Chapter 80
Chapter 80
Iron Emperor — Chapter 80
The resplendent armor of the Holy Knights and the priestly robes bearing the mark of the Lord God's clergy were more than sufficient to command the people's veneration. Priest Palo II slowly made his way through the bowing crowd, glancing around. It seemed he was seeking out people in need of the Lord God's healing touch.
"Hahaha, I do hope we find many people here seeking the Lord God's healing touch."
"Yes, Priest Palo."
At Priest Palo's benevolent voice, the Holy Knight bowed his head in response. Then they strode through the street once more. The people who had been bowing hastily moved away, fleeing the scene as if something were chasing them.
The door of the restaurant where Samdopyo was eating burst open, and a man rushed in.
Clatter!
"Everyone! Word is a priest of the Holy Empire is headed this way!"
"What! Damn it! Everybody pack up!"
The face of the man who had come at a dead run to report the priest's arrival was flushed bright red, and the other men who heard the news began hurriedly leaving their seats.
"Hey, boss!"
Finding this strange, Dupyo called over the anxious innkeeper and asked why. The innkeeper approached with a sigh and began explaining in Dupyo's ear the reason for this chaos.
"The thing is, the Holy Empire priest goes around the village to offer prayers for the sick and those in hardship, but..."
"Really? I'm in hardship myself, so maybe I'll take a prayer."
As Dupyo recalled Gye Ung-sam's blade of fury and muttered with a serious expression, the innkeeper tried to dissuade him in a startled voice.
"Good heavens, please don't say that sort of thing."
"Why?"
When Dupyo's eyes widened at being stopped and he asked back, the innkeeper glanced around, then began whispering in his ear. What he said was that after the prayer, they used the pretense of tithes to extort money. For commoners, it ranged from as little as one-tenth of their wealth to as much as half.
"What?"
"And for the terminally ill, it's common for them not to survive even after receiving the prayer."
Dupyo's expression instantly darkened.
"Tch. Well, you can just not pay them!"
"Oh no, that's a disaster. In those cases, they say they've guided the person into the Lord God's embrace and take it anyway. If you refuse, you're dragged off for blasphemy. Your property is confiscated, of course."
"They're nothing but daylight robbers!"
"Oh dear, your voice is too loud!"
When Dupyo shouted in anger, the innkeeper made a fuss and stopped him. Dupyo clicked his tongue at that sight, shook his head, and resumed eating the rest of his food.
"Tsk. At least our general doesn't spout that kind of bull. Nom nom. Here, kitty, you eat too."
Kyaang!
Dupyo shook his head, tore off a duck leg, and held it out to the cat. Just then, the scene outside the inn suddenly erupted in commotion.
"A beam collapsed!"
"Gaaah! My leg!"
"Dammit, get this cleared away!"
Goods had collapsed to one side, and a man was rolling around clutching his leg.
"Dammit, someone fetch Elder Jang! His leg's bent all wrong!"
"J-just wait a moment!"
"Aagh!"
As the man screamed in agony, the boy who had been running to call for a healer was forced to stop short. Standing before him, wearing a benevolent smile, was Priest Palo II of the Holy Empire.
"Ah, here is a citizen in pain."
"Yes, Priest."
Priest Palo spoke kindly to the Holy Knights at his sides and slowly approached the man writhing on the ground. The onlookers watched with pitying eyes.
"Uuugh..."
As Priest Palo approached the man weeping in pain, the others backed away from him. They feared being struck by needless sparks.
"Dear me. Child of the Lord God, do not suffer. Do not grieve, and do not fear the pain. Through me, the Lord God's grace shall descend, and I shall offer a reverent prayer for you. This pain is a small thing. I shall grant a blessing to heal all of it and prevent its return. Accept the prayer in your heart, and receive the Lord God's healing grace..."
"You old windbag who's all talk! Forget the patient and what the hell are you doing!"
"Grace... a w-windbag?"
"Snort. Get out of here, you senile old coot."
The voice that dealt mental damage to Priest Palo was none other than Dupyo.
Shing!
"Insolent wretch!"
"Ah, hold a moment."
