Chapter 604: The Changing Randa

“Thank you for allowing this meeting.”

In an abandoned farmhouse in Gallos.

“So, what do you think of my proposal?”

Oliver asked shamelessly.

“If only those with bounties on their heads surrender themselves to the Pater Church, I’ll take responsibility and ensure the safety of the others.”

In response to Oliver’s proposal, the man sitting across from him gritted his teeth.

The man’s name was Julius Rommel, one of the many dark magicians who migrated to Gallos after the disappearance of the Flesh Cook. He was a famous highwayman and the head of a village of about fifty people.

“You call that a proposal?! You’re asking me to die!!”

Despite his anger at the absurd request, the burly man maintained his respect. This was because he had heard of Oliver’s reputation.

Leading the Millieu, obtaining the Flesh Cook’s Legacy, and slaughtering dark magicians mercilessly in the process. He even defeated the prince candidate of the Swan Sect and stood face to face with Puppet, one of the Fingers.

And that wasn’t all. There were rumors that he single-handedly visited Bean City, overpowered its mayor, subdued the pirates, and finally, along with the Archive, defeated a sea monster.

Each of these rumors seemed too incredible to believe, but Julius maintained his courtesy due to Oliver’s reputation.

Oliver responded shamelessly once again.

“Yes, please die.”

“······!”

Julius, who accrued wealth by murdering guests and travelers regardless of the custom of hospitality, was shocked by Oliver’s request to die. He had heard rumors of madness but had never imagined it was to this extent.

Just as Julius realized that his life was in imminent danger and tried to gather his thoughts, Oliver spoke again.

“Is this too difficult a request?”

“Of course it is! Are you out of your mind, asking someone to die?!”

“I know it’s an unreasonable request, but I thought Mr. Julius would grant it.”

“What makes you think that?!”

“Mr. Julius, didn’t you always kill guests who visited your village under the pretext of protecting it?”

“······?!”

Julius flinched. As a dark magician and highwayman, he ruled the village by sharing his loot, under the pretense of doing it for the good of the impoverished village. Thanks to this, he was able to turn over fifty villagers into dark magicians.

But that wasn’t the important part. What mattered was that only Julius and the villagers knew this fact. Everyone else had been killed, dismembered, and sold on the black market.

Yet, the man in front of him knew this, and Julius felt terrified.

“How do you know that?”

“Does it really matter how I know? What matters is that if you turn yourself in to the Pater Church, the rest of the villagers will be safe.”

Oliver, having received information about Julius through Eve, answered. Given Eve’s abilities, it was no big deal, but for Julius who didn’t know this, it was understandably shocking.

Julius lashed out.

“What did the Church offer you to act as a puppet and persecute fellow dark magicians?!”

“They offered dark magicians a chance to come into the light. I believe you’d understand. Didn’t you become a dark magician to achieve something you wanted?”

In those polite yet brutal words, Julius could feel a will that could not be compromised. Confirming this, he placed his hands on the table and leaned back.

“······How can I trust you?”

“Honestly, trust is all I can ask for.”

“I didn’t come here willingly. I was pushed out because I couldn’t stay in the continent’s center any longer.”

“I sympathize.”

“Perhaps… could you let me go? Just let me pass?”

“······.”

“If going to Gallos is the issue, I’ll leave. I’ll head south. And it’s not because I’m afraid to die. I’m concerned for the villagers. If I’m gone, they’ll be in danger. I won’t even glance in Gallos’ direction. Can you just overlook this?”

Julius pleaded desperately. The sense of responsibility for his village and desperation were evident in his voice and emotions. It was hard to believe he was a highwayman who had killed hundreds.

Oliver slightly bowed his head and met Julius’s eyes.

“You shouldn’t lie.”

“Ugh······!”

Julius’s acting and the dark magic items that disguised his emotions were all seen through. Accepting his fate, he threw his massive arms up.

Thunk-!

A hole appeared in his body, the size of a fist.

The shot came from Durance’s sniper rifle from a distance.

Thundudu-!

The next moment, the sound of a heavy sniper rifle, followed by rapid gunfire like a machine gun, echoed.

