Paladin of a Fallen Order (Novel) - Chapter 96 - Marcus and Rombel
Chapter 96 – Marcus and Rombel
===================
Translated by Pratt
Read it only at Novelbyu.com & Utoon.net
===================
– They say a single word can change a person’s life. Spend your day delivering precious words. Elbridge.
“I will keep that in mind, Goddess.”
For the past few days, the Goddess of the Rusty Shield had delivered a brief oracle to Elbridge every morning. At a glance, it felt like a sort of morning greeting.
However, because Elbridge knew the circumstances behind how the Goddess of the Rusty Shield had come to wake up early, he had no choice but to receive the oracles a bit differently.
‘The Goddess is showing off that she is waking up early these days.’
Elbridge offered a prayer carefully.
“Goddess. I have something I am curious about.”
– Ask, Elbridge.
“After returning from the Viscountcy of Dickens, was it because of my prayers that you began waking up early in the morning?”
There was a significant time gap between the time he returned from the Viscountcy of Dickens and the time the Goddess of the Rusty Shield began going to bed early. However, Elbridge offered his prayer while pretending to know nothing at all.
– My most cherished child. Since your Goddess has preserved the humble disposition of her days on earth, she does not turn a deaf ear to prayers. And if there is a prayer she listens to most attentively among countless prayers, it is undoubtedly yours. Elbridge.
“Thank you, Goddess.”
– There is no need to be so deeply moved. Did your Goddess not promise you last time? Restoring day and night to their original state is not a difficult matter, so staying up all night would solve it immediately…
Elbridge then heaved a sigh of relief.
If the Goddess of the Rusty Shield had known that Elbridge had visited the Order of Spring Rain and Moss, and furthermore, that he had received an oracle from the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss, her reaction would have been far greater than this.
However, he could not sense any anomaly in the oracle.
It was clear that both the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss and Archbishop Abina had kept the secret.
If, by some chance, the content of that oracle had leaked to the Goddess of the Rusty Shield, what would have happened?
At the very least, the oracles would have ceased for the time being, and depending on the situation, the order might even have dissolved.
Reflecting on it, it had been a truly precarious moment.
‘O Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss. I thank you for your reticence.’
For that reason, for the first time since entering the Order of the Rusty Shield, Elbridge offered a prayer of gratitude to another deity—even though the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss would not be able to hear this prayer.
With the Goddess of the Rusty Shield acting a bit more boastful one last time, today’s prayer and oracle concluded.
However, Elbridge did not leave the quiet prayer room and remained lost in thought. It was because the minor deviation shown by the Goddess of the Rusty Shield carried certain implications.
‘The desires of gods.’
Unlike other people on earth, Elbridge had many points of contact with the heavens.
The Goddess of the Rusty Shield, the Goddess of Spring Rain and Moss, the God of the Sunshower, the God of the Steel Anvil, and the God of the Flowing Water.
Leonhardt who had ascended to heaven, the Central Mage Tower Lord who had descended from heaven, the elf Niseras who had failed to ascend to heaven, and likewise Rombel who sought to ascend.
He had formed large and small relationships with numerous gods, those who had ascended, and those who sought to ascend to heaven.
Thanks to this, Elbridge came to know one thing for certain.
A heavenly deity was not a solemn, majestic being transcending all desires, as depicted in imaginations.
Deities shared friendships and feuded with one another. They racked their brains to claim even a single additional seat.
And, even in the high heavens, they desired something. Just like humans.
In fact, the desires of the gods sometimes felt even more vivid than those of ordinary humans.
‘In a way, is it only natural?’
Desire is the motivation for all actions.
Motivation moves a person, and actions produce results.
And those who became heavenly deities were ones who had achieved immense results, something worthy of being called a great feat, incomparable to ordinary people.
Since the gods who accomplished such feats possessed greater desires than ordinary people,
was it not only natural for them to desire something even in heaven?
If so, what did the heavenly deities wish for in the midst of this chaos?
*
The Grand Festival was held this summer as well.
However, unlike last year, Elbridge was not in the arena but in the spectator seats.
It was not even an ordinary spectator seat. Elbridge’s seat was the best spot in the stands, right next to Marquis Solenion.
