Chapter 14
Evangeline's suspicion of Reinhardt grew.
As her suspicion grew, it was natural for her to try and verify it in earnest.
‘She'll be coming to check soon.’
Reinhardt had openly revealed the clues.
He suddenly gets stronger.
He gains the wisdom to find even well-hidden enemies.
He doesn't know why, and such changes suddenly occur when needed.
These were common things said by those who borrowed the power of demons.
In the first place, they made pacts with demons or warlocks for the purpose of enjoying such power.
‘Her eyes showed she was almost convinced. She'll probably bring an Inquisitor next time.’
The Paganoa Knights had a position called Inquisitor.
It was a position that could only be reached by those who started as attendants of the knight order, received sufficient education, and awakened their talents.
They could easily classify humans.
It meant they had the ability to tell whether someone was a Minion of evil or an innocent citizen.
[Evangeline went to get an Inquisitor]
[I explained that I suddenly get stronger and all that, and she seems almost convinced lol]
Reinhardt wrote on the community while sprawled on his bed.
He also attached an image.
A picture of himself looking so confident it seemed foolish, and Evangeline looking at him with a complicated and subtle expression.
└Anonymous1: Her expression is hilarious lol
└Anonymous2: Dude, are you making these fake pics like one every two days? Are you really a bum??
└Author: My job is a knight…….
└Anonymous1: Job is a knight my ass lolol
└Anonymous4: But wait, so she was really suspicious?
└Author: Yeah, she was really suspicious
└Anonymous5: What do you mean yeah, I really want to beat up this roleplayer lol
Thanks to his consistent posting, he got quite a few comments.
Some comments still made him feel wronged, but he wasn't as shaken as he was at first.
└Anonymous6: So when is the Inquisitor coming?
└Author: She said she'll see me again in a few days? I'm not sure
└Anonymous7: Honestly, Reinhardt right now is just an extra, why would they bother bringing an Inquisitor…….
└Anonymous6: fr if it were me I would've just cut him down already lol
└Author: Cut what down, you crazy bastards
At the following reactions, Reinhardt shook his head and closed the community.
But it wasn't wrong.
From the perspective of the Paganoa Knights, he was currently just one of the nameless knights on the periphery.
‘It's actually possible. If the opponent wasn't Evangeline. And if I wasn't Reinhardt.’
But Evangeline was cautious.
She was someone who strove never to make a mistake in such matters.
Furthermore, Reinhardt's words, actions, and the image he had built made her even more cautious.
‘Anyway, in a few days, she'll come back hand in hand with an Inquisitor.’
If that happened, Reinhardt could be proven innocent.
An Inquisitor never made a wrong judgment.
In the end, it meant he had some time until then.
‘The Knight Commander told me to rest for a while anyway.’
Ethan Taton had praised Reinhardt's achievements and advised him to rest well until a new mission came up.
He even added that managing one's condition through rest was also part of a knight's duty.
‘I need to prepare properly. To think the warlocks have already started their activities.’
The warlock school, Agrio-s.
The fact that they had started their activities was proof that similar incidents were occurring throughout the Empire.
He needed to prepare.
Even if he didn't get on the main story, he needed the strength to protect at least himself.
‘First, increase the number of patrols, and next….’
Increasing the number of patrols was to strengthen the effect of [Justice].
Whether it was a petty criminal or whatever, as long as he could raise the buff effect, he had to catch them all and throw them in prison.
And one more thing.
‘I need to visit the temple too. To prepare against Black Magic.’
Priests and warlocks had a traditional grudge.
The powers they wielded were polar opposites, and if they ever clashed, one side had to be utterly destroyed for the matter to be settled.
Unless he planned to join hands with a warlock and destroy the world, it was clear that his future days would be smoother if he acquired one or two holy items.
‘I need to decide which order to get close to first. Preferably one that's different from the original story's flow.’
***
On the outskirts of the Empire, gateway cities like Serigel were positioned.
The term gateway city naturally meant it was a foothold from which one could extend outside the Empire.
Of course, in the city of Serigel, numerous religious orders had established temples and were striving to secure followers every day.
‘This was the place the original Reinhardt followed. The Truma Order, which worships the sun god.’
Tap, tap.
Reinhardt thought as he tapped the map with his index finger.
There were about 10 temples established in Serigel.
Three of them were major orders that were counted among the best in the Empire, and the rest were small to medium-sized orders.
‘Then I'll skip the sun god, but going to a small or medium-sized order makes me doubt the quality.’
In the end, two candidates remained.
The Lubra Order, which worships the moon god.
The Famia Order, which worships the earth god.
‘First, I need to double-check if my memory is correct.’
Click.
He opened the community and entered a search term.
[Search: Lubra Order]
[Information you must know when starting as a priest.txt]
[Beginner's guide to choosing an order]
[What are the advantages of the Lubra Order?]
[List of major appreciation gifts by order.list]
As it was a rather important system, a variety of information unfolded.
After briefly pondering while browsing the community, Reinhardt came to a conclusion.
It was a decision that considered the buff effects obtainable from each order and the performance of the ‘appreciation gifts’ according to the donation amount.
“All clear on duty! Sir Reinhardt, are you going out?”
“The purpose is patrol. Record it.”
“Yessir!”
The knight guarding the entrance of the knight order saluted.
He was looking at him with even more respect than a few days ago.
Since he had caught the Minion of evil, not only the members of the Taton Knights but also outsiders would often send him such looks.
‘This is burdensome.’
But he had to accept it.
Living as a somewhat renowned knight in these outskirts would be far more stable than being revered as the Knight of Light.
