Imperial Guard - Chapter 55



Only Noblemtl

In medieval fantasy, trends spread faster than you might think.

You might wonder what nonsense this is talking about in a place without social media or smartphones, but medieval fantasy is a place that craves that much fun.

That means, if anything even slightly interesting comes up, they rush towards it like crazy.

The symbol of the sect was also spread like that at first.

“··· What is that?”

The man, a noble of the Empire, frowned at the large cult symbol affixed to the carriage.

“Don’t you still know the symbol of the church’s donation?”

“No, I know it’s a donation symbol from the church. I have one at home too. But this is the first time I’ve seen one that big.”

He was a nobleman and had donated quite a bit, but this was the first time he had seen such a huge token.

“It’s a special symbol that can only be obtained from the branch in District 4. It’s even being used by the Knights of Rain, the knights of His Highness the Grand Duke.”

“The Knights of Rain…? Doesn’t that mean they’re related to His Highness the Grand Duke?”

The strongest knight order on the continent is the Knights of Kamen, but the Knights of Rain are the largest knight order on the continent.

Especially, the captain, Rain, was a man who was a role model for knights, so he could be trusted.

“You have to understand the flow of the imperial capital these days. That’s the only way to avoid growing old.”

“Flow… Well, it’s not easy. What’s so cool about that?”

The man simply could not understand.

If that was on the street, I wouldn’t have even cared.

But the carriage with that strange sign was the carriage of Count Samuel’s family.

Seeing the nobles taking the lead in using it, it was clear that there was something he couldn’t understand.

“Tsk tsk. How stupid. Do you know how much one of those tokens is worth?”

“··· How much is it? About 300 gold coins?”

“That’s not even enough to buy a token for your cloak. The more you donate, the bigger the token becomes. The ones that can be placed on your carriage are the best. They cost more than five thousand gold coins.”

“What? What did you say? Five thousand?!”

Five thousand gold coins is enough to run a small knightly order.

It wasn’t a small amount of money even for a nobleman.

It’s just too much to use for such a sign…

‘A decoration worth five thousand gold coins…?’

The man who was staring intently at Count Samuel’s carriage swallowed.

Somehow… that sign on the carriage looked really cool.

“··· Did you say district 4?”

It was a fad that spread among the nobility in an instant.

*

The Baggers, an organization of beggars.

They have been steadily expanding their territory recently.

More and more people began to acknowledge them, and their reputation as an information guild was also very good.

“What is this?”

The captain of the baggers, Zenith, looked at the sign he had never seen before in his room.

It clearly looked exactly like the symbol of the sect, but it was several times larger than the original symbol, which was the size of a palm.

“Ah, it’s a sign of a religious sect that has recently become popular in the capital.”

Charon, Zenith’s second-in-command, continued speaking.

“··· Isn’t that a cheap fake? There’s no way a church would make such an ignorantly large sign.”

Zenith frowned at the sign.

Although his aesthetic sense is not very good, the token is only evidence of donation in the first place.

What significance would a mere size symbol have?

“It’s said to be extremely popular among the nobles of District 2. It’s only distributed at a specific branch in District 4… The size varies depending on the donation. The commoners with a lot of money are starting to take interest in it because they can use the same things as the nobles.”

“··· The nobles use it?”

Zenith looked at the sign again at Caron’s words.

It was only then that I noticed the little details and beauty in the sign.

“Looking at it again, it’s cool. It feels sacred. How much should I donate for something this size? Ten gold coins?”

Zenith continued, looking at the sign.

When nobles use it, it suddenly starts to look sacred and cool.

“No. It’s more than 100 gold coins.”

“··· What?! How did you get something that expensive?”

Zenith was startled.

100 gold coins is more than a knight’s monthly salary.

Although Bagus was making a lot of money, it wasn’t enough to barely make 100 gold coins.

“That is… Among the nobles, the size of the token has become something of a pride, so the token I initially obtained was discarded as no longer needed.”

“Oh, right. That piece of trash worth 100 gold coins···.”

Zenith looked at the sign and thought.

After hearing the price, I realized that the token was a gold coin.

‘It would look pretty cool hanging in the room.’

Zenith raised the corners of her mouth.

That’s just how people think.

It was similar to how you can taste the flavor of a bad drink if you drink it again after hearing its high price.

As it became known that the nobles were using it, the reputation of the sect’s symbol gradually improved.

By the time the sign was known to Bagers’ information network, nobles began to visit the branch in District 4 on a daily basis.

“··· Is this the place the Count spoke of?”

“That’s right. When you see the nobles riding in a carriage, it’s said that it’s a ticket to the upcoming party of His Highness the Grand Duke.”