It was excellent for watching the matches, and the seat was comfortable. If he had to point out one inconvenient thing,
it was that Aveline, Marquis Solenion’s daughter, kept stealing glances at Elbridge.
Marquis Solenion spoke.
“Sir Elbridge, how about participating in the Grand Festival as well?”
Aveline nodded vigorously in agreement. However, Elbridge pretended not to see her.
“The only paladin in our order is myself, and even if we include knights, there are only two of us in total.”
“You could participate as a member of the Allied Orders like last year.”
“Unlike last year, there is too much noise surrounding me this year. I would only be a burden to my teammates.”
Marquis Solenion was not the only one who urged Elbridge to participate in the Grand Festival.
In fact, the person who was most proactive in trying to get Elbridge to participate in the Grand Festival was Matilda, the administrative priestess. She had even brought the application forms for the Grand Festival and thrust them in front of Elbridge.
‘Let’s participate in the Grand Festival again this year and gather new believers.’
If Elbridge participated and excelled in the Grand Festival, it would be of great help in recruiting believers.
An increase in believers directly led to the possibility of securing new seats, and new seats were reflected in the performance bonuses of the priests belonging to the order. Matilda had not forgotten the sweetness of the bonus she received for the four seats earlier this year.
Matilda had looked forward to this Grand Festival so much that even after Elbridge expressed his intention not to participate, she tried to persuade him several more times.
Conversely, there were those who clasped their hands and prayed for Elbridge’s non-participation in the Grand Festival. For instance, the paladins of the other combat orders.
Elbridge looked around the arena.
This year’s Grand Festival was far larger than usual.
Not only the spectators, but also the participating paladins were far more numerous than in previous years.
The Grand Festival was an opportunity for minor combat orders, whose very names had been forgotten, to make a comeback, and a chance for recognized combat orders to leap forward.
It was not just the crowd that was large.
The arena was even more neatly maintained, and they even handed out light snacks to the spectators. Of course, the expense came out of Marquis Solenion’s pocket.
Marquis Solenion wore a pleased expression.
“I put quite a bit of effort into this year’s Grand Festival.”
A time when the world was in turmoil and the people were agitated.
Marquis Solenion wished to prevent agitation by showing the residents that the combat orders were alive and well. In many ways, it was a Grand Festival where interests aligned perfectly.
The announcer shouted,
“The Order of the Staghorn! Their opponent is—the Order of the Sunshower!”
Elbridge stared at the arena.
Paladins clad in sparkling armor entered in aligned rows. Among those paladins was a single discordant figure.
Marcus appeared alongside the paladins of the Order of the Sunshower.
Although the announcer introduced Marcus as a paladin, his appearance, wearing only a single cuirass as armor, made him look like a mercenary to anyone.
‘It truly doesn’t suit him.’
However, apart from his awkward appearance, Marcus was receiving the attention of countless people.
It was because Marcus was the very person who had led the Order of the Sunshower, which normally did not even participate in the Grand Festival, and placed them in the tournament.
It was not a simple matter of passing the preliminaries. Currently, the Order of the Sunshower had already claimed one victory in the tournament as well.
It was a splendid achievement obtained as Marcus, who came out last, defeated three opposing paladins in succession.
“Was Marcus at that level?”
As Elbridge muttered, Rombel, who was sitting next to him, replied,
“He used to be a mess, but these days he is passable. He was also quite helpful when we escaped from the Viscountcy of Dickens last time.”
Rombel praising Marcus was an exceptional occurrence.
Like most men, Rombel was stingy with praise. Even more so when praising someone he knew.
“His physical abilities are just so-so, but his wits are quick and he learns fast. Perhaps because he went through rough times as a mercenary, he also has quite a bit of courage, contrary to his looks.”
“Courage?”
“You haven’t seen Marcus wet himself yet, have you?”
Elbridge laughed.
It was a frequent occurrence for apprentice paladins to wet themselves, after all.
“I know how skilled Marcus is. It is just, how should I put it… seeing Marcus defeat a paladin simply feels a bit unfamiliar.”
“They are still clumsy fellows. Since it is the Grand Festival, they cannot even use divine authority. It would be stranger for Marcus to lose.”
