Chapter 21
Chapter 21
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Translator: Ruby
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: So, We Have to Rob It
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My mood was extremely unpleasant.
The demon's stench buried throughout the city made my anger surge.
'Whew...'
I desperately tried to calm my mind.
Thanks to having experienced it once before, I at least didn't go into an extreme frenzy and rampage.
Nevertheless, it seemed unavoidable that irritation kept creeping up.
Continuing to take deep breaths, I searched for the source of this foul smell.
But that didn't seem easy.
'Even though I can smell it... I'm not a dog, so it's hard to figure out the direction...'
As I was frowning deeply for a while, Diaz asked.
"Is there somewhere uncomfortable?"
I shook my head.
"It's nothing."
Finding the demon hiding somewhere in this city right away didn't seem easy.
So I decided to finish the original purpose first.
For now, I planned to meet the mayor and resolve the small herb shop matter first.
"Let's go to city hall."
"Yes. Understood."
Diaz and I headed straight to city hall.
However, the result was not very satisfying.
"The mayor is currently away."
"Then when will he return?"
"I'm afraid it would be difficult to tell you exactly. He only informed us that he would be away for a while."
"I understand for now."
I had heard roughly from a distance, but Diaz came over and explained.
"It seems difficult to meet the mayor."
"I suppose so."
Hmm... where should I start unraveling this from?
As I was briefly contemplating, Diaz offered her opinion.
"Since Rezeta only has a small monastery at most, it seems we'll need to secure lodging first."
I nodded at her words.
"Let's secure lodging first... and I'll need to meet that mercenary group."
"Do you mean the Carcus mercenary group?"
"Yes. Carcus."
"Understood. I'll find a suitable place to stay and also learn a bit about the Carcus mercenary group."
"Please do."
For now... I decided to take it one step at a time.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Rezeta was not a large city.
It sat right on the boundary between a town and a proper city.
It was even smaller than Oliton, the first city I had visited.
And coming here straight after Siforeo—a great metropolis—it felt all the quieter and humbler in contrast.
But there was one clear difference between Oliton and this city.
The people here sighed much more often.
“Hoo… here, use these keys. The stables are out back, and if you need meals, just let me know.”
“Understood.”
As Diaz secured us a room, she asked about the Carcus Mercenary Corps.
At once, the innkeeper’s face hardened grimly.
“The Carcus Mercenary Corps?”
We had no idea why his expression changed so suddenly.
“Judging from your looks, you both seem like mercenaries… Did you come here to join the Carcus Mercenary Corps?”
There was almost a murderous edge to his tone now.
Just what were the Carcus Mercenary Corps to these people, to spark such hostility?
Diaz calmly shook her head and replied.
“No. We are not mercenaries. We are paladins of the Order.”
The innkeeper glanced between us and then asked again.
“…Are you certain?”
Diaz produced her seal of knighthood.
“Will this suffice?”
The innkeeper waved his hands quickly.
“I can’t read such difficult script. But if you insist so strongly, I’ll believe you. My apologies for doubting you.”
“Still… did the Carcus Mercenary Corps cause trouble here? I sensed heavy hostility toward them.”
The moment Diaz cautiously prodded with her question, a burly old man entering the inn answered instead.
“Trouble? Trouble doesn’t cover it. They’re revolting.”
The innkeeper tried to hush him, but—
The old man scoffed.
“Careful with your tongue.”
“Careful? Did I say anything false? Besides, they’re not even here right now. Haven’t you driven them off yourself whenever they showed up?”
“…”
“Come on. Who in Rezeta likes those bastards? They sealed off the city with their forces, bled us dry with taxes… And isn’t it because of them that Baron Romhadi ended up like that?”
I listened closely.
Because the name Romhadi had come from their lips.
“What happened to Baron Romhadi?”
“You don’t know? The baron’s been imprisoned. For protesting the Carcus dogs’ tyranny.”
“Imprisoned…”
I rubbed my chin, recalling.
In my memory, Viscount Moden had never existed.
Instead, Baron Romhadi had reclaimed authority in Rezeta.
‘I can’t make sense of how events are unfolding now.’
It was different from what I knew.
But one thing was certain.
Baron Romhadi would return.
The people’s support for him was solid, and even in the original storyline, I remembered their faith in him had never wavered.
As I retraced my thoughts, the old man who had just entered spoke again.
“By the way, who are you folks? I don’t recall seeing you before.”
The innkeeper answered on our behalf.
“They’re paladins.”
“What? Paladins? R-really?”
Startled, the old man turned to me.
I nodded.
“That’s right.”
“Hah! Then Baron Romhadi did it! Incredible—how did he manage that?”
“What do you mean?”
I couldn’t understand, but the old man looked even more confused.
“Wait… aren’t you here because Baron Romhadi summoned you?”
“No.”
“….”
Did Romhadi try to send for help from paladins?
I tried to collect my thoughts, but then—
I scowled sharply.
That stench.
