Paladin of a Fallen Order (Novel) - Chapter 11 - The Shantytown

Chapter 11 – The Shantytown

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Translated by Pratt

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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Even up to the time Elbridge was trapped in the seal, the Goddess of the Rusty Shield had been a titan who occupied as many as twenty-two seats in the Heavenly Council.

To speak of a shantytown heavyweight with a mere two seats in such a Temple of the Rusty Shield? It was an absurd situation.

“…”

However, Elbridge could not bring himself to voice his thoughts.

Was it because the Goddess of the Rusty Shield did not hold a single seat currently?

No.

The problem was that even two hundred years ago, when the influence of the Order of the Rusty Shield was at its peak, the Order of the Bloody Spear had been more successful.

Back then, the God of the Bloody Spear had occupied nearly forty seats, making him literally a powerhouse among powerhouses.

As far as Elbridge knew, the Goddess of the Rusty Shield had never once defeated the God of the Bloody Spear.

The young paladin continued his proselytizing.

“I’m not forcing you. But you might want to take this opportunity to think it over from square one. Do you really plan on living the rest of your life cleaning dust in a temple all by yourself?”

Even before Elbridge could reply, the Goddess delivered a divine message in a trembling voice.

– Elbridge. Hearing such insolent words makes your Goddess’s heart feel as if it is tearing apart. Please please your Goddess with a sharp retort.

Like a faithful paladin, Elbridge followed his Goddess’s revelation.

“If I had any intention of serving another god, I would have gone to a large order like the Order of the Golden Platter or the Order of the Goddess of the Olive Tree. Why would I go to the Order of the God of the Bloody Spear, which is like a precarious rowboat?”

At that, the nameless paladin replied in an extremely serious voice.

“Even if I have boarded a precarious rowboat, it is only right to rescue survivors if one discovers a shipwreck.”

Elbridge was left speechless.

However, the person who received the greatest shock from that remark was clear: it was not Elbridge, but the Goddess of the Rusty Shield.

For the Goddess, who had been showing off her presence in high spirits ever since they arrived at the temple, was lost for words for the first time.

Elbridge called out to the Goddess in a voice as tiny as an ant’s.

“…Goddess. Goddess?”

– Elbridge. Please wait for a moment. I shall go and lodge a stern protest with the God of the Bloody Spear immediately…!

The Goddess’s presence vanished.

Unaware of what he had just done, the paladin of the Bloody Spear continued speaking.

“And from what I see, you don’t look like someone who would go to the Golden Platter Order or the Olive Tree Order.”

“Why?”

“Those two orders have temples everywhere. If you had any intention of going, you would have gone long ago.”

“That’s just your assumption.”

“More importantly, it’s the calluses and scars on your hands. Those are not traces left on an ordinary person’s hands. They are marks engraved on the hands of someone who treats swords and spears as an extension of their own body.”

Elbridge’s eyebrow twitched slightly.

To have checked his hands in the meantime. The man had a keen eye.

“It’s not even a level of training done for just a year or two. What… did you originally do? When I first saw you, I thought you were a mercenary, but your vibe is different from a mercenary’s. Besides, there’s no reason for a mercenary to serve the Goddess of the Rusty Shield.”

“I’m a paladin.”

Until now, whenever Elbridge claimed to be a paladin, people either disbelieved or mocked him.

But the paladin in front of him now was different. His expression grew even more serious instead.

“I am confident in my eye for talent. You are not some hollow husk who bought his rank with donations. You are a rare, real paladin. There is no reason for such a paladin to join the Golden Platter Order. If you are looking for a new order to commit yourself to, the Order of the God of the Bloody Spear would be the most suitable.”

The young paladin said so, then extended his hand to Elbridge.

“I am Felix. What is your name?”

“Elbridge.”

“That’s a grand name.”

“Do you know the meaning of my name?”

“The Silent Paladin Elbridge. The paladin who fought the Great Demon two hundred years ago and volunteered for the heaviest duty.”

In Elbridge’s mind, his evaluation of Felix was revised upward by quite a margin.

Felix even went a step further.

“…And on top of that, you are of the Order of the Rusty Shield. Do you have some kind of relationship with the Silent Paladin?”

A desire to tell the truth crawled up within him.

The Silent Paladin Elbridge you spoke of is right here, having leaped across two hundred years of time.

If he said that, Felix might fall flat on the ground and show his utmost respect.

But the problem was the revelation he had heard just a moment ago.

Hadn’t the Goddess just urged him not to reveal his identity carelessly?

‘How should I answer? Should I say our names just happen to overlap by coincidence?’

No. The problem was that the name Elbridge was far too uncommon to make such an excuse.

Just then, a thought flashed through Elbridge’s mind.

“Sir Elbridge, the Silent Paladin, is my ancestor. Six generations… no, seven generations back.”

Felix replied calmly.

“A prestigious family. Now I understand why you have remained in the Order of the Rusty Shield until now.”

The corner of Elbridge’s mouth slid up slightly. Although the Goddess of the Rusty Shield symbolized hidden honor, surely it was fine to enjoy this small amount of pleasure…

Felix said.

“Elbridge. Your family must have passed down their faith through generations. For at least two hundred years.”

“Yes.”

“I don’t know the policies exactly, but you will definitely be able to receive the maximum benefits for converting to our order. Absolutely.”

“…”

Sure enough, the proselytizing began again.

Felix raised his right hand, showing off the gauntlet that covered the back of his hand and forearm. The gauntlet was engraved with the emblem symbolizing the God of the Bloody Spear.

