Sword Pilgrim

Boom! Boom! Boom!!

The Masters of the empire were the idols worshipped by all its citizens.

Yet those Spears of the Empire, whose footsteps shook the earth, knelt and bowed their heads as one.

“I've returned in shame.”

‘Ghost Spear' Semka.

A man with a deep scar running from cheek to ear.

A man who none could imagine would kneel in front of anyone was also among their ranks.

Because even his knees could do naught but bend in front of the empire itself.

“I never thought you would fail.”

The voice was light as if noting something insignificant.

Yet unlike that outwardly tone, the presence emanating from the speaker could never be taken lightly.

‘Has his power grown even more?'

The true identity of the one before whom some of the empire's strongest experts were kneeling down with fear and awe, was the man who'd led the once ramshackle country called Lactus into becoming the huge empire of today.

Mordred.

Mordred ov[1] Glory Lactus, was seated on his throne.

"Yes. I also didn’t think the attack would fail, even after putting so much effort into it.”

The saintess of Lactus standing beside the emperor, spear in hand, also voiced her agreement.

“Even though Carpe is headed for extinction, it seems to be hiding its potential.”

In front of them stood a prince of the empire.

Baldry ov Lactus.

The prince who had a meticulous and calculating personality sounded surprised at Carpe's newfound potential. Next to him was a princess who was glaring with an angry expression.

Lavian ov Lactus.

They were geniuses who would one day inherit the empire.

“If I'd been there, the head of that weak chicken queen would've been already in the bag.”

The Ghost Spear and the rest had nothing to say.

There was nothing they could say in the current situation, even if they had a dozen mouths each to talk.

Although they knew the princess' arrogance was unfounded, they dared not speak.

“Go self-reflect for a while. Teacher."

“… I obey.”

After the Ghoist Spear retreated along with the rest of his companions, the princess dared to speak up and ask the emperor directly.

“Aren’t you going to punish him?”

“They didn't fail because they were fools. They merely lacked power.”

“Yes, the relic didn't fully activate in the first place. Thanks to that, we couldn't transfer the rest of the Masters who'd been on standby. It was obviously a mistake in hindsight, but the empire thought it was a safe bet.”

Carpe was just stronger than expected.

That had been the first issue.

And the second was that the relic had been forcibly activated even though it wouldn't completely work.

Both of these combined, led to this failure of the empire.

“We should've been more cautious.”

“Indeed. The current situation is the result of the empire's negligence.”

Then how could they punish the Ghost Spear for that?

When the prince looked down as if he finally understood, the bridge of the princess' nose twitched. The saint, after glancing at the two as if she found their byplay cute, looked back at the emperor on his throne and added –

“The news of the empire's failure has spread. Freak Spear and Fluent Spear also died. The loss in numbers and spear power will take a lot of time to make up. And to top it all off, the small countries and ethnic minorities are getting restless.”

The small countries that still remained on the continent stood united against the empire, and the backlash from them was growing stronger by the day.

The empire had tried to make an example out of Carpe to cow them, but their attempt failed.

Rather, it even yielded a negative result.

“I'm not afraid of the Allied Powers, but clashing with them now will obviously only damage the empire.”

“Keep going, Saintess.”

The girl's tightly braided pink hair swayed in the gentle breeze.

“There's nothing more to say. The empire lost two Masters, while Carpe gained. If we get stabbed in the side while we fight it out with the Allied Powers, the damage might even prove fatal. And if there's internal treachery on top of that, it'll be even worse.”

“Who would dare betray the Great Holy Empire?”

“The world is full of people who'd throw away the safety of their country for their own selfish gain. The history of this continent is rife with people who'd risen up and revealed their hidden ambitions during times of turmoil.”

And because of such idiots –

A country might prosper or fall.

“Besides, Your Majesy, you want to conquer the Fallen Lands, do you not? The only way to do that is to increase the power of the Divine Lactus and establish him as the sole divinity.”

"That's right. Even the people of the mace, principality or not, will one day have to kneel before the spear. Once Lactus becomes the only God, there will be no conflict left in this world.”

And even the fallen, the demons –

Their filth would be purged from this world by the sharp spear of Lactus.

Only an utoipia of peace and harmony would remain.

“Then another path shall open, Your Majesty.”

Mordred the Conqueror.

He wanted a wider world.

“Then I'll just have to be patient.”

Since she hinted at such a great secret, he had no choice but to let go of his haste. He had to endure and wait for the right time.

But it meant that the steps of the empire would have to come to a halt.

Even though he knew it in his head, Mordred couldn't help but feel like a fire was burning inside his heart. As the supreme lord of the empire became restless, the saintess opened her mouth and spoke bluntly.

