Shepherd Wizard-Chapter 170.1

Translator: Pai_

There was a hint of caution- no, even a tinge of fear, in Jemel’s voice as he mentioned the one behind the ambush.

Turan was well aware of when the fallen gods displayed such an attitude.

The god behind it all, known as the Biologist, Puppetmaster, or by other names.

Even the half-elves who had become no better than his slaves hesitated to utter his name out of discomfort.

[Monarch?]

[Yes, that was the name he originally used. Among ourselves, we had other nicknames for him, like the Swindler or such……]

[Others seem reluctant to mention that name, but you’re not.]

Seeing Jemel flinch, Turan could guess what his intention had been.

For some reason, he wanted the Monarch, the Biologist, to realize that his name had been mentioned and to turn his gaze in this direction.

[Are you one of his accomplices? Hidden within Carmine?]

[No, that’s not it-]

[You're lying.]

Inside the soul prison, where both existed in spiritual form, it was difficult to read emotions through body scents like in the real world.

However, Turan now had another method of discerning truth from falsehood in speech.

The Eye of Truth.

Born from the fusion of the Hunter and Chaser bloodlines, it could be used even in spiritual form against other spirits, letting him know that the opponent was lying.

[So, you’re not particularly loyal, are you? Judging by the way you incited things from behind the scenes without acting directly, you probably didn’t want to reveal the one behind it all. But seeing you do this for your own safety…]

And he seemed to have confidence that the Biologist, Monarch, would not harm him after being rescued this way.

He probably had some hidden move related to him.

[More importantly, can he perceive conversations even within this soul prison? By what method, exactly?]

[That, I don’t really know either. But I thought, maybe, he might notice……]

He wasn’t sure himself, but he was clinging to a faint hope, just in case.

This time, it wasn’t a lie.

Just how much of his abilities had he hidden that even those who had lived alongside him for thousands of years didn’t know his limits?

Even Talis, the most paranoid person Turan had ever met, was nothing compared to this guy.

[Anyway, now that the topic’s come up, I might as well ask more. What do you know about him?]

[Well-]

When Turan saw him trailing off, he immediately created a torture device and placed it beside him.

A triangular horse with a sharp pointed saddle, something he’d briefly seen in Cadrum’s memories.

Even without any specific knowledge, its appearance clearly conveyed its purpose, and Jemel’s face turned pale.

[I-I’ll tell you! Just please, not that……]

Since Jemel was weak to violence, Turan figured that intimidation would be more effective than encouragement, and sure enough, Jemel quickly revealed what he had hidden.

[As far as I know, Monarch's current identity is the head of House Nagin.]

[So it is as I thought.]

Though he had already suspected it, having an insider confirm it wasn’t a bad thing.

Of course, he needed to consider the possibility of another level of deception, but there was little reason for someone to use another body when they already had the powerful body of a family head.

[Yes. And as for how the Monarch notices when his name is mentioned……]

[It’s probably because he deals with ‘taboos’.]

[Ah, so you already knew.]

[I knew that much. You’re not the first prisoner to come here.]

As he said, the one who had informed Turan of this had been Reshion.

Originally, even within the soul prison, Reshion had hesitated to mention the Monarch’s name. But in order to gain a chance to play a game of chess with his companion, he eventually let it slip.

[He sets rules, such as forbidding mention of his name or certain information, and when someone violates them, he becomes aware of it, right?]

This was because one of the Monarch’s abilities was being a Lawmaker who could establish specific rules.

Bloodlines like Night Hunter's Alchemist and Shadow, or the drowned god's Mimic and Wave Rider had gone extinct in the modern era.

According to the old tales of the gods, during the days when the Preah God Tribe still lived, the number of bloodline abilities they possessed was easily more than double what exists now.

Their numbers had merely diminished because the descendants who inherited those powers were weeded out for various reasons.

[But what I don't understand is how he can wield such power targeting the entire world without even having a god's body?]

[I once heard in passing that the essence of the ability is akin to manipulating souls. It’s difficult to control after losing his strength, but he still retains the authority as the owner……]

Even in his lifetime, when Monarch had a god's body, he preferred not to show himself publicly and was said to have obsessively erased any historical records that mentioned his existence.

This explained why no lore about a god with such powers remained.

The writings Turan had seen in library or in the Tomb of the Gods had also been in the form of diaries, lacking any direct accounts.

[Then the creation of the ‘leash’ must be the result of combining that soul-controlling ability with his control over life, right?]

[Yes, that’s right! I didn’t think you’d know even that……]

It must have been that same power which was used to reengineer the dwarves into a more primitive form, or to create horrific monsters using the flesh and souls of dead giants.

The creation of inherited leashes and similar artifacts was probably an application of skills from the Ruler or Tamer bloodlines that aided in soul magic……

It was certainly understandable why he hadn't been highly regarded during the game era despite his abilities.

It was a completely useless combination for combat purposes.

However, once they arrived in this world in the bodies of game characters, his non-combat abilities played major roles in various fields.

From crafting ‘leashes’ embedded in the souls of wizards, to modifying hostile races, and even to reincarnation via soul magic.

[Let’s go back to the previous topic. What did Monarch promise your leader? I heard they didn’t have a very good relationship to begin with.]

[It was a sacred relic called the King of Calamity. It originally belonged to our guild leader.]

The top-tier sacred relics that survived into the modern era were mostly relics left behind as the old Preah God Tribe perished, ordinary items that had been empowered by their dying resentment.

Just like the Mimic Relic that Turan possessed.

Naturally, they not only served as powerful weapons but also held deep emotional attachment.

Even more so if the item’s former owner had been close to the individual.

[Lawyer… I mean, Rodor, the head of House Carmine, had been close with the owner of that item. But Monarch seized it amid the chaos, which soured their relationship. Given that, it was a worthy price for attacking House Parsha.]

On top of that, it was said that Rodor, the head of House Carmine, had already been somewhat displeased with Turan.

He didn’t like that a mere native dared to stand against them, the gods, and had been waiting for the right moment to eliminate him. The chance to do so in exchange for a significant reward had delighted him.

[Then does Rodor have the King of Calamity relic now?]

[No. If given upfront, there’s a risk he might just take it and feign ignorance, so a separate contract was made.]

There was a skill based on the Lawmaker bloodline ability related to this.

If the contract was violated, it didn’t merely affect the physical body, it could cause serious damage to the soul.

The condition was to raze Kalamaf first, after which the item would be given, so it had not yet been received.

[Then House Carmine won’t give up after just this one attack.]

They had too much at stake, retrieving the souls of Jemel and the other, the contract, the sacred relic, there was no way they would let it go easily.

Jemel nodded with a slightly grim expression.

[Yes, that’s likely. Also, to prepare for this ambush, we obtained internal information from House Parsha……]

[It must have been Phoenix.]

[Huh? H-How did you know!?]

Jemel cried out in shock at the completely unexpected reply.

Ironically, it was Jemel himself who had revealed that the name Phoenix had been the nickname used by his grandfather, Talis, in the game.

He had heard it during the time he infiltrated the secret meeting inside House Carmine while disguised as Onil.

[Anyway, I think I've learned enough to give you your reward.]

Turan remodeled the interior in the style unique to House Carmine, as he had seen during his time as Onil.

A level just slightly inferior to what the half-elves including Reshion were enjoying.

[Oh……]

Though it was nothing compared to what Jemel had enjoyed originally, being confined in a prison with nothing but stone seemed to have already lowered his standards.

Turan spoke quietly to the awestruck Jemel.

[This is just the beginning. If you give me more useful information, I’ll give you even better treatment. Now, speak. What else do you know?]

***