Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 225



Only Krnovel

Episode 225. Earth for Man, Heaven for God (1)

Dietrich looked at him, flinching.

“The Dawn Army, which the religious order is pushing forward without permission, has shown us a pitiful sight by anchoring in the western part of the empire where madness is deepening, and in Siraxa where the heresy hunt is in full swing. Didn’t they even need supplies in the first place? You said it was an urgent matter, so there was no reason to anchor in a place not far from the capital.”

“… … .”

Dietrich did not answer.

But this was something that could be known just by looking at the fact that the ship quickly departed as soon as Isaac got on board.

“Perhaps you are intentionally showing me the madness of the sect. It would be better if there were trouble between me and the sect. If that happens, I would have no choice but to rely on Your Majesty the Emperor even more.”

In the end, this is also part of the boring power struggle between the Emperor and the religious order.

Isaac figured out Dietrich’s intentions early on, but he willingly complied.

Because Isaac also didn’t like the scum of that church.

Dietrich smiled bitterly.

“… … What a uselessly clever son-in-law. He even turned around. So, did he cut off the priest’s head as a sign that he had decided to cut ties with the religious order?”

“I’m sorry, but the church won’t kick me out for something like this. The church’s will doesn’t matter. The angels won’t have that kind of mind.”

After all, earthly authority is insignificant compared to heavenly authority.

Isaac also had no intention of denying the authority of the gods in a world ruled by gods and clinging to a mere human emperor. As always, he was just thinking of making a profit like a bat.

Ultimately, the incident of beheading a priest will be his message to the church.

I have no intention of being a puppet in your petty games. I have received a written guarantee from the angel. The angel will not cast me out because of a few priests’ balls, so you had better not become the second ball… …the message.

‘I wonder if it’s really necessary to go this far, but if the church is falling into fanaticism, I must make my position clear.’

If the church is smart enough, they will understand. Or an angel will tell them.

Isaac brought the girl who was about to be burned at the stake because the priest’s head was cut off. He planned to have Hesabel find a priest in the capital city for Isaac to perform the absolution ceremony.

Dietrich kept knocking on the railing, as if he was wondering how to explain the situation to the Emperor and to the church.

Isaac, as the son-in-law, decided to ease his father-in-law’s worries a little.

“It seems that His Majesty the Emperor is not on good terms with the Pope, as he is deliberately showing me this.”

Dietrich frowned, then answered.

“Are you on bad terms? You don’t know much since you’re abroad. I’m worried that a civil war might break out before the real Dawn Army even starts.”

“Civil war? Between the Emperor and the Church?”

Is that possible? The real power is held by the Emperor, but the authority of the Emperor is held by the religious order.

Even if the emperor leads an army and invades the Vatican, if the pope says, “Excommunicate me!”, the emperor will become a Barbary. From the pope’s perspective, turning the emperor, who holds unprecedented power, into an enemy is no different from cutting off his own waist.

“Of course it’s a metaphor. Since the Treaty of Licht, there can never be a civil war. That’s why His Majesty the Emperor is so angry. From His Majesty the Emperor’s perspective, it must be maddening that the troops that should have been conscripted and organized are being turned into warlords without permission.”

“But the sect says that the believers are volunteering to form the army. Furthermore, if the priests of the Knights Templar join this ‘voluntary dawn army’, His Majesty the Emperor will effectively have his strength reduced by half.”

In a world where gods exist, the authority of the church is enormous. In particular, without priests or knights, the emperor would be defeated before even starting a war with the Immortal Church.

The empire was now a battleground between the Pope and the Emperor for command of the Dawn Army.

Ultimately, if we look at the reason why this happened, it was because the Emperor had authority equal to that of the Pope. Before, there had never been a Holy Emperor with such strong authority. However, it was questionable whether the religious order, which had failed the Dawn Army several times before, would fight properly if it were left to the Pope.

“You remember that horrible, unspeakable attempted murder that took place in Luzberg, right?”

“yes.”

“The Inquisition concluded that it was a terrorist attack committed by the Black Empire. However, rumors persist that the Church of the Code of Light secretly collaborated or assisted.”

Isaac nodded, since he already knew what he was talking about.

