Chapter 130: To the South Continent (2)

Heh heh.

Kalgos twisted the corners of his mouth.

It was laughable that a guy called a Hero didn’t even recognize the God he served.

Albert didn’t even know that Hor was the father of the Demons.

Those people were always busy pretending to be chosen by God, claiming they received Hor’s commands only in words.

Those were the Heroes of Hor, and Kalgos hated them intensely.

So, he did not properly resolve Albert’s curiosity.

“I have no reason to answer you.”

He wanted Albert to continue treating Richard as his junior.

He was extremely curious about what kind of expression this pathetic Hero would make when he eventually learned the whole truth.

***

The South Continent was a very dangerous land for knights.

If they weren’t careful, they might be surrounded by mages and bombarded.

The most important thing was secrecy.

Therefore, a small elite group had to be formed.

“Aaron, Gide, Moritz, Adele, you’re coming with me.”

I gathered my people and explained our destination.

The expressions on Aaron’s and Moritz’s faces were a sight to behold.

“Wh-why are we suddenly going to the South Continent?”

“Are you crazy! What if a war breaks out!”

The two men, who had been standing dazed, started shouting noisily.

I looked at them for a moment before turning my gaze to Gide.

He was just fiddling with the ends of his stylish mustache and, surprisingly, didn’t say a word.

Grin.

Instead, he gave me a reassuring smile.

Wow, he’s changed a lot.

I nodded in satisfaction and spoke.

“We’re going to stop a war.”

“What?”

“The head of House Markus seems to have been stained by darkness. The Saint of the South alone won’t be able to resolve this situation. We have to go and stop him somehow.”

Vapel Marx, who had defected.

I wasn’t sure if I could bring him back.

It was a sorry thing to say to Alan, but we had to assume we might have to kill Vapel.

If we couldn’t kill that one person, a war would break out.

The air froze solid.

Aaron and Moritz were in the middle of venting silent screams.

“Th-the head of House Markus…”

“The Lightning Emperor, you mean that man became a Demon?”

“Not a Demon. It would be more accurate to say he became a heretic.”

Demons and heretics were strictly different.

In the former’s case, the body and mind were consumed by demonic energy, making them nothing more than common beasts.

In contrast, the latter was closer to a Divine Power who served an evil god.

It was certain that their wickedness would be incomparable to something like a Demon.

“Anyone who doesn’t want to join, speak now.”

Silence filled the room at that moment.

Moritz, who had been standing with his mouth agape, was now wearing a firm expression.

***

Next day.

I sought out the King.

His face, seen for the first time in a while since the speech, was in full bloom.

“Haha, Lord Richard. What brings you here?”

“I believe I must leave for a while.”

“To where?”

“Clouds of war have begun to rise from the South Continent. Our Hor Church must stop it.”

Sigh—, the King let out a deep groan.

His healthy complexion vanished, replaced by a gaze full of concern directed at me.

“It is laughable for me to say this to you, but… it will be truly dangerous. The South Continent is not a kind land to you.”

“There has never been a place on the path I’ve walked that wasn’t dangerous.”

“…… I will help you. What do you need?”

He spoke as if he would give me whatever I asked for.

The way he leaned forward from the back of the throne made it seem like he would pack his bags immediately if I asked him to go to the South Continent with me.

Of course, that wouldn’t happen.

“As Your Majesty knows, the Dwarves’ Forge has been established north of the Capital.”

“That is so. With this, Baren is like a bird that has gained wings.”

Looking at him now, it seemed the reason for the King’s good mood was the Dwarves.

After all, the Dwarves, whom everyone was anxious to host, had settled down near Baren’s Capital, so it was only natural for him to be pleased.

“Please guide them well so they can become the Divine Power of Hor.”

The King beat his chest.

“Leave it to me.”

It was a short answer, but it couldn’t be more reassuring.

Before ending the private meeting with the King, I shared one piece of good news.

“In the Prot Kingdom, they are pushing for several nobles to receive the teachings of Marquis Trantis.”

***

My party and I rode our horses toward the South Continent.

Our first destination was the Forge of the White Anvil Tribe.

Clang, clang—!

A massive building where the sound of master craftsmen’s hammers echoed.

When I opened the door, which wasn’t even half the height of my waist, Hurkeum looked over.

“Human! Is the preparation of materials already finished?”

“No, I stopped by because there’s somewhere I need to go.”

“!”

Short, rough hands grabbed my collar.

Wondering what he was doing, I looked down at Hurkeum.

For some reason, he stood there with a desperate expression.

“When are you coming back?”

“It’ll take quite a while.”

“Then you can’t! We won’t be able to receive the Light when we need it!”

I looked down at the dwarf who was throwing a tantrum with narrowed eyes.

“When did I say I’d provide it? It seems this side has already fulfilled the deal.”

“Ahem, that’s… we just want to continue the deal for a longer time. Don’t you already know that?”

I chuckled.

Even though they were once so focused on raising their own value.