Julius’s subordinates who occupied the same space fell simultaneously.

They fell, unable to react to Durance’s quick and precise shots. Oliver stood up impassively and walked outside.

“You, you filthy······!”

As he exited, the remaining subordinates of Julius, waiting outside, wore expressions mixed with fear and fury.

Having quickly assessed the situation after hearing the gunshots, they immediately tried to cast dark magic, but Oliver did nothing.

Thundudu-!

Another lifeless gunshot rang out, and each time, a dark magician fell.

Thus, Oliver did nothing as he walked toward the barn where Julius’s villagers were gathered.

Tap. Tap. Tap.

Dark magicians tried to block Oliver’s path, but each time a gunshot was heard from afar, another fell to the ground.

Some quick-responding individuals tried to deploy barriers to block the incoming bullets, but even those barriers were pierced, causing them to fall.

After nearly a dozen people fell, those who remained became demoralized and raised their hands with trembling bodies.

“······Ugh!”

The people inside the barn gasped as soon as they saw Oliver.

Most were elderly, women, and children, though a few men were also present, but they had already lost their will to fight.

Oliver abruptly made them an offer.

“Most of the combat-capable dark magicians, including Mr. Julius, are dead. I won’t apologize. This was simply done for our mutual interests.”

“······.”

“Let’s get to the point. With Mr. Julius and the troublesome ones out of the way, you can now come with us. If you choose to follow me, you’ll have to abide by our rules and orders, but we’ll help you settle in.”

A long silence followed this one-sided and mechanical offer, and finally, one elderly man raised his hand courageously.

“What will happen if we follow you?”

“You’ll be taken to Ravely in Gallos’s capital, investigated by the Holy Knights, and afterward, you’ll belong to a group called The Selectors.”

“Investigated by Holy Knights?”

“Yes, but it shouldn’t be a major issue. The Holy Knights just want to identify and register you.”

The people began to murmur. Understandably, to a dark magician, the Holy Knights were akin to the Grim Reaper.

“As long as you’re not worshipping demons, there shouldn’t be any major problems. This assurance comes from the higher-ups of the Pater Church. Believe it or not, it’s up to you, but.”

Oliver paused briefly. No matter how much he explained, convincing people seemed more about presenting them with the situation and leaving them no choice.

“If you choose not to follow me, you’ll all have to leave Gallos. Of course, you could try attacking me, but in that case, I will have no choice but to defend myself. Please understand this.”

Oliver said, looking at a boy who was secretly preparing to strike him. The boy met Oliver’s gaze and felt his resolve shatter.

Oliver asked one last time.

“So, what will you do?”

Shortly after, five trucks arrived, carrying the corpses, villagers, Oliver, and Durance’s Zombie Puppet as they left for Ravely.

***

Although it has been said many times, after the Flesh Cook’s rebellion, the capital of Gallos, Ravely, went through tremendous turmoil.

The chaos caused by the simultaneous uprisings of dark magicians in the middle of the city was akin to war, bringing about unprecedented disorder and loss, as well as numerous changes.

Prices, residential areas, real estate values, and property owners—all of these underwent change. The least noticeable shift was in property ownership.

Prices, residential areas, and real estate values were immediately apparent, but ownership was harder to detect unless someone specifically looked into it; the owners could easily hide it with a few tricks.

Due to these factors, many didn’t realize that a significant portion of Ravely’s real estate had fallen into the hands of nobles, foreign investors, and the Pater Church.

And among these, the Pater Church had acquired the most real estate, particularly in District 20.

“Approved.”

In a district purchased by the Pater Church, an area into which not even the police could enter due to the Church’s ownership and Prime Minister Armand’s influence, an employee shouted this as five vehicles entered.

As the vehicles passed through the grey buildings and entered the district, they were greeted by a group of men in suits.

These men were Holy Knights of the Pater Church Gallos branch, knights under the command of Armand. They greeted Oliver first, as fitting knights under Armand.

“Greetings.”

“Greetings.”

Oliver greeted them back and introduced the people who had come out of the trucks.

“These are the villagers who were under Mr. Julius’s command.”

