Did you know?
I had actually never suffered from muscle pain even once.
But now I would have to correct that story.
I had suffered from muscle pain once.
“Aaaaagh......”
Every muscle in my body screamed for mercy.
Especially my legs.
I thought he would make me go around only once, but before a full day had even passed, he made me circle the outer wall of the capital ten times.
“That insane old man......”
Normally, I would never let such an unfilial remark pass my lips.
But at this moment, I could have dragged even Harkan’s mother into it as much as I wanted.
‘Hmm. Still, maybe that’s a bit too much.’
I had no mother, so I did not know, but a person would probably get very angry if someone cursed their mother.
[Kikik!]
“Why do you keep laughing?”
It feels disgusting.
[No, is it not funny? My apostle, who acted so confident and arrogant, was disgraced like this.]
“Let me correct one thing. I was never particularly arrogant.”
When had I ever looked down on anyone?
[......You look down on me.]
“Other ‘people.’”
[You damn bastard.]
“Does that piss you off? If it does, you should have lived as a person instead of acting as an evil god.”
How else was I supposed to look at an evil god who had massacred thousands of people, if not like a bug?
[Ahem! So what are you going to do?]
“About what?”
[If you receive disciplinary punishment, there will be no way for you to escape outside the capital now, will there?]
At present, I was waiting for disciplinary punishment due to unauthorized desertion.
“I’ll have to hope the disciplinary punishment ends as lightly as possible.”
[Do you think it will be light? I think they will give you the heaviest punishment possible.]
“At most, it’s only disobedience by an apprentice, not a full knight. It won’t be that severe.”
Unlike full-fledged holy knights, apprentice holy knights were not subject to military trials.
In the first place, apprentices did not yet belong to the holy knights.
“So I’ll probably receive the minimum level of disciplinary punishment.”
There was a reason I could return to the Order without much trouble, even though it seemed as if I was always causing problems.
Because this kind of background existed, I had managed to maintain my status as an apprentice holy knight despite all the uproars I had caused.
‘The Holy Knight Orders are fundamentally strict about principles and rules.’
That was why they had no intention of throwing me out of the Order when I was merely someone who caused many accidents.
If someone felt they were not that strict about principles and rules, I would tell them to raise their head and look at me.
When I said they were refusing to promote a talent like me to full knight simply because I could not put divine power into weapons, most people accepted it.
[Really? Then what punishment will you receive?]
“Uh. Probably cleaning the Order, at most?”
[Then what is the highest level of disciplinary punishment?]
“The most dreadful one is being sent to war or a dangerous mission.”
Battlefield deployment, the greatest punishment an apprentice could receive.
And not just an ordinary battlefield, but deployment together with the First Holy Knight Order.
‘In practice, it means they’re telling you to die.’
A mere apprentice sent to a battlefield, and one the First Holy Knight Order was going to, no less?
“Any ordinary apprentice would probably freeze without being able to do anything because of an evil god’s curse the moment they went.”
What happened to someone who could not move a single step on a battlefield?
They died immediately.
“It’s effectively a death sentence.”
But since the Holy Kingdom had no death penalty under its law, they had twisted it like that.
[......The Holy Kingdom is rather dreadful too.]
“In truth, that punishment might as well not exist. I’ve never seen anyone receive it in my life.”
Only someone like a spy who discovered and leaked the Holy Kingdom’s classified secrets might or might not receive that punishment.
It was a level nearly no different from execution.
[......But apostle. Is that not rather good?]
“What is?”
[According to what that child Harkan said before......]
“Is it really right to call him a child?”
He was still an old man over seventy.
[In any case, according to what Harkan said, if you catch just two or three apostles, is that not promotion to full knight?]
“That’s right, isn’t it?”
After all, if one had achievements themselves rather than passing an exam, one could become a full knight as an honorary holy knight.
“Basically, even becoming an apprentice isn’t easy, so if you catch an apostle, you become a full knight immediately.”
You truly had to pass all sorts of tests.
Among them, apprentices had especially many character tests.
‘And the character tests even detect lies.’
The Saintess could distinguish lies.
Perhaps as a drawback of that, she herself could not tell lies either.
‘Of course, becoming a full knight is even harder.’
People usually succeeded at putting divine power into a weapon, unlike me, but before that, they were usually blocked at the sparring match with a member of the Fifth Holy Knight Order.
Even though the Fifth Holy Knight Order had the weakest martial force.
[But apostle. If it is war, then many apostles of other evil gods will appear, will they not?]
“That’s right.”
Most of the higher-ups of the Claw Kingdom were apostles of the Evil God of Wisdom.
“The commanders are probably all apostles.”
[Would it not be enough for you to deal with all of them?]
“Uh.”
[Then would you not become a full knight immediately without any worries?]
Hey, you. Are you a genius?
***
“......Sir Harkan. Did I hear wrong?”
“Haha......”
Harkan looked at Slan with an awkward laugh.
“......Karix.”
Slan roughly ignored Harkan’s words and looked at me.
“Yes, Sir Slan.”
“That...... I heard wrong, didn’t I?”
What was this?
I thought he was going through menopause, but was it old age?
His hearing was not good either.
“No. You heard correctly.”
“......”
“I said, ‘I, apprentice holy knight Karix, wish to receive the highest level of disciplinary punishment.’”
“Haa......”
Why was he sighing like that?
“Let me ask just one thing. Why are you doing this?”
“What do you mean?”
“It is true that your skill is outstanding. To be honest, I covet it. I wanted to take you to the battlefield.”
“Right?”
Even Brother Slan admitted it like that.
“That is why I suggested several times that you observe the First Holy Knight Order.”
“Did you?”
“I did.”
