Chapter 199 – One Step.
A golem was a human-like magical creature often found in ruins. They looked like people, but they weren’t people. Instead of soft leather, the skin was made of something like iron that could be used to make swords or armor, and the body was made of an unknown hard substance, not blood and flesh. Nevertheless, beings as heterogeneous as monsters move like a living being.
“It looks like that too.”
Usher could only stare blankly at him. Because they were more dangerous than most monsters. If monsters threatened people with overwhelming numbers and fertility, golems threatened people with overwhelming firepower using magic that people could not use today.
“I’ll tell you, it’s not a golem. Have you ever heard of a golem that roams around like this?”
“That’s not it.”
However, unlike monsters, golems quietly stand there without moving or attacking unless they set foot on the ruins. That’s why no one sets foot in the ruins guarded by the golem. If you don’t touch it, it stays there silently even after hundreds of years without talking to anyone or eating. Because of this, people vaguely assumed that the golem was created by the ancients with magic to protect their heritage. At least there were no cases where he talked or roamed around like Krikaliev did.
“Then how would you explain that of the chest?”
But Usher still couldn’t easily believe that he wasn’t a golem.
“Kiya, you’re sharp. I usually think of it as an ornament.”
Krikaliev touches the red jewel on my chest. Because the red gem placed in the center of his chest like an ornament on his armor was definitely the golem’s heart.
“If you look for something about magic, you can sometimes find things about golems.”
Since golems are artificial lifeforms that are said to have been created by magic, Usher had memorized their characteristics. The shapes of the golems drawn in the paintings were slightly different, but there was one common feature, and that was the red jewel that was always drawn in the center of the chest.
“So, even if you make me your teacher, are you going to ask the little girl for help?”
He didn’t even know what Krikaliev wanted from him to tell him to become a disciple. But nonetheless.
“Yes.”
Usher’s mind was unchanging. He bowed his head once again. It didn’t matter if he was a golem or not. He just wanted to save Belka.
“Heh, you’re quite an outlier. Follow me. There’s a lot to prepare for.”
“Yes!”
That was when Usher got up to follow him. Suddenly, I saw the old cloth that Krikaliev had taken off and was lying on the floor.
“Mister, this is it.”
“You don’t have to take it. I don’t think I’ll need it anymore.”
Usher tried to pick it up, but he said he didn’t need it and walked to a nearby dugout.
“Jeremiah, are you awake?”
“Krikalev? What happened this time…”
Hearing his voice, Jeremiah, who came out, saw the figure of Krikaliev and stopped her. Then he looked at Usher who was behind him.
“Did you decide to intervene after all?”
“Yes, do you still have the items you prepared?”
“…Come in.”
As Usher contemplates whether to follow through without interfering in their conversation, Krikaliev calls him.
“Come in quickly, man. They say they will help you, but what are you going to do if you don’t come?
“Oh yes!”
Usher followed him into the dugout and saw Jeremiah and Krikaliev pulling things out. If you look for something, you can see a mixture of curved iron plates, clips, leather, and small chains connecting them. Each one makes one wonder what it means, but putting them all together is a familiar combination to him.
“Armor?”
It was like pieces of armor. It was like a part of the armor that had been removed, and it was like incomplete fragments that had fallen apart.
“You’ll have to help me from now on, kid.”
Krikaliev brought one of them to his chest with an iron plate engraved with a cross. Usher, realizing from the look that these were made for him, picked one up, found the parts that fit him, and fitted them together, hoping that Krikaliev would check them one more time as a finishing touch.
“Looks like we’re done now.”
He finally puts on an iron mask covering his face. There was a feeling that it was attached a little bit, but after covering the black body visible under the thick iron, the red jewel, and the yellow eyes, respectively, with leather, chains, and iron armor, it was a knight without fail. Seeing that, Usher belatedly realized what he meant by what he had done.
“Little boy. Whether you like it or not, you will have to live as a knight.”
“A knight, was it?”
“It was a paladin, to be exact.”
“Paladin? Wait a minute. If you’re a Paladin, obviously.”
Paladins, that was definitely referring to the knights of the Holy Land who serve God and represent God. But they are clear.
“You were a harpy too?”
Usher looked once again to see if he had wings, but even when he helped put on the armor, he didn’t see that he had wings. If he was a harpy he would have to have wings like Nausicaa.
“Where am I looking, harpy?”
“But, after all, paladins are knights who follow the devil.”
Yes, paladins are good talkers who speak for God, but in fact, they were talking about the elite of the harpies who follow the demon king who rules the Holy Land. Their fame was high in many ways, as they exterminate those who invade the Holy Land and build cathedrals in other countries for the sake of protecting the sacred land and spreading the will of God.
“It’s a little different. A paladin doesn’t mean a knight in the Holy Land or a knight who follows the devil.”
“Then what is it?”
He paused as if pondering for a moment before opening his mouth.
“Those who drink the water in the Holy Grail and pass the test are called Paladins.”
“The Holy Grail?”
The Holy Grail was the first word he had heard.
“It shouldn’t be strange to hear it for the first time. This is a top secret that only those in the know know even inside the Holy Land.”
Then he poured water into a cup, took off his mask for a moment, and gulped down the water.
