221st Chapter: How Many Tasks Did You Handle? (3)
The envoy who came to the Northern Fortress was none other than Baron Andy Share, who had previously been in charge of transporting the Perdium support supplies.
He greeted with a beaming smile.
“How have you been? I’ve come to deliver a royal message.”
Zvalter nodded with a somewhat grim expression and asked, “W-what now? Why does the royalty want to see me…?”
Every time someone came looking for him, he couldn’t help but worry that his son had gotten into some kind of accident. This anxiety had only grown since he had heard the news of the war recently.
Seeing the anxious Zvalter, Baron Share continued to smile.
“From today, you have been promoted to Marquis. Congratulations!”
Zvalter, stunned by the unexpected news, asked back with a dazed expression, “Marquis? Me?”
“Yes, indeed. Of course, your authority and mission to protect the borders will remain the same as before.”
“Why… so suddenly…?”
He couldn’t help but feel puzzled, especially since he hadn’t done anything particularly remarkable.
Baron Share briefly explained what had transpired. They said it was a reward for his hardships, but Zvalter understood that the hidden meaning was that his son’s deeds somehow led to this promotion.
“W-wait… Ghislaine has become a Count?”
“Yes, that’s correct. He is now Count Penris.”
Zvalter felt dizzy. The troublemaker was now a proud high-ranking noble. Even with an envoy standing before him, it was hard to believe.
The conditions in Perdium had been poor, and they had barely been able to provide adequate support. To think everything was achieved through his son’s own efforts filled him with pride as a father.
Dazed, Zvalter conducted a simple promotion ceremony. Even being recognized by the royal family still felt surreal.
“Really… a Marquis? Me? Our family?”
He had lived for decades as a poor Count of the North. Not just him, but even his ancestors had been the same. But the world was changing too quickly.
It might just be a name only but, still, this accumulation builds prestige.
Zvalter recalled his long-deceased nagging father.
“Father, it seems my son will surely bring glory to our family.”
As Zvalter stood there, still dazed and confused, Knight Commander Randolf shouted out from the side.
“Now, his lordship is Marquis of Perdium!”
“Waaaaah!”
The knights and soldiers erupted in cheers that could shake the fortress.
It felt like the lord, who had worked hard to protect the territory residents for so long, was finally being recognized. Everyone rejoiced as if it was their own good fortune.
Good news continued to pour in from the fortress. The territory’s debts were paid off, and their lord had been promoted.
And they all knew who was behind making all of this possible.
One knight raised his sword and shouted loudly.
A knight raised his sword and shouted loudly.
“For the glory of the House of Perdium!”
The other knights drew their swords and held them high. The soldiers also lifted their spears, shouting in unison.
“For the glory of the House of Perdium!”
Thus, the northern fortress also fell into the festive mood. News would soon reach the Perdium Territory that a celebration was underway.
Such a day couldn’t just be overlooked. Regaining his senses, Zvalter shouted to everyone with a confident voice.
“Today, we will leave only a minimal guard and enjoy a feast for the first time in ages! We’ll pull out all the meat and drink we’ve been saving, so let’s eat and drink to our hearts’ content!”
“Whoooaaa!”
The soldiers cheered again. The knights cheered even louder.
After repeating training and combat, their bodies had become a bit worn out. At times like this, indulging in food and drink would really boost their spirits.
Just as everyone was cheering, an administrator rushed over and whispered to Zvalter.
“My Lord, we have no meat left.”
“What? Why? How can that be?”
“It’s all gone. You know meat is scarce due to the drought affecting the fortress, right?”
“…Oh, is that so? I thought we had a little left.”
“The Knight Commander secretly ate what little was remaining whenever he had the chance. He complained about always being hungry eating just bread. He almost finished all the drink too.”
“That bastard?”
Zvalter glared at Randolf. Randolf, blissfully unaware, just smiled and waved.
Holding back the urge to smack him, Zvalter spoke apologetically to everyone.
