"A treasure?"
Alka repeated. He hadn't expected a god to ask him to help her find a treasure.
"Yes, a treasure that, in modern terms, would be called a Holy Grail.
I've always wondered why it had to be called the Holy Grail. Wouldn't it be better to call it something else?
This kind of thing makes the gods think bad things."
She even grumbled slightly as she spoke.
Alka simply ignored the rest of her sentence.
"Why do you have to ask me to help you get it? You're a god, and I'm just a small fry."
"Do you believe it when you say that?" the flower fairy before her asked with a smile, covering her mouth.
"Although I'm weak now, I'm still a god at heart, am I not?
Some things can't be hidden from my eyes."
"In the real world, you may really be just as you say, a mere shrimp.
But in this other world, this spiritual dream world, you're already a reputable and influential figure.
You just haven't noticed."
As he spoke, Alka felt himself float forward, directly in front of the flower fairy.
He took in her ethereal, graceful, devilish figure.
After taking in the full view, he steadied himself and strengthened his mental defenses.
Instantly, his heart became more resolute.
Hmph, nothing more than that.
The flower fairy extended her delicate, boneless, white, and supple hand and touched Alka's chest.
"You possess a fragment of the Gatekeeper within you, and you're also a dream king, deeply bound to this world."
She analyzed Alka's true nature within the dream world.
"So, within the dream world, you're a powerful being capable of assisting me. Don't underestimate yourself."
She smiled and tapped Alka's cheek, allowing him to clearly see the pink and white flower decoration on her index fingernail.
But Alka's attention was focused on what she had just said.
"Gatekeeper?"
What's that title?
"Don't you know? The fragment of the god you consumed is the Gatekeeper.
A deity that is half reality, half dream. This trait naturally gives him control of the gates between reality and dreams.
So, Safaminton is a Gatekeeper, isn't it?"
She smiled slightly, drawing the dream creatures around her closer.
"Don't you realize that the barrier between reality and dreams is weak for you?
Even though this world has been shattered, that doesn't mean you can slip back and forth so easily.
At my current stage, I can't even move between dreams and reality as effortlessly as you do."
Hearing this, Alka nodded. So that's how it is. This is some incredible information.
But why did he insist on calling it the gatekeeper? It seems the original divine power of the fragment he used wasn't particularly strong among the gods.
If it were powerful enough...
No other god would use such a joking, derogatory term.
"Then what should I do?"
Knowing he couldn't refuse, Alka asked directly.
"It's simple. I'll show you the way and get there in reality. You just need to enter the dream from the place I tell you, and you'll find the hidden treasure."
"Can't I just go through it directly in the dream?" Alka asked, frowning.
"If I can go through it in the dream, then I can get there myself, right?"
Okay.
"That's the hidden mezzanine. You must enter the dream from reality to meet the conditions for entry."
The flower fairy explained again, and Alka nodded, indicating that she understood.
"I'll try to help you find it."
"Thank you, you're such a good child. Are you interested in becoming my knight?" The flower fairy tilted her head and looked at Alka.
Before Alka could reply, a crack suddenly appeared in the dream void nearby, and a missile filled with light struck the flower fairy's head.
"Ouch." The sudden attack made the flower fairy rub her head.
The previous alluring and mature aura vanished in an instant.
"Well, it seems a god really values you."
He said helplessly, extending his hand and waving at Alka, motioning him to come closer.
"Come here, child. You've got to pay a deposit for your help, haven't you?
I'm a god who abides by the rules, and you have a future worth investing in."
Alka didn't refuse. Clearly, the unknown golden missile had emboldened him.
He could clearly sense the presence of the Virgin Mary from the golden missile.
When Alka arrived in front of the flower fairy...
The flower fairy in the dream was a full circle larger than Alka's.
Like a small giant.
The flower fairy raised her hands, gently cradling Alka's head. She lowered her head slightly and kissed Alka's forehead.
A faint flower mark appeared where she had kissed him.
"A small blessing," she said, waving at Alka.
Although this action caught Alka off guard, he forced himself to nod calmly.
The figure vanished from the spot.
The dream clone merged with Alka in reality.
Alka, who had been standing in the garden, opened his eyes.
The faint flower mark also appeared on his forehead.
"Fortunately, it wasn't serious," Alka said with a lingering fear.
Although he had appeared relatively calm in the dream, he was undoubtedly facing a real god. Even if this god was extremely weak, even in a state of decline.