“Highwaymen, huh? Where’s Julius?”

Oliver pointed to the trailing car, where bags containing corpses were being unloaded, and the servants under the Holy Knights began examining them.

The servants confirmed the corpses inside the bags, including those of Julius and his subordinates, and nodded. The Holy Knights who checked them also nodded at Oliver.

“Good work. We’ll take it from here and handle these people.”

“Understood.”

Oliver replied, and the Holy Knights led the people who had descended from the trucks into a building.

As the villagers were dragged away by the Holy Knights, they were scared, but Oliver watched impassively, thinking it was quite similar to his work as a solver. At that moment, someone spoke up.

“You’ve worked hard.”

The speaker was none other than Marie, and the reason she was there was because Oliver had brought her along.

Although Oliver could handle subduing the dark magicians running rampant in Gallos by himself, managing and controlling them was another matter. For this, he needed the help of Marie, who had experience running a dark magician organization, and he left most of the work to her.

Surprisingly, Marie was doing an outstanding job at it.

It was probably to be expected. Although she had been threatened by the sudden attack of the Holy Knights, Marie had managed a thousand-strong organization by herself in the past.

That didn’t mean Marie had it easy. During the few days they had been in Gallos, she had been busy without a moment’s rest.

Feeling a pang of guilt, Oliver asked.

“Are you doing okay, Marie?”

“I’m always fine. Mr. Forest said he would send more of our people this way, so don’t worry.”

“Really?”

“Yes, X-District. We needed more hands to manage it, but besides that, it seems he thought this place was also important.”

Oliver understood. Word had already spread that Oliver was helping the Holy Knights wipe out dark magicians.

A dark magician cooperating with the Holy Knights, and conversely, the Holy Knights cooperating with a dark magician. As a broker and businessman, Forest recognized the value of the situation and boldly decided to send more people.

Marie pulled out a file she had held and reported to Oliver.

“Child-First and Force contacted us. They found the twelfth part of the Flesh Cook’s Legacy. Apparently, there’s a large amount of gold.”

“Good news. How much?”

Oliver asked. He wasn’t particularly greedy, but he couldn’t help but be curious since he had so many recent expenses.

“Well······.”

“Just tell me the truth.”

“They said ‘a freaking lot’.”

Marie read the words straight from the file. Oliver muttered after hearing that.

“I taught them numbers.”

“It’s probably because there’s just too much. Anyway, they said they’d bring back 25% for us, and they asked for a 1% incentive.”

That’s right. Not only was Oliver exterminating dark magicians, but he was also recovering pieces of the Flesh Cook’s Legacy.

It wasn’t that difficult. Force was operating the Zombie Puppet made from the Flesh Cook.

As Force became more used to the Flesh Cook’s body, she read its memories, and each time she did, they found and retrieved hidden pieces of the Legacy.

One-quarter of it was given to Oliver, and he used it to fund support for the dark magicians.

Another quarter went to the Pater Church, and the remaining half went to the Royal Family of Gallos.

“What about the remnants of the Flesh Cook’s followers?”

Oliver asked. Thanks to delving into the Flesh Cook’s memories, they not only found the Legacy but also discovered secret hideouts where his remnants were hiding.

“They’re reportedly killing them all. They can’t be repurposed since they’re too conditioned to the Flesh Cook’s rules. Should I ask First and Force to stop?”

Oliver thought for a moment before shaking his head.

Lacking hands, Oliver had left it to the Childs. Having decided, he had no intention of further interfering.

“How about other dark magicians? Are there any who’ve voluntarily come to us?”

“Yes, their numbers have increased. Word spread that we’re providing proper protection, and weaker families are coming to us for support. It’s all thanks to you, sir.”

“Thank you for the compliment. Marie, you’ve done great work too. Anything else?”

“We’ve received a message. Priest Armand requests a brief audience with you.”

It wasn’t bad news. Oliver had also intended to meet with Priest Armand, so upon hearing this, he headed straight to him. There, he met an unexpected figure.

“Ah! Are you Dave?”

It was none other than Edward X, the Crown Prince of the United Kingdom.