My bloodline is so eager to improve.

The attacker remained frozen in place, still in the axe-wielding stance, when a bloody gash appeared in the center of his neck.

Immediately afterwards, blood gushed out, staining the decaying leaves at their feet red.

It spread all the way up to the monk.

The mage tried to fight back with other spells, but Otto was faster and killed him with a single sword strike!

At this moment, the surroundings finally quieted down.

Tessa approached Otto, carrying a hammer stained with blood.

Judging from her appearance, Otto believed she had already dealt with the remaining attacker.

Seeing that the counterattack was over, Otto finally breathed a sigh of relief and sheathed his sword.

The faint light of the lamp's eye gradually went out, and Otto simply kicked the corpse path.

Are you alright?

Upon hearing this, Tessa simply shook her head.

"It's alright, it's just a bit of a pity that if I had put on my armor earlier, I could have dealt with the situation much better."

Tessa intended to change into her armor at the camp, but who would have thought she would run into trouble on the way?

Otto, however, didn't seem to care much. He simply told Tessa to search the corpse to see if she could find anything useful or information.

This was Otto's first time fighting a mage, so he didn't dare to hold back at all.

It's always easier to find information on corpses.

After seeing Otto bend down and begin examining the body, Tessa simply nodded and followed Otto's example, beginning her own examination.

The two of them didn't gain much.

The seven attackers only brought some bronze Thorne with them.

Otto only found a space pocket on the attacker wielding the giant axe, which had triggered a self-destruct mechanism due to its owner's death.

"Aren't you planning to leave anything behind?"

Otto was somewhat frustrated; clearly, these attackers were experienced and hadn't brought anything of value with them.

But as Otto was examining his spoils with a sense of unease, he noticed something amiss.

This giant axe appears to have a hidden compartment!

Otto excitedly pulled a thin bone covered with strange symbols from the compartment!

The magic-wielding demon ape seemed to have figured something out.

The Magical Ape has discovered axe techniques.

"Is this an axe-type combat technique?"

Otto thought of the dark red aura that had appeared on the axe earlier; perhaps that was the effect of this combat technique.

“I could go back and sell it to Michael, but I need to get an appraisal from Phyllis first, so I don’t get ripped off by Michael.”

Otto had personally witnessed how Michael tricked Sam, the winery owner.

As a teammate, Otto has great confidence in Michael's negotiating skills!

To avoid suffering losses, one must act with caution.

While Otto was plotting how to get money out of Michael's pocket, Tessa had already found some clues on the mage's corpse.

Chapter Sixty: The Heinous Tribunal

Tessa carefully removed a necklace from the mage's corpse.

There was a tag hanging on the necklace.

A single, enormous eye was carved with ferocious fangs!

"Glak's symbol?"

The two of them felt that things were getting stranger and stranger.

Recently, many similar incidents seem to have been discovered around Oak Town.

The goblins who abused the children are suspected of offering a sacrifice to Grak.

Some adventurers have even found a location that appears to be the location of the Grak treasure.

The appearance of mage attackers wearing the insignia of the Grak is definitely not a normal phenomenon.

"We must immediately report this to the union and everyone must be on high alert!"

With that thought in mind, Otto immediately set off with Tessa.

As for the body, just leave it here for now, and wait for the guild to send someone to investigate it carefully.

This time, Otto did manage to gain something.

Besides the unexpected windfall, Otto also used the magic ape to discover some of the mage's secrets.

[The Magic Ape brings you information about mages]

[Tier 1 - Transcendent: Mage Apprentice (3/3)]

[Those who are employed can enhance their spiritual and intellectual abilities upon reaching the completion of their spiritual practice.]

[Employment Requirements: Apprentice under a formal Dharma master, complete the full practice of meditation, and assume employment the moment you successfully complete meditation.]

Looking at this information, Otto felt that there was probably an even more perfect and ideal first-tier class in the mage system.

This monk, like that big guy, probably couldn't withstand the tests and temptations and chose an inferior profession.

However, just as Otto was pondering, Tessa was muttering something to herself.

Upon seeing this, Otto immediately inquired.

"What, have you figured out why they attacked you?"

Otto felt that these people were not there to attack him, so there was only one answer.

The attackers' target was Tessa.

But when Otto asked her question, Tessa simply shook her head.

"I can't think of any reason why someone would hate me."

but."

Tessa hesitated, as if wondering whether she should tell him about it.

