A Knight Who Eternally Regresses - Chapter 431



Only Noblemtl

431. It will take two days.

Audin observed the gold that was on his body by contemplating his inner self.

Soon, a visual image of a tightly wound golden chain binding her entire body came to mind. Since she had been drawing on her divinity for a while, the thin piece of cloth covering the chain seemed to have worn away and disappeared, but the chain remained intact.

The chain was his own, and the piece of cloth covering it was made of gold by someone else.

When I checked the gold for the first time in a long time, memories of the past came flooding back.

These were moments I deliberately ignored.

“Defending heresy? Is that what an inquisitor does?”

First came the corrupt bishop who got angry all of a sudden.

“I wrote it carefully because I believed in the god of war. Huh!”

Another priest’s words also came to mind.

“What are you going to do?”

There were people who taught me and led me here.

He was a pope of the past who could not see ahead but could glimpse the future of people.

He became Pope and stepped down just ten days later.

“This is not my place, brothers and sisters.”

After he kicked away the authority, he spoke to himself in secret.

“I did that because I thought I wouldn’t live long if I stayed there.”

Although it was an absurd reason, he added that it was a conclusion he reached after predicting his own future.

Although his memories were tangled, Audin was unable to open his mouth easily when asked about the person who had treated him like a father despite him not having any blood relations.

It was right after he became a criminal for failing to fulfill his duties as an inquisitor.

“You don’t know what to do?”

“Yes, I am lost.”

Audyn said, kneeling.

“A lost shepherd has only one place to go.”

The former Pope and father figure spoke in a stern tone.

“I must go to that place underground, enveloped in darkness.”

Audyn answered again.

The one who judges sins is the god of Libra, who rules over the sun and the moon.

If you commit a sin, you will go to the god of war and be judged by him.

Those who are punished by the god of war will be locked in the prison of the underworld.

It was part of the doctrine. It was also the word used in the temple.

Audyn served the god of war, and the previous popes served a god with two faces.

One of the two faces was the god of love and the warden of the prison created by God, and the other was the god of judgment, symbolizing radiance and light.

The two divinities, which appear to be diametrically opposed, were originally one and the same, as was written in the scriptures.

There was a god who descended deep underground into a subterranean prison solely to bestow love.

He wanted to illuminate the earth by leaving the light he carried in his body on the earth.

Thus, one god, the keeper of the dungeon, symbolized darkness and love, and embraced the sinner.

The other one became the one who punished sinners with brilliance and light.

“You are the one who will lead the light of brilliance.”

Audin was led by those words and became a punisher of heresy.

The god of war gave him an excellent body.

Audin converted to a martial priest right from his days as a trainee priest. Naturally, Audin was different even during his days as a martial priest.

“You are the first person to delve into the Balaf martial arts to that extent and understand it.”

His extraordinary talent immediately led him to divinity.

The light of radiance and glory descends upon the body through the god of battle and war.

“It’s a miracle!”

No one was sparing in saying such things. Everyone blessed him.

While training to become a paladin, Audin was appointed as an Inquisitor.

“Pray there and cultivate your body and mind there.”

It was the archbishop’s words. The archbishop, who had a strangely slanted and vulgar appearance, told Audin to become the judge who would punish heresy.

Audin did so.

As an Inquisitor, I have decided to punish people with the light of my glory and holy light.

Then, while on a mission, he punished the bishop’s hidden son who had committed a sin and took his life.

After that, I was still handling a few more things.

In the small town where he went at the bishop’s command, Audín was distrustful.

A man accused of heresy burned himself to death to prove his innocence.

From the sight of him burning his body, Audin instinctively felt that this was not right.

So what’s wrong?

Me, do you believe in God?

Or a rotten temple?

An archbishop drunk on power?

The man who kicked out the Pope’s seat, claiming he had glimpsed the future?

Or else.

‘Should I see it as God’s fault for giving me strength despite my shortcomings?’

That probably isn’t it. He just didn’t understand his Father’s will.

Wandering came. Faith was shaken. The foundation that made up Audyn was broken and fell away from its cornerstone.

The dream of becoming a knight and taking the lead in destroying evil, of sending the devil to the Lord to destroy evil, was shattered.

The tower built on faith collapsed like that.

“If you do not want to be punished with light, go into darkness and hide yourself.”

Following the words of the person he considered his father, and honestly just because he didn’t want to do anything, Audin imposed abstinence on himself.

As if that wasn’t enough, some of those who handled the divinity added some gold to Audin’s body.

