Raising Paladins

Episode 146. return (2)

the next morning.

Carl and company stood on the shore ready to leave.

While the priests were fighting, Brand and Terence, who had investigated all the specialties, herbs, fruits, and wood of the Pinas Islands, were also with them.

In addition, dozens of young people in the archipelago who entrusted him with the desire to become priests of the Dawning Church.

Everyone’s family was out, so the beach of Pinas Island was literally a sea of phosphates.

“Maybe this will be the last.”

Chief Mediel held Carl’s hand with his wrinkled hand.

“What do you mean by last?”

“I am old and I will never see you again. I will go to the side of the sun god first, so please come slowly. Heh heh heh.”

“Thank you for your consideration during this time. Chief.”

“What are you saying… … . I honestly have some regrets. I regret not believing in you when I first saw you. Even though I have lived for such a long time, I still lack the ability to see people.”

“Thanks to the chief, many things were able to go smoothly. Don’t talk like that.”

“Heh heh, I’m glad if that’s the case. Take this.”

Mediel held out a box wrapped in a small cloth.

The knife took it and opened it to find a ring carved from jade.

“It was entrusted to me when my wife died. It’s a keepsake from my mother.”

“Why are you giving this to me?”

“Originally, I would have passed it on to my son and handed it to the woman he was going to marry. Hana died fighting bravely when the Harpy pirates first attacked. Now I have no descendants.”

“… … .”

“So, if Priest Carl has a suitable child, please tell me. I will consider him my son.”

“It was like that.”

Carl took out a jade ring from the box.

He even put it on his finger.

“Consider me your son. How is it?”

“Ahh… … !”

Mediel widened her eyes.

“Thank you… … really… … .”

The knife hugged Mediel’s bent back tightly.

In fact, Mediel wanted Carl to be the owner of the ring, but he hesitated because he was such a great person.

I was so happy to find out what Mediel was thinking.

The people who came soon delivered gifts.

Carl, Meisa, Tira, Hanson, and Creta also received a bundle of gifts.

In particular, Meisa received a bouquet of flowers from the young men of the militia, and Hanson received a bunch of flowers from the girls of the Pinas Islands.

Unlike Meisa, who received the gift and naturally thanked her, Hanson scratched the back of her head and didn’t know what to do.

“I have to say thank you, big jerk.”

“… … .”

Meisa, who came under the knife at the same time and could be said to be her training motive.

At her scolding, Hanson bowed his head to the maidens.

“Thank you.”

The girls shyly laugh and leave.

Smith, the village blacksmith, approached Meisa.

He held out a long wooden box.

“Priest Meisa, this is a gift.”

“what is this?”

“You will know when you open it.”

Clap-!

Meisa, who put the box on the floor, opened the lid.

Meisa was surprised to see the contents.

Inside was an ink-colored rapier.

“This… … ?!”

Meisa couldn’t sleep at night because of envy when she saw Carl’s new Blackfang Fangtooth Longsword.

She was a master of various weapons and had an attachment to weapons itself, so she was very envious of Carl’s new weapon.

It’s already been several days since I dreamed that I would have one of those too.

But the weapon of my dreams was in front of me.

Smith laughed happily.

“After making Priest Carl’s weapon, there were quite a few materials left. Because the fangs of the Black Fang you saved are so huge.”

“Ahh… … That’s what it was! So this… … .”

“I heard that if it wasn’t for Priest Maysa, the militiamen wouldn’t have come back from the canyon. Among those militiamen is my younger brother. Please consider it as a reward for saving your brother’s life.”

“thank you.”

Meisa raised her rapier and aimed it at the sky.

Meisa, who confirmed the perfectly extended blade, threw it away and caught it with her fingertips.

It was to check the balance of the weight by placing a finger on the center point.

“He has a slim sword body and even his balance is flawless. It is a great rapier.”

Honey dripped from Meisa’s eyes at the sight of her new weapon.

Conversely, Hanson, who saw that, seemed displeased.

Smith held out something to such Hanson.

“I wanted to make two swords and give them to Priest Hanson as a gift, but I heard that Priest Hanson’s weapon is a shield. It was not enough to make a shield at all, so I made this after thinking about it.”

Dark Gauntlets.

To be precise, it was a type of armor covering from the wrist to the front of the elbow.

When it comes to gauntlets, most of them cover all of your fingers.

So it seemed more correct to call it the ‘black bracelet’.

Hanson, who received an unexpected gift, showed a rare expression.

“I didn’t think so, but I am grateful. What can I give you?”

“Ha ha, this is not a deal! It is the blacksmith’s reward for the respected priests. Just take it.”

“… … .”

Hanson seems to be quite impressed.

Tyra covered her mouth and giggled.

“What about this? Miss Tira said she doesn’t enjoy battles, so we couldn’t prepare any special gifts.”

“you’re welcome! I have already received the most valuable gift from the Pinas Islands!”

“… … ?”

Keeing-.

A chicken leg perched on Tira’s shoulder hid in Tira’s hair and played tricks.

After hanging out together day and night, it was Tira and Chicken Legs who had become quite close.

“Good. Then I wish you a safe voyage. The sun god will be with you.”

