Chapter 32 : Sacred Beasts and Hidden Truths

The sound of someone’s throat moving was heard. It was a soldier stumbling backward as he looked at the approaching Failer.

“······Sir Failer. Th-that is…”

Everywhere, guards have a little more authority and force than other commoners. Even when the residents of the barony wanted to meet the Count, the guards had the power to deny entry to those they deemed harmful to their master. They were often intimidating to ordinary commoners. However, even such people could not act carelessly in front of a knight who had awakened Aura.

Even the lowest 3rd-class expert among those who had awakened Aura could make a person’s life as fragile as a candle in the wind.

Therefore, the fact that these soldiers were caught speaking behind the back of Failer, their superior and a 3rd-class expert knight, was the worst possible luck for them.

‘If it weren’t for the scheduled work, he almost never comes out······.’
But that was not an excuse. The soldiers had not only insulted Failer but also cursed their master, Count Craystist.

“Si, Sir Failer!”
In the end, it was natural for Failer to draw his sword. The soldiers hurriedly tried to stop him, but when he drew his sword and strode forward, they quickly raised their spears to block him.
Failer quietly observed the two sharp spearheads pointed at him and then extended his hand toward the spear of the soldier who had clumsily groomed his mustache.

Creaaak.

“······!”
The spearhead began to emit an unpleasant sound as Failer’s hand overlapped with it. The soldier desperately tried to pull back the spear, but he could not overcome Failer’s strength.
‘Is this the power of an expert?!’
They had never encountered the power of a 3rd-class expert before. They had forgotten that the power and skill of someone who had awakened Aura were incomparable to their own.

Crack!
The shaft of the spear shattered with a loud noise. The brown-haired soldier, still pointing his spear at Failer, dropped it in shock.

“P-please spare me! I absolutely, absolutely didn’t mean to say that···!”
The two soldiers quickly dropped to their knees. They knew how heavy their sins were.
Yet the reason they had dared curse so openly was ironically because of Count Craystist, who had hired them as soldiers. Their mission was to interrogate those who visited the city and wished to see the Count.
However, since the Count had rarely worked due to Aria’s illness over the past two years, visitors had not decreased. On the contrary, many people came to support him each day.

The two soldiers hated that.
As Aria’s condition worsened and the Count focused his attention there, the knights’ gaze naturally shifted. This caused the guards to become lax, their vigilance slipping over time. They hated the fact that the Count’s situation seemed to increase their workload, while Sir Ras’s lax attitude toward them made it easier for them to act recklessly.

But now they had been caught. Now, the soldiers’ lives were in Failer’s hands.

“I will not pass judgment.”
Failer sheathed his sword and retrieved the broken spear, disarming the soldiers. He then placed the sword back in its sheath.

A cold sentence followed.
“Everything will be ordered directly by the Count.”
Failer then called the guards stationed inside and ordered them to imprison the two soldiers. The guards, who had sins on their hearts, hurriedly covered the soldiers’ mouths and escorted them to the prison, fearful of their wrongdoings being revealed.

“·······Ha.”
Only two men remained in the place where everything had unfolded. The blonde man with a scabbard and simple armament let out a deep sigh as he looked at the sky. The black-haired man with a blue-rippled sword wrapped in white cloth quietly waited for the moment to pass.

“Jonan.”
“Sir Failer.”
“I’m sorry. I showed you a bad sight.”
“No. It’s fine.”
This was why Failer was popular among the residents of the territory. Regardless of rank or status, he knew how to admit his mistakes and seek forgiveness from others.
Failer gave a tired smile as he saw Jonan’s welcome face, the first he’d seen since the red moon.

“How is the village? I heard about it, but I was heartbroken that I couldn’t help.”
“We were able to stay safe thanks to help from the sky.”
“Help from the sky? Anyway, if you’re trying to see the Count, it’s impossible now.”
Failer’s determined tone reflected the truth in the guards’ earlier statements. However, there was something extra in the knight’s face, a sorrow that hinted at more.