Swoosh.
Reinhardt put on the robe he had brought. He crossed the city, avoiding the gazes of others, towards his destination.
Soon, his destination came into view.
A huge temple with white and blue colors was showing off its majesty.
At its entrance were monks smiling gently.
Whenever a visitor came, they were guiding the guests inside like skilled salesmen.
“May Lubra's grace always be with you. What brings you here?”
As Reinhardt approached, a monk invariably came up to him.
Just looking at his bright smiling face, he seemed like a person who had never been angry in his entire life.
“I am Reinhardt of the Taton Knights. I have come to make a donation to the order.”
“Oh my, it's Sir Reinhardt. I will show you inside.”
The monk's already bright face seemed to have become several times brighter upon hearing the name Reinhardt.
“I have heard much of your esteemed name. You are said to be a righteous person.”
“I have only acted as a knight should.”
“We recently heard the news that you even captured the Minion of evil that had infiltrated Serigel. It was news that we all could not help but admire.”
The young monk smiled brightly without a single wrinkle.
However, Reinhardt did not let his guard down and responded appropriately.
The priests here were people who could smile benevolently one moment and stab a knife into an opponent's heart the next, if the god they believed in commanded it.
“Since you have shown your devotion to Lubra, it is only proper that we prepare a gift of appreciation. Would you like to see it first?”
“Please.”
The monk led Reinhardt deep into the temple.
The space he followed him into was filled with simple ornaments, like a museum.
This was the ‘appreciation gift’ for the donation, and also the reason Reinhardt had visited the temple.
“Please take your time to look around, and when you have decided on an item you like, please let me know.”
Reinhardt nodded and began to look at the ‘appreciation gifts’ one by one.
He already knew what kind of appreciation gifts existed in the order, but the stock status could vary for each item.
The appreciation gifts were mostly accessories, and they had a crescent moon pattern utilized in various places, as if to symbolize the moon.
This meant that the majority were silver bracelets or silver necklaces.
‘A piece that's too flashy would be troublesome.’
Reinhardt thought carefully, considering his public image as a knight.
There were three conditions.
It shouldn't be too flashy.
It should be within his budget.
And, the [Anti-Magic Power] value it increases should be as high as possible.
Swoosh.
Reinhardt placed his hand on an accessory. He glanced at the monk, but he didn't seem to mind.
Then, a familiar hologram window popped up in front of his eyes.
[Lubra's Crescent Moon Necklace]
*A symbol of Lubra.
*Meticulously crafted by a priest who has achieved a high level of discipline.
*Anti-Magic Power +15
*Faith +15
It was a window where he could check the item's name, a simple description, and detailed stats.
‘Faith is a garbage option for a knight, what's important is the Anti-Magic Power.’
[Anti-Magic Power] was an essential stat for any character.
So much so that if you didn't secure a certain amount, the very expression ‘combat with a demon’ wouldn't even be possible.
Then, a quick glance.
Reinhardt checked the price next to the necklace.
Three crescent moon pieces were placed there.
‘3,000 gold for a mere 15 Anti-Magic Power is too much.’
It meant that one crescent moon piece was 1,000 gold.
To choose this necklace as an ‘appreciation gift,’ he had to pay a whopping 3,000 gold.
Reinhardt then checked other items.
The effects attached were varied, and rare stats like [Divinity] or [Harmony] could be seen from time to time.
Of course, they were all useless options for a knight.
‘This one seems the best.’
After looking around for a while, Reinhardt chose a suitable ring.
It wasn't flashy, but it had a clear crescent moon pattern engraved on it so one could tell it was an item of Lubra.
The price was 4 crescent moon pieces.
The effect was well worth the price.
[Lubra's Simple Ring]
*A symbol of Lubra.
*Meticulously crafted by a priest who has achieved a high level of discipline.
*Anti-Magic Power +40
*Divinity +5
*Trace of a Radiant Light
The Anti-Magic Power bonus was a whopping 40.
The useless Divinity was only 5.
This was enough to put out the immediate fire.
However.
‘What is this? Trace of a Radiant Light?’
At the very bottom of the item information.
The phrase ‘Radiant Light’ was something even Reinhardt was seeing for the first time.
‘Was there such an option?’
No matter how hard he wracked his brain, he couldn't remember.
A quick peek.
Reinhardt even used the community, avoiding the monk's gaze.
[Search: Radiant Light]
[No search results found.]
At the result, Reinhardt furrowed his brow.
If it wasn't even mentioned in the community.
“Have you decided?”
Just then, the monk approached with a gentle smile.
Reinhardt nodded.
“Yes, I'll take this one.”
He didn't know what the additional option meant, but in any case, it was the item with the highest Anti-Magic Power here.
The price was 4,000 gold.
Reinhardt pushed the money he had prepared by raiding his quarters' safe into the donation box, took the ring, and left the temple.
He put on the ring only after entering a quiet alley in Serigel.
A remote and secluded alley.
Only in a place where there were no prying eyes, did Reinhardt slip the purchased ring onto the index finger of his right hand.
And then.
[A Trace of a Radiant Light has been found.]
[A Fading Light reveals itself…….]
Something white and round appeared before Reinhardt's eyes.
He could see small eyes like black beans, and a mouth that nibbled like a squirrel's.
Its size was about that of a moderately inflated balloon.
On the left and right of the balloon, there was something that he couldn't tell if it was a hand or an arm.
“This is… cute, but.”
The short hands attached to the round body were quite cute.
Also, what was certain was that Reinhardt had no idea about the identity of the thing in front of him.