Chapter 74 …
The Grand Temple of Lyre.
A prestigious order that had produced the greatest High Priests and Holy Knights in history, all serving the ancient god Lyre.
A divine temple so sacred that even the ambitious Empire dared not lay a hand on Brion.
Though called a temple, the Grand Temple of Lyre was in truth one of the major powers occupying a seat within Abtar Tel itself.
And true to its name, the interior was no joke.
“—Waa… Master, what is all this? Why is it so huge?”
“Riza…”
The moment Jihad and Eliza stepped inside, their jaws nearly dropped in awe.
The corridor was overwhelming to behold.
It looked as though master craftsmen recorded in history had devoted stitch after stitch of unwavering faith into its creation.
Every single ornament looked like a work of art.
Walls, ceiling—every surface radiated holiness. Even Dohyun couldn’t help but admire it.
‘It really is incredible.’
He had heard about it, but seeing it in person doubled the impact.
With each city he visited, it felt like the sights became grander. No wonder this world hadn’t remained just a game—it had swallowed reality itself.
“This is the place. Please proceed with your discussion.”
“The High Priest is waiting inside.”
After walking while sightseeing for several minutes, they reached an entrance. The priests bowed and stepped aside.
Unlike the other doors, this one was noticeably more ornate.
Creak.
The moment Dohyun pushed it open and stepped inside, gazes pierced toward him.
As expected of a holy city—though he couldn’t directly sense divine power, the interior exuded sacred energy.
But before he could take it in, killing intent weighed heavily upon him.
“You are the one who brought that, are you not?”
The cold voice belonged to a young knight.
He stood behind an elderly man with a long white beard—likely the High Priest. The blond knight’s aura was anything but ordinary.
His tone lacked inflection, yet his expression was chilling.
But what drew Dohyun’s attention even more was something else.
[Sir Zerdik]
‘…Red?’
The nameplate above the blond man’s head.
It was red.
‘He’s an NPC. Why does he have a colored name? Because he’s a knight?’
Production-type NPCs like merchants and alchemists had no color to their nameplates. The color indicated combat power.
Come to think of it, this was the first time he had properly encountered a knight in God of All Seasons.
‘Red, huh…’
The larger the gap in level or combat power, the deeper the red.
That shade meant he far surpassed Dohyun.
“…Master.”
“Riza…”
True to his nature as a Guardian who bullied the weak and feared the strong, Jihad sensed the danger first and signaled cautiously—just like when they had met Gamilion.
Dohyun nodded.
‘So the rumors about knights being strong are true.’
When people discussed the strongest in God of All Seasons, they usually mentioned the Ten Great Guilds, including Melsal, or players of similar rank.
But if asked who the true strongest were?
It was the NPCs.
Unlike players, who had only existed for a year and a half, the residents of Abtar Tel had built their power over long centuries.
Of course they were strong. They had to be.
‘If NPCs were weaker than players, balance would collapse.’
Players were immortal.
If they rampaged through cities without restraint, chaos would ensue.
Knights, mages, mercenary orders—NPC factions were generally stronger than the players residing in their cities.
Among them, the Seven Strong (七強) were said to be beyond what players could even challenge.
‘They say they can even slay dragons…’
They were like sword masters from fantasy novels or the Ten Supreme Masters of martial arts fiction.
Even an ordinary knight boasted tremendous martial prowess.
In the tutorial they’d been heavily downgraded, but normally, knights could carve through orcs like vegetables.
Famous knight commanders could solo raid bosses.
“Master…”
“Yeah.”
The smile faded from Dohyun’s face.
Whenever he focused, that habit surfaced.
He didn’t know how strong Brion’s knights were, but he was confident in his own specs.
If it came down to it, he wouldn’t go down easily.
A strange tension filled the room.
“Enough.”
A deep voice interrupted.
A middle-aged man leaning against the wall behind the blond knight.
His nameplate read [Taksinel], and it too was red.
“Show courtesy. He is a guest.”
“…My apologies.”
Like a lie, the killing intent vanished from Sir Zerdik.
In its place was remorse.
“…It was not my intention. Please forgive me.”
His tone was blunt, but the apology seemed sincere.
As Dohyun frowned slightly, the elderly man seated before him smiled kindly and spoke instead.
“Hoho, forgive us. Sir Zerdik meant no harm. What you brought is… particularly sensitive to him. We ask for your understanding.”
“Yes.”
Dohyun took a seat. Whatever it was, it hadn’t been intentional. And advancing the quest came first.
Fortunately, they seemed to want the same thing and quickly moved to the main topic.
“We do not know who you are or what you do. We only sense that you are an outsider.”
“…”
“But that is irrelevant. What matters is that you brought this.”
From within his robes, he took out a handkerchief and lifted the small box containing it.
A substance like solidified black liquid.
Nothing more—yet wrapped in cloth, it looked disturbingly ominous.
“Do you know what this is?”
“…I do not.”
Dohyun answered honestly.
