Chapter 212: The Knights’ Nightly Activities (6)

In this world, [Mystic] Abilities seemed to be a symbol of faith. It was clear from the ever-so suspicious Galahad’s knight attitude after hearing Maximus presenting his evidence in the form of dodgy-at-best prophecy.

Such a thing was something that was difficult for Lee Han to understand.

Regardless, due to that prophecy, a team was suddenly formed. Even though Lee Han was quite reluctant to be a part of it, he had no choice but to relent after less than 10 minutes.

These guys are amazing.

He hated to admit it, but if this were a group project and they were his team members, he could genuinely say that this group was filled with unparalleled genius.

They were the kind of sincere group members that could only be seen once in a hundred years. In fact, such an expression still wasn’t enough to describe them.

“According to our Lionel’s investigations over the past several hundred years, the [Sacred Treasury] that stores the Holy Relics is a subspace created through Great Divine Technique that was performed by tens of thousands of priests.”

“You even managed to figure that out?”

“We have a lot of ancient books from the past. That information was gained through the hard work of our scholars.”

“Our side also knows that much, but do you know the exact location of that subspace and the key to enter it?”

“Yes, we know where it is, but we don’t know where the key is. Fortunately, we still have your ‘Third Eye’.”

“…Damn, you even know about that?”

“Heh. I only know about it because the shaman told me.”

“When I return to Galahad, I’ll raise the danger level for Lionel by two levels.”

“My, that’s scary!”

In this group, Lee Han didn’t have to do anything. Even without any instructions, they were already beating the drums and moving in the same tempo.

Damn, is this how a newbie who got carried by a pro feels like?

Even when they were avoiding the angry priests and nuns, finding the way, or guessing the location of the Holy Relics, Lee Han didn’t have to do anything but breathe. Though those two’s personalities were atrocious, he admitted how capable they were.

If it wasn’t due to the spear bastard’s anger issue and Maximus’ tendencies to cause trouble, he’d consider them as amazing talents. Unfortunately, their personalities diluted all the positive things about them.

“Why are you staring at me like that?”

“What are you on about?”

“You were giving me a strange look, weren’t you?”

“These are my own eyes. Why are you telling me what I should or shouldn’t do with it?”

“Hmph.”

“…”

…This bastard in particular is quick-witted.

That skill of his, the Third Eye, is something close to a Mystic. His perceptiveness is just borderline unfair.

I can’t even curse him inwardly.

Scary fuck.

“You’re having strange thoughts again. Why don’t you use your time to explore rather than think about useless things?”

“Explore?”

“You heard it, didn’t you? The Sacred Treasury where the Holy Relics are stored in is a subspace. It exists in the Great Hall, but at the same time, it doesn’t. We have to find where exactly it is.”

“But didn’t he say he knew where it was?”

“I did, but I only know the general area. It’s on this hill we’re currently located, but that’s all I know.”

“Well, that’s too general, isn’t it…?”

The Great Temple was a natural fortress carved in a mountain. Because of that, in addition to the temple buildings, there were also forests, hills, and cliffs here.

One could consider it as a temple built on top of a mountain, but in truth, the temple took up less than 40% of the area. The rest of it was an environment where plants and animals live.

Even after limiting their area of search to this hill, it still wasn’t guaranteed that they could find what they were looking for.

The place was too vast, they wouldn’t be able to finish scouring through it anytime soon.

“This is gonna take a while.”

“Sorry, I thought we’d find it right away if we got to the hill. I didn’t expect that the place would be so vast, hahaha.”

“…You calling that an excuse?”

At that moment, the two started bickering again.

Lee Han had a feeling since the first time he saw them, but those two really weren’t on good terms. In particular, Maximus seemed to be showing more fighting spirit than usual, making him think that perhaps, Galahad and Lionel were originally enemies.

“…Whatever, them being on bad terms isn’t something I should be concerned abo—Huh? I think I found it.”

“??”

“…What?”

Lee Han’s indifferent answer left the other two momentarily taken aback.

They wondered how he could find the entrance in this vast mountain so quickly.

However, Lee Han…

“Over there, that tree. I think that’s the entrance.”

“…?”

They just tilted their heads blankly at his confident answer, but Lee Han just shrugged at them.

“Let’s go and check.”

“…”

Soon after, Lake approached the direction where the young tree that Lee Han had pointed to was with light movements like a flying squirrel, and not even a minute later…

“…Just how? How did you know?”

Lake asked with a look of disbelief. The ‘entrance’ was really there. However, instead of answering him, Lee Han just threw a question back at him.

“Do you know what echolocation is?”