“Our order gives this gauntlet to those qualified as paladins. It is an object of envy among the believers. But you are different. You would be able to receive full-body armor, not just a mere gauntlet. If you are the descendant of that Sir Elbridge, it is entirely possible. What do you think?”

“Hmm…”

“Ah, it seems I’ve pressured you for no reason. None of that matters, so let’s just chat for a bit at our order’s temple. You can come with the mindset of a shantytown neighbor visiting for a cup of tea. Everyone will be delighted to hear you are the descendant of that Sir Elbridge.”

Just then, the Goddess’s urgent voice was heard once more.

– Elbridge. Do not forget that just as you endured two hundred years in the seal, your Goddess has also borne a wait without promise. Furthermore, you stand at the very pinnacle of the pyramid that is the Order of the Rusty Shield, so once our influence expands in the future, you will possess matchless, mighty authority that none can compare to…

Turning his head so Felix could not see, Elbridge whispered softly.

“Goddess. My faith is not wavering in the slightest. I merely took interest out of necessity.”

– What necessity do you speak of?

“Should I not know what benefits other orders are offering so that I, too, can gather believers? You could call it checking the industry trends, so to speak.”

Yet the Goddess of the Rusty Shield could not shake off her anxiety.

– Elbridge. It is desirable not to let wicked things enter your ears. For impure things are like stains; they are not easily wiped away and naturally spread to their surroundings bit by bit…

Since the Goddess’s reaction was so unyielding, Elbridge could not follow him to the Temple of the Bloody Spear.

However, ending his conversation with Felix here would be a foolish move. Information had to be extracted as much as possible when the opportunity arose.

“Felix. There is something I’m curious about.”

“Ask anything. We are neighbors, aren’t we? Neighbors who might soon become family.”

“Up the hill… that is to say. You said the God of the Bloody Spear is the number one powerhouse among the gods of the orders in the shantytown, correct?”

Historically, there were many orders related to combat up the hill.
Conversely, the majority of the orders down the hill were unrelated to combat. This was partly because their influence had been lagging at the time, and partly because down the hill made it easier to interact with the common folk within the Holy City Solenion.

Felix shrugged his shoulders.

“To be honest, it’s not to the point of being unrivaled. We have a rival.”

“Where?”

“The Order of the God of the Laurel Wreath. They have as many as three seats. But our order isn’t particularly falling behind. We go back and forth every year.”

“Is that so… At any rate, there is only one thing I want to ask. While there are countless combat orders that once wielded great influence but collapsed, how have the Order of the God of the Bloody Spear and the Order of the God of the Laurel Wreath managed to survive and occupy seats until now?”

Felix fell into thought for a moment.
Not only Elbridge, but the Goddess of the Rusty Shield also listened intently to Felix’s answer.

“I believe we survived because we were active in hunting magic beasts.”

“Hunting magic beasts? But magic beasts only appear very rarely.”

Felix shook his head.

“If you widen your view to the entire east, or rather the entire continent, instead of just a part of the eastern continent, the frequency of their appearance is much higher. Our order and the Order of the God of the Laurel Wreath dispatched paladins to defeat the magic beasts whenever they appeared. In return, we were promised five or ten years of support from the nearby residents.”

“…!”

At this point, it was more in the realm of business than faith.

However, there were not many methods to occupy seats that were this intuitive and certain.

“What about the paladins of the other large orders?”

Felix snorted.

“Golden Platter? Olive Tree? Brass Cup? The paladins of those money-grubbing orders are fakes who bought their ranks with donations. How much experience do you think they have fighting magic beasts? Instead of risking their reputation by going out to hunt magic beasts, those money-grubbing orders dumped the magic beast response onto us.”

“…I see.”

Elbridge’s hand toyed with the hilt of his sword.
Three magic beasts appearing near the Riverford Barony. And the news of Viscount Dickens’s fiefdom, where all the residents had vanished like smoke.

Today was the very day he had delivered the letter containing all that information to the Golden Platter Order. The people of the world did not yet know that the demons had returned.

‘But in the end, they will have no choice but to realize it.’
As the demons disappeared and magic beasts decreased, the combat orders had declined.

Conversely, if the demons returned and magic beasts increased, it was inevitable that the combat orders would seize their opportunity.
When that time came, the shantytown would once again become the heart of the Holy City Solenion.

When that day came, which order’s paladin would stand at the forefront?
A paladin of a wealthy order, appointed after paying donations?

A paladin of the Bloody Spear Order, who hunted magic beasts on behalf of the wealthy orders?
Or if not them… a paladin who had survived dozens of battles against demons and finally sealed the Great Demon?

The answer was clear.
The Goddess of the Rusty Shield spoke in a worried voice.

– Elbridge. My most cherished child. Your Goddess does not wish for you to walk a dangerous path. You have done more than enough to fulfill your duties as a paladin, so now is the time to leave everything to others and step back to enjoy a peaceful life. It matters not if we do not have seats, so do not worry.

Elbridge whispered to the Goddess.
“Goddess of the Rusty Shield. I am far too young to step back.”

There were many times he had thought he had done enough.
However, because he could not forget his hatred for the demons, Elbridge had always picked up his sword again and returned to the battlefield.

In the end, it was his destiny to fight.
If so, there was no need to reject the glory that would naturally follow.

All the more so since glory would bring even greater authority and power.
Elbridge said, deliberately in a playful tone.

“Since you have waited for a full two hundred years, it is high time you enjoyed some luxury too, Goddess.”