And why didn't I guess to take the horse with me? I ask this question for the tenth time and scold myself for being stupid. For the third day Veres and I have been wandering along the old broken tract in this thick fog, it is like a jelly envelops us and reduces visibility by a meter from the arm's length. Periodically sprinkles a disgusting drizzle, all my things are damp and began to stink a little, tiredness is putting pressure on the shoulders, but we must continue to stride forward, otherwise we will never reach this town, which is marked by a dot on the map. I followed the advice of Xa-Aran and left the capital that evening, threw everything without much sentimentality, took only a bag of gold and my pair of blades, I really liked them. Mira decided to leave it there, and threw the tied up sperm from the vagina in the bedroom, I don’t have a reason to hang out with the woman, on the rope to drag her here?

For the umpteenth time, fate presents me with another surprise, breaking all the plans that had just been built, how much I got sick of all this, as if some higher intelligence was sitting above itself and mocking me. Veres and I went through a teleport to the westernmost outskirts of the Empire, there is no special supervision behind these lands, as they run into the sea, and after a few tens of kilometers the huge rocky ridge closes the sea. On this side of the border, there was simply no one to attack, and the Empire completely abandoned this land, too far from the capital. There is enough fertile land here, there are rivers and lakes, several forests, but there are not very many people, and they themselves are provided. How did I drag a zombie through a teleport? With great difficulty, we had to search in El Tene for a person who agreed for a considerable fee to transfer us without unnecessary questions through the network of old teleports that are located in ruins of ruined and abandoned cities hundreds of years ago.

For once, I had a house, the prospect of a quiet life, but no, everything rolled into the abyss and now I am wandering along a narrow dirt road hoping for an old map, which I was allowed to sell by the innkeeper. For three days, since my silent zombies and I had gotten out of the ruins of some fortress, in the basement of which there was a teleport, we had not met anyone yet. A good hunter turned out from Veres, a nimble old man quite successfully caught and broke ridges to wild pigs, once even dragged a deer. If you believe a damp piece of cardboard, behind this hill there should be a small border town, it is there that I need to get to take a breath and navigate the terrain, to think about the situation. I already have a small outline of the plan, Xa-Aran very correctly noted that in this world there is absolutely no such phenomenon as divinity and, accordingly, no religion. I also have extensive experience of brainwashing on religious grounds, with our Jehovah's witnesses, that they knock on doors ten times a year and excessively zealous protection of the feelings of believers, which is why these same believers allow themselves to be attacked by ordinary sensible commoners. .

First, I will begin with the peasants of the surrounding villages, I will unobtrusively offer wealth in exchange for a soul. These magicians know quite well what a soul is and why it is needed, but peasants and villagers certainly perceive it as something amorphous, extremely incomprehensible and generally unnecessary, why not exchange something that you cannot see or touch for an opportunity with impunity to walk in broad daylight to the neighbor's wife? Having learned from my own sad experience, I decided not to run far ahead anymore, I will solve problems as they come, and then again the trick will be thrown out by the trick and even scary to imagine.To be honest, the role of such a messiah is very flattering to me, I understand that it is terribly not good, someone will say that it is wrong, that I voluntarily agreed to throw human souls into the hands of demons, but what is it to me? As they say, money does not smell, if the dark side gives you an ambitious goal, resources and powers, then why not speak on its flank? And I have to take care of my mother, Xa-Aran will not let her suffer, but you shouldn’t pull too, no one knows what this demon has in mind. I need him, and he clearly made me understand this, did not even hide his interest in my loyalty. The demons themselves cannot do anything, they have to make a deal, then they have room for maneuver, and in order to make a deal, they have to be called in, and who in this world will call the demon, if they don’t even know what it is? That's right, no one, I come into play here, I have already made a deal, I can lead a discussion with a demon and slip contracts to other people, another question is, will I do it? Of course I will, it’s fun and interesting, I have the opportunity to create a whole religion in an untouched world like heresy, to become the ancestor of the idea and philosophy that will make the whole world change. Eh, it is possible to wake oneself up so much, to feel one's own significance, but it is difficult to do this when the clothes on you are hanging loose with wet rags and unpleasantly dying.

A wind blew from the south, he tore the mist in shreds and gradually shifted towards the clouds hanging in the sky. I breathed a sigh of relief when a timid sun flashed in the sky and a high fortress wall appeared on the horizon. I accelerated slightly, my steps became wider, Veres did not lag behind behind, dragging a heavy bag of gold on his shoulder.

- Open! - I wanted to shout, but it turned out only a muffled squeak, coughed and began to bang at the locked gate with his foot.

- What are you making a noise? Who it? - A small window opened above my head.

- Traveler I can not see, or what? - I waved my hand, restoring breath.

- And who knows you ... I came up to the gate, I’m going to make a noise, we will open the gate ... - The bass dissatisfied sounded in response, I straightened up and waited. A few minutes later, at the gate, something grated and in the wall, far away from the gate, the door opened with a creak, not noticed by me earlier, the young guy came out of it, chained from head to toe in old worn armor, in his hands he held the antediluvian halberd, and a kind of a proud, straight Duke on the road to the next village.

- Pass. What got up? - He shook his head while I looked at his weapon.

- Yeah thanks. - I nodded and hurried over the wall, Veres darted after me.

- Where are you going from? - The guy asked, taking off his helmet.

- From the north we. - I issued a pre-invented story I.

- Wow ... Far away you have drifted ... - The guard was squinting suspiciously, in the street near the wall it was quiet and deserted, the vile weather drove the townspeople into the houses.

- We are scientists, we go all over the Empire, we see that, yes, how. - I answered as friendly as possible.

- Aaaa ... If so, you will be glad to be in the tavern, men like new people ... - With understanding, the guy broke into a smile, he immediately lost interest in us and climbed up the stone steps to the wall. I shrugged, and Veres and I walked down the narrow street between the low houses. There are no high-rise buildings here, but there is no tavern here? The local abode of warmth and comfort for a modest fee was found quickly, and it was just necessary to pass through a narrow street to the center of the city. What made me happy was the presence of a second-floor inn at the inn, a rather large one, by local standards, the building towered over the rest of the houses grandly and monumental. I breathed a sigh of relief and pushed my shoulder through the oak door that fitted tightly to the doorjamb, and I smelled warm and aroma of fresh roast in my face. In the first second I was taken aback, a good three dozen pairs of eyes in a single impulse stared at me and Veres following in his wake.It is necessary to say something, all the locals have obviously gathered here and now they are watching the new person in the city, can he say hello? No, it will look stupid and ingratiating, we must not forget, I am now an important bird, a herald of a new era, and stuff like that.

Having built a tired and detached face, I slowly walked over to the bar and rested my weight on a smooth tabletop.

- What are the fate of us? - A portly woman asked, ...