So, the question is, what is the reason why they must take the scholars to Knapnui, which is located in the depths of the earth?

Speaking of which, we have to go back a little back a little back to the time when Itami and the others went to the Bernag Temple. Pen Fun Pavilion wWw. ｂiquge。 ｉｎfo

Knowing from Gray and the others that an assassin was plotting to kill Raylai, Itami decided not to stay in Lendl in order to escape the danger, but to run around as he pleased.

Because he thought that as long as he kept moving, no matter how many Assassins he sent, he would not be able to catch up with them. And that's largely true.

If you get caught up somewhere, you can only be caught up in the next destination and they will be the first to go. But the careful Itami also made some efforts to avoid this situation.

"Then decide on your next destination. ”

About 50 kilometers west of Lendle, Edan, who was working with Relai's sister Albegio to investigate the abandoned mines of Copper Mountain and collect samples, stood the slowly falling wooden pole on the ground and held the top with his index finger.

"Let it go!"

That's right, they decided by moving in the direction where the pole had fallen.

However, if he only used his hands to erect the pole, he might unconsciously manipulate the direction in which the pole fell, so he came up with the idea of holding the pole with his fingertips and closing his eyes and circling the pole.

In addition, he made it a rule that no matter what direction the fallen pole was pointing, it would always go in that direction.

Of course, if this rule is strictly followed, it will go around endlessly where there is nothing. So they followed the direction indicated by the wooden poles, but they still had the flexibility to find nearby villages and towns and use them as destinations.

That being said, because the path chosen according to this method was almost entirely unforgiving, the Assassin who had come to take Raylai's life was never seen in front of Itami and the others again.

Everyone looked at the wooden pole that had fallen with a dry sound.

"Directions, 326 degrees...... Roughly north-north-west. ”

Itami read the point of the wooden pole through the compass.

"North-north-west?"

Seeing that this should be the result of an accident, "By the way, was there a strange wind blowing just now?" Lori looked at everyone's faces as if she was asking.

"No, I don't. I don't think there's any wind. ”

On the topographic map unfolded on the ground, Itami, who was drawing a straight line in the direction of 326 degrees of his current position, looked up at Lori's question and replied. So Lori's face came to the place where her forehead almost touched.

"Is that so?"

Lori tilted her head. She was a sub-god after all, and seemed to sense movements that humans couldn't perceive.

"Even if the wind blows and the direction of the pole falls, there's nothing wrong with that, right?"

Duggard looked up as she said this. The faces are also very close together.

"Hmm~" Lori hummed and looked down at Itami again.

"But it's Bernag. I only have a hunch of nastyness. ”

If you use your fingertips to trace the lines drawn on the topographic map and extend them...... Soon it was running through the section that is credited with Bernag. Because it was too accurate, Lori said that the result of the inverted rod just now was not accidental, but someone's will at work.

Itami thinks that if Lori says so, maybe that's the case. But......

"I received an invitation to the Bernag Temple. So sooner or later you'll have to make a trip. Any questions?"

An ominous invitation is placed in the luggage.

It was written on what appeared to be blood-stained black parchment with rusty lead dust as ink.

The content is to invite Itami, who defeated the Yanlong and repelled the apostle Giselle with his strength, to go to the temple. But even the wax is carefully used in black, and if this is the author's sense of humor, it has to be said that the preferences of the inviters are quite bad.

So even though it's literally transactional, that thing just reads it once and wants to burn it. That being said, because of this thing, Bernag has also become one of the destinations.

"Isn't Lori going to say 'I don't want to marry you' to the god who seems to be called Hadi? Yao also said that he wanted to draw a line with her. ”

"That's right. But now that this time has passed, I have a premonition that I hate it. That guy always does, and he's probably going to call the assassins and the like along. ”

"I also agree with His Majesty's view. ”

Yao said, showing doubts about the existence of the belief in the main god in the past.

After learning that her companion's dark elves were being used as bait for the dragon, she abandoned her faith in Hardy.

