Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 295



Only Krnovel

Episode 295. On the other side of the scale (2)

When you look at the name alone, you might think it’s a ritual skill or passive like ‘Dark Eucharist’, but it’s completely different. This is closer to combat.

Isaac opened the skill description window and checked.

[Hidden Ritual]

[Is the candle behind the curtain extinguished or still burning? It forms a realm of color beyond the caster and takes control. Chaos-related relics and miracles are further strengthened within the curtain. Sacrificial lambs engulfed in the curtain cannot escape from within the curtain, and can only be destroyed by external interference unless the caster dispels it. The events within the curtain where the ritual takes place cannot be observed in any form from the outside, and even those within cannot know the external situation.]

‘It’s almost the same as the skills I know.’

Isaac touched the corner of his mouth and thought. It was hard to understand clearly just from the description, but Isaac had already experienced this skill, so he could roughly guess how valuable it was.

In the game, boss monsters with this ability would appear at any time and swallow players or fellow characters.

If a teammate gets sucked in, there’s a good chance they’ll die, and if a player gets in, they have to fight a survival game in an extremely harsh environment alone without any help from those around them.

In an already difficult game, the death of a hard-earned comrade or a player’s survival event can only be fatal.

So, Isaac would tremble in fear whenever a boss monster with the ‘Hidden Ritual’ skill appeared.

This means that from now on, Isaac can freely pick on anyone in the middle of the battlefield and duel them. He can even freely use nameless chaos-related miracles and abilities without worrying about being caught by anyone.

It means that you can fight in a situation where you have an advantage.

Also, the greatest advantage of this ability is that it has endless uses. If Isaac had this skill, he could have easily defeated Atlan without even using Isaac’s Sword Technique: Horizon of Thought.

‘The best part is… … that angels can’t intervene.’

The curtain’s severing effect is powerful.

Since angels are merely external observers, they cannot intervene inside the veil unless they are already in a trance state. This was also one of the reasons Isaac ground his teeth.

‘You’re giving this to a real player?’

Monster skills are only given to monsters, so there’s no need to think about balance. If this were a real game, it would be ridiculous… … .

‘Come to think of it, it’s none of my business.’

How is it an ordinary achievement to block the Olkan rule? If it were a normal game, this would have been considered the ending, but it wouldn’t have been satisfying.

But Isaac himself received nothing for such a great feat, so it is only natural that the nameless chaos would give him this kind of reward.

Isaac decided to accept it shamelessly.

Of course, this ability is not without its drawbacks.

As it is a powerful ability, the casting time is not long and it is difficult to use it frequently. If you fight inside the tent and use skills a lot, it is also difficult when you come out and there are enemies swarming around you.

The caster cannot see outside either.

‘It’s fortunate that you’ll be fighting many large-scale battles in the future. No, maybe that’s why you were given this ability.’

Anyway, Isaac was satisfied with the nameless reward of chaos.

Then suddenly a thought occurred to me.

‘Wait a minute, does that mean I’m also a nameless chaos boss monster?’

It was a belated realization.

***

Since time immemorial, people have been pondering the question: Who will be the most powerful when two or more people gather together?

And in the Isacre territory, there were more powerful people than ever before gathered.

It was a situation where problems could have erupted at any time, but everyone was still polite. And behind that politeness, there was a certain amount of arrogance, like, ‘Of course I’m the strongest.’

“There may be no problem right now, but once the expedition begins, the command structure may collapse. They are all strong people who are doing their part, and the allied forces have different beliefs.”

Gebel seemed concerned about the situation and advised Isaac.

Isaac agreed with that idea.

“That’s right. If we’re thinking about an expedition, we need to establish a more solid chain of command.”

Now, the Isacre territory contains the Codex of Light, Elil, the Hearth of the World, the Red Grail, the Golden Idol, and even the Nameless Chaos. If only there was a sea nearby, the Salt Council would have come as well.

It wouldn’t have been strange if they collapsed at any moment, but the reason they didn’t collapse was because of the strong charisma of one person.

