“I’m not a high-ranking noble, and I don’t have access to salons where anonymity is guaranteed. It might be embarrassing here, but at least I can guarantee anonymity. Perverts are especially sensitive to such things.”

“…I won’t ask how you know about this place.”

At first, I didn’t understand what he meant. After a while, my face turned hot.

“You can ask if you want.”
Clutching his teeth, Giovanni casually nodded.

“Fine.”

His response made the atmosphere even more awkward.

“Anyway, what did you call me for this time?”

Suppressing the uneasy feeling and asking, instead of an answer, a small box was handed to me.

Thinking it might be a request to steal gems or artifacts from the temple, the sudden appearance of the box caught me off guard.

Giovanni said, “It’s a present.”

“What is this?”

Without an answer, I glanced at him briefly. After scrutinizing his expressionless face, I became sure.

“Oh, I see. It’s a map.”

“A map?”

“A map marking the places to steal. I’ve received requests like this before. But this box is too small for a map…”

Confidently, I opened the lid.

A small bottle wrapped in velvet appeared.

“Huh?”

At first glance, it looked like perfume. I cautiously took out the sparkling crystal bottle.

Though it looked like perfume, it probably wasn’t.

Could it be a potion? Just like I know the sloppy apothecaries in Amtein, he might know an apothecary.

Could he have realized that I can use the power of the priest?

“Is this a truth potion that reveals anything when you smell it?”

His forehead narrowed when I took a whiff.

“What are you talking about?”

‘Isn’t it?’

Watching Giovanni’s expression, I opened the crystal bottle.

A flower-like fragrance gently spread. There was nothing strange.

Glancing at Giovanni, I saw that he was watching me, his fist clenched.

“Really just perfume…?”

“Yes. When I mentioned gifting it to a woman, they recommended it. I chose something that suits you.”

“…”

“A map?”

Haha, he awkwardly laughed.

“I didn’t expect to receive a gift suddenly.”

“Thanks for your hard work.”

‘I’ve worked hard so far.’

Really hard, stealing things.

“I didn’t think about it, but thank you.”

He just nodded slightly. Feeling a bit embarrassed under his gaze, I cleared my throat.

“Did you contact me to give me this? I thought you had something else to ask for.”

“There is that too.”

“Yes?”

Looking up from smelling the fragrance, I asked, “Is there anything you need my cooperation for?”

“As long as it’s not robbing the royal family.”

“Really.”

“You know my abilities, don’t you?”

He smiled mischievously.

“Did you have any gains from what I brought?”

Giovanni shook his head.

“Too bad.”

He provided quite a few items close to relics, but not a single gain. It was really disappointing.

‘It actually helped me.’

Perhaps because there were many items related to the priest, I could absorb more of the power of the priest.

Unlike before, where I didn’t notice much, these days, everywhere I went, I could see tattoos of the priests, and I even had the vague thought that the tattoos were calling me.

Considering that it has become easier to summon rain than before, it seems that my power has increased.

The qualification of my priest that Leo mentioned was the ability to ‘absorb abilities.’
“Please tell me. I’ll do my best to cooperate if it’s something I can do.”

As I sprayed perfume on my wrist and sniffed, the fragrance that improved my mood with each whiff filled the air.

“I need records of the newly excavated Western Temple this time.”

Trying to pass it off casually with a nonchalant tone.

A pause.

“……Yes?”

The smile on my lips stiffened. I glanced up slightly.

“Well, as an imperial citizen, you may not know, but isn’t that an easy task?”

“It’s not something easy, even if you’re not robbing the royal family.”

“That’s true, but…”

Giovanni raised the corner of his mouth as if to say that was it.

“You can do it, right?”

Damn it.

Finally, I realized the reason for the gift.

It’s a reward.

‘Infiltrating an ongoing excavation of the temple is more challenging than breaking into an ordinary sign house.’

It’s because the soldiers are everywhere.

Unlike after the excavation is completed, security is thorough during the excavation.

After stealing, it was still a problem. There was a different resonance than when I worked in an ordinary temple or a sign house.

‘Stealing is harder than I thought.’

I glanced at Hubert sitting across from me. He looked quite tired. It’s understandable since he had been on an external mission for over two weeks and only now returned.

Seeing an opportunity to have a drink, I readily accepted. That part was fine.

‘If I say I want to go to the temple, it will raise suspicions.’

There seemed to be a good way, but it didn’t come to mind, making my head feel complicated.

I resented Giovanni for passing on the difficult problem to me.

‘But the idea itself that there might be divine water in an unexcavated temple of the kingdom makes sense.’

Initially, I searched for divine water at Giovanni’s request, but now I was quite sincere about this matter.

As I absorbed the power of the priest, I became more curious.

Where does this power come from?

Why did the gods give us strength?

If I chase divine water, maybe I can find clues.

I felt that the undisclosed temple could be an opportunity.