Chapter 144

"Ugh, this job is so tiring," the guy who had borrowed the Arbiter's handkerchief said a few hours later, leaning against the wall to rest and drink water.

The adjudicator nodded. Indeed, being a gatekeeper was a very tiring job.

Especially here, in this safe zone, there's no such thing as night. Here, there's only warm sunshine and a gentle breeze. No matter the time, this is the most perfect place you can imagine.

He knew he needed transportation to get to that place, and the carriage they had arranged for him was still being prepared and would take some time. Knowing this, he decided to wander around and happened to encounter a guard resting against a wall, exhausted.

“But you should continue with your work now.” The adjudicator paused and said, “Your job is very important. If someone breaks the law, you are the first person to arrive at the scene.”

"Huh? But it's been a very, very long time since we've encountered any lawbreakers here." The guard didn't seem to care. This guy was a clergyman, but he looked more like a knight. Even a knight is still just an ordinary person, without much awareness: "Besides, you need to know what kind of people live here. Saints are here, so what on earth dares to cause trouble?"

That's true; after all, if they were here, they wouldn't have to worry about anything. Even the Blood Sun was dealt with by the Immortal alone, and the common people didn't even know what was happening outside before this disaster, which could have escalated into something utterly hopeless, came to an end.

“But that’s your job.” The adjudicator was stubborn and didn’t think there was anything wrong with the logic: “Your job is to patrol and make the judgments you need to make when appropriate. It’s best if there are no enemies, but that doesn’t mean it’s an excuse for you to be lazy.”

"Really?" He sipped his water, looking at the guy standing in front of him, scrutinizing him carefully. "Come to think of it, I don't think I've ever seen you before."

The adjudicator hesitated for a moment before saying, "I'm new here."

"Oh, judging from the way you talk, are you planning to become a priest?" He glanced at the oak spear on his back: "That's your weapon. It looks old; it must have been used for a long time."

The adjudicator didn't understand what he meant, but didn't want to explain. He had plenty of time and wanted to see if he could find out how many scoundrels were working in the church.

He has absolutely no liking for those colleagues who lack self-awareness, and if given the chance, he would be the first to kill such people.

“Clerics do have it good; they have a source of income and receive respect,” he said softly. “But we are expendable.”

"What do you mean?" He frowned at the self-proclaimed arbitrator, seemingly not understanding.

“The Church only cares about high-ranking clergy,” he said. “If someone isn’t a high-ranking clergyman, dangerous jobs will be assigned to people like us. Because we’re worthless, and if we’re sacrificed, someone else will quickly fill in. Of course, as long as you can become a high-ranking clergyman, you can live forever and have glory. That’s great, but you might not even find one out of hundreds. Look at me, I’m almost forty. Even if I get recognition now, I’m just an immortal old man.”

“That’s because you haven’t done enough.” The Arbiter frowned. “If you can do the work that God has given you properly, then you can also become a high-ranking priest.”

“No high-ranking priest achieved this by simply doing their job properly. Many of them were granted abilities when they were about to die after defeating countless monsters.” He hesitated for a moment before saying, “It seems like they are all similar stories, but I have never seen the specifics myself, because I don’t know any fully-fledged high-ranking priests. I am just a guard, an ordinary guard.”

“This is not an easy job.” The adjudicator looked at him and said softly, “It is a job that must be done, and it is a very important matter.”

"Even if the review is just conducted in a very safe place?"

“Yes, even so.” The Arbiter paused. “Because even so, your armor is often stained with blood, isn’t it?”

"Heh, heh heh." The knight's face darkened, and he chuckled softly, "Yes, even so, even if it's as easy as just being a guard in a very safe place, my armor will still be covered in blood... By the way, stranger, you've come to the right place."

He slowly stood up and stretched: "This is the territory of the Benevolent Ones. No matter what, at least you won't die. You won't die no matter how much pain you endure. And you're right, even as a guard, I have no reason to slack off. I should go to work. It was nice to see you."

"Well, good luck." The adjudicator glanced at him and sighed softly.

"He's a good boy."

“You’re really annoying.” The Arbitrator turned around and looked at the Benevolent One, who had somehow appeared behind him. “Did you summon this person?”

"Don't let his appearance fool you, he's an excellent swordsman and has a great capacity for alcohol. By the way, this guy has his own order of knights, about fifty in total. However, one of them became a paladin, so the management of the order was transferred. Even so, he still nominally has fifty companions, including a paladin." The Benevolent One said with a smile, "Anyway, he's a good kid, contrary to his appearance."

“But the blood on his body is human blood,” the Arbiter said softly. “Why is there human blood on the guards here? Can you explain that to me?”

But the benevolent one simply smiled for a few seconds and said nothing more.

"Never mind, where is the carriage?" The adjudicator turned his head, took a deep breath, and stopped asking about the matter.

Everyone has their own things to take care of, and he shouldn't interfere.

"Don't worry, I've already had it prepared."

"But speaking of which, you seem to have a lot of free time to know a gatekeeper to this extent." The Arbitrator paused as he passed the Benevolent One and said softly, "You must have also inquired about me quite thoroughly."

“Yes, if you live a very, very long time from now,” the benevolent one said softly, “you will surely be able to understand very well what kind of person I am.”

"Perhaps," the adjudicator paused, "I hope so."

About ten minutes later, the benevolent man stood at the door, waiting for the robed fellow to appear beside him.

"You seem to care a lot about this junior." A voice came from behind. A kind person would know who it was without even turning around.

