Chapter 47 - Serpent-Bearer Kilo

As Merlin approached the gate, the envoy spoke up, informing the three mercenaries that the mission was complete before handing them each a gold coin. Two notifications appeared in Merlin's vision, one after the other.

「You have completed the quest, "Guide the oracle's envoy to Macedonia", rewards have been delivered.」

「Congratulations, you are now level 3.」

A loud clank sound rung out, drawing Merlin's attention to the gate as it dramatically swung open. Standing in the centre of the now open doorway was a rather attractive young man who was dressed like a butler.

Featuring a chiselled jawline, pale unblemished skin and a healthy figure, it was more reasonable to call the man a supermodel than a butler, but he was still dressed the part, complete with a vest and tailcoat suit.

"Please come in, the oracle has been expecting you." The butler requested, his eyes trained solely on Merlin, not paying the other three any attention.

'Of course she was.' The thought crossed Merlin's mind, but he didn't dare let the remark escape his lips.

"Please, lead the way." He answered the butler with a friendly smile.

As he followed the butler inside, Merlin turned his attention to the two mercenaries and the envoy, the mercenaries started walking off, while the envoy had entered the gate with the wagon, turning right where Merlin and the butler had instead walked straight.

As he was led to the main building, a large red alert box appeared in his view.

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[Message from the devs!]

You've got one hour left until the server is shut down for the day, you will receive another notification when it's time to log out.

If you do not leave by that time you will be forcibly disconnected, please make sure you're in a safe location when you log out.

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"That time already huh." Merlin mumbled to himself quietly.

Merlin waved the notification box away and continued following the butler up a set of stone brick stairs. As he reached the top of the, he was greeted with a large door featured behind a grand archway, designed with ancient runic symbols.

The butler stepped forward and pushed open the door, suddenly Merlin's senses were flooded with a sweet yet floral scent, somewhat reminiscent of bubblegum. As his eyes adjusted to the dim light of the building's interior, he could now make out several figures.

Those who were present in the room prior to Merlin's arrival were a mix of young women and men performing various tasks in the room, but it seemed that they were mostly just lounging around. Each one was objectively attractive, a stark contrast to the envoy and especially the two mercenaries. Merlin grew the suspicion that the oracle had purposefully filled the roles of those closest to her with people who fit her preference in appearance, rather than their ability to do whatever task was required of them.

Looking around the room, Merlin took note of a few things. The main one would be the various braziers around the room, each was burning some form of flowering plant stem, which he assumed was the cause of the smell. Upon further inspection, and utilising his knowledge of plants and flowers, he identified the plant to be a snapdragon, at least from its appearance.

The next thing he noticed was that the various residents of the room were each styled in such a way that they fit their own theme, rather than all collectively wearing a similar uniform or cultural garb.

Just scanning the room quickly, he could pick out several key themes, from the butler he was still following, to the Victorian-era maid and a priestess talking on the other side of the room.

There was even the nerdy-looking man quietly reading in the corner and a pencil-skirt wearing businesswoman standing near the door he was approaching. It was clear that the oracle had some interesting tastes, but he was more surprised that she could find this many attractive servants.

The businesswoman greeted the two silently as the butler walked over and opened the door, now gesturing for Merlin to enter.

Taking him up on the offer, Merlin walked into the room, and as he did, the butler closed the door behind him, leaving Merlin in the room alone.

Within this oddly spherical room were various pillars, braziers and incense burners. But the most important feature of the room was the king sized bed, fit with a large canopy and white lace curtains draped over it.

There was a shadowy figure behind the lace curtains, but the dim light made it rather difficult to see the already obscured form. Merlin found himself slowly strafing around the room, trying to find an angle where he could get a better look.

"Do you mind flicking the switch behind you?" A soft female voice echoed throughout the room, originating from the bed.

Merlin was caught somewhat off guard, but he complied with the request, turning to face the wall, he was greeted with the sight of a somewhat large lever. He felt no danger from the situation he found himself in, so he flicked the switch as requested.

As he did, a metallic screeching sound rung out, and the room suddenly became much brighter.

Looking around to see what the cause was, Merlin found himself staring up at the ceiling. A small skylight located right above the oracle's bed was now open, letting in rays of sunlight that illuminated the room, focused almost exclusively on the bed, making it appear as if it were glowing.

