Mercenary Wars

Chapter 176 Hoddle's Church
After a while.

“Gaucano?” A man wearing gray eagle epaulettes looked at Gaucano in surprise as he approached.

Beside him stood a dozen or so people of various backgrounds, who murmured amongst themselves upon hearing this: "That name sounds familiar..."

"I remember now, it's that apothecary from the Gray Eagle Mercenary Group who won three consecutive duels on the battlefield!" Someone recognized Gao Jiano, who was already quite famous.

"Oh, an apothecary from the Gray Eagle Mercenary Group?" another voice asked with a playful tone.

Following the sound, Gao Jiano's pupils contracted slightly.

The speaker had long, flowing silver hair, a fair complexion, delicate features, and a captivating smile. His exceptionally handsome appearance made it impossible to discern his gender.

If it weren't for his Adam's apple, most people would probably mistake him for a woman. Even with the Adam's apple, many might still believe he is female, since, frankly, women with Adam's apples aren't necessarily rarer than such a graceful man.

Nils the Skinner!

Gao Jiano believed that the androgynous beauty before him was Nils. Although he had never met Nils before, he didn't think it was easy to find a man who looked like that. Even in the entire continent of Fararo, there should be very few men with similar appearances, let alone in a place not far from Southsea Town.

Niels was renowned for his stunning beauty. Many who had seen him and heard about his childhood experiences would find it understandable that the priest who abused him was human. Equally famous as his beauty was his twisted psychology and the resulting nickname "The Skinner."

In Gao Jiano's view, this guy was also the buyer of the Oracle Chest of the Evil God Behelet, so there was no doubt that he should be wary of him.

A gentle breeze seemed to waft through the cave, causing Nils's long silver hair to sway softly, accentuating his striking good looks. His blue eyes were fixed on Gaugano, a slight smile playing on his lips: "Did Lucius send you?"

Gaucano was a little confused.

Niels then said to himself, "I heard he lost an arm on the battlefield... Didn't he ask you to find some herbs to heal his arm?"

"Herbal remedies for healing disabilities are hard to find," Gao Jiano simply said. In fact, almost only Forget-Me-Not plants can be the key material for healing disabilities, and even then, it must be a high-grade Forget-Me-Not plant; Forget-Me-Not moss will not do.

“Indeed, but there might be one here,” Niels said. “But why didn’t Lucius come in person? Is it because he’s lost confidence in his own abilities? If so, I’d really like to see what he looks like now, whether he’s still as arrogant as before.”

His tone became much stronger at the end, as if he intended to emphasize Lucius's arrogance.

But for Gaucano, this was still a somewhat baffling statement, as he had never heard anyone else make the same assessment of Lucius.

After a brief conversation, Gao Jiano couldn't help but think that Niels was indeed a difficult guy to communicate with.

"Enough with the nonsense." A burly warrior wielding a sword and shield looked at Nils and said impatiently, "Time in the Tidelands is precious. We only have four days at most, unless you want to be trapped here for decades or centuries!"

Niels kept quiet.

Then the burly warrior pointed at Gaucano: "You're a Mossatist, aren't you?"

Gaucano nodded, and at the same time pulled out Raymond's brass triangle: "Pious Mosas."

The warrior glanced at the brass triangle: "Very well, then I won't say any more. But you should know that the Tidal Lands are full of dangers, especially places like this. Therefore, although I carry a fairly sturdy mithril shield, I don't have the time to specifically protect anyone, not even a devout Mosaic like you."

“Of course, I understand.” Gao Jiano glanced at the shield in the warrior’s hand. It was indeed made of a silvery material that gave a sense of lightness; it should be mithril.

Mithril Shield.

It seems this guy is most likely an eighth-level warrior, and a wealthy one at that.

"Let's go. Hopefully, we can all get what we want!" the soldier said, then turned and continued walking deeper into the cave.

The other dozen or so people naturally followed closely behind.

Gao Jiano followed.

Among these people were two Grey Eagle mercenaries. He didn't recognize one of them at all, but he was more familiar with the other one, the one who had recognized him at the beginning. His name was Michael, and he had sparred with him a few times.

