23: Chapter 23 Blackrock City and the Temple

The Old Coachman died in the evening.

Of course, it wasn't Richard who killed him; the wound on his leg, crushed during the chaos, had become inflamed, causing a high fever, and he stopped breathing silently while resting in the night.

One of the two attendants also died that same night due to a wound infection.

Richard and the others moved the two bodies onto the carriage; they didn't have time to bury them and could only transport them away, leaving in a hurry.

The last person in the caravan, that attendant, did not cry or speak. After finishing all this, he silently crawled back into the covered wagon, curled up in a corner, and stared blankly while hugging his knees.

After traveling for a few more days, the outline of Blackstone City finally appeared on the horizon.

Unlike the gray, misty port city of Blackwater City, Blackstone City was a true stone fortress.

The walls were built entirely of dark gray granite from local quarries, shimmering with a cold, hard, metallic luster in the setting sun.

On both sides of the city gate stood two giant dwarf-style stone statues. The statues held stone battle-axes taller than a person, staring with hollow eyes at the merchants and travelers coming and going below the city.

Every few steps along the crenellations of the city wall stood a windproof kerosene lamp, their orange light connecting into a winding ribbon of light in the twilight.

Cecilia stopped before the carriage approached the city gate.

She used a piece of dark gray coarse cloth torn from the wagon cover as a veil, pulled her hood down very low, and retreated into the shadow of an old oak tree by the roadside.

"I won't go in. It would be troublesome if I were discovered by the Temple's patrol soldiers or recognized by some spellcaster," she said.

"And besides..." She paused, her blood-red eyes looking toward the city gate through the gap in her veil.

"I'm afraid I won't be able to control myself; there are too many people in the city, and too much blood."

Richard jumped down from the carriage and walked in front of her.

He planted his halberd on the ground and tapped the crack on her shield—where the Griffin emblem was located—that had been slashed by the Vampire with his knuckles.

He tapped twice, the sound not loud, causing Cecilia to withdraw her gaze from the flow of people at the city gate and fix it on his face.

"Rest assured, we will definitely find a way to treat you," Richard said in a comforting tone.

"I don't care if it's a curse or magic. I don't care what conditions are required—whether it's precious materials, high-level divine magic, or finding some Archmage—there will always be a way."

"In the meantime, don't give up, and don't run off alone."

"Cecilia, remember, we are a team that trusts each other. You were once our strongest support; now, let me be your support."

Cecilia was silent for a moment.

Her blood-red eyes were brighter than ever before.

She took a step forward, opened her arms, and hugged Richard tightly.

Her body was still very cold, much colder than a normal person's, but she held him very tightly—so tightly that Richard could feel her fingers pressing indentations into the leather armor on his back.

Her chin rested on his shoulder, and her voice was very low, low enough that only he could hear: "I will wait for you, no matter how long it takes."

Then she let go, retreated back into the shadow of the oak tree, and wrapped herself back into a gray, obscure silhouette whose face and form could not be clearly seen.

Richard turned and walked toward the city gate with the remaining carriages.

Liam followed behind him. The priest apprentice was still praying, but at least he could walk now and was not as terrified as before.

When entering the city, the guards at the gate glanced at their ragged attire and the canvas covering the bodies on the wagons, frowning slightly.

But after seeing the Adventurers Guild badge Richard displayed, along with the mission certificate issued by the Adventurers Guild, they didn't ask any more questions and waved them through.

Although Hoffman was dead, the commission document was still there, which was proof enough.

The Temple of the God of Healing in Blackstone City was located on the north side of the city's central square. Compared to the small temple in Blackwater City, this temple could be called magnificent.

With white marble columns and a huge silver holy emblem of healing inlaid above the main entrance, the steps in front of the door were filled with poor people and the injured waiting in line for treatment.

Richard quickly contacted the local chamber of commerce.

The chamber of commerce that had entrusted them to escort the goods—the Iron Oak Chamber of Commerce in Blackstone City—learned that the caravan had been attacked by a Vampire and that the team leader, Hoffman, had been killed.

After the few remaining people had risked their lives to deliver the goods to their destination, they immediately sent a manager to the temple to pay the full treatment costs for all survivors of the entire caravan.

The manager was a lean, middle-aged man whose hair was meticulously combed with hair oil. He spoke quickly, but every word was clear:

"Hoffman was a veteran member of the Iron Oak Chamber of Commerce."

"We are extremely grateful that you brought his remains and the goods back!"

"All treatment costs will be covered by the Chamber of Commerce. Additionally..."

He pulled a heavy leather money bag from his bosom and handed it to Richard with both hands: "This is fifty gold coins. This is not payment, but a special gratuity."

Richard took the money bag and weighed it; the weight was substantial.

He tied the money bag to his belt and nodded to the manager.

With this money, plus the ten gold coins per person for the escort mission itself, the fifty-two gold coins needed to redeem Cecilia's sword were more than enough.

He could send some money back to the pawnshop in Blackwater City first, asking them to hold the sword until they returned.

Pawnshops in this area mostly accepted this kind of deferred redemption operation, as long as the interest and a portion of the principal were paid first.

In the temple's treatment room, a middle-aged female priest in white robes used healing magic to treat the wound on his left arm that extended from his shoulder to his forearm.

The female priest's magic power was clearly much stronger than Liam's; when the holy emblem lit up, the entire treatment room was enveloped in a layer of soft, pale golden light.

Richard felt the flesh at the edges of the wound rapidly tightening and healing, the burning pain subsiding, and the severed muscle fibers reconnecting one by one.

After examining the completely healed wound, the female priest showed an expression of surprise.

His self-healing speed was much faster than she had expected, and there were no signs of infection.

Of course, she did not know about Richard's uniqueness.

Although the Brand Warrior's passive skill only triggers a healing effect when attacking enemies in combat, the increase in constitution itself had already greatly accelerated his basic recovery speed and resistance to infection.

Liam was arranged to stay in the temple's meditation room, but the female priest only glanced at his condition before frowning, saying she could not treat this.

The priest apprentice's physical wounds healed quickly after receiving treatment, but his dilated pupils and constantly trembling lips revealed a more difficult-to-treat mental trauma.

This was not something that healing magic could repair.

The female priest suggested he stay in the temple to recuperate for a period of time, receive psychological counseling from the temple's mentors, and that he should not participate in any adventure activities in the short term.

Liam sat on the stone bed in the meditation room, holding the holy emblem in both hands, and finally said a complete sentence to Richard—the first sentence in these past few days that was not mixed with prayers:

"I will never go out again. I don't want the payment... I won't say anything about Cecilia... but I really... I cannot go again."

His voice was trembling, and there was a bone-deep fear in his eyes.

Richard looked at Liam, wanting to say something, but in the end, he just placed a small cloth bag containing gold coins on the table in the meditation room.

That was the payment Liam deserved, regardless of whether he still wanted it or not.

Then he turned and walked out of the temple, bidding a final farewell to this teammate.