“If it’s His Highness the Grand Duke’s return party, then I absolutely have to attend.”

The Archduke simply told several nobles, including Rain, to wear this according to Rael’s words… but the nobles who saw it began to interpret it differently.

It was a party where the Archduke made his first appearance in years.

There was no way that the badges his entourage carried around would be meaningless.

From the words, “Participation in the upcoming party,” to the conditions necessary to enter the Archduke’s service.

The great sign of the sect became a source of amusement for the idle nobles.

So within two weeks, donations started to pile up like crazy.

“Wow, this is impossible. This is more than the three branches of District 2 combined. As expected, Honorary Knight. You are amazing.”

Bishop Peter looked at the donation with his mouth open.

The donations were much larger than when he served as a junior priest in District 2.

Even as time passed, donations increased.

“··· Ah, haha. Well, I knew this would happen. Who am I? I’m an honorary knight.”

Rael turned his head, carrying his luggage on his back.

His Highness the Grand Duke’s connections were truly amazing.

When we told some nobles to use the token, other nobles also thought there was something to it and started donating money for the token.

‘··· I’ve saved more money than I thought, but I hope it won’t disgrace His Highness’ reputation, right?’

I was a little worried about the amount of donations that were collected, which was more than I expected.

The nobles gave their donations expecting something in return, but the symbol of the cult meant nothing.

I’m worried that the nobles might cause trouble later on.

‘At that time, you can just sneak out.’

Fortunately, Rael also had insurance.

It was a perfect plan to put the innocent Bishop Peter in the lead when the nobles started to act up.

“But… But, Honorable Knight. I feel uneasy. It feels like I’m trading the believers’ faith for money…”

“Don’t worry. This is also Gaia’s guidance.”

Rael smiled kindly and collected his allowance.

I had already expected that a bishop as conscientious as Peter would react like that.

But that too will be over soon.

All donations from the church are reported to the main office.

There is no way that the money-grubbing religious figures will let this incident slide.

Rael was confident that Peter would change his mind soon.

The next day.

Peter’s worries became reality.

The headquarters of the religious order sent someone to the branch.

“Yes, yes?! A cardinal?!”

Peter, who had expected to be scolded by the archbishop, opened his eyes wide.

What is a cardinal?

They are one of only three highest ranking clergy in the church and are the second most powerful people after the Pope.

Even Cardinal Bernardo, who created the current religious order, personally visited the 4th district.

‘The Cardinal himself came… He must be angry because I did as I pleased with the church’s work.’

Perhaps he may have to give up the episcopal seat he has finally attained.

Peter took a deep breath and gathered all the donations.

‘Let’s make sure that no harm comes to Sir Lael and Sir Carlson…’

Although it was Lord Rael who initiated the work, it was ultimately the bishop himself who gave permission.

I didn’t mean to harm them.

Chuck- chuck-

After a while.

Several Knights of the Silver Cross and a man with a potbelly entered the branch office in District 4.

Peter saw the cardinal’s insignia on his chest and immediately made the sign of the cross.

“May Gaia bless you. This is Bishop Peter.”

Peter greeted the cardinal nervously.

I was willing to accept whatever punishment the Cardinal gave me.

However, Cardinal Bernardo’s reaction was a little different from what he thought.

“Bishop Peter!!! It was you! You’re doing a great job! Your faith has spread beyond the four districts and even reached the nobles! If things continue this way, you’ll soon become an archbishop! Haha!”

Bernando licked his lips as he looked at the donations Peter had collected.

It had been a very long time since he had seen that much cash.

That seemed like more than the donations he received from the Knights of Carmen.

“Ah… Thank you, Your Excellency!”

“What’s the Cardinal between us! You should be called Brother Bernando! ···So Peter. Can you tell me how to make this sign?”

“Ah, I understand···!”

Bishop Peter was moved to tears by the touch of Cardinal Bernardo on his shoulder.

Which bishop would have such a close conversation with a cardinal?

This was all guidance and blessing from Gaia.

‘Ah, I was walking the same path as Gaia, the one who gave me life.’

Peter smiled with joy.

He was recognized.

He was recognized by two Knights of the Silver Cross and by the Cardinal.

“I will continue to be a faithful follower of Gaia-sama. Gaia-men.”

“Huh? Hahaha. Bishop Peter. I like you, after all. Gaia-men!”

Only then did Peter realize what a bishop had to do.

*

“The world is finally turning properly.”

Rael smiled brightly as he walked down the street of District 3.

Huge donation signs appeared everywhere.

Don’t be surprised.

Of that, 2% became Rael’s money.

Some might say it’s only 2%… but 2% of the donations collected in two weeks was an amount that Rael had never seen before.

