ushernet Chapter 99 The Beginning of Change (3)
Chapter 99 The Beginning of Change (3)
Chapter 99 The Beginning of Change (3)
Episode 99 The Beginning of Change (3)
Heinrich Saint Landguard.
Heinrich, who became the owner of the holy sword and was knighted as a Paladin, gained the middle name 'Saint'.
It wasn't just a title.
It was a name given only to those chosen by the Main God, such as the Saints and Saintesses of the Church.
‘It’s all thanks to “Grand Blessing: Knight of Light” I received at the knighting ceremony...’
There were various types of blessings, from the ones he had, like Fortified Body, Leap, and Capacity Increase, to those he didn’t have.
He hadn’t really felt it until now because he had been directly experiencing the Main God’s interest, but it was like a reward you received after meeting certain conditions.
If you overcame your physical limits through extreme training, you would receive the blessing of ‘Fortified Body’.
If you accepted more holy power than your limit through continuous study, you would receive the blessing of ‘Capacity Increase’.
And if you exceeded a certain standard while training skills using holy power or researching holy magic, it would become a blessing and return to the practitioner.
‘I haven’t really felt it until now.’
But thinking about it, all the blessings he had received, except for “Blessing: Leap”, were obtained when he did his best in those situations.
The standards might have been a bit generous, but it wasn’t completely unreasonable.
But ‘Grand Blessing’ was different from the ‘blessings’ he had received so far.
‘A blessing bestowed solely by the Main God’s choice.’
It was something that only one person might receive per generation among the countless believers of the Main God Church.
For example, the only living person who had received a Grand Blessing in this era was Saintess Liesta.
They said there were even times in the past when no one received it, so it showed how difficult it was to obtain.
‘And it’s not like you automatically receive a Grand Blessing just because you’re recognized by the holy sword.’
There were about ten known owners of the holy sword so far, but only two of them were Saints.
The hero from a thousand years ago, who was a Saint from the beginning, wielded the holy sword and defeated the Immortal King.
And the hero from the previous generation, who became a Saint after obtaining the holy sword, just like Heinrich.
In other words, the heroes who defeated the Immortal King with the holy sword in the previous generations were also Saints chosen by the Main God.
‘It means that the Main God is paying that much attention to the abyss. But a Saint, it’s a bit embarrassing.’
It seemed like the Main God was trying to support him because he felt he was useful, but he couldn’t help but feel a bit burdened.
It was because...
“Oh! There’s the Saint!”
“As expected, I thought he was extraordinary from the time he first came to the cathedral. To think he would be chosen by the Main God so quickly.”
“His growth rate was definitely abnormal. Now it makes sense.”
Those who had been comfortable with him before all started to treat him with reverence.
Even the Paladins, the Archbishops, and even the Cardinals, whom he had never met before.
‘And the condition of the newly issued equipment is no joke.’
The pure white armor he was wearing, ‘Guardian of Glory’, was the best of the best, created by the Main God Church’s greatest artisans with all their heart and soul.
Not to mention that rare metals like mithril and orichalcum were used.
The inside was densely inscribed with prayers, and it was enveloped in all sorts of high-level holy magic and even a holy barrier, practically a ‘walking fortress’.
‘And the price is just as high.’
It was the price of a strategic fortress with all sorts of magical treatments, not a small castle on the outskirts.
Even the wealthy Main God Church only made one because the price was so exorbitant, and even the Paladins were using lower-level equipment.
It was practically a sacred object.
‘In other words, this is the final equipment. The best weapon, the holy sword, and the best armor, Guardian of Glory. I don’t have to worry about equipment anymore.’
And so, Heinrich, who had become a Saint, was currently on his way back from visiting the Pope, who was recuperating, with the Saintess.
A gentle appearance, eyes shining with a clear light despite being bedridden, and a body filled with powerful holy power.
Hatianuss II, who had led the Main God Church so far, seemed healthy enough on the outside...
‘They said he doesn’t have much time left. And he can only stay awake for about an hour a day.’
The situation was very different from the previous incidents.
The battles with the previous Immortal Kings were basically all-out wars.
The fact that the Church was able to somehow locate them because of the intense abyssal energy contained in their hearts played a big part.
Of course, the previous Immortal Kings had reached the pinnacle of dark magic, so they could avoid the Church’s gaze for a while, but...
No matter what they did to temporarily divert attention, there was a limit, and their location was eventually discovered.
So they had no choice but to raise a giant immortal army to protect themselves and choose to fight a full-scale war against the continent.
But...
The Immortal King who was resurrected this time was different.
He was thoroughly concealing his location and causing chaos on the continent by manipulating things in the shadows.
And it was impossible to gather information and locate him because of his unpredictable mobility.
That was the reason why other forces couldn’t take any action.
What could they do when they didn’t even know where or what their enemy was doing?
All they could do was protect important figures and locations, strengthen their defenses, and prepare their forces for future calamities.
But months passed with no sign of the enemy, only endless preparations.
And as the situation became like that, hyenas who sought to profit from the chaos started to appear one by one.
From embezzlement of military supplies and military procurement fraud to secret collusion in the political circles.
Small discords in every corner of society gathered and contributed to the current chaotic situation.
They were trying to clean things up in a hurry now that the situation had escalated, but...
An even bigger change was approaching before they could even finish cleaning up the mess.
A group of merchants passing through a forest path where monsters appeared.
Since it was a dangerous area, the number of mercenaries guarding them and patrolling the surroundings was also significant.
At that moment, one of the mercenaries escorting the merchants quietly spoke to the man next to him.
“Hey, Mike. Are you sure it’s okay? They say undead are roaming around everywhere these days.”
“Then what do we do? We can’t just stop working forever.”
“But...”
“And we won’t encounter them unless we’re really unlucky. With this many of us, we might be able to handle it.”
The merchants were also aware of the current situation, so several merchants heading in the same direction joined forces and hired more mercenaries than usual.
And so, they confidently crossed the dangerous forest path and didn’t encounter a single undead.
But...
“Ugh! What are these?!”
“Be careful! They’re definitely not ordinary... Gah!”
A horde of monsters, countless monsters, attacked the merchants.
“Grrr—!”
“Kieeeeek!”
The types of monsters that attacked were diverse, including goblins, orcs, and gremlins, but they all shared one characteristic.
Eyes with a faint red glow.
Drool dripping from their mouths.
Ferociously bulging muscles.
Recklessness that made them charge even with their limbs severed...
And their murderous intent to kill their opponents until their last breath, even if their necks were cut or their hearts pierced.
“Why are they working together even though they’re from different races... Ugh!”
“These guys, there’s no end...!”
They were mercilessly slaughtering the humans.
This was also something that was starting to happen all over the continent—.
The influence of ‘madness’ was slowly but surely revealing itself.