twinkling the same as Evans.

Evan nodded firmly.

I want to bring him to the dungeon city under the name of our family. If possible, please get rid of his relations and his label from the Church completely. Can I request you of this, father?

Of course it is possible. It only requires your strong will. All you need to do is give a few suitable artifacts to the whole Church, in return. Even though I think that the reward to be given to you was sufficient, in helping us all during the plague, I will supplement your request anyway.

Thank you, father!

I have already decided to make you the Dungeon Knight Commander, but I hadnt expected that you would start looking for potential knights right away. That is so much like you, Evan.

The Marquis laughed and patted Evan. Meanwhile, in his head, Evan was checking off the list of artifacts to be given to the Church.

From his pocket. Evan poured out all the designated artifacts. There was a sword, another sword, an invisibility cloak, a shining armor, leather boots Most of the artifacts were from the second day of the treasure hunt.

Are these all artifacts?

Yes, these are the artifacts that I was lucky to get in the Royal City. You can give them to the whole Church!

You have already prepared the payment for the Church, yourself. I mean, its really true that no one here completely understands you.

Evan had been fortunate enough to get all of these artifacts in the Royal City, but he didnt know how to handle the relations with the Church.

The Marquis sighed and received the artifacts. They were enough for the price of one priest who was going against the will of the Church.

Butler. Did you hear everything we discussed?

I heard everything, Master.

Then, carry out these tasks in the name of the Marquis. And carry them out tacitly and neatly, such that no one is able to question the origin or any information about Raihan Drukas.

Yes, Master!

The next day was the last day of the treasure hunt. The most important things were already taken care of in the previous two days, so there was really little left on the last day.

Wow, I was bored, so I bought a ruined house, but there were five boxes full of gold and silver treasures!

Master, lets be honest here. Didnt you bury them in advance? Yes?

Hey, look! A secret space under the fountain Wow, theres a box full of jewels here too!

It was hidden for treasure hunting on purpose! Hurry and answer my question, yes?!

Due to its geographic characteristics, the Royal City had a lot of bonus elements for the players. Among them, the most exciting was the treasure hunt quest, which conveyed the feeling as in the question, Havent you got enough money at this point?

This quest, which usually started with rumors from a backstreet bar or a mischievous tip from a bread-house child, led to several chore quests. These sometimes included monster hunt quests, escort quests, etc., and ended up hustling the player around so much that they fell due to exhaustion. But in the end, you were rewarded generously after finding the hidden treasure on the royal road.

It had been a tradition that continued steadily from Yo-Ma Great War 1 to 4, but Evan ignored everything else and only robbed the four places, which included the final destination where the treasure was hidden All four of them had been found!

Well, the protagonists never do treasure hunting quests. Such kinds of chores are up to the extras. It feels like Im going to start crying now.

A chore? Is this a chore for you? Hey, Master! Do these brilliant jewels look so ugly to you!? Arent these more expensive than my own body!?

You are a fool Shine. Do not shout so rudely and shut up.

Wow, there are so many old imperial gold coins

On the last day of the expedition, Evan and party had secured an enormous amount of goods that remained enough to replenish the money Evan had spent so on the royal road, three times over.

Evan said that the third day was just a bonus in their treasure hunt, but Shine and the others thought today was actually the real treasure hunt for which they had been waiting all along.

Okay, lets save this for our Knights funds.

Young Master, you can just become independent with so much gold.

No, the authority of a Marquis cannot be bought with money.

It sounds scary as you already have enough to become a Marquis yourself

This was so much fun! Im so excited!

The last expedition was over when the night fell, and the party went back home with piles of gold coins and jewels.

Playing around all day and finding sparkling jewels was a very enjoyable experience for Serena too, and her pink eyes were shining brighter than the jewelry they had dug up.

It would be nice if you live with me. If I was with my Oppa, Dad would let me out of the Palace more often.

I would absolutely hate it.

It would be fun for us to play alone. We can talk for hours on end, privately. Of course, I havent even got to know half of the instructions youve got to give me.

I would rather die.

Serena was aware of the fact that Evan had to leave the Royal City tomorrow.

Although she didnt like it, Evan had erected something like an iron wall (figuratively) between himself and her, which served as his guardian wall. The real iron wall was said to rise above the northern boundary of the country and prevent the invasion of enemies and monsters.

I will return to the dungeon city tomorrow, Princess. And perhaps I wont come back to the Royal City. I really enjoyed the three days I spent with the King. I will make it a lifetime memory and not forget it.

Then, Ill never see you again, Oppa.

Serenas cheeks were thick and swollen, but Evan only laughed at her. As Evan was finally relieved of the burden of a bunch of death signals, he couldnt help but laugh,

It was a great pleasure to hear that the Marquis had finally succeeded in declining the engagement offer from the King.

No, I will definitely see Evan Oppa again.

Dont say such scary things. You are a very precious person that cannot come out of the house. Its dangerous outside. The escort knights had to be on their guard for three days consecutively for your protection.

Yes, the escort knights look tired So what do I have to do to come meet you by myself?

