Cardinal Loki

As Iver pressed him for details, the man's image in Iver's mind became clearer: a man in a sharp, tailored brown suit with a honeycomb-like hexagonal checkered pattern, his red hair neatly combed back. Even in the sweltering heat of the Southern Continent, he wore dark leather shoes, yet he never seemed to sweat, and even under the sun, his skin remained fair and radiant.

He has lived on the Southern Continent for many years. He has good relations with many troll tribes and often interacts with goblins. He speaks both goblin and troll languages, and the trolls call him "Red Wine Mister".

No one knows his name, only that he is a powerful and mysterious "wizard", and they are not even clear about his abilities and path.

--broken.

Iver thought to himself.

Because he didn't know this person at all. This meant that this person had never been inside the dungeon before, and was a new boss that he had provoked himself... able to kidnap the high priest's father at will in the troll tribe, and make the other party not even have the will to resist.

As a high priest of a tribe, reaching the Fifth Level is unlikely, considering that even with their physical enhancements, they were still forced into such a state by goblins who had no organization.

Conversely, the High Priest should also be Fourth Level "Grand Wizard." Then this man must be at least Fifth Level being... and possibly even an apostle who has obtained the power of the Celestials.

"... red hair."

Iver murmured, "Bear Angel..."

While it cannot be completely ruled out that they are Avalon and the Noble Red, judging from their red hair and white skin, they are at least unlikely to be from the Parthian Ancient Kingdom for producing Grand Wizard.

Soon, Iver had an idea.

He actually knew someone who was connected to both the red-haired man and Bear Angel.

—Enyo City Breaker.

The one that was caught by the Lord of Scales and Feathers using Iver as bait, and then made into caviar.

Could they be descendants of Enyo?

There's also a worst-case scenario...

Could it be Enyo and Ares "Nation Destroyer"?

Although Ares was bewitched by the beauty of the Shadow Angel after the fall of the Supreme Heaven and became one of their Shadow Angel, perhaps he already knew that Enyo had been tricked and killed by Iver?

Even if we look at it more optimistically, he is at least a hostile superhuman at the Fifth Level. Judging from his title of "wizard," he should at least be a spellcaster.

—And such an enemy not only obtained Iver's blood, but is even in the Theocracy at this very moment.

If the trolls hadn't been so passive and uncooperative, Iver would probably have already succeeded in cursing him...

Suddenly, Iver realized, "Wait a minute, when did this happen?!"

The troll suddenly became excited upon seeing Iver, and said somewhat timidly, "Two days ago, Your Excellency Archbishop, if we had delayed any longer, we wouldn't have come to rescue you. Because we couldn't have."

"And then, you are the ones who came to the Theocracy today?"

"Arrived this morning."

"That man left the day before yesterday?"

"It was yesterday. Yesterday afternoon. My father and I had an argument last night."

Although this young troll's grammar wasn't very good, thankfully his intelligence was sound. At least he clearly stated the most important and crucial information.

Iver realized something immediately—

Perhaps it wasn't because he was lucky, but because the trolls happened to be slacking off and therefore didn't curse him.

If that man is called a "wizard" and is related to Bear Angel, then he himself most likely possesses the ability to curse. Having obtained Iver's blood, there's no reason for him not to cast the curse himself instead of going through the trouble of having a troll do it.

It is highly likely that he had already Iver, but the curse failed.

Why did the curse fail? Because, at that time, Iver had already acquired the latest golden trait! [Dissolving Soul (Gold): Your soul transforms into a higher form; blessings below the "medium" scale no longer require rituals; you will be immune to sleep, charm, curses, and Instant Death Spell, and your soul can be actively extracted from your body as a consumable.]

Iver is currently at the Fourth Level. To penetrate the resistance of the Dissolving Soul, at least a high- Sixth Level Greater Phantom Demon would be needed... like the Celestial who was pulled down. If that man's curse cannot penetrate this resistance, it means he must be a true Fifth Level.

It couldn't possibly be Ares! He probably had the trolls keep cursing Iver because he believed Iver's immunity to curses was a blessing or a special privilege.

