There’s Absolutely No Problem With The Magic Cards I Made!

"Hmm, the weather is nice, but it looks like it hasn't been cleaned for days," remarked Dekan as he stepped out of the church, treading on steps covered with fallen leaves and gazing at the intricate water carvings on the tiles.

Upon closer inspection from the outside, the small church's exquisite masonry made every detail exceptionally delicate, resilient against the ravages of time and weather.

Yet, there was a slight sense of discordance.

Although at first glance, this seemed to be a relatively affluent border town, the construction of such a meaningful church hinted at other reasons.

Dekan had confirmed his starting point to be the town in the "city-state and neighboring town" mentioned in the Shadow World’s background story.

He wondered if there were any other challengers in the town.

A significant problem posed by a Shadow Worlds with scattered starting points was the difficulty in distinguishing between other unfamiliar challengers and the native inhabitants of the Shadow World.

However, there were advantages as well. With the right amount of disguise, others might not necessarily discover Dekan's identity.

Dekan observed the surroundings while contemplating. He had already roughly searched the interior of the church before stepping out and found no crucial items except for a bunch of keys he had in his pocket from the start.

It seemed the church had been left unattended for several days, and for the time being, only Dekan had the permission to enter.

The town's buildings, rising and falling with the terrain, had a unique beauty about them.

Even from outside the church, Dekan could see the town surrounded by mountains, trees, and lush greenery all around.

Even in autumn, it was a scene of vibrant life.

Surprisingly, the terrain here seemed somewhat reminiscent of the land near the ancient mansion seen in the snowy, misty mountains of the previous Shadow World.

If that desolate mountain really existed in this world, then it was possible that it was actually in the mountainous region in the southern part of the Holy Kingdom.

As soon as Dekan stepped out of the courtyard gate, he saw an elderly man, around sixty years old, at the corner outside the gate. He seemed to be on his way to find Dekan.

The old man seemed surprised when he saw Dekan, his expression momentarily frozen.

"Priest, when did you arrive? And what's with the mask on your face..." The old man tried to maintain politeness as much as possible.

But after taking a good look at Dekan, he couldn't hide the disdain on his face.

"I just arrived," Dekan replied in a flat tone, though he felt a bit puzzled.

The man didn't address him with the expected respect, and there was even a hint of suspicion in his tone regarding Dekan's status as a clergyman.

Even though Dekan looked quite young, he was still a legitimate priest no matter what. He had the proof from the Holy Ritual Church in his pocket, which should command respect.

"May I ask who you are?" Dekan inquired.

Although the old man's attitude towards him was not as respectful as expected, Dekan always respected his elders and had a high level of courtesy.

"I am the mayor of this town. I heard that the clergy sent by the city-state for investigation should be arriving soon, and I also heard from the townspeople that a young priest had arrived in town, so I came to see..." The mayor seemed increasingly unsure if Dekan was a genuine clergyman, asking, "Can you show me proof from the Holy Ritual Church?"

Dekan didn't say anything and simply took out the seal of the Holy Ritual Church from his pocket.

"Alright," the mayor nodded, seemingly trying to convince himself that Dekan was indeed a genuine priest.

The reason for the mayor's disdain towards Dekan was because, in that moment when he saw Dekan, he noticed something peculiar.

This seemingly proper priest was wearing a very strange mask on his face!

The mask did not have any eye holes, and it was baffling how this priest could see the outside world through it. What was even stranger was the large character "中" written in red paint on the mask. Although the mayor did not know the meaning of this peculiar character, for some reason, he felt that this priest was not here to do good in the town!

Truth was, Dekan had put on this mask before leaving the church. Since he anticipated encountering a large number of Resurgence Church followers this time, he had prepared a new equipment card in advance to add a bit of disguise to himself—

[Red Center Mask]

[Category: Equipment Card]

[Rarity: Blue Rare]

[Tier: 3]

[Effect: After equipping this mask, it can block lower-tier detection skills. The mask does not obstruct the wearer's vision and perception and can greatly reduce the sense of discordance others feel towards the wearer.]

[Note: I can't tell, I really can't tell!]

In theory, after Dekan put on this mask, even though he looked strange, he would be able to reduce the doubts others had about him as much as possible. However, judging from the mayor's attitude, it seemed that he still believed there was a strong sense of discordance about Dekan.

It seemed this was the effect even after reducing it.

Perhaps the combination of the priest's attire and this mask was indeed a bit odd.

But could a priest with such a dignified demeanor really be like a bandit?

"Have you seen a red-haired girl in the town? And could you please tell me what you know?" Dekan asked the mayor in a relatively gentle tone.

He noted that the mayor had just mentioned, "Dekan is the clergy sent by the city-state for investigation." So, something must have happened in the town.

"A red-haired girl? No," the mayor furrowed his brow, seeming reluctant to speak with this unsettling priest.

But, constrained by Dekan's identity, the mayor had to reply, "Grand Priest Kevin has been missing for five days now. Besides investigating, you are also the temporary acting priest in this town."

"Could you please tell me the details? Even seemingly insignificant information might be helpful for my investigation," Dekan asked.

"Then let's start from five days ago..."

So, Dekan and the mayor strolled through the small town, chatting as they went.

After some time of conversation, Dekan noticed that the mayor's attitude towards him was somewhat mixed. It was not just because of his appearance.

The mayor already harbored some dislike towards the Holy Ritual Church and he made no effort to hide it.

Despite Dekan's friendly demeanor, the mayor's initial negative impression seemed to only shift slightly towards zero favorability.

Using his words carefully to avoid arousing suspicion from the mayor, Dekan also made his intentions clear.

In this small town, there used to be a high-ranking priest named Kevin. However, five days ago, Grand Priest Kevin suddenly disappeared without a trace.

What was more mysterious was that the crucial bridge on the path to the city-state had been deliberately destroyed.

This undoubtedly caused panic among the townspeople, leading the town's knights to take the longer mountainous route to report to the church and the lord in the city-state.

Finally, the city-state and the church dispatched a priest to investigate the situation.

This reliable priest turned out to be Dekan.