“Kar, why did you choose to become a Paladin?” The dragon-blood horse was fast, but after riding for this long, Ogre had gradually grown accustomed to it.
He even felt relaxed enough to strike up a conversation.
“Naturally, it was so Aunt Mima wouldn't have to work so hard anymore,” Macar replied without a second thought.
No one chose to become a Paladin for the sake of sacrifice right from the very beginning.
‘The purpose of setting out is not important; what matters is that you must have a goal—no matter what it is.’
—《The Divine Words of Dawn》 / Chapter of the Lord of Thorns.
“Is that so?” Ogre thought of Serandic...
Perhaps the greatest meaning behind the existence of the Church of Dawn was simply giving these people a choice, preventing them from being driven to a dead end.
Without the Church, this world would probably have rotted even further...
“I don't actually have any grand ideals. I just wanted to make the village a bit better. Things like the game of power don't suit me—I only want to do a better job of protecting those around me, as well as the weak,” Macar said.
When his uncle was still alive, he would often tell him stories about his father.
Yes, Macar's father had also been a Knight.
Furthermore, he was the son of a noble house's Knight... a failed heir who had lost the struggle for a dubbed title.
“Have you never thought about bringing Aunt Mima and the others to live in the city?” Ogre asked curiously.
Macar could definitely afford the taxes, and a safer town would obviously be the best choice.
“The city...” Macar paused slightly, finally speaking with a sigh of emotion, “There's nothing particularly good about the city either. Besides, Aunt Mima and the others are already used to village life.”
“Used to it...” Ogre murmured.
“In my life, what I regret least is choosing to become a Paladin. But to be honest, I don't particularly enjoy fighting and killing... If possible, I would actually prefer to be a gemcutter.”
Macar said, half-jokingly as he rode.
“A gemcutter? Why would you want to do that?” Ogre was somewhat curious.
“Probably because my mother used to be a gemcutter... although she passed away a very, very long time ago.”
Macar's reply caught Ogre somewhat by surprise.
But on second thought, wasn't Ogre himself also bound by similar thoughts?
“Your mother would probably have liked the way you are now,” Ogre offered in comfort.
“No, my uncle told me that my mother actually detested Knights... But that doesn't matter anymore. I quite like my current identity, and Aunt Mima likes it too. That's enough.”
“Mhm,” Ogre murmured in response.
He didn't really know how to respond to that—
Perhaps most people simply couldn't choose the life they truly loved...
“Speaking of which, I still don't know what kind of occupation you like, Gelin,” Macar suddenly asked.
“Maybe a painter or a stone carver...” Ogre replied casually.
“I see. You want to be an artist, Gelin,” Macar felt as though he had read between the lines.
Artist was the general term used by the Church of Truth... They were very welcoming to artists.
“Mhm... an artist? I suppose so.” Ogre didn't really know much about them.
He simply enjoyed drawing.
‘What a pity that Miss Gelin is the child of a Professional from the Church of Dawn.’ Macar felt that he had deduced the truth.
Within the Church of Dawn, the status of a painter was actually not very high, and it was difficult to make a living that way.
To become a 'Master Artist,' one had to join the Church of Truth.
Yet for a believer of Dawn, this requirement was nearly impossible to fulfill.
Despite how harmoniously the Church of Dawn and the Church of Truth seemed to get along on the surface, they drew very strict lines when it came to faith.
Believing in both Truth and Dawn simultaneously was acceptable.
However, if one truly wanted to become a member of either church, they could only choose one.
As for transferring to another church...
It wasn't impossible, but the Church of Dawn had regulations: leaving the church meant one had to repay everything the church had ever given them.
If one chose not to repay it, they had to be prepared to face the church's retaliation.
During this period, neither the Empire nor the Church of Truth would provide them with any protection.
This was also the reason why Yade wanted Ogre to 'work' and repeatedly emphasized that there was no connection between the two of them.
“I believe in you, Gelin. You will surely become the greatest painter in the church,” Macar encouraged.
“Who can say for sure what the future holds—hm? It seems we're almost there.” Ogre patted Macar, gesturing for him to slow down.
“Yes, we're almost there.”
Macar, understanding Ogre's intent, slowed down the dragon-blood horse. He, too, could see the towering walls of the frontier city in the distance.
“When we arrive, let's use the Silver Badge to enter,” Ogre said.
Using the badge left behind by Yade would save them a lot of trouble. He just hadn't expected that after going in circles, he would return to this place so soon.
“Yeah... Watch out!”
Macar suddenly halted the dragon-blood horse. Releasing his battle qi, he turned around and shielded Ogre, scooping him up as he leapt off the mount.
Screee—
The dragon-blood horse let out a sharp, shrill shriek.
Several blood-red needles had pierced the very spot where the two had just been sitting, driving the horse into a frantic, violent frenzy.
“What was bound to come has finally arrived.”
Ignoring the thrashing dragon-blood horse, Macar drew his sword.
He knew that the third Warlock... had arrived.
‘Did they finally lose their patience seeing us approach the town?’ Ogre scanned the direction the red needles had flown from.
Yet, he found no trace of any enemy.
“Hiding in the shadows, are we?”
Macar also carefully extended his senses to the surroundings, but just like Ogre, he was unable to detect any trace of the enemy.
“Be careful,” Ogre said, turning his gaze toward other directions.
They were still some distance away from the frontier city.
Although they could see the tall walls of the town from afar, right now, they had certainly not yet left the fringes of the Forest of Monsters.
“This is... tricky.”
Macar tried to sense again and again but still came up empty-handed. Aside from the dragon-blood horse that had bolted away, he couldn't detect any living creature at all.
It was as if the enemy had never even come.
Watching the dragon-blood horse gallop into the distance, a suspicion suddenly arose in Ogre's mind: ‘Is the enemy... trying to stall us?’
But why would they want to stall them?
And why hadn't they made a move earlier?
Ogre looked up at the sky... The sun was still some distance away from setting.
“Are they waiting for nightfall?!” Ogre suddenly had a revelation.
Macar: “Hm?”
“Quick, let's hurry to the city—before night falls!” Ogre grabbed Macar's hand.
But when he reached out, he grabbed nothing but empty air.
Now, even Macar was dumbfounded. He realized that he, too, could no longer touch Ogre.
“Gelin! What's going on?” Macar's mind instantly fell into disarray.
“Calm down...” Ogre reached out his hand—and pulled out the black bead left behind by Fula.
The moment he sensed anything amiss, he would immediately unleash this power.
“What did you discover?” Macar asked, forcing himself to calm down.
“Perhaps... we never actually left the village,” Ogre conjectured, looking around at their surroundings.
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