“You’ve probably heard that Paladins fight using their magical powers, right?”
It was strange that if you knew about the Paladins, you wouldn’t know. The reason why the Paladins of the Holy Land were able to stand against the dragons in fewer numbers than Pasifenia and to prevent and overcome the invasion of other countries was because of the magical power that the Paladins were endowed by the gods. Compared to the power of real wizards, it was insignificant, but the power they had was real. Not to mention, the power of the demon lord Bargazet they follow was given to them by God, so who could say anything to them?
“Actually, that’s magic.”
“Yes?”
Usher didn’t understand him for a moment.
“Now, wait a minute. Magic?”
“Okay.”
“Nonsense!”
After all, magic was the exclusive property of witches and wizards. Above all, the power of paladins was weak enough to be comparable to that of wizards, and the way they handled their power was different. So people thought they were really empowered by God.
“What do you think magic is?”
“That’s the power to do anything.”
A dreamlike power to create water and fire, manipulate people, and move the earth with a single gesture. Because of this, Usher longed for magic. I feel like I can do anything with magic. I thought I could protect Belka. In fact, her magic only brought her pain.
“Then let me ask you a little differently. How do you think a wizard can use magic?”
“…How do I know that.”
It was a fact that even the magicians who had been studying to find out the difference between a wizard and an ordinary human could not figure it out even after many years. But I couldn’t understand how he knew what to say.
“Have you ever read a magic book?”
“Why?”
He wondered why he asked about useless scraps of paper that had no meaning no matter how much he wanted to use magic and read them over and over again.
“Do you know what the letters in the book mean?”
“It’s a rune.”
Unique characters that have different meanings for each shape they draw. Valueless things that mean nothing to non-magicians.
“Yes. And that’s some kind of code.”
“Code…?”
“Yes, if you draw a certain pattern, you can use the magic corresponding to that code.”
“But that’s unless you’re a wizard.”
“And wizards are those who have the formal authority to use that code.”
Usher was taken aback by his words. It was something she had never heard before.
“Hey, that’s taboo.”
“Don’t worry. I don’t intend to die here together.
Jeremiah interrupted in a worried voice, but Usher was concerned about something else.
“How do you get that permission?”
“Oh, that’s taboo.”
I couldn’t figure out what the heck to do. I wondered if it was just a taboo if it was unfavorable. Because what he said didn’t make sense.
“Then how do paladins use magic?”
He probably doesn’t have the authority like a wizard.
“Didn’t you already tell me?”
“Yes?”
“Paladins are those who bypassed some of the authority of the code and were granted permission in an expedient way. So the method is different, and compared to wizards, the power they can handle is inevitably limited.”
At his words, Usher thought. It was said that wizards had formal authority over the code, and paladins received authority over the code in an expedient way. And he said he was a paladin.
“The Holy Grail?”
“That’s the correct answer. You’re my disciple, shouldn’t you become a paladin too?”
Usher’s heart was pounding. Well, that meant that he could use the magic he longed for, albeit weakly. With that, he could have saved Belka. But that was only for a moment. Because if I thought about it a little more calmly, I knew right away that it was impossible.
“I said that to become a paladin, you have to drink the water from the Holy Grail, right?”
“Okay.”
“I heard it was top secret.”
“Yes?”
Doesn’t that mean that the Holy Grail is a treasured item even in the holy land that preserves countless magic tools?
“Then it’s not like the paladins can’t even dream.”
If it was such a monster, it would have been stored so that the demon lord Bargazzet and the harpies could not touch it, but how the hell did he get such a thing and how did he become a paladin?
“Are you here where you can’t even dream?”
“What does that mean…”
At that time, Usher belatedly caught sight of the cup Krikaliev was holding. I thought it was just a cup when I saw him drink the water. It was just too fancy for a cup. At first glance, it seems to be made of iron, but at first glance, it seems to be iron, reflecting light and faint but elaborately engraved colorful patterns.
“Is that the Holy Grail?”
“Ok.”
“…Why is it here?”
“I sneaked around a bit in the past.”
What are you doing? This person.
“Can I use that as a water cup?”
“What about it? First of all, it’s a cup.”
Usher slightly rolled her eyes and looked to the side to see Jeremiah meet his eyes and shake her head. It was a little crazy, but it was good. Because that opportunity was right in front of me.
“Then right now.”
“Don’t be in a hurry, wait a minute.”
I wanted to drink the Holy Grail water right away, but Krikaliev stopped me.
“Why? Didn’t you have to drink anyway?”
“You. Do you think there’s no price to gain that kind of power? If I’m wrong, I’ll die before I can go rescue the little girl. Are you still going to drink?”
Even so, he put down the Holy Grail in his hand in front of Usher. After all, it was a common story. Old stories about people dying while being greedy for big money or power.
“You know. Mister.”
“What.”
No matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he struggled, he was infinitely weak, and he really hated, hated, angry, and annoyed at me for not being able to go rescue Belka.
“I mean. I hate it more than dying now.”
But I didn’t want to die like this. If he dies like this, who will save the girl? Therefore.
“Promise me that if I die, you will save Belka.”
“Come back alive.”
Usher drank from the Grail.
