Paladin of the Dead God - Chapter 412



Only Noblemtl

Episode 412. A Country for the Dead (5)

“You figured it out, didn’t you?”

The Immortal Cult is always hungry for ‘new population’, because it cannot reproduce its own population.

However, they cannot be kidnapped like the Walaika headhunters. They need ‘citizens’, not slaves or food like the Walaika.

The best way is to voluntarily convert out of fear of death, and the worst way is to threaten someone by killing them and then enslaving their soul. In any case, wouldn’t the soul have to have autonomy to be able to exert its abilities?

In that sense, life insurance is a rare gentlemanly method in this world where barbarism reigns.

Are you afraid of death? Are you worried that your family and friends will be sad after your death? Don’t worry! We guarantee life after death! You can cancel at any time, so sign up and shake off your fear of death!

‘Maybe in a thousand years or so, we’ll be able to promote it that way. I don’t know if the world will last that long, though.’

There is another way.

From the moment a child is born, they are raised as ‘citizens of the Immortal Church.’

Raising citizens who believe in the doctrines of the Undead Church and want to quickly become undead for the sake of the values ​​of the Undead Church.

This was an artificial space created for that very purpose.

“Actually, I may have called it a human ranch a bit harshly, but it’s not as bad a place as you might think.”

“Not bad? How could that be… … .”

“Let’s take a look around first and then talk. They might be scared when they see us, so let’s talk gently.”

Tukhalin frowned as if he found it ridiculous, but decided to talk to Isaac as he said.

***

They arrived at the village shortly after. The villagers had already heard the warning from those who had fled, so they had locked themselves in their houses and were hiding inside.

Far from being able to stop the army, the fence looked like it would collapse if Tukhalin came forward and knocked hard. However, the young men behind the fence hid tightly behind it as if it were Ushaq’s triple wall.

Tukhalin was the first to step forward, coughing.

“Who’s in charge here? I want to talk to you!”

“Get out, you henchmen of Sarka Nua!”

Isaac was amazed that anyone could have the guts to shout in the face of these troops.

But Tukhalin frowned at what the young man said.

“Why do they keep asking us to do something about Sarka Nua? Aren’t they receiving support from the Undead Cult?”

“Let me tell you.”

Isaac stepped forward.

He lightly ran his hand through his hair, hoping to accentuate the Nephilim’s charm a little. Sure enough, the young, handsome human seemed a little better than the old, shaggy, scarred dwarf, and he felt the ominous atmosphere beyond the fence lighten up a little.

“We have no connection with Sarkan Nua.”

“Lies! You have a flag with the Light Code symbol on it! You’re here to drag us into a suicide march, like the Dawn Army or something!”

Tukhalin heard that and roughly guessed the situation.

Sarka Nua also recruited and attracted many humans to make the Dawn Army a success. At that time, most of the villages around the Holy Land that had not yet been invaded by the Undead Cult would have been taken away.

The ancestors of the villagers were probably those who hid in the mountains to avoid such conscription. As time passed, Sarka Nua became a famous angel of the Undead Cult, not to mention the Dawn Army, but it seems that they still have only fear of Sarka Nua.

Isaac seemed to have guessed that fact as well.

“I guess you deliberately kept withholding the truth in order to keep me locked up in this town.”

“No, but that was hundreds of years ago, do you still believe Sarka Nua is alive? Humans can’t even live that long.”

“Didn’t Sarka Nua seek immortality? He must have thought he had succeeded.”

There was no need for the undead troops to guard it. That fear was the fence that kept the villagers imprisoned.

Isaac recalled a horror story he had seen on the Internet before.

The story goes that scholars happened to visit an isolated village in a remote part of China, and the villagers were very afraid of outsiders and kept asking, “Is Qin Shi Huang still alive?”

In the tale, they believed that Qin Shi Huang had consumed the elixir of life and was still alive.

“Get out of here! Otherwise, the benevolent immortal emperor who protects us will come to punish you!”

“We are the messengers of His Majesty the Immortal Emperor.”

Tukhalin and Ethelred looked at Isaac with astonishment. Isaac continued his lie calmly.

The true appeal of the Nephilim is their ability to exert power in the areas of lies, deception, and propaganda.

