Paladin of a Fallen Order (Novel) - Chapter 73 - Lake of Eternity

Chapter 73 – Lake of Eternity

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Translated by Pratt

Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net

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At a time when, unlike usual, the sun had not even set, Isalvius made a suggestion to Elbridge.

“How about we take a rest here for today?”

“How much further is it to the Lake of Eternity?”

“We will arrive before tomorrow evening.”

“Understood. Let’s rest.”

When Elbridge nodded, the people put down their luggage and sat down.

However, Marcus did not sit down, but clapped his hands to draw people’s attention.

“Alright, alright, I will prepare dinner. Everyone, come over here.”

The people of the Order of the Flowing Water handed over their ingredients to Marcus.

Wild berries gathered bit by bit along the way, hard pieces of salted meat, small animals caught on the way, bird eggs, a little bit of remaining grain, and such…

It was not just ingredients. Among the luggage they brought were several large pots.

Pots were valuable assets, and they were also essential items for a long journey.

Marcus hung three large pots over the fire, boiling water while unpacking his luggage.

As other mercenaries usually did, Marcus also carried a sack slung diagonally across his back like a bag.

The belongings of mercenaries were all different. And in Marcus’s case, he always carried seasonings in one corner of his sack. From cheap ones like parsley, sage, mustard seeds, and rock salt, to precious spices like cinnamon and cloves.

“Let’s see…”

With the most serious expression in the world, Marcus divided the ingredients into the three pots, then repeatedly tasted them and added seasonings.

Before long, a savory and mouth-watering aroma spread.

Marcus introduced today’s menu like a chef in a high-end restaurant.

“Tonight’s dinner is two kinds of stew, beans simmered in seasoning, and a bit of roasted meat. The meat is small in quantity, so it’s barely enough to just get a taste… but it’s better than nothing.”

Elbridge admired as he smelled the stew.

“No matter how I look at it, Marcus should have been a chef, not a mercenary.”

Rombel also actively agreed with that opinion.

“Those berries and herbs are things you can’t even find in the East. How does he cook with ingredients he’s seeing for the first time?”

Marcus had a hidden talent.

A talent for creating food using whatever ingredients were given at the moment, yet completing a stew better than what decent inns sell for money.

Marcus boasted.

“Mr. Rombel, you say that because you think of cooking as something difficult. If you don’t aim for a fancy dish but aim for a roughly edible result, it’s not as hard as you think. Especially stews.”

“Roughly edible… that is what’s difficult.”

“You just have to keep a few basic things. Adjust the seasoning. Cover up unpleasant odors as much as possible, and add seasonings moderately for lacking flavors… Keeping three or four flavors from clashing is all it takes.”

Perhaps because they had traveled together for a long time, Marcus did not use strictly formal language with Rombel and Elbridge as he had before.

Since he had started a subtle mix of formal and casual speech a few days ago, before long they would be talking informally. Just like Elbridge and Rombel.

When people brought bowls carved out of wood, Marcus scooped out the stew with a large ladle.

“Thanks to you, my mouth is happy. Thank you again today, Mr. Marcus.”

“You guys prepared the ingredients. It’s not like it’s some grand dish.”

Even as he spoke like that, Marcus had an undeniably pleased look on his face. Because having one’s effort and skill acknowledged is a joyful thing for anyone.

The fact that Marcus was putting extra effort into the meals lately was a consideration for the people of the Order of the Flowing Water.

For someone who has gone through a difficult time to regain their strength, three things must be observed.

Keep moving consistently without slumping. Share stories with people who share the same pain. And a delicious meal.

Thanks to Marcus’s consideration, the priests and paladins of the Order of the Flowing Water were able to compose their minds, if only a little.

After finishing such a decent meal, Elbridge stealthily sat beside Isalvius.

“Mr. Isalvius. What kind of place is the Lake of Eternity? You said last time that it’s a place where time does not flow.”

“It is a transparent and clear lake. And things submerged beneath the Lake of Eternity do not easily rot even as time passes.”

“Hmph.”

In fact, Elbridge thought that the Central Mage Tower Lord’s intention lay in the path to the Lake of Eternity, rather than the Lake of Eternity itself.

Could it be that the Central Mage Tower Lord wanted Elbridge to check the situation in the south on his way to the Lake of Eternity, and furthermore, to see the God of the Flowing Water turn into a demon?

‘…Does the Central Mage Tower Lord think Sir Leonhardt became a demon?’

However, Isalvius’s story did not end there.

“It is not only objects that do not rot. In the Lake of Eternity, things that should have drifted away remain without disappearing.”

“Things that should have drifted away?”

“Yes. The Lake of Eternity shows old memories, and desires.”

*

Near evening the next day, the party discovered a city.