That distorted ankh, as if chewing on something.

Given that Dietrich’s words were speculative, it seemed likely that the Emperor had not yet revealed the Ankh. It was a material that could cause division and could become a weakness for the sect.

‘… … I was in no position to laugh at the Kingdom of Elril.’

The Kingdom of Elril was a pure civil war, but it is truly dismal to see things this way, even with an external enemy.

“I heard that Your Majesty the Emperor even killed his own brothers and took the throne. I don’t think he is a person who is tolerant of his enemies, so I am sure the current situation is very irritating to him.”

“Well, as you said, he still respects the authority of the church, but he is by no means lenient towards his enemies. However, while the Treaty of Licht is still firmly in existence, it is impossible to oppose the church.”

‘The Treaty of Licht… … .’

It was a word I had heard before. Of course, Isaac knew what it was. It was because it was an essential background explanation when explaining the history of the empire.

To summarize briefly, it is a treaty that yields the land to humans and the heavens to God.

‘I thought it was just a treaty in name only, but it seems to be a sensitive issue in politics. I need to find out more.’

Elril also respected the Light Code, but he could not respect the religious order, so they split. Of course, the ‘religion’ that Elril spoke of included angels, so if they only opposed humans, the difficulty level might be low.

But even in the game, the emperor cannot ultimately break away from the sect.

Despite the clashes with the religious order, the eventual recovery of the Holy Land and the receipt of the Stone Tablet of the New Dawn marked the advent of the Millennium Kingdom and the declaration of the victory of the Code of Light.

However, in the current world, with Isaac intervening, it was impossible to predict how things would turn out.

‘Actually, even in the game, the conflict didn’t seem this serious.’

“But His Majesty the Emperor will certainly not stand by and watch as they drive the people mad. Those who do will know what it feels like to be struck by those sacred horns.”

***

Isaac had researched the Treaty of Licht before arriving at the capital. It was easy to figure out the details by combining the information he had learned from history books.

About 300 years ago, the White Plague spread across the continent. Many kingdoms, cities, and towns collapsed and perished. The collapsed systems and societies brought about more death and terror.

In the midst of this fear of death, the Cult of the Immortal appeared. With the advent of this new faith that would save us from the fear of death, the incompetent and corrupt Code of Light was left helpless and on the verge of destruction.

In order to survive somehow, they held a general council in ‘Richtheim’, where the Vatican is now located. There, they made an alliance with the twelve kings, nobles, and emperors who ruled the continent.

We will immediately form the Dawn Army and subjugate the Immortal Cult.

In return, they made a contract that all the land would go to humans, while their souls would go to God. This was an unusual condition, as the church owned most of the land at the time.

Naturally, the kings and nobles who were hungry for land and power signed the treaty and formed the Dawn Army. To anyone who saw it, it seemed that the gods had abandoned the practicality of land and taken the important cause of the spiritual world. Of course, it must have felt like a bolt from the blue for the priests and monasteries who owned vast lands, but without that level of reform, there was no way to restore their power.

Above all, this was a treaty that Ruaddin had personally ordered. Through this bold reform, the Order of the Code of Light, which had faced its greatest crisis since the Elil Sect, once again survived.

Since then, the order ‘in principle’ could not own land. It operated solely on the basis of donations and the expedient means of receiving donations to the monastery. Of course, even in such cases, a huge amount of wealth poured into them.

In exchange for this treaty, all the nobles, knights, and royals of the empire had to become followers of the Code of Light. Even if the country changed hands dozens or hundreds of times, as long as it was not destroyed by a pagan invasion, the continent would remain entirely under the ownership of the Code of Light.

Literally, the land came to be owned by humans and God came to be owned by humans.

It may seem like it was just a pretext now, but Isaac knew that the gods’ schemes were never carried out in vain.

‘It must be a pretty strong restriction. There must be more to it than meets the eye.’

It would mean more than just a powerful figure like the emperor rebelling against the church.

Isaac decided to remember this.

***

The capital, Ultenheim.

The heart of the empire, the center of earthly power, the place where the bones of countless kings and emperors are layered upon layer, a strategic fortress city built by the overlord Elril according to his war plans from birth, and there are even legends that not all of its secret passages and devices have been discovered yet.

