Raising the Princess to Overcome Death Chapter 106

106. Childhood Friend - Achievement

Rev caught his breath and gathered his thoughts.

"Just now, I..."

Instinctively, he used his charm. It wasn't a skill or anything, but it felt as if he had possessed this ability naturally from the beginning. This seemed to be how the power of an Apostle manifested.

"Amazing..."

He marveled with his mouth agape.

Although it was used for the trivial task of overcharging for jerky, with these 'Eyes of Charm,' he could accomplish countless things.

With this... clearing the game wouldn't be difficult. No, it was practically already done.

All he had to do was charm the king.

Rev already knew the village chief of Demos. The chief would know an official at the lord's castle, that official would know the overseer, the overseer would know Marquis Gaiden, and Marquis Gaiden would know the king.

Rev could meet the king in just five steps, and those who fell under his charm wouldn't hesitate to recommend their acquaintances.

And if he could charm the king in the end... Lena would be 'adopted' and become a princess.

"To think I've endured so much hardship when there was such an easy path?"

Rev was dumbfounded.

The engagement scenario was similar. It was even shorter.

His retired knight father, Noel Dexter, had been granted a surname by the king. Although retired, he didn't have the power to present his son to the king, but he had significant connections.

According to Lena Ainar, Noel Dexter was a junior of Baron Arpen Albacete, the sword master of the Kingdom of Astin.

When knights referred to someone as a senior or junior, it typically meant their ranking within the order, but it usually implied a mentor-mentee relationship within the same team.

Given that Noel Dexter would boast about being the baron's junior, it was likely the latter.

Thus, the engagement scenario only required two introductions. Get introduced to Baron Albacete through Noel Dexter, then get an audience with the king.

Adopted Lena Ainar would become a princess, and I would marry her...

"Rev, what's wrong?"

"Oh, it's nothing. I'm just a bit tired."

The young man guarding the cart looked at Rev lying on the ground in confusion.

Rev waved it off as if it were nothing and leaned against the cart. His head was dizzy with fatigue as if he had sprinted for hours, but excitement pushed the tiredness away.

"There are many ways to clear the beggar sibling scenario too. If I can use charm to get help from others, starting as a beggar isn't a huge penalty."

Of course, the {Bloodline} event would still be difficult, but there was no reason to necessarily follow it. All he needed was to make his sister a princess... Through an introduction by Marquis Benar Tatian or anyone, he could get an audience with the king and ask to adopt Lena as a princess, or he could arrange a meeting with the kind prince of the Kingdom of Bellita.

Even if his sister didn't like the prince or if he had to follow the {Bloodline} event, he had a plausible plan.

He could charm Count Gustav Peter for help. Through him, he could get assistance from the cardinal, which would pave the way.

Of course, there would still be secrets he didn't know, but as long as he had this charm ability, the situation was unlikely to spiral into a disaster. At the very least, he could ensure his sister's safety...

The question was whether this power of Barbatos could be used in other scenarios, but since he had earned the achievement of 'Apostle of Barbatos,' it seemed highly likely. If so...

"Foolish."

As the excitement subsided, Rev closed his eyes tightly. He bit his lip hard, berating himself.

All the hardships he had endured flashed before his eyes.

Lena being expelled from the capital church, killed by Count Herman Forte, separated from his sister when his identity was revealed, killed by Bart, having his engagement broken off, and rotting under the curse of Oriax.

Despite such an easy path being available...

And the responsibility for these tragedies lay with Rev, himself.

Not Minseo.

When the third childhood friend scenario began for the seventh time, I made a grave mistake. When my father first asked, "What do you think of Barbatos?" I showed negative feelings.

Due to the trivial reason of not being able to follow Lena because of a tattoo, despite deciding to let her go, I couldn't let go of my attachment.

If I hadn't done that... I would have realized this easy path much sooner. I wouldn't have faced the hardships I did.

Rev hung his head. The guilt only grew. The more he thought, the more he realized the enormity of his mistake.

He now understood why the childhood friend scenario was the first one. Why the {Hunting} ability was given first.

This game was blatantly presenting an easy route, just like the tattoo carved prominently on his arm.

It was practically screaming to use Barbatos' power... It would have been hard to avoid it.