The man's line of reasoning was correct—if Iver's curse resistance was indeed a temporary buff, then as long as the curse was continuously applied and the coverage reached a certain level, it would definitely hit effectively during the buff switching process. Once it hit, it meant the resistance could be broken.

He tested it for about a day and found that Iver's resistance coverage had exceeded 24 hours. So he immediately abandoned the plan and rushed to the Theocracy —probably intending to solo kill Iver offline.

I don't quite understand why he came all the way here to solo kill someone offline, and why he even brought the hostage along...

Iver tapped the table and cleared his throat. "I already know about your situation. Thank you very much for the information you brought."

"Without a doubt, this is a villain who intends to forcibly curse and kill an archbishop in the Eternal Theocracy. This is no ordinary heinous incident; we must strike hard. I plan to go back and make preparations, and tomorrow I will inquire with Her Highness the Saintess... As you should know, the Saintess personally came to greet me not long ago."

"Faced with a man whose background and whereabouts are unknown, we can only find him with the help of the local elves. The three of you should find a place to rest first..."

As he spoke, Iver handed over a black card. "You can borrow this."

This was a prize he won in a raffle when he bought those items—a membership card that granted him unlimited free stays in luxury double rooms at all the inns the goblins owned around the world for a year.

A convenient and presentable gift that isn't too expensive. It has a very goblin-like style, and Iver wouldn't find it particularly useful.

With a legal place to stay, at least they didn't have to worry about the three of them being arrested for sleeping in the park. Nor did they have to worry about the man discovering them and thus exposing Iver's whereabouts.

Moreover, the value of this item could temporarily put their minds at ease, preventing them from impulsively investigating it... Although these three trolls were large, Iver felt that they were all quite young, possessing a kind of innocent, youthful exuberance.

He didn't recognize the person, and if the other person changed clothes, they might be impossible to find. Besides, Iver saw that all trolls had the same face and couldn't distinguish which one the old wizard was. He would have to rely on these people to identify him.

Watching the three-headed troll disappear into the distance, Iver's expression was somewhat complicated. "My sister and the enemy..."

Iver had initially thought he would soon see his sister Freya, whom he had no recollection of, since he and she both lived in the Fifth Ring. But now it seemed he would have to find this hidden enemy first.

With that in mind, Iver went to the thirteenth floor, intending to report the matter to Matilda.

On the other side.

The Fifth Ring, the Crescent Moon Inn.

The red-haired youth, dressed in a magnificent pure white suit, is meeting with a guest of extremely high status.

The man was wearing a gray robe... a light, ethereal texture, its color as unremarkable as dust.

At the neck of his head was a black, hollowed-out ring of thorns, resembling a black noose around his neck.

He had long, fiery hair that gradually changed color, from red to orange and then to bluish-purple. Although he was a man, his appearance was as delicate and beautiful as a woman's.

The only flaw was that his lips had been stitched up with black thread, with remnants of the thread still remaining—this scar deeply affected his beauty.

At that moment, he was glaring angrily at the gaunt old troll beside the fireplace.

If the old troll stood upright, he would probably be three meters tall. But his back was bare, making him look like a brown shrimp. He had no shackles on him, only red restraint runes written all over his back.

At that moment, he was continuously feeding round leeches mixed with black herbs into the fireplace while chanting incantations.

These plump leeches are each the size of a rehydrated sea cucumber; an adult man could hold one in his hand and both ends would protrude. They are all nearly transparent bluish-black, with blood vessels inside that resemble those of parasites.

"So you just—in front of me—allow your troll slaves to use evil curses?"

The Cardinal Bishop with long, fiery red hair turned and roared at the red-haired youth.

The young man, however, made no comment.

He just chuckled and said, "What does it matter, Cardinal Loki? He's a blasphemer whom my lord has specifically ordered to be killed."

"Are you sure you want to talk about your God with me?"

The Cardinal Bishop known as Loki had a dark expression and his eyes burned with fierce flames.

"Certainly."

But the young man showed no fear. "Or should I call you Utgarda-Loki? Traitor who betrayed the Supreme Heaven?"

"—Don't use illusion magic for too long, or you'll actually fool yourself."

"Although it may be somewhat unreasonable for a human like me to say this, don't forget that you are a giant— the Supreme Heaven should be your god."