[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Max]
Chapter 7: Pursuing the Branded Knight (1)
At the boundary between the clearing and the forest, Hal and Antonio hid and observed the battle between the Djinn and the knights.
"You guys fall back. I'll take it down."
Just then, the knight in the red cloak stepped forward, imbuing his sword with aura.
Hal nodded.
It was the right decision.
It seed the knight had realized through several clashes that ordinary physical attacks were aningless.
'Djinns are fundantally spiritual beings.'
Only divine power, magic, and aura could harm a spiritual demon.
So the red knight's aura would definitely work.
'However...'
Djinn was cunning.
[You cannot kill with your sword.]
The Djinn taunted, and as if to provoke the knight, it fled to an even higher place.
"Grrr."
The knight gritted his teeth, seemingly quite angry.
No matter how good a knight's leg strength was, there was nothing he could do if the Djinn escaped to such a height.
Just as Hal was thinking about whether he should intervene,
Whoosh!
The human clad in tal flew through the air.
At a glance, it was a height that would even clear the mansion's walls.
Swish!
The red knight, leaping into the air, swung his sword swiftly.
A part of the Djinn's mist was cut and scattered in the air. A near miss.
The Djinn, seemingly caught off guard, hurriedly created distance.
"...Are all knights like that?"
Antonio, who was watching, asked with a shocked expression.
‘Of course not.’
Hal shook his head and replied,
"He's special."
Even among high-ranking knights, there would be few who specialized in leg strength to that extent.
If even ordinary knights were all at that level, the Empire's balance of power would have long since crumbled.
'Anyway.'
This was the end of their observation. If they left it alone, the fight wouldn't end.
"Antonio. Do you have a kettle or a lamp?"
At Hal's sudden question, Antonio nodded with a bewildered expression.
"I think I have a water kettle."
"Good."
Hal instructed him to fill it with water.
Although Antonio looked puzzled, he did as he was told.
After confirming this, Hal took a deep breath.
It was a gamble from here on out.
He was guessing, but the knight wasn't his enemy.
The Djinn and the knight faced each other from a distance.
Step step!
Hal erged from the edge of the forest and steadily closed the distance between them.
"...You!"
The knight, recognizing Hal, roared with hostility, but Hal ignored him.
Although it wasn't obvious, the knight's sword had definitely wounded the Djinn.
With that, the next part was easy.
Hal's voice, making the sign of the cross, echoed through the clearing.
"Oh righteous fire of Ehurshica, that purifies iniquity, burn your enemy."
As Hal clasped his hands together, azure flas suddenly erupted from the Djinn's body.
Whoosh!
[ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ !!! ]
The Djinn writhed with a horrifying scream.
Struggling in the air, it frantically looked around as if searching for sothing.
Then,
[............!]
The Djinn's gaze is fixed on Antonio.
"Uh oh?"
Just as Antonio, standing behind Hal, stumbled back,
"Hold on tight."
"To what...?"
Antonio, about to ask what he should hold onto, couldn't finish his sentence.
The burning Djinn was hurtling towards him like a bolt of lightning.
Just when he thought he was done for,
Rumble!
With a thunderous sound, the Djinn was sucked into the water kettle.
Antonio reflexively grabbed the violently shaking kettle with all his might.
Only then did he understand what Hal ant by "hold on tight."
At so point, the water kettle beca still.
"Just put it down and step aside."
Hal approached the water kettle that Antonio had placed on the ground.
Then, he swung his sword and split the kettle in half.
Crack!
Black demonic energy flowed from the split kettle and was sucked into Hal's sword.
The knights and Antonio stared at Hal with dumbfounded expressions.
"...Were you hiding your power?"
The knight in the red cloak asked coldly, still showing hostility.
Despite the knight's rather presumptuous misunderstanding, Hal didn't answer.
There was no reason to.
The truth was, Hal's easy victory was due to a type advantage.
A mid-rank, spiritual demon could only be handled by a high-ranking knight.
The minimum requirent for defeating a spiritual demon was the use of aura.
On the other hand, an exorcist priest could easily handle a mid-rank demon.
Especially with Hal's unique ability, Azure Fla.
It was a voracious fire that left no trace of demons, but for humans, it was a purifying fla that aided in healing.
In other words, he couldn't use his ability against the knight.
Hal wasn't good at lying.
So he just stared.
As Hal looked at the knight with an indifferent expression, silence fell between them.
Hal looked up at the sky.
The sky was already completely dark.
Even the moonlight was hidden behind the clouds, making it difficult to find any light other than the torches.
"Tonight."
The knight's body trembled slightly as he realized what Hal ant.
"Like harvesting ripe fruit, it will co."
Hal didn't know what kind of demon would co.
However, it was clear that the one who used a mid-rank Djinn as a re tool was a high-ranking demon.
Three knights, and only one of them was a high-ranking knight. There was no way they could stop it with this force.
The explanation was sufficient. Hal stated his reason for needing to see the lord.
"If we undo the Brand of Sacrifice now, the demon might not appear."
Demons were surprisingly pragmatic about contracts and efficiency.
Conversely, this ant that if they didn't undo the brand now, the demon would definitely appear.
A branded sacrifice was more efficient than offering hundreds of humans.
As long as the young lady was branded, the demon would never give up.
However, the knight's answer remained the sa.
"Get lost."
"Why?"
Hal asked calmly.