“They say we’re out of meat! Some jerk gobbled it all up… I mean, let’s have bread and soup today, and I promise we’ll get some meat next time!”
“Ugh…”
The knights and soldiers looked dejected.
Of course, in our situation, what kind of meat could we expect?
Even though they had cleared their debts, had ample supplies, and were from the House of Marquis… it was still a tragically unfortunate territory.
*
As soon as Ghislaine returned, he called for Piote.
Piote, coming in, cautiously asked, “Did the Church… not look for me?”
“Well, they did look, but the situation has changed a bit.”
“What kind of situation?”
“First, take this.”
Ghislaine abruptly handed a sacred relic to Piote.
Piote, receiving the ring, tilted his head and asked, “What is this?”
“A ring, it’s called Juana’s Blessing.”
“What does that mean?”
“It’s a relic of the Juana Church. I got it as a gift from Bishop Porisco.”
“Eek!”
Piote almost dropped the ring in shock. A low-ranking priest like him wasn’t supposed to handle sacred relics carelessly.
He had only been shown the Sacred Relic Repository once during his training.
“W-Why are you giving this to me? I shouldn’t have something like this.”
“Don’t worry; I got permission. Just don’t tell anyone else it’s a relic. Only Bishop Porisco knows.”
Since Ghislaine wasn’t explaining things properly, Piote couldn’t understand the situation. After refusing several times, Ghislaine persisted.
“Don’t give it to anyone else. You must keep it on you at all times. Understand?”
“Yes…”
If it were just a gift, he might have given it away to someone in need. That’s why Ghislaine stressed several times that it was a relic and that it couldn’t be lost.
Piote carefully held the ring in his hand and looked at Ghislaine again, asking, “What did you mean by the situation has changed? What is the Church saying?”
“Hmm.”
Ghislaine pulled out a permanent assignment notice from his belongings and handed it to Piote.
Seeing the notice, Piote’s expression went blank for a moment before he quickly lowered his head. From just reading the contents, it felt like the Church had abandoned him.
Piote’s expression went blank for a moment as he looked at the appointment letter, and then he quickly bowed his head. Just from reading it, it felt as if the Church had abandoned him.
Giving him a sacred relic seemed like an unspoken pressure to stay here for life.
Ghislaine, who had been observing him, slowly opened his mouth.
“If you want to go back, you’re free to do so. I’ll even assign guards to ensure your safety.”
“W-What?”
Piote looked up in surprise.
The demon lord in front of him had forcibly held him captive and made sure he received the permanent appointment letter.
And now, suddenly he was saying it was okay to leave? And that he would provide guards as well?
“You’re joking, right?”
“No, I’m serious. The reason I went through the trouble of getting that appointment letter is to give you the freedom to choose comfortably. You can only make a true choice when you’re in a free state.”
“Choice?”
“Yeah, it’s up to you what kind of life you want to live.”
Ghislaine meant it. He had done the same when acquiring Gillian and had given Claude the chance to leave as well.
He had not forced Kaor and the mercenaries to become knights, and he promised freedom to the dwarves and elves a decade later.
Having lived as a mercenary, Piote valued his freedom more than anyone.
So he wanted Piote to make his own choice too.
Although initially, he had been forced to stay for the sake of financial compensation, Piote had already paid well beyond that.
And he shouldn’t forcibly hold those who would continue to be his close associates. The enemies he would face in the future couldn’t be met with a half-hearted mindset.
“Well… If Piote leaves, I should ask Porisco to send some other priests.”
It was disappointing, but Piote had his own life to pursue. If he wanted to go, then now was the right time.
The sacred relic was a gift for all the hard work. As long as he wrote a single letter to Porisco, everything would be fine.
Piote was silent for a long while. He stared at the appointment letter, questioning his own heart.
“Is it really okay to go back like this?”
He had wished to return every day. Each day was so painful he felt like he was going crazy.
Yet, an unexpected opportunity had suddenly appeared. The moment he had been waiting for had come, so it felt right to smile and return without hesitation.
But why did his heart feel so uneasy?
