Chapter 43
Chapter 43
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 43
Chapter Title: The Terrifying Blue Legion - 2
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A chill wind blew through the morning air.
Our group rode horses and carriages along a well-paved road toward our destination. Of course, since I'd laid it down in advance with my fortification magic, there were no obstacles in the way.
'Even just Niva and I would be safe enough, but with the Lord's forces and Climbers in the carriages, plus the Earth Angel duo tagging along.'
There was no way any small-fry monsters would pick a fight with a heavily armed group of dozens. That made the journey incredibly peaceful. Niva, riding behind me, had pulled her cloak tight and was dozing off with her head bobbing.
"…."
I rode at the center of the group, glancing sideways now and then. Angela and Abel were each riding their own horses. Watching them, I recalled our earlier conversation.
-Are you two going to fly ahead?
-That might be tough. We can cover our eyes during the day to move around, but we can't bring out our wings….
During the day, they were pedestrians just like us. So the two of them were each handling a horse.
'And yet they're praying from horseback. Pretty impressive.'
-May the Goddess of the Earth bless us….
-Scatter the energy of blessing upon the black earth—.
The two beautiful men's soft ASMR prayers.
The serene atmosphere grew even thicker thanks to their gentle chants.
"…."
"…."
"…."
"…."
Clop clop
Clop clop
In the forest path, only the prayers and the sound of hooves echoed quietly. Unable to bear the boredom, the Climbers stared into space while posting on the Gallery or chatted among themselves.
-Did you read that new troll Padak novel?
-The pacing was so fast, it was fun.
-I swear it felt similar to that one in the Magic Tower library….
It was basically the tension level of a picnic.
Especially since I'd even paved a highway.
"…."
'I cleared all the obstacles with my cheat combo again, so it's unavoidable.'
This was an NPC rescue mission to the holy land.
Normally, you'd have to push through the gradually swelling storm horde, but Niva and I had preemptively hammered them every night with blessing explosions alongside the Saintess, so it was a walk in the park.
On top of that, thanks to Niva's warps and the Climbers advancing in real-time formations, our progress kept accelerating.
'Setting up base camps everywhere with clear rally points helped a ton too.'
And so, out of the seven forest villages scattered across the 52nd floor, only two remained. The first was the physically distant "Dish" Village, and the second was the emotionally distant "Knot" Village.
'Dish Village is just far away physically, so once the carriages and Climbers arrive, it's done.'
The problem was Knot Village. It was where those who'd rebelled against Archbishop Paul, the Pilgrimage Office, and the Saintess's purge had gathered.
That was the place we were heading to now.
But I wasn't particularly tense. Nor did I feel any hostility. If anything, I was mostly indifferent.
"…."
'Our forces aren't even comparable to begin with, and the moment we got here, the Saintess and they cut ties…. You'd have to actually talk to them to hate them.'
My only memories were—
The priests of the Pilgrimage Office.
Just Abel cutting ties with Albert and the image of them clutching the severed Pope's head, weeping.
That behavior was humanly understandable, so they didn't come off as hateful. It'd be weirder to fully emotionally accept the sudden collapse of the group you'd believed in and followed.
That's why I'd accepted Archbishop Kairos's request so readily.
-I ask that the Savior please show mercy and check on Knot Village, where Archbishop Paul resides.
"…."
'They're hating on the Saintess and Abel anyway, and this time she said she wants to handle it herself.'
My job this time was just to stand by and make sure things didn't fall apart spectacularly. Do that right, and it'd resolve smoothly.
I muttered absentmindedly.
"My role this time is quest-clear witness guy again, huh."
"Mm? What'd you say…?"
"!"
Niva, who'd been dozing behind me, cracked one eye open and spoke. I gave her a casual reply.
"Watch out so you don't bite your tongue while sleeping."
"Gotcha—."
Niva nodded sleepily and buried her face against my back again, snoring softly. She seemed worn out from all the recent warp usage.
And so we arrived at Knot Village.
People had already noticed our approach and come out to greet us—or rather, confront us. Dozens of priests and holy knights, plus village residents, stood there with tense expressions.
Even at a glance, the crowd numbered over a hundred.
But they all looked visibly nervous.
Murmur murmur
-Damn, dammit…. Are we all gonna die to the Saintess?
-Look at their forces. We can't win.
-Wouldn't it be better to just surrender to the Saintess?
'No matter how you slice it, they're just a ragtag bunch without even any elites.'
Standing at their forefront was Albert.
It was a bit odd.
"?"
'No Archbishop Paul?'