Instantly, sharp steel rang from the Holy Knights' scabbards as blades slid free. But Priest Palo raised a hand to restrain them.
"Ahem. May... I inquire as to your station?"
"Ah, don't talk to me. Hey, friend, I'm going to set your leg bone, so bite down on this."
Waving his hand dismissively, Dupyo shoved his leather pouch into the man's mouth and carefully took hold of the leg. Priest Palo and the two Holy Knights showed a measure of caution at Dupyo's unabashed conduct.
Crrk!
"Grrrgh!"
"Whoa-ho!"
Snap!
"Uuugh."
An awkward sound rang out alongside groans. But Dupyo's first aid must have been precise, because the bone seemed to return to its place and the leg resumed a normal shape.
"Friend, you held up well."
Looking proud, Dupyo rose to his feet and clapped the man on the shoulder. Then he frowned at the men standing around doing nothing but gawking.
"Ah, what are you doing! Splint him and take him away, hurry! You're going to leave a man lying here like trash!"
"Oh heavens, of course!"
At Dupyo's scolding, the people who had been staring dumbfounded rushed over, splinted him, and carried the patient away as if fleeing.
"Guess I'll finish my breakfast. Heh heh heh."
Dupyo let out a short laugh and turned around, only to find the two Holy Knights and Priest Palo standing there.
The moment Priest Palo saw Dupyo's face as he turned, the smile he had been wearing instantly vanished. Until that moment, Samdopyo had acted with such utter confidence that Palo had wondered if he might be some noble of the Holy Empire traveling incognito. That was why he had restrained the Holy Knights. But Dupyo's features, now visible, were far too different from a citizen of the Holy Empire.
Naturally, Priest Palo's expression grew distant from benevolence. The first to read his expression were the Holy Knights serving as his guards.
"How dare you speak so insolently to the priest? This is blasphemy. In the name of the Lord God, I shall execute you."
"You're gonna what now?"
At the mention of execution, courteous words no longer came easily from Dupyo's mouth. He scratched his head irritably, causing hair tucked under his bandana to poke out.
"Black hair?"
"What! The hell's wrong with black hair. Snort."
At Dupyo's curt retort, Priest Palo's eyes narrowed.
"Hmm. You there, look—the eyes are black as well, are they not? Tsk, tsk. He may be a spawn of the Demon Tribe. Seize him at once."
"In the name of the Lord God!"
Clang!
Before Priest Palo's censure was even finished, the Holy Knights' swords were drawn. Dupyo felt incredulous at the sight. Regardless of the severity of the matter, drawing swords like this made his blood boil.
"You pisspot-crumpled bastards, who do you think you're poking a sword at!"
"A p-pisspot?"
The two Holy Knights wore baffled expressions at Dupyo's harangue. But Dupyo's words were not yet finished.
"Gaaack, ptooey! Damn, now that I think about it, you're those robbers, aren't you? You know, the ones who say one prayer and strip people's houses bare? Tsk, tsk. Look at you. You potbellied old man, with that bald head I bet you love free stuff."
"Wh-wh-wh-what!"
Unable to get the words out properly, Priest Palo's face went red and he stammered in shock. It looked as if listening to Dupyo any longer would make Priest Palo collapse first, so a Holy Knight's sword cut through the air, aimed straight at Dupyo.
SWISH!
"Whoa!"
The sword carried considerable force, and Dupyo leaned his body far back as he retreated. The Holy Knight smiled thinly. Seeing Dupyo's eloquence and build, he had been somewhat wary.
"You lump-headed fools!"
"What?"
Enraged, Dupyo spat a curse they could not understand and pulled the iron staff from his back.
WHOOSH-WHOOSH-WHOOSH-WHOOSH!
THUD!
Dupyo's iron staff churned the wind fiercely, spinning in the air before slamming down hard into the ground. His face now twisted like a demon's, Dupyo hurled another string of insults.
"I've never seen bastards who need their guts pulled out for a tug-of-war!"
"What!"
This curse must have landed properly, because the Holy Knights' expressions shifted. At that, Dupyo spat on both hands and spoke again.
