Sword Pilgrim

ate and is said to be pursuing me in search of relics.

An apostate who stole the Church’s relics.

“Maybe he misunderstood the Tears of Valtherus I took for a sacred object?”

Ah, please.
You can’t just make that kind of mistake.

“Perhaps it’s a ploy to frame me for someone else’s sins.”

Wouldn’t it be better to shoot all the arrows at an innocent scapegoat to cover up a big event?

Moreover, Callius was reputed as the prodigal son of the Order.

The Count’s Scapegrace.

A perfect level of notoriety to push in some extra blame for any kind of sin.

This might also be part of that.

“Because it’s a character that has terrible luck.
Even if you stand still and do nothing, death will arrive.”

But what’s the issue with that?

It was me who created Callius with such a fate.

So I just have to accept it.

And overcome it.

‘Master of Poison Akasha.’

Steel Justice Heretic Inquisitor Ryburn.

A pretty tough opponent.

The best choice is to not meet.

Next is running away.

The worst choice is to fight.

If I had to fight… ….
Callius looked at Arsando.

“I may have to find a new sword.”

Tok tok.

“Master! The workshop installation is complete!”

“Okay.
Let’s go quickly.”

No matter what you do, the Holy Water comes first.

The more insurance, the better.

Count Artemion’s hotel.

In the hotel’s restaurant, he was cutting a large piece of meat with a knife and fork.

The lamb tenderloin served with sauce tickled like waves on the tongue.

As if he had a greased throat, he swallowed it lightly.

“It tastes great.”

“Are things going okay, Count?”

“What do you mean, Baron Manon?”

“The bastard of Jervain.”

“Huh, you idiot.
Watch your mouth.
Cursing Jervain is the same as insulting the Kingdom itself.”

“Ha, but… don’t you know.”

“I handed over the sacred stone to Sir Callius because I knew.”

Because I needed his name.

He himself is not needed at all.

The great honour that has been built up by his bloodline over the centuries.

I just needed that.

“I just needed the name of the family which shared the glory of the Kingdom’s founding.
Since I could use the name of Jervain without any connections, a small sacred stone was rather cheap.”

“However, …”

“Don’t worry.
That Jervain will accept my offer seeing the sacred stone in his hand.
But in the not-too-distant future, he will pay the price for being seduced by his greed.”

No matter how much they say he has been abandoned by Jervain.

He is still their eldest trueborn son.

“Even Count Jervain can’t just pretend that he doesn’t know.”

No matter how much you say a child has been abandoned –

The blood in your veins will not lie.

“What is Callius doing?”

“He hasn’t been out of the room for three days.
Perhaps he’s been trying to avoid the Inquisitor’s eyes.”

Apostate.

He’s been branded that way, so it’s understandable.

Cedric wondered how Callius, bearing the surname of Jervain, became an apostate, but there was only one possible answer.

He stole the Church’s relics.

For what reason?

And why did he reveal to himself the location of the holy relic of the Twin Gods?

How did he even know of the Twin Gods?

If you think about it, you will find the answer.

‘Yeah, rather than swords, he must have been fascinated by the tough art of circles and angles.[1]‘

Callius had discovered that he had no talent for the sword at a young age.

The pressure of the family, the envy of the public –

Must have suffocated him.
Then he came across a story about the Twin Gods by chance.

Even though he became a Pilgrim and went on a pilgrimage, he must have found the story of the Twin Gods.

So, he came to know the location of the holy relics.

Callius, probably –

‘Wants to become a Saint of the Twin Gods like me.’

Otherwise, he wouldn’t have said in vain that he wanted to be a brother with him.

Then, all his actions made sense.

But it is still too early to give faith, to become brothers.

There are still many areas of doubt.

“Are things going well at the entrance?”

“Yeah, I gave the Casino’s guests a large sum of money just as you asked.
They won’t say anything because Cedric-sama’s name is guaranteeing it.”

“It’s a brother’s business.
So we need to handle it with certainty.”

“All right.”

Chuckle.

After the henchman left.

“Brother…”

The word ‘brother’ came out without me knowing, and somehow it sticks to my lips.

Since I was raised as an only child, I thought that the word ‘brother’ would feel awkward and absurd.

It doesn’t even make sense if you think about it.

“An uninhabited island in the South.
Barbareum.”

It’s the first time I’ve ever heard of the island.

But Callius said so confidently.
A hidden island.

He said that there would be the Gaiters, the sacred relic of the Oracle, and there would be a Saint who worships the Twin Gods.

“I’m going to have to be absent for a year or so.”

Since it’s a long way, I think I’ll need the time.
Because it is an island hidden at the farthest edge of the South.

I still can’t be sure, but it’ll all be clear after seeing it with my own eyes.

“There’s no time to mess around.
We’ll go right after making the minimum preparations.”

As long as you find the holy relic, you can engrave the word “brother” in your heart.

“Kahahahaha! Let’s get ready!”

“Hooo.”

The whole body was drenched in sweat.

After performing the divine power infusion for three days in that temporary manufacturing workshop room –

I was exhausted and at my limit.

I had to inject the divine power little by little while maintaining its strength.

When spiritual energy is exhausted, go to sleep, and when you wake up, start again.
For three days.

“It wasn’t pointless.”

It was significant.

Thanks to that, I now had six bottles of Holy Water full of divinity in front of my eyes.

It was Holy Water with one Tear of Valtherus in each.
Although the quality of the divine power was low, and the impurities could not be completely removed, Holy Water was still Holy Water.

I failed a couple of times, but it was still good enough for my first try.

So patting myself in the back, I called Bruns, who had been waiting outside.

“Yes!”

“Show me your chest.”

“Uhh, wha?! Sh-, showing my chest… W, what are you talking about here?”

The words were a little weird.
Bruns’ eyes were full of confusion.

“I meant show me the wound.”

“Ah… yes!”

As he did it right away, the sword wound he had been subjected to during the Lutens case the other day was still there.

Because it was a small wound, it was healing, but when I pressed it with my finger, blood oozed out.

“Ugh.”

“Shut up, Bruns.”

I opened the stopper of a bottle of Holy Water, applied a little on my hand, and slathered it on Bruns’ wound.

Then it worked immediately.

“Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!”

Bruns’ screams resounded in the room.

“Oh, it hurts! It hurts like I’m dying! I’m dying! No, I’m fucking dying!! Don’t touch me!!”

Bruns squealed as if he was going crazy from the sting and rolled all over the floor.

Soon after, he had foam around his mouth and his eyes were rolling back.
He looked really sick.

‘Is it a side effect?’

However, since smoke was coming out of the wound, the effect must have been good.

I’ll just come back and check on him after a few hours.

Leaving behind the motionless Bruns who had fainted, I went out with a satisfied smile.

Editor’s Notes:

[1] 권과 각의 (lit.
circle and angle) – martial arts that depend on mobility and positioning can sometimes be described this way.
Modern boxing is one example.