Chapter 140 – Miles

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Translated by Pratt

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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After submitting the admission documents, Elbridge slipped out and approached a nearby street vendor.

While one was free to talk to a merchant, if they wanted sincere answers, they had to buy something.

Elbridge pointed at the grilled skewers placed in front of the merchant and spoke solemnly.

“Give me two of those. Not the ones already grilled, but newly grilled.”

“Just wait a moment.”

Elbridge watching the merchant fanning to revive the embers, asked casually.

“Elder. Since when has that temple of the Order of the Rusty Shield behind you been there?”

“Probably around spring of this year?”

If it was spring of this year, it was after the Goddess of the Rusty Shield obtained seats.

However, there was one questionable point.

“To say it was spring of this year… the building did not look new.”

At Elbridge’s question, the vendor answered as if it were no big deal.

“It was originally a temple of another religious order, but they only changed the sign.”

“The sign… Do you mean they changed the god the temple worships?”

“Yes.”

Elbridge was not a little flustered.

Good heavens. Keeping the temple building but changing only the deity they worshiped.

It was something unimaginable in the East. However, in the West, it seemed not to be very strange.

“The original order suffered from financial difficulties and washed their hands of it a while ago. Seeing that people are steadily going in and out of the order that has entered now… it does not seem like they will leave anytime soon. Thanks to that, my business is also quite lucrative.”

“It seems so. By any chance, who is the highest person in that temple?”

“The Western parish head. He is a person with a tired face and crumbly, faded blond hair like a straw hat. You will know him right away when you see him.”

“I see.”

As Elbridge withdrew after finishing the brief exchange, the Goddess of the Rusty Shield sent down an oracle.

– Elbridge. What do you plan to do?

“…I must punish him, of course.”

Since ancient times, impersonating a paladin or a priest was a felony. If one was lucky, it ended with a severe beating, but if one was unlucky, it was a felony grave enough to lead to death.

If impersonating a paladin or a priest was that level, then making money with a fake temple deserved an even greater punishment.

However, Elbridge was uncomfortable with killing people.

Although he had killed once in the City of Norens recently because there was a person acting as if begging to be beaten half to death, he did not think the opponent would take such an attitude this time.

Moreover, the Goddess of the Rusty Shield also seemed displeased with killing people.

The fact that he might trouble Murbach also weighed on his mind.

If Murbach returned to his hometown for the first time in twenty years and Elbridge, whose identity Murbach had guaranteed, got entangled in a murder case… that would be repaying kindness with enmity.

‘Still, I cannot let this slide. I also need to check how many people are entangled in this fraud.’

In Elbridge’s opinion, the priests themselves were highly likely unaware that they were participating in a scam.

Deities usually send down oracles only through the highest-ranking priests. If an archbishop or a parish head pretended to receive oracles and deceived the priests, the priests had no choice but to be fooled.

‘It would be right to meet him first and then decide the level of punishment.’

Elbridge loitered around the temple.

Fortunately, the person suspected of being the con artist revealed himself quickly. Just as he had heard earlier, he had a tired expression and faded blond hair.

Of course, people with such an appearance were not rare. However, what made Elbridge sure that he was the con artist, namely the Western parish head, was that he naturally opened the offering box.

Clink, clink, clink—

As heavy silver and bronze coins poured from the offering box into a sack, the Goddess of the Rusty Shield marveled.

– That man might be wealthier than our order, Elbridge.

“I think so too, Goddess.”

The con artist entered an ordinary private house on the outskirts of the city, carrying the heavy sack.

Just as Elbridge was looking around and trying to slip in after him.

Creak—

The door opened, and a person appeared again. Judging by his features, he seemed to be the con artist from earlier.

The reason Elbridge could not be immediately sure was that his appearance and clothing had changed.

“A disguise?”

His hair, which had been blond, turned black, and his attire became much neater. At a glance, it was difficult to tell that they were the same person.

“Why did he disguise himself?”

– Since he commits shameful deeds, a disguise would be necessary.

The con artist moved across the city, then entered another temple.

This time, it was the temple of the Order of the Sunshower.

‘Don’t tell me, is a priest of the Order of the Sunshower pulling a scam?’

He was not. He collected money by opening the offering box this time too, then returned home to change his appearance once again.

This time, red hair and a deeply pulled-down robe. The temple the con artist headed to this time was the temple of the Order of the Laurel Wreath.

“…”

The Order of the Rusty Shield, the Order of the Sunshower, the Order of the Laurel Wreath.

These three orders had a few things in common.

They had a decent amount of recognition, were unable to spread their influence in the West, and it was difficult for ordinary believers to experience their authority.

In other words, they were the perfect orders to impersonate in the Royal Capital Leodel.

– He seems to be a professional con artist.

“I think so too.”

– Good. Decide what kind of punishment to give him slowly, and subdue him first, Elbridge.

However, Elbridge shook his head.

“I think it would be better to wait a little longer. We need to confirm how many orders have been damaged, and find out where he stored the money he has collected so far.”

Elbridge intended to reclaim the money the con artist had illegally collected and put it to good use. If they split about a third of it for the Order of the Sunshower, no particular problem would arise.

The con artist, who slipped out of the temple of the Order of the Laurel Wreath and returned home, loaded the sack of money onto a cart and headed somewhere. However, judging from his attire, he did not seem to be going to a temple.

‘Has he hidden a safe or something?’

Good. Thinking that, Elbridge followed the con artist.

*

The place the con artist arrived at was the outskirts of the city.

What was a bit strange was that in the sparsely populated outskirts of the city, several workers were sweating profusely.

‘A construction work?’

Moreover, the building being erected was not just one.