The figure behind the white lace somewhat blended in with her surroundings, the only contrasting detail would be the long streaks of orange that flowed with every movement she made.

"I've been waiting for you, Merlin." The oracle slid off of her bed, pushing past the curtains until she was free from their grasp. "I thank you for bringing my envoy home safely."

「You have earned +10 familiarity with Serpent-Bearer Kilo」

There before Merlin stood a pale tall woman wearing a while silk robe, the most glaring detail being her long wavy orange hair, but another point of concern being the turquoise ball python currently wrapped around the woman's neck, staring Merlin down with strangely intelligent-looking eyes.

"You are very welcome." Merlin answered normally for now, he hadn't interacted with this NPC in his previous life, so he wasn't sure about her mannerisms or any pitfalls he may talk his way into.

Kilo silently stared at Merlin for several minutes, before her attention hovered over to his right arm. "That's quite the nasty curse you've got there..."

Merlin held out his arm, revealing that the purple blight had spread up his arm, but he only just noticed that it seemed to have stopped spreading, the level of blight was the same as when he left the bathhouse.

"I foresaw the possibility of a malicious spirit attacking, yet I never expected it to be bound to the same man who helped my envoy." The oracle spoke up, puffing out her chest. "I expect that after this meeting, you intend to visit the priestess visiting us from Orchomenus."

"Unfortunately, she will not be able to remove your curse." She continued, "You aren't the first person to be struck with the same affliction, and the previous victim's visit resulted in the curse's progression being permanently frozen. Your situation will end much the same, I'm afraid."

"How do you know that for sure?" Merlin asked, a hint of curiosity in his voice.

"Well, I've seen it, of course." Kilo's pale blue eyes seemed to faintly glow as she stared at him. Merlin felt like she was staring right through him, it left him with a strange sense of discomfort.

"I have been granted the power to peer into potential futures of those I hold within my sight. For this, I have been regarded as an oracle." Merlin noticed that her eyes stopped glowing as she finished that sentence, "Not to worry though. I have seen a future where you cure yourself of the curse by exorcising the spirit haunting you."

"Would you be so kind as to explain how?" Merlin asked with a great deal of curiosity, "My last attempt involved setting it on fire, but I still couldn't manage to finish it off."

Kilo seemed to find that funny, letting a small chuckle escape her lips. "For a creature such as this, it isn't the spectral body that must be damaged, but rather its source."

"Its source?" Merlin repeated.

"Yes, this particular creature seems invincible, but it has a major weakness." She took a long pause for dramatic effect, waiting until Merlin showed signs of frustration before she continued talking. "It seems bound to its burial site, meaning the soul is still tied to its remains. If you salt and burn the bones, it should be enough to properly exorcise it, killing it permanently."

Merlin thought about it for a moment, and remembered doing similar things with certain undeads that were trickier to deal with. Although it was mostly destroying phylacteries that immortal creatures such as liches used to store and protect their souls, but the concept was similar.

"Very well, thank you for the advice. I'll go try that." Merlin thanked her. Seeing as his quest was now complete, he started slowly making his way to the door.

"Well, now. Before you leave, I may have a task for you." The oracle spoke up, causing a quest window to appear before Merlin.

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[Hidden Epic Quest]

Hunt down Rig.

The Serpent-Bearer Kilo has warned of a dangerous man who goes by the name Rig. He has been described as an unusually pale man sporting a large blond beard. He seems to possess a destructive artifact that takes the form of a horn. Kilo has said that the man is destined to flood all of Arcadia using the artifact in the near future.

The oracle has requested that you search for this man, although little description of him has been given.

• Warning: ???

• Reward: ???

• Failure: ???

• Requirement: ???

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'How suspicious.' Was the only thing running through Merlin's mind at that point. The request itself seemed simple enough, but the fact it was an epic grade quest containing both a requirement and a fail state, both of which were hidden, was too suspicious.

Merlin's prior experiences with devils led him to not trust quests that had so many hidden variables, especially fail states, as he always seemed to draw the short stick.

"I'm afraid I'll have to decline for now." Merlin replied with a sombre tone, declining the quest. "If I find this man by chance, I will gladly supply you with his location, but I have too many tasks to deal with for the time being."

Merlin waved goodbye as he excused himself, quickly making his way through the door he was led through originally.