WeTried Translations
Translator/Editor: Order
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Chapter 157: Season of Power
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The king brought up a reward first, but Elbridge had no particular thoughts on the matter. He wasn't someone who acted for compensation. He acted when it was time to act.
Like most Paladins, Elbridge was somewhat uncomfortable with discussing practical gains and losses or asking for something in return.
It was the same now. He had no intention of putting the king in his debt or taking anything from him.
The others felt differently, though. Sonia's gaze was especially intense. Given the chance, Sonia looked ready to tear out the foundations of the royal palace.
The young king seemed rather burdened by that stare, so he cautiously added something.
"I know you've done me a great service. Not only are you my lifesavers, but it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say you saved the city of Leodel itself. But..."
At the word but, Sonia's eyes sharpened further.
Still, the young king pressed on.
"...given the circumstances, I'd like you to reconsider any excessive requests. Of course, I'm not saying I'll ignore them simply because they're excessive, but..."
Sonia pouted. If he was going to back down like that, he shouldn't have broached the subject so boldly.
"What circumstances are you talking about?"
"First, being king doesn't mean I can do everything as I please. More importantly, there's a second reason. I intend to step down from the throne soon. If I were the one dealing with the aftermath, I could reward you more generously, but... I'll be leaving that to someone else, so I can't do that."
Sonia nodded as if there were no choice but to accept it, but Rombel still looked unable to understand the king's explanation.
"I don't understand. If you're stepping down from the throne anyway, shouldn't you be able to do whatever you want? Someone else will deal with the aftermath."
The king and Rombel had reached completely opposite conclusions from the same situation.
Elbridge thought Rombel's character might truly be difficult to deal with.
The king answered calmly.
"I don't want to place excessive shackles on the person inheriting the throne. I don't know how long the consequences might last... Ah, of course, I'm only talking about excessive requests. I can grant you a reasonable reward without issue."
It was a way of speaking in which he subtly shifted back and forth between advancing and retreating.
'Well, he grew up among scheming nobles. It must be natural for him to speak that way.'
Elbridge made his most important request.
"The Master of the Central Magic Tower will be after the demon sealing tool. The day it is taken will be the day Leodel falls. Please ensure it's properly guarded, even if you must seek the cooperation of every church."
"That's something I must do even without your request, so I can't exactly call it a reward. Is there anything else?"
"Nothing comes to mind."
Marcus, who had been quiet the whole time, casually joined in.
"Please help with the operations of the temples of the Order of the God of Fox Rain and the Order of the Rusted Shield. It would be even better if you kept an eye on the people managing them. They may end up doing something foolish."
"That request is far too modest as well. Is there nothing else?"
Marcus shrugged.
"It would be strange to demand a reward for something we didn't do expecting one. That's all."
Elbridge's party was fairly surprised. It was unusually generous of Marcus.
The king smiled.
"I don't know who the next king will be, but I'll make sure to tell them about all of you. If you need help later, ask the next king. And..."
The young man smiled.
"If you see me someday, call me Marion."
* * *
Elbridge's party left Leodel.
He was worried that the Master of the Central Magic Tower might come after Leodel's sealing tool again, but they couldn't wait in the west forever.
'We've done everything we can.'
After traveling for three days in the carriage provided by House Hagenlot, Elbridge's party returned to trudging along on foot.
The comfortable life of staying at noble estates and the easy journey of riding in a carriage were nice. Still, they were most accustomed to walking and camping. Lately, it had begun to feel a little stifling as well.
The group sat around a campfire, and Sonia spoke first.
"Marcus. What's gotten into you? You were being awfully generous."
Sonia was talking about the king's reward.
Despite sounding like praise, Sonia's tone was slightly sour. Sonia had apparently wanted to get something out of the king.
Marcus answered.
"It wasn't because I wanted to say that, either."
"Then why did you?"
"I received an oracle. The God of Fox Rain told me not to make excessive demands and to leave it at that."
"The God of Fox Rain did? Why?"
"How would I know?"
The conversation paused for a moment, and as if it had been waiting for that, an oracle descended.
- You weren't going to ask for anything anyway. There's no need to squeeze out a reward by force. It's better to leave them owing you in their hearts.
It was a public oracle.
Normally, Sonia would have let it pass, but today was different.
"After my house was completely ruined, I realized something. Not all debts are the same. A debt made of gold coins gains interest over time. But a debt in someone's heart is different. It gets worn away little by little as time passes, then disappears. It vanishes even faster once it passes through someone else's hands."
It was an oddly insightful statement.
Elbridge could vaguely guess how Sonia had come to that realization.
"After problems arose in your territory, you must have asked other nobles for help?"
"Yes. I visited nobles who were very close to my father a few times. But every time, they said things like, 'How unfortunate. But right now...' That taught me something. You need to take as much as you can when you have the chance."
The God of Fox Rain laughed.
- You understand that quite well. But this situation is different.
"What's different about it?"
- Murvach will be the one sitting on the next throne. Murvach will repay it with plenty of interest. Murvach will also be able to do more than that brat Marion.
Elbridge was the most surprised by that oracle.
"Mr. Murvach will become king?"
- Yes. Murvach has what it takes to sit on the throne. The flow of the world isn't against Murvach either. I've told Murvach of the possibility, so Murvach will naturally claim the throne.
"But I heard the God of Fox Rain expelled Mr. Murvach from the Order."