It had suddenly drawn closer.
And then—
Bang!
The inn door slammed open.
“Well, well. Real paladins in a little backwater like this? Didn’t expect that. Heh heh.”
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
As the man entered, the stench intensified.
I could now clearly distinguish it—not an ordinary odor, but a demonic taint.
‘Is this man the source?’
The same stench that had filled the city.
But after some thought, I shook my head inwardly.
‘…No. Not him. There’s something worse, still hidden in this city.’
Meanwhile, the man approached me.
“Pleased to meet you, Paladins. I am Carcus, commander of the Carcus Mercenary Corps, devoting my whole body in service to this city.”
Disheveled hair, a sword at his waist, a silver flask hanging at his side.
A mercenary through and through.
His breath even carried the faint reek of alcohol.
I stared down at the hand he offered.
I had no intention of taking it.
To my nose, he reeked of rot—filth incarnate.
Noticing my refusal, Carcus’s lips curled. He leaned close and whispered:
“So. A paladin truly is different. You’ve already seen through me, haven’t you?”
“You stink of rot. Move your mouth away.”
“Whoa, whoa. Easy now. You’ll cut my throat at this rate.”
“Nothing’s stopping me.”
They thought me a mere paladin, but I was also an inquisitor.
Ordinary paladins loathed confronting demon servants.
A true demon they could slay on the spot, but demon servants were still human.
And paladins had no authority to execute humans without trial.
So they had to arrest them, hold a trial, and only then carry out a sentence.
But inquisitors were different.
An inquisitor could deliver a death sentence immediately—even to demon servants.
Unaware of this, Carcus sneered.
“No, you won’t. Paladins can’t touch me. Unless an inquisitor showed up.”
My hand drifted toward the dagger hidden in my robe.
I was ready to crush his foolish confidence—
But then:
“And if you kill me now, this entire city will be annihilated. You included.”
My hand stopped.
‘As I thought.’
This man wasn’t the true core.
He was merely a pawn.
But thanks to his big mouth, I confirmed that someone else—someone more powerful—was hiding in the city.
So I decided to play along.
I thrust out my arm and gripped his neck tightly.
Shing! Shing!
His men instantly drew their swords and leveled them at me.
Diaz responded in kind, her blade flashing free.
Yet Carcus only chuckled, tapping at my arm.
“Whoa, easy there. We’ve got plenty of time to play.”
“…”
Feigning barely restrained anger, I released him.
“Wise choice, Paladin. That’s right. You have no right to punish me. Because I’m not a demon. I’m human… for now. Heh heh heh.”
He adjusted his collar.
“Today I only came to say hello, so relax. But don’t even think about running away. The moment you try to escape this city…”
Carcus drew a line across his neck with his finger.
“Snick! Everyone dies. Me, you, every last soul in this city. Until next time, Paladins! Hahaha!”
As his back disappeared from sight, Diaz stepped up beside me.
“You held back well. Many talk like that without truly being tied to demons. We should proceed carefully, investigate first—”
“No. He was a servant of demons.”
I said it without hesitation.
Because I had smelled it clearly from him.
But Diaz, unaware of my certainty, looked at me in confusion.
“…What?”
It wasn’t that I hesitated to decide whether he was a servant or not.
‘I was testing whether someone greater lurked behind him.’
And whether that hidden demon truly had the power to obliterate the city.
Judging by his words just now…
‘It didn’t sound like a bluff.’
Carcus had been confident.
And if he had spoken truth—
‘Then we really can’t run.’
All choices were gone.
Now my own life was on the line.
Which meant… there was only one answer.
‘Strike first.’
I scowled.
“I need to meet Baron Romhadi.”
“Sir Rohan… but he is imprisoned—”
“Yes. Exactly. So we’ll break him out.”
“B-break him out?”
“The prison.”
I looked at Diaz.
“You’ve never done it before?”
“…Why would I ever have?”
“Mm.”
Truthfully, neither had I.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇
Things went more smoothly than expected.
The biggest obstacle had been not knowing where the prison was—
But that was resolved.
Thanks to the old man at the inn.
“I have the blueprints! I’ll give them to you!”
Hearing our conversation, he threw himself eagerly into helping us.
Amazingly, he turned out to be the very architect of this city.
The innkeeper wasn’t idle either.
“Good. I’ll draw attention. I’ll haul every keg of liquor from the inn to the prison gates, spill them, and set them on fire!”
The old man grimaced.
“Hey! That’s a waste! What will I drink then?”
“Is that the problem here?”
“Well, still…”
“So what, I just sit and watch?”
“Mm… with that logic, I suppose I can’t object.”
Either way—
With their help, things became far easier.
That night—
“Fire! Fireee!”
From afar came the innkeeper’s signal.
At once, the guards around the underground prison rushed off.
Diaz and I watched from the shadows.
We exchanged a silent glance.
Nod.
Rustle, rustle!
We slipped into the prison.
In search of Baron Romhadi.