Paladin of the Dead God

Just when Isaac thought it was over, Atlan swung the curved blade he had embedded in the tentacle, ripping open the wound.

Atlan emerged from the gushing chaos looking utterly devastated. His body was covered with deep bites and slashes. The fact that he survived a direct hit from the tentacle was impressive, but it seemed unlikely that he could continue facing Isaac.

At that moment, Atlan spoke.

“I intended to leave you be if you fought fairly, child. But you shouldn’t stoop to such dishonorable tactics.”

The air around them began to change. Torn and wounded trees started to sprout fresh shoots, and crushed grass blades rose upright.

As the atmosphere shifted, Isaac realized what was happening.

“I greet the Archangel Manseungja.”

The Archangel of the Olkan Code, Manseungja, had entered Atlan’s body.

Isaac watched Atlan, or rather Manseungja, with a tense expression.

The appearance of Atlan with Manseungja inside him seemed more serene than ever. His wounds healed instantly, and an even healthier vitality radiated from him.

Isaac thought once again how unfair this seemed, but the tentacles also healed and served as weapons, so there was no use complaining.

‘Manseungja, Orus Maktu…’

There were many nicknames for Manseungja.

The First Reincarnator, the Wanderer Between Lives, the Seeker of All Things, the Roaming Shaman.

When Olkan stole the secret of ‘rebirth’ from the World’s Forge, the first to hear the knowledge and build the doctrine of reincarnation was the shaman Orus Maktu.

Since then, he attempted reincarnation in countless entities, not just orcs but also birds, insects, beasts, and even plants. Olkan highly valued Orus Maktu’s wisdom and experience and appointed him as an Archangel. Thanks to this background, all the shamans of the Olkan Code revered Manseungja as their greatest teacher, elder, and mother.

Manseungja gazed at Isaac with a gentle smile.

“To recognize me so quickly, you are indeed an extraordinary child. Your name has even reached Urbansus.”

Isaac broke into a cold sweat.

For his name to be known in Urbansus meant he was gaining fame, but it wasn’t necessarily a good thing.

The gods he knew were envious and always sincere in suppressing newcomers.

“Another Archangel, ‘Hwangcheon,’ is likely at the Khan’s side, and the ‘Wolf That Swallowed the Sun’ has no intention of leaving Urbansus, so I thought Manseungja was the only Archangel who might appear.”

“It sounds like you know us well.”

“The reputation of the Olkan Code is heard even beyond the Sahar Plains.”

Atlan tilted his head with a crooked smile.

“If you know so well, why do you not withdraw your soldiers and block the Khan’s army with a mere few tentacles?”

Isaac did not mention how many angels those mere tentacles had taken down. After all, he had never defeated an angel with his strength alone.

And Manseungja was someone who could be reasoned with. Provoking them would serve no purpose.

Moreover, the current situation was the confrontation Isaac had been waiting for.

“Beyond that city lies my territory. It is a small place with people who trust and follow me, along with some stone houses. Though I dared to oppose the Khan’s army, please do not take it as a sign of disrespect toward Olkan.”

Isaac differentiated between the Khan and Olkan. The divine Olkan and the earthly Khan were incomparable in their stature.

Manseungja smiled, finding Isaac amusing.

“Swear allegiance to the Khan’s army. Seeing your kind heart, I shall request that your territory be preserved.”

“Though I am insignificant, how could I forsake the god who has embraced my life thus far and wander between different faiths? Even Olkan would not welcome such behavior.”

Isaac spoke shamelessly, showing no reverence for the Codex of Light or the Nameless Chaos. But in truth, Olkan did not favor apostates. They preferred those who came willingly to those they coerced through threats.

They even considered their followers as spoils.

“You have a lot to say, refusing this and that. Then you shall only be trampled.”

“As you wish.”

Isaac responded nonchalantly, though he was sweating inwardly. If Manseungja ordered the Khan’s army to advance with a simple “Then die,” the Issacrea estate would be overrun, and Isaac would have to suffer the consequences.

Fortunately, Manseungja merely observed Isaac despite his provocative words. As one of the few Archangels capable of ‘empathy’ due to witnessing and communing with the life of all things, she opened a path for Isaac.

“Do you know the extent of the army prepared for this Great Raid?”

Isaac had estimated, based on his reconnaissance, that the number was 100,000, and according to Rottenhammer, there were two more forces to the south, so he guessed around 300,000. But Isaac knew the potential ‘total army’ that could invade if the Great Raid truly commenced.

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“Three million?”

“Ten million.”

Isaac fell silent.

Ten million? Even in the Three Kingdoms stories, they exaggerated with numbers like a million or a hundred thousand troops, but never ten million.

If ten million non-productive consumers moved, it would be a swarm of locusts in motion. Supplying them would be impossible, and nothing would remain where they passed.

More importantly, to achieve that, even the Gerthonia Empire would have to gather everyone from children to the elderly. The Olkan Code, as Isaac played it, never attempted such a thing. It was a task too difficult for settled populations with sufficient sustenance, let alone for the Olkan Code, which lived a nomadic lifestyle. Attempting such a feat would endanger the very existence of their faith, not just the country.

Isaac assumed it was mere bravado but couldn’t be certain. These lunatics might attempt it even if it meant their downfall.

Then the question was, “why?”

Why go to such lengths?

***

“What do you want?”

Isaac dove straight into the matter at hand.

If the goal was simply to seize the wealth and technology of the Gerthonia Empire, the Great Raid would suffice. But he was curious why they boasted about having ten million soldiers.

Of course, Isaac knew that the true target of the Great Raid was the Lichtheim Censorship Bureau’s secret archives.

