A column made by stacking wooden logs and a wooden frame is used as a framework. Around it, a makeshift canopy is created by wrapping it with cloth.
It was a simple process, but the knight seemed so familiar with it that he quickly put the tent together with just a few bangs.
Though it was unstable since it was built to establish a stronghold, it seemed like there wouldn’t be any major issues for resting.
I entered the tent and quietly sat on the floor. The barren ground only had stubborn weeds growing, which was slightly bothersome, but not enough to get on my nerves.
‘…It’s quiet.’
An awkward silence enveloped the tent. When I turned my head slightly, I saw the priestess and the knight sitting side by side.
I thought about greeting them first, but the priestess seemed too busy praying. The knight, too, was quietly closing his eyes with a cross in his hand, perhaps in prayer.
For someone just observing in such an awkward atmosphere, it was quite a struggle. Silphy seemed to find my demeanor frustrating, and scolded me in my head.
[What are you so awkward about?]
‘We just met for the first time.’
[Ah, our contractor is shy, huh.]
Silphy chuckled at my words. Somehow, that made me sigh in annoyance.
‘Silence.’
[Okay, I’ll keep quiet.]
With that, Silphy immediately cut off the link. I said she was noisy, but I didn’t tell her to shut up!
With Silphy’s chatter gone, the awkwardness doubled. The suffocating silence inside the tent was starting to weigh heavily on me.
Since it was prayer time, I couldn’t break the silence, which was a struggle.
Just when I was beginning to feel exhausted, the knight quietly set down the cross. The man with blue hair took a breath and then stood up.
He bowed his head and spoke first.
“I apologize. I couldn’t speak during prayer time.”
“Oh, it’s fine by me.”
To be honest, it wasn’t that fine. Still, I was relieved that the prayer time wasn’t too long.
The blue-haired knight cleared his throat and continued.
“I am Kal Heron, a knight of the First Holy Knight Order.”
“Ah, I am Id, a spirit knight of the Black Raven Knights.”
As I said this, I fiddled with my necklace. Fortunately, the disguise necklace was functioning properly.
Since my hair, which slightly obstructed my view, was still white, I assumed there wouldn’t be any problems.
‘I needed a disguised identity, right?’
Adele von Este.
As a daughter of a count family, attending the Monster Extermination War was impossible. After all, it wasn’t a typical event.
There was no way I could use that identity in a place like a battlefield.
The identity I created was that of the spirit knight, Id.
With white hair and blue eyes, I would participate in the extermination as an entirely different person thanks to the disguise necklace I used before.
I still felt a bit awkward in this appearance. I had to get used to it since I’d be like this for a while.
Thanks to Abel pouring a significant amount of mana into the necklace, it shouldn’t be easily discovered.
I was a bit tense when the Pope approached me, fearing my disguise might be revealed.
‘Fortunately, it seems he didn’t catch on.’
This necklace was quite a powerful artifact in its own right.
While it lacked some basic cognitive interference functions as a disguise item, it was perfect for disguising oneself as someone else.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Id.”
Kal extended his right hand. I reached out to shake his hand.
“Yes, it’s a pleasure to meet you too, Kal.”
His hand, marked with impressive calluses, felt reliable. He smiled warmly, chuckling heartily.
Kal slightly turned his head and observed the priestess, who was quietly praying.
As he watched her, he let out a faint sigh.
“Yurph, the prayer time is over now.”
“Is it?”
The priestess slightly opened her eyes at Kal’s words. She pulled back her hood, which had been obscuring her face.
Then, she slowly rose from the ground.
The sight of the priestess was quite different from what I expected.
Her hands were thin like twig branches, her arms seemed to have nothing but bones, her cheeks were sunken, and she had dark circles around her eyes.
The priestess, Yurph, seemed to sense my gaze and approached me quietly. Realizing I hadn’t introduced myself, I quickly did so.
“Nice to meet you. I’m Id, the spirit knight.”
“I know. I’ve heard of you.”
“…Yurph.”
Kal narrowed his eyes and shot a look at Yurph.
“Got it, got it.”
Yurph seemed tired and nodded. She bowed her head as a form of respect.