As I watched him quietly, Hurkeum shouted loudly.

“If our works become magnificent, won’t you all benefit as well? Let’s help each other out!”

“A splendid building! What are you planning to do about that? It would be much better to build it while containing the Light.”

Dwarves are fundamentally blacksmiths.

However, they also had a talent for architecture, and their pride in it was exceptional.

To them, it meant that the value of the Light, which could be used anywhere, was infinite.

“Then pray.”

“…… What?”

“If you pray, Hor will bestow the Light upon you.”

“What kind of nonsense are you suddenly talking about, human?”

I waved my hand at him as he tilted his head in confusion.

Since Baren was supposed to take full charge of the proselytizing anyway, we planned to finish our business and leave quickly.

Hurkeum, who had been throwing a tantrum for a long time, went into the forge with a sigh.

When he reappeared, he brought two lances and a dagger with him.

“O-oh!”

“What a beautiful figure…”

“Is this my new armament!”

The three men who had been standing at a distance ran over in an instant.

Three pairs of eyes, filled with excitement, scanned their respective armaments.

“Hmph. These are specially selected from the ‘good armaments’ made this time.”

Hurkeum’s words were no exaggeration.

A ‘good armament’ forged with Light was enough to capture a knight’s heart.

“Thank you for your hard work. I’ll see you next time.”

We left the forge behind and climbed onto our horses.

***

“Saint!”

“Without any notice… did you come to see us?”

After riding for several days, we arrived at Riot Castle.

The knights who opened the castle gates and welcomed us had tears welling in their eyes.

“No, I didn’t come to see you guys.”

“Don’t pretend you didn’t!”

“We missed you, Saint!”

Was it because they felt more affection for me as their faith deepened?

The men of Riot Castle, whom I hadn’t seen in a while, wouldn’t listen to reason.

I looked for the Elves among the men.

I planned to add Tasar and two or three Elves to this trip to the South Continent.

“I understand. I will prepare immediately.”

Tasar showed a concise attitude as expected.

This was all thanks to Adele, who was rubbing her cheek against my chest.

“Riot Castle is the same as ever.”

While the Elves were getting ready to leave, we looked around Riot Castle.

Since the support troops remained there under the pretext of preparing for an attack by the mages, the castle didn’t seem to have changed much.

“Saint, where do you plan to head next?”

The Lord and the leadership approached and asked.

“The South Continent.”

Naturally, my answer caused quite a stir.

I released my momentum to calm them down and then spoke words of warning.

“Do not loosen your guard. Mages might attack soon.”

If things went wrong and a war broke out, Riot Castle would be the first place to be attacked.

This was also the setting for the prophetic dream Mary had.

“Understood. Do not worry about the castle and please travel safely.”

The Lord said, beating his chest.

The knights and soldiers who were listening to the conversation also wore firm expressions.

Soon, we left through the south gate of the castle, accompanied by Tasar and two Elves who had completed their preparations.

As we went further south, the demonic energy that hadn’t yet disappeared caught at our ankles.

We raced forward, cutting through those filthy things with faith.

Thus, we reached the ruins of Pauline Castle once again.

“That giant guy, he really disappeared without a trace…”

Moritz muttered in a trembling voice.

The place he was pointing to with his finger was definitely where Kalgos had been lying.

“Where are my armaments?”

Nothing existed in the hollow ground where the giant had lain.

There was no Dragon Tooth, Ice Crown, or Frost Cloak.

My heart ached with regret.

It was when I was grinding my teeth, thinking that Kalgos was inside my mouth.

-Burp.-

A disgusting sound of a belch hit my brain.

“You bastard!”

I almost threw ‘Bad Bond’ right then, but I held back with superhuman patience.

After all the effort it took to make this sword.

“Whew, let’s head out.”

Gulp. Moritz, who was wearing his cloak pulled down, swallowed hard.

If we went south from Pauline Castle, it was the land of the mages.

For him, who was born and raised in Battenberg, it was no different from heading into enemy territory.

However, he was not a coward who would back down in the face of enemy lines.

“Right, brother. Let’s go now…”

“Don’t pretend to be close and call me brother. Yuck.”

“That’s too much, really!”

Moritz jumped around in anger.

Tension was gone from his appearance, so it seemed the silly joke had worked.

‘Well… I’m finally stepping foot on the South Continent.’

I looked at the land stretching out below Pauline Castle.

The land of mages, the South Continent.

A slight sense of crisis and a small thrill pounded in my chest.

And for good reason, that artifact is in the South Continent.

The ancient ‘Artificial Heart’ that I’ve only been able to watch from afar until now.

‘Ludwig… that old man will throw a fit if he finds out, but it’s none of my business now, right?’

Since I’ve been removed from the family register, there’s nothing to hold me back.

I intended to use the Artificial Heart to perform magic.

‘I wonder who would be a good magic teacher.’

Many candidates passed through my mind.

Tasar and the Elves.

If not them, then the Saint of the South, Alan Markus.

But as expected, the best choice was someone else.