[T.L: punisher87]
[My ko-fi link:- https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 ]
The knights, who had been holding the boy forcefully, released their grip and stepped back as Jin gestured with his eyes, making an intimidating expression.
"Wow! They really let me meet Sir Jin! Nice to meet you, Sir Jin! My name is Luche Fibrizo! I'm from the Cole Village in the southern part of the Brakle Autonomous District, and I'm sixteen years old. I'm also an outstanding member of both the official and unofficial fan clubs of Jin Runcandel..."
Luche paused for a moment and took out the official membership badges of each fan club run by Enya and Sandra.
Even amidst his disheveled appearance, the badges were so clean and shiny that they glistened.
'...Enya and Sandra said that not just anyone can receive these badges.'
Luche continued to smile and hold out the two badges until Jin nodded his head once.
Tellot couldn't help but touch his forehead, feeling a headache coming on.
Not only had Luche been disrespectful towards him until now, but he had also never imagined that someone could act so recklessly even in front of the young patriarch of Runcandel.
"Within the fan club, I'm known as the dedicated Luche, the true sunflower of Jin!"
"Well... okay, let's start with a handshake then. Thank you for liking me so much."
"Haha, what an honor. A handshake with Sir Jin? I'm going crazy, absolutely crazy. Oh, Sir Tellot, could you pass me a handkerchief?"
"Ha, it's laughable. How did you become so audacious?"
When Tellot handed him a handkerchief with a puzzled expression, Luche vigorously rubbed his tightly clasped hands together, instantly dirtying the handkerchief, and then shook Jin's hand.
Returning the soiled handkerchief as it was, he further bewildered Tellot.
For a while, Luche didn't let go of Jin's hand, making Jin feel uncomfortable. But Luche just burst into laughter, gleeful and giddy.
"So, you're the contractor of the god of architecture?"
"Yes! I found out about that fact not long ago. Suddenly, a voice echoed in my head, saying that I should become the contractor of the god of architecture, Barbobo, instead of Barbobo, and make a contract with me..."
Barbobo was indeed the name known as the god of architecture.
It was a name that only those who had studied about the gods to a certain extent would know.
"So, you came to me because you want to use that ability as Barbobo's contractor?"
"Of course! I've always dreamed of joining the Vamel alliance. Someday, I wanted to do something big with Sir Jin. And now, that dream might come true! The heavens have granted my wish. I'm not talented in magic or swordsmanship, so it seemed difficult to succeed in that field and meet Sir Jin."
"Calm down a bit and let's have a calm conversation, Luche."
"Alright!"
"Firstly, anyone can join the Vamel alliance, even if they don't possess such special abilities. Broadly speaking, even the residents living on the alliance's land are considered members of the alliance. From that perspective, you've already been a member of the alliance since you took refuge here."
"That's even better. Now I can be more than just a simple member of the alliance; I can become a member who works directly with Sir Jin!"
Of course, even if Luche was truly a prospective contractor of Barbobo, he had no knowledge of the shipyard in the Sword Emperor's territory.
However, he came to Jin, believing that once he completed the contract and gained power, he would be able to be of great help to the Vamel alliance in any way possible.
"If it can happen, I would be happy too. But, what does it mean to be a reserve contractor? They said there would be trials to complete the contract with Barbobo."
"Oh, well..."
For the first time, Luche hesitated in response to Jin's question.
Jin calmly observed him without showing any impatience.
"No, now that I think about it, I should first ask how someone from the southern part of the Brakle Autonomous District ended up here. Being from Brakle, you would have belonged to a fairly affluent faction, considering its proximity to the capital city."
As a city close to the capital, most residents of Brakle, even if they were commoners, belonged to the upper class.
It wasn't just Luche's bold personality that allowed him to stand confidently in front of Tellot. It was probably also because he had grown up in a situation where he didn't have to cower much.
Above all else, Jin had a guess as to why he was asking about the reasons for Luche coming here.
"Because my family fell apart."
"…Could it be that it happened when the 4th Flagbearer of my clan attacked the Brakle Autonomous District before the evil god was killed?"
-During the time when we requested support from the Tikan side, there was another attack.
-During that time, were there any large-scale troop movements again?
-No, there were none. Diphus Runcandel, along with two Black Knights, attacked the Brakle Autonomous District. Since we were prepared, the civilian casualties were not significant... but the Spectre captain sustained a serious injury. After recovering from his previous wounds, Lord Kadun engaged in battle and was injured again.
Conversation between Ronil and Jin when Diphus attacked the Lutero Magic Federation.
"Yes, when Diphus attacked, I lost my home and belongings."
Luche's family had suffered at that exact time.
Seeing Luche speak about his family being ruined by the actions of his older brother, a stifling feeling overwhelmed Jin's chest.
As Jin's expression darkened, Luche waved his hand as if to dismiss any concern.