But when Tessa thought of how Otto had selflessly shielded her with his body during the attack, she decided to trust the boy in front of her.

"What I'm about to say, please don't tell anyone, not even the members of the Dragon Slayer Squad!"

Seeing Tessa's serious expression, Otto realized that this was probably a big deal!

"I see."

After receiving Otto's affirmative answer, Tessa cautiously spoke.

"Ms. Eileen went to take up her post ahead of schedule because the previous priest was attacked by bandits."

Upon hearing this, Otto simply nodded.

"I heard Eileen mention this before; she's very unhappy about having to work overtime this time."

Otto was puzzled. Could there be some connection between the two?

While Otto was pondering, Tessa simply continued speaking.

"You probably don't know anything about Eileen."

She is a second-tier Grandmaster, a powerful Judicator Knight.

Logically speaking, it's impossible for someone to be randomly assigned to work as a front desk clerk in a rural place like Oaktown.

Otto knew a little about the Grandmaster that Tessa mentioned; it was a level above the extraordinary.

Even when the Magical Ape faces a Grandmaster, it can only glean a tiny bit of extraordinary information.

Looking at Tessa in front of him, Otto seemed to have guessed the answer.

"That priest was probably not just attacked by bandits, was he?"

Otto thought that if it really was a bandit attack, then the cavalry or the local police station should be responsible for it.

But what about now?

The priests didn't publicize this matter, but instead sent the even more powerful Irene, which must have been for a reason!

Sure enough, seeing that Otto had guessed the answer, Tessa immediately gave the answer.

"According to the Order of the Light, they received a message from the goddess's messenger that the priest's soul did not go to the underworld after his death!"

As Tessa recounted her story, Otto finally understood.

After the priests die, their souls will return to the gods, either resting in the divine realm or becoming divine messengers to communicate with the mortal world.

But the priest's soul disappeared after the attack, which is an extremely unusual phenomenon!

"The Order of the Light suspected that the priest's soul had been stolen during the attack, and therefore filed an application with the Temple Union, requesting the Inquisition to send people to search for him."

"We must at least find that priest's soul; even if that's not enough, we must avenge him!"

Tessa looked slightly embarrassed as she said this.

"However, although Eileen and I are both members of the Inquisition, we don't fabricate stories, so you don't need to worry!"

That's why Tessa hesitated.

The reason is simple: the Inquisition doesn't have a very good reputation in the kingdom.

"I don't know if it's because of the witch hunt season in the past, but many places in the kingdom are against the Inquisition's visits, which is why we carefully concealed our identities to come and investigate."

Tessa witnessed Otto's unwavering courage in risking his life for her; as a partner, he was loyal and devoted.

That's why Tessa wanted Otto to keep the secret.

Fortunately, Otto wasn't someone who couldn't distinguish between important and unimportant matters, so he naturally wouldn't speak recklessly.

There was just one thing he was very curious about.

"Since it was a priest of the Order of the Light who died, why didn't the Order of the Light send anyone over? Aren't there any members of the Order of the Light in the Inquisition?"

Otto had lived in Lot Village for many years and was not very familiar with these institutions, but no matter what, why should he ask other religious orders for help when his own family had an accident?

Upon hearing Otto's question, Tessa seemed amused, and the fatigue on her face lessened considerably.

"The heretical court is not a village committee."

At this point, Tessa simply explained the religious institutions of the Kingdom of Thorne to Otto.

"Within the Kingdom of Thorne, the organization responsible for managing the various religious orders, temples, and churches is called the Union of the True Gods, which is considered to be in charge of the administration."

The Tribunal for Heretics, on the other hand, exists independently of this system.

Only those who swear to dedicate everything to the gods and are willing to purge heresy for them can join.

They come from various faith organizations and are independent of most institutions.

Only the Speaker of the Union of True Gods can command them, so the selection of investigators cannot be decided by a single religious order.

As for the elemental spirits, I'm not so sure.

Tessa originally wanted to join the Inquisition, but unfortunately, neither her teacher nor Erin was willing to write a letter of recommendation.

This made her depressed for quite a while.

However, meeting a compatible and worthwhile peer like Otto has certainly made her feel much more relaxed.

But the black sheep got excited again.

[The black sheep stares at you in disbelief. The girl before you is giving you such a sweet smile. How can you resist the urge to taint this beauty!]

Chapter Sixty-One: Blackthorn Forest Camp (Please continue reading)

Otto had already habitually ignored the black sheep's outburst.