CLA.S.S NEUTRAL: Stranger Is Coming

Conversation with Kurbakht. Royal Gatekeeper's thoughts. Important information.

Kurbakht waited for me in front of the tavern, where a new innkeeper worked. The guards gathered some supplies for the trip. The royal gatekeeper smiled slightly when he saw me and invited me into the carriage. We leave in about ten minutes.

"Why are you sad?" Kurbakht continued. "Has anything else happened?"

"Not really," I sighed. "Just access to my world isn't available for me anymore."

"That's interesting." He scratched his head. "My agents reported on such immortals. Several of them even sometimes work for us."

"I'd like to talk to them."

"If they are in the castle, I'll introduce you to each other," Kurbakht said. "In my opinion, there is no need to be upset. Many people don't even know that there are other worlds. They live peacefully, never going beyond the boundaries of their villages. Your situation isn't so bad."

"He-he," I laughed. You just don't know the whole situation. "But I still don't like losing access anywhere."

"Hmm… maybe one of the gods can help you in this matter. They are very strong, but some are also incredibly self-serving, therefore they won't help you until they get something expensive to make it worth their while.

"I don't even know which of them to advise you to approach. It's better to decide for yourself. There is a lot of information about them, but not all of it is truthful. Too few people know what is true."

"As I understand it, the 'truth' in this case is what people saw, but they didn't understand what happened, isn't it?"

"Yes, exactly. Their power is unimaginable, so some of their actions are understandable. Sometimes they appear in Rainea to contemplate one of their followers or someone they like. Note this information."

I did so: instantly writing it down it in my diary. On the way to the city, I asked a lot about the ordinary people's lives in the kingdom of Mernor. Kurbakht answered with p.l.e.a.s.u.r.e and in great detail. He even explained that things were going not so well. Sometimes it required the help of the mages from the council, who categorically refuse to see Ragan on the throne, and he responded at them with mutual hostility.

"You see, there are some reasons to hate King Ragan," the royal gatekeeper said about a half-day later. "He overthrew the previous dynasty, killing all members of the ruling family: women, children, and the old king. Even the king's grandfather, who was about two hundred years old. He tormented the queen for a long time in front of the ruler, chained to his own throne, then he killed his daughter, and only at the end did he kill the king."

"How do you know this? Why did you decide to tell me this important information? It's clearly not for outsiders."

Reputation with Kurbakht increases by 100 points!

"You're very perceptive and immediately realized that I didn't lie," Kurbakht grinned. "The answers to your questions are very simple. I saw it with my own eyes, but I could do nothing to prevent it. I told you about this because I realize what kind of person you are and that I can trust you.

"You possess a very rare skill called the Search for Death, don't you? I see it. You saw that the girl killed the innocent, but at the same time it wasn't her fault, or rather, she wasn't completely guilty.

"You were right, saying that I was also guilty, because I hadn't caught the bastard before, but I didn't have the purple aura on me. It's unfair, isn't it? However, this skill isn't intended for such situations. It simply seeks death, looks for places where it replaces life, and looks for those who take others' lives with their own hands.

"I thought that everyone should be judged, but you went against me. I hadn't been confronted with this before—as most of people are afraid of me and don't like me.

"However, your justice seemed higher than mine, and it knocked the ground out from under my feet. I was confused, because I then realized that I could be condemning those who were actually innocent, those whom fate played a cruel joke on.

"But, at the same time, you didn't see a murderer's aura on me, since I sent to be executed only those who killed and who I considered to be guilty."

Oh, I've got a terrible headache because of his words. How can an NPC reason like that? The team of 'Creator's Studio' deserves my best praise. I hope they can't influence this world too much, otherwise it would be sad.

"You seemed very weak, but looking into your eyes, I realized that this wasn't true. Then I could barely stop your hand when you almost killed the guard, yet your level is about hundred points less than mine. The guard's level was also fifty points higher than yours. Nevertheless, you scared him. You are a good person who, like no one else, knows what justice is. That's why I told you about the true fate of the old dynasty.

"The people of the kingdom think that a terrible disease, imposed by the mages, struck their previous king and his family. They hate the mages now. However, Ragan didn't even provide evidence of either the disease or the guilt of the mages. I can't prove anything to open the people's eyes.

"Without evidence, I won't be better than Ragan. If I overthrow him, chaos will overwhelm the country and cause plenty of further victims. So I have to work for the killer.

"I'm a royal gatekeeper, a chief of the Mernor Kingdom's secret investigation, and a counselor. All these posts, though, can't help me acheive anything.

"I've told you too much. Please, talk to the king and see if he deserves to rule over the people, despite all his crimes. I agree with any decision you make because I can't take it anymore. I'm about to kill him myself, no matter what the consequences are for me."

"Well, I'll carefully study everything and let you know my opinion." I thought something very interesting awaited me there, although I had never been a fan of palace intrigues.