Fortunately, while this god looked a bit erratic, he was at least affable.
That didn't put too much pressure on Alka.
Footsteps sounded behind him.
The head gardener approached.
"Have you finished talking to our god?"
Alka turned and nodded.
Then he noticed the head gardener was frozen in place, his eyes fixed on his forehead.
Alka was sure he wasn't mistaken.
A flicker of envy flashed in the old man's eyes.
Though the envy was fleeting, it was fleeting.
As the gardener looked at Alka and nodded, his attitude became noticeably more approachable.
"Since you've accepted my god's mission, please feel free to ask for any assistance you may need."
Alka nodded. He could now clearly sense a faint guiding light.
This must be what the flower fairy had meant, the guiding light.
"I need to sort out the mission the flower fairy has given me. With all due respect, I'll take my leave."
The head gardener nodded and escorted Alka away.
He stared at Alka's departing figure.
"A young man with a promising future, eh?"
As Alka left and headed back toward the flower forest,
He met Jason and the other two at the entrance, also returning.
At this moment, Jason and the other two were walking side by side in front, not chatting, seemingly lost in thought.
"Why are you three here?"
"Alka?" Seeing Alka behind him, Jason was puzzled.
Curious, he asked, "Shouldn't you be outside?"
Why is he alone?
"We came back early. That place is dangerous, and at 160 meters underwater, it's not suitable for us to explore further."
After hearing Alka's simple explanation, the three nodded, not in the mood to ask further questions.
After that, Alka turned and looked at the place they had just walked from.
That place clearly didn't look like a tavern, nor did it look like a place to gather intelligence.
Not to mention the many soldiers outside; it looked more like a military training ground.
It was a rather important and serious occasion.
"How did you get out of there?"
Hearing Alka's words, Jason sighed.
"That's a long story. Let's talk about it when we get back."
Alka nodded. It seemed like something quite important.
We should have gained a lot today.
After that, the four of them walked together and quickly returned to the flower forest.
Entering the hall, everyone was busy with their own things.
"Why did you come back together?"
"We just happened to meet on the way."
However, as soon as Alka entered, he caught the attention of both Sofia and Pororo.
The two men walked over, circled around Alka, and stared at him with strange eyes.
"Why are you two looking at me like that?"
Sofia said nothing more, but approached Alka, his eyes narrowed slightly.
He placed his nose against Alka's body and sniffed gently.
An expression of having solved a mystery appeared on his face.
"...A faint floral scent. I've smelled it on the street before. It's the kind of scent you'd expect from a woman."
Pororo, who was standing beside him, nodded.
"It's very rich and unique, definitely not something that comes naturally from flowers on the street. And it won't stick to you unless you're lying in a garden and taking a nap."
Why are you acting so clever at a time like this, even possessing such clear logic?
Alka grumbled furiously in his mind.
He was certain he detected a gloating expression in the human's eyes.
Although the place was filled with a variety of floral scents, they were distinct and layered, not blending together uncomfortably.
Like ordinary streets or spaces like those within a greenhouse, these peanuts were fresh and elegant, as if wafting from the roadside.
However, the floral scents on some people had a distinct, more like a faint perfume.
Alka's was one of these.
The floral scents worn by men and women in this area were very distinct.
It's the kind that, upon sniffing it, you can tell what gender it belongs to.
Very strange and interesting.
After hearing the two's words,
Everyone in the hall turned their attention to Alka.
Lucelia even jumped directly onto Alka's shoulders.
"What's that on your forehead?"
It was then that everyone noticed a faint flower-like tattoo on Alka's forehead, slightly hidden by his hair.
They were certain that Alka didn't have such a tattoo when he left.
Lucelia stretched out her hands and tugged hard at Alka's face and nose.
She then directly emerged from her soul and slammed it into Alka's body.
"Hmm... I don't see any signs of disguise or manipulation."
Looking at the crowd, Alka smiled helplessly.
"Don't worry, I'm fine."
"No problem..." He finally received unfriendly looks from Julia and Mathilda.
Even Jason and the others looked disappointed.
Looking at everyone's gazes, Alka felt even more helpless.
"I think you've misunderstood."
Then he slightly parted the hair on his forehead, revealing the flower tattoo on it.
"This is a blessing from the flower fairy."
"Flower fairy? You're not saying you've seen her in person, are you? Your scent is hers, transmitted to you?" Julia continued, as if seeing through Alka.