Isalvius wore a bitter expression.

“We have finally returned.”

It was too large to be a town, and a bit small to be a city.

And there were several differences from other cities in the south.

“There are no fortress walls.”

“It’s because magic beasts do not approach this area. Although the land is somewhat barren and it’s a very remote location… as long as there are no magic beasts, it’s roughly livable.”

“Is that lake the Lake of Eternity?”

Elbridge pointed to the large lake beside the city. At that, Isalvius shook his head.

“No. The Lake of Eternity is further inside. I will guide you in a moment.”

As if they had expected the party to arrive, a few people had come out to meet them.

Among them, the old man who looked the oldest approached Isalvius.

“Isalvius.”

“It has been a while, Lord Marcellus.”

However, in Elbridge’s eyes, the relationship between Isalvius and Marcellus seemed distant. The same went for the other people.

‘I think I know what kind of atmosphere this is…’

Elbridge knew what kind of atmosphere it was.

A parent who had left their hometown to earn money and returned home after several years, and a child who had grown up suddenly while the parent was away.

It was an awkward atmosphere that would flow between such a parent and child.

‘Coincidentally, the situation is exactly like that.’

The priests and paladins of the Order of the Flowing Water had stayed in various southern cities bestowing the authority of healing, and helped the people of their hometown with the money they earned.

They were in a state no different from a parent who left to earn money.

The old man named Marcellus looked at Elbridge’s party and asked Isalvius.

“Who are these people?”

“They are people who gave us great help. Thanks to them, many lives were saved.”

“Lives? It seems something indeed happened…”

Marcellus extended his right hand to Elbridge.

“I am Lantern Keeper Marcellus. I’m something like the mayor of this city.”

“Nice to meet you, Lord Marcellus.”

“Yes. Take a good rest before you leave. By the way, Isalvius. For what reason has everyone returned? Does it have any relation to the fact that the God of the Flowing Water hasn’t sent down oracles lately?”

It seemed the people of this city did not even know for sure that the God of the Flowing Water had disappeared.

“…I will explain that over there. Neria. You guide those people.”

Isalvius disappeared along with Marcellus.

The other priests and paladins also blended into the city, looking somewhat depressed.

And just as Isalvius had instructed, a priestess, Neria, took charge of guiding Elbridge’s party.

“You said you wanted to see the Lake of Eternity, correct?”

“That’s right.”

“Please come this way.”

The party walked following Neria.

The kids of the city followed them, curious about the outsiders they were seeing for the first time, but they quickly vanished when Neria waved her hand.

After walking about half a turn along the edge of the large lake, a large pond inside the forest appeared.

“This is the Lake of Eternity. It’s a bit small to be called a lake, isn’t it?”

The Lake of Eternity looked transparent green thanks to water moss.

It felt foreign that not even a ripple formed on the water’s surface despite a slight wind blowing.

“As you already know, the Lake of Eternity shows desires and memories. You just have to decide which of the two you want to see and touch the water’s surface.”

“By any chance, can one see another person’s memories as well?”

At Elbridge’s question, Neria shook her head.

“It is impossible. However, if you possess another person’s belonging, you can look back on the memories left in that belonging.”

“I see. Thank you.”

Neria left the spot immediately.

Now, only the three members of Elbridge’s party remained around the lake.

‘Isalvius has the demon’s nucleus…’

Unlike Elbridge, who had come to the Lake of Eternity with a clear purpose, Marcus and Rombel did not seem to have much on their minds. Rather, they had secretly excited expressions, thinking that something interesting was bound to happen.

“Who’s going first?”

“Elbridge. Wouldn’t it be better for you to go first?”

Elbridge fell into thought.

‘The Central Mage Tower Lord seemed to think Sir Leonhardt became a demon. But checking Sir Leonhardt’s memories right from the start seems a bit suspicious. For now…’

Elbridge spoke while kneeling at the edge of the lake.

“Show me my desire.”

When Elbridge put his hand into the lake, an image formed on the lake’s surface.

Seeing that, Rombel made a fuss.

“It’s coming out! It’s coming out!”

It was the shape of the temple in Solenion.

The appearance of the temple looked a bit cleaner and wider than in reality, with a lot of people coming and going.

However, the image was extremely blurry, and before long it fizzled out and disappeared.

Marcus was greatly disappointed.

“Is this the end? For a place called the Lake of Eternity. The name is grand, yet it’s barely this…”

Rombel nudged Elbridge and pushed him aside.

“Elbridge, move aside. I’m going to try this time.”

As Rombel took a position in front of the lake, Marcus guessed.

“If it is Mr. Rombel’s desire… we will see a scene of him ascending to heaven and becoming a god, right?”