Rael has achieved the economic freedom that cannot be achieved in modern times through medieval fantasy···!

‘Bishop Peter has been acting a little strange, but… well, I guess it’s okay.’

It is said that a cardinal came from the headquarters of the diocese to congratulate him… Fortunately, it is said that Rael’s name was not mentioned.

Did he want to monopolize the ball all by himself?

‘Just seeing him suddenly greet the nobles in person… Hmm.’

It was quite difficult to collect more donations because of Cardinal Rael’s watchful eye.

I have no complaints since I have already taken care of everything, but one of the pure bishops has ended up becoming corrupt.

Money is this scary.

‘I left my money with Uncle Janice, so it’ll be fine…’

Rael took all his allowance before Peter could say anything else.

I left all my money with Bagus. Since Mr. Janice has nowhere to run anyway, I can trust him.

‘The world is a happy place because you have a lot of money.’

Rael realized that if you have money, this world is a pretty good place to live.

He stopped by the bakery in District 3 with a happy face.

“You really like this.”

“Oh, yes. Because my friend likes it.”

“You’re the only one who buys this from our bakery. Thank you as always.”

“··· Then why don’t we start from scratch?”

“Huh? What did you say?”

“It’s nothing. Take care.”

Rael bought a basket of mint chocolates at the bakery.

It’s fortunate that there aren’t many people who like this kind of thing, even if it’s just a groundless medieval fantasy.

Today was the day to watch over the ghost king.

Rael bought her favorite sweet mint chocolate and headed to the special guard unit in District 5.

‘Where is the devil passing by?’

Rael’s body has been aching these days.

I’ve been focusing on practicing with the Thousand-Slayer Sword while sparring with Rain for the past two weeks, and I’ve been getting some pretty good results.

But, in the end, the Thousand-Sal Sword is a sword that catches demons.

I wanted to test this power on the demons.

‘··· Now that I have more free time, I start thinking like this.’

You want to fight the demons?

It was a change that would have been unimaginable even a year ago.

Rael smiled bitterly at the fact that his own attitude had changed quite a bit.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“Okay. Good work.”

After greeting the outer guard, Rael entered the special guard unit.

Today, instead of going to the building in the center, I went straight to the prison where the Demon King was locked up.

This is because the crazy elf Reina has been chasing after Rael recently, telling him to go to Tia with her.

If I got caught by her, it was obvious that Tia would have her blood drawn.

Bang- bang-

The stairs to the dungeon where the Demon King is imprisoned.

Rael walked on a mixture of iron and adamantium.

Inside, a cold, shady atmosphere was still felt.

‘I feel like I can sense magic and ghosts better these days.’

At first I thought it was a mistake, but it wasn’t.

After learning the Thousand-Sal Sword, I was able to feel the magic and ghost energy of the special guards more vividly.

It seems to be the influence of the Thousand-Slayer Sword, which uses the surrounding magical power.

Knock- knock-

Water is dripping from the ceiling.

Rael opened the prison door and went inside.

He was greeted by the prayers of numerous denominations written on the walls.

“It’s been a while.”

“You came. Rael.”

Rael looked at the demon king who was bound in dozens of chains.

The ghost king, who looked like a girl, had horns growing from his head, but it wasn’t a visual that I got used to seeing no matter how many times I looked at it.

That frighteningly pale skin also seemed to be a result of not having seen the sunlight.

“Okay. This is your favorite chocolate.”

Lael rolled the mint chocolate between the demon king’s prison cells while thinking about random things.

What should I call this reality where I’m giving mint chocolate to a bomb that could explode at any moment… It’s really strange.

Swish- Swish-.

“Is it delicious?”

The ghost king put the mint chocolate into his mouth without even knowing Rael’s thoughts.

He said he couldn’t even have a conversation with anyone but himself, so he must have been very bored.

“Yeah. It’s really sweet. Do you not have to eat it?”

“I’m okay.”

Rael threw the mint chocolate between the bars and wondered how he would spend the remaining eight hours.

First, I kill time by telling scary stories for about two hours, and then for the remaining six hours…

“···?”

At that moment, a creepy sensation ran through Rael’s body.

It was a coincidence.

Lael’s hand, which was throwing the mint chocolate while thinking, went inside the bars, and the hand of the Demon King, who was trying to quickly catch the mint chocolate, came out to meet him, and their hands touched.

‘What just now…?’

For a brief moment, Rael felt the demonic and magical energy digging into his body.

My senses, which had become sharper as I learned the Thousand-Sal Sword, were able to grasp that faint flow.

“···?”

Lael raised his head and looked at the Demon King.

She was tilting her head at the mint chocolate that wouldn’t fall off.