Chapter 50 50: Hermits In The Desert [Pt2]

Keith was flabbergasted at the sudden disrespect he was made to deal with. He had not expected the other party to close the door shut right in front of his face.

Maybe it was because of his disguise, or maybe it was the fact that Keith knew no one else knew him there, but he found his character breaking for the first time since his transmigration into this world.

"Hey, what the hell? I am here to make a trade with you. How can you lock me out like this?"

Keith complained and the slit in the door opened once more. The same eye from before glared at him in suspicion.

"You reek of make-up and magic. We ain't gonna trust a city folk like ya to hold any relevant information our boss might want. So scam now before we make ya."

The guard sounded tough and old. The eye looking at Keith from the other side was judging him and his worth but Keith held his ground.

It was likely a trial for Keith to know if he was trustworthy or not. Keith needed to show that he meant no harm to these people.

The door slit closed and Keith felt like he had achieved his goal of conveying his feelings this time, but nothing happened. The door in front of him did not open, nor did it bulge even a single bit.

'So that was not a test, but a refusal to allow me entry. I guess I will have to break in then.'

Thankfully, Keith had decided to swipe the teleportation skill from Shinzou. It would come in so handy this time, even if it was a one-time use skill.

But Keith was not going to use that skill right now. He was going to use this skill once night fell and these people became less vigilant. That would improve Keith's chances of running into the one he wanted to see.

The 'boss' of these people was someone never shown in the game but they were referred to as a great person akin to a god's messenger to these people. They were someone worth looking into right now.

So for now, Keith decided to retreat and wait around. And once the night fell, Keith decided to make his move.

........

"-did you hear? The gladiator ring was taken down."

"What a shame. I liked those bloody and immoral fights. I will have to look for a new ring now."

"Hmm, I heard that the grandmaster there was a fake one and he exposed himself."

Inside the Hermits camp, a small bonfire party had started as soon as the sun had set. It was their tradition to work during the day and celebrate once the night fell. This was what their fallen god had prioritized - pleasure and openness.

Almost everyone had joined in on the fun and started to let loose. The smell of booze and run had intoxicated the whole gathering.

From the top of her seat, a pair of lone golden eyes watched the gathering with a fond expression. Brown man-like hair accompanied those strong golden and fierce eyes.

The scarcely clad female was none other than the priest of their current god, also known locally as 'boss' in their circle.

She was the sole control figure in such an elite group and her words were final. She was someone everyone looked up to. And currently, she had a man laying in her lap and getting petted by her claw-like finger extensions.

A small breach of control would send the head in her lap flying.

"It's a good night. I can feel the pleasure of our god penetrating our gathering and enjoying it with us. Now, enjoy this evening more so that our god can gain more pleasure from us."

The priestess raised her glass of rum high in the air. The whole gathering watched in anticipation as their priestess emptied that glass of alcohol in one go.

Once the golden glass was empty, the party started again. No one noticed the priestess wake up and head toward the side tower. She needed to see to her bodily functions and relax a little.

But Saintess Athena had just reached the side tower when she heard the sound of footsteps. It was heavier than the female Hermits and the male knew better than to come to this side of the camp.

'It's an intruder. Did someone dare to sneak into our camp? How amusing. Let me see who this daring person is as well.'

Saintess Athena decided to ignore her complaining bladder and made her way to where she heard the footsteps coming from. Her feline-features body did not only look like a lion's but had the grace of their feline side as well.

Athena jumped up higher, taking a hidden spot in the lone tree on that side, and looked down.

She could instantly tell some key features about the figure who was trying to sneak in.

First of all, their intruder was a male and was taller than average. His body also looked well-trained but it had no aura attached to it. The person was also being careful and somehow looked up and met Athena's eyes.

'Oops! Looks like I was too careless this time. Oh well, time to let the cat out of the bag for now.'

Athena grinned wider and jumped down from the huge tree directly on top of her camp's intruder. The man looked startled and instantly backed away. But weirdly enough, he still had grace in his steps when he backed away in a hurry.

'How interesting.'

Athena quickly aligned her body so that she landed on her toes and bend her knees to absorb the shock of another landing. Her body arched on all four and she remained unharmed.

The brown eyes looking at her contained shock but none of it showed up on the handsome face in front of her.

'Such an interesting human with such a delicious scent. It makes me want to take a bite out of this man.'

Athena finally stood up once it looked like this man was not going to attack her. He stood still cautiously in front of Athena, almost as if waiting for her to start talking.

"Tsk, you are a naughty intruder coming in uninvited. I should punish you for this audacity, right?"

Athena questioned as she walked toward him. There was no change in the face in front of Athena but the air seemed to have changed.

"Greetings to the priestess of Hermits. I am here to make a deal with you and I assure you that I have credible information for you to hear me out."

Somehow, Athena did not find herself doubting those words. Her sixth sense told her that whatever this man was offering, was truly something she wanted.

And even her instincts were telling her to stick to this man. His handsome face was to Athena's liking and her powers asked her to take this man as hers.

Still, Athena was no child and she would not be controlled by impulses. There were a lot of people dependent on her and her choices. Athena needed to make these choices carefully and screen this man first.

"I am sure we could have had our discussion in the morning. Now is the pleasure time and I refuse to have any business conducted in this time."

Athena denied this man based on principles.

No matter how much she wanted to help this man, now was not the time. Athena's god had dedicated this time to something and Athena would follow that.

"I did try to find you in the morning but I was refused-"

"Because of your disguise. Then you should discard it-"

"I cannot. Not until we are alone and you give me a vow not to disclose my real identity."

Now, this was a deal worth considering. If this man had considered not throwing his disguise and instead, sneaking in here, then it must be a big secret.

The device on her person that Athena used to measure the value of someone's information was exciting.

Whatever news this man carried was massive and Athena ached to know it. She had been caught on the hook by this man.

"Hmm, I can see your problem and I have a solution for you. I will listen to you in the morning and even grant you an immunity pass for your stay if you accept to accompany me for the night."

"In other words, give me pleasure to make me forget this world and I shall make your wish come true as well."

Athena offered this with an open mind but her adorable intruder had to think hard about her offer.

But in the end, he made the right decision of taking Athena's hand and accompanying her for the night. It was going to be a lovely and pleasure-filled night and in the morning, Athena would hear the man and his information out.

Overall, it was going to be a win for her.