“I’m sorry, brother.”

There was a brother there who could have given his life in my place.

“Why did you do that?”

There was a sister who I used to laugh with yesterday, but now looks at with hatred.

Audin accepted the gold offering without a word of excuse, gave up his position, and left the temple.

On the way out, the words my father, the bishop, said were still vivid in my memory.

“The day your path becomes clear, you will step forward on your own.”

“Is that a prophecy?”

“What about prophecy? To be honest, I can’t make prophecies. It’s just guesses and predictions. If I become the Pope of a temple where there are more people who hate me than follow me, it’s obvious that someone will come out to kill me.”

It was the confession of the father bishop.

“I can’t know everything about a person, but I know a part of you because I’ve seen it before. If you feel comfortable thinking of it as a prophecy, then feel free to think of it that way. I’m just telling you. A part of what I know. The day you step forward, God will have the strongest shield to protect His child.”

The father bishop turned away with those words. Half a year later he was stoned to death as a heretic. The only divinity he possessed was simple healing.

Audin heard the news again half a year later.

As soon as he heard those words, Audyn could not hold back his boiling anger.

I wanted to run to the temple right away and kill them all.

But that couldn’t be done.

It was like pulling out the last roots I had, burning them, and watering them down to get rid of the ashes.

It would also not have been what Bishop Father had wanted.

‘Lord, am I supposed to die like this?’

He knows he is here because he killed the bishop’s hidden son.

I know that you are here because you became an Inquisitor and did not punish the heretics that the temple had designated.

Audin knew everything.

But I didn’t use my hands. I couldn’t. My hands were just for pounding and breaking.

The place I ended up staying after wandering around like that was a group of accident victims.

I saw someone who gave up nothing at a time when he had given up everything.

The man survived the knighthood, won the war, led the civil war to victory, and faced the devil without stopping.

The king of the East personally summoned him.

Audin was troubled.

Can you not ‘give up’ without breaking the ban?

Audin tried to dream the same dream again.

It becomes a shield and sword of brilliance that destroys evil, and a fist that represents God.

So, I tried to fulfill my given duty and walk the path that was laid out for me once again, but there was still an unresolved problem.

He had sworn to abstinence and could not break that oath at will.

Also, no one currently in the temple would agree to lifting the ban.

The past became entangled and eventually reached the question I had been asking myself.

Legion, a corner monastery in the Holy City.

He was born without parents.

“Why was I born?”

Audin asked himself countless times: What is the purpose of such a uselessly large body?

The same is true when you attain divinity.

Kill the enemies of the temple, called heretics?

That’s probably not it.

I will become a fist that destroys evil.

There was a time when I aimed for that but it didn’t work out.

I threw that time behind me. I forgot the past for a moment and looked at the new sun, the coming tomorrow instead of the past today.

“What did you plan to do as a knight?”

Audin asked, and Encrid answered.

“I want to create a world where children do not fight in battles, where knights uphold chivalry, and where what is right is respected.”

Alas, Audyn wept the day he heard the answer. He prayed and cried in a corner behind the barracks so that no one would find out.

Some, including Saxony, saw it but ignored it.

It wasn’t the first time that Audin cried while praying.

While he was praying, Teresa approached him. She waited patiently until Audín finished praying, and then she said:

“I feel like my body and talent are worthless. I tried to learn singing to calm my mind, but it wasn’t easy.”

“Why do you want to go further?”

“It’s because I want to go down the path that I believe is right. I believe that path is next to that man. More than anything, I have a strong desire to protect this place.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes, that’s right. I want to prove myself by competing with him and be of help to that man on his way.”

To set a goal and put it into practice is the greatest light a person can have.

It may not be sacred, but it is a light that will not fade.

Audin nodded, reciting the words of the temple.

“I heard you’ve selected a few members. Let’s start serious training together.”

Audín said. Teresa regretted it for a moment after telling her troubles.

Just hearing the four words ‘serious training’ gave me a feeling.

It might be the kind of training that would be better than being locked up in an underground prison.

This is what happened while I was in the process of selecting large, strong, and faithful members to form a unit.

And Audin realized that one of the golden chains that had been squeezing him in his head had been broken.

‘The words of the temple are always right, so do not disobey.’

Then you’ll have to go to the temple and change that right a little bit.

Because if necessary, we will have to lift the ban.

But he would not lift the ban on his own accord until he received permission. That was because of Audín’s faith.

Even if I die, I won’t release all the gold.