“I thought I could take it slow since I’m the strongest, but I think I need to organize my lower half a bit.”

“what?”

“yes?”

“… … .”

Gebel nodded, looking as if he had a lot to say.

The answer to the question, “Who will count the most?” is simple.

A competition to test each other’s skills.

Of course, behind this purpose of ‘testing skills’ there was also the purpose of testing how useful it could be on the battlefield.

‘But if you fight and get hurt, it’s meaningless.’

Isaac wondered how he could prove his skills without getting hurt.

First, Isaac gathered the upper-level leaders who were most likely to be hit and started talking.

There was Lyanna, Aethelred, Cidrik, Rottenhammer, Tukhalin, and the lycanthrope warrior captain Raulok.

Additionally, Hesabel too.

“Who among us will be the second strongest?”

Isaac’s question caused a series of incredulous looks to pass by, as if he was asking such a childish question. At that moment, Ethelred, who probably judged himself to be the weakest in terms of individual skill, raised his hand.

“Why are you picking from the second one?”

“Huh? Well, the first one has already been decided, Your Majesty.”

Isaac’s words were met with another laugh and a strange look. A look of confidence and pride. But as the gazes that should not have crossed each other mingled, the smiles soon began to turn into a feeling of discomfort.

Rottenhammer was the first to open his mouth and look at Sydrik.

“It seems like the young man from Elril is confident in his abilities.”

“I have learned that excessive humility can actually humiliate the weak. Why, my lord, do you want to compete with the young at such an old age?”

It was Tukhalin who responded to Sidrik’s rebuttal.

It was natural. There was no one older than Tukhalin in this place.

“Age? What does age have to do with anything? Aesong-i, guys like you will fall down dead before they even reach the level of me. You should know that old weapons are that much stronger.”

Raulrock burst into laughter at Tukhalin’s words.

“Hahaha, don’t you all know that Thunder Hammer Master is dizzy and has lost his mind? More importantly, I’m concerned about the gaze of the wife of the guardian of the Holy Land. Didn’t she say that she lost to Her Majesty Aethelred next to her?”

Everyone knew that Aethelred was the most lacking in skill if he did not draw upon the power of the holy sword Kaldbuh. Lyanna, who had lost to Aethelred, was pointing out that he was not even qualified to compete.

Then, Rihanna looked down at him calmly, neither angry nor laughing.

“I have a record of a ‘draw’ with the Knight of the Holy Grail.”

“what?”

Isaac was shocked. But Lyanna answered calmly.

“It’s a draw because the match was stopped by a third party’s intervention before the outcome was determined.”

“I’m sorry… … .”

Ethelred apologized in a crawling voice. Hesabel, who was watching, whispered in Isaac’s ear.

“It’s like the lower ranks are struggling at Isaac’s feet. If you find a dagger by your bedside in the middle of the night, would that be enough of a warning message? Of course, anyone would see me as the second-in-command.”

But it was a loud enough voice that people of this level of skill could not help but hear it.

“What kind of cheap threat is this!”

“You said you were a member of the Red Grail, but you can’t take it off by birth!”

“Huh? What did you say?”

Everyone heard it except Tukhalin, who was slightly hard of hearing due to old age.

Isaac pressed Hesabel’s head, forcing an apology and sorting out the situation.

“I apologize. Hesabel is too loyal and sometimes cannot control her honesty. I will make sure to give her enough warning.”

“Honest?”

For some reason, as the atmosphere started to flare up again, Ethelred, who had initially asked, “Why are you picking from the second time?”, finally stepped forward to evolve.

“Wait, wait. Let’s calm down for a moment. I know Jim has the least impressive skills among the heroes gathered here. But we are going to fight a war. We won’t be fighting fair and square on the battlefield, will we?”

Everyone kept their mouths shut, perhaps embarrassed by the sight of the youngest child trying to stop the fight.

And what Ethelred said was right on the mark.

In any case, the battle ahead is a war between faith and faith, a war where angels clash against angels. When an angel appears, it doesn’t matter how strong an individual is.