Albert called out sternly.
"Please, Savior, halt—!"
"…."
"This is the final sanctuary for those who have left the holy land. I beg you to hear this priest out."
"…."
'Making a request sound like an order.'
It was almost too dignified to nitpick.
'Keeping his own side from freaking out while not offending the overwhelming enemy. The perfect balance.'
Compared to Gallery idiots who'd start with "You retarded?" or "Moron?", he was an angel of the mortal world. If one of those had been in his place, the swearing would've flown first.
I liked it.
As a Padak fan, I had to respect it.
"Understood."
I nodded and raised my hand high.
Snap!
"!"
With that, we faced off in front of Knot Village. Dozens versus hundreds staring each other down. But the hundreds were the ones trembling.
-Eek!?
Those behind Albert looked at the Climbers and me with eyes full of fear. Starved as they were, some swallowed hard at the sight of food in the wagons.
In that awkward atmosphere.
Silence lingered for a moment.
"…."
"…."
Under the gray winter sky.
Albert looked far more haggard than he had two months ago during the purge. He drew a silver holy symbol from within his brown robe and spoke.
"With His Holiness having closed his eyes forever as an eternal fallen leaf. In place of the bedridden Archbishop Paul, I, Albert, have inherited the role of acting Archbishop of the Pilgrimage Office."
"…."
I see.
'Archbishop Paul is elderly like Archbishop Kairos. Surviving on monster meat at that age must be tough.'
It felt ironic somehow. The greedy Pope and the old Archbishops dead or fallen, yet the young priest remained to uphold the world order they'd created.
'The old folks reap the benefits, while those trying to maintain order take all the hits.'
The situation felt a bit pitiful, so
without realizing it, my tone softened more than before.
"Long time no see, Archbishop Albert. I'm the Lord of Baran, Lucius Baran."
"May I ask what brings the Savior here?"
"Archbishop Kairos asked me to come."
"What… kind of request?"
"To look after you all. To understand your situation and let you live without starving again."
"…."
It's not wind that strips the traveler's coat, but the sun, as they say? Archbishop Albert's tense expression slackened into relief.
I continued.
"But I know nothing of your circumstances. We haven't spoken since that day, have we? All I know is that you're the ones who left the holy land of your own accord due to dissatisfaction with it and the Saintess."
"That's—."
The moment Albert tensed up again and shot a resentful glance at Angela, I waved my hand and pressed on.
"So I'll give you a chance."
"!"
"Rather than me, who knows nothing of your world, let the Saintess and Archbishop Albert—who are directly responsible for this situation—hash it out yourselves."
"The Saintess…?"
The moment I said it, Angela nodded to Abel beside her, dismounted, and walked right up to Albert.
"Long time no see, Archbishop Albert."
"…."
Albert's face twisted in complexity.
What should he call the Saintess?
The betrayer who brought chaos to the holy land and sold it out to outsiders?
The savior who rescued it from the Pope's greed?
Either way, she'd shattered the world he lived in. A wave of emotions churned across his face.
But.
In the end, he opened his mouth calmly.
"Long time no see, Saintess."
"…Yes."
Either way,
he had to understand the Saintess's choice in the end.
That was his best option.
*
I'd seen a movie in my past life.
About soldiers from two warring factions laying down their arms during Christmas in wartime to celebrate together—a film based on a true story.
For some reason,
watching the Saintess and Archbishop Albert talk outside the window reminded me of it.
'In the end, because they believe in the same god and share the same world, they can understand even extreme differences depending on the situation.'
I'd braced for armed conflict,
but in the end, they opted to sort out their positions through conversation in the open clearing.
-That day, what happened was—.
-But such an extreme choice…!
-Once chosen, it had to be done.
With nothing left for us to do, the Lord's forces and Climbers milled about, distributing food to the Knot Village residents. Regardless of holy land politics, the people were drawn to the savory smell of porridge right in front of them and praised me.
-Hail the Savior!
-The Apostle of the Earth has descended—!
-Sniff, gulp! More, more—!!
-Hey, swallow slower or you'll choke.
What an ironic contrast.
I watched from a small hut.
"…."
'The Saintess and Archbishop side…. Their voices rise sometimes, but compared to Gallery fights, it's like gentlemen and ladies conversing.'
I felt relieved.
From behind me,
Archbishop Paul—now just a priest—supported by Abel, coughed and spoke.
"Cough! Forgive this old body for not coming to greet you personally, Savior."
"It's fine. No need to push yourself."
"That's a relief."
I turned with a wry smile.
