A tidal wave of corpses that had long been the graveyard of the Infura Church Region, struck Semek.
“Yona, you!”
Vigrind stood up abruptly, her face flushed bright red. It was hard to tell if it was anger or something else; her visible agitation revealed her tumultuous emotions. Yona, on the receiving end of that fierce gaze, looked back at Vigrind with a confused expression, wondering why she was acting like this again.
“Semek is a village that deserves our help as priests of the Church of the Celestial God! It’s not something to negotiate a reward over!”
“Well, I am a priest,” Yona retorted, lounging back in her chair and crossing her legs. The moment her nun’s outfit slipped down to reveal her pale thigh, Alex rushed over to pull it back up to cover her properly.
“I may be a priest, but that tightwads and that lizard over there, and even Uncle James, aren’t priests. The Church of the Celestial God didn’t teach us to drag innocent people into this mess, did it?”
“Aren’t you supposed to persuade us?!”
“Why should I?”
Genuinely, she had no idea why that was her responsibility. What motivation did an adventurer have beyond money? They usually would either discuss the reward and associated costs or negotiate some success fee. That’s how adventurers work, right?
“Vig, I think you might be lacking a sense of reality since you only grew up in the cathedral. Adventurers are motivated by money, not some flimsy faith or righteousness.”
“Al, flimsy, you say…!”
Vigrind clenched her fists tightly, trembling in frustration. After all, Yona was also a priest and had grown up receiving religious education at the cathedral. The name Semek was definitely part of that curriculum. Yet, she couldn’t grasp why Yona held such an attitude.
“Hero, Hero, could you please say something too!”
Vigrind thought that if she continued this argument, it would seriously affect her image. The hero, Ludvik, was also someone who had come from an adventurer background.
And yet, now he was meant to accompany her on the heroic journey. Surely he could deliver a grand statement to Yona and those adventurers—
“Saint, you shouldn’t treat adventurers like that. You should approach it differently.”
Ludvik gestured for Vigrind to sit down. After hesitating, she settled back into her seat, and Ludvik cleared his throat lightly before speaking up.
“Anyway, the village chief? Not really, but whatever, listening to that guy, it sounds like Kapatia is closer from Semek, right? So if we rush there now, we’d get to Kapatia faster than to Infura, right? If we’re leading an army, they’re bound to burst forth like it’s their own world. So, if anyone’s going to stop that, it’s us, isn’t it? Right, regent?”
“That’s right.”
Ceres nodded quietly. Semek is not right in the center, after all.
“Then what’s so difficult about it? Since we have no idea how dire the situation is, discussing the compensation now seems meaningless. Isn’t it better to just go and see? In exchange, ensure a minimum of two or three gold coins as guaranteed.”
Not knowing the gravity of the situation, they decided to assess first but promised at least two or three gold coins as the lowest compensation.
In fact, it was a reasonable judgment, and Yona and the party members agreed.
After all, adventurers make money with their lives.
It would be absurd to give up a big payout just because it’s dangerous.
*
The fact that Semek was engulfed by a wave of the dead also reached the Infura Church Region, and the urgency of the matter was reported all the way up to the Pope.
While it wasn’t exactly clear how much damage had occurred, the number of corpses in Semek was estimated to be close to two thousand, meaning that many undead had likely risen.
Thus, under Pope Akzel IV’s authorization, it was decided to dispatch a Holy Knight Brigade.
Clad in shining silver armor and equipped with sacred weapons, the Holy Knight Brigade was a higher-ranked order than the Cathedral Knights, crafted in the cathedral to combat demons and the undead, making them the ultimate weapon.
After reviewing their formation, Pope Akzel IV issued a temporary waiting order.
There was a nagging, ominous feeling.
After the avatar of Vervaria descended at Kapatia Port before fleeing, the subsequent events were unknown.
And then there was the wave of the dead that hit Semek.
It would be stranger to say these two events are unrelated.
Undead monsters like zombies were not uncommon.
They usually rose due to a grudge from their death or were summoned by rare necromancers, but if such a large-scale incident occurred, one would have to assume there was a greater mastermind behind it.
“…Bring forth the 13th Special Holy Unit.”
At the low voice of Pope Akzel IV, the priest quickly bowed and stepped back.
The silver armor gleamed brightly.
The helmet had just enough slit for the eyes, concealing the face completely.
The sharp spikes jutting out from the shoulders, elbows, wrists, and knuckles gleamed menacingly, and the armor was flawless, reflecting the wearer’s character as tidy and neat.
As the holy knight approached with the clinking sound of his articulated joints, he halted before the carpet leading to Pope Akzel IV, releasing the silver shield and dark mace to hand them to the priest.
“Ugh, uht.”
The priest staggered under their weight.
The gear was so heavy that the priest could hardly hold it with both hands, causing him to waver, prompting the holy knight to quickly take the shield and mace back from him.
He accepted it.
