Chapter 10: Investment (Fourth Update, Dedicated to Alliance Leader 'Su Xiaochán～')
"Father, I have already been confessing with you for 23 minutes and 51 seconds. Under normal circumstances, the minimum time for confession is 30 minutes, so no one will discover our situation here within that time. Ten seconds ago, the nun in the church left, meaning we are the only two people inside. This makes things much more convenient. I ask, and you answer."
Su Xiao manipulated the Realm Severing Thread, wrapping it around the old priest's neck. Feeling the sharp thread, the old priest swallowed hard.
"Ryūdō Temple, are you sure?"
The old priest dropped the half-used phone in his hand, as if he had made some kind of decision. He had already realized Su Xiao was no ordinary person.
"Oh? What's different about it?"
"If it were the past, it would just be a local historical site. But now, it is heavily guarded. Not even humans, let alone Heroic Spirits, can enter and return alive."
The old priest sighed, calmed himself, and tapped the wooden board beside him.
"Young man, give me a cigarette."
Su Xiao was somewhat surprised by the old priest's request, but he still handed over a cigarette. Through the wooden partition, he lit the cigarette that was extended toward him.
Coming to find Kirei Kotomine, Su Xiao did not immediately resort to force. He only restrained the other party after he took out his phone. The reason for this choice was the current difficulty of the Talent Awakening Mission.
Given the difficulty of the Holy Grail World, a LV.3 mission was highly unlikely to involve combat. Do not assume that a simple mission can be completed through violent means. Blindly using violence would only increase the mission's difficulty.
The old priest took a deep drag of his cigarette. He had quit smoking years ago.
"I can tell you how to enter Ryūdō Temple. I can say that aside from me, there are fewer than ten people who know the method of entry now. However, after you enter, you must do one thing for me."
"What is it?"
"If, I say if, you can come out alive, help me open the 'Spirit Expulsion Barrier' there. Opening that barrier from the inside is not difficult."
The old priest tried to touch the Realm Severing Thread around his neck. This thing was causing his blood to stagnate. Su Xiao simply withdrew the thread.
"Agreed."
As soon as Su Xiao finished speaking, a notification from Reincarnation Paradise appeared.
[You have come into contact with one of the holders of the Ryūdō Temple 'Key': Father Kirei Kotomine. There are a total of eight 'Key' holders.]
[Tip: Father Kirei Kotomine will be converted to a neutral character. Favorability is fixed to Friendly. From this moment on, you cannot attack, threaten, extort, or use other means against the old priest. The old priest also cannot deceive, threaten, attack, or use other means against you.]
[Tip: The hidden location, Ryūdō Temple, has been activated. Ryūdō Temple is extremely dangerous. The Hunter must proceed with caution.]
[Tip: Kirei Kotomine is a key related figure for Ryūdō Temple.]
Upon receiving this series of prompts, Su Xiao nodded. It was similar to what he had guessed. Low-difficulty missions had their own methods of completion. However, his luck was good; he had directly found someone related to Ryūdō Temple. But it wasn't entirely luck; his previous reasoning, though somewhat different from the facts, was still relatively close.
"May I ask how I should address you, sir?"
The old priest seemed to have let his guard down, his tone returning to calm.
"Is my name... important?"
"Yes, it is. As long as you dare to enter Ryūdō Temple at this time, then we are not in a hostile relationship."
"Why?"
"You'll understand when you get there. Remember one thing: do not trust anyone inside Ryūdō Temple. Anyone. The people there are not right in the head. The things they believe in are different from mine. No, that cannot be called belief."
The old priest squinted his eyes, a wisp of blue smoke rising from between his fingers.
"Originally, I wanted my son to go there and clear out certain things. But he was born to me in my old age. Whether it's selfishness or reluctance, I don't want him to set foot there during this period. That place is 'hell.'"
When mentioning his son, the old priest unconsciously straightened his body. He was extremely satisfied with his son.
"What exactly is there?"
Su Xiao realized the seriousness of the situation. Kirei Kotomine's attitude had changed drastically, even beginning to show goodwill. This was definitely not a good sign.
It could only mean one thing: the old priest also wanted to go to Ryūdō Temple, but he didn't dare. Now that someone fearless had finally arrived, the old priest was naturally welcoming, almost ready to set off firecrackers. Even if the other party died as soon as they entered Ryūdō Temple, it would be no loss to the old priest.
"There's something I want to confirm. How capable are you? Especially in terms of combat."
The old priest was perhaps a bit worried that Su Xiao would die immediately upon entering Ryūdō Temple.
"Mm, I'm decent enough."
Su Xiao grabbed the wooden board beside him with his bare hand. With a crack, the board separating him from the old priest shattered into pieces. This was a deep-level mastery of force.
Seeing Su Xiao's monstrous strength, tearing through the wooden board as if it were paper, the old priest fell into contemplation. He was considering whether to 'invest' in Su Xiao.
After some inner struggle, the old priest made up his mind. Since a fearless person had finally come, he had to invest.
"Follow me."
The old priest pushed open the door of the confessional and walked toward the depths of the church. Su Xiao followed behind him.
In fact, this treatment was not exclusive to finding the old priest. As long as Su Xiao found any of the eight people holding the Ryūdō Temple 'Key,' they would all react the same way.
These people included the original head priest of Ryūdō Temple, a high-ranking member of the Mage's Association, the vice president of the Mage's Association, an old man in Fuyuki City, and others, totaling eight people.
One month before the start of the Fourth Holy Grail War, Ryūdō Temple had become a sacrificial pawn in negotiations between major powers. With the safety of a city plus the cessation of hunting ordinary people as a bargaining chip, a group of 'madmen' had obtained the place, with the deadline set until the end of the Fourth Holy Grail War.
During this period, aside from that group of 'madmen,' anyone from any faction who dared to set foot in Ryūdō Temple would be killed without mercy.
Su Xiao followed the old priest to a wall deep inside the church.
The old priest looked around, as if afraid someone might see his next move.
"Don't worry, there are no living things nearby."
Su Xiao signaled for the old priest to continue. But the old priest didn't fully trust Su Xiao. After confirming there was no one around, he aligned the protruding cross on the cover of his Bible with a groove in the wall.
The cross on the Bible fit perfectly into the groove.
With a click, the mechanism inside the wall was triggered. Su Xiao stared intently at the wall in front of him. This should be a hidden door.
Creak～
Suddenly, the floor beneath Su Xiao's feet gave way. The stone slab opened, and he began to fall. In that instant, his gaze sharpened as he looked at the old priest.
When Su Xiao noticed that the old priest was also falling, he breathed a sigh of relief.
The moment Su Xiao's gaze locked onto him, the old priest felt his hair stand on end.
After falling steadily for a few meters, Su Xiao felt his descent slow down. An invisible energy seemed to support him.
Landing smoothly, the two stone slabs above clicked shut, and a passage appeared ahead, leading to an unknown destination.
The lights on the wall came on. This was not magic; the old priest had pressed a switch on the wall.
A stone-paved passage appeared. Preliminary estimates suggested it had been built for over a hundred years. Due to the dampness underground and poor ventilation, the stones were covered in moss-like plants.
"I'll take you to get the 'Key' and the necessary items for entering Ryūdō Temple. This is my personal secret chamber. No stealing."
The old priest walked into the passage. After a moment's hesitation, Su Xiao chose to follow.