Chapter 48
Clatter—
“Hmm…”
It had been about half a month since Eric, at the request of Saint Gregorius, set out from the northern diocese with him.
By now, they had passed through several towns, and as they neared the border, Eric gripped his stomach, unsettled by the poorly maintained roads.
“P-Prince… I feel like I’m going to—Ugh!”
Liliane, too, had been thrown into turmoil by the incessant jostling of the carriage. Despite the endurance she had gained on previous expeditions, it seemed she hadn’t fully escaped this hellish motion sickness.
Seeing her finally give in and vomit again today, Eric turned his gaze out the window, trying not to witness her struggle.
“Hahaha. You seem quite dizzy. Just a little longer. Once we cross the border, it’s a short way to the plateau.”
Watching the elderly man speak soothingly as if encouraging them, Eric turned his eyes to the distant silhouette of a fortress.
A small town slicing through the Empire’s northern lands and the monster-infested Nether Zone. Though modest in size, the walls surrounding the town stretched so far that their ends were invisible even from a distance.
Aridus Plateau… I never thought we’d be coming here already.
Beyond those walls, the plateau rose high, and Eric’s expression grew complicated.
The Aridus Plateau.
The site of the former northern diocese of the Goddess Church.
Even in the game, it was a place every player had to pass through for smooth progression. Compared to the Nivossus Mountains or Moonlit Forest, it was familiar territory to him, yet he couldn’t shake his unease.
This plateau wasn’t a place for someone at a low level to venture.
Of course, unlike before, the war with the monsters hasn’t started yet, so it’s unfair to compare directly…
Back then, high-level monsters and named enemies made conquering Aridus Plateau a headache for players. He didn’t know if they still roamed the plateau, but even if not, the journey wouldn’t be pleasant.
Among the northern territories, pushed back and expanded under the direct command of his father, the current Duke Ather, only this area of the former diocese had lost its land for a reason.
“Sir Gregorius.”
Later, after calming himself by gazing out the window, Eric finally spoke quietly.
“Isn’t it about time you told me?”
At that, the atmosphere inside the carriage instantly froze.
Malefica, who had been nervously watching the cardinal from the corner; Liliane, stretched across the floor looking as pale as death; and even Leona, who had briefly stopped the carriage to pat Liliane’s back—all were visibly startled by Eric’s sharp tone.
Though he was the Duke’s son, he was still just a prince, not yet an heir. Even if Gregorius was somewhat isolated in the church, the cardinal was still a cardinal.
“The Aridus Plateau… What exactly have you brought me here for, on the grounds of the former northern diocese?”
Despite the worried eyes directed at him, Eric pressed on.
He had accepted Gregorius’s request, aware of the danger and that he was far behind Allen in capability. But he could not lead his companions into peril without any information.
A bit of insolence, however, was nothing to someone notorious as a rogue like himself.
In fact, it’s probably more natural to show a bit of nerve here. After all, he only saw me briefly as an infant accompanying the Pope; they still know the Eric they used to.
Gregorius, after a moment’s hesitation—tapping his thigh—finally shook his head firmly.
“I cannot tell you.”
The brief pause disappeared, replaced by a resolute gaze.
“…Then answer just this.”
Eric abandoned any further questions about the object and recalled what had intrigued him ever since Gregorius first approached him in the northern diocese:
“Why me, of all people?”
The Aridus Plateau was dangerous. Even if the war with monsters hadn’t fully resumed, it wasn’t a place for an incompetent man with just a single knight, wizard, and priest in tow.
“If you needed someone uninvolved in the church’s affairs, there were many others you could have chosen.”
Gregorius, who once led the northern diocese, couldn’t have been unaware. Finding stronger mercenaries to guard the object would have been easy enough—especially for someone of his reputation.
Of course, secretly gathering such forces wouldn’t be simple. But with Saint Gregorius’s call, it wouldn’t have taken long.
“On the contrary.”
“Huh?”
With that, Gregorius’s quiet, hesitant answer left Eric blinking in confusion.
“This old man needs someone who is… involved with the church’s interests.”
Completely opposite to Eric’s expectation.
“If it were merely a matter of escorting you to the plateau, he could have asked any active hero at the front. So why insist on seeing you?”
“…That suggests this isn’t just about taking you to the plateau.”
Eric frowned, sensing a hidden motive in those words.
“No, that’s enough.”
The reason he had to be involved in this matter was simple:
“Because the fact that you were with me in the former diocese is important.”
The reason was insidiously effective—enough to potentially trap him.
“…Didn’t you say this was a personal request?”
Eric, quickly catching onto the elder’s intent, asked in a blunt tone.
Gregorius had gone so far as to owe Malefica, Isabella’s agent, just to see Eric. It was clear now that he couldn’t ignore the situation.
He was using his fame to escape a cornered position—essentially, the role of the “church hero” that Isabella had forcefully thrust upon him.
“This isn’t an official event, is it? You did say it was a request for a capable young hero of the church.”
Seeing Eric’s betrayed expression, Gregorius answered with a sly smile.
Recently acclaimed as a hero by the church, Eric, the incapable member of House Ather, was already causing ripples. Even among the eccentric inquisitors, the “Sixth Finger of the Goddess”—pushed almost forcibly under Isabella’s guidance—was notorious for unpredictability.
“Don’t look at me with such sharp eyes. I’ve withheld some details, but that doesn’t mean I’ve asked you to do anything harmful.”
This “half-hero” created by Isabella’s manipulations would now accompany him to the former northern diocese, effectively under her support. At least, in the eyes of ordinary believers and some high-ranking church officials.
“…Very well. If the archbishop insists, there must be a reason.”
A brief silence fell over the carriage. Gregorius offered his wrinkled hand with an awkward smile, and Eric nodded as if to say he understood.
I thought the problems would only begin once we reached the plateau… who knew the journey itself was the cardinal’s scheme.
Eric wanted to end this burdensome companionship immediately, but as Gregorius had said, the news would have already reached the other side. No matter how he explained, it would look as though they were working together.
I heard Gregorius was a kind saint to anyone… but the rumors were clearly exaggerated.
The crafty old man, despite his appearance, left Eric no choice but to sigh and resign himself.
In the end, it wasn’t entirely a loss.
Considering Malefica’s firm stance between light and shadow, Isabella probably wouldn’t openly support the cardinal anyway.
Rubbing his throbbing head to clear his thoughts, Eric glanced at Malefica. She, too, appeared unaccustomed to this side of the cardinal, visibly unsettled.
“Thank you for understanding. I owe you this favor…”
“Just one thing.”
Facing the cardinal’s friendly expression, Eric spoke firmly.
“We need to reconsider the arrangement. If you needed the hero of the church, you should have said so clearly.”
Though he disliked being drawn into unwanted conflicts, now that things had progressed, he wasn’t about to step back.
Fine. If there are anti-Goddess League elements in the church, I’ll need to handle them anyway to clear the way.
He wouldn’t let himself be used blindly. If they could be mutually helpful, he could use the situation to his advantage.
“When this is over, Archbishop, you’ll have to assist me as well.”
“Hmm? That’s already…”
Having made up his mind, Eric continued to speak clearly.
“Clarus Gregorius. Not as a servant of the goddess, but as one of the four pillars who once supported the church and was even called a potential future pope.”
Despite now being toothless in his own diocese, his renown remained. Many still remembered the old man’s glorious past, especially those who had faced the great war alongside the former Duke.
