Chapter 226: Murakan’s Benefactor (2)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 226: Murakan’s Benefactor (2)
It was fortunate there were only two of them. They could be neutralized in the exact same way as the others.
Shring!
The moment the Paladin in front instinctively drew his sword, Quicantel’s fist struck his face first. Crack! His helmet crumpled as blood splattered, and he fell unconscious, his body twitching.
Kuzan, not panicking in the slightest, stabbed into the gaps of the other’s armor to paralyze him.
“We’ve taken out four Paladins as soon as we arrived.”
“People might get the wrong idea if they heard you say that, Lady Quicantel,” Jin remarked as he hid the fallen Paladins in a drainage ditch. They looked like corpses, but they weren't dead.
Fortunately, there wasn't a single soul just inside the side gate. This was a result of the city center already being sealed off to prevent the commoners from leaving.
The three moved in silence. They had to get to the streets and confirm news of Murakan as quickly as possible.
As they moved a bit further past the side gate, they saw a considerable number of Paladins on patrol. Just as Jet had reported, there were no troops from the Scholl Principality; the forces consisted entirely of extremist and authoritarian members, like those from the Dawn Order of Doctrine Protection.
The reason Jin’s group was able to slip toward the center without much trouble wasn't just their skill, but also because the streets were incredibly loud and chaotic.
The sound of buildings burning and collapsing echoed from the flames Kadun had left behind.
But more than that, the air was thick with wailing and sobbing. Those who had lost family and friends in the battle were collapsed on every street, weeping uncontrollably.
Corpses that had yet to be collected were a common sight. The Paladins, their cold eyes hidden behind their helmets, tossed the bodies into carts.
Most of them—no, every single one of them—had burned to death. The area was filled with corpses charred so black that their identities couldn't even be determined.
So far, there were no visible traces of spirit energy having been used.
“…This is horrific.”
“Kadun and the other Fire Dragons never cared about humans to begin with. Unless it’s a special individual, humans are nothing more than insects to them. Most dragons view humans as inferior creatures, but Fire Dragons are particularly prone to that mindset,” Quicantel explained.
But can Murakan be considered entirely blameless for these corpses?
The moment that thought crossed Jin’s mind, Quicantel continued as if she had read his thoughts.
“At the very least, that guy isn't the type to indiscriminately slaughter humans for his own goals without reason.”
Jin offered an awkward smile instead of a reply.
The further they went, the more the number of corpses increased. It wasn't uncommon to see priests surrounding piles of bodies stacked like mountains, singing requiems.
At a rough estimate, the death toll seemed to be at least five thousand. For a city the size of Santel, it was a level of damage that could be described as total annihilation. It was safe to assume more than half the city's residents had perished.
It wasn't just corpses, either.
An even smaller number of survivors were incessantly groaning and screaming in pain. Vankella’s healers, known as ‘Saints,’ were sweating profusely as they tended to them.
However, not all the Saints were focused on healing.
It was that very point that gave the group a strange sense of unease.
“Young Master, isn't the atmosphere of the city… a bit strange?”
Jin nodded silently. Quicantel was also observing the Saints with the same thought. These weren't the ones performing healing arts, but Saints who were delivering something akin to a sermon.
“Even now, in the plains before the city, the Fire Dragon continues to fight the monster. But O good and gentle people, the messengers of heaven have arrived, so do not fear and do not despair…”
“That hateful monster that killed our parents, brothers, sisters, and children will soon be slain by the Fire Dragon’s hand! Let us all pray together that the gods look down upon the Fire Dragon and…”
The claim that the fight was still ongoing in the plains was a blatant lie. Jin and his companions had just passed through that very area to enter the city.
Outside, there were only a few reporters and the Paladins blocking them.
However, the commoners huddled before the Saints seemed to believe those words implicitly.
“Let us pray!”
“Aaaah!”
Some were so moved by the Saint’s nonsensical propaganda that they collapsed in tears.
Healing on one side, inciting the less-injured on the other, and keeping the city tightly sealed. Those from Vankella were engaged in an act that was far too transparent.
Yet, it wasn't because the commoners were fools that they were falling for the Saints' manipulation.
In the midst of their mental collapse from the shock and grief of losing their families, they were being brainwashed by the Saints' unique ‘Rhetoric Art.’
The Saints claimed it was ‘Divine Power,’ but most mages, including Jin, knew it was a type of mystic eye.
Rhetoric Art, which shared similarities with ancient mind-control magic, was primarily used in situations like this for preaching and proselytizing.
The faint yellow light glowing in the Saints' eyes was proof that the Rhetoric Art was being manifested.
“The dead and the living shall all be bound by the power of prayer, and we shall not be alone! Those who have fulfilled their mission shall find peace…!”
Rhetoric Art was completely ineffective against those with strong mental fortitude, but it could easily deceive commoners who were currently in a state of shock.
“The current Holy King strictly forbade the use of Rhetoric Art by the Saints, yet they’re all using it.”
It was the current Holy King, Miklan, who had gone so far as to announce that any Saint using Rhetoric Art would be classified as a ‘heretic.’
