Great Temple of Picaol (2)
"Oh! I've heard a lot about it, Sir Heinrich. "He is indeed as great a talent as I heard!"
"That's too much praise, Cardinal. "I know you must be busy, but thank you for welcoming me in person."
"It's not something else, it's about the Holy Sword. Plus, the saint herself recommended it, so I had to see her face at least once! Hehehehe—"
Heinrich arrived at the Great Temple of Picaol, was assigned lodgings, and was immediately able to meet Cardinal Donovan, the person in charge of the place.
With wrinkles reflecting his age and a long white beard and a kind smile, my first impression of him was that of 'a kind grandfather next door.'
However, that impression flashed through my mind the moment I met his face, but disappeared as soon as I looked below his neck.
'Wow…what a shoulder.'
Because that body was absolutely not ordinary.
"Hehe, maybe it's because he's young, but he has great muscles. This is because I'm old and my body isn't what it used to be. In my old days, I too…"
The wide shoulders that did not match the benevolent expression, the straight back, and the muscles that fluttered every time he moved were so great that I felt a sense of disparity with his face.
'Did you say this person was also a Paladin?'
I heard that he was promoted to cardinal because of his popularity, and even after reaching that position, it seemed like he never forgot to train himself.
Even though he must have been over 60, I saw that his muscles were so big.
"Yes, Sir Heinrich? "I heard that you became the saint's personal escort. How is it worth doing?"
"Ah, so far, under his instructions, I have been spending most of my time training in preparation for the Holy Sword Trial. "I guess the saint only stays within the shrine."
"Right. How is he doing? It's been a while since I've seen you, but I don't know how you're doing now. Something big happened not long ago…"
He was referring to the incident of the Immortal King's attack on the Great Temple.
However, for some reason, he seemed to be very interested in the saint, and perhaps because of his mood, he soon began to complain.
Simply put, it was about showing off how close one's relationship with the saint was.
"It seems like it's been over three years since I last saw the saint. If you reach this level, you can't just leave your position. "If I had known this would happen, I would not have taken on the position of cardinal."
But that level seemed a bit excessive.
The saint, who entered the world at a very young age as the adoptive daughter of the current Pope Hatianus II, grew up in the Holy Land and was loved by everyone in the church.
A cute little child is walking around with a bright smile. How many people can see that they don't like it?
And it was the same for Cardinal Donovan, who was Paladin at the time.
"Do you know? "How cute was it when the saintess placed an earthworm on her small hand and held it out for a look?"
"I…I see. "I feel like I know somehow."
To him, who was married but had no children, Saint Riesta was like a daughter and granddaughter.
Almost ten years have passed since I watched her grow up as she just joined the church.
Donovan was elected a cardinal and appointed as the person in charge of the Great Temple of Picaol.
"But this place isn't all that troublesome. "The kingdom isn't cooperating at all, so do we have any room to spare?"
The Kingdom of Lesque, where the Great Temple was located, was better off, but the other kingdoms were banding together and implicitly keeping the cult's power in check so that it could not grow beyond its limits.
Of course, the most severe of these was the Kingdom of Thalia, where King Heinz II was located.
Heinrich only nodded seriously at the cardinal's words with an expression that showed he knew nothing.
As if I deeply sympathize with his words.
'But why are you telling me this?'
I was blindly agreeing with my superior as he talked about various things, but I couldn't understand why he was telling me such things.
When he was inwardly wondering.
Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa time?
When Cardinal Donovan naturally put his arm around his shoulders, the thick arm muscles were slowly suffocating Heinrich.
"Cardinal…Cardinal?"
"Yes, Sir Heinrich. "I'm just saying…"
Even in that situation, his benevolent expression and friendly tone did not falter in the slightest.
"The saint's bright smile is so good in my head that I can't bear to see her sad face."
The veins on the arm wrapped around Heinrich's neck stood out and the muscles swelled even more.
"But doesn't he know very little about the world since he was raised only in the Holy Land since he was young? So I'm worried that you might get hurt unnecessarily in the future. Yes, for example…some bastard is trying to seduce an innocent person."
There was no longer a smile on the cardinal's face as he spoke.
Those burning eyes met Heinrich's.
"Do you understand what I mean?"
"…Yes, of course. As a 'personal escort', I will strictly protect the saint's surroundings. Do not worry."
What more can I say in front of this old man?
It's better to give me the answer I want quickly.
As he confidently made eye contact with his now mature acting skills, the smile slowly returned to the cardinal's expression as he quietly looked at him.
"Hehehe! Yes, it would be reassuring if Gyeong, the most promising member of the church, would protect the saint by her side. Please continue to take good care of me."
"yes! "Because that's what I have to do."
The cardinal, who had barely spared time to meet him after such a friendly conversation, got up to take care of some backlogged work.
"I guess I'll just have to go back now. I hope that Sir can become the owner of the Holy Sword. "Now that the Immortal King has been resurrected, there is no time to delay."
Cardinal Donovan left, and the Archbishop in charge of sealing the Holy Sword came after him.
"All preparations have already been completed. When would you like to go?"