Archbishop Paul—or just Paul now—was an elderly man with age spots on his face. He had a kindly look, but the blankets wrapped tightly around him and his cloudy eyes radiated the aura of death.
I said,
"Even as a lord, I'm not so lacking in judgment as to scold a sick man for not seeing me off."
"It's not that I'm saying it… cough! because of that."
"?"
Paul replied.
"I'm glad… you're the Savior."
"Why's that?"
"Because everything about you is a miracle."
"That feels like hyperbole. All I did was hold my position. Abel and Angela handled the rest."
"No…."
While I tilted my head, Abel seemed to understand and nodded in agreement. He continued on behalf of the struggling Paul.
"You were everything the holy land needed. That's why calling you Savior isn't enough."
"Because of the Blessing of the Earth?"
"That's part of it. But your very existence is a convergence of miracles."
Purifying monsters with grand magic,
Kindness that acknowledges others,
Leadership to command countless Climbers….
"Because you already held the answer for the holy land, we could decide quickly. You were already a flawless Savior who could ignore this holy land's outdated politics and customs."
"…."
I let out a low hum.
Because I understood what they meant.
'It's just abundant food and a walled city base. But that's already enough power to disregard the holy land's political structure entirely.'
Different opinions?
Our side's justification with the blessings is overwhelmingly superior from the start.
Emotional resistance?
A bowl of porridge handed out to the starving is salvation.
Storm horde?
Drop a rock and click blessing explosion—done.
Like a piece crafted to save this world.
That was me.
That's why everything resolved so naturally.
That was Abel's point.
"…."
But still….
'Can't shake the feeling of being quest-clear witness guy.'
At a time when I could strut, I shrank instead—. Probably just instinct from my police days, dragged around like a punching bag.
So I stayed silent.
"I see."
A few hours later.
The Saintess and Albert reached a dramatic compromise after their long talk.
He said to me,
"With the storm horde closing in by the moment, even the faithful just trying to survive today can't be dragged into holy land affairs—we agree on that. But once this is over, our Pilgrimage Office refuses to join your fold, Savior."
"And then?"
"Until the moment we die…. We'll wander the wasteland and seven forests, continuing our pilgrimage of penance."
"…."
A choice blending forgiveness and punishment.
A resolute determination.
'Taking responsibility for everyone's sins while living forever marked by the Saintess.'
I looked at Angela.
"Any objections?"
"None."
"Then, the Knot Village residents and Pilgrimage Office priests will relocate to the holy land as is."
"Understood."
Albert went to explain the situation to the villagers, and Angela, left behind, whispered softly.
"Thank you."
"I didn't do anything."
"…That night, you said being halfway was fine too."
She smiled bashfully. I could've sworn a hint of crimson peeked from under her eyepatch.
"So I'm trying to live like you said, Savior. As a Saintess bearing original sin, as a selfish betrayer. Halfway—."
"…."
It wasn't meant to carry such depth,
but it seemed to have inspired her greatly.
All I could do was nod.
The next day, after preparations for the villagers' move wrapped up, we prepared to head back to the holy land, leaving Knot Village behind.
That moment.
Rumble—!
Before we spotted the black-armored figure appearing with lightning from the dark sky. A ghost king astride a massive warhorse cloaked in blue flames. It gazed down at me imperiously from above.
And it spoke.
[Well done repelling my horde, coward.] "?"
Me?
You?
And below him, spectral monsters swarmed in numbers that blanketed the horizon. Every one was grotesquely hideous.
-Kihihihi…!
-Kyaaaak!
-Hihihihi—.
Ghosts,
Zombies,
Monsters.
Like a cheap B-horror movie set.
The vibe was tougher than the usual storm horde.
"…Hm."
That guy was probably the Storm King.
Judging by the annoying quest that popped up.
📜 WORLD QUEST 📜 Repel the Monster Invasion (52nd Floor)
And one more annoying point.
"…."
'The guy who tried ambushing, setting traps, and sowing discord calls me a coward….'
I resolved myself.
"Good. Perfect opponent. As Lord, I'll give you a special show."
The flying Storm King stared down at me. Blue soulfire flickered in its skull-like eyes.
[What do you mean by that?] I cracked my knuckles and shouted.
"Fortification—!"
Rumble—!
A wall dozens of meters high erupted from the ground. A fortress like the walls of the walled city. It solidly protected the Climbers and villagers.
And at its very top.
Niva raised her staff on one side of me, while Angela and Abel removed their eyepatches on the other.
I declared,
"I'll show you what true cowardice looks like."