While it had been used continuously out of convenience and custom, he had banned it on the grounds that Rhetoric Art clearly contradicted the doctrines and the goodness the Holy Kingdom pursued.
“It’s an incitement to pin the massacre committed by Kadun onto the monster. If that monster really is Murakan, then I don't think he was caught by Kadun,” Quicantel noted.
“I agree, Lady Quicantel. If he had been caught, there would be no reason for them to go through all this trouble.”
The monster presumed to be Murakan had escaped, and Kadun, in his haste to pursue him, had failed to retrieve the flames he had scattered across the city.
Jin and Quicantel deduced the same situation simultaneously. If Murakan had been caught, Kadun would have extinguished the flames in the city and used the achievement of killing the monster to bring glory to the Zipple name.
I’ll need to find out why they’re helping the Zipples, even at the cost of violating the Holy King’s strict orders.
Judging by the circumstances, Vankella was no longer a ‘neutral nation.’
They were helping the Zipples by using the taboo of Rhetoric Art. This was something that could not happen without permission at the national level.
However, finding Murakan was more urgent than worrying about that right now.
“Let’s look for an opportunity to talk to the commoners. We need to confirm if the monster is definitely Murakan before we leave.”
Finding an opportunity to contact the commoners was harder than expected. There was no point in talking to those lost in the propaganda, and there was a high chance they would report the group to a Saint for being suspicious.
Just as they were about to move again, a Paladin approached the Saint in front of them. After whispering something, he quickly hurried off.
“…O good and gentle people! I have just received a report. It seems a group of wicked individuals has infiltrated the city. Therefore, if you see anyone suspicious, please find our messengers immediately.”
The movements of the patrolling Paladins also changed. Until now, they had mainly checked for stray commoners on the main roads, but now they began searching alleys and the gaps between buildings.
The group quickly left the area and began searching for commoners they could actually talk to.
However, there were Paladins, Saints, or mages extinguishing fires everywhere. It was at a point where not a single civilian could be found separated from them.
The biggest problem was that the number of Paladins stationed in Santel far exceeded their expectations.
“Damn it, the streets are crawling with Paladins. Just how many are there? At this rate, there’s a limit to how long we can stay hidden, Jin.”
“This has become troublesome. Though I expected this, since we broke through the side gate.”
Creak… Thud! Creak…!
From a distance, the sound of the double-locking mechanisms on all the city gates being firmly shut echoed.
The Paladins on the streets ran about, shouting to one another, while the Saints led the commoners away somewhere.
“Over here!”
As soon as they turned a corner, they ran into a Paladin who immediately shouted.
The flames that dyed the city crimson and the chaotic atmosphere had hidden the group well until now.
But conversely, the chaos had also dulled the group’s own senses. Even with Mind’s Eye active, it was impossible to accurately sense the energy of hundreds of people moving nearby.
Because of that, they hadn't been able to change direction before running into the Paladin at the bend in the alley.
Behind the shouting Paladin were about five more. True to their nature as members of the Dawn Order of Doctrine Protection and Heretic Inquisitors, they quickly blew trumpets and fired signal flares to announce they had found their targets.
“Drop your weapons and get on your knees!”
If there had been fifty instead of five, or if a captain-level officer had been among them, the group would have had to fight cautiously.
However, five second-class knights of the Dawn Order were no match for them. While Quicantel and Kuzan each moved to neutralize two, Jin drew Sigmund.
Crackle!
Before the five Paladins could even form a formation, he unleashed a Basic Form Lightning strike. Since their location had already been exposed by the trumpet and signal flare, it was better to clear them out quickly with lightning and move on.
Within five seconds, he dropped ten bolts of lightning and incapacitated four of them.
Of course, Jin had intended to incapacitate all five. The one person who hadn't been hit by the lightning had calmly used her footwork to evade, despite clearly experiencing the Pluto Sword for the first time.
It meant that, even by Jin’s standards, this person was quite skilled.
However, for some reason, that Paladin wasn't drawing her sword.
Even when they first saw Jin’s group and the other four immediately drew their swords and shouted, she alone had taken no hostile action.
Just as Quicantel and Kuzan were about to pounce on her together—
“Wait, wait a moment!”
Suddenly, the Paladin raised both her arms. It was an unbelievable action for a knight of the Dawn Order of Doctrine Protection, which was essentially the only extremist group within Vankella.
“What is it?”
“I am Rani Salome, a second-class knight of the Dawn Order of Doctrine Protection. To me, you don't look like heretics.”
“What?”
“You aren't heretics, are you? Please answer me.”
It was a sudden question.
But the gaze from inside the helmet was so sincere that Jin simply nodded.
“I never draw my sword against those who are not heretics. And you all are related to the Black Dragon that fought that crazy Fire Dragon. Am I right?”
Jin’s eyes widened.
The Paladin who identified herself as Rani was using the term ‘Black Dragon’ instead of ‘monster.’ Furthermore, calling Kadun a ‘crazy Fire Dragon’ showed a strong hostility toward him.
Clank, clank, clank!
The sound of more Paladins running from the back alley grew louder. In a few seconds, they would arrive.
“Follow me for now. If you get caught by my comrades, you won't get out of here alive.”