“We are in the process of defeating Sarkan Nua’s forces and returning to the Holy Land, Lua. Show me the proof.”

Isaac gestured to Hesabel. Hesabel quickly grabbed a bundle from the cart and dumped it on the floor.

Old weapons, helmets, pieces of armor, and other items poured out from inside the bundle.

These were weapons found in the rubble after defeating the Grave Lord. I collected them hoping they would be plausible relics, but most of them were old and worn out, and too large to be of any use.

The only thing of any use was a helmet.

[Restoration Graveyard Lord’s Helmet (S+)]

[A helmet that the Grave Lord, Sarka Nua, has been fond of wearing since his death. It increases resistance to miracles, and when wounded, one does not bleed or feel pain. However, if one kills someone while wearing this helmet, one is haunted by the ghosts of the victims.]

It was decent performance, but not something Isaac would necessarily use.

Above all, the size was too big and it was not cool. To Isaac, who was a veteran, what was more important than performance was ‘how good the form was’.

Isaac lifted his horned helmet and said.

“It’s Sarka Nua’s helmet. You’ve heard of it, right?”

If the fear of Sarka Nua is this vivid, even if you have never actually seen it, there must be a description of its appearance. Maybe you have seen the Grave Lord himself. And this helmet is one that the Grave Lord has worn since he was alive.

I could see the young men chattering beyond the fence, wondering if they had heard anything. But one helmet was not enough to dispel my suspicions.

From the beginning, there was a sense of alienation that was too great for Isaac and his group to ignore.

“If you are an army that follows the orders of His Majesty the Immortal Emperor, why… … do you carry heavy bodies instead of immortal bodies? Isn’t that too unreasonable for waging war?”

It was such an obvious point that Tukhalin expected Isaac’s answer.

Isaac said calmly.

“I am a convert. I fought against Sarka Nua to show my loyalty to His Majesty the Immortal Emperor. If I were to die on the battlefield, I would have offered my body in exchange for the blessing of immortality. But I fought against Sarka Nua and won, and I am still alive.”

The young man wanted to say something more at the shameless words, but Isaac did not miss the moment to push through.

“If you doubt my loyalty any further, it is nothing but treason against the Immortal Emperor! Do you think the sword that cut down Sarka Nua will not be able to break down this fence?”

Isaac hurled Sarkanua’s helmet at the fence.

Bang. A loud noise was heard and screams erupted from all over the fence.

Eventually, the young man realized that there was no way to stop this army, no matter what he did. Eventually, there were several loud noises from beyond the fence, and soon after, the door slowly opened.

Isaac looked at the sight and smiled at Tukhalin and Ethelred.

“Go.”

***

Naturally, no one was disappointed by Isaac’s ‘lie’.

Isaac was a Grail Knight of the Code of Light from the beginning, so there was no reason for the isolationist world’s Furnace believers to find fault with him. And the Code of Light knights had adopted the pragmatism that ‘gods are just a luxury when it comes to eradicating heretics.’

In that respect, the Knights of Isacrea were no different.

The Ellil believers looked a little shaky, but Ethelred suppressed them with a few words.

“So, should we have swung our swords against these poor and needy people?”

Needless to say, Hesabel was delighted.

Thanks to Isaac’s deception, many people were saved, and the soldiers were able to settle down in comfortable quarters without the smell of blood. Although it was not enough for all the soldiers to sleep in a house with a roof, it was a great advantage just to be able to rest without worrying about being attacked. The dialect was so strong that the soldiers could not mix in useless words and the truth would be revealed.

If the result is good, everything will be good soon. People will soon forget the uneasy feeling.

Except for Tukhalin.

“There were no adults over thirty in the village.”

After checking on the safety of his soldiers, observing the condition of the village, and interviewing several of its inhabitants, Tukhalin concluded that there was no threat here.

“Actually, there are many things other than the old people. It feels like everything that could be a threat has been eliminated. Aside from that flimsy fence, the only means of protection is a spear carved from a tree. Should I say that my means of resistance have been neutered?”

“Because it is a village managed by the Immortal Order.”

Tukhalin let out a groan.