“If I return… other people will have a harder time.”
He had hesitated to go back last time for that very reason. He knew very well how important his role in this territory was.
“But how long will I have to keep this up? I… I’ve done enough.”
No priest would ever help so many people while living such a difficult life. He knew that better than anyone since he had been raised in the Church since childhood.
This was enough. He couldn’t live like this forever, could he? He too had his own life to live.
If he kept staying out of pity and regret, there would be no end to it.
His heart felt increasingly uneasy. Before he grew more attached and in pain… it was better to finish it here.
With a trembling voice, Piote spoke up.
“Thank you… for everything…”
His throat was choked, and the words wouldn’t come out properly. When he tried to hold back the tears welling in his eyes, the lines from the scripture he had read every day since childhood came to his mind.
[Helping the struggling and suffering is akin to serving God.]
[You will become as the smallest and be one who serves.]
[And so, you shall forever follow the path of mercy, truth, and righteousness.]
Ah…
Piote’s mind was filled with the faces of the people he had seen so far.
Those who were starving, suffering, and struggling in despair. When he first saw them, it was clear that everyone in Cabaldy’s territory was just like that.
The struggling ones. When I first saw them, surely everyone in Cabaldy territory was like that.
But now, what about it?
There were no starving people. The number of those in pain was also decreasing. A smile spread across the faces of those who had been struggling.
The Lord before them, the retainers following the lord, everyone was joining forces to change the territory.
‘Even if it wasn’t done for the sake of the people.’
The Ghislaine that Piote saw was a person who did not hesitate to use means and methods for his goals.
Someone who couldn’t simply be defined as good or evil, rather closer to chaos.
Yet his actions were ultimately helping the people. And for that, his strength would still be necessary in the future.
‘Ah… I didn’t even know my own heart.’
Only then did Piote clearly realize his own feelings. He finally understood the uncomfortable emotions he felt when he was about to leave.
With a deep breath, Piote suddenly smiled and spoke.
“I feel at ease now.”
“Huh?”
“I finally understood why my heart was uncomfortable until now.”
At that, Ghislaine tilted his head. Wasn’t it uncomfortable because he couldn’t go home?
Still wearing a gentle smile, Piote continued.
“I was worried about when the church would come looking for me or call for me. Not knowing that, I thought it was just uncomfortable because I was struggling. But seeing this, I learned my true feelings.”
“True… feelings?”
Piote vigorously nodded his head.
“Yes, I want to stay here. I want to stay here and help those who are struggling and suffering. And in the future, I want to help even more people. That’s truly fulfilling the will of the goddess, and it must be the reason she granted me divine power.”
“……”
Ghislaine showed a slightly surprised expression.
Before, he thought Piote was only staying out of kindness. But now it seemed he genuinely wanted to stay for the people.
He had hardly seen a priest like this in his past life. Ghislaine, half in disbelief, asked again.
“Are you really okay with it? I know from experience that our territory has a lot of work and is very tough. You’ve fainted a few times from exhaustion, right? Helping people continuously isn’t easy.”
“I lived in the temple without knowing anything. I didn’t realize how much people suffered and struggled outside the temple. I want to lessen their pain, even a little.”
“If you go back, you could live comfortably for the rest of your life eating only good things in a clean place like other priests.”
Piote shook his head with a bitter smile.
“I don’t want to live just for a few nobles anymore. That’s not the will of the goddess.”
“You could live comfortably like that, but you don’t want to?”
It was hard to believe it was something a priest of this era would say. If Claude had heard, he would have kicked him for being insane.
But Piote clasped his hands together as if in prayer, closed his eyes, and spoke earnestly.
“Yes, because I am the one who is with the highest, yet in the lowest place.”
As if he had gained some realization, divine power began to gently flow from Piote’s body.
Some of his pink hair gradually turned silver.
Ghislaine was left speechless. The attitude he observed days ago from Porisco… no, it could not be compared to any priest he had seen before. It felt as if he belonged to a completely different race altogether.
The true saint was being born right here.
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