- A throne must be claimed with one's own hands. A throne inherited from someone else has no value. That brat Marion realized that before it was too late.
"I see..."
Unlike the God of Fox Rain's usual sarcastic oracles, today's oracle felt somewhat gentle.
Elbridge recalled hearing that the God of Fox Rain had been Leodel's first king.
Did that mean Marion and Murvach were descendants left behind by the God of Fox Rain?
Elbridge was once again impressed by the God of Fox Rain's abilities.
The Mercenary King, the Founding King, one who opposed a god, a god recognized as possessing high divine status without using divine power. A sage who read the flow of the world and gauged the future.
Elbridge thought of the Goddess of the Rusted Shield.
It was a slightly irreverent thought, but perhaps the Goddess of the Rusted Shield didn't have that sort of talent...
There was one fact Elbridge had overlooked.
Lately, the Goddess of the Rusted Shield had become quite perceptive.
- Ahem.
The Goddess of the Rusted Shield cleared her throat to make her presence known.
"Goddess, did you have something to say?"
- Of course. Elbridge, your goddess has something to tell you too.
"As always, I'm ready to take the Goddess's oracle to heart."
Not only Elbridge but the others also listened closely. What sort of oracle was she about to deliver?
- Head Administrative Priest Matilda has a clever son. Once Matilda retires, I think that child will become the Head Administrative Priest of our Order. The flow of the world is guiding him, and he has more than enough ability. He has even gotten a hundred on his dictation tests three times in a row recently, so Matilda's expectations for him aren't small.
It was a strange situation in which the person responsible for appointments was predicting a future appointment.
Still, Elbridge understood perfectly well that the Goddess of the Rusted Shield was imitating the God of Fox Rain, so he praised her without showing it.
"I see... Goddess. That's amazing. Not everyone can have the insight to see the future."
- Any god in heaven can do this much. It isn't difficult.
She even slipped in a subtle jab at the end.
Elbridge sensed the Goddess's faint unease, so he continued praising her to calm it.
"That must be one of the many reasons I serve you, Goddess."
- Excellent, Elbridge. Never forget that I always believe in you.
"I'll keep it close to my heart."
The Goddess's presence faded.
"..."
Rombel, Marcus, and Sonia looked at Elbridge with expressions of slight pity.
So did the God of Fox Rain.
- ...It's nice to see birds of a feather getting along so well. Keep it up.
The God of Fox Rain also left behind some oddly encouraging words before disappearing.
* * *
The first snow of the year came a little later than usual.
Even after the cold winds began to blow, quite some time passed before the first snowflakes fell.
Thanks to that, Elbridge's party was able to return to the Holy City of Solenion on the day of the first snowfall.
Rombel muttered, "It feels like I've come home."
"You've lived in Solenion longer than you lived in Barquntol. This is your home now."
"Is it...?"
Elbridge's party's most important mission was to eliminate the Master of the Central Magic Tower.
Yet there was no suitable way to do it. Even the God of Fox Rain hadn't been able to offer a proper solution.
The only plan that showed even a little promise was Sonia's. Sonia wanted to tell the mages of the Central Magic Tower everything that had happened and incite a rebellion.
But its chance of success was low compared to the risk involved, so it had been put on hold for now.
In the end, there was nothing they could do, so Elbridge's party had returned to central Solenion.
Elbridge slowly looked around Solenion. At a glance, nothing seemed to have changed. In truth, the city itself had not changed much.
But the people's expressions had changed. A faint unease and fear showed on their faces.
Like sparse snowflakes drifting apart, Elbridge's party scattered in different directions.
"See you later."
Rombel and Sonia headed to the Magic Tower, while Marcus went to the Mercenary Guild. Elbridge also headed up toward the Hillside Slums.
A few Paladins from combat churches recognized Elbridge. They stopped, straightened their backs, and struck their cuirasses with their gauntlets in salute.
When Elbridge silently nodded, the Paladins from the combat churches left with smiles as though they had received great praise.
Elbridge recalled the eyes of the Paladins he had just met.
Unlike the Paladins of the Hillside Slums he remembered, their eyes were quite fierce. The eyes of beasts, the eyes of those accustomed to the battlefield.
"..."
Elbridge's heart grew heavy.
After waking from the seal, Elbridge had thought this era was an age of the weak.
But there was no era in which only weak people were born. There were only eras where it was all right to be weak. Such an era was often called an age of peace.
Now that the age of peace had ended, the Paladins who had seemed weak at first glance were quickly returning to their true selves. Elbridge was proud of them, but he also felt guilty toward them.
'If the Paladins of the old era and I had tried just a little harder... they could still have lived in comfort...'
Elbridge arrived at the temple.
The temple was fairly lively. There were believers, and several priests Elbridge had never seen before were walking about.
'Priests Matilda hired, perhaps.'
Then Elbridge's eyes met Matilda's.
Head Administrative Priest Matilda rose from her chair and looked at Elbridge.
"You're back, Sir Elbridge. I was worried you wouldn't make it back this year."
"With you here, Matilda, what is there to worry about?"
"Normally, there wouldn't be much to worry about. But not now. The greatest battle is approaching, Sir Elbridge."
Elbridge's expression stiffened.
"A battle? Is a demon going to attack soon?"
Matilda shook her head, then put on a solemn expression.
"The Goddess gave an oracle. She said she doesn't know how many seats we'll gain this year, but her expectations for the Order are very high."
That was right.
It was the end of the year.
The season of voting had returned.
Footnotes:
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