"But Sir Jin, you don't need to worry about it! You didn't give the order, and in fact, you came to the Lutero Magic Federation to provide support back then! Also, although I lost my home and belongings, no one in my family died. Fortunately, they were all outside at the time."
"That's at least some relief. I'll do my best to recover the lost property."
"It is not something Sir Jin should be concerned about. The insurance money was supposed to be paid, but those damn Zipfel bastards didn't give it to us. At that time, about fifteen affected families, including mine, didn't receive the full amount. Is it difficult to make payments during a war? I almost got killed when I went to confront the Fire dragon, Kadun."
Tellot clicked his tongue again at that point.
If Luche had met Kadun, he wouldn't be alive in this world anymore.
"Anyway, at that time, my entire family was in dire straits because of Zipfel. Moreover, there were strange rumors going around, so we decided as a family to immigrate to Huphester."
"Strange rumors?"
"There were rumors that Zipfel was conducting living golem experiments using residents. Even though Sir Jin tarnished their reputation during his time as a reserve flagbearer, they could not come to their senses even after being humiliated like that!"
Jin had kept in mind that Zipfel might continue with the living golem experiments.
The living golems he saw at the Holy Land couldn't have been created out of thin air.
"Anyway, losing my home and money is painful, but my family, for the most part, has a positive outlook and wants to live well in Huphester. It's not a big deal. If I succeed as a key member of the Alliance, that's enough..."
Jin smiled and patted Luche's shoulder.
"Still, I have to apologize for not stopping the 4th Flagbearer in advance."
"It's okay. Is there anyone in this world who doesn't owe Sir Jin a debt? If it weren't for Sir Jin, I would have died at the hands of the evil god. It's all good."
"First of all, I need to verify you a bit. We need official confirmation that you're truly Barbobo's contractor."
"How can we do that? As a reserve contractor, I can't demonstrate my powers..."
"Just stay still, it'll be over in a moment. Head butler."
[Yes, Young Patriarch.]
"Verify Luche's records."
Luet placed her hand on Luche's forehead and activated her authority.
[Luche, you said you heard Barbobo's voice not long ago. Can you recall exactly when that happened?]
"It was about a fortnight ago, in the early morning. Around four o'clock, I think."
[I will briefly examine your record from a fortnight ago, so don't be alarmed.]
As Luet finished speaking, images started playing on the recording window, ominously.
It was a day a fortnight ago when Luche heard Barbobo's voice.
Unfortunately, at that moment, Luche happened to be reading the magazine that he coincidentally found along the escape route.
Luche awkwardly scratched the back of his head in that scene, and Jin chuckled, reminded of Murakan.
"Oh... How did I happen to find something like this? Maybe it's a valuable magazine. According to rumors, Sir Jin's guardian dragon Murakan has a hobby of collecting magazines. Should I take this with me later? Oh, who was that just now? Who spoke to me? What? Barbobo?"
Since Barbobo's voice was only transmitted to Luche's mind, it didn't appear in the video.
However, the possibility of manipulation or acting was highly unlikely.
There was no reason for him to pretend to hear Barbobo's voice while reading the magazine alone in a corner of the shelter, secretly from his family, at four in the morning.
"Finally, a divine contract proposal has come to me! Alright, how should I proceed? What... How can I execute something like that right away? Wait, Barbobo! God of Architecture! Can you give me some advice before you leave?"
The video Luet verified ended there.
"Haha! I never expected my private life to be exposed like this. It's embarrassing. Anyway, I wonder if Lord Murakan would like this magazine?"
"Well, if it's a magazine, he tends to read the first collection. It seems like the verification is complete. Now, can you tell me what the trial that Barbobo mentioned is?"
From Luche's hesitant reactions earlier and his questioning of how to handle it in the video, it seemed that the trial was something impossible for Luche to accomplish.
"Well, the trial is...," Luche began.
"Don't be so cautious, just speak comfortably," Jin interrupted.
"If I tell you, will you help me?" Luche asked.
"If it's something I can help with."
"Alright, then I'll trust you and speak. The trial that Barbobo demanded was this: become the person in charge of a construction site that even the God of Architecture would find challenging."
A construction site that even the God of Architecture would find challenging...
As soon as Jin heard those words, the Sword Emperor's territory came to mind.
Luet and Tellot were also thinking the same thing.
'If this is true, there's no need for me to meddle with the dangerous Brakle Autonomous District by checking the compass.'
With a mischievous smile, Jin responded to Luche.
"Luche, let's go somewhere together."
[T/L: You can read more chapters and support me here: https://ko-fi.com/punisher87 & https://bmc.link/punisher87 ]
[T/L: Join $29 membership on my "buymeacoffee" page and read 55 chapters ahead and daily 1 new chapter update. I have introduced new memberships, and you can read upto 75 or 85 chapters ahead.]