CH 86

Chapter 86

When Peaceful Times Cease To Exist : Attack On Church Of Arnelia, Part 14 — Cleaning Up After The Attack ②

Translated by KaiesV

Edited by KaiesV

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Several days later——

The renovation of the Palace of the Deep Green has begun, and the torn exterior walls have been apparently repaired. Miliazar insisted that the Deep Green Palace was just right because it was too big for her, but when she first built it, she asked the same question and answered,「What if Master Bishop doesn’t want to live in a place this big!」As those in a position to worship her, it was better for their Lord to be dignified, and the idea around her was to make the building at least as dignified as possible, since they couldn’t worship Miliazar on a regular basis. At first, Miliazar was reluctant to do so, but reluctantly agreed to do so if the budget would allow it. Because Miliazar rarely wasted money, she had a budget surplus every year, so she could use the money carried over to make change as much as she wanted.

However, the damage caused by the attack this time was more human than building damage. Final number of deaths were 378—— This was the highest death toll the Arnelian religion has suffered in decades. Although, as mentioned before, many Arnelianists came from orphaned backgrounds, these did not count for 100 of the dead, and many of them, even orphans, were now raising families, so when someone died, they inevitably had to report it. Although Miliazar ostensibly wanted to pretend that nothing had happened, the incident was a little too big to go off without a hitch. Rumors spread little by little from everywhere, and eventually, to a greater or lesser extent, the situation became known to other countries.

Although Miliazar was prepared for this, it was a relief that the citizens of Arnelia didn’t blame the church for the incident. The citizens of Arnelia often knew how the church felt. This was probably due to the usual good government and the response of those who reported to the dead. A good group of people are always good people in the middle class. Perhaps the true strength of the Arnelia church is that many of its members are able to take the lead without direct instruction from Miliazar.

When the post-processing was almost complete, and Miliazar was ready to return to her normal duties, Jake was called by her.

「What do you want, Pettanko?」

「Ahh, I’m being serious here.」

Miliazar doesn’t respond to the teasing. Jake also quickly realized that it was serious by the look on her face.

「…What do you want to talk?」

「Remember the last line they left us with?」

「Yes, it was like he had some kind of grudge against me. And he seemed to know about Lisa-nee.」

「In fact, Lisa and company are secretly escorted by an eagle. Therefore, they can handle most things, and the people around Lisa are also very strong. The girls may not have to worry about that kid for the time being, though…」

「The point would be that, I’m a perfect target, right? And that I might be a liability to Lisa-nee.」

「I hate to say it, but that’s exactly what it is.」

「Right… what am I supposed to do?」

「Hmm…」

Miliazar marveled at Jake’s ability to switch so quickly, but also found it a little hard to say. It was something she had planned to do at some point, but she thought it might be too early for a 10-year-old boy, no matter how much he wanted to do it.

「Jake, you… Join the Templar Knights.」

「Alright.」

「No, I’m not asking you to make a decision out of the blue… wait, you decided instantly!?」

「What I’m still doing isn’t much different, is it? That’s fine to me.」

「But if you join the Order, however, your life is constrained. I am worried that you will lose your boyish freedom. That’s what I’m worried about.」

「I don’t care. I’ve decided to spend my entire life for Lisa-nee. If you were a man, you wouldn’t bend what you said, would you?」

「This kid, you’ve got such a big mouth?」

「It’s obvious… Aww!」

Miliazar punches Jake in the head. Miliazar has seen a lot of these young men with spirit, and their growth is always a source of amusement to her.

「Then you’ll go through the procedures today. First, I’ll assign you to a unit on the perimeter. Therefore, free access to the Palace of the Deep Green will not be allowed. However, I will talk to the guard so that you can come in and out, although you will have to go through the procedures. Make sure you talk to the little kids, okay?」

「Okay.」

「I also make sure that Rafferty or Albert has time to train with you. It’s impossible to protect Lisa unless you are at least as good as them.」

「How long will it take me to get there?」

「I’d tell you to get a move on, but it’s all up to you… Well, let’s see how strong you are in a year.」

「I see… I guess I’ll just have to try.」

「You’ll tell me this much.」

「That’s all you’re going to tell me?」

「Yeah, for the time being.」

「Then I’ll go explain it to Nelly and others. I’ll be back!」

「Okay…」

Jake makes a short run out of the room, and after seeing him, Miliazar calls Albert and Rafferty.

「You wanted to see us?」

「Yes, Jake is a member of the Templar Knight Order from this day forward. But he must give priority to magic training, combat training, and study. He will also give priority to training with you and the others every day.」

「That’s… that’s a lot of work.」

「Yes, in more ways than one. Every day will continue to be physically demanding, but it will be even more demanding mentally. He risk being misunderstood and scolded by those around him, and viewed as enemies by his own generation. Just as you once were.」

「…That’s, correct.」

「But that is the path he has chosen. I’m not sure he understands that much. But Jake is perceptive. He might not be able to express it in words, but he kind of gets it.」

「I think there’s a good chance of that happening.」

「But no matter how mature they are, they are still children. You should watch over them, even if it’s only you.」

「「At your will.」」

「Still, I don’t think we’ll make it in time… they’ll be here any minute now, if not sooner. They won’t wait for Jake to get stronger.」

「Miliazar-sama, I have one question.」

Albert asks.

「What is it?」

「That ability of Jake’s. What is that ability that caused that evil spirit to do damage? It seemed to be more effective than my consecrated sword or the fists of Miliazar-sama.」

「I have no proof either. But I have some guesses.」

Miriazar speaks with her hand on her chin.

「What does it look like to…」

「Do you know the origin of the Holy Knights?」

「Origin… you say?」

Albert and Rafferty look at each other.

「Yes. This was during the period of the Great War, when the Great Archfiend was still in existence. Among the Archfiends, there are those who are composed of an army of deadly spirits and demons. At that time, Arnelian religion was not yet an army, and there was no concept of a templar knight. Therefore, sisters and priests must stand in the vanguard in order to defeat the dead and evil spirits, which are ineffective with ordinary weapons. Many deaths occurred.」

「I have read about it in the records of Arnelia. There’s a battle in which a lot of attack magic of the holy attribute was developed.」

「Yes. Then, a certain young man was called out. With a bronze sword, which he had never trained or consecrated, he was cutting down hordes of evil spirits one after another. Of course, no one could imitate him, but it is fair to say that the concept of the current temple knight was born from his fighting style.

Nowadays, these characteristics are simply called『Special Quality』but at that time, the concept of a『Holy Knight』was established to refer to a knight or swordsman who could defeat deadly spirits and evil spirits.」

「So Jake has the ability to be a Holy Knight?」

「That I don’t know. I have seen the Holy Knight fight a few times. I was often on the same front but in a different direction. But as far as Jake is concerned, I think that is the most likely scenario. That’s why I want you two to train him. Perhaps he will be a trump card against the so called Doom. But he’s also meant to be an escort.」

「「I understand.」」

「Make sure you’re on top of it… We’re running out of time to do anything at all.」

Miliazar involuntarily looked up to the heavens. At first, Miliazar began to protect various things with the power she had at her disposal, but each time the number of things to protect and things she wanted to protect increased, and each time she sought the power she needed. She had spent her life repeating this chain of events.

The number of connections has increased, and now there are too many people to protect. The Lazaar family, Miranda, Alfiris, Lisa and the little kids, the humans belonging to the Church of Arnelia… Miliazar was forced to wonder whether she would be able to protect all of them through this battle.