Paladin of the Dead God

Isaac looked at Hastel in disbelief.

It was surprising that Leonora had saved him, but that was all it was—a surprise. There was no real connection between them. Isaac didn’t care about Leonora, so taking her hostage wouldn’t work on him.

Moreover, Isaac didn’t negotiate with hostage-takers.

Hastel knew this as well.

Instead of addressing Isaac, she shouted loudly, making sure everyone around could hear her.

“I’m taking Leonora Bessia. The Golden Idol Guild should prepare Hesabel, the Rite of Division, and the head of the Holy Grail Knight by sunrise. I’ll return when it’s ready.”

As soon as she finished her declaration, a thick blood mist enveloped them. By the time people rushed in and cut through the mist, Hastel and Leonora were gone.

The soldiers, having lost their charge right before their eyes, exchanged pale, panicked looks.

Their eyes quickly turned toward Isaac.

***

“How ridiculous.”

Isaac clicked his tongue at Hastel’s cunning move.

Taking a hostage wouldn’t work on him. After all, he and Leonora were enemies. But Hastel wasn’t trying to pressure Isaac; she was threatening the entire Golden Idol Guild. Instead of shouldering the burden of dealing with Isaac herself, she was attempting to mobilize the whole city of Odryf, the guild’s stronghold.

The idea that one should never give in to hostage demands wouldn’t matter here. If Leonora, the most promising candidate for the next guild leader, were to die, countless people who depended on her would be ruined. For those whose livelihoods were at stake, ideals and principles didn’t mean much.

“Sir Holy Grail Knight, we must rescue the Vice-Guild Master.”

The man who spoke was pale with anxiety. It was the coachman who had been accompanying Leonora earlier.

For now, he didn’t seem to be thinking, ‘Let’s kill the Holy Grail Knight and meet her demands.’ But as sunrise approached, that option would likely cross their minds.

“Excuse me, but the Rite of Division and Hesabel—those are the Red Chalice relic and the Red Chalice woman traveling with you, correct?”

“Yes.”

The coachman hesitated before speaking cautiously, visibly anxious.

“I’m sorry, but it seems like this problem arose between the kidnapper and you, Sir Holy Grail Knight. It’s not really our guild’s concern, so could you possibly make some concessions?”

Isaac didn’t retort by pointing out that they had hired mercenaries and assassins to attack and threaten him. Even without that, as long as Isaac had the Rite of Division and Hesabel in his possession, Hastel Gulmar would have pursued him sooner or later. Shalok had just been used.

Despite this, Isaac felt annoyed by the guild’s blatant audacity.

“Your Golden Idol Guild hired mercenaries and assassins to attack and threaten me. And now you’re asking me to hand over what I have and rescue the Vice-Guild Master? How brazen.”

“But didn’t Vice-Guild Master Leonora just help you?”

“I have no reason to play along with Leonora’s whims.”

He understood that. Yet Isaac still couldn’t comprehend why Leonora, after cornering him so relentlessly, had suddenly chosen to save him.

A mere whim? A change of heart? He had no idea. Not knowing why she had such a change of heart meant she could change it again at any moment.

Isaac wanted to avoid being swayed by the whims of others.

The atmosphere grew tense, but then a loud clap echoed through the air.

“Phew, phew… I thought I was going to die running here. I’m not too late, am I?”

It was Shalok. A large group of mercenaries followed behind him. It was unclear whether they were here to help Isaac or subdue him.

Isaac decided to update him on the situation first.

“Leonora has been kidnapped.”

“What? By who… Oh, the Duchess Gulmar?”

“Yeah. She wants the Rite of Division, Hesabel, and my head by sunrise.”

Hearing this, Shalok quickly assessed the tense standoff between the guild soldiers and Isaac. He tilted his head, as if it wasn’t a difficult problem.

“Then you should go rescue her, shouldn’t you?”

Isaac didn’t respond. Shalok turned to the coachman with a puzzled expression.

“Didn’t Lady Leonora rescind the order to subdue the Holy Grail Knight?”

“She didn’t say anything about that before she was taken. But we saw her personally dispel the shadow of death cast over the Holy Grail Knight.”

“Then it means she has no intention of subduing him, doesn’t it? It means the order is canceled, right?”

“She didn’t explicitly say that…”

“Do you only deal with what’s written in contracts? Is that really what matters right now? Do you not know how to do business?”

Before the coachman could retort, Shalok turned to Isaac with a bright smile.

“The Golden Idol Guild is not hostile to the Holy Grail Knight. I guarantee it, as the Commander of the Mercenaries. So, the problem is resolved, right?”

Isaac found his assessment of Shalok improving slightly as he watched him sort out the situation quickly.

As he said, Isaac now had to rescue Leonora.

Because the Reaper hadn’t truly disappeared.

Leonora had paid the price of a ‘Death’s Reprieve,’ meaning it was only postponed—it wouldn’t happen today. To settle the debt completely, Isaac needed to meet Leonora and uncover the nature of the debt. Addressing the issue with Angela could wait until afterward.

One way or another, Isaac had no choice but to save Leonora.

It was just that it was difficult to move forward with his enemies at his back. Fortunately, Shalok had cleared the path.

“But how do you plan to rescue her if you don’t know where she is?”

At this, Shalok grinned.

“Why do you think I hired those human hunters, who aren’t exactly pleasing to the eye? I couldn’t just let them roam freely around Odryf. By keeping them confined to one area, it was easier to monitor and control them. Of course, I know where they’re hiding.”

***

A cold night breeze blew through the cracks in the walls, making a haunting sound.

Leonora knew exactly where she was. It was an abandoned lighthouse on the outskirts of Odryf Harbor. As soon as Hastel arrived at the lighthouse, she left Leonora in a corner and ignored her.

This didn’t mean Leonora was free to escape. The thin red thread was still wrapped around her neck, and Hastel was ready to decapitate her if she moved faster than a crawl.

Hastel didn’t forget to give her a warning.

“The miracle of the Red Chalice can heal wounds very quickly. You understand what that means, right?”

“It means you could chop off my limbs to keep me confined if necessary.”