"Please, get up..." Rorschach thought. It wasn’t a good sign to have a middle-aged man kneeling before him, but at least the fight was over.

He used his Mage’s Hand to help the surrendering leader up, then scanned his surroundings...

Not one of the other Cultists was conscious. Some had been taken down by him and the Dwarf, while others had been felled by the leader’s thick green smoke. The latter was clearly an indiscriminate attack that didn’t spare allies, meaning the cultist leader had racked up the highest K/D.

Rope was one thing they weren’t short on. They used saltwater-soaked hemp ropes to bind the Cultists tightly. When Singrev dragged over the anchor chain, the leader forced a smile. "What strength, Master Dwarf! Truly incredible..."

’Seriously? You’re far more pathetic than your colleagues on the surface. Can’t you show a little conviction? A little professionalism when it comes to causing trouble?’ Rorschach had encountered his fair share of Underground Sects, but he’d never expected a leader from a *literally* underground one to surrender so damn smoothly.

Now he was holding out his hands, voluntarily waiting for Singrev to truss him up.

"Hold on! Your attitude is decent enough. Hand over any dangerous items you have." Rorschach used his Arcane Vision to study the man. The leader had quite a few highlighted "Miaomiao Tools" on his person, but they were all cheap junk with faint Spiritual Light. The only thing that stood out was the seed he had fed to his subordinates.

The man tried to pull a fast one, handing over all his other powders and Potions but keeping the seed. Rorschach used his Mage’s Hand to snatch it from him. Being hot-tempered, Singrev immediately rewarded him with a hard slap across the face.

"I was wrong! Spare me, my lord, spare me!"

’Stop blubbering. You’re making us look like the villains,’ Rorschach thought. He then asked, "Are you... followers of the ’Mother’?" After all, this place was surreal, and they were literally "underground," so Rorschach avoided directly using the name "Mother Earth."

"Yes, yes, we are! We’re Cultists! I’m Kraup, the man in charge of the Semi-submerged Area. Male, forty-eight, from the Storm City West District, arrived here last summer..." Clearly, Kraup had accepted his situation. He forthrightly identified himself as a Cultist and rattled off his personal information with a detailed fluency that made one suspect he’d been arrested before.

He was once a wool merchant in Istani. After going bankrupt due to circumstances beyond his control and falling deep into debt, he leaped from a bridge in despair. But he discovered he wasn’t ready to end it all and, struggling, miraculously made it to shore. "Shore" was a generous term; it was actually a sewer outfall on the Tams River.

"When I woke up, spitting out river water, I was already here."

Kraup was quite satisfied with this outcome, as no one could come to collect his debts anymore! The only problem was that the quality of life in the Semi-submerged Area was even worse than when he was bankrupt. The good times didn’t truly begin until the Underground Sect extended its tentacles into the area.

"Why did they make you the one in charge?" Singrev asked, finding it strange. This bald, pot-bellied man with a double chin had no commendable qualities to speak of. Was he supposed to be praised for being a pragmatist?

"Two reasons. First, I used to be a boss. Aside from that Count, you won’t find anyone in the Semi-submerged Area more capable than me. As for these blockheads, their intelligence and worldliness are worse than a surface farmer’s!"

"Second... most people who fall down here want to go back. I, on the other hand, think it’s great that there’s no law here. My debts on the surface are no longer my problem. My superiors probably wanted someone willing to stay put and work underground."

’So the Sect likes to hire ’stable locals,’ just like any other company.’ It made sense. Singrev wanted to ask more, but Rorschach cut him off. "Let’s not waste any more time here. We’re moving out."

He glanced over the trussed-up cultists, not wanting to deal with them. "Come to think of it," Rorschach said, "besides Kraup, did any of the other cultists get a clear look at our faces?"

The poet thought for a moment. "That’s true." The fight began with their surprise attack, and they’d been hidden the entire time in the thick white fog Rorschach deliberately conjured. Any stragglers had then been knocked out by the enemy leader himself...

"Good. Freddy, go get the Count’s Guard to take these people away in a minute." After giving the order, Rorschach had Singrev guard Kraup and the others while he returned to the captain’s cabin to gather any documents and useful items he could find.

When Rorschach came back down, the Dwarf was rubbing his stomach. "We forgot to set aside some of that sugar! We still haven’t filled our bellies!"

Hearing this, Kraup’s eyes lit up, sensing another opportunity to make himself useful. "My lords, please, come to my humble residence! I will ensure you are treated with the finest hospitality!"

Just then, the Captain of the Guard entered, long spear in hand. He was slightly taken aback by the sight of the unconscious cultists. Freddy, however, adopted a grand and pompous air, nodding sagely as he issued orders. "On the Count’s authority, my two attendants and I have successfully apprehended a number of these Cultists. We will take the ringleader for processing; the others are yours to handle. Inform the Count that our second commission is complete!"

Of course, the investigation wasn’t truly complete. But according to Kraup, every single believer in the Semi-submerged Area was present. They had mobilized their entire force, and the group had managed to catch them all in one fell swoop. For Count Elgin, this was an even better result than a simple "investigation." They had more than fulfilled their duty.

As for Kraup, Rorschach stripped off his hooded linen robe. Underneath, he wore a loose-fitting shirt and a pilled, old wool vest. While highly inappropriate by surface standards, his attire was still better than what most people in the Semi-submerged Area wore.

With his hands tied behind his back, Kraup was escorted out of the shipwreck by Rorschach and Freddy. As a reminder for the regional leader not to try anything funny, Rorschach’s Mage’s Hand kept a light but constant pressure on his neck.

Once they had passed through the crowd of curious onlookers, Kraup began to give directions. "This way, my lords... turn left, then right..."

The four of them navigated a network of pipes and caves. Besides the "houses" cobbled together from wooden planks and felt cloth, there were also proper homes. By building one or two stone walls against the side of a cavern, one could create a passably sturdy dwelling. There were even "detached villas."

Kraup lived in one of these "detached villas." It occupied a sizable cavern, with a large plot of land fenced off by a patchwork of stalactite columns, coarse hemp rope, and wood. Several lamps lit the area—a true luxury.

"According to my research, this was once part of the Old Empire Governor’s Castle..." Kraup explained, his voice swelling with pride. "It took me a great deal of effort to acquire it. You could call it an underground ’mansion,’ heheh." His laugh sounded like he was hacking up phlegm, but his genuine delight was unmistakable.

Singrev believed that in a chaotic place like the Shadow Land, might made right, and Kraup clearly possessed no Martial Virtue whatsoever. "How did you get all this? Was it a reward from the Sect?"

Kraup looked insulted. "My lord, I earned all of this through my own business acumen! When people first fall down here, they’re all listless and broken. Even the most brilliant merchants have no interest in trying to build something here."

"But people still have to eat, drink, and take care of business. They still have to trade. I, on the other hand, threw myself into the world of the Semi-submerged Area from the very start. Joining the Sect was simply a way to protect the wealth that was making more and more people jealous."

It seemed this man, a failure on the surface, had managed to find a sense of superiority in the world below. Despite the awful material conditions, being able to compare himself to even more miserable residents made life in the Shadow City sweet as nectar to him.

"Master, you’ve returned..." A small, thin maidservant greeted them. Her dress was little more than a burlap sack tied at the waist with a rope. Her stooped posture made her about as tall as the Dwarf. Kraup cleared his throat, doing his best to project an air of authority. "We have honored guests! Hurry and prepare something to eat!"