Easy To Manipulate

"Well, that went pretty well," Raze thought as he took a look around at all the food that was arranged in front of him. 

It ranged from fruits and vegetables to monster meat and even more. 

There were multiple servants in the hall, and beside him sat a pretty maiden with a jar in her hands as she poured some sort of apple juice into his glass. 

But perhaps most importantly, opposite him sat the village chief. 

He was an old man with signs of balding on his face and wrinkles evident on his tattooed skin. 

The chief had a short build with a protruding belly and seemed to be in his final years of life, yet he appeared awfully cheerful and enthusiastic when talking to him. 

"Once again, I must thank you for saving our priestess. 

And while it pales in comparison to what you have done for us, I hope you enjoy the hospitality and feast offered to you. 

Also, if there's anything you need in the future, feel free to tell us," he beamed, expressing his delight and gratitude at the young boys assistance in saving their priestess. 

'When will this old guy shut up?' Raze thought in annoyance. 

The constant ramblings and words of gratitude were really getting on his nerves. These village people maintained a facade of kindness and prosperity while willingly giving away their children to be drugged and raped by goblins. 

It was revolting to him just how disgusting humans could be. 

He wasn't unfamiliar with people wearing masks and hiding their true intentions. 

But this was the first time he found his stomach turning at the sight. 

Even all the food that was presented to him felt nothing less than inedible. 

To him, the food was nothing less than a cloth used to wipe out vomit. 

It was almost impressive how something that looked so good could taste so bad. 

Every time a new dish was presented to him, someone expressed their gratitude to him or complimented his looks, he wanted nothing more than to strangle them and watch them struggle. 

The abhorrent scene from a few days ago in the basement was still etched deep into his mind. 

Remembering that disgusting scene made him barf. 

The aftereffects of the drug in the basement were still blocking most of his emotions. 

With the sole exception of hatred and disgust, which, in the absence of other emotions, were allowed to run rampant. 

He was certain that just clearing the floor was no longer enough; he wanted them dead. Everyone on this floor needed to die for showing such a disgusting scene to him. 

The reasoning behind why it was happening didn't matter; they all had to pay the same. 

Of course, he didn't let any of the turmoil in his mind and heart show. 

Instead, he displayed the most kind and benevolent smile he could muster, as he said. 

"No wonder, chief; I didn't help her for any ulterior motive or benefit; it was simply the right thing to do." His voice was soft and oozed warmth. 

"Such admirable kindness is truly befitting of someone sent by the goddess," the chief muttered under his breath, but it was still heard by Raze, who chose to ignore it. 

It had been over four hours since Raze came to the settlement with the priestess in his hand. 

At first, they were apprehensive towards him, but after interrogating and questioning him, their opinion of him changed. 

The story he had gone with was that he didn't remember anything, and when he opened his eyes, he saw the priestess in danger, so he helped her. 

This story was obviously extremely suspicious and gave room for a lot of assuming. 

But Raze already knew that and chose to take a gamble, betting on the intelligence level, or rather, dumbness, of the village people. 

And it had worked perfectly; they had spun his vague and suspicious story into assuming that he had been sent by their goddess to save their priestess. 

He almost wanted to laugh at their naivety and stupidity, but then again, that just made them easier to manipulate. 

After this exchange, Raze 'enjoyed' the feast that he had been served for a few hours until finally the moment he had been waiting for happened. 

The priestess finally showed up in the hall with calm and steady steps. 

Instead of the leaf dress from before, she was now wearing a robe of leaves covering her body, but from it, one could see bandages wrapping around more than half of her body. 

'How does she look 'fine' in just a few hours after sustaining such heavy, life-threatening injuries?' Raze found himself asking. 

But he didn't think he was in a position to question her just yet, so he remained silent. 

Seeing her, the village chief jumped in joy as he rejoiced in her safe recovery. 

"Priestess, you're safe." He got up and moved towards her with his hands outstretched, almost expecting her to hug him. 

Too bad all he got was a warm smile, as she said. 

"Yes, I was able to recover safely thanks to the Saviour." The serenity and warmth that Raze had experienced when seeing her for the first time returned as she looked towards him. 

Seeing him, she flashed a warm smile as she thanked him. 

"I express my sincerest gratitude towards you for saving me," she said while bowing. 

An action that left everyone in the hall, with the exception of Raze, stunned. 

This was the first time they had seen her thank someone or even bow. 

While they knew that the boy had saved her life, they weren't expecting her to personally come and thank him. 

Now all the gazes in the hall moved towards Raze as they awaited his response. 

"No need to thank me, priestess; it was simply the natural thing to do," he said, returning her gratitude with a smile that outshined even hers. 

Everyone in the hall, with the exception of Raze and the priestess, had the same thought in their heads. 

'We're witnessing something divine'

 Almost as if having heard their words the priestess ordered. 

"Chief, leave the hall with everyone; I want to talk to the Saviour in private," she ordered. 

No one in the hall had the guts to try and question her, so they did as they were told. 

And before long, Raze and the priestess were left all alone in the hall. 

Seeing this, Raze struggled to stop a sinister grin from creeping up on his face as he thought. 

'She took the bait'