“Yes, after all, we’re people who can live together until the end of the world, so we need to get along well.” The benevolent one smiled: “That child, Benny, is not easy to get along with. It’s obvious that everything she does is for a boy; she’s a devoted and good child.”

“I don’t want to bear that kid’s wrath. I get slashed all over by that guy every time, so don’t cause trouble. I’ll deal with you before that happens.”

“Immortal, don’t say that. She’s a good girl. It’s normal for you to protect a good girl.” The Benevolent One smiled. “Besides, I’ve been very busy lately. That child named Ark is a demon, but his demonic seal belongs to someone else and doesn’t match him. Even if we leave him alone, he’ll reach his limit sooner or later. Those who can be worn down by time aren’t really enemies.”

......

Benny opened her eyes; it was already morning.

Right after saying goodbye to the high priest, she fell asleep, leaning against Ark's shoulder, just like she had done long ago. She would rest on his shoulder when she was tired.

"Good morning." Yak also yawned. This was different. Before, he could rest when Benny was asleep, but now, he couldn't fall asleep when Benny was asleep.

Otherwise, if the people who came with her saw her, they wouldn't even need to attack her; they would be killed on their own.

"Good morning." Benny, oblivious to the fact that her actions might disturb others' rest, opened her eyes to make sure she was in a bustling market before closing them again.

A bustling market or an empty alley can both harbor assassins, so which one is more dangerous?

The answer is obvious. Whether considering the ease of hiding oneself or the possible directions of attack, the market is far more dangerous, while the side streets would undoubtedly be safer.

However, humans subconsciously believe that markets are safer, inexplicably, even though they are fully aware that they might be targeted by assassins. Yet, they still perceive the more dangerous market as a safe place.

This was clearly a poor judgment; she should have chosen a more suitable path for observation to rest.

But when will humans become rational thinking animals? Overly rational humans are no longer human.

"Speaking of which, why aren't you afraid that I'll be the one to kill you?" Ark suddenly asked this question softly. "Am I more dangerous? I'm a demon, and I have a demonic mark. If the demons want to counterattack, they have to destroy you. That's a must, otherwise, no matter how many demons there are, how many demon humans appear, or even how many demon gods there are, it will all be useless. As long as you are here, as long as the guardians are here, the gods' side will not lose."

"So I'm going to be killed?"

“At least as a monster, this is how I should stand.” Ark sighed helplessly, “Don’t test my willpower.”

“You’ve had plenty of opportunities to kill me, even now. You can kill me whenever you want.” Benny whispered, “I don’t care. I wasn’t really concerned about living anyway.”

"Don't say such irresponsible things. I care about you a lot." Ark frowned and looked into the distance. "There's at least one person here who might want to kill you. Did you bring any weapons? You'd better be prepared for a fight."

"You'll help me solve it, won't you?"

“Don’t trust me so much,” Ark said, looking up at the group of people in front of him. “I feel like I’ve seen you before and know you, so can I openly state my purpose?”

He pulled out a longsword and a notebook from below and waved them in front of him: "Are you here to buy weapons, or to use up my equipment? Choose one."

"I'm here to buy equipment." As he said this, the guy turned to look at the people behind him: "I'm not sure about them."

"Heh, you did a good job of killing that snake." Ark patted Benny, who lay down beside him somewhat unwillingly. Ark got up and went to get the box from behind him.

Although it's not their main business, they do sell weapons here.

"You know us?" The guy standing in front of them was taken aback.

"You bought something from me decades ago, back when you were just a new mercenary, a guy named Chuli, right? You bought a battle axe from me, a disposable throwing weapon."

The weapons used to fight monsters are special, so it's best not to use regular weapons when fighting giant monsters.

However, conventional weapons must also be used; otherwise, being bound by these strange rules in many situations would only be a hindrance.

Therefore, it's best to prepare a large number of conventional weapons so that you won't feel bad about using them.

"You have a good memory. I have no recollection of you at all. This shouldn't be the case. You're a unique individual; you shouldn't be unable to remember me."

“The main thing is that I’m just a merchant you see everywhere, nothing special. But you’re a unique mercenary, so it’s normal for me to remember you. It’s perfectly normal for you to forget me.” Ark hesitated for a moment, then turned to look at the man in the robe: “Can I see your beautiful eyes? I remember they were blue with green veins inside, like gemstones. I remember them very clearly.”

“I suspect your statement is sexually harassing,” Benny said somewhat displeased, then heard laughter coming from inside the black robe.

Then the robe was lifted, revealing an unparalleled beauty that shouldn't exist among humans, leaving everyone who saw it stunned.

"Oh, I knew it." Ark glanced at it and didn't linger any longer. Instead, he focused on taking out the items from inside. "They're all good quality. There might be some defective items, but I'll give a reasonable discount for any defects."

He glanced at the robed figures behind the girl: "Do you need anything? There's a discount for group purchases."

"Aren't you going to ask me what I am?" the girl asked, noticing that Ark looked a little confused.

“If everything could be figured out by asking, there would be no secrets.” Ark looked at her and said, “A team? As far as I know, there’s a team that took on a quest to deal with the Cataclysmic-level monster, the Ice Thunder Fish. Is that you? I recommend bringing skin with lightning resistance, and preferably a fire elemental stone to counteract the cold. Also, I suggest some skin patches. Once the skin is frozen, it will stick to anything that needs to be replenished, and then you can ensure that you don’t bleed to death.”

"Your information network is too well-informed, to the point that it frightens me." The girl frowned. "Why is that?"

"

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