Then he hung his shield and mace on the weapon rack next to the table and stepped onto the carpet.
With every step he took, a heavy sound echoed. The weight of his steps seemed so immense that it might crack the floor. Maintaining a little distance from the Pope, the Holy Knight knelt down on one knee and bowed his head deeply.
“Scarlet, I have come in response to His Holiness the Pope’s summons.”
Pope Akzel IV, greeted by a quiet yet heavy voice, slowly nodded.
“I hear Semek has been swept away by the muddy waters, Scarlet.”
“…Yes, I’ve heard.”
“The Holy Knight Brigade will be dispatched. You shall join them.”
“I will do so.”
There was no hesitation. Accepting the order without the slightest doubt, without a question about joining alone, as if it were always the case, as if it were a given, Scarlet accepted the command without a murmur.
“We do not know whose doing this is. However, you shall punish those who dare to defile the bodies of the lambs embraced by the Celestial God.”
“Of course, I will.”
“Strike down those who have insulted the Church of the Celestial God with the hammer of the Celestial.”
“Of course, that will happen.”
“Let them never show their faces to the Church of the Celestial God again, not even dare to.”
“Of course, I will.”
“Go. Go and show the might of the Church of the Celestial God.”
With those words, the Holy Knight slowly rose.
With every movement, a low mechanical sound rang out, and a faint divine energy emanated.
Standing tall, the Holy Knight faced the Pope straight on.
His gaze was hidden behind the helmet, unseen by anyone, but one thing was certain—
He was a Holy Knight moving alone.
And he was also the very embodiment of the 13th Special Holy Unit.
*
“So, you’re saying the brigade will also be coming from the cathedral, right? Got it? Surprisingly, the situation might not be as serious as we think. Perhaps—”
Ceres stopped mid-sentence and laughed as she glanced at Vigrind.
Even now, Vigrind was fiercely engaged in a staring contest with Yona.
Both glared at each other, ready to unleash harsh words at any moment, but when Ceres fell silent, Vigrind peeked back at her, then, noticing her gaze, coughed awkwardly and straightened her posture.
“Yes, with our Saint Vigrind supporting from behind, and the Hero holding the line, that might just be enough, right? After all, skeletons and zombies are just low-level monsters, aren’t they? If our Hero and the Holy Knights from the cathedral stand firm, then once the Holy Knights from Infula arrive for a flanking attack, it’ll be over in no time—!”
“If we hold them off in front, the Holy Knights attacking from behind will take them out in one go—!”
As Ceres spoke, she suddenly let out a loud scream and turned to Rubina.
Hearing the words “zombie” and “ghoul,” Rubina trembled and squealed, hiding behind Yona’s arm.
“Please stop, Regent. You’re scaring Rubina.”
“Well, I did want her to be scared. Rubina, were you really that scared?”
Having somehow gotten familiar with Rubina, Ceres chuckled and gently patted her head, which made Rubina let out a big sigh.
“Anyway, that’s the plan. Sir Ludvik and Saint Vigrind will deal with the dead, and in the meantime, Yona and the Cathedral Knights will hold off the waves. The ones blocked here will be cleaned up by the Cathedral Knights pushing in from the other side… It’s not really that complicated.”
“…What about when a ghoul shows up?”
Ceres paused at Yona’s question.
Zombies move slowly, and aside from biting, they have no other means of attack. Skeletons are also slow, and aside from rusty iron swords, they don’t have much else—smashing their skulls is the end of it.
But ghouls are different.
Ghouls wield long claws and move swiftly, snatching the lives of the living. Their decaying skin is deadly just by touching, and if someone is ever bitten, they become a ghoul’s servant.
When they show up, they can cause huge damage to regular people and are quite the troublesome task for adventurers.
“Well, I guess the Hero will handle it. Or maybe Saint Vigrind.”
“However, it seems you are convinced that it’s the necromancer behind this, Regent.”
It was Kaiyak’s question. To him, the situation looked very serious. Although he’d never heard of Cemetery Village Semek, it sounded like an extremely important place, so the fact that a necromancer had invaded was odd. Usually, such places were protected by the Cathedral’s power.
It was hard to understand how they had been breached so easily. At least to Kaiyak, it seemed more likely to be a clone of Vervaria, which had slipped through at Kapatia Port, rather than some lowly necromancer.
“Well, thinking positively helps me feel better. As you said, Kaiyak, it’s good to keep the worst-case scenario in mind, but doing that would just wear me out. It’s easier on my mind to think it’s some necromancer with a bruised ego causing the trouble. Besides, it’s hard to imagine a demon doing something like this—sigh.”
Ceres picked up a cookie from the table, dipped it generously in honey, and took a bite.
“It’s easier to think positively. If I keep thinking about the worst, my mood will go to the worst too.”
Support me by donating at least $10, and you'll have the right to request any novel from Novelpia (excluding 19+ content) using a newly developed tool.