“Maybe a scene of slapping Steel Anvil will come out. Just imagining it is amazing… Watch closely. O Lake, show me my desire!”

When Rombel put his hand into the lake, a new image rose to the water’s surface.

“Oh!”

But it was not the image of Rombel ascending. What rose to the water’s surface was the face of a female dwarf.

Unlike the blurry temple that had risen earlier, the female dwarf’s face was as clear as if it were real, overflowing with life.

No, it was not merely a level of overflowing with life.

“She’s moving?”

When the female dwarf gestured, Rombel’s figure appeared in one corner of the lake.

Rombel and the female dwarf embraced each other tightly, and then smiled with the happiest expressions in the world.

Rombel watched that scene with wide eyes.

Rombel’s most intense desire was neither becoming a god nor slapping Steel Anvil.

His dead wife was precisely Rombel’s most intense desire.

Rombel and his wife on the water’s surface seemed to be talking and smiling, and soon departed somewhere together. Holding hands tightly.

With the rims of his eyes dyed red, Rombel stared at the Lake of Eternity for a long while longer.

And after clearing his throat a couple of times, he spoke in a low voice.

“…It’s amazing. It was worth coming all the way to the south.”

The Lake of Eternity accurately showed Rombel’s desire. It was just a pity that it was an unachievable desire.

After sniffing slightly, Rombel spoke cheerfully as if nothing had happened.

“Marcus. Your turn.”

“I don’t really know what will come out… O Lake! Show me my desire!”

When Marcus put his hand into the lake, the back of a woman appeared.

“That’s the older girl next door whom I had a crush on when I was young…”

Elbridge and Rombel evaluated Marcus’s desire.

“An intense desire being a childhood crush. He’s pure, unlike his appearance.”

“Indeed. I thought a scene of him enjoying wealth and honor would come out.”

At that moment, the woman turned around.

However, there was a slightly strange part.

“Her face is strangely blurry. It’s hard to even recognize.”

Yet, unlike her face, there was a part that was exceptionally clear and full of life.

Precisely that woman’s upper body. To be exact, around her exceptionally voluptuous breasts.

“….”

“Ah, no! This lake is a bit strange…”

However, the main scene was only beginning now.

The woman appearing on the water’s surface began to unbutton her shirt.

“Whoa, whoa!”

As Marcus pulled his hand out of the lake in fright, the image formed on the water’s surface vanished.

“This lake is broken!”

It was not particularly convincing.

Elbridge and Rombel looked at Marcus with clear contempt and a little bit of regret.

“Marcus. If you think it’s broken, try it once more later…”

When Rombel suggested, Marcus nodded slightly after some deliberation.

“…I should probably do that. Most likely.”

“Alright. Shall we head off to rest now?”

As Rombel stretched, Elbridge spoke playing innocent.

“No. Something I want to see has come to mind.”

“Elbridge says he wants to see it again. Marcus, put your hand in again.”

“Ah. Going right in.”

“…That’s not it. I want to see a memory, not a desire.”

Elbridge spoke as he put Leonhardt’s shield into the lake.

“O Lake, show me this shield’s memory.”

Then, an oracle from the Goddess immediately descended.

– No, Elbridge!

But it was already too late.

The lake emitted a bright light, and then showed a clear image.

A man with a shield on his left arm was looking up at the sky.

Golden hair and green eyes. Leonhardt.

Subsequently, a staircase leading to the sky appeared in front of Leonhardt.

When Leonhardt placed his foot on the stairs, a pillar of light enveloped him.

Leonhardt walked steadily up the stairs. It was not a very fast pace, yet Leonhardt reached the sky in an instant.

And the moment Leonhardt passed even the clouds and ascended ‘somewhere,’ the image formed on the lake suddenly twisted and disappeared.

As if the scene beyond that was not permitted.

All three people lost their words.

“Just now, that…”

It was a scene they were seeing for the first time, yet there was no one who did not know what it was.

It was the spectacle of Leonhardt’s ascension.

“My goodness.”

Elbridge was also quite flustered. He had not thought the lake would show such a scene.

On Rombel’s and Elbridge’s faces, admiration and bewilderment were half mixed.

But Marcus was a bit different.

A portion of relief, and a slightly more vindicated expression.

“Everything this lake showed was a lie. Indeed, there’s no way the greatest desire of my entire life was the breasts of the older girl next door.”

Rombel asked back.

“Why do you say it’s a lie?”

“Didn’t the mayor say so back in the Mountain City Barkuntol? That Sir Leonhardt left his shield for repair and ascended, leaving the repair bill unpaid. Thanks to that, this shield came into Sir Elbridge’s hands… If so, doesn’t it make no sense for this shield to have the memory of his ascension…?”