The release of the gold is done after telling the temple what is right.

Even if it’s difficult and I die from it, I will do it.

Just because of one person’s dream, another person’s life changed.

* * *

Ragnar fell asleep and woke up immediately to find a change.

‘Cold air.’

Breathing in and out.

Fallen leaves.

Scattered dust.

Everything was several times clearer and more tangible than before.

If I stretched out my hand now, I felt like I could snatch the axe from that ignorant savage sitting over there.

It was about twenty paces away, but it seemed like it would be possible.

Ragnar mustered his will and grabbed his hand from the air.

Of course, since it wasn’t a supernatural ability or magic, there was no way that an axe from afar would fit into my hand.

However, at the same time that I made a gesture of reaching out and grabbing, Rem gripped the handle of my axe tightly.

It happened almost simultaneously.

Rem, who was moving following Ragnar’s hand, said to the crazy lazy bum.

“You crazy kid, why don’t you get out of here?”

It was as if he had read what he had wished for in his heart. But it was also something that did not come true.

‘This won’t do.’

It seemed like everything would work out, but there were many things that didn’t work out.

I realized something and went over the wall, but there was so much to figure out one by one.

Ragnar thought back to the duel between the King of the East and Encred.

He does not back down even one step and resists the knight’s force.

The king was very lenient. It wasn’t a duel between leaders, but it was enough to help the opponent unleash all his strength.

Ragnar saw it all.

I saw, no, I felt, the power flowing from the weapon the king held, accumulating on Encred’s sword.

‘Can we gather our will and put it into practice?’

For example, could you bring Rem’s axe without ignoring the physical distance?

‘That could be possible.’

To do that, I had to take a step back and close the distance.

I couldn’t do it because I only stretched out my hand without lifting my foot.

Ragnar also naturally realized the principle of coercion.

It is not something that can be achieved by simply targeting the opponent with speculation and murderous intent.

Embodying one’s will into phenomena.

That is, speaking to the other person through Will.

A sword on his waist, a spear on his back, a fork for stabbing steak.

It tells you that whatever you have in your hand can kill your opponent.

‘No, just the blade will do.’

Think about your actions and convey them subtly to the other person.

By doing so, the survival instinct will seize the person’s hands, feet, and heart.

That was the pressure.

Ragnar was now sitting in a restaurant, experimenting with a fork.

Once to Rem.

“Is this kid crazy?”

Rem glared at him with the ferocity characteristic of a savage.

“Brother, please take care of yourself.”

Audyn spoke with a smile, but a small vein appeared on his forehead.

Dunbakel stepped back with a thud.

Teresa frowned and quietly recited part of the scriptures. She also tried to use her plate as a shield by pulling it over secretly.

A friend named Lawford stood shivering right next to me, sweat dripping down his face onto his plate.

“Then I’ll catch the kid.”

The shepherd of the wilderness is a friend. He took out his sword slightly.

A black blade appeared. It was a sword called Idol Slayer. Ragnar also saw something attached to the sword.

They say it’s a sword that eats away at the soul, but it was a sword that cut off the will of existence.

I felt a presence, but I couldn’t tell exactly what was inside.

To find out, you’ll have to hold it and swing it around.

After that, it was that guy Wangnuni.

Christ, not knowing anything, asked if it was chilly today.

‘If there are people who react sensitively.’

Some people don’t.

Couldn’t this be used to gauge skill or talent? It seemed like it could be.

Ragnar devoted all his time to swinging his sword, except for the time he spent eating and sleeping.

What the King of the East said before he left was true.

Now was the time to get on the right track.

You may feel like you can do anything, but actually doing anything requires a process.

Can a sword split a mountain?

There is no sword that can cut through a mountain in one stroke.

‘Any wizard who tries to use magic to split that mountain can be killed.’

Divide and recognize what you can and cannot do.

For that, I repeated the basic training every day.

I moved my body nonstop to the point where my whole body was drenched in sweat, so I ended up snoring while sleeping at night.

After repeating the same thing for several days, Encred asked, unwrapping the bandage wrapped tightly around his wrist.

“When will it be?”

It was a call to fight.

Ragnar considered himself for a moment and then said.

“Two days will do.”

That seemed like it would work. It was hard to even control my strength right now, but two days would be enough.

It was a crazy talent.

Even if one were to step over the wall and reach the level of a knight, it would take at least three months, or at most six months, to get one’s body back in shape, but that was not the case for Ragnar.

A fortnight was a long time for him.