Chapter 447 – The End of Suffering.
The road to the checkpoint at Ephesus was not too far. Compared to the rough wilderness and huge grassy meadows they had been through so far, the dirt road paved with human traces was even more comfortable.
“Until I left, I thought that the outskirts were an empty place.”
Seol Shien, who always slept on the carriage, was sitting next to him and leisurely watching the surrounding scenery.
“Ah, that area over there has become wider. It seems that they are still pioneering.”
“Is it okay to recklessly cultivate land like this?”
As I listened to her story while looking at a vast field that reminded me of nostalgia, a question arose. Pioneering is originally an act of expanding human land and farmland, but the work had to be done very carefully.
The Holy Land was originally in a barren land, so even if it’s second. Parz, which had no dangerous monsters except for Lantua and Pacitilla, which stood on Yekaterina’s Great Wall, didn’t exploit the rich land around it for nothing.
Especially in a situation where you don’t know when a monster will attack, there is no time to build a wall leisurely, and above all, a wall once built costs a huge maintenance cost depending on its size.
Except for special cases like Yekaterina and the Great Wall, where ancient technology remains and is maintained.
“It doesn’t seem like they’re even building walls…”
What’s even more strange is that no matter how much you look around the inside of the basin, all you can see are small and large villages and vast, peaceful-looking farmlands.
In order to create a building as large as a castle wall, there had to be at least a trace or sign of it. However, no matter where you look, you can’t even see the workers who are moving to build the wall, or even the site of the ground prior to building the building.
“Ah, that’s right. It must be strange to people from other countries.”
It was an unbelievable story that came from her nodding her head as if she had remembered something.
“Pasifenia is no longer invaded by monsters.”
“What, are you sure the dragon didn’t attack Paciphenia?”
Along with the Holy Land, Paciphenia was famous for being the only place where dragons invaded. Wasn’t it a place called the Knights Country because it was a place where knights were exceptional because it was a place where only knights survived dragon raids every time without people like paladins?
“To be exact, I know that they haven’t been attacking since 15 years ago.”
“Are you saying you’ve never attacked another monster in the meantime?”
“As far as I know, yes. You don’t have any memories of seeing monsters when you were young, do you?”
15 years, it wasn’t really a long time, but the fact that dragons and even other monsters had never invaded during that time was really surprising.
“Is there any special method?”
“As far as I know, the president invented a magic tool that can drive out monsters.”
“…Are you saying you made magic tools?”
Usher doubted as he swallowed his astonishment. What is a magic tool? Wasn’t it an item that could no longer be produced because the manufacturing method was lost a long time ago in the Tsushima era? But does that mean that such a thing was created by an individual?
“Huh, I understand your doubts, but the results speak for themselves, right? Because no monsters have actually invaded.”
Villages outside the walls had to be built underground or to be confused with the surrounding landscape, at least not large enough to form a city. However, the village he sees now has no insignificant barriers anywhere he looks.
“It’s understandable if you say that monsters don’t attack.”
If Sulsien’s story was true, there was nothing strange about it. Even so, I couldn’t help but feel that this peaceful scene was strange.
“What on earth is a person called the Führer to be able to make such a thing?”
Because Usher is feeling the anxiety that he might be a wizard in his heart.
“As far as I know, I know him as an alchemist.”
“Magic tools through alchemy?”
Instead of diminishing his suspicions at Sul Shien’s answer, he grew in size. After all, Helena, who claimed to be his maid, was an alchemist.
Usher didn’t know what a great alchemist she was, but from the stories around her, he often heard that she was a great alchemist.
Originally, Helena also wanted to accompany Usher on his journey to find a girl, but she couldn’t bring her because her presence was too great in Parz, which had just been created.
‘Current alchemists cannot create magic tools.’
Usher also asked if an alchemist would be able to make magic tools. Because of what she said, she was even more suspicious.
“Isn’t it really amazing? Even at academic conferences, the president praises him as a genius that will never happen again.”
Because the Führer was the first in history to create magic tools with the body of an alchemist.
“I also want to become a great alchemist like the Führer someday and make my own magical tools.”
