Paladin of a Ruined Order - Chapter 107

WeTried Translations

Translator/Editor: Order

Chapter 107: Kidnapping

──────

When Elbridge and Rombel returned to the inn, they shared the information they had learned from the general store owner.

"...So that's why the elves are living in Norens City."

Of course, the information Elbridge wanted wasn't about the elves' circumstances, but about the person who had contacted Cowin.

Still, he hadn't expected to obtain that information easily. Ordinary people couldn't possibly know anything about the one opening the seals.

For now, they had no idea where a clue might turn up. Their best option was to gather every scrap of information, share it regularly, and search for leads.

Once Elbridge finished speaking, Marcus spoke next.

"I didn't get much today, either. I'm not in a position to go striking up conversations with other mercenaries yet."

Mercenaries tended to share information more actively than people in other professions. Even so, they wouldn't reveal important information to a drifter they had just met.

To get anything useful, Marcus would need to keep showing up at the Mercenary Guild for a while, make an impression, and build relationships by taking a few day jobs or short-term requests.

"Only a few greenhorns are hanging around the Mercenary Guild. Anyone with even a little skill takes a job and leaves the moment they come in. Seems like there's plenty of work."

Sonia, who had been listening, spoke up.

"There may be a lot of work, but I think the bigger reason is that many mercenaries are leaving the North."

"Hm?"

"Apparently, mercenaries were holding up well until demonic beasts started multiplying. But demons have been appearing more and more often lately, so the mood has changed. Mercenaries who value their lives seem to be heading east or to the central region, where it's less dangerous."

It was reasonably useful information.

What surprised Elbridge's group more than the information itself, though, was the fact that Sonia had obtained it.

"Who told you that?"

At Marcus's question, Sonia answered proudly.

"Who else? A mercenary who was captivated by my beauty."

"...A man actually came up and talked to you?"

Rather than answer, Sonia called to the innkeeper.

"Sir, tell him what you saw."

The innkeeper answered.

"One earnest youngster. Three men making passes."

Marcus slowly shook his head.

"...I can't understand the tastes of people in the North."

Under normal circumstances, Sonia might have flared up.

But today, her self-esteem was at its peak. Sonia responded with a light snort.

Then Rombel spoke again.

"Still, why are the elves so desperate for money?"

Marcus answered flatly.

"Didn't you say it yourself earlier, Rombel? The elves burned their forest to stop Starwave and ended up completely ruined. Elves need money to live too, don't they?"

Rombel shook his head.

"No. Elves don't need money. No elf has ever starved to death in a forest."

"But they burned down their forest. They could starve."

"The forests of the North differ from those in the south. The Great Forest in the south is one enormous forest, but the North has countless forests, both large and small. Even if one burns down, they can simply move to another. It would pain them, of course..."

"Hm."

Then why had the elves come to Norens City instead of another forest?

Marcus thought for a moment before speaking.

"Maybe they have a reason they can't go to another forest? What if demons and demonic beasts have taken control of all the northern forests?"

"It's unlikely things have gone that far already. And even if every northern forest had been overrun, Thornbush Forest would not have fallen."

Sonia asked, "Thornbush Forest?"

"The forest ruled by the Goddess of Thornbush, guardian goddess of the elves."

"It's still just a forest."

"Thornbush Forest is no ordinary forest. The Goddess of Thornbush's divine power resides there, and elven guardians protect it. Thornbush Forest has never been breached, not even in ancient times."

Sonia and Marcus didn't know much about these guardians. Still, the name itself made it easy enough to guess what role they played.

Sonia muttered, "Hm. Those elven guardians must be quite skilled."

"Even Elbridge and I would have to acknowledge their superiority."

"...They're stronger than Elbridge?"

Sonia remembered what Elbridge had done in the Dickens Viscounty.

He had cut down a Ghost Knight in a single stroke, and even with Sonia tucked under one arm, he had moved with acrobatic precision.

Elbridge was beyond the limits of an ordinary human.

Sonia looked at Elbridge as if she couldn't believe Rombel's words.

Yet Elbridge didn't seem inclined to deny them.

"Two hundred years ago, I was called the youngest High Paladin."

An exceptionally skilled Paladin, distinct from ordinary Paladins, was given the honorific "High Paladin."

No particular person or church could bestow the title of High Paladin on someone.

It was simply what people across the world, and the Paladins of every church, called them out of respect.

That made being called a High Paladin even more difficult. One needed skill great enough to earn the recognition of countless people and most Paladins.

As a result, many combat churches had no High Paladin at all, and even medium-sized or large churches rarely had a High Paladin-level Paladin.

"It's a little embarrassing to say it myself, but I was considered fairly skilled even by the standards of the past. Still, I wasn't good enough to be called the best. Elven guardians, on the other hand, were among the strongest in the world. There were no more than three human Paladins with status comparable to theirs. Sir Leonhardt, for example..."