“Yeah, that’s it. The reason there aren’t any proper adults is… …because they’re all dragged to the Immortal Cult before their bones wear out?”

Isaac shrugged.

“It is exactly as you think. It grows, multiplies, and in its time it is harvested.”

The reason they don’t take them away as soon as they become adults is probably because they need to ‘reproduce’ children. That’s why there were quite a few young couples in the village.

“Treating people like animals!”

“Humans are animals.”

Isaac sighed and answered.

“To be honest, if you asked the people here which one they would rather choose between ‘a life of exploitation and slavery by the lord in fear of being dragged off to the battlefield at any moment’ and ‘living a lifetime in safety without any external threats and becoming an immortal undead when they grow old’… … I don’t think they would think too hard about it.”

“Have you got life insurance?”

“I was just pointing out the facts.”

Isaac answered calmly.

“But as you said, they are no different from livestock being farmed. The Undying Cult will not care about choices, freedom, or dignity.”

To be honest, the reason the Undead Church left them alone was probably nothing more than the idea that ‘happy livestock breed healthy livestock’. If the undead were to frequent the land, it would be consumed by Urbansus, so they wouldn’t be able to exert influence beyond spreading doctrine.

“But, Mr. Tukhalin, may I ask when you began serving the Furnace of the World?”

“Well, since birth… … .”

Tukhalin closed his mouth after saying that. He too felt something.

“In this world, the most effective way to recruit believers in any religion is through ‘motherhood religion.’ If your family, relatives, and friends all believe in that religion, your life’s values ​​will naturally be aligned with the standards of that religion.”

If you were to believe in the Code of Light in the middle of the world’s crucible, you would be treated as a weirdo or a heretic. Even if you were from the same Baekje Kingdom, it would be the same.

In fact, gods and angels support the state, patronize classes, systems, and armies. There is no reason for this if it were only for the propagation of doctrine.

“From an extreme perspective, aren’t the state and religious groups also ‘human ranches’ for faith?”

Tukhalin opened his mouth as if he was at a loss for words at this radical remark. Soon, he lashed out in anger.

“No! Don’t we have the option to convert? But these people are just livestock waiting to be slaughtered after they have grown enough. Don’t they have any other choice?”

“Do you know what a luxury it is in this world to have the freedom to choose your faith?”

Isaac said, sounding frustrated.

“Any sheep that strays from the flock is slaughtered. Or eaten by wolves.”

Tukhalin stared at Isaac.

“So what are you trying to say? All the gods are shepherds? We are their livestock? We believe they are gods only because they feed us and protect us from wolves?”

Tukhalin suddenly became angry as he spoke.

“The world’s furnace believes in the world’s improvement! It will be better tomorrow, it will be better! That’s why it denies the present code of light and believes that there will be a brighter and clearer code of light!”

Is there such a thing as a better sun, a warmer sun? If they believe there is, they are surely believers in the world’s furnace.

Tukhalin pointed out the door and shouted.

“Isaac, people are not alive because they breathe. They are the ones who are alive but dead. They are the ones who stopped in the past 300 years ago without any hope or future for betterment. The only future they dream of is to be born quickly, grow up quickly, and die quickly. I can never admit that they are ‘alive.’”

That would be it. To get better, to be hit, to be heated, to be broken. That would be the role and sense of mission of Tukhalin, the master of the furnace. Of course, he would not see the cold iron shavings falling under his feet during the process, but his faith could not be denied.

Isaac has no reason to argue with Tukhalin over this issue. Isaac is not trying to say that this kind of ‘farm’ is right.

He was groping for something more fundamental. He was pointing to the core of the world with the sharp edge he had.

“You are right, Tukhalin.”

Isaac said calmly.

“But then why isn’t your hammer aimed at the gods, not at the weak humans of this town? Why don’t you press them to turn a blind eye to this irrational and unfair world?”

Tukhalin was speechless.

Isaac’s words were practically urging him to apostatize and commit heresy. And it was precisely on this point that Isaac saw that Tukhalin, no matter how well-intentioned, had limitations.

He who cannot break the rules cannot rewrite them.

But Isaac had no discipline.

“Are you ready to be the hammer that strikes the world?”