“Please stop fighting.”
Razes, the commander of the Temple Knights, raised an eyebrow upon seeing the mysterious silver-haired boy.
‘Sena Birkender, a special protection target. Why is he here?’
Sent by the Pope to eliminate the heretic Chris, any obstruction could only mean more heresy.
Right now, Sena Birkender’s actions were highly suspicious.
‘How could someone not even affiliated with the Church be called a saint?’
Razes’ brows furrowed even more. He had always disliked the exaggerated title attached to Sena.
There were also rumors of Sena receiving excessive favor from Justitia.
“What is this nonsense? How dare you block the sword of a knight executing the will of God?”
Moreover, Sena’s actions just now were clearly against the Church’s orders. Hence, Razes couldn’t help but speak harshly.
“No matter who you are, if you side with heresy…”
“What is the will of God?”
“What?”
“I asked, what is Justitia’s will?”
Without hesitation, Razes drew his sword and aimed it at Sena. Yet Sena walked toward him without a hint of fear, even at a distance where his neck could be pierced at any moment, showing no hesitation.
It was as if he wasn’t afraid of death. Razes flinched and stepped back, and upon realizing his actions, his pupils trembled.
‘Did I just step back? Me, Razes?’
It was undoubtedly the first time in his life. He was taken aback by his own actions.
“Is it Justitia’s will to intimidate the powerless villagers?”
“Impertinent—!”
“Or, sister, are you perhaps distorting Justitia’s will?”
“Do not dare speak that name, you who are not even a priest. If you say anything more, I will cut you down.”
“I am saying that no one can know the true will of Justitia.”
Sena smiled brightly and walked toward the villagers with his hands behind his back.
“…Don’t know God’s will? A person called a saint doesn’t know?”
Razes still pointed his sword at Sena with dangerous eyes.
“Eliminating heretics is what Justitia wants. And killing those who protect heretics is what those who follow God should rightfully do!”
Sena approached the village chief and whispered something. This was enough to irritate Razes.
“Are you daring to ignore my words right now? Just because you are the son of Cruyff, you think you have nothing to fear? I, as the commander of the Templar Knights, have the authority for immediate execution—!”
Sena spun around with his hands behind his back and spoke with a natural smile.
“Aren’t you hungry?”
“…What?”
Razes couldn’t believe his ears. What did he just say?
This was completely out of context.
“Let’s have a meal.”
Sena even mimed eating to ensure he was heard.
Razes’ brows furrowed even more deeply.
“Future saint, are you mocking me right now?”
“What about the people behind you? Aren’t they hungry?”
“This guy…!”
“Anyone who’s hungry, raise your hand!”
Sena cheerfully raised his hand.
Razes was so taken aback he was at a loss for words.
‘Whatever your intention, don’t think the knights who follow God’s will are going to play along.’
Razes turned his head sharply, imagining the knights staring menacingly at Sena.
But she overlooked one thing.
Without the prior knowledge that Sena was a boy, he just looked like a pretty girl.
And no matter how devout, no one could refuse the meal request of a cute silver-haired girl.
“…Are you guys seriously not putting your hands down?”
Razes’ eyes grew dim as he looked at the knights, who were raising their hands with cheerful faces.
A cold wind blew past them, despite it being summer.
**
“Here, this is the antidote. The poison of Isu cannot be detoxified by holy magic. If you administer this now, it should be fine. And… I apologize for attacking first.”
It was quite a peculiar scene.
In a large clearing, a bonfire burned in the center. On the left side sat the Templar Knights, and on the right, the villagers.
Razes, still in his armor, received the antidote. He handed it to his lieutenant standing behind him and spoke.
“…Give this to Polon and use the holy arts on the ones we attacked earlier.”
“Yes.”
The knight who responded briefly disappeared, and silence fell over the area. Caught in the middle, Sena clapped his hands with an awkward smile.
“Well done. Isn’t it nice to resolve things through conversation? Now, let’s eat!”
Sena bit into a baguette with a happy expression.
‘Baguettes are truly divine.’
The main ingredient of baguettes, wheat, has characteristics unique to each region, and a baguette best captures the flavor of that wheat.
Although Sena didn’t like all baguettes, he generally enjoyed them unless they were from the northern regions. The baguette here was very tasty.
“…Everyone, take the meat. You’ve all worked hard during the long march.”
With a sigh, Razes spoke, and the knights, who had been maintaining discipline, each grabbed a large piece of barbecue and began eating.
“Sister, you should eat too.”
“…You don’t call a knight ‘sister.’”
“Oh, right. Sorry about that.”
“If possible, go to the cathedral and receive formal education.”
Razes half-closed his eyes and took a bite of the barbecue.
…This is tastier than I expected.
“…We were discussing the will of Justitia earlier, and now you suddenly tell us to eat. What kind of attitude is that?”
Razes asked, and Sena, who was munching on the baguette, looked up.
“Well, I thought this was the will of Justitia.”
“What nonsense.”
“Wouldn’t Justitia want hungry knights to be fed? That’s what I would think.”
