Return to the Village

"Hurry! He's lost too much blood—I can't stop it!"

Without the slightest concern for his expensive noble robe, Ergons collapsed onto the ground of gravel and blood, cradling Bein Spencer in his arms and pressing hard against the wound with an expression of utmost grief.

His panicked expression, slightly guilty sorrow, urgent cries... Hmm, quite convincing!

It looked like he really was trying to stop the bleeding. If the shard of stone that had cut Bein Spencer's blood vessel and windpipe hadn't been thrown by him, it would have looked even more genuine.

He really was applying a lot of pressure.

He had long heard that Priests of the Church who believed in the Holy Light possessed miraculous abilities. Besides, he did not dare underestimate whether the coroners of this world could tell if a wound had suffered secondary tearing.

So he had to stop the bleeding quickly. But because he pressed too hard, Bein suffocated—or rather, too much blood had entered his lungs and could not be coughed out...

All that could be said was that, seeing his beloved friend accidentally gravely wounded in a duel brought on by anger toward him, he had become guilt-ridden, anxious, and somewhat flustered.

Pastor Alphons hurried over, seeming somewhat unwilling to face Ergons's earnest, childlike gaze of pleading.

But after sensing that Bein Spencer's life force was rapidly fading beyond reversal, he sadly patted Ergons on the shoulder.

"Enough. Let go and let Brother Bein go. He will be embraced by the Holy Light and join the Holy Light in heaven, where milk and honey flow, watching over us."

"Sir Davis Tevalin" looked utterly dejected, nearly collapsing in despair. Pastor Alphons and the other Priests from the Deacon group who had rushed over carried Bein Spencer's body into the church.

They laid him out in the confession hall and gathered around him for the first prayers.

"Two Griffin Knights happen to be here. They will carry Brother Bein's body back to Gaudy City. I know you want him buried beside Brother Turin Spencer, but the situation is urgent. For the sake of the plan, you cannot remain at Tevalinburg any longer.

Brother Bane's funeral can only be kept simple. We will bury him in the Guardian Knights' cemetery beneath the Great Holy Cathedral."

The Priests of the Deacon group efficiently placed Bein Spencer's body into a body bag, and two plate-armored knights with somewhat flamboyant armor carried it out of the hall.

Two eagle-like cries and the beating of wings gradually faded into the distance. Pastor Alphons misunderstood why Ergons had been staring after them so reluctantly and smiled with some satisfaction.

"Everyone says that, like your name, David, you are a symbol of integrity and kindness. Do not worry about Brother Bein. He will be properly cared for. Once honor returns to the Northern Knights, we will make up for it with a grand enough ceremony.

Now, you must hurry and report to the legion. I have already smoothed out all the connections for you. Your guard duty is to conduct border patrols near Tervain Village.

When the time comes, you must put more effort into settling those savages from the County of Tervain."

Ergons lowered his head and agreed, then was escorted out by the Priest.

The moment he reached the church entrance, he understood just how much effort had gone into making everything move forward so quickly.

He did not need to report to the barracks at all. A knight wearing a tabard marked with a red cross was already waiting there with his appointment papers.

Not far away stood the Adenauer Siblings, Adam, and five other "Church" Foot Knights assigned to enter the city separately. All of them held their horses and carried their luggage, looking ready for a long journey.

The appointment process was extremely perfunctory. Everything proceeded in an atmosphere of, we're all on the same side, do whatever you need to do—I understand.

After the legion's men left, Pastor Alphons looked at those "Foot Knights" dressed like Church members without any suspicion. He even seemed quite pleased.

"It is a good thing that you are taking the initiative to strengthen Stop's forces. Stop has grown stronger day by day because many responsible people like Brother David keep bringing in talented individuals."

Ergons had not expected things to develop this way. But even better news awaited him: "The previous batch of supplies was lost, and the cathedral has already decided to have Inquisition deacons investigate. We need not trouble ourselves over it. The new supplies are already in place, and we will find a way to gradually transport them to you."

"All right, no need for lengthy farewells. We can talk when we gather again!"

The Priest turned and returned to the church. They parted there, and Ergons gave the approaching group a single instruction: "Get out of the city, quickly!"

They encountered no obstacles along the way. Spurring their horses onward, they soon left the lone peak where Tevalinburg stood behind.

They followed the road inward in the opposite direction, taking a detour toward Tervain Village, which lay at the border.

After riding for some time, once Tevalinburg had been left far behind, Ergons glanced at Elisa Adena and asked half-jokingly, "I kidnapped the Baron's wife. Do you think the Baron will be very angry?"

Elisa Adena replied without yielding an inch, "Why talk about whether he'll be angry? Yesterday, when I wanted to see him, the church deacons stopped me outside. Just now, Pastor Alphons told me the Baron is about to die!"

"About to die?"

That was something he truly had not considered. If the Baron was already near death, then he would definitely be the one inheriting the title.

Wouldn't that make everything he had done before the equivalent of robbing himself?

That made selling so many knowledge weapons to the system at low prices rather painful. But when he thought of the new supplies arriving soon, he immediately felt much less upset.

"How is the Baron about to die? There wasn't even a hint of it before!"

"Apparently, the expert who launched that ambush not only killed many people and stole some weapons, but also attacked the Baron. The Baron was severely wounded on the spot and has not appeared since."

After hearing this explanation, Ergons Tevalin's doubts did not lessen in the slightest. Instead, he felt even more uneasy.

Because he knew perfectly well that he had never attacked the Baron. So whose man was the person who had taken advantage of his theft and disruption to attack the Baron?

And what was the purpose?

They rode hard all the way and returned to the outskirts of the farm outside Tervain Village before dawn.

Nine knights galloping through the quiet morning light naturally made quite a commotion.

Old Servant Adam stood guard atop the stockade wall outside Tervain Village with a crossbow and several others. But when he saw his son's enormous build, he recognized Ergons and the others as well.

"Open the gates! Young Master is back!"

To Ergons's great surprise, Old Servant Adam had somehow already explained to the villagers how Ergons Tevalin had become Sir Davis Tevalin.