“Three years.”

The saintess spread her fingers.

Within the next three years –

“I'll replenish the two lost Masters and spears. I'll present the new spears and knights, stronger than their predecessors, before you, Your Majesty.”

The empire would only have to wait and build up its power for a while.

“Is that even possible?”

"It is."

“I see. It'd be possible if it's you.”

The prince's eyes narrowed.

A person who was more trusted by the emperor than himself or the princess.

The imperial saintess, Ailee.

When their eyes met, the prince again lowered his gaze.

The status of a prince couldn't match the status of somebody like her. At least, he thought –

‘For now.'

Things might be different in a few years.

“The empire will hold still for three years.”

“Then, what happens three years from now?”

“I will dedicate them all to you, Your Majesty.”

Meaning every single country on the continent.

The emperor's lips curved up in an arc.

“Great.”

His laughter was quiet, but the whole palace seemed to shake beneath its passing.

『Imperial Invasion』

? A surprise invasion by the empire.

? The empire spent priceless holy relics and sacred objects, as well as mobilized a large number of soldiers, risking life and death for this invasion.

? Carpe is not the only nation hostile to the empire. The empire will have no choice but to revise many of its plans after this failed invasion, since it has spent a lot of troops that were to be used to keep the various small countries and ethnic minorities in check.

[You stopped the empire's invasion.]

<Reward>「Cloak of Reversal」

『Light Dragon Lord』

? You have become the master of the new Light Dragon.

? You are the target of wrath from all dragons.

<Reward>「Dragon Bone」

『Kill a Master of the Empire』

? You killed an imperial Master.

? The power of Lactus weakens slightly.

? Lactus is furious.

<Reward>「Faith +10」

『Queensknight』

? You protected the Incompetent Queen of Carpe.

? She will no longer be incompetent.

<Reward>「The Queen」will deliver the reward personally.

『Hero of Salvation』

? You became a national hero.

? You are no longer a crazy maniac.

? Lactus is furious.

<Reward> Characteristic –「Hero of Salvation」

Erase Characteristic –「Scapegrace of the Count Family」

“!!”

Good stuff!

Callius clenched his fists.

"Haah."

Breath left him with a shudder.

Hairs all over his body felt like they were rising up.

That damned ‘maniac' attribute had been nothing less than his nemesis.

Callius was shaken to the point that he almost had no emotional strength left to be cheered up by the rest of the rewards.

How long had he suffered because of that shitty characteristic of his?

If you don't have the strength to stand against the world, it should be natural to buy people's favour. But it was this characteristic that Callius had inherited from the original, that'd instead seen him get into fight after fight throughout his pilgrim days.

To the point of almost losing his life. Not just once or twice, either.

But finally, this characteristic–!

It was erased by the appearance of [Hero of Salvation].

‘The hero who saved the coutry obviously couldn't be some crazy maniac, after all.'

Yeah, this was great.

With a happy grin, Callius tried to face and greet the warm sunlight like a prisoner newly freed from his shackles.

“…”

‘Why is he taking a pose all of a sudden? Did he really get a concussion? But his head looked more or less fine…'

But he'd forgotten. This was Beatrice's basement closet.

‘So, what does being the Hero of Salvation actually entail?'

Characteristic –「Hero of Salvation」

? People look up to you.

? A conversation with a hero can change a person's fate.

? You earn people's respect.

? People trust in your words.

? You cannot overlook any damage to the nation.

‘It's probably useless.'

Still, it was better than nothing.

Most of all, Callius appreciated how the maniac trait had disappeared because of this guy.

He was feeling good enough that he could dance a waltz with Emily on the spot if she were here.

“Ah, wait.”

It was too soon to be happy.

Let's check the other rewards first.

Starting with the newly acquired cloak.

The had some pretty great specs.

Callius had been feeling heartbroken that the Twilight Cloak had become almost ragged from prolonged use, but such a great treasure now fell into his hands in such a timely manner.

「Cloak of Reversal」

Grade – Unique

? This cloak, once worn by the Knight of Reversal, reduces vulnerability to cold and heat when worn, and has an elastic resilience that can deflect most of an attack from any opponent.

This was all there was in the explanation, but Callius was looking at the grade.

A unique-grade cloak.

The Cloak of Twilight had already been excellent despite only being a rare.

The Cloak of Reversal could only be even better.

“Wait, where did you get that cloak? I've touched every inch of your body… um, no, I mean I searched?”

“Touching every inch of someone else’s body, hm? Should we have a follow up?”

“…”

Contrary to his words, Callius didn't move.