“In that sense, I would like to appoint Isaac Isaacrea, the Holy Grail Knight, as the supreme commander. Since Elril participated in the war because she believed in the personal trust and honor of the Holy Grail Knights, she will follow his command.”

Aethelred looked at Isaac, wondering if that was what he had wanted to say. Lyanna and Cidric nodded as well.

Before Isaac could answer, Rottenhammer followed Ethelred’s words.

“Our Knights Templar have also announced their intention to change their name to the ‘Knights Templar of Isacrea’, with Sir Isacrea as their patron saint. Sir Isacrea is still being humble. I too have followed Sir Isacrea here, so I have no objection to appointing him as supreme commander.”

Now the gaze turned to Tukhalin. Tukhalin did not look at Isaac with as much respect as the others, but he answered with a snort.

“If the young people have made a decision, it would be right for the old people in the back room to cheer them on from behind. Let’s do that.”

“Ah, the Lycanthrope Warriors have different opinions… … Keuk!”

Raulrock was about to say something when he was hit in the face by Tukhalin and his mouth was shut.

Now everyone’s eyes turned to Isaac. Soon, they began to applaud, starting with Ethelred, with warm smiles on their faces.

In the midst of the reverent atmosphere of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Isaac felt a mixture of emotion and a lack of words.

‘Wasn’t I the commander in chief? Why bother?’

But if he brought that up now, it would definitely ruin the mood. Isaac barely swallowed what he wanted to say and opened his mouth.

“……thank you.”

But despite Aethelred’s consideration, what he wanted to talk about was not the election of the Supreme Commander (which he naturally assumed was his chosen one).

“So who should I pick as my second-in-command, or rather, second-in-command? I need someone to take command when I’m away or unable to participate in battle.”

The atmosphere of pious praise was broken once again, and sharp glances were exchanged. Just when it seemed that another fight and provocation was about to break out, a voice was heard that interrupted the flow.

“The people on top of the golden idol have come.”

***

As I opened the door to the reception room and entered, I saw Kathleen, Angela, and the people who had come from the top of the Golden Idol.

The room was already filled with a warm atmosphere.

Kathleen was chatting with people from far away above the company, and behind them, there was a pile of cute boxes that made Isaac feel warm.

This was the warmest beginning to my encounter with any faith.

‘As expected, love comes from the granary.’

Isaac approached the woman who was talking to Kathleen, feeling the Christmas spirit.

A tall, beautiful young woman with silver hair froze when she saw Isaac late in the night.

Kathleen shouted loudly, as if intoxicated by the atmosphere.

“Isaac Isaac, the hero of our time!”

“Looks like you’ve had a drink, Kathleen.”

Isaac muttered as he looked at the already empty bottle of wine.

I thought it was a good thing to do in front of the child, but it wasn’t a problem for the average person in this day and age. It would be fortunate if they didn’t feed it to him.

Isaac turned his gaze to the silver-haired woman. Normally, she would have given her name at this point, but there was still no answer from her.

Eventually, Isaac was the first to extend his hand and open his mouth.

“Isaac Isaac Isaac. And you… …?”

Only then did the other person come to his senses and grab her trembling hand. Isaac thought that they had met before at her embarrassed reaction, but soon he realized what was happening through her flushed face and the heartbeat he could feel through her hand.

‘Did you just fall in love with my beauty? I guess I’ll get to enjoy the benefits of Nephilim for once.’

Isaac thought the conversation would become easier.

“Le, I am Leonora Becia. Although I am not very good, I hold the position of Vice-President of the Golden Idol. Ma, it is a pleasure to meet you.”

Isaac smiled and tried to answer, but then he belatedly remembered her name.

‘Wait a minute, Leonora Bethea? The second daughter of the upper house Bellman Bethea? That monstrous sociopath created by capitalism?’

Isaac’s heart began to beat as fast as Leonora’s.

But I was running with a slightly different meaning.

[Serial] The Knight of the Dead God