Raising Paladins

Episode 149. return (5)

“excuse me… … elderly? Do you know anything about why Carl is doing that?”

Tira said as she handed the fruit to the chicken leg perched on her shoulder.

Carl had been feeling quite depressed since he had been out alone the night before.

Of course, no one knew why but Carl himself.

“See if you’re worried about something.”

It was Meisa’s horse, head-to-head with Tira’s carriage.

After she and Hanson sprinted to Merium and brought along a bunch of men, including Peter, Daryl, and Chrome.

There was also a cart to carry a huge amount of wealth and food.

The cart was borrowed from the Fruit Merchants of Meirium, and everyone who saw dozens of double-headed wagons passed in a row was in awe.

Such admiration grew the closer he got to Meirium.

“They are the priests of Meirium, right? They are the ones who are spreading the name of the Dawning Church all over the empire!”

“The outstanding priest named Carlos is the leader, and all the priests below him know how to use divine power?!”

“amazing… … It’s not that the sun god has forgotten the empire, it’s that the priests that have been released have been helpless!”

People praised Carlos and the priests.

The women of the village passing by looked forward to having a conversation with Carlos or Hanson, and the men admired Meisa and Tira.

In particular, rumors spread that Maysa had both natural beauty and skills, so noble children from the village on the way to Meirium scrambled to send her gifts.

Some noble men even hired bards to dedicate songs of their own composition.

Of course, at Meisa’s words to fight and win if you want him, he ran away.

As soon as the ballad about love started, the temple servants giggled at the sight of Meisa pulling out a rapier.

“Hey newcomers, listen up! I mean lift the load straight!”

“Yes, yes!”

Peter and Daryl, Chrome.

Now that they have become candidates for clerical priesthood, they caught the new recruits from the Pinas Islands like mice.

Throughout the procession, they were taken somewhere to teach them something, and every time they returned, the newcomers were covered in tears and runny nose.

But perhaps thanks to their harsh (?) teachings, the martial arts and stamina of the new recruits increased day by day.

After marching for such a long time.

The procession finally entered Merium.

“Oh, come! The priests’ carriage is coming!”

At the entrance of Meirium, there were already crowds of people who had heard the news.

Not only the believers who originally visited the temple, but also the villagers, the fruit merchants, the neighboring villages who had heard the news, and the people from far away, the lake city of Langfleur, and the capital of the empire, Kronia, were all over the place.

At the forefront of the crowd of people were Clemens and Eric, the high priests of the Temple of Dawn in Meirium.

They were smiling very happily, especially Clemens, who was proud of the fact that as many as four priests who dealt with divine power were born in the dying Temple of Dawn that he managed.

“What a great procession! These are the wonderful priests who saved Derdrang, defeated and liberated the pirates of the Pinas Islands!”

Applause poured in as the procession approached.

From the Battle of Derdrang, which I thought I would never be able to do, to the liberation of the Pinas Islands.

The priests who returned after accomplishing two impossible achievements at the same time were truly everyone’s heroes.

In particular, people were all the more enthusiastic because it was not the Noon Church or the Dusk Church, but the Dawn Church, which had the weakest power and said in unison that it would disappear in disarray.

“There, there! Priest Meisa is beautiful but cruel!”

“There is also a shield that will never collapse, Priest Hanson!”

“No matter what anyone says, I think Priest Tyra from Meirium is the best! They even handed out fruit to me when I was little!”

“Who is the blind old man next to him?!”

People saw the head of the priest procession and shouted what they wanted to say.

Brand and Terence also received enthusiastic cheers from the fruit top.

and after a while

The noisy crowd became quiet.

It was thanks to the knife that appeared in the wagon.

“Carl, I think you should say something.”

After reading the atmosphere, Tira quickly approached Carl.

Carl had a gloomy expression, wondering what he was worried about.

In fact, he was reminiscing about the terrible thing that had happened in the village he had been to not long ago.

A tragedy brought upon a family by just one ghoul.

After Carl sent the hunter Jerry and his family to the sun god, he climbed the mountain and found the ghoul.

It wasn’t difficult to find the one chewing up animal carcasses.

It was also an instant to run away from the sword’s longsword and burn the whole body.

But Carl wasn’t happy.

‘My family lost everything because of that one bird.’

The war to come will be like that.

Something more terrifying than Ghouls will appear and harass the powerless people of the empire and the followers of the Sun God Church.

With that in mind, I had to prepare for war quickly.

It was only in my dream, but I clearly saw the return of the Lich King.

“knife… … ?”

Tira carefully touched Carl’s shoulder, lost in thought.

Carl opened his closed eyes.

