Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 88



Only Krnovel

Episode 88 Night of the Dead (1)

The authority of the church also came from this oath trial. However, the priests also did not like to bring up the name of God over trivial matters, so they did not accept trials for most cases.

The problem is when both sides claim innocence even after swearing like this.

Of course, if an oath is broken, lightning does not immediately strike and kill the person who lied. The afterlife just becomes very unsettling.

During this trial, there were many cases where a person became a Barbary because they broke their oath due to the atmosphere or coercion.

‘There are many cases where people lie for the safety of the immediate reality rather than the afterlife.’

If everyone lived a good life because they were afraid of the hell they would go to when they die, there would not be a need for nine faiths in the world. The priests were also embarrassed when both of them claimed innocence. There are not many cases where you can become good at reasoning just because you read a few books and are good at arguing.

“It looks like the missing amount is large.”

“yes. That was all the money I had to pay for the leather this time… … .”

“What is the content of the oath?”

“The leather dealer says he definitely brought the money, and the innkeeper says he definitely didn’t steal it.”

Usually, in these cases, a third party is involved, so both parties are often innocent. However, those waiting for the trial now seemed to be expecting that the great Holy Grail Knight who defeated the angel would resolve their injustice with amazing insight.

“Let’s go first.”

Isaac put the document he was writing down and headed towards the corridor.

***

When they arrived at the hall, the leather dealer and the innkeeper bowed down and greeted Isaac.

“Please wake up.”

People stood up again with confused expressions. They tried to praise Isaac and criticize the other with some awkward rhetoric and politeness, but Isaac raised his hand to silence them. I didn’t want to take too long with this.

Isaac was deliberately standing in the shadows so no one could see his eyes turning purple.

After a while, Isaac opened his mouth and pointed to one person.

He was one of the leather dealers.

“You there, what’s your name?”

“Ha, it’s Hans.”

Isaac thought of someone with the same name, but he didn’t care because it was one of the most common names in the Empire.

Isaac answered with a long sigh.

“Hans paid the innkeeper for the leather. The innkeeper decided to give only half of the leather he had originally planned to give. After the incident was concluded, Hans decided to come back and monopolize half of the leather. Arrest both Hans and the innkeeper.”

It was a ridiculously pathetic conclusion. Anyway, since both Hans and the innkeeper had made a deal, they avoided swearing an oath by saying that it was not theft. It was one of the easiest forms of fraud to occur if you had an untrustworthy business partner. There have been many cases where a business partner misappropriated public funds to enrich his own personal wealth.

“Well, I feel so unfair… … .”

“No way! I’ve never done that… … .”

Sigh. As soon as Hans could say something, Werner walked up to him and kicked his knee.

Werner is a paladin who can run up a mountain even while wearing heavy armor. In an instant, Hans’ knees bent in the opposite direction.

As soon as Hans got down on his knees, Werner pulled out a knife and stuck it in his mouth.

The tip of the knife stopped before it tickled my throat.

“You bastard. He deserves to die just for trying to defraud his oath. But are you trying to contaminate the Holy Grail Knight’s ears? “I will kill you.”

It was as if Werner stopped the knife simply to make the accusation known, and he really was about to stab the knife. If Isaac hadn’t stopped him.

“Please stop.”

“but… … .”

“The rest will be handled by imperial law. “Trying to evade an oath through deception is not something the church should punish.”

The officials hired to manage the territory and the observers looked at Isaac with expressions of deep emotion as he spoke. In fact, it was not uncommon for him to suffer terrible punishment in oath trials for breaking his oath.

This was especially common among lower class people who did not have any support. Even if it is a sword used to vent one’s anger, it is wielded by someone with eyes. However, due to the church’s superiority in power, the empire was unable to properly protest such an incident. Thanks to this, there was a lot of dissatisfaction among the people of the empire with the church that seemed to act above the law.

‘Something like this kind of court trial also works.’

In Isaac’s opinion, even this trial was pathetic. He handed down his verdict without any witnesses, testimony or evidence. It was the correct conclusion because he came to this conclusion after understanding the inside story through the eyes of chaos, but if Isaac had just taken a picture of anyone and accused him of being the culprit, it would have been the same conclusion.

Werner nodded at Isaac’s words and took away his sword. Hans couldn’t even scream, just whimpered and held his knees, which were bent backwards, before being dragged away by the soldiers. The leather dealers who were supposed to be angry at Hans couldn’t help but just looked at him.

Isaac turned his gaze to the innkeeper.

“I guess you had something to say?”

“doesn’t exist. “I admit all my sins.”

“is it so? Then they’ll think they’re just being offered a deal, so let’s just assume they paid for the leather in full. “I will hand over all the leather as per the contract, and return the entire amount received as a share of the compensation.”

As far as Isaac knew, this was a regulation that was not in imperial law.

Under imperial law, the innkeeper knew that Hans intended to defraud his partner, but it was difficult to punish him because he only pretended not to know and agreed to the transaction. However, it was clear that he was trying to deceive with the oath trial in mind, so he had to be punished at the church level.

The innkeeper broke into a cold sweat and then nodded.