So he naturally walked beside Michael: "Michael, when did you get here?"

“Not long,” Michael said. “And how did you find this place, fortune-telling?”

"More or less," Gao Jiano replied vaguely.

“I also got the information from a fortune teller,” Michael said. “The fortune teller also told me that there is an ancient church here that has been sealed for a long time, and that a passage to it was only recently discovered. The opening of the Tide Lands is the best opportunity to obtain the church’s treasure.”

Which god's church?

"That's not clear."

The group talked from time to time as they ventured deeper into the cave.

Through conversation and listening, Gao Jiano gradually gained an understanding of the situation here.

First, let's look at the composition of this temporary adventure team.

Among the dozen or so people, there were two Grey Hawk mercenaries—three including Gaucano, two Bloodsail pirates, two Ironfist Brotherhood members including Nils, and several flexibly employed adventurers.

And two Fireblade mercenaries.

The Fireblade Mercenary Group is a large mercenary group in the Kingdom of Liberland, and its strength is much greater than that of the Gray Eagle Mercenary Group.

The level eight warrior wielding the mithril shield was one of the two Fireblade mercenaries, named James.

In addition, as Michael or his fortune teller said, the end of the cave is a long-forgotten ancient church, the specific god of which is unknown.

But it's probably unrelated to Mosa.

After all, it is well known that no Mosaic church has ever been built within the Kiso Mountains.

The Kiso Mountains were a reservation for non-believers and a haven for pagans; without exception, all the churches built there belonged to pagans.

To escape the forces that persecute infidels and external dangers, these infidels often chose to build their churches underground.

This is a risky choice, as major earthquakes are also a well-known feature of the Kiso Mountains.

In a way, the fate of this church is a manifestation of error.

Of course, it could also be a manifestation of the deity's neglect.

Regardless, everyone believes that the church was buried by an earthquake.

After being buried for several years, the church was finally hit by another earthquake.

Unlike the earthquake that buried it, this earthquake broke its isolation, allowing it to reconnect with the surface, and the passage is where everyone is now stepping.

Clearly, they were not the first to set foot here.

There were still some footprints on the ground, some not very fresh footprints, which looked like they had been made two days ago.

Without a doubt, the owner of these footprints was a low-level adventurer who entered four days ago.

“It looks dangerous inside,” a mage remarked, observing the footprints of those who had come before.

“That’s right,” Niels replied. “Except for one set of footprints, all the other footprints are from the point of no return.”

Some people couldn't help but show a hint of unease on their faces.

Some encouraged each other, saying, "It's dangerous for them, but not necessarily for us. Their highest level is only level four, while our lowest is level five!"

"That's right! And they definitely didn't get anything. That set of footprints that showed they were heading back was probably just a fright!"

"Shouldn't churches all have a 'sacristy'?"

“At least the churches in Mosa have sanctuaries, even the little chapel in my hometown has one, claiming to house a basin used by a saint!” Amid the murmurs, the group gradually reached the end of the passage.

Then a large door came into view.

A door that has been opened.

The gate was made of stone and was quite heavy, but due to the turbulence of the mountains and the erosion of time, it became dilapidated and half of it collapsed.

Some patterns and words are faintly visible on it, but they are difficult to make out clearly.

Before entering the gate, everyone used various methods to conduct a reconnaissance.

There are no living creatures near the entrance.

"There were no traps either."

Someone lit up a spotlight, but was immediately rebuked by the soldier James: "What are you doing?"

"Illumination spell... what's wrong?"

"Don't you have any darkvision potion? Who knows what's in it? What if you attract danger by using illumination?" James added.

"Darkvision potions are a bit expensive, and..."

James interrupted without hesitation, saying, "Drink, or get out!"

As a high-ranking member of the Fireblade Mercenary Group and a warrior specializing in protection, his authority within the group is unquestionable, even in temporary teams.

Seeing this, the other party dared not say anything more.

He didn't have any darkvision potion, so he had to buy a bottle from someone else on the spot and drink it.

Everyone gained darkvision.