In particular, God is real, and there are many. It is natural for a person who takes refuge in a favorite god to cease to be a believer in him if he doesn't like it later.

This is completely different in character from a small, absolute ruler who divides believers into factions, makes them kill each other, and condemns disgusted apostasy as a sin. (Note: You know)

"That...... Why don't you do it again?"

Hearing Sandy Kraft Marea's proposal on the side, Duggard immediately nodded and said, "That's fine." Itami nodded his head and picked up the pole and put it up again.

Close your eyes, turn around, and let go of your fingers.

Then, the pointing of the fallen wooden pole is......

“…………”

“…………”

"It's North, North, West. ”

As if speaking for a silent crowd who had nothing to say, said Greg Aldo.

"What should I do~?"

"One more time. ”

Once again, Itami brought down the pole.

“…………”

Seeing the result, Leilai looked away and sighed.

"Speaking of Bernag, the food there seems to be delicious. Albegio said to Gray. Probably thinking that going to Bernag was a foregone conclusion, she began to talk about the rumors there.

"Again, one more time. ”

Once again, Itami picked up the pole, this time completely tilting it toward the south.

Then close your eyes and let go of your hands.

Of course, the wooden pole obeys gravity and is about to fall south. But for some reason, the storm suddenly blew the wooden pole and caused it to fall north-north-west.

“…………”

“…………”

"Hah, Hardy's guy"

Lori kicked the wooden pole away.

"It hurts!", the flying pole bounced off the tree and struck Itami in the neck. And the top of the pole points to the north, north and west in a regular manner.

Idami covered his aching head and pointed to the wooden pole and said,

"Guys, let's think differently. What this pole refers to is not north-north-west, but south-south-east. ”

Itami pointed to the thick end of the pole. And argues that since the pole is not an arrow, it doesn't matter which end is the top.

Although this is a slightly reluctant opinion, everyone seems to think that this is a good idea, and clapped their hands and said, "I see~".

But before the words fell, a strong wind suddenly blew. Then the strong wind turned the wooden pole and changed the pointing to north-north-west.

Library ......

When Itami decided to choose his destination in this way, he announced that he would go in the direction indicated by the wooden pole, no matter how difficult the road ahead. It's a joke, but it's also a swear.

Raylai patted her knees, shook off the dirt and stood up, sat in the driver's seat of the tall motor, and started the engine. Dugga and Lori both got into the car with dead expressions.

"No way. Let's be careful, let's go. ”

In this way, Itami and the others began to rush to the Bernag Temple.

Bernag.

It is known as a temple city dedicated to Hadi, the god of Hades.

Hades, generally defined as the place where the dead go. It feels like it's still "that world". It is located deep underground.

That being said, not all dead people come to Hades.

For example, the souls of those who have fallen in battle, or who have special exploits, are summoned to the seat of Omorrah.

In this way, there are also places for the dead to travel outside of Hades. But from the perspective of all the deceased, it was a very special and extremely rare case. Under normal circumstances, dead souls are welcomed into Hadi's Hades. Therefore, those who wish to pray for the blessings of their ancestors, such as grandparents and parents, do not worship Hadi as the main god, but they also pray at Hadi's shrine. Of course, Bernag is also very popular with many visitors.

"It's really crowded. ”

Itami sighed as he watched the procession of people heading to the temple.

After securing your accommodation, park your car and go out into the street to see that all roads are crowded with worshippers. This situation can be said to be similar to that of a shrine that has become crowded due to new visitors. (Note: First visit: New Year's first visit)

In front of the gate, shops and stalls are lined up for visitors. The atmosphere is similar to that of Sugamo's Jizo Street, Kawasaki's Daishi, or Sensoji Temple's Kaminarimon.

Since it's a shrine, I thought it was a place where the atmosphere was serious and uncomfortable, but I didn't expect it to be unexpectedly worldly, so Itami was also relieved.