“Huh.”
The nearby knights, close enough to hear the conversation, all stopped eating and looked at Sena.
Their faces showed how moved they were.
“Well, it’s not entirely wrong.”
Razes chuckled and looked at the meat.
This was an unprecedented situation. When the Teutonic Knights revealed heresy, people usually reacted in one of two ways.
They would either tremble in fear or show hostility. But this was the first time there had been such harmony.
‘Is this the grace of someone called a potential saint?’
Having only known Sena through rumors, Razes began to understand why he had such a nickname despite not being a clergyman.
“But.”
Razes looked coldly at the village chief.
“The fact that we are peacefully eating here is based on the assumption that you have not harbored heretics.”
“Well, I told you, we have never taken in such people.”
The village chief spoke coldly, but Razes openly sneered at him.
“Do you underestimate the Church’s intelligence? The Church’s eyes see even the tiniest crawling insect. Do you think we wouldn’t know if an impure person had infiltrated this village?”
“Razes, the villagers have nothing to do with this. I vouch for them.”
“That’s something the future saint says out of ignorance. One of our knights was taken down by a gatekeeper. Are you telling me a ‘normal’ villager could defeat a knight?”
Razes’ suspicion was reasonable. What kind of villager could possess the strength equal to that of a knight?
However, it’s a different story if the village had been training for centuries to become strong enough to face the Demon King.
“Razes, do you know the name of this village?”
Sena cleared his throat a few times and then told the same story he had shared with Astria.
After hearing everything, Razes’ eyes widened.
“Training for centuries to become strong enough to face the Demon King?”
“That’s right. We all take pride in that.”
Sena was genuinely curious about what Razes would think. A typical person, like Astria, might dismiss it as ‘trivial.’
“Remarkable. Truly remarkable. In my entire life, I’ve never seen anyone with such a noble purpose.”
That was Razes’ answer. She tore into her barbecue with a fervor that showed she was still excited by what she had just heard.
“No matter what others may call an illusion, they pursue their mission to the end! The Baron is surely looking upon this village with pride even now.”
Razes was clearly someone who struggled to express emotions. This was likely the highest praise she could muster.
‘Thank goodness.’
Are you watching, Astria?
Fighting isn’t always the answer. Sena felt proud, believing he had proven his point through his actions.
He wanted to return quickly to receive praise from them, but there were still things left to do.
“…However, even after hearing such a wonderful story, the information that a heretic is hiding here does not simply disappear.”
“The person you’re looking for is Chris, right?”
“You knew, after all.”
“How could I not? He’s my friend. If possible, could you tell me why he’s been labeled a heretic?”
“A report came in saying he possessed items used to worship demons.”
“That’s nonsense…! He doesn’t care about demons or even God.”
“Whether that’s true or not will be decided in a trial. First, we need to find and arrest him.”
Razes put down the meat and asked seriously. However, it sounded more like a request than a threat.
“Where is he now? If you tell me, I won’t cause any trouble. Not here, not in the next village.”
‘…I’ve never seen an acquittal in an Inquisition.’
The infamous nature of medieval Inquisitions was well-earned. It was even more severe in this world, where gods actually existed.
Thus, Sena gave the most definitive answer he could within the bounds of what was permissible.
“I’ve told you several times he’s not here. How many more times do I have to say it?”
The village chief spoke, sounding exasperated.
“Chief.”
“Yes. Please, go ahead.”
Despite not flinching in front of the Templar Knights, the chief immediately bowed his head to Sena. Razes found it unbelievable.
“…If it’s alright, could you let them stay in the village for a while?”
“What?”
Razes reacted first.
“Wouldn’t that be better for the Templar Knights too? If you don’t trust these people, it’s better to stay here and observe them.”
It was the best solution.
By keeping the knights searching for Chris tied up, a significant amount of time could be bought.
“That makes sense. But will they agree?”
“They will.”
“…You wouldn’t even let us set foot in the village earlier?”
“It’s a request from Sena. Besides, we realized that you’re people just like us.”
The chief looked around nostalgically. The knights, forgetting their dignity, were relieving their hunger. They certainly seemed like ordinary hungry young men.
“If it’s alright, please stay here. Even if the Demon King’s army attacks, having the Church’s knights here would be reassuring.”
“Why even ask? I will be the one to slay the Demon King.”
Razes chuckled and picked up the meat again. Sena breathed a sigh of relief.
‘It seems to be sorted out.’
Mission accomplished.
Now it was time to collect the quest reward.
Sena got up, dusted off his pants, and looked around.
He spotted Sylvia’s pink hair in the distance and approached stealthily.
However, the closer he got, the more confused he became.
Astria and Sylvia were sitting by a fire, grilling meat like defeated soldiers.
“Huh…? Why do you look so lifeless?”
“…I thought being cute was your only strength, but I forgot how powerful that one strength was.”
Sylvia had a face full of existential crisis.
“Truly insignificant.”
Astria spoke with a blank expression.
“This time, it was truly insignificant.”
Sena couldn’t understand.
This time, he really did something impressive. Why?