However, he didn’t know what specific knowledge they intended to steal from there.

“There must be a reason for starting this war, mustn’t there? You must have something you desire.”

“And if I tell you what I desire? Child, do you have the ability to provide it?”

“I’ve already stopped an army that was deemed unstoppable with just a handful of troops.”

He had already received reports about the situation in Seor through the eyes and ears of the minions he had planted there. All the messages that reached him through their will were positive.

What was happening in Seor wasn’t a battle but a massacre. Once they realized that their forces, incapable of reincarnation, suffered massive casualties, the rest of the Olkan Code’s forces would inevitably waver.

“Trust me a little more. Haven’t you already seen that I will do ‘anything’ to protect my territory?”

“And if I decide to kill you right here, wouldn’t that make things much easier?”

Manseungja toyed with the idea, idly fingering her curved blade.

Isaac believed she wouldn’t resort to such brutality. However, another angel seemed to think otherwise. Suddenly, a bluish light began emanating from Kaldwin, the sword Isaac was holding.

[If you dare harm Elil’s Grand Warrior, I won’t stand idly by, Manseungja.]

It was the will of Calurien’s dragon heart embedded in Kaldwin.

Isaac was surprised by Calurien’s reaction, who had remained silent for so long.

He thought the dragon heart would only observe, but when faced with a crisis, it stepped forward to help.

The reason angels couldn’t recklessly harm believers of other faiths was due to the intervention of other angels.

However, he hadn’t expected Calurien, who wasn’t even aligned with the Codex of Light, to step in.

Manseungja scoffed.

“With that form? Archmage, do you think you can stop me with a mere shattered heart?”

[I am difficult to handle, indeed. That’s a matter for Elil’s Grand Warrior to deal with.]

Isaac felt the respect and admiration he had for Calurien quickly wane.

[The Grand Warrior possesses skills acknowledged by Elil. He won’t be easy to handle. Moreover, if the Holy Grail Knight perishes, Amundalas of the Salt Council will be quite disappointed, and the Mirror Handmaiden of the Red Chalice will be irritated that her schemes were disrupted. And the World’s Forge would be delighted at the opportunity to crush your head and would eagerly send angels. Oh, and the Grand Warrior is also a saint appointed by the Codex of Light.]

Isaac felt that the most crucial point was pushed to the end, but he was amazed that Calurien knew all these connections.

Manseungja also frowned, realizing Isaac’s network was more extensive than she had anticipated.

“Quite the wide connections for someone who claims not to dabble in different faiths, Holy Grail Knight.”

Isaac feigned indifference.

[And you must also know what terrible power is trapped inside the Grand Warrior’s body. I hope the Holy Grail Knight doesn’t use that terrible power to protect himself. Manseungja, you should fervently hope for that as well.]

Manseungja fell silent.

An angel’s intervention provided justification for other angels to intervene, just as the Archangel descended to protect a beloved mortal.

If angels intervened, the battlefield would suffer devastating damage. Since the Olkan Code’s army could achieve the Great Raid on their own, there was no reason to invite angelic intervention.

“I never intended to harm you. I just wanted to learn what the Holy Grail Knight was scheming.”

Manseungja muttered as if grumbling.

She gazed at Isaac with calm eyes before speaking.

“There’s something to correct. You said we started this war. That’s not true. This war was initiated by the Codex of Light.”

Isaac wondered if the Dawn Army of Ciero had indeed crossed the Sahar Plains and caused a commotion. But what Manseungja said next was unexpected.

“Lighthouse keeper censored and erased some crucial knowledge. Extremely important knowledge.”

Before Isaac could fully understand those words, Manseungja began to exude an explosive burst of authority and grandeur that she had kept hidden until now.

“Olkan has taken this as a declaration of war against us.”

Having become the messenger of divine words, even the normally reasonable Manseungja could no longer maintain her humble and gentle demeanor.

Under the oppressive celestial authority, Isaac barely managed to remain standing.

The entity before him was undoubtedly Atlan.

However, behind him loomed a figure, indistinct and shimmering like a mirage, composed of a haphazard jumble of various creatures: the neck of a horse, the head of an ox, the claws of a chicken, the wings of a locust, the legs of a flea, the feathers of an eagle, the skin of moss, the mane of a lion, the tail of a snake, the eyes of a bee, vines for veins, hair adorned with flowers, and limbs extended like tree branches. It was an amalgamation of all living things, continuously consuming and birthing one another, changing its form incessantly, rendering it impossible to see clearly.

[Until the Olkan Code discovers what hidden knowledge was erased, the plundering will not cease, and it will be proclaimed once again that no knowledge can be hidden or controlled!]

The voice of Manseungja echoed with the voice of the world’s myriad beings.

[All knowledge must be liberated! All wisdom must dream solely for freedom! All censorship and oppression should be used only against those who attempt censorship and oppression! This is the will of Olkan!]

Isaac braced himself against the overwhelming pressure, struggling to remain upright. He had endured the aura of angels countless times before, but it never became something he could get used to.

Isaac asked the Manseungja, now the roaring herald.

“What knowledge was erased?”

Without knowing what knowledge had been erased, one couldn’t even have such an objective. It was akin to having a stolen item but not knowing what it was.

However, given their clear sense of absence, they would know what had been erased.

Even Isaac couldn’t bring the entire underground of the Lichtheim Censorship Bureau.

Fortunately, Manseungja knew what had been erased.

[The name of the Nameless Chaos.]

Isaac’s expression hardened.

[The Olkan Code will not cease its plunder until that name is rediscovered.]