"Huh? How did you know?"
He looked at the disbelieving eyes of the others.
"It's true. Okay, let's have a proper meeting in that room and exchange our respective intelligence."
Because he had just chatted with Jason and the others on the way, they also had important information to share.
Arka arrived at the specially modified room.
He then told everyone about his previous experiences in the church, including his dream and his encounter with the Flower Fairy.
At first, he thought he'd been exposed because of the giant flower he'd seen in his dream.
Later, he realized that wasn't the case.
Perhaps it was the ripples of change brought on by his previously enhanced strength in the dream and the beginning of the true construction of the Royal Court.
The Flower Fairy discovered him.
Because his real body was on the Flower Fairy's territory, trying to hide a god beside him was too arrogant.
"So our mission has changed? Are we going to help the Flower Fairy retrieve that treasure?" Sofia asked.
Alka nodded. "It doesn't matter, does it? Our current target is stuck, so this mission gives us a good opportunity to search for clues."
Everyone nodded at Alka's words.
Indeed.
They now had a pass, so to speak.
They were now helping the Flower Fairy.
They could practically walk freely within the official territory of the Land of All Spirits.
As long as they asked for some intelligence, I'm sure these officials would be happy to share it with them.
They could use this opportunity to find information about their treasure.
And even if they had enough information, they didn't have enough strength.
It would also take time to accumulate knowledge.
So there was no conflict between the two.
"We have additional intelligence," Jason suddenly said from the side.
Everyone turned their heads at this. "We've found traces of the Nafas family's bloodline."
"Ah? You found this kind of information just by going out?" Xia asked, somewhat puzzled.
Because it was clearly unrelated to the information they were looking for.
But it was also strangely unexpected.
"It may sound strange, but some of our needs have been exposed to the church here."
"How were they exposed?" Alka asked, frowning.
Hearing this question, Jason looked at him, raised his finger slightly, and pointed at him.
"Me?" Alka was puzzled.
"Yes, we didn't know it was you before, but after hearing what you just said, it's almost certain it's you."
Jason said, a smile suddenly breaking out on his face.
"What happened?"
Then Jason began to recount their entire proceedings to everyone.
"In other words, the Flower Fairy conveyed her needs to her followers. These followers must have gathered information about Alka and performed divination.
After all, Alka was asked for help, so divination was necessary.
"We'll find what Alka wants, and only then can we safely conduct a trade with Alka."
Sofia summarized nearby.
Jason nodded. "That's right, that's what the Flower Knight said. They don't understand why we need to find the bloodline information of the Nafas family.
But the divination said so, so they're using it as leverage to get us to help them eliminate the cult harassing them."
So, if they go to the church now to look for the information they want, they might find it already packaged.
Perhaps just waiting for them to pick it up.
"Hmm, I suddenly feel like I'm a bit busy with too many targets," Alka said with a sudden smile.
Then, with a serious expression, he added, "Then let's plan what we're going to do." Then he began to explain the records on the paper in front of him to everyone one by one.
"The Flower Fairy's request: Go to the giant tree's habitat and follow her instructions to find the place and obtain the treasure she needs."
"Search for information about the treasure. Once we're strong enough, we'll venture into the deep sea and obtain it."
"Capture the cult group harassing us nearby. Ideally, capture the leader alive, as he is the bloodline of the Nafas family and the key we're missing."
"That's our goal now, right?"
Everyone nodded.
"Okay, let's establish a priority.
The treasure is placed last because we lack strength. It won't be too late to obtain it once we're stronger.
The Flower Fairy said that obtaining the treasure isn't dangerous, it's simply because no one else has met the requirements.
So, this task can be prioritized, but there's no need to rush it.
Along the way, let's search for traces of this cultist. If we track them down, they'll become our top priority.
"And while we're at it, gather some information about the treasure."
Alka said, laying out a brief plan for their next move.
Everyone chatted, sorting out some details and precautions.
They discussed it with one another.
Until they had a complete grasp of the situation.
"Let's split up now. Jason, the three of you will go gather intelligence on your commission tomorrow.
We need to at least have a clear understanding of the enemy's strength.
Sofia, Lucilia, and I will go to the church tomorrow to gather the necessary information.
The rest of you will just wander around here, gathering scattered intelligence." "
The teams were divided.
It was already dark.
After eating, everyone went to sleep, waiting for the next day.