Souvenir shops sell items that are sold everywhere, such as cheap wooden ornaments, metal cups, and floating statues carved with scenery, all of which are decorated with images of the Bernag Temple.

From the fact that they are cheap and lack of practicality, these things are real souvenirs.

In addition, minerals and rough stones taken from mines in various regions are also put on the shelves as susurrels.

Those are crystals, agate, gemstones like jadeite, rough jade and so on. Price tags are attached to all kinds of ore with rare shapes and colorful unknown bodies.

Itami was about to ask why these things had become Bernag's specialty. However, after hearing the explanation of Sister Leilai, Albegio, he "I see" to express his understanding. In other words, Hardy ruled the part below the ground, and the minerals mined from there were also considered to be the wealth brought by Hades. Therefore, in all towns that owned mines, Hadi was worshipped as a patron saint, and a part of the ore and minerals were offered to the temple as a tribute, benefiting the temple's finances. And the surplus part enters the market as a specialty in this way.

Alfie and Sandy immediately stopped and began to look for merchandise. In particular, Alfie, who studies minerals as a research subject, even changed his eyes in order to find an unexpected gain.

But Itami and the others were urged by Lori, so they separated the crowd and accelerated their pace to the temple. After all, they still don't want to be left behind, and although Sandy and Alfie seem to be in love, they also follow.

When Leilai saw them, he said,

"You don't have to come along. Just wait at the inn after shopping. ”

Although it sounded like he was going to abandon their cold words, Alfie, who understood that this was Leilai's good intentions to let them enjoy shopping, shook his head and said, "Look at what you said." "This is a great opportunity to peek into the depths of the Bernag Temple. How could I let it go. She wrapped her arms around her sister's shoulders and pulled her tightly. "There may be something that can be used as a research thread below. Right?"

For Alfie, who studies minerals, Hardy is like a treasure storekeeper, and it doesn't hurt to please her.

On the other hand, Itami, who has developed the habit of looking for the end of a team as soon as there is a team, asks Lori while looking around.

"Hey, Lori. Is it okay not to queue?"

"It doesn't matter. Don't you have an invitation from Bernager?"

"Ahh ”

Itami took the black letter out of his backpack.

"As long as there is this, the priest will show us the way. ”

"I see. This thing seems to be the same thing as a small group participation certificate. ”

In fact, as Lori said, after showing the letter to the clerk standing next to the main entrance, the imposing and beautiful priests in white lotus leaf skirts could not move as if they had been struck by lightning, and then the skirts flew and knelt on the ground. It seems that this letter has far more power than a certificate of small group participation.

"Wow, that's amazing. ”

Itami, who always felt that he had become extremely noble, also got a little carried away.

"Let's do it again. He unveiled the letter again.

Then the priests knelt down again. It was like seeing the Evil Lieutenant of the Seal Cage and his guards.

He was just about to show the pure black letter like "Be honest with me" again, when he was slammed on the head by Lori with the handle of an axe.

"Painful ......"

"How long are you going to do it? ”

Itami pressed his head while being pulled by Lori's sleeve.

In this way, under the guidance of the white Gothic priests, Itami and the others received special treatment different from ordinary visitors, and entered the interior of the Bernag Temple.

The structure of the temple is, in a word, a huge cave.

To use an analogy, the shape is like an inverted pyramid. In short, it's a huge pit with the quadrangular pyramid upside down.

Of course, it is not an open-air structure with a pit dug directly from the surface. If you do this, the temple will be instantly flooded if it rains. As a result, the interior of the temple was littered with marble columns, straddled by beams, supporting the massive ceiling that covered the cave like a lid. Hadi's altar, on the other hand, is set at the top of the cone in the deepest part.

It seems that this is the end of the place where the usual worshippers can enter.

In front of the altar, female priests dressed in white Gothic robes line up to perform blessings and bestow gifts on worshippers.

"May you be blessed. ”

You can hear such prayers.

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Allow me to make a sad face