At that moment, a roaring cheer shook the arena. Waaah—
Looking up at the stage, he saw Marcus limping from a cut to his leg.
Marcus limped slightly before laying down his sword. His opponent was the chief paladin of the Order of the Staghorn.
Rombel chuckled.
“The Order of the Staghorn used their heads well. Rather than losing face by sending out clumsy paladins, they placed their chief paladin at the vanguard. Marcus had no choice but to come out as the vanguard as well. No matter how good Marcus is, he still cannot defeat the chief paladin of a combat order.”
With Marcus subdued, the match was virtually over.
After a one-sided contest, the victory of the Order of the Staghorn was declared.
A moment of time passed.
Around the time the next match was about to begin, Marcus, who had disappeared into the waiting room, approached Elbridge’s side.
Through his torn trousers, his perfectly healed leg was visible.
“Marcus. Your skills have improved a lot.”
“It just happened because I struggled hard to avoid dying.”
His tone was slightly grumbling as usual, but Marcus’s expression was bright.
“Actually, it is quite fun. I was in the waiting room earlier, and the paladin lords of the combat orders were subtly conscious of me. I could never have imagined a situation like this in the past…”
Until not long ago, Marcus had been just an ordinary mercenary.
But the current Marcus was different. A highly skilled warrior whom countless mercenaries would admire.
Furthermore, the time it took for him to acquire such skills was barely over a year. There was ample potential for further improvement.
Suddenly, a question surfaced in Elbridge’s mind.
“Mr. Marcus. The reason you followed me at first was because of the oracle delivered by the God of the Sunshower, wasn’t it?”
“It was.”
“Do you think you would follow me now even without the oracle?”
“That is… hmm.”
Moving alongside Elbridge inevitably meant facing dangerous situations.
However, the possibility of grasping even more lay by Elbridge’s side.
Danger, and desire.
Marcus pondered for a moment before offering an answer that differed from Elbridge’s expectation.
“…I do not think I would follow.”
“That is unexpected.”
There is inertia in both failure and success.
Just as it is hard for a person who has stopped after experiencing failure to move again, it is not easy for a person who has tasted the sweetness of success to halt.
Because humans are beings inherently made to crave more.
“Do not misunderstand. It is not that I would cut ties. Even without an oracle, I would visit the temple of the Order of the Rusty Shield to keep you company, and if Sir Elbridge asks for help, I would go to help even if it is dangerous. Well, though I am not sure how much help I would be in a situation dangerous enough for Sir Elbridge… the point is that I have at least that much loyalty.”
Marcus organized his thoughts for a moment and continued speaking.
“But… if you ask whether I would follow Sir Elbridge simply to gain more, I do not think I would. I already think what I have is a bit too generous. This much is more than enough for me to live out the rest of my life enjoyably.”
When Elbridge’s party received dwarf armaments as gifts in the Mountain City Barkuntol, Elbridge and Rombel chose items with an emphasis on practicality. Because the two had no intention of avoiding the battles they would have to wage endlessly in the future.
However, Marcus was different. What Marcus chose was the sword that seemed like it could be sold for the highest price.
That was not a preparation for moving forward, but an arrangement for the day he would stop.
Marcus shrugged his shoulders.
“Well, it is still uncertain. Even a while ago, the God of the Sunshower delivered an oracle. Telling me not to play petty tricks and to diligently follow Sir Elbridge… So for the time being, whether I want to or not, I will have to follow you.”
Elbridge gave him a sly piece of advice.
“Did you know that, Mr. Marcus? Retaliating against a believer who has changed their faith is forbidden by the rules of heaven.”
At that, Marcus snorted.
“This is something I felt while working as a mercenary, but rules and such are meaningless. The guys who strike someone they dislike on the back of the head with a club don’t do it because such behavior is permitted. It is better not to build up grudges in the first place…”
While Marcus was excitedly continuing his story, a small rumble of thunder echoed from a cloudless sky. Rumble.
Marcus immediately shrank back.
“…I have no intention of changing orders or rejecting oracles in the future. Sir Elbridge. You understand, right?”
Elbridge looked at Rombel and Marcus. In a way, two people who were exactly opposite.
Elbridge burst into laughter without realizing it.