You have to be strong! To live in this tough world, you must be bold and brave. You need to have the strength to protect yourself. The only thing that can protect yourself at the last minute is your own strength Your own toughness!

Evan thought he had spoken too much and wanted to stop speaking, but it was too late. Serena heard him and nodded seriously.

Okay, I understand now. In this world, the weak are eaten by the strong, so I have to be strong in order to not get eaten.

Who taught the Princess such things?

If I get stronger, I can live longer, and I can come out of the Palace. Yes, I understand. You always teach me good things.

Evan had slight anxiety when he saw Serena nodding her head while muttering we must be strong, but it didnt matter how hard the Princess did self-training, the Princess was not allowed to go out of the Palace unless the King had gone crazy. Evan believed there was no way to tell her that.

Evan had done everything in his power to make the Princess realize her strength and situation. It would be a risk for her if she decided to come to meet him by herself. And Evan did not wish to meet her again anyways, anytime soon.

Evan looked at the Princesss escorts. They nodded with an ambiguous smile as if they understood what he was trying to say.

You dont have to worry about her because we will keep the Princess under high protection in the future.

Please, please do.

They exchanged some last greetings as they neared a crossroads. One carriage was waiting to go to the Royal Palace, and the other was destined to go to the Marquis villa.

Serena didnt speak much as the farewell drew near, but when they reached the forked road, she jumped out of the wagon.

Princess?

Serena ran towards Evan, her eyes filled with tears.

Evan saw the Princess crying for the first time. He then realized that Serena was still only ten years old.

She closed her lips as if trying to resist crying, but finally spoke, her voice cracking.

Evan Oppa, Ill definitely come to see you.

No, its dangerous.

Im going to see you because Ill become strong.

It was a rough estimate, but Evan thought a deep misunderstanding had arisen. When Evan wasnt sure what to answer, he shut his mouth, and the Princess declared in a stronger tone.

Im getting stronger too, so I want to join the Dungeon Knights squad with my Oppa.

No way, she had heard Evan talk with Raihan yesterday.

Evan didnt know what to think! He pondered for a moment and then shrugged. There was no way it could be according to her will anyway or that she controlled her destiny in any sense.

If you can really become strong enough to be able to carry out your life according to your desires, then do it.

Yes, I will.

The Princess nodded firmly, then put both her arms around Evans shoulder and pulled him into an embrace.

She opened her lips as if to say something. Evan heard a small whisper in his ear.

The next time we meet, call me by my nickname. Its Ray.

When we meet again. I get it.

It was only after Evan nodded that Serena, who was barely satisfied with his response, let go of him.

The escort knights were looking at them as if the whole scene had moved them deeply. Maybe if they knew about Evans feelings, they wouldnt make those expressions.

Evan thought his plans were somewhat ruined. Because of the Princesss tragic fate, Evan empathized with her so much that she had intervened in his life more deeply than necessary, leaving room for a connection with her in the future.

Moreover, if Evan wanted to live longer, he shouldnt even flirt with women.

No matter how Evan looked at it, the Princess seemed to favor him above all!

Of course I am just a child now.

Love in childhood usually ended quickly and left only good memories.

Even if Evan ever meet her again in the future, or if he saw her again after a few years, Evan would have moved on by then and would say something like, it was good then.

Evan believed so.

Then I will go, Oppa.

Goodbye, Princess.

[No!]

You too, take care of the Princess.

Ruby nodded as if tense at Evans words. Evan smiled and turned around.

The escorts who had been with guarding them for the past three days settled the Princess in a carriage, politely bowing their heads.

Evan nodded to them too, and returned to his carriage. Shine was smiling.

You are also good with women, Master. You got a kiss from a Princess, a Princesss kiss!

Shine, do you know that I can slap your cheeks with the power I have gained?

If Her Highness wants to force you, please let me know. Ill help you.

Oh, thank you. Lua.

Unlike Shine, Belois, on the other hand, was completely frozen.

They both had these expressions for some time. It was a very reliable statement, but if that kind of situation ever come up, Evan feared what would Belois do.

Evan! What are all these treasures!?

I acquired them because I was lucky on the way, father. Im going to use it to fund the Dungeon Knights.

Only

At this point, Im afraid how much stranger would it be for everyone when I become an adult and actually become the Dungeon Knights Commander.

Returning to the villa, the Marquis was astonished. There was a young man standing next to Evan. He was dressed in casual clothes, who was taking off his uniform and armor, but his roughly fluttering blonde and green eyes were definitely those of Raihan Drukas.

Master Evan met me and Im ready to leave the Church.

You can just comfortably call me Evan. Anyway welcome, brother.

All the treasures that Evan could get his hands upon were recovered, the limit of artifacts he could carry had increased, Raihan Drukas was also obtained, and soon there would be a branch office of the Brotherhood Pharmacy in the royal province.

I made a relation with the Princess as a bonus, but Since I got everything else more than I had expected, should I say it was all for the better?

If possible, Evan hoped the Princess would be engaged to another nice guy before she really ran out of the Palace to come for him! Evan prayed earnestly and packed up.

The next day, the party of the Marquis, in addition to Raihan Drukas, left the Royal City and went home without any regrets.