"Idiot."

I made everyone suffer.

Because of me, we faced absurd difficulty.

I reached into a dark, uncertain future with nothing but minimal power and information as collateral for tragedy.

And the responsibility for the mutilated arms... was his.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry, everyone..."

Rev reflected on his mistakes and apologized to the other Leos. He sincerely repeated his apologies to the Lenas who had met tragic ends.

He sat dejectedly, secretly wiping away tears, while the young men who had finished packing up began to arrive, chatting noisily.

"Hans wasn't in his right mind just now."

"Oh, I saw that too. He was getting scolded by the merchants... He wouldn't tell me why."

The next day, the village youths loaded their carts with goods bought at the market and headed back to the village.

The cart was lighter than when they came, rattling along, but Rev's heart was heavy.

Hans did not accompany them.

Rev went up to the mountain lodge and showed his father the money he had earned from selling the jerky.

His father was pleased to see that his son could sell jerky for a good price and left with a happy smile ("Live well.").

He never said where he was going. He simply packed his gear, took some of the money he had saved, and disappeared into the western mountains.

Rev stayed at the mountain lodge for a few days.

Since he also planned to leave soon, he packed the most valuable furs. He didn't forget to set traps densely around the lodge.

It wasn't for hunting. It was to prevent bandits from ransacking the lodge in case his father returned.

His father was never in danger, no matter how many traps were set. He was the best hunter Rev had ever seen.

After making thorough preparations, Rev left the lodge.

Heavily burdened with furs, he descended to the village and once again headed for the larger village.

The village of Demos sent carts to the market in the larger village every other week, but Rev had no reason to wait, so he left alone.

Before leaving, he didn't forget to ask Brother Leslie about Lena. He reaffirmed that it would take at least three years for Lena to become a priest.

Although it would take at least 4-5 years, the expectation was that Lena was so smart the period would be much shorter.

"Three years is more than enough. No, it's too much time."

He no longer felt pressed for time.

After acquiring the power of Barbatos, the important thing was how to use it.

Upon arriving in Torito, Rev sold his furs to the same merchant he had sold jerky to before. The market was closed, but finding the merchant who was preparing to depart wasn't difficult. {Tracking} came in handy for such tasks.

Although he received a good price this time too, it wasn't as if the merchant barely avoided a loss like before.

His charm had weakened in the meantime.

But he didn't care muChapter He had enough money. There was no need to exhaust himself to get a high price like before.

‘What should I do now...’

Rev, now unburdened after selling the furs, pondered his next move.

West or north?

Should he go to Nevis to meet the king, or seek out the beggar siblings? His heart leaned towards the west.

There was still plenty of time, and charming the king wouldn’t take long.

‘It might be better to gather Barbatos' power first before finding the siblings. I'll decide based on the situation then. Whether to just warn them to avoid tragedy or help defeat Oriax.’

While Rev was wandering around the empty market, finishing his contemplation,

“Hey, Rev. Did you come alone?”

Hans approached.

He seemed to have stayed here all this time. The market was over, so what was he doing here?

With a sly expression, he said,

“Hey. Sorry about last time. I wasn’t in a good mood back then. I’m fine now... Come over here for a moment.”

Rev felt a surge of displeasure.

He could guess why Hans wanted him to follow. It was obvious this guy was trying to coax him into going to a brothel again.

Already feeling guilty about having messed up everything, Rev answered curtly,

“No. I’m not going.”

“Huh? Ah, so you’ve been there before? I thought so.”

Hans smirked.

“When did you go? I went for the first time the day before yesterday and...”

Rev tried to walk past him, ignoring his chatter. But Hans, oblivious to the hint, walked alongside him, continuing to babble.

“There was a girl just like Lena. She was just this tall, with breasts small enough to fit in one hand...”

At the unnecessary details and the hand gesture mimicking grasping something, something inside Rev flared up.

- Kill him.

He reconsidered punching the guy in the jaw.

“Fine. Let’s go.”

“...I was just undressing her and her underclothes... Huh? Let’s go? Hahaha, good decision.”

Hans kept spewing vulgar talk, but Rev wasn't listening.

“Judging by the way you walk, you’ve really been there. Pretending otherwise, but you too...”

- Thud!