Seol Shien was talking as if dreaming, not noticing that Usher’s troubles were deepening. After some time they reached the checkpoint.
-Kurreuk!
– Uh uh uh uh
Ain let out a menacing snort as if Heeloma, who was standing in front of me and waiting for her checkpoint, didn’t like her.
“Ivo show! If you bring Hildis Beanie to a place like this…!”
The middle-aged man who seemed to be Hilloma’s owner looked back at her while holding the leash of her Hilloma, trying to say something about her, but she ran into Usher and was speechless.
‘What?’
Usher had no intention of threatening anything, so he couldn’t understand the man’s reaction. In the meantime, a murmur grew louder and louder, and some knights came out from the checkpoint and approached us.
“What are you visiting for?”
“That I can explain!”
As one of the six knights tried to answer the question with a nervous expression, Sulsien spoke ahead.
“You are?”
“I’m Sulsien from the Faust Society.”
“The Faust Society? Please wait.”
The knight who heard her story talked to the knights around her, and she brought out something like a record book and looked at it, then nodded her head.
“Confirmed. You went out to investigate the Parz area two years ago. But why are you with a paladin?”
At his question, Seol Shien flinched and checked her surroundings.
“It’s not something to talk about here.”
“Okay. I’ll listen to the rest of the story in the checkpoint.”
Soon, the knights took the lead in opening the road, and the procession waiting for inspection naturally moved out of the way, so those at the back were the first to be inspected.
“Aidos and Aegeus died during the investigation. On the way, we received help from Usher-sama and accompanied us to Paciphenia. Is that correct?”
“Yes.”
The knight who sat them side by side in front of the table was watching Seol Sien’s explanation and nodding her head, so she opened her mouth as she noticed her.
“Well, could I find out where Aidos and Aegeus’ family are?”
“…Do you have any reason to ask such a thing?”
Seol Shien shook her head at the knight’s answer, which was sharper than she thought, but she spoke steadfastly.
“Because it’s my responsibility for them to be like that. So, I want to tell them in person and give them a small example.”
“…”
The knight watched her seolsien in silence for a moment, then nodded her head as she checked the cards she set down on her table with her trembling hands.
“In the case of Aegeus, you don’t have to go to him separately.”
“Yes? But.”
“He was an orphan.”
Seol-shien couldn’t bear to speak, so the knight spoke instead.
“Instead, I will tell you the birthplace of Aidos.”
“Oh, thank you!”
As she lowered her head in her bright face, the knight who had been watching with an unknown gaze over her visor turned her head to look at Usher.
“First of all, I’ve confirmed that there are no suspicious items inside the wagon, but may I examine this bag?”
He immediately lifted Usher’s bag. He wondered why he bothered to examine his bag, but he suddenly noticed that on the side of his shoulder strap, though blurred by the years, Rachel’s name was still clearly visible in small round letters.
‘Is it suspicious?’
It wasn’t a very pleasant feeling, but Usher allowed it because he was treating him with respect.
“Check it out.”
“Thank you for your cooperation.”
Then, the knight began to check each item in Usher’s bag one by one, enough to make him feel cautious. He wondered if he needed to do that, but he remembered the cross-shaped badge on his chest and realized that it was natural.
It was an insignia representing his position as a paladin, something he gave to Rachel before leaving Parz, but she returned the insignia to him after returning to Parz for a while after completing the investigation with Sulsien.
‘As expected, I’ll take this.’
‘But I…’
‘Are you okay. This is proof that we will always be friends.’
And now, thinking back to Rachel’s grinning expression, it felt so frightening.
“This! Why is this in a place like this?!”
“Mr. Usher?! How did this happen?! Why are these rings on Mr. Usher?!”
While thinking about something else for a while, the knight and Seol-shien were making a fuss, and when he came to his senses, there was a pair of rings on the table among his various belongings.
“I know it’s from my parents.”
Usher couldn’t figure out why they were making a fuss about it. It was something he knew only as something his parents had left with him when he was very young in the countryside.
“This is the seal of the Cesifia family?!”
Hearing his words, Seol Shien seemed even more astonished.