Pretending to know things helped with NPC quests—but only to a point.
Bluffing without a clue was a loss.
Fortunately, the High Priest hadn’t expected an answer.
“Hoho, I see. I cannot disclose details—it is classified—but eliminating this is the sacred duty of our temple.”
“Ah, I see.”
“Where did you find it?”
He didn’t like that they still weren’t telling him what it was, but compared to some secretive quests in Demrock, this was mild.
“I found it in the Fishy Rock Forest. It was stuck to a stone.”
“…On a stone?”
“Yes. Mixed with blood. It would have been hard to distinguish with the naked eye.”
He subtly emphasized that last part.
It landed harder than expected.
“…You found this, mixed with blood, on a rock? Are you a clergyman?”
“No.”
“Then perhaps you used some special equipment—”
“I just happened to see it while passing by.”
“Huh.”
High Priest Gildeti let out a genuine chuckle of amazement.
“You are neither clergy nor equipped… and yet you found it? I sense no divine power from you. So it’s true.”
“Could it be demonic energy—”
“Enough. If that were the case, the High Priest would have noticed.”
At Taksinel’s firm words, Zerdik stepped back.
If Gildeti couldn’t detect demonic energy, no priest or saint in the world could.
Still, it was hard to believe.
“Do not scold him too much, Sir Taksinel. It is understandable. In that case… are you perhaps an explorer?”
“Not exactly, but I do have some related abilities.”
“Hoho, I thought so. ‘Some,’ you say? How humble.”
For some reason, Gildeti seemed convinced.
His gaze toward Dohyun changed—as though looking at a master in a field.
“Even High Priests must join forces with renowned explorers and conduct painstaking searches to barely locate this. And yet you found it easily, and call it ‘some’?”
“…?”
“If my priests heard that, they would feel quite inferior.”
“…??”
Dohyun’s head spun.
‘Wait, so…’
This quest item—“Ominous Energy”—was actually extremely difficult to find?
Something that required exceptional divine power and search ability?
‘And I cheesed it with Eye of Truth.’
In short, Eye of Truth had done what Eye of Truth did.
Another absurdly overpowered trait breaking balance.
‘I thought rare grade meant nothing special…’
Turns out it was a big catch.
Rare at first—but chained quests often inflated in grade.
‘At minimum Rare+… maybe even Hero grade.’
By the final chain quest, it might reach Hero rank.
His eyes brightened.
As if answering his anticipation, Gildeti continued.
“Fortunately, this is timely. We are running low on materials needed to process it. May I ask a small favor?”
A cheerful notification rang out.
[Quest ‘Ominous Energy’ Cleared.]
[Gildeti’s Affinity Increased.]
[Title ‘Max Affinity from the Start?’ amplifies the increase.]
[Chain Quest ‘Material Search’ Created.]
[Material Search]
Grade: Rare
Description: The Grand Temple of Lyre lacks materials to process the ominous energy. Acquire what Gildeti needs.
Condensed Orc Blood (0/5)
10-Year-Aged Trapilka Root (0/1)
Red Sacred Herb (0/3)
Success: Gildeti’s Affinity ↑, Low-Grade Skill Draw Ticket, Chain Quest ‘Processing Stage’
Failure: Chain Quest Unavailable
‘Good. There’s more.’
And the reward included a Low-Grade Skill Draw Ticket.
For a free quest, it was sweet.
A typical grind quest—but Dohyun felt excited instead.
‘Maybe this time I’ll actually find herbs?’
A chance to properly test Eye of Truth.
Besides, he needed to hunt orcs for his main quest anyway.
“Understood. I’ll bring them right aw—”
“…Wait.”
As Dohyun stood, eager to rush to the field, Gildeti’s gentle smile vanished.
His gaze sharpened, as if seeing through Dohyun.
“Why suddenly—”
“You are not an ordinary guest, are you? Well, even your search ability proves that… But to think such a guest would come.”
“Excuse me?”
Gildeti straightened.
“You graduated first in your class.”
“…Hm?”
“The gods grant trials to their apostles. If you passed the trial of the first city, Raven, with the highest score… then you are trustworthy.”
[Title ‘Top Graduate’ Reacts.]
[Hidden Condition Fulfilled.]
[Chain Quest ‘Material Search’ has been transformed into ‘……’.]
‘…What?’
Before Dohyun could process it, Gildeti continued.
“To proceed, I must first tell you this. Are you not curious about what you brought?”
“Ah…”
Dohyun was too stunned to answer.
But no answer was needed.
“In Abtar Tel, it is known by many names. The most ominous energy. The Footsteps of Terror. The Worst of the Worst. The Fear Beneath…”
“…”
“These are but traces of That. And we call it—”
Gildeti paused.
Behind him, Zerdik clenched his fist.
After a breath, Gildeti spoke in a low voice.
“Abyss.”
“—!”
At the familiar word, Dohyun’s eyes widened.
The being that had once nearly brought Abtar Tel to ruin.
The Abyss had just been named.
