Eternally Regressing Knight Chapter 750

750. Are we at war?

Encred and his party headed south. In the meantime, the one-eyed one turned around. It really seemed like he was going to come out to greet them.
It was the path heading south, or more precisely, towards the Demon Realm where Balrog was likely to be.
The location of the one called the Demon of Strife was not exactly known. It was the path that was followed by rumors and stories. However, it was not like there was no way to find it.

‘Balrog loves to fight.’

They say he enjoys fighting the strong and collecting souls.
Then why don’t we sing a serenade of temptation at a place where he’s likely to come?
Encred’s plan was to sing a serenade at the top of his lungs while sprinkling black blood.
Surprisingly, Chrys and Abnayer nodded in agreement.
Balrog is a name shrouded in legend, but through the process of research and confirmation, they figured out its habits based on facts, so they thought it was possible.
If you call it to fight, it will come out. However, its song would have to be quite loud.
The safe route of the Border Guard territory had become incomparably wider than before, so they had to pass several guard posts.

“Iron wall!”

The salute was accompanied by a slogan. It was the iron wall of the knight of iron wall. It was the last outpost that signaled the end of the safe road.
Encred waved his hand roughly to receive the salute and passed by.
Among the soldiers watching the departing, the outpost commander, who was a bit savvy, tilted his head.

“Are we at war?”

The senior soldier standing right next to him shook his head.

“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

The commander has never heard of it. Above all, there is no one to fight against.
The Mad Knights of Encred have been called the Labyrinth of Change in recent times.
Let’s look into the reason for this strange nickname.

‘That’s because they all gathered together and swallowed them all up.’

That’s right.
They’ve never gone out of their way to eradicate cults. They just came and attacked.
Apostate groups that worship the Gray God? They’re the same.
The Black Sword Bandits and Count Molsen, who started the civil war, may look a little different, but whatever it is, the fact remains that the mad knights chewed them up and swallowed them.

“I heard the trading city is acting tough recently?”

The commander was sensitive to rumors. He believed that the more he knew, the longer he would survive. And there was nothing more interesting than a rumor.

“Are you going to burn down the trading city?”

Even a trading city with deep roots in the continent would not be able to withstand such a force.

“Isn’t the direction not that way?”

The junior soldier also chimed in and said. To his eyes, it was amazing to see them moving together.
Are they really going to war?

“Yeah, that’s not it.”

The southern battlefield has also been quiet recently. I heard that the number of troubles from that side has decreased significantly. I
heard that there has been a lot of talk about some kind of change in the palace recently. Is that because of that?

‘You want to go and kill all the nobles?’

There happened to be a gray-haired madman called the Noble Slayer along with them.

‘No way.’

My thoughts were too far ahead of their time. I don’t know why. But if they weren’t going to fight a war, there would have been many people who would flinch just by gathering and moving around like that.
The commander looked at the people leaving. Among them, the black-haired man standing in the center.
According to the Vengeance Guard Captain, he used to be just a low-ranking soldier.

‘You have to be able to trust it.’

It was natural that the credibility of those words would drop.
The outpost was high. It was visible because it was high.
Look at those leaving in the distance. The falling sunlight flowed down their backs, turning them into shadows and stretching them.
They were a group that would cause a change in perception just by walking.
The commander’s prediction was correct.

* * *

The mayor of the trading city was on edge at the movements of the mad knights.
Why did they suddenly go on a group expedition?

‘Are you putting pressure on me?’

Don’t bother me anymore? I’ve been making excuses to avoid confrontation with force, but aren’t these guys going to work?
Can the ten mercenaries, the pride of the trading city, stop them? At least communicate? At least negotiate?
Of course, I can’t even dream of winning. But can’t I show some spirit?
The mercenary captain happened to be present at the meeting.
The mayor stared at him intently. Even without saying anything, his gaze was enough to ask for his intentions.
The captain is a veteran with a long scar on his face who has done all sorts of things since he was young. He
was captured by the enemy and tortured with his fingernails and toenails pulled out, but he didn’t give in, earning him the nickname of the Indomitable Mercenary.
A symbol of perseverance who never gives up and perseveres to the end.
Excluding the Eastern Mercenary King, he is the spiritual pillar that all mercenaries are proud of.

