Although it was a bit of a coincidence... Ogre wasn't the type to just let an opportunity slip away. Opportunities had to be seized with one's own hands.
“Little girl, you really are persistent,” the Truth guard Redona said, shaking his head at Ogre with a trace of helplessness.
“I must do what others have entrusted to me,” Ogre said, deliberately clutching the corner of his dress.
“Running all the way over here without knowing anything... whoever entrusted you with this is really something,” the other Truth guard, Einas, chimed in.
It was obvious they were usually very bored.
“Is... is the person inside very powerful and important?” Ogre asked timidly, his eyes wide.
He wouldn't miss a chance to probe for information.
‘As long as I don't stay, a girl's identity is actually quite useful.’
Conversing with these guards gave Ogre a feeling—he felt as though he might have misunderstood Yade.
‘In this sort of situation, nothing bad should happen, right?’
Ogre stole a distant glance at the mysteriously tightly-shut door of the clock tower.
When Karen went in just now, Ogre had caught a brief glimpse using his enhanced vision. Unfortunately, he hadn't gathered any useful information, because there was only a staircase behind the door...
“It's not a matter of being powerful or not. The master inside is a... very, very mysterious existence,” Redona said, shaking his head to indicate that he wasn't very clear about it either.
If Karen hadn't been bringing food inside every day, he would have suspected that no one lived there at all.
Ogre: “...”
Well, once again, he had obtained absolutely no information.
“Little sister, you must be from the Church of Dawn,” the Truth guard Einas asked, probing Ogre's identity. “I don't think I've ever seen you in the city before. What's your name?”
“I came from outside the city. My name is...” Ogre paused for a moment. “...Maqi.”
Ogre figured that Sister Maqi wouldn't get angry over something like this.
“Maqi? That sounds a bit familiar...”
Einas scratched his head. He felt like he had indeed heard it somewhere before—it seemed there really was someone by that name in the Church of Dawn.
“After you drink, everything sounds familiar to you,” Redona bantered back.
It was clear that the two of them often bickered. After all, there were only two of them at this post, so it really was extremely boring.
“Um, why is that black-haired sister allowed to go inside?” Ogre timidly asked his second question.
“Why are you asking so many questions, little sister? How would we know? We're just gatekeepers,” Redona said, shaking his head helplessly.
“We don't ask about things we shouldn't. Little Maqi, you must respect the guard profession, understand?” the guard Einas told Ogre with a serious expression.
‘Looks like I really can't get anything out of them,’ Ogre sighed softly in his heart. He then pretended to be frightened and took a step back, pulling his hands back with an innocent and scared look. “I-I understand...”
Fortunately, he hadn't placed much hope on these two guards anyway.
“You, don't scare the little girl,” Redona said, reaching out to pat his partner. Then, he flashed what he thought was a warm, friendly smile at Ogre.
“I was just reminding her. Sorry, little sister, I didn't scare you, did I?” Einas apologized awkwardly.
“I'm fine,” Ogre said, intentionally avoiding Einas's gaze as he continued to survey his surroundings.
‘If I still can't enter, then I'll just drop it...’
Ogre had already prepared himself for the possibility of being denied entry.
Just then, the sound of footsteps walking down the stairs echoed from inside the clock tower—Karen had returned with news.
“The gentleman has agreed to see you,” Karen's voice rang out first, and then the clock tower's door creaked open slightly.
“Go on in,” the two Truth guards said to each other before stepping aside to make way for Ogre.
Obviously, they both agreed that a vulnerable ‘little girl’ like Ogre didn't need to be searched.
“Thank you,” Ogre said, passing between them with his head lowered.
‘It worked.’ Ogre arrived before the door of the clock tower without any obstacles.
Wasn't this exactly why he had crossdressed? A girl's attire could lower a guard's vigilance—look, he had even bypassed the routine physical search.
It definitely wasn't because Ogre liked wearing girls' clothes.
“Come on in, little sister,” Karen said, pulling the door wider to make space for Ogre to enter.
“Mhm...” Ogre softly acknowledged out of habit, then stepped into the mysterious clock tower.
Even during the day, the winding staircase of the clock tower seemed eerie and dark, with only a sliver of light filtering in through the gap of the open door.
“Here is your token,” Karen said, slipping the Silver Badge back to Ogre before shutting the door.
“So dark...” Ogre cried out softly, maintaining his character.
With the door shut, the windowless interior of the clock tower plunged into total darkness. If Ogre hadn't possessed enhanced vision, he probably would have been completely blind.
At this level of light, even a standard Professional Knight would have to rely on intuition alone to navigate.
“Don't be afraid, hold onto my hand tightly.” Karen turned around and took hold of Ogre's small hand.
“Okay,” Ogre replied cautiously, then began to observe using his enhanced vision.
‘This environment is actually quite suitable for a shadow demon like Night Crow to stay in,’ Ogre pondered in his heart.