He just sat on the bed and stared at his cloak.

“…?”

Beatrice saw the corners of Callius' lips twitch.

‘Just stop talking and do it!'

Eh, he probably hadn't come to his senses properly yet.

Beatrice decided to leave him alone for a while. Since he'd fought so hard, a little more rest wasn't unreasonable.

‘Great.'

It was a great cloak.

Because it was white in colour, the cloak suited the garb of a pilgrim.

Plus it was an artefact, with a strange attribute of elastic resilience that made it very strong and able to deflect much of enemy attack damage. It was a precious treasure that could prevent deep wounds.

‘There's nothing wrong with raising faith, either.'

Faith had increased by 10 as a reward for killing the Freak Spear.

A grin full of energy spread across Callius' lips.

Finally, the quality of his spiritual power had touched the edge of level 2.

‘Not it's time to climb the peak of Six Peak Flowers Bloom in Late Season.'

But it wasn't something to be attempted casually, so Callius needed to fully prepare.

And finally, the [Dragon Bone].

‘Dragon blood would've been better.'

But this wasn't bad either.

The power emanating from the [Dragon Bone] would be of great help in the future.

It was a material that could allow the creation of a relic, so if he was ever in a hurry for money, he could simply sell it. But above all else –

‘If my constitution, Smelting Bones, can absorb all of the dragon's power, it'll be a different story entirely.'

If Smelting Bones could fully comprehend Dragon Might, Callius wouldn't have to feel the backlash every time he used it, and the efficiency of usage would also rise higher.

After all, Dragon Might contributed directly to his force of arms.

And it had a lot of space to grow.

[Comprehension of Dragon Might at 3%.]

[Pain will be reduced by 3% when you next suffer backlash from Dragon Might.]

Although it was still a long way off.

‘How much pain do I have to suffer through to understand it all?'

As Callius recalled the pain before he'd collapsed, his head felt numb.

He'd been through his share of scrapes and bruises, but that exquisite agony made even Callius' knees feel weak.

But it was a source of power that he couldn't simply give up on.

‘The Light Dragon Sword Balamuth is already incredibly strong when I keep it inside my heart.'

Already, Callius' physical ability level has risen exponentially.

And this was when he was doing the bare minimum, merely wielding it in the proper manner by keeping it inside his heart.

But if he could wield Dragon Might in such a state, he would be able to awaken and get a glimpse of a higher state.

He would temporarily stand shoulder to shoulder with the Masters.

Strong enough to block a serious blow from the Ghost Spear, the second amongst the Spears of the Empire.

But the downsides were also clear.

‘First of all, it hurts so damned much.'

Such strength would always be followed by backlash, bringing with it an unimaginable amount of pain.

And secondly, the short duration.

‘About three minutes or so.'

He simply couldn't last very long in that state. This wasn't something that could be changed by pouring in more and more divine power.

“Maybe it's because I'm not actually a dragon, in the end.”

The most fundamental reason –

Because they were of different races.

Callius thought for a moment, then shook his head and stood up.

“I bought some time, in any case.”

He'd prevented the imperial invasion from being victorious.

He'd protected the queen.

The aftermath the empire would bear from this wouldn't be easily dismissed.

The next three or four years should therefore be fairly quiet.

That was enough time, Callius felt.

‘We'll have to focus our efforts on identifying and eliminating the rebels, and both Carpe and the Church will have to strive to strengthen themselves.'

After that, they'd prepare for war.

Because Carpe wasn't a nation that would forget grudges or grace[2].

And during that time –

‘I have to leave for a while.'

He'd done everything he had to do, anyhow.

The reason Callius was here in the first place was because of the main quests.

[Civil War of the Carpe Dynasty].

[Imperial Invasion].

Having completed them all, there was no need to stay here any longer.

It would be good to visit the North once, and then he'd be free to leave at his leisure.

Ever since his new birth, Callius had never stayed in one place for long.

The reason? Because he had to become strong.

Given how much strength he possessed at this moment –

There was only one way for him to become stronger at an acceptable rate.

Verse of Grace.

Callius had never used in since arriving in Carradi.

Because it was a place directly related to the main quest.

Not just anyone could have Corpse Grace.

It needed a strong grudge.

It was a special phenomenon that only happened when that grudge was imprinted on the soul itself.

He had to leave, to find it.

To a more desolate land.

To a more chaotic land.

And, in the first place –

‘I'm a pilgrim.'

He was still –

That same pilgrim who hadn't yet found his sword.

Editor's Notes:

[1] ?? (obeu) is a transliteration of ‘of'.

[2] ?? (eunwon), from Chinese 恩怨, gratitude and grudges.

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