“Really?”
I did not remember.
[At this point, what do you even remember?]
The fact that you are a wicked bitch, perhaps?
“What got into you all of a sudden?”
“Isn’t a person originally someone who changes this way and that?”
“That is exactly why it sounds strange coming from your mouth, when you have always been consistent!”
Tsk.
That much would not work?
“Sir Slan...... Still, it seems our Karix is trying to do things properly......”
Grandpa Harkan seemed to want to send me to the battlefield by any means possible.
‘What is this? Shouldn’t that be bad?’
This was practically a death-sentence-level punishment.
“Tsk. To be honest, if you want to go, I will not stop you.”
“Nor will I, Karix.”
“Why?”
For some reason, hearing him say it like that made me feel rather hurt.
“With your skill, dozens of evil god worshipers should be easy for you.”
In truth, nothing he said was wrong.
It had not been long since I easily subdued an evil god worshiper from the Claw Kingdom.
[And you even received my power, did you not?]
I did not want to admit it, but there was also the fact that I had become the apostle of that Evil God of Blood Flame.
‘If I used all my power...... could I beat Grandpa Harkan?’
Mm. It did not seem to be to that extent.
“In truth, I have wanted to send you to the battlefield since three years ago.”
“Pardon?”
Since that long ago?
“Even then, you could fight most members of the First Holy Knight Order to a draw...... and now, aside from Captain Slan and myself, you can defeat all of them. Of course, that is under the condition that you fight without putting divine power into a weapon.”
Was I already that strong back then?
“Then why didn’t you tell me to go to the battlefield?”
I was strong.
In truth, I knew that well too.
Yet aside from offers to observe the First Holy Knight Order, there had not really been any missions telling me to go to a battlefield.
‘That’s true.’
When I thought about it, I had not become a full knight, but I had done everything I wanted to do.
“Because you seemed not to want it.”
Sir Slan had respected my will.
“You rascal. What adult encourages a child to go out and fight in the first place?”
“You said you wanted to send me.”
“I only suggested it. I never encouraged you.”
Grandpa Harkan had protected me as an adult.
“......”
Their words were different, but the reason was the same.
It had all been for me.
[More people cherish my apostle than I expected.]
The evil god lounged in the air with her chin propped on one hand and stared at me.
“Ahem. In any case, I want to go to the battlefield too.”
“But what can we do? There is no battlefield to go to right now.”
Ah.
“Can I go raise hell in the Claw Kingdom?”
“......Do you think a so-called holy knight of the Holy Kingdom may launch the first surprise attack on another nation?”
“Doesn’t it not matter? The entire continent should know that we and Claw are enemies anyway.”
At my words, Slan slapped his forehead and spoke.
“If we freely start wars, we lose the justification by which we have interfered somewhat in other nations until now for the sake of ‘justice.’”
“Then let’s just stop interfering from now on.”
“If we do not interfere, how will we deal with the evil god worshipers in other nations?”
As for that.
“That is none of my concern.”
The higher-ups could handle it themselves.
[Where did you throw away your conscience?]
I did not throw it away. It was still alive and breathing properly in my chest.
“......In the first place, by principle, we cannot give you punishment of that degree.”
“Tch.”
“Instead, I will give you a mission.”
Hmm?
“What a surprise.”
Even Sir Slan had been trying to stop me from going no matter what.
“To be honest, I do not want to give you a mission either.”
“Why not?”
“Why do you think?!”
Harkan was glaring at me with burning eyes.
“This time, do not break anything.”
“......”
Just what was their image of me......?
[Hmm. This has become troublesome, has it not?]
Hey, damn it. How could you talk about it like it was someone else’s problem?
“Do I have to go?”
“If you truly hate it, you may clean the Order as originally planned. Choose for yourself.”
Rather than going out and suffering, it might be better to quickly finish cleaning and look for apostles......
[However, I recommend going.]
What nonsense was she saying?
[I feel divine power I have never felt before from the place that child just mentioned.]
“Hey, damn it! You should have said that first!”
“What did you say?”
Ah.
“Nothing. I was just talking to myself......”
“......Yes. I am sorry. I should have mentioned that first.”
Harkan was so visibly dispirited that even someone seeing him for the first time would have noticed.
“Sir Slan......”
“Yes. Karix is finally going through puberty......”
“No, what kind of puberty comes at twenty-two years old?!”
Wouldn’t there be a problem if it came at that age?
“......Then have you simply become rude?”
“I told you, I really was talking to myself!”
[It was not talking to yourself, was it? You were talking to me.]
Were you telling me to confess that I was talking to an evil god? Were you insane?
“Yes, well, let us leave it at that. If you do not want to go, then you can clean the Order......”
“No! I want to go! Please make sure to send me on that mission!”
At my words, Harkan reacted as though it was unexpected.
“I thought you would refuse because it was bothersome.”
“No! I absolutely want to go!”
But I did not understand.
“You said just now that you didn’t want to send me. Why are you sending me?”
“We lack manpower.”
“Ah.”
Was that only natural, since this vast Holy Kingdom was being protected solely by holy knights?
“Then when do I have to go?”
“Five......”
“In five days?”
“Four......”
?
“Three......”
“No, wait a moment!”
At least give me three hours!
“It cannot be helped. You are not going alone.”
“What does that even......!”
BANG—!
“Huh?”
“Sir Karix. Come with us.”
The two people who kicked the door open and entered each grabbed one of my arms.
“No, hey! Wait!”
They were seriously sending me like this?
“Grandpa Harkan!”
“Ahem......”
Huh?
“Why are you avoiding my eyes!!!”
“Come back safely.”
This damned......!
“This damn rotten Order!!!”