They then followed James, crossed the stone gate, and entered this mysterious area.

Gao Jiano sensed the location of the level 10 plant.

As he walked, the distance between him and the level 10 plants kept shrinking.

Therefore, it seems that this place does indeed lead to the location of the level 10 plant.

Thinking about this, Gao Jiano couldn't help but feel a sense of anticipation.

Of course, while he was looking forward to it, he was also nervous. After all, if it really was a level 10 Forgetfulness Plant, there was a high probability that there was a ferocious magical beast nearby, possibly level 9, 10, or even higher.

Even if it's not an Eternal Forgetfulness plant, the place where a level 10 plant grows should not be completely without danger.

So as he stepped through the stone gate, he activated the Skin of the Earth once more, making his body solid and heavy.

Behind the stone gate is a front hall.

The scene inside was unremarkable, with only some decaying and dilapidated tables, chairs, and other utensils, along with some equally dilapidated decorations, indicating the church's long history.

The group walked around the front hall.

Nothing was gained, and nothing happened.

Only one incomplete stone carving attracted the attention of some people.

The monk walked up to the stone carving and examined it carefully. Then, somewhat surprised, he said, "I think I know whose church this is!"

"Whose church is it?" Everyone was curious.

“The blind god Hoddle,” the mage said, pointing to the stone carvings. “Look, here’s a picture of Hoddle throwing mistletoe!”

When everyone gathered around to take a look, they saw that the pattern on the stone carving was a god with his eyes closed, holding mistletoe and pointing into the distance. Although the pattern was mostly incomplete, the key elements such as the mistletoe and the closed eyes could still be distinguished.

Those with some knowledge of the occult immediately realized: "Indeed, the blind god Hoddle threw mistletoe!"

“So this is Hoddle’s church. Who among you knows him and his followers well?” James asked, stroking his chin.

No one answered. After all, Hoddle wasn't very well-known; most people hadn't even heard of him, let alone knew anything about him.

“Alright, then we’ll see how lucky we are. May Mosa bless us,” James said, then walked toward another stone door opposite the entrance.

The stone door was half-open, and the group conducted a preliminary investigation before entering.

"There are no living creatures or traps, go in."

The soldier pushed open the stone door with his shield, cautiously peering behind it.

Gaucano, too, cautiously peered at the scene behind the door, holding the Blood-Summoning Sword in his hand.

Behind the stone gate is a circular auditorium. The auditorium is very spacious and empty. The huge space is almost sparsely furnished, with only accumulated gravel and dust, and occasionally the collapsed bricks of the dome.

In addition, two stone statues came into view of Gaucano.

The stone statues are located on both sides of the hall. They are very ordinary in design, simply depicting guards holding swords. Their only distinguishing feature is that they have no eyes. If one had to describe them, it would be that their forms are very natural, as if they were real people painted with a layer of plaster.

Just as Gaucano noticed the two stone statues, a few lines of information flashed through his mind.

[Status Acquired: Visual Stealing (Curse)]

[Countermeasure: Visual Capture (Curse)]

【Successful countermeasure】

These lines of information flashed repeatedly.

Gao Jiano felt nothing, only vaguely aware that he seemed to lose his sight for a very brief moment, and then immediately regain it.

It is obvious that his Fairness Curse is constantly stealing vision from the Cursed One.

The others clearly did not have a fair curse.

Suddenly, many people lost their sight, and a series of terrified screams echoed through the room.

"What's this!"

"I can't see!"

"It's the 'curse of visual abduction'!"

"Quickly close your eyes!"

Some people closed their eyes in time and were spared from being infected, but it was no different from being infected, as they couldn't see anything either.

At the same time, the two guardian stone statues, which originally had no eyes, began to glow with an eerie light, and several pairs of eyes appeared out of thin air, scanning the surroundings with an eerie and lively quality.

The sum of the number of their eyes is exactly the number of people whose sight has been taken away.

They also came back to life.

With numerous pairs of eyes darting about, and heavy steps, he charged towards the crowd, stone sword in hand. A faint voice emanated from his ashen body: "For...Hoder..."

(End of this chapter)