As soon as they reached the brothel’s marked door, Rev's fist slammed into Hans' jaw.

“What, what? Why did you suddenly... Ah!”

Rev didn't even feel the need to draw his sword. He struck Hans' throat and kneed him in the solar plexus. As Hans fell, Rev kicked his side and struck the back of his neck. Finally, he stomped on the back of Hans' head, smashing his face into the ground.

“What’s going on here? Ah!”

A thug guarding the brothel came out at the commotion, only to have his neck crushed under Rev's heel.

Now he just needed to charm this thug into making it look like he had killed Hans...

Rev's eyes widened in shock. In front of the stunned thug, he too was taken aback.

[ Achievement: Civilian Murder - You have killed 5 civilians. Slightly unlucky. ]

As the civilian murder achievement popped up, a strange sensation enveloped him. The message felt... 'usable.'

‘Ah...!’

Realizing something, Rev muttered, “...I offer this to you.” Barbatos' divine power descended, wrapping his heart in a crimson aura.

[ Achievement: Civilian Murder - You have killed 4 civilians. Slightly unlucky. ]

For Barbatos, the god of hunting, prey didn't have to be animals or monsters. ‘Humans’ were also good prey.

Rev's entire body shivered.

But it wasn't just because Barbatos accepted humans as offerings.

It was because of the system.

The offering just made couldn't be called a ritual. He hadn't dug a hole to bury the head and heart, nor had he cut open the corpse like with Prince Eric, yet the offering was successful.

He had a 'counter' system far beyond such rituals. When he killed someone, their 'life' was added to his tally, which could be offered at any time.

“You, you bastard! What have you done!”

Rev’s eyes sparkled. Using a portion of the new power, he charmed the thug.

The thug quieted down immediately.

Just a moment ago, he was about to call for his fellow thugs, but now he looked worried.

“Hey, do you know what you’ve done? Killing someone in town means the guards will chase you. Geez, no matter what happened, you should’ve held back...”

Then he spoke gravely,

“Go. I’ll handle it somehow. You need to escape quickly. Don’t come back for a few days. Got it?”

The thug acted like he was trying to protect a comrade, and Rev slipped away into an alley without a word of thanks.

His body felt cold as he walked briskly. A shiver ran down his spine.

‘Is this really okay?’

[ Achievement: First Murder - Rev feels less guilt about murder. ]

Everything was set up.

Barbatos' convenient ability and the supporting system. The 'First Murder' achievement obtained from killing a thug when Lena was kidnapped in the second childhood friend scenario.

And...

[ Achievement: Alley Cleanup - Stronger in dark alleys. ]

[ Achievement: Ten Bandits - Stronger against bandits. ]

[ Achievement: Ten Thugs - Stronger against thugs. ]

[ Achievement: Ten Mercenaries - Stronger against mercenaries. ]

[ Achievement: Ten Soldiers - Stronger against soldiers. ]

[ Achievement: One Knight - Stronger against knights. ]

[ Achievement: Noble Murder - All nobles feel a slight fear of you. ]

Murder achievements.

All these were counters.

Thugs, bandits, mercenaries, soldiers, knights, nobles... All the people he had killed were meticulously calculated, and he felt they were all usable.

Rev used the life of one thug as a test. He silently offered it to Lord Barbatos.

Then,

[ 'Ten Thugs' achievement is being transformed. ]

[ Achievement: Thirty-five Thugs - Stronger against thugs. min(10) ]

As expected, Barbatos' dark red power descended. The sweet divine power tightened around his heart even more, making Rev's body tremble.

Everything was truly prepared. And he... truly knew nothing.

Among the achievements, only the names of the murder achievements were slightly tilted. It wasn't a coincidence.

It was a signal indicating that the lives of the people he killed were accumulating... And correspondingly, the names of the transformed achievements were upright.

Overwhelmed by the ruthlessness of the system, Rev forgot where he was walking.

When he first started this game, he had a thought.

If he kept getting stronger by infinitely repeating the scenarios, there would come a time when he could clear the game in a single, sweeping move, defeating everything in his path.

The massacre route.

The merciless, blood-stained shortcut he had given up on whispered sweetly.

- This is what you wanted, isn't it?

Somewhere, the scent of blood lingered.