Thanks to this, Isaac felt overwhelmed by the majesty of Ultenheim as he went up the river.

“… … That’s incredible.”

As the Brandt Duke’s warship came up the river in its entirety, the huge net of chains was lifted and the gates were opened. As expected from a fortress city from its inception, the black walls looked like millions of shields lined up one by one, and the endless spires looked like blades.

Thanks to that, Isaac couldn’t help but feel overwhelmed like a country bumpkin.

“It’s a wonderful city. Even the Immortal Army won’t be able to overcome these walls.”

If the Immortal Cult had invaded here, it would have already been a dead end, but Dietrich said with a look of satisfaction. Of course, Isaac, a modern man, had seen countless cities boasting far more incredible grandeur than this. The unbelievable architecture of modern marvels.

But ancient architecture has a certain madness that makes you wonder, “Did humans build this?” It’s an overwhelming feeling that is hard to capture with machines, cement, and steel.

Not only that, Isaac could see special things that others could not see.

‘Even angels can’t spread their wings here.’

This old height was imbued with immense divinity through the engraved narrative and the flowing blood, and became a gigantic holy relic that even angels would have difficulty passing over. Isaac felt as if he was being drenched in the divine power emanating from it.

‘It was a good thing I left Nell behind.’

Isaac decided to leave Nell outside for the time being. The knight guards would probably be upset if they brought a man-eating monster to the emperor, and the number of people was proportional to the probability of an accident occurring. He told Hesabel to take care of her at least until he received permission from the emperor.

‘Yes? Me?’

‘At the very least, someone who can run away even if someone tries to eat them should take care of them.’

Hesabel was dissatisfied, but since they both have similar tastes, they might surprisingly get along well.

At that moment, a large bell rang out. At the same time, cheers were heard from all directions. Countless flower petals poured down from both sides of the canal that ran up the river.

Isaac was surprised by the unexpected crowd, although he had expected some level of welcome.

Citizens, soldiers, and knights of the capital came out and waved at the ship Isaac was on.

“Holy Grail Knight! Holy Grail Knight!”

“The Great Warrior of Elil, the Saint of Resurrection!”

Dietrich, who had been watching the scene, tapped her shoulder.

“Wave my hand at least once.”

Isaac reflexively raised his hand. The cheering grew louder.

The women who saw Isaac’s face screamed in horror. Isaac, unable to shake off his doubts, whispered to Dietrich.

“You mobilized the people in the capital, right? To impress upon the church that this person is one of your people?”

“I can’t say that no one was mobilized. I can’t just call in the great warrior of Elril who revived the banner of reconciliation with the Kingdom of Elril and the alliance with the Dawn Army. But to be honest, the mobilized crowd decided to gather in front of the palace.”

“Then that is… … .”

“They are people who came to see the famous Grail Knight.”

There were so many people that some even fell over the canal railings. Isaac was worried about possible casualties, but the welcoming atmosphere did not die down easily.

“Isaac! Isaac! Isaac!”

Although the cheers calling his name were burdensome, he decided to enjoy it for now. It was because he was satisfied with the hot divine power that was charged every time his name was called.

As he raised his hand, the cheers grew louder. The sense of power that all these people supported him, respected him, and expected him.

Suddenly Isaac felt a chill without realizing it. He thought he understood why those who were a little bit tall and tall wanted to become gods.

[Nameless chaos watches you.]

But even the nameless chaos seemed satisfied for the time being.

Isaac decided to give the poor god, who had been starving for a long time and suffering from a lack of recognition, a chance to feast a little more.

Soon after, the ship docked at the dock.

Fortunately, there was no need to worry about pushing through the crowds of people, as the dock was directly connected to the castle from the canal. Even as I climbed the stairs, Isaac’s name continued to be called.

Isaac’s heart raced as he climbed the stairs. It wasn’t just because he was about to meet a large crowd or high-ranking officials. He had a premonition. And when he finally reached the top of the stairs, Isaac realized that his premonition was right.

Isaac forgot all the cheers. Even if millions of people were shouting, he would turn his head if he heard this one voice.

“My angel.”

Isolde, holding a bouquet of flowers, approached Isaac and hugged him.