The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 93 Dwarf Tavern
After leaving the outer city of Lassel, Eric increased his speed and drove on the wide road.

There are still many pilgrims on the road, but riding a horse is much more convenient than driving a car. You just need to slow down occasionally to avoid those desperate believers in the middle of the road.

The vast continent held great potential. Having been away from freedom for so long, Eric had no intention of wandering off. His first destination was Lutia.

Although the saint asked him to go to this place, he was not going there to break into the circle of powerful people.

Over there are the two people he cares about most.

The first was Irene. It was already the glorious month of April, and the siblings, one in the Holy City and the other in the Imperial Capital, hadn't seen each other for almost two years.

Two years ago, the Moon Elf Archmage Agnes recruited Irene to the Imperial Capital Magic Academy. Uncle Edgar asked the captain of the guards Leslie to escort her there and stay there in case of emergency. Eric now had a place to stay there.

The other person is the high priest Xinmagu.

The vague background story in "Crown of Thorns" made it impossible for him to determine the specific time when many key nodes occurred, such as the critical moment when Xinmagu turned to the demons.

The last time they met was more than a year ago. In other words, he still doesn't know whether Xinmagu is white or black, so he can only go there in person to investigate and test it.

Although Leslie has always been in Lutia, the captain of the guards did not look very smart, so Eric did not dare to let him contact him.

As for his sister Irene, Eric wished she would never meet Xinmagu in her life.

From white to black is often just a matter of a thought, and Xinmagu is such a stubborn person that he will not easily turn to the demon clan.

"Especially after I told him those things before..." Eric muttered to himself on horseback, the warm breeze blowing on his face and the sun shining brightly. "I hope it won't be too late."

After riding for most of the day, they arrived at the farthest place Eric had ever been outside the city.

He slowed down a little and looked back. The holy city was no longer visible and the number of pedestrians on the road had become much thinner.

From Lesire to Lutia, you can take the Heroes Avenue highway the entire way. There are always service areas where you can stop along the way.

Lille's warhorse had great endurance. Eric ran at full speed for half a day, but the black horse under him did not show any signs of fatigue.

However, riding a horse for a long time is unbearable. Eric now feels some pain in his crotch and is ready to stop at the next resting place.

After riding for a while, some concentrated buildings appeared along the avenue.

Eric pulled the reins, slowed down, turned in at the intersection, and stopped in front of a tavern with fewer people.

"Sir, do you need to feed the horses?" The receptionist of the tavern came over.

"Yes." Eric handed him the reins.

When he walked into the tavern, Eric found that the owners were a dwarf couple.

Dwarves are probably the most common humanoid race on the Gaia continent. Because they can reproduce and have a longer lifespan than humans, they can be found almost everywhere.

They are short, with an adult dwarf barely reaching the chest and abdomen of an average human. However, concentrated essence is essence. Dwarves are typically strong and powerful, possessing considerable physical strength and exceptionally skilled in forging and smelting. Blacksmith shops and forges in human cities are generally run by dwarves.

Most dwarves are cheerful and kind, and friendly to humans. They originally lived underground, but after humans began to build cities, they quickly integrated into all aspects of human society.

However, dwarves tend to have a strong taste, and Eric was afraid that they wouldn't be able to get used to it, so after ordering some food, he specifically asked them not to make it too strong.

"It's strong-tasting. Eating it will give you the strength to keep going." The bearded dwarf boss tilted his head back and said, "This is a lesson learned, human."

Eric smiled. "But if the taste is too strong and you can't eat it at all, then it's all in vain."

The dwarf shrugged, said nothing, and turned to go to the kitchen.

Eric found a place to sit down and could see the tavern servant feeding his horse with hay.

"It's really not very convenient without a backpack..."

When you go out in this world, no matter how much stuff you carry, you have to carry it on your body or put it on the saddle bag. Everything has real weight.

For example, Eric's entire belongings, including the gold coins of the Supreme God exchanged for that large box of coins, a small half of them were in his pocket, which he carried with him, and the rest were in his bag.

While Eric waited for his food to be served, he had to keep an eye on the horses outside until the tavern servant had fed them enough hay and left.

There were not many people in the tavern, so his food was served quickly.