The uncountable number of people who had gathered far away were all staring at him.

It was a time when we needed to talk.

Full-!

Carl’s body soared markedly.

Soon after, he climbed onto the highest carriage.

People admired his movements.

“Thank you for welcoming me, citizens of Mayrium.”

Carl opened his mouth in a serious voice.

The crowd expected them to talk about the heroism they and their men had accomplished.

They were delighted with the appearance of a new hero, but a completely different story came out of Carl’s mouth.

“We are in a crisis right now.”

People groaned.

“Woah, a crisis?”

“What are you talking about?!”

“It’s kind of scary… … .”

The expression of a hardened knife.

he continued.

And the public was shocked.

“The Lich King has returned.”

***

Inside the high priest’s room in the Temple of Dawning in Meirium.

A heavy silence passed.

People could not easily open their mouths in such a shocking situation.

Clemens, who felt that it was time for him to step up, had a difficult time.

“I believe you must have suffered a lot on your long journey, Lion.”

Everyone nodded at his words.

No matter how hard the other party was, it was Carlos who always pointed out the core of the situation and played a decisive role.

Priest Eric, Peter, Grom, Daryl, and other servants were also present at the meeting.

“Thank you very much. But as I said before, the source of evil has returned to this world.”

“Well, do you have any reason for that?”

Priests who showed absolute faith in the words of the sword.

But it was so scary that I couldn’t help but check it out.

Carl also knew well how people feel.

“The sun god showed him in a dream. In a town whose location is unknown, it was sucking up the vitality of people and accumulating life energy in the Life Vessel. I saw it while I was on the boat, so I’m pretty much recovered by now. We will start preparing for war right away.”

“That, like that… … ?!”

People were shocked once again.

But Carl was silent.

It was about a war that he had only envisioned in his head.

“There is no reason for the Lich King to go to war. He hates all living things and only wants to put them under his feet. It would be foolish to ask him why he started the war or to look for evidence. The point is, if we lose in the war to come, this empire will become a land of corpses.”

“… … !!!”

The sound of people breathing quietly echoed inside the priest’s office.

Even Tira, who likes to make a fuss and has a lot of words, stayed still this time.

Because it was such a serious matter.

“So we, the Temple of Dawn, must start preparing for war right away. At the same time, it is necessary to send dispatches elsewhere to inform this fact.”

Clemens nodded.

“Lion-nim has made unbelievable achievements so far. I have no doubt that the words of the lion were delivered by the sun god.”

“Me too!”

“Our servants will also follow Mister Carl!”

people concurred.

Carl felt a little hope in their unity.

“Okay, then we’ll start with what needs to be done right away. First of all, Eric, put off the preparations for the Sun Festival for a while and focus on building a trading base connecting Derdrang and the Pinas Islands. War can be fought safely only when various supplies, including military provisions, can be transported freely by sea. Go directly to the Pinas Islands and build the Temple of Dawn, establish a trading base there, and take care of everything related to logistics.”

“I-I wonder if I can do such a big thing… … .”

“You can do it. And you have to do it.”

“All right!”

Eric replied with a determined face.

Next it was Clemens’ turn.

“High Priest, please head to the main temple of the Sun Temple in Kronia, the capital city, via Langfleur, the city of lakes. I’ll write you a letter, so you have to meet the cardinals and convince them. We will also bring items that can be used as evidence. It will be an arduous road, but please.”

“It is a great honor for this old man to be able to contribute to a great war that will go down in the history of the Empire. Thank you.”

Clemens also happily accepted his role.

“Next, Hanson, you and your servants.”

“Yes, chief.”

“Soon the priest selection exam will be held. Take the children with qualifications and skills among the seeds and leave. You have to become a formal priest of the Dawning School to be able to play an active role in the upcoming war. As for the servants, take Daryl, Peter, and Grom first, and select the rest on your own.”

“I will.”

Eric looked at Tira.

“Tira, you were already a probationary priest at the Temple of Dawning, and since your past achievements have been known to the whole world, the priestly ordination ceremony will be held right here. Please do that, High Priestess.”

“All right.”

“An old man from Meisa and Crete.”

The two stared at the knife.

“The two of them can use divine power, but they need more time to master it. Meisa should practice substituting divine power for natural power, and the Crete elder should make an effort to see the subtle divine power in all things and create his own secret technique.”

The distribution of roles to priests is over.

Carl set his sights on Brand, who could be considered a family member of the Temple of Dawn in Meirium, and the wealthy Terence Merchant.

“For the two of you, please unite the Fruit Merchant and the various guilds. We all need to work together in the logistics. First of all, please prepare weapons and armor to arm the servants of the temple.”

“All right!”