“surrender.”

That’s what he said.

“……What?”
“Surrender, you say. If we fight, we all die.”

He was firm.
The mercenary, who was seen as a symbol of indomitability and resistance, who fought and persevered in a fight that was clearly a losing battle, despite torture, spoke with a firm attitude.

thud.

His hand tapped the table, which seemed to give more force to his words.

“surrender!”

The shout was loud. The meeting ended there.
What was the spirit?
The Mad Knights didn’t even come this way, but the group of sly merchants who were trying to sabotage the road called Stone Road and make a profit gave up the white flag.
The madman’s reputation was that great.
Chrys, who was handling various matters in the Border Guard, tilted his head as to why the trading city was suddenly cooperating with the Border Guard by bringing in a bank, but soon he was able to piece together the situation.

‘Once the captain moves, it’s chaos.’

Leona Lockfried was satisfied. The various secret tricks the trading city had been doing lately had been bothering her, but now that was resolved.
And this was the first.

* * *

“We asked for qualifications!”

The title of Pope is traditionally appointed by the Sacred City Legion. That is the rule and custom.
The blessing of all the Archpriests gathered here is the basic condition for electing the Pope who leads the Legion. It was not a vote, but a form that did not end until all agreed.
In other words, it could take years until they reached an agreement.
The previous Pope suddenly disappeared, and the Legion was deeply wounded because of that. Recently, there were even apostates who worshipped the Gray God.
It could be said that it was a chaotic situation and era.
In such a situation, the Legion needed a special measure.
The first thing that came out was.

“We need to have a new pope.”

This is it.
At first, they were going to bring someone who had awakened to divinity from the empire. Naturally, the power of the sect is still intact in the empire. The empire itself is not a state of orthodoxy, but that doesn’t mean the power of the sect is bad.
Since divinity exists, if you can prove its power, you can naturally seize one axis of power.

“I don’t think there is a better way than this.”

The Paladin Overdier was certain that the bastard who had spoken those words was a spy of the Empire, but it was not a mortal sin compared to being a traitor or a cultist.
He should not have his head smashed in for siding with the Empire.

“If one of the ministers steps forward, it will probably take a hundred years for the results to come out.”

Even if he was a spy, the author who brought up the subject was a person who lived for the Legion and served God.
Most of those who served the Gray God or were half-mad had already been sent to God’s side.
Even those suspected of being Imperial spies had an accurate grasp of the current situation.
The High Priests were in a position to keep each other in check. They were the High Priests in the Legion, but they were also the Popes of each religious order.
So if one of them were to become the Pope.

‘Show something outstanding.’

He would have to show divinity that would make the saint look like a child.
Although he was not the Pope, one of the Apostles was powerful enough, but he worshipped the God of War and was not currently a member of the Legion.
Even if he had
, it would have been meaningless. Those who worshipped the God of War swore to the Lord not to interfere in the internal political strife of the Legion, so they were not here.
If not, he would have been of considerable help.
Overdeer did not resolve the complicated situation. He had no intention of resolving it. It was not his job, nor was he capable of doing so. Overdeer was a paladin.
He was the sword and shield of the church, not the tongue or prophet of the church.
That is not to say that he had nothing to say, but he could easily have recommended a candidate for the Pope.
That is what he had been working towards.

“If the goddess of fortune looks down on the world with favoritism, the goddess of libra always looks down on the world with balance.”

Overdeer’s voice was heavy. No one ignored him. It was the same even for the High Priest. He
had already dealt with traitors of the High Priest level in the past.
Some of the powerful people in the Legion cast uneasy glances. If Overdeer made up his mind now, the entire authority of the church would be in his palm. The
current Holy Knights had that much power. They were the ones who had cut out the rotten parts of the church and possessed military power.
Of course, since there were apostles of the God of War who were just watching, it was realistically impossible for Overdeer to take over the Legion by force.

“The Libra God seems indifferent, but he is always fair.”

