Brainwashed Then Woke Up To Find My Childhood Friend a Hero

47. Information Integration

In the tavern adjacent to the inn, Wide and Ayla were waiting for the other members. Gora and Kelt were still on-site due to an unavoidable task that had dragged on, leaving the two of them with no information and a hint of anxiety.

Creeeak

At that moment, the sound of the door opening echoed.

“Sorry! I’m late!”

Rainer appeared, his attire more disheveled than usual.

“Rainer, you took your time, and what’s with that disheveled outfit? Which woman were you meeting?”

Wide said with a hint of disdain.

“That’s not it… well, maybe it is…?”

“Huh…?”

The two sighed in exasperation at Rainer’s serious expression.

“More importantly, where’s Gildia? She’s always punctual and moves faster than anyone else.”

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“Is she in the restroom?” Rainer asked, but Ayla, looking a bit troubled, replied.

“No, she hasn’t arrived yet.”

“What!? Seriously!? That woman?! It’s as unlikely as a wyvern defeating a dragon…”

Rainer’s expression grew more serious, as if he were pondering something even more complicated.

Then, the sound of the door opening echoed again.

Creeeak…

As everyone turned to look, they saw Gildia in a tattered navy robe, blood seeping through.

“W-what happened? What’s going on…?”

Rainer asked, shocked at the sight of Gildia injured.

The other two also turned their attention to Gildia, concerned about her well-being and the gravity of the situation.

“We might have been discovered…”

“What did you say!?” “Is that true?!”

“Are you serious!?”

The three questioned her in different tones.

“Calm down, it’s still a matter of possibility, but the theory is quite plausible.”

Rainer’s expression turned serious once again, and the two of them, a mix of anxiety and surprise, held their breath, waiting for words.

“At the very least, a being like me is likely to be sensed.”

“Yeah, a strange woman came to my place too.”

The two were quite flustered by this.

“I see, it’s highly probable that both Rainer and I have been exposed. First, let’s gather information.”

Gildia took the lead to restore order to the chaotic situation.

“First, I separated from Rainer and gathered information from the unscrupulous merchants, but they all said similar things, so it’s not very useful. The problem came afterward. The merchant’s magic caused a commotion, and the knight order rushed in. Among them was a priest named Yaiba, who tore the space with his sword and took me to a field on the outskirts of the holy city. I tried to gather information, but, well, here we are.”

Rainer showed his bloodied arm.

“However, the problem is this man Yaiba. He was still hiding something, likely something that would be called heroic in this country.”

Wyd and Ayla exchanged glances.

Then Wyd spoke up.

“Yes, I also received information from a priest named Atsuku, who said that despite being a priest, Yaiba serves as the leader of the holy knight order and seems to be defeating the villains of the holy city daily.”

“Excuse me for a moment?”

Just as the conversation progressed a bit, Rainer interjected.

“I was gathering information too, and during that time, I was attacked by a woman with divine insight.”

Gildia leaned in, intrigued. “Oh?”

“Well, I was doing something similar to Gildia, squeezing information out of small-time crooks, but then someone attacked me from behind. That person didn’t seem sane either, and I’m sure she had the ability to manipulate people with her divine insight. Plus, when she took off her clothes, this creepy smoke started coming out, so I backed off. If I had inhaled that, I would probably be unconscious and manipulated as one of her minions by now.”

“I see, that’s tough.”

As Gildia expressed admiration, Ayla spoke up.

“By the way! Among the information we gathered, there’s something about the saint!”

At her words, everyone except Wyd perked up.

“Well, let me continue. It seems the saint has recently been holed up in a place called the Main Shrine of the Sacred Peak, and furthermore, she seems to have gained a power called the Judgment Force through a sacred artifact. That must be the true nature of those chains and such.”

“I see, that’s good information.”

“Yes, I’m grateful to the priest who informed me, but it would be best not to contact that priest in the future; he seems a bit suspicious.”

Gildia urged caution.

“Well then! Shall we devise a plan?”

Rainer, though relaxed, brought up the main topic.