Although the punishment was decided in a haphazard manner, some of the priests were amazed when they saw it.

“How wise and merciful… … .”

“It is indeed an insight given by the Code of Light… … .”

‘You’re out of your mind.’

When Isaac heard the whisper, he was both impressed and relieved.

‘Do you think the poison is slowly spreading among the priests?’

While Isaac was lost in thought, Werner approached.

“This trial was also really great. Holy Grail Knight. “He was indeed a saint given by the Code of Light.”

Although Isaac had not yet been consecrated a saint or desired the title, Werner held him up as such.

Like Lehart, Werner was also a huge fan of Isaac. Even though he did not see Isaac achieve mythical feats like Lehart, he was already a role model for many paladins. Plus, Isaac even saved his life, so it was natural for him to become an ardent supporter.

In addition, Isaac was humble and treated everyone politely, and he did not suddenly become arrogant just because he became a nobleman. It is a virtue required of all paladins, but there are not many paladins who keep it. In particular, the more religious a Paladin was, the more likely he was to fall into arrogance.

“It was no big deal. Werner. Is there anything else going on?”

“hmm. “It’s nothing special, but they say they found unidentified people on the western ridge.”

“Are they poachers again?”

In fact, the people Isaac has been having the most trouble with lately are poachers. Nameless Chaos was careful not to stir up harmful tides when performing miracles, but it could not exclude humans. As all the game flocked to the territory, it was natural for poachers to approach the village.

“They say it’s not accurate, but I think that’s probably true. They are not people who will listen to you if you scold them once. This time, I will catch you and drag you away.”

Isaac thought for a moment and shook his head.

“no. Please ask before you kick me out. It doesn’t matter if you’re a Barbary, if you want to hunt, come to the territory, report it in person, and then hunt.”

Most slash-and-burn farmers and hunters are barbarians who are atheists. This is because most mountain areas and forests are hunting grounds owned by lords or monasteries, so if you hunt there, you naturally become a criminal. Werner seemed taken aback by Isaac’s words, but nodded, as this was not the first time Isaac had been ‘lenient’.

The next thing Isaac devoted himself to, next to managing the territory, was to inflict ‘ideological poison’ on the priests and paladins.

***

‘This person is a true saint!’

It took less than a month for Isaac to completely capture the priests and paladins.

In fact, at this time, the priests of the Code of Light were steeped in laziness and old ways.

Naturally, when you first become a priest, you are filled with the desire to spread the meaning of the Code of Light to the world, lift the darkness, and protect the weak. However, as time passes and he enjoys a wealthy life as a priest and is treated subserviently even by nobles, he begins to feel arrogant.

Even though you wonder if it is really okay to live like this, you automatically close your eyes when you see that not only are all the other priests living like that, but the higher-ups in the religious order are even more corrupt.

However, I have no desire to give up on my current life.

Whether there is a food shortage due to a surge in the Lorecus, whether refugees arise due to border disputes, whether people are kidnapped by Walaika hunters, or when various agricultural lands are devastated by drought, all they have to do is show off and take care of themselves.

In any case, the only ones who can bring salvation to this chaotic world are themselves, the medium of miracles. Above all, even if you live like that, miracles are allowed and the gates of heaven are open. There was no reason for them to change.

But this famous Grail Knight was different.

‘How can you have the kindness to persuade without warning in the name of God?’

‘Why don’t you strengthen your body by miracles and train yourself physically?’

‘How can one be knowledgeable in such menial matters as agriculture, commerce, and administration?’

‘How can we give even the apostate a chance?’

Frankly, these were crazy thoughts for Isaac, but they were also serious issues. Isaac barely suppressed a sigh every time he heard the priests he occasionally asked questions. It wasn’t to this extent when I spoke with the abbot at Ariet Monastery, but the priests here were strangely out of touch with the lives of the laity.

‘Maybe it’s Bishop Juan’s problem.’

It may be because they say they are gathering together. Or it could be because the monastery itself is a place where only monks who stay away from power and live in seclusion gather.

In any case, for them, the existence of Isaac was refreshing and a reminder of their original intentions.

It was as if he was setting an example of how to live a good life.

‘I’m going crazy.’

In fact, Isaac didn’t even try very hard.

I just tried not to do anything ridiculous by modern standards. However, in the 21st century democratic society, people who grew up adhering to universal moral standards seemed close to saints in this era.

Of course, there are times when I have a bug in my ethics that involves eating my opponent, but that’s okay because it’s literally a bug in my left hand… … Isaac convinced himself.

The Nephilim’s natural charm was very effective here as well, greatly shortening the period of charm. Of course, the fact that he was captivated here meant that he was liked quite strongly, but it did not mean that he was made into a believer like Lehart or Hesabel.

Here, a more traditional method was needed to elicit deeper emotions.

It was just preaching and evangelism.

“Can Grail Knight Isaac just say one thing during this morning’s service?”

During the morning service, a priest asked Isaac a favor.

No one found it strange that a priest would ask a paladin to give a sermon even though there were clearly established worship procedures and rules. This was because Isaac’s authority was enormous.

Isaac smiled and began to preach.