One of the archon agreed with Overdier.
Each sect had its own pope, but the pope of the legion was of a different order.
In common parlance, it could be said that he was recognized by all the popes and became the leader of the Holy City.
In a slightly more common way, it could be said that he was the king of the legion.

“I have come to this additionally disturbing body of Libra. On behalf of all the Paladins, I would like to recommend a candidate for the Pope.”

Overdeer nodded and added.
He introduced Noah like that, and at that, one of the cardinals under the Archbishop began to question him, talking about his qualifications.

“Can a person who cannot even use divinity be considered a pope?”

In the midst of the constant squabbling, Overdeer first swore his loyalty and then took out the prepared water.

“I will serve the rag saint.”

Audyn’s adoptive father, who had been on the Border Guard, stepped forward. The old man, pretending to be blind, stepped forward, tapping his cane on the floor, and bowed his head as he looked at Noah.

“I will let the Lord in heaven decide what to do, but if he deems my will helpful, I will state my opinion.”

He was the former Pope of the Legion. Of course, there are only a few people here who know that, and even those who do don’t necessarily say it.
Still, the value of his name is not lost.
Of course, since Audyn’s adoptive father came here only as a rag-and-bone saint, the weight of his words was not enough.
Noah said nothing.
It would be difficult to persuade them through speeches, but it was worth a try.
The problem was, would they all unanimously support him if he tried to persuade them like that?
Noah still had doubts.

‘Am I qualified?’

It started with the desire to take care of a child who had lost his parents.
I wanted to make a child who would become a pickpocket or a robber live in a temple, worshiping God, and copying books.
The desire is small, and the wish is even smaller.
But is it really right for me to take on such a heavy responsibility?

“Are you two finished? I acknowledge the prestige of the Knights Templar, but who else would defend him?”

One of the archons shouted fiercely.
Overdeer felt troubled. Yes, it seemed like this was going to happen.

“The King of Naurilia defends.”

So, even though the official letter of support from the King of Naurilia had arrived, it was still not enough.
The news of the advance of the Mad Knights shook the continent.
Where on earth were they going? What were they moving for?
And then there was a problem. When I checked their movements, I found that they were on the side of the Legion.

“Did he say he had a relationship with the mad knight commander?”

Even though the High Priest asked during the meeting, Noah couldn’t answer the question. He was slightly shocked by the unexpected news of Encred.
To be exact, it was a sudden realization.
He had never actually said such a thing, but it felt as if he had been scolded by him.
Noah’s pupils dilated and he was cursed.
In his illusion, Encred whispered to him.

“You’re talking nonsense. Is the wind small? Is the hope small? Then let’s hear what the greater meaning is.”

It’s difficult to answer, Encred said.

“There are no simple dreams in the world, Noah.”

Hope has no size. That’s a saying I forgot for a moment.

“Is there a relationship? Or not?”

The focus returned to Noah’s pupils at the question of the High Priest. It was time to answer in reality.

“We are friends.”

One of the Archon’s swallowed hard at those words.
The Mad Knights’ notoriety is greater than that of the Border Guard. It is now.
They have done so much.

“Are you planning to go to war with the Legion?”

The rag-faced saint muttered. He knew it would never happen, but it was enough to scare them.

“why?”

One of the cardinals asked, adding
that Overdeer had added some spice.

“The Apostle of the Gray God struck you. If you’re going to hold him responsible, it’s our fault. I think I should prepare to face him immediately.”

The Knight Commander is away. It’s a difficult situation. But the Legion has no leader to put forward.
Someone has to step up and meet him.
Who is the right person?
Noah, recommended by Overdia, catches the eye. The Knights have sworn not to do anything without his permission, and the King of Naurilia, the strongest on the continent, has personally stepped forward as their sponsor. Even the Ragged Saint, whose name is higher than any saint or saintess in the Legion, is on their side.
Not to mention, he’s a close friend of that mad Knight Commander.
Even if the mad Knights hadn’t moved, the Pope of the Legion would have been Noah.

“Please give it to me. That seat.”

The man named Noah, who had been standing there blankly, showed his will for the first time.
And so the Pope of the Legion was decided.
At this very moment, Encred was having a blast meeting demons and monsters and talking about swordsmanship with the Mad Knights.