There were multiple wide, very plain and simple-looking buildings. They seemed barely enough to shield against dew.

Among those buildings, there was also one of a somewhat disparate shape, which, unlike the others, was near completion. At the entrance of that building, it was written ‘Orphanage’.

Of course, an orphanage is a necessary building. The problem was that there were no orphans in that orphanage. The adjacent buildings were also completely empty.

‘…Just what on earth is he doing?’

Elbridge tracked the con artist once again.

He saw a woman approach the con artist and get angry.

Although the woman lowered her voice and threatened him, the woman’s voice was clearly heard in Elbridge’s ears.

“I do not care about your foolishness. Just tell me where on earth you are getting the money from!”

“…”

“I will not tell anyone else, so just spit it out. You are really going to get into big trouble if you keep this up.”

The con artist rolled his eyes awkwardly, then slipped away from the spot.

The woman sighed deeply as she watched the con artist’s back.

– Elbridge. It seems that woman can resolve your curiosity.

“I think so too, Goddess.”

Conveniently, the woman walked in Elbridge’s direction. Elbridge hid behind an empty building and waited.

And the moment the woman passed, Elbridge’s tough arm covered her mouth and dragged her behind the building.

“…!”

The woman struggled against the sudden assault, but she could not break free from Elbridge’s trained forearm.

Elbridge, still covering the woman’s mouth, spoke in a calm voice.

“I am not trying to harm you. I am Elbridge. I want to talk about the person you were just conversing with.”

The woman’s struggling stopped, and her gaze directed at Elbridge.

Although she had not calmed down yet, she did not seem likely to scream.

Elbridge released his hand that had covered her mouth.

The woman stared at Elbridge with eyes full of wariness.

“What kind of talk is it?”

“It seemed you were curious about where he gets money from. Is that correct?”

“…That is correct.”

“I can answer that question. You must answer my question as well.”

The woman pondered for a moment, then nodded her head.

Whether she agreed to Elbridge’s proposal or felt she had no choice was unknown.

“I am Elbridge. A paladin of the Order of the Rusty Shield…”

Elbridge introduced himself again and began the story, which ended with the con artist’s actions he had observed while tailing him. After hearing the whole story, the woman let out a heavy sigh as if the ground were sinking.

“…I had my doubts, but for it to be true.”

“What is going on?”

As if this situation was a headache, the woman rubbed her temples.

“I am Susan. I have known that guy… Miles, since we were children.”

Miles, Miles. Elbridge repeated the con artist’s name in his mind.

“Miles was a priest. He left the Royal Capital Leodel a few years ago.”

“By any chance, which order was he a priest of?”

“Since he is a freelance priest, there is no particular order he belonged to. Where was the last order he stayed at…?”

“Let us skip that story, and please explain first.”

“Alright. Anyway, Miles, who had left Leodel, returned to Leodel toward the end of last winter. From then on, he wandered here and there, trying to borrow money.”

Elbridge looked at the surrounding buildings. A few completed buildings, and several still under construction.

There were also numerous spots where only the sites had been cleared, as if they intended to build later.

“He intended to build buildings with the borrowed money.”

“That is right. Utterly useless buildings… Well, an orphanage is indeed necessary. However, the orphans currently in Leodel can be easily accommodated by the existing orphanages. Even so, Miles insisted that an orphanage had to be built. You build an orphanage when orphans exist, does it make sense to build an orphanage and wait for orphans to appear? The other buildings are the same.”

Susan looked annoyed, as if she disliked this situation.

“When I asked why on earth he had to build such things, he said they would become necessary soon. He said other regions were already in chaos due to the appearance of demons…”

Only then did Elbridge understand the situation.

Miles had traveled the continent and witnessed the cities where the situation had become grave.

The current situation of Solenion in the East was not very good either.

Refugees from all over the East flocked to Solenion, the largest city. However, Solenion lacked both the space to accommodate the flocking refugees and the space for them to continue their lives.

On the outskirts of the city, children who had lost their parents and people with mediocre means of livelihood gathered to form shantytowns. There were also many who could not even get into shanties and endured the night huddled in alleys.

Since space to live was so scarce, the guards had to drive away the flocking refugees.

However, the people of Leodel in the West had not experienced such a situation yet.

Even if Miles cried out for the necessity of preparation, there was no way it would reach the hearts of the high and mighty.

What was more important was that it was not the high and mighty who needed such buildings.

How many people would want to build a building that was not immediately needed, not for themselves, but for others?

Suddenly, he recalled Bart, whom he had met in the Dickens Viscountcy. Bart, who wanted to gather funds to stand on his feet again and build a brewery in Solenion.

Bart braved danger for himself and his family after falling into trouble.

However, Miles braved danger for others before falling into trouble.

Susan grumbled incessantly.

“I thought, ‘He has got some strange delusions,’ and let it go. Because there is no one who would lend a large sum of money after hearing such nonsense. But starting a while ago, he somehow procured money and began construction. When I asked whom he had borrowed it from, he could not even answer… Sighed.”

“Thank you for the words.”

Elbridge looked in the direction Miles had left, then turned around and moved his steps.

This was because he did not know how to resolve this situation.

The Goddess of the Rusty Shield, no matter how nicely one put it, was not a smart Goddess.

However, she was also a Goddess as wise as the years she had lived.

Therefore, Elbridge offered a prayer.

“Goddess. Is using dishonest means for a righteous purpose a good deed? Or is it an evil deed?”

The Goddess could not answer easily.

However, the fortunate thing was that there was a deity slightly wiser than the Goddess of the Rusty Shield.

– Why not ask the God of the Sunshower, Elbridge?