"There is no reason to come here and delay. "I will take on the challenge right now."
As the Holy Sword was the core of the sealing barrier, quite complicated procedures were needed to get to where it was.
So there was a limit to the number of times a year you could challenge, but this time Heinrich got the chance to challenge.
'I feel a little burdened when I hear that even the most powerful paladins failed…'
Still, he had his own way of believing.
Even so, isn't he in a friendly and friendly relationship with the Lord?
Wouldn't he probably take good care of me this time too?
'Then please take care of me. I'll do better in the future!'
Heinrich followed the archbishop and prayed devoutly to the Lord.
With just a little bit of selfishness.
***
Duke Bright's mansion in the Kingdom of Thalia.
"So, you're saying there isn't much information yet?"
"That's right. "Apparently, due to the sect's sweep regarding the Immortal King, there are no significant dark wizard forces left in the area."
"What about forming an intelligence organization?"
"We are making progress, but we still need some more time to obtain information from distant places."
Well, there was no way it was that easy.
It was a problem that needed to be looked at in the long term from the beginning, but it was inevitable that it would be disappointing right away.
"I get it. First of all, if there is a warlock you identify, even if it is just a minor one, please report it separately. Ah, those who get in the way of getting things done. "I'll handle it from here."
"…All right."
As Mulo bowed slightly and left, Heinz went to the window, pulled back the curtains, and looked up at the night sky.
'Hans has no intention of doing anything yet, but if there is any problem, it means that the others are preparing something… I have no way of getting information.'
There was also a need to expand power more quickly.
And now he had the best human resources on the continent.
Fluttering—
the night sky is immersed in darkness, with even the moonlight swallowed by clouds.
Hans looked down at the earth with pupils colored by the abyss.
'There's nothing else to do right now, so I guess I can just help Heinz.'
As a bonus, I was planning to recruit slaves who could be manipulated as much as I wanted… no, extras and staff.
Of course, it was not an unfair contract.
Because I planned to pay something precious to everyone as compensation.
'Life'.
'We can't take responsibility for accidents that occur on the job… but if you're lucky, there's a chance you'll survive.'
Wouldn't it be better than dying right now?
[Hehehehe… There's a guy hiding over there.]
If you belong to a demon, you cannot escape his "Eye of the Abyss."
***
Azerion Empire adjacent to the Holy Land.
"uh! "I got the signal!"
The blonde man who was lying dead in an armchair in a well-decorated room opened his eyes.
"Oh my god, I couldn't believe it, but he was still alive. I really don't know anything about this immortal king. "Why wasn't there a signal during this time?"
His unique skill, "Trajectory Observation," was an ability optimized for information search.
It was a skill that could read the past.
Previously, I heard that something big had happened at the Great Temple of Roselia, and while digging there to find out the details, I learned the story about the Immortal King.
'There was a huge barrier in the place where the Immortal King appeared in person, so I couldn't check it directly, but information is basically based on investigating the surroundings.'
There were more than one person who had been mobilized for battle against him, and gathering information through them was relatively easy.
Because they let their guard down and every word they said inadvertently was information.
Of course, this was possible because he had received karma through all kinds of work and strengthened his unique skills three times.
"But I guess it's because he's a big guy. Even though I strengthened it so much, I can't observe it. "I expected it, though."
Of course, there were various limitations to his abilities.
You had to have detailed information about the object you wanted to observe, and you couldn't read about someone who was too high-ranking.
It's natural that an immortal king's level cannot be observed with his abilities.
But there was a reason why he reacted this way.
Previously, when I activated "Trajectory Observation" just in case, the results that came out were very strange.
It's not that you 'can't know' because you lack ability, but that you 'can't do it' because there is no target entity in the first place.
So I was concerned that he might have died in the Great Temple of Roselia, but his colleagues dismissed it as nonsense.
If the Immortal King was truly fully resurrected, there was no way he could have died that much.
Since that day, I have been habitually observing the existence of the Immortal King once a day, but today the result changed to 'unknown'.
"That was really true… Then were you hiding somewhere in the barrier where the dimension was cut off to recover?"
He licked his lips and roughly stroked his dull blonde hair.
Still, the situation wasn't bad.
The rebellion would begin soon, and it would be good for them if the Immortal King began his activities again.
'Is it a good time? 'I guess I'm just lucky.'
There is not much karma left until the fourth reinforcement.
If this matter is completed well, we will be able to strengthen without difficulty.
Moreover, this operation was only the beginning and did not end here.
'How much karma can I earn if I contribute to the destruction of a world?'
He smiled and laid down comfortably in the armchair.
'If you just get the information in a comfortable and safe place, others will take care of the rest, so this is a creative economy.'
He knew very well that the people he was with were very dangerous people, but it didn't matter to him.
By the time he has earned enough karma and this place becomes truly dangerous, he will already be on Earth.
"Ah, I'm looking forward to it. Doesn't this mean that if we return to Earth, we can conquer the world? "It's a state secret, it's a national secret, and I've completely uncovered it…tsk tsk tsk."
Another awakened person who was sent to the Outerica dimension fell into a sweet dream alone.