“I am Yurph, a priest of the First Holy Knight Order. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”
Her tone sounded as if she was reading a textbook without any soul. Kal’s forehead creased at her demeanor.
He seemed to have something to say but sighed and held back his words. Perhaps he was hoping for the bare minimum of courtesy from her.
Speaking of which, her condition seemed quite serious. I worried if she could even step onto a battlefield with such a frail body.
I feared she might get seriously injured if she inadvertently got caught up in a battle’s aftermath.
“Are you alright?”
“Don’t worry. I can definitely heal, even with this body.”
Yurph replied to my question. It wasn’t that I doubted her healing abilities.
I was just worried about her getting hurt while fighting.
[A tired lady indeed.]
Silphy had linked back up sometime and chimed in my head. I didn’t want to admit it, but she was right; she looked undeniably fatigued.
Kal quietly watched Yurph and stepped in front of her.
“I apologize. This young lady is currently fasting and has become quite sensitive.”
“Fasting? But…”
Fasting with a body like that? Is it even reasonable to fast when she’s so gaunt that she looks like she’ll collapse any moment?
I didn’t want to interfere with her religious fasting, but come on, this is pushing it.
Kal quickly explained in a hurried voice as if he sensed my frown deepening.
“The fasting is voluntary on her part. I want to stop it too, but…”
Yurph from behind cut in with a snort and sat back down. Then, she firmly stated.
“I’m not planning to stop.”
Kal seemed at a loss, continually sighing in frustration.
‘How’s her condition?’
[..Serious.]
Silphy’s voice came through, underscored by a more serious tone than usual.
[Fortunately, it seems she’s been drinking water… but other aspects are critical.]
‘To what extent?’
[Honestly, if it weren’t for her divine power, it wouldn’t be surprising if she collapsed at any moment.]
That’s how severe it was.
It was impressive enough that she managed to hold on with human willpower to this point.
What on earth was so important that she had to maintain a fast in such a state?
I looked at Kal, and he shook his head as if saying he couldn’t speak about it.
Is it a confidentiality issue? It seemed there was something more significant intertwined with her fasting than I thought.
Not knowing what that was left me feeling a bit uneasy, but for now, I could only watch over her.
§
A massive gap in the air, releasing a blue aura from its center.
In the core of that energy, a pulsating mass rolled like an eyeball.
Could this be the Dimension Gap I’ve heard so much about?
‘It looks deadly.’
To close that gap, I first had to weaken the power of the core. It would use that strength to summon monsters from another realm.
That meant we’d soon be facing threats of catastrophic proportions spilling out of that gap.
I had steeled myself, but now that I stood before it, trembling was unavoidable. I focused all my nerves on the gap, breathing deeply.
[This is insane.]
Silphy, too, came up beside me with a short comment. I turned my head and observed the knights, who were equally tense.
Our knights were holding their weapons tightly, not letting their guard down.
Abel, positioned at the front, composed his clothes and gazed at the Dimension Gap with a calm demeanor.
To maintain such composure in this situation was quite admirable, a trait I wanted to emulate.
[Get ready, Contractor.]
“Okay.”
At Silphy’s cue, a monster burst from the gap.
With dozens of eyeballs on its body and steel blades on its wings, it looked like a grotesque bird and let out a roar upon spotting us.
Kwoooorrr!
“Are you ready?”
I nodded at Kal’s question, raising my rapier. Even as a support team, we couldn’t dodge battle.
The extermination team would handle most threats, but it would be up to the support team to deal with the crafty monsters that slipped through.
“Wind, come to me!”
A gust of wind swept over my entire body.
My white hair fluttered alongside it.
Priestess Yurph, sporting a serene expression, calmly watched the monsters pouring from the gap.
Meanwhile, knight and paladin members from the extermination team began charging at the surge of monsters.
“We offer this glory to the Goddess!!”
“Let’s finish them!”
Various auras flared up from their bodies. It was common to see auras belonging to Sword Experts and Sword Masters among them.
The holy power from the knights radiated fiercely, surrounding them, presenting various forms.
Kwaaaaaang!
A mixture of holy power and auras cleaved the new form of monster in half. Following this were an endless wave of monsters pouring forth as if to say, “this is just the beginning.”
The Monster Extermination War had officially commenced.
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