Chapter 109: Encounter (9)

Erica looked down at the small sentence carved on the back of the rosary, which Jerel had just mentioned.

‘Oh, you seekers of salvation, the miracle you hold in your hearts will never wither away in vain. Even in eternal darkness, a handful of light will never fade away.’

Tom, standing next to her, glanced at the rosary and said, “That’s one of the sayings left by the hero during the final battle with the demons, right?”

The most famous phrase among them was the one engraved on Erica’s rosary.

Jerel nodded his head as if reminiscing about the past with a strange look in his eyes, and asked Erica, “You didn’t know that the saying was carved on your rosary? Do you admire the hero?”

It was a meaningless question. Who wouldn’t respect the hero who defended their land and this continent, at least as a human being?

Erica remained silent, holding the rosary in her arms.

Tom chuckled and said, “Of course. She’s the hero who saved the continent. Erica doesn’t show it, but she secretly admires the hero in her heart.

“Do you want to die?” Erica glared at Tom as if she wanted to kill him.

Jerel quickly burst into laughter and then Tom said to him, “And I greatly respect you too, Sir Jerel! Sealing the Demon King with the hero is really an amazing achievement!”

“Haha, thank you. But it was the hero who sealed the Demon King alone, and I didn’t play such a big role.”

The person who faced both the demon king and the original demons in the final battle was the hero, while the rest of the members of the squad only dealt with the lesser demons.

What Jerel had said was simply the truth, but Tom and Heron only thought that he was being humble.

He turned his gaze back to Erica and asked, “By the way, can you tell me your name, young lady?”

“Huh? Erica.”

Erica responded with a puzzled expression.

He went on to ask calmly, “Yes, Erica. Do you have any interest in learning swordsmanship from me?”

Tom and Heron were both stunned by his words, wondering if they had misheard him for a moment.

Erica also widened her eyes at his unexpected words, then asked, “Are you saying that you want me to be your disciple?”

Jerel nodded, as if it were obvious. “Yes, that’s what I’m asking.”

“Y-your disciple…”

Tom murmured in disbelief.

It was inevitable. A radiant knight, the most noble and dignified holy knight in the order, was now asking her directly to be his disciple.

Heron also stared at Jerel for a moment before turning to Erica. Unlike the two of them, the person who had received the proposal was calm.

“Why?”

Erica asked Jerel.

It was a natural question.

Entering into a discipleship was not something to be taken lightly. It’s not similar to knights passing through a monastery, teaching children. It meant providing proper teaching and support for growth.

Right now, Jerel was proposing that she become his disciple, even though she knew nothing and had just met him today.

Jerel replied, “I watched your sparring match earlier. I noticed your talent.”

Erica looked a little flustered.

She was aware that she had considerable talent, of course. But was it really enough for someone like him to take an interest in her? She didn’t think so.

“You must have seen many people with much greater talents than me.”

Jerel let out a hollow laugh.

Normally, it wouldn’t be strange for someone to be unable to think straight after hearing such a proposal, but she seemed to be suspicious of him.

It wasn’t that she lacked a realistic sense of how big this opportunity was. He thought she was an exceptional child and spoke frankly.

“True. But it’s not just your talent that made me make this offer.”

“…?”

“I have a good intuition. So I often act according to my intuition.”

Intuition?

The three of them blinked, wondering what he meant.

“The reason why I stopped by this monastery instead of just passing by is because I suddenly had a feeling that I might have a pleasant encounter here. But watching the duel from earlier, I have a feeling that it might have been you. That’s why I’m making this proposal.”

It was a ridiculous proposal, so absurd that it almost seemed like a joke.

However, Erica, who was quick-witted, could tell that he was speaking sincerely.

Jerel chuckled and asked again.

“So, can you give me an answer?”

“…”

Heron, who had swallowed his saliva, turned to Erica.

Tom also urged her with his gaze.

Whatever the reason was, this was an outrageous proposal that could change her entire life.

To become a disciple of a radiant knight? Which person would miss such a tremendous opportunity? But…

“I’m sorry.”

After a moment of silence, Erica blurted out.

Jerel’s eyes widened, obviously not expecting a refusal.

Tom let out a sigh unconsciously and grabbed Erica’s shoulder with an impatient expression.

“Hey…are you crazy?!”

Erica shook off his hand with a resentful look and continued.