“May the sun god be with you.”

Blacksmith Smith leaves with a faint smile.

By that time, most of the militia members and their families who had volunteered to become priests were ending their greetings.

“Let’s go.”

Carl got on a small boat and boarded the ship.

Soon after, the anchored ship began to move.

The people of Pinas, who had flocked to the shore, waved their hands.

Gillian, Chief Mediel, Smith and the militiamen.

And everyone who was helped by Carl’s party saw them off with tears.

The ship, which received a favorable wind, ran across the sea in an instant, and Pinas Island turned into a small dot before I knew it.

“It was a really great adventure.”

Tira approached Creta, who was sitting on the deck.

Crete nodded and was assembling something.

“What is this, old man?”

“A fishing rod obtained from the village chief Mediel. He doesn’t fish anymore, so he told me to take it.”

“Wow… … Are you very pretty?”

A fishing rod that appears to be made of some unknown material.

A strange engraving was engraved on the handle.

Creta assembled the fishing rod, which was not an ordinary thing at first glance.

He tossed the needle over the running boat.

“Is there anyone around?”

“Yes, everyone is busy.”

Soon the fishing rod bent like a bow.

As Cretan old man vigorously raised the rod, a fish of great size fell on the deck and fluttered.

“What?! What did you catch?!”

“oh my god! I caught a blue marlin!”

“Marlin! You mean that fish that is as big as a man?”

“yes!”

People rushing towards the fish.

Soon after, with the permission of Crete, a young man from Pinas drew a dagger and dismembered the marlin.

Thanks to this, the festival that I thought was over has started again.

***

“Did you catch a fish?”

Carl was sitting alone in the captain’s office.

He leaned his back in his chair.

The hustle and bustle outside and the sound of the lapping waves put my mind at ease.

From Derdrang to the Pinas Islands adventure.

It was a knife that had never let down tension before, so I was drowsy at the moment.

“Um… … .”

Carl’s consciousness faded and melted into a drowsy dream world.

-Meow.

In the dream, Carl was a cat.

On the roof of an old house in a dark rural village.

The moon is so pretty.

Carl lay flat on his stomach and watched the moonlight from the rooftop.

The moonlight feels more toxic than usual.

Feeling the cold, Carl stood up.

The cat’s gaze scanned the town after the sun had set.

People were finishing their day and organizing their daily routine outside the house.

Bring the laundry you couldn’t finish during the day, and you’re the women in the line.

The men were carrying firewood into the house in case it got cold.

Children don’t want to be separated from their friends, so they are swarming with their parents who come to catch them.

At the entrance of the alley, I saw a couple who were clinging to each other and caressing each other in the dark.

It was a peaceful landscape.

-Meow.

The moment Carl was about to lie down again in a very pleasant landscape.

In his gaze, he saw a giant entering the village entrance.

To walk around in a robe at night.

A black robe covering the whole body.

It was covered so tightly that I couldn’t even see my face.

It makes me wonder if I can see straight ahead and walk.

when he got to the middle of town.

Young men with pokers came pouring in.

-hey! Reveal your identity!

– Walk in your robe and show your face! We are the village vigilantes!

It is common for young men to form vigilante groups to guard villages that are out of reach of the empire or the security forces of nearby cities.

The vigilantes had great power within the village.

It was their job to punish thieves and resolve disputes among residents.

In such a small town, local officials could not ignore the vigilantes.

But the giant man had no answer.

something unsettling

Just in time, I felt the chill again.

The moonlight slid down and shimmered around the large man.

-You want to get arrested?! Put on your hood right now and cover your face… … omg!

The giant pulled up a robe hood that covered his face.

What appeared was a young man with bluish hair.

He was a very handsome man, but his complexion was pale.

The eyes are blindingly blue.

The sword’s body stiffened.

– This town… … It is a village somewhere in the empire. answer

– This bastard! I want you to reveal your identity!

-Identity… … That’s right, in the world of humans, status and status took precedence over ability. okay… … I remember.

softly… … .

He took off all the robes the man was wearing.

A man who revealed his pure white naked body.

Surprisingly, his body was rotted in places and had holes in it.

– What, what ?! What is your true identity?! Black Mage?!

-He is the owner of the night who will give this village a rest.

-… … ?!

As his body was exposed, screams of women erupted throughout the village.

At the same time, the man’s hand stretched out in front of him.

– Oops!

The two vigilantes were caught in the grip of something.

The man opened his mouth wide.

-The taste of blood and flesh… … .

Woo woo woo woo-!

-Kuaaa

The captured vigilante’s flesh and blood were sucked into the man’s mouth.

Two vigilantes who quickly dried up like mummies.

The other vigilantes were frozen at the sight of such horror and astonishment.

Some even pooped and peed.

With screams, the surroundings turned into a mess, and the man started a full-fledged ‘meal’.

Holes all over the body were filled one by one each time it ate a person.

Even his emaciated face began to gain weight.

then at some point.

The man’s gaze turned to the cat on the roof in the distance.

– Paladin… … .

-… … Lich King.

The gazes of the two rivals intertwined silently but fiercely in the air.

The man slowly raised his arms without taking his eyes off him.

The mummified corpses were standing up.