“I came here to meet Sir Failer, not the Count.”
“Me······?”
Failer, momentarily puzzled by Jonan’s statement, soon nodded, realizing that Jonan had wanted to speak with him personally.
‘I should try talking about the sacred beast that the Count mentioned.’
“I understand. Then wait here. I’ll come find you when the work is over. If you say my name, they’ll guide you.”
“Yes, I’ll wait.”
With those words, Jonan began walking back the way he came. Failer muttered under his breath as he watched Jonan’s retreating figure.

“It seems like something has changed since the last time······.”
Failer finished his muttering and went back inside. The posture of the other guards, who had replaced the two soldiers now in prison, was straight and disciplined.

About an hour later, a blonde man opened the door of a pub.

“Sir Failer.”
“Is Jonan here?”
“He’s in the inner room.”
Failer nodded lightly to the pub owner and proceeded toward the private room prepared inside.
This was a place he sometimes used for serious conversations with fellow knights or when he wished to spend some time alone.

When the door of the private room opened, Jonan was found sitting quietly with his eyes closed, deep in thought. As soon as Jonan sensed Failer’s presence, he slowly opened his eyes and turned toward the door.

“Sir Failer, you’re here?”
“You were very focused. Were you praying?”
A light greeting. But Jonan said something unexpected.
“That’s right.”
“······That’s unexpected. When I saw you hunting, you didn’t seem the religious type. Where? Justron Church? Rehel Church?”
“It’s a small religion called Cheongnyongsingyo.”
Cheongnyongsingyo?
Failer felt his mouth go dry at the unfamiliar name. It was a word that felt awkward in his mouth, though it seemed to fit there.

Jonan clenched his fist tightly, suddenly revealing the name of Cheongnyongsingyo to Failer.

“······I’m sorry, I don’t know. It seems to be a religion I’ve never heard of.”
But Failer passed it off casually.
The Rehel Church, the largest religion on the Artera continent. The Justron Church, worshipping Justron, the god of justice, who protects the Runan Kingdom. The magic tower, the Genol Empire, the elves, and many others.
There were countless religions and gods in the world, and the number of them was too vast to be easily remembered.
It was clear that Cheongnyongsingyo was one of the smaller, lesser-known religions.

“Well, there are many of them, so be careful not to be branded as a heretic.”
“······Of course.”
“So, why did you want to meet me? ······No, can I speak first?”
Failer placed a glass containing alcohol on the table, and the conversation began. The first to speak was, of course, Failer.

“Jonan, how much do you know about sacred beasts?”
At the mention of sacred beasts, Jonan immediately understood what Failer was referring to.
3rd-class knight Ras Ront. Sacred beasts. The by-products of sacred beasts. The sin of disturbing sacred beasts. Estel Village, which overcame the red moon. The only prosperous region.
Jonan nodded quietly.

Failer grasped Jonan’s unspoken thoughts through his movements, his gaze, and even his silence.
“···It seems that what you want to talk about is also related to that sacred beast.”
“That’s right.”
Failer’s hand trembled slightly as he held his glass of alcohol.
“Now that there is an investigation by Sir Ras… If it is confirmed that the abnormal phenomenon in Estel Village is due to a sacred beast, the Count will issue an order.”
“What order?”
“Subjugation of the sacred beast.”
“······.”
To subjugate the sacred beast and obtain its by-products, which were valuable ingredients for medicines and tools.
And the reason Count Craystist wanted to obtain those by-products was not just for greed.

“Is it because of Lady Aria?”
“That’s right. ······But you don’t seem too surprised.”
If a sacred beast was truly in his village and the Count sought to subjugate it, one would expect Jonan to try to stop it at all costs. After all, no one knew what could happen to the village and its people. But Jonan’s expression was calm, not what one might expect.

“Sir Failer. Can I speak this time?”
“Go ahead.”
“What protected Estel Village was not a sacred beast.”
At Jonan’s dry words, the glass Failer was holding cracked.
That meant that the medicine for Aria’s treatment could no longer be developed.

“······How can you be sure?”
Failer hoped Jonan and the residents of Estel Village were wrong. He hoped that Ras’s investigation would determine that the sacred beast was real. But Jonan didn’t answer the question directly.
Instead, he threw out another piece of information that penetrated the true reason Failer had sought him out.

“I know a way for Lady Aria to get better without the by-products of a sacred beast.”
“···What?”
This was a revelation too large for a hunter to casually offer.