“Are you ready? Be careful when we go upstairs in a bit,” Karen advised in a soft voice, holding Ogre's soft hand.
She was quite caring toward this little sister.
Although she didn't understand why Ogre insisted on coming here, since she had agreed to help, she had to take good care of her.
“I'm ready, big sister.”
Ogre noticed that on the staircase walls of the clock tower, strange runes and numbers were painted at regular intervals.
Ogre felt that these runes did not belong to any magic system; there was no power within them.
It seemed they were just a strange medium for carrying information.
“Mhm, let's take it slow.” Karen held Ogre's small hand tightly and guided him slowly up the stairs, brushing her hand against the wall.
In order to guide Ogre upstairs, she had left her basket on the upper floor of the clock tower.
“Be careful,” Karen said, pausing from time to time.
In truth, she was already very familiar with this path; she was only walking so slowly and carefully to accommodate the ‘little sister’.
“Mhm, I'll pay attention.”
Karen likely had no idea that Ogre was actually the one accommodating her.
If Karen hadn't been holding his hand, Ogre could have climbed these steps in just a few breaths.
It was purely to match Karen's pace that Ogre slowed down.
‘These spots must have been used for holding oil lamps in the past.’ Climbing slowly up the stairs, Ogre noticed the fixtures and grooves on the walls again.
“By the way, little sister, what's your name?” To dispel any fear Ogre might have, Karen took the initiative to strike up a conversation as they walked.
A pure black environment would bring fear to anyone. In her eyes, the fact that Ogre hadn't been scared away was already quite brave.
“My name is Maqi. What about you, big sister?” Ogre asked in return.
“My name is Karen na Luqi. You can just call me Karen or Sister Karen,” Karen said as gently as ever.
To Ogre's surprise, the format of Karen's name was actually in the standard noble style.
“Sister Karen, are you a noble?” Ogre asked curiously.
He found it very strange. Why would a noble young lady, instead of enjoying her comfortable life, come to work as a receptionist at the Dandelion Chamber of Commerce?
“I used to be, I guess,” Karen smiled helplessly. She had expected a question like this.
“I understand... then, Sister Karen, who is the person living here?” Knowing when to stop, Ogre smoothly changed the subject.
If he wanted to know more about that Cleric, Karen probably wouldn't hide it, right? After all, she had already brought him inside.
Treat it as a pre-meeting briefing.
“Mhm... the person living here is a very great man. He is my teacher, you know,” Karen said, a hint of pride slipping into her tone.
‘A teacher... does he already have an apprentice? Will I still be able to receive his teachings then?’
Ogre only cared about whether he could become a Mind-Imager.
“A teacher? Sister Karen's teacher?” Ogre repeated her words, wanting to know the mysterious Cleric's name. “Then how should I address him?”
“Well, when the time comes, Maqi, you can just call him Master Abel... Come to think of it, he used to be a Grand Cleric of your Church of Dawn. That might be why he's willing to meet you.”
Karen held Ogre's hand, explaining as they walked.
“Mr. Abel...” Ogre muttered under his breath.
‘Yade... Abel... The names are very close. Is there some sort of connection between them?’
Ogre remembered that when Knights were knighted and promoted, they had to inherit more than just honor and rank—they also inherited names.
In other words, "Yade" and "Abel" might not be their original names, but rather the names of a certain generation of outstanding figures within the Church of Dawn.
‘Do Mind-Imagers have to inherit names as well?’ Ogre grew curious about this miraculous and mysterious profession.
“Don't worry, Teacher Abel is a very gentle person,” Karen said.
“Mhm...” Ogre replied.
As the two conversed, they quickly reached the designated floor.
‘Not on the top floor?’ Ogre estimated that their current height was only about the fourth or fifth floor.
This was a little closer than he had imagined.
“We're here,” Karen said, halting of her own accord.
“Mhm,” Ogre responded, stopping alongside her.
He noticed that on the walls of this floor, there were actually some words carved.
‘Believing in beautiful things is never foolish; praising suffering is the true ignorance.’ — Praise the great God of Truth, Prumen!
‘This way of speaking is actually quite similar to the Church of Dawn,’ Ogre thought to himself as he looked at the words on the wall near the door.
“Little sister Maqi, wait for me here a moment. I'll go consult my teacher, and then I'll come back out to fetch you.” Karen released her grip after leading Ogre onto the landing and helping him stand steadily.
“Okay, Sister Karen,” Ogre obediently replied.
He wasn't in a hurry now anyway; it was the perfect time to stay and read the holy words of the Church of Truth.
“Mhm, I'll be quick.”
Karen reached out and rubbed Ogre's head. She was worried that this little sister would be afraid; she remembered how terrified she herself had been when she first came here.
“Mhm, okay.”
Ogre felt that this was the only downside of pretending to be a girl—people were always getting touchy-feely with him.
‘Mr. Abel... I'm finally about to meet you. I hope you can become my teacher.’
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