MMORPG: Rise of the Primordial Godsmith

Chapter 1455: Myriad Prodigies: Crimson Cathedral

”…Targeting me?”

Hearing her words, Valyr frowned.

Looking through all of the memories he made in his current life, the young man was certain that he had not interacted with the Crimson Cathedral whatsoever. He was also certain that he hadnʼt done anything to incur the wrath of such an organization.

Though, as he looked a bit more through his memories, there were a few things that now began to stand out to him.

One of them was the thing Faulus informed him back in the inheritance.

From what he could recall, there was someone or something attempting to control the man at first while they were going through the inheritance, aiming to sow discord between the members of the party.

Thankfully, as more and more time passed, Faulus was able to keep those thoughts at bay, allowing him to continue proceeding through the inheritance with ease.

However, just as Loreina and Faulus had made up their minds to leave the inheritance early, the man had informed him that the one on the other side of the connection had fortified their control over him, only leaving the young man a message that wished him to help him with his problem.

Of course, Valyr wasnʼt able to follow up on this promise, instead gradually forgetting it as more and more time passed.

In the end, Faulus committed a massive sin to the human race, betraying humanity in the midst of the war against the orcs and the elves.

As his expression turned grim the moment he recalled the man, Valyr went ahead and continued to rummage more through his memories, wondering if there was anything else in his memories that stuck out a similar way.

Surprisingly, there was.

And that was the fact the Zeihardt clan was looking for him.

Through the conversation he had with Sullivan back at the advent of Greater Beyondʼs public release, the young man was able to find out that the reason why both factions of the clan wanted him to back was because they wanted to use him for the goals they had in mind.

However, with the knowledge of the Crimson Cathedral targeting him now added, another possibility was now introduced to what would originally be considered a clan-level dilemma.

What if… the Crimson Cathedral asked the Zeihardt clan to bring him back for their own purposes?

Whoosh!

When this thought popped up in his mind, Valyr could not help but shudder, instinctively feeling that there was a slight possibility that the situation was actually the case.

After all, even though the conversation he and Sullivan shared was positive, the young man could still remember the palpable aura of slaughter the man briefly radiated.

ʼIs Sullivan… a member of the Crimson Cathedral?ʼ

ʼ…ʼ

ʼ…Letʼs not get too ahead of ourselves.ʼ

Faintly shaking his head as he discarded the various what-if scenarios in his mind, Valyr eventually returned his gaze back at the director, looking at her with a solemn expression.

”Do you have any proof to back up your claim?”

”I unfortunately donʼt have any evidence on me at the moment.” Lunarossa wryly smiled at his question. ”However, I swear under my status as an Imperial Duchess that the Crimson Cathedral is indeed targeting you.”

”If any of the words I just spoke are false, may the omniscient and omnipotent mana smite me.”

Swoosh!

At the very instant she finished saying those words, an incredibly domineering aura suffused throughout the room all of a sudden, causing both Valyr and Lunarossa to briefly feel as if they were small ships capsizing in the middle of an ocean.

Fortunately, just as they began to feel like submitting to this aura, the aura swiftly disappeared without a trace as if it hadnʼt even made an appearance in the first place.

”…A mana oath, huh.” With the sensation of the domineering aura still lingering in his mind, Valyr continued to look at Lunarossa with a solemn expression before eventually nodding.

”Well, since youʼre willing to go that far, Director, then it would be rude of me not to believe you.”

”That alone suffices,” said Lunarossa in response, her smile filled with relief.

Although he asked her for proof on her claims, Valyr was already somewhat convinced that the Crimson Cathedral was targeting him.

Nevertheless, since the woman before him had not given him any definite proof, he had to obtain evidence on the matter through other means.

”Why is the Crimson Cathedral targeting me, then?” he asked.

”To offer you as a tribute to their god, Primus Sanguis.”

”Why me, specifically?”

”It might have something to do with your status as a Herald,” Lunarossa replied, mulling over the question for a bit. ”Of course, thereʼs also a possibility that you becoming their target is for an entirely different reason.”

”However, Iʼm still more than certain theyʼre targeting you to become their tribute.”

Getting the feeling that Lunarossa either did not have much information on the matter or was intentionally hiding it from him for now, Valyr decided not to ask any more questions for the meantime.

Though the notion of the Crimson Cathedral still felt somewhat uncertain to him, he was at least able to obtain a bit more information that solidified its credibility… even if it was more on the vague side.

After a bit more back-and-forth questioning on what kind of organization the Crimson Cathedral was, the two eventually returned to the original topic of their conversation.

”Since youʼve mentioned the Crimson Cathedral, then Erikaʼs goals make a lot more sense now,” she said. ”After all, if thereʼs one thing the Crimson Cathedral is known for, then itʼs the fact that they offer the bodies of talented people as tribute to their god.”

Valyr faintly nodded at those words, only for a question to pop up in his head. ”Say… if weʼre able to confirm that Erika is indeed connected to the Crimson Cathedral, then what goal do you think she has in mind?”

”Honestly… Iʼm not sure.” Lunarossa shook her head.

”However, since both of you have been targeted by her gazes before, then thereʼs a chance she wants to obtain something big from their god.”

”Something big…” At those words, a myriad number of possibilities popped up in his mind, with some of them even making him feel as if theyʼve touched the crux of the womanʼs goals during the tournament.

Yet, with no concrete evidence to back them up whatsoever, the young man eventually decided to push his thoughts to the side for now.

”Since our discussion regarding the task Mystia gave us is now over, I suppose I should give you a few words of advice for the tournament.”

Just as Valyr was about to part ways with her, Lunarossa said those words all of a sudden, causing his interest to be piqued.

Chuckling at the sudden change in his reaction, she continued, ”Try to make sure both of you and Ataraxia reach at least the top 100 by the end of the tournament.”

”Not only would the two of you be able to experience the final tournament held in the empire…”

”…But the two of you would also gain the opportunity to enter the Ocean of Crystallized Truths.”