“I don’t have any intention of becoming a holy knight. So I appreciate your offer, but I don’t think I can become your disciple.”

Jerel looked at her in puzzlement and asked.

“I thought the duel you had earlier was a test to select apprentice holy knights. Did I make a mistake?”

Erica answered somewhat hesitantly, “I joined out of impulse… I never really thought about becoming a holy knight after taking the test.”

Jerel didn’t quite understand what she meant, but he didn’t press her for more details. “Anyway, that’s a shame. Can you tell me why you don’t want to become a knight?”

After hesitating for a moment, Erica said, “Aren’t knights supposed to be people who can fight to the death for god?”

“That’s right.”

“My faith isn’t as strong as that. So even if I became a knight, I don’t think it would mean much.”

Heron closed his eyes and rubbed his forehead. Erica’s talk of lacking faith in front of a radiant knight could be considered as blasphemy.

But fortunately, Jerel didn’t get angry or scold her.

“Faith, huh…” He looked at her with a strange expression. “I don’t think blind faith is necessary when it comes to god.”

The three of them were momentarily speechless.

Was this really coming from the mouth of a radiant knight, who could be considered the model for all holy knights?

Jerel laughed and asked Erica, “Have you ever had doubts like this? Even though there’s still so much pain and despair in the world, why doesn’t god just save everyone? If he really is an omnipotent being, isn’t that not a difficult thing at all? And if he’s trying to test us, what’s the point?”

“….”

“I always thought I couldn’t understand it. And I tried to find the answer.”

Erica listened to the story as if she were possessed and asked, “So, did you find the answer?”

“I haven’t found it yet. I’m still searching for it.”

“…What?”

“To me, it’s enough just to have that. No matter what, that person saved humanity once, and I believe there must be some hidden meaning to it. That’s my faith. Even if it’s considered blasphemy, it’s not strange, haha.”

Jerel grinned broadly.

“I plan to stay here at the monastery for three days. The offer still stands, so if you change your mind, come find me. Well then…”

With that, he turned around and left, leaving only those words behind.

***

Ten days had passed since I stayed at the monastery.

I was finally preparing to leave.

My body wasn’t fully recovered, but there was no longer any difficulty in moving, and the residual magic power that had remained inside my body was no longer felt.

I almost thought it’s going to take forever.

My destination was to head straight to Calderic.

Even if I went back to the site of the battle with Ditrodemian, there was no way Asher would still be there. So, I had no other choice but to go back to my territory instead.

To travel from this remote area of Santea to Calderic required a very long distance, so it was necessary to move diligently. And the problem was not just the distance.

“I don’t even have anything right now,” I thought.

Although I had said I would leave tomorrow, Priest Tane had even offered some provisions and food, but it would certainly not be enough to travel all the way to Calderic.

For now, my plan was to stop by a nearby city and somehow raised more funds to cover my expenses. I had no more specific plans other than that.

Should I stop by an Adventurer’s Guild and take on a commission?

As I pondered that, a knock sounded at the door and Erica came in.

I wondered what she wanted.

“I heard you’re leaving tomorrow?”

I had only told the priest, Tane, about it, so she must have overheard it somewhere.

I nodded my head. Did she come just to ask about that?

“Not too long ago, you could barely move, but you’ve fully recovered now, right?”

“Yeah, more or less.”

“Well… I just wanted to say goodbye and to wish you luck.”

She paused for a moment before continuing.

“Oh, and do you know? Yesterday, a really impressive person came to our monastery. They called themselves the Radiant Knight.”

“I know.”

Of course I knew. I had been watching everything.

“Why are you telling me that?” I wondered, but she continued with her sudden statement.

“By the way, that person asked me if I wanted to be his disciple.”

“…?”

A disciple?

I blinked in surprise.

Sure, she had talent, but was she really at a level where such a giant would take an interest in her?

“Well, that’s good for you. So, what did you say?”

“…I’m still considering it. I was planning on refusing, but he said something strange.”

“Something strange?”

“He mentioned something similar to when I talked about the god or whatever last time. It was a strangely similar story. He was a really weird person.”

If she was talking about the time she mentioned the god, did that mean she was implying that the radiant knight had no faith as well?

I couldn’t believe that the radiant knight would say something like that.

She asked me.

“What do you think, Uncle?”