The knight replied as if it were obvious,
"Because I don't trust you."
"Because I'm an exorcist priest? Is that the lord's will?"
"It's my will, and the lord agrees."
"...Then there's nothing I can do."
Hal stepped back and called Antonio.
"We'll camp here. Get ready."
"Yes? Yes, I understand!"
Antonio, montarily puzzled, reflexively took off the backpack he was carrying.
He followed instructions even when he had questions; it was worth giving him extra points.
That's what Hal was thinking when,
"...What are you doing?"
The knight with the red ornant asked Hal through gritted teeth.
"Preparing to camp."
At Hal's tone, which implied that it was obvious, the knight gritted his teeth even harder and said,
"Didn't you hear tell you to get lost?"
"If the lord refuses to see , there's nothing I can do. However, I cannot turn a blind eye to those in danger. It's my oath and doctrine."
The knight, dumbfounded by Hal's answer, started to say sothing but then sighed deeply and turned away.
He had already sheathed his sword.
"If I sense any threat, I won't hesitate to cut you down."
"Do as you please."
Hal replied nonchalantly and started preparing their al with Antonio's help.
If they were threatening to attack a priest of the Order repeatedly, those knights and the lord must be truly desperate. They probably weren't thinking about the consequences at all.
He needed to rest well now.
A life-or-death battle was imminent.
***
"That was my favorite water kettle."
"..."
Hal remained silent at the sight of Antonio holding up the broken water kettle and muttering to himself.
Although they hadn't been traveling together for long, Antonio noticed that Hal felt apologetic.
He also knew that if he asked questions at tis like this, he would get a more detailed answer than usual.
"Why did the Djinn get sucked into the water kettle earlier?"
"...Djinns are demons, but they're also close to spirits. Spirits often dwell in objects, and as you saw, when their bodies are on fire, they seek water, so it entered the water kettle."
This was a common thod used by shamans and cultists who contracted with spirits or Djinns.
Naturally, Hal had no need to make a contract with the Djinn, so he cut the kettle and easily defeated it.
"Aha."
Antonio nodded, understanding the explanation.
Then, after briefly observing Hal's expression, he asked another question.
"What was that earlier?"
Antonio asked, gesturing towards the sword Hal was wearing.
The demonic energy that was sucked into the sword the mont he captured the Djinn.
Antonio had never seen such a phenonon in his life.
Hal nonchalantly drew his sword and handed it to Antonio.
"It's my talisman."
"Talisman!"
Antonio's eyes sparkled.
In the Order, the weapons given to exorcist priests were called talismans.
Their form and abilities differed depending on the exorcist priest's disposition, unique ability, and fighting style.
However, all talismans had one thing in common: they absorbed demonic energy.
And the greater the amount of demonic energy absorbed, the stronger the talisman beca.
Antonio stared at the sword, forgetting his fatigue.
The blade was covered in unreadable characters with varying thicknesses.
When Antonio asked about it, Hal calmly pointed with his finger and explained,
"The thickness varies depending on the rank of the demon. This is for high-ranking, this is for mid-ranking. Low-ranking demons aren't absorbed."
Antonio was speechless at the explanation.
The sword was densely packed with black characters.
Just how many demons had he caught?
What kind of life had he lived to do so?
He couldn't even begin to imagine.
Feeling sowhat overwheld, Antonio returned the sword and finished preparing the al.
Afterward, Antonio and Hal ate their al by the campfire and imdiately went to sleep.
They trusted that the knights and soldiers of the mansion would keep watch.
"This is ridiculous."
The knight in the red cloak laughed in disbelief, but as Hal expected, he didn't neglect his guard duty.
How much ti had passed?
Woof woof!
The sound of a dog barking could be heard in the distance.
And the sound was getting closer.
"It's here."
Hal sat up and slowly checked his equipnt.
He felt a little less tired after the short rest.
It wasn't perfect, but it wasn't bad either.
'The important thing is what we're up against.'
Even among high-ranking demons, their strength varied greatly.
Hal had fought high-ranking demons several tis, but he always found it difficult to hide his nervousness.
'Still, with Antonio and the other knights here, it should be manageable.'
That's what he was thinking when,
Woof woof!
The sound of barking was heard again.
Very close this ti.
'Is it a high-ranking demon related to dogs?'
Just as Hal was recalling the nas of several demons in his mind,
Woof woof!
Two black dogs erged from the forest. They were closer in size to wolves than dogs, but they definitely had the form of dogs.
The first to react was the knight in the red cloak.
"What? Is this the great demon you were talking about?"
Hal couldn't say anything in response to his blatant sarcasm.
The knight looked at Hal's face with a triumphant expression.
However, he couldn't find the expression he wanted there.
“Hesitation!”
"...What?"
Only then did the knight sense that sothing was wrong.
Hal couldn't regain his composure.
His hands were sweating.
His head was pounding, and his legs were shaking.
His face must have been pale.
'Oh no.'
This was the worst.
He had been too complacent. He never expected to encounter the 'Black Dogs of Roshka' here.
Hal recalled the ancient demon whose na was recorded in the scriptures.
The other na for the 'Black Dogs of Roshka' was 'Hellhounds of Death'.
With their appearance, the fate of everyone here was sealed.
An irresistible being was coming.
He could almost hear the sound of trumpets blaring in the distance.
[Translator - Peptobismol]
[Proofreader - Max]
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