"Ptooey! You bald, potbellied geezer behind them, wait your turn. Once I'm done cleaning up these tin cans, you and I are going to have a nice long talk about life."
Overcome with fury at the insults pouring from Dupyo's mouth, Priest Palo screamed at the Holy Knights.
"Wh-what are you doing! Execute that scum this instant!"
"Yes!"
Clang~!
Thud.
"..."
A pure, clear ring resounded in reply.
And the meeting of a body with the earth that followed left every mouth hanging open. The sight of the Holy Knight collapsed, one side of his helm severely caved in, plunged everyone into shock.
"Nothing special."
Distracted for a moment by Priest Palo's outburst, Dupyo's surprise attack had been so fast that a man calling himself a knight could not even lift a hand. The remaining Holy Knight tightened his grip on his sword, tension overtaking him.
"That scum is surely of the Demon Tribe! Execute him at once! The Lord God shall guard your back!"
"..."
The voice of Priest Palo spouting from behind did nothing at all to boost the morale of the Holy Knight facing Dupyo.
'Dammit. If I die here, he'll just pray that I've gone into the Lord God's embrace.'
Everything he had witnessed so far had become poison. Dupyo swung his iron staff at the tense Holy Knight.
"You fall down too!"
WHOOSH!
"Hup!"
Still, he was a knight who handled a sword.
The Holy Knight retreated to evade Dupyo's swung staff, and when Dupyo's body spun around from his own momentum, the knight thrust his blade at the back now exposed before his eyes.
"In the name of the Lord God!"
THWACK!
"God-dammit! All of you, nothing but mouths."
"Kugh!"
Before the sword could touch Dupyo's back, his staff, driven through the gap under his armpit, slammed into the Holy Knight's face like a lightning bolt. Naturally, the Holy Knight slowly toppled backward, head flung back.
Clatter.
With a loud crash of armor, the knight sprawled flat on his back.
"Heek!"
"Heh heh heh."
With both Holy Knights lying on the ground, Priest Palo began backing away.
"St-stay back!"
"Heh heh heh, come here."
"L-Lord God! Protect me from that wicked Demon Tribe..."
CRASH!
"..."
Perhaps irritated by the still-flapping, babbling mouth of Priest Palo, Dupyo's staff gouged roughly into the earth and embedded itself there. It seemed to have an effect, because Priest Palo's mouth shut tight like a clam.
"Tsk, all talk and no damn sense."
"..."
As Dupyo drew close, Palo could not utter a word, only trembling in fear and rolling his eyes. Clicking his tongue at the sight, Dupyo stroked the old man's slick bald head with a hand like a pot lid and brought his own eyes close to Priest Palo's.
"Try fleecing people under the pretense of prayer one more time, and you might find your back folded in half. Be careful."
"F-fleecing..."
"Yes. Or no. Pick one. While I'm still respecting your age."
With Dupyo's murderous voice spitting out right before his eyes, Priest Palo found himself nodding furiously without realizing it. Satisfied, Dupyo smiled, patted Priest Palo's head a few more times, then swung his arms lazily and strode back into the restaurant. He still had food left unfinished.
Clatter.
Once the restaurant door closed, Priest Palo, who had been frozen and trembling, collapsed to the ground as if his senses had returned. A few minutes passed...
"Hee-ik!"
With a short scream, Priest Palo sprang to his feet. Then, leaving the fallen Holy Knights behind, he began running frantically off somewhere.
Samdopyo emptied his final cup, patted his full belly, and let out a satisfied yell.
"Graaah, good!"
"Um... you'd best get out of here..."
"Why?"
Dupyo looked at the restaurant owner who had spoken to him, his eyes full of questions. At the owner's visibly anxious state, Dupyo let out a deflating laugh and clapped the man's shoulder with a monstrous hand.
"Heh heh heh. You're worried about that priest or whatever from earlier, I'll bet. Don't worry, even ten of those scarecrows wouldn't be a problem. Now bring out des—..."
Crash!
Before Dupyo could finish speaking, the restaurant door flew open as if about to shatter. Dupyo's eyes, turning almost on reflex, slowly began to widen. And the moment his gaze confirmed the entrance, his hand shot to his iron staff with lightning speed.