"I want to speak to the Temple Master."
Karlen barely acknowledged it.
This happened while he was being rushed back to his room after they teleported back.
"Hey, did you hear me? I need to speak to the Temple Master."
"I understand, but now is not the time. I must inform the Temple Master of the attack. He is not at the temple at the moment, and for now, it is better for you to remain in your room. Please be patient for a little while. I am sure he will grant you an audience when the situation is calmer."
It was a small attack that barely affected anything, but it felt more like a warning shot than anything else.
It may not have been any real harm towards the three tournament representatives, but the fact that they were targeted at all meant that someone knew about the temples' plans and wanted to interfere.
Karlen's rushed attitude didn't come from the fact that Damien was almost harmed.
It came from the fact that there was a leak inside the temple.
And since Damien was a new member, he obviously couldn't avoid suspicion.
Karlen told him to be patient and wait in his room, but it was more like he was kept confined there.
He was unable to leave without alerting the guards that surrounded the perimeter, and if he tried to sneak past them, he would only be giving into suspicions of his betrayal.
For his own convenience and for the temple's sake, it became a better option for him to remain "safe" inside of his room.
Damien didn't like it at all.
When he told Karlen he wanted to meet the Temple Master, he meant immediately.
However, as he remained confined, time passed and passed without a word.
Karlen would swing by daily with updates. It seemed that a few people in the temple had been taken away for questioning. The suspicion on Damien was low, but he was still required to remain confined for now.
The other two representatives had been attacked multiple times. Rather than fear of him being a traitor, they imprisoned him out of fear of having to find someone else to do his job in such a short amount of time.
Damien really wanted to break out, but he chose to be civil one more time.
This was the second strike. If he experienced something even one more time, he would stop considering others at all.
However, it was clear that the temple was also aware of his discontent.
It was a week later, which irked Damien beyond anything else, but he was indeed granted an audience with the Temple Master.
He found himself in the same room sitting across the same coffee table from the same man.
The only thing that was different was their choice of beverage.
This time, Damien summoned their drinks. "It is a kind gesture, but what is its purpose?" the Temple Master asked as he took a sip of one of Damien's personally created liquors.
He obviously tested it before did, but without showing signs of that it looked more like he was trusting Damien by drinking what he provided.
"There's no particular purpose," Damien responded.
"I wanted to meet with you about the assassination attempt. At that time, I only had questions in my mind, but I assume you can answer them now that a week has gone by, right, Temple Master?"
His eyes were not friendly, and his words cut like knives.
The Temple Master smiled wryly.
"I apologize for keeping you contained, but you must be aware of why. If I didn't suspect you, then I would have been an idiot unfit to run this organization."
That much was true. Damien was an outsider who had suddenly become an integral part of the temple's plans. If he somehow made contact with the Chaos Faction before he came to the temple, then it was very possible for him to be the mole that sabotaged them.
"However, after investigating your time on this island in more detail, we were able to clear your name. As such, I truly do apologize."
Damien shook his head.
"That isn't what I came for. Obviously, I'm not the mole. I came to see if you've made any progress on your investigation into the real suspect."
The Temple Master took another sip from his cup before responding.
"It's an original formula."
"To say we made progress would be wrong, but we have found the identities of the assassins themselves."
"Two you know well. They came from our temple. The other three were from the other two temples respectively. Either the Chaos Faction has decided to act to stop the tournament, or a group of them decided to act against their superiors' orders and do something reckless. Whatever the case, until the assassins revive, we cannot make further progress into the case."
Damien didn't show any outward reaction.
"Temple Master, I am not someone who easily lets go of my prey. Please keep me informed about the progress of the investigation. If possible, I would like to interrogate the assassins personally."
"I understand. If it is possible, then I will allow it. We can speak in more detail once we have apprehended them."
"You're not going to make me wait until the tournament is over, are you?"
"Haha, I will be at the temple more frequently now that there are only some days left before the event. If you wish to see me, I will gladly accommodate you."
Damien nodded. Standing up and thanking the Temple Master, he prepared himself to leave.
He already got what he wanted, and it wasn't anything that the Temple Master said.
No, it was only one sentence.
It was definitely good wine, but that's not all it was.
No, the concoction Damien served the Temple Master was specifically created to probe people. When the liquid entered their bodies, it would provide Damien with information about their physical condition, talents, and even concrete power level while he was within a certain proximity.
Through that wine, Damien could finally confirm the thought that had been nagging him in the back of his mind since the beginning.
'The Temple Master…' he thought as he left the room.
He didn't have any reason to suspect the man. If anything, he had more of a reason to suspect Karlen, who directly caused interferences that forced Damien to spend two weeks locked in the temple.
But, before he tested the Temple's Right Hand, he needed to test its Master.
His process was justified by the results.
'That guy is being controlled.'
The condition that he described for the Dragon Lord, the curse that controlled his every word and action until the moment he died, was the very same condition that he was suffering from.
Damien had been thinking for a long time that there was a larger conspiracy at play than what he was being led to believe.
And if even the Earth Temple Master and an Area Lord had been controlled by the true mastermind behind everything…
'...then I'm being confronted with a much larger enemy than I originally expected.'