The fragrant roasted lamb leg had soft meat and several cuts on the surface, making it very tasty. Eric took a bite and tasted it. The taste was indeed stronger than the food he had eaten in the monastery, but it was still within his acceptable range.

Along with the large plate of lamb shanks came a small knife for carving, but Eric chose to eat directly with his hands, which was more convenient and more satisfying. When he looked up one time, he saw the dwarf boss behind the counter nodded at him, seeming to appreciate his way of eating.

Eric ordered another glass of low-alcohol mead and declined the dwarf boss's offer to upgrade it to dwarven liquor for free.

Are you kidding? He has to travel in the afternoon. Who would ride a horse after drinking a glass of strong liquor?
Thinking of his horse, Eric looked outside the tavern, and at this moment, a figure suddenly came into his sight and sat down in front of him.

"You are not an ordinary person, am I right?"

The visitor was a middle-aged man with a pale face and thin body. As soon as he sat down, he started talking to himself.

He kept throwing out eye-catching remarks, and his jumps between topics were so great that people couldn't help but think about the content of the next topic before they had even thought clearly about the previous one.

And Eric seemed to be attracted by his words and stared at his face for a while.

"So you guys debuted so early."

Hearing the word "you" in his words, the middle-aged man stopped talking and a drop of cold sweat broke out.

"What are you talking about?"

"Of course I'm talking about you and your brother, Giles." Eric said, tilting his head and raising his chin. "Isn't the man outside picking my bag your brother?"

Giles was shocked and turned his head to look outside. His brother, who was rummaging through his bag, also looked inside in shock.

When he turned his head again, he found a knife against his neck.

Eric took the mead with his free hand and took a sip. "If your brother takes even one gold coin, I'll chop off your head."

"What are you still looking at—"

Giles didn't hesitate at all. He turned around and shouted, "Get in here! Don't touch a penny!"

Giles' brother had no choice but to put down the gold coins and come in. The dwarf boss behind the counter also noticed the movement here and came over with a hammer.

"Giles, I told you to stay away from my tavern a long time ago." The dwarf boss was not even as tall as the table, but his aura was much more powerful than Eric's.

"I forgot... I apologize... I really forgot." Giles burst into tears, but dared not move. He didn't know if this fair-skinned boy dared to attack him, but this dwarf really dared to smash his head.

The dwarf boss ignored him and apologized to Eric instead.

"It's okay." Eric didn't care.

The Giles brothers have little combat ability and can only cheat and deceive people, but they are quite well-known NPCs in "Crown of Thorns". You can start the task of joining a certain faction through them.

And judging from what the dwarf boss said, they are now a pair of habitual offenders.

"Please let me deal with them," Eric said.

The dwarf boss had no objection. He waved the hammer in his hand at the two brothers, asking them to cooperate honestly, and then went back to the counter.

As soon as he left, Brother Giles almost collapsed to the ground.

Eric ignored them for a moment and continued to eat his lunch. After he had eaten and drunk his fill, he said to Giles, "You are from Nightingale, right? Tell me the name of your contact in Lutia and where to find him."

Shocked one after another, Giles wiped the cold sweat from his head and looked at Eric, "Who are you and how do you know us brothers?"

Eric smiled and said, "If you keep talking nonsense, I will be the last person your brothers see before they die."

Giles immediately confessed all he knew.

Nightingale, an underground mercenary organization founded by an unknown person, whose business scope includes but is not limited to theft, kidnapping, assassination, and eavesdropping. It is said that as long as a high enough price is paid, someone will take the task of assassinating the Pope.

The main members of Nightingale are dark elves, but the restrictions at the lowest level are not so strict, and people like the Giles brothers can also be included.

Because they disregard the law and often commit crimes such as theft, murder and looting, Nightingales are also the main targets of crackdowns by the Empire and the Church, and their whereabouts are very secretive.

It was purely accidental that Eric met the Giles brothers here, but he couldn't come here in vain. At least he had to find a way to get in touch with Nightingale at this time.

He had a premonition that he would be able to use Nightingales in the future - whether it was to use them directly to do things that could not be seen in public, or to fight against criminal organizations and enhance the prestige of the quasi-saint in the church.

"In the South City, next to the Old Knot Bridge, there's an underground tavern called the Kingfisher. I remember it. And what's the name of the person you're meeting with... Clara? A woman?"

(End of this chapter)