Marcus remembered the oracle the God of Fox Rain had given Elbridge.

- There isn't a single Paladin in the East who can replace you. For the time being, the most rational decision is to concentrate divine power on you. At this point, it doesn't matter even if you make every combat church your enemy. Before long, they will all kneel before you and ask for help.

Conversely, that meant there were fighters beyond the East who rivaled, or even surpassed, Elbridge. The elven guardians were likely among them.

Rombel said, "Naturally. They've devoted their long elven lives to battle and training. Compared to their lives, the time Elbridge has spent learning the sword is only an instant."

Sonia and Marcus couldn't imagine how skilled the guardians were.

Elbridge himself was already too extraordinary to comprehend. People even stronger than him?

Clap, clap.

Rombel clapped to draw their attention.

"We've wandered off topic. For now, let's keep gathering information. We should pay special attention to anything connected to the combat churches. Just as they lured the combat churches through Cowin in the East, there's a high chance they're plotting something in the North through the combat churches as well."

* * *

Several days passed.

But they found nothing remarkable. There was no guarantee that important information would come in anytime soon. Gathering information was a battle of patience.

Then one day, Elbridge and Rombel noticed that the atmosphere in Norens City was slightly different from usual.

Elbridge asked the general store owner, "Sir, is something happening today?"

"Me? Nothing's happening to me."

"No, I mean the streets feel a little strange. There seem to be fewer people than usual."

"Oh, that? Today's the day the combat churches rotate."

Even strong Paladins of combat churches couldn't endure the front lines without rest. The issue wasn't their bodies, but their minds.

Their bodies could recover through Healing Authority, but their minds could not. The human mind needed rest.

That was why Paladins exhausted from fighting on the front lines occasionally returned to Norens City to rest. Norens City was the most livable and safest place in the North.

Most temples belonging to churches native to the North were located in Norens City as well.

"The tired Paladins will rest in Norens City for a while, and those who have finished resting will head north in their place. They should be arriving soon, so if you want to watch, go that way."

"Thank you."

Elbridge and Rombel headed in the direction the store owner pointed.

"There."

The place Elbridge pointed to was packed with people unwilling to miss such a rare spectacle.

Between the two halves of the crowd, Paladins prepared for departure stood in neat ranks.

The flags of each church fluttered loudly in the northern wind.

The foremost flag bore an eight-pointed star, the symbol of the northern part of the continent.

Rombel watched the sight with a satisfied expression.

"The North truly is different."

Perhaps because combat churches had their greatest influence in the North, these Paladins were far more disciplined than the Paladins of the peaceful East.

They, too, must have softened somewhat during the peaceful era. But over the past year, they had sharpened their blades again. They weren't as sharp as they had once been, but sharp enough to still be called blades.

Then the crowd began shouting excitedly.

"They're coming!"

A group of Paladins was approaching Norens City. Elbridge narrowed his eyes and examined their appearance.

Tired expressions. The happiness of having survived a terrible ordeal. Armor visibly dented and torn apart. Wounds that hadn't been treated in time.

Several carried two or three swords, perhaps the belongings of fallen comrades.

Just before they arrived.

Bwoooong-

With the heavy sound of a horn, the Paladins prepared for departure began moving north.

Their expressions differed from those returning. There was tension, but also the pride that refused to show weakness before the people.

The returning Paladins and the departing Paladins passed one another.

The Paladins in each group searched eagerly for familiar faces.

Those who found one exchanged faint smiles. Many lightly bumped gauntlets or gave each other a gentle pat on the back.

Clank, clank, clank.

Footsteps full of metal, characteristic of a group in armor.

The injured and exhausted Paladins entered through the welcoming crowd.

"Oooh!"

The people welcomed the tired Paladins with thunderous cheers and applause loud enough to hurt their ears.

The returning Paladins stopped among the crowd. Only then, as if all their tension had finally drained away, did they enjoy the cheers with proud expressions.

Rombel muttered, "The Paladins of the East must have wanted moments like this too. Moments when they could show their worth and receive everyone's respect."

"They probably did."

Then the Paladin at the front began giving a short speech.

"...Your faith and support are our strength. Please lend us your strength again at the end of this year, so that we may save the world as those who act on your faith..."

There was nothing wrong with the content.

Yet Elbridge tilted his head as he watched the Paladin at the front.

The Paladin's unnatural smile.

A voice that broke off now and then, as if his throat were hoarse.

Eyes trembling faintly.

More than anything, his gaze felt strange. Even while speaking, the Paladin couldn't meet the crowd's eyes.

His gaze wandered wildly above the people's heads instead of toward the crowd.

Elbridge wasn't the only one who thought so.

"Doesn't that one seem strange?"

Elbridge answered Rombel's question.

"I think so too. He's avoiding people's eyes like a child who stole a silver coin."

"What will you do?"