“??”

“If you don’t, forget it.”

Lee Han advised him to just move on, since he didn’t want to go through the hurdle of explaining such a thing to him.

“The important thing is that we’ve found it.”

Rather than nitpicking the process, we should pat ourselves in the back for a job well done.

For the longest time, Galahad had been devoting themselves to assimilate Mystics to their Combat Techniques and swordsmanship. They named such techniques ‘Mystic Technique’.

Someone who was talented enough to learn just one of those Mystic Techniques, would still be hailed as a genius. In Galahad’s history, no one had learned more than two Mystic Techniques.

That was how difficult it was.

However, in the current era, there was a knight who had not only learned over seven Mystic Techniques that were known to be difficult to learn even among the others, but also created his own that he dubbed the ‘Third Eye’. That man was none other than…

“Wow, your eyes turned really red…”

“If I have that, I’d be more comfortable roaming around at night.”

“…Shut up, you rascals.”

Lake de Duran. Galahad’s champion.

The Third Eye was a complex technique that he had completed by investing all five of the seven Mystic Techniques he had mastered. It was an eye that destroyed the opponent’s power, the flow of space, and even magic.

Since he was the only person who had mastered the Mystic Technique, there was a chance that it possessed more power than what was known. Moreover, he even went a step further and properly mastered how to use the eye.

Clank-!

“This thing’s mixed with an ancient Divine Technique, but we’re lucky. Undoing it shouldn’t be difficult.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s an artifact created by the family’s mage and the shaman. A useful tool for destroying Mystics.”

“…That looks like a normal lockpick though.”

“Ahem.”

“Oh, sorry.”

“…Keep your mouth shut. Don’t distract me.”

He quickly worked his way with the artifact that looked like a lockpick in his hand. It was a fantastic feast of techniques that only technicians with specialized knowledge of magic and Divine Technique could do.

A mysterious sight that made Lee Han think about something called [Dispel-Show].

He’s talented alright.

Although, to the eyes of an outsider who didn’t know anything, this sight was just confusing. It looked extraordinary, but people who didn’t know wouldn’t even know what he was doing.

One thing was clear, though: if Lake wasn’t here, they would never have been able to enter the place, even if they had found the entrance.

Is this why thieves are commonplace in adventurer parties?

You won’t get to infiltrate such a special place without one, after all.

As Lee Han watched the events unfolding steadily,

“Hmm, how ominous.”

“…Why are you saying that so suddenly?”

“Ah. Sorry, Friend. I have a habit of saying my thoughts out loud.”

“Stop calling me friend, I beg you.”

“Why can’t I call a friend ‘Friend’?”

“…Fuck.”

Lee Han turned his gaze to Maximus, who suddenly made an ominous remark.

What is he worrying about?

“Hmm, don’t you think things are going too smoothly?”

“…”

“Ah, you agree with me.”

“…It feels disgusting that we thought of the same thing, but yeah. If things are going too smoothly, that means there’s something wrong.”

Lee Han’s fingers were tingling.

It was a different kind of feeling than pain from an injury, it was more like a phantom pain.

Has there ever a single thing in my life that’s going on so smoothly?

They said that one should cross a stone bridge only after tapping so that one could be sure that it was strong enough, but that was just a saying. No one would really tap a stone bridge just to make sure it’s strong. After all, there was no case where a stone bridge suddenly collapsed while someone was crossing it.

However, that would definitely happen in Lee Han’s life. After all, he lived a life so dangerous that a stone bridge would suddenly collapse even after he made sure that it was strong. It made him develop the habit of tapping on the bridge, but even after that, the crisis would still loom around persistently.

Perhaps that was why.

After hearing Maximus’ words, an ominous feeling enveloped his heart.

There’s no way things would go this smoothly.

He believed that firmly.

With the conviction that he couldn’t possibly be this lucky, Lee Han tightly tied the two swords, three daggers, and the one-handed buckler shield he had looted from the Half-Demonic Human guys to his body.

As if those things were his lifeline.

“You’re talking nonsense.”

Still working, Lake gave them a disapproving look, as if telling them to stop jinxing them, but Lee Han kept a serious face.

“You should prepare yourself. Once we get there, something is bound to happen.”

“…”

“Ugh, just trust me already!”

“Hehe, Brother, you have the option of not going in, so why are you still going in?”

“…I told you not to call me friend, now you’re calling me brother?”

Maximus suddenly threw that question at Lee Han, curious as to why he kept trying to go in even though he knew it was dangerous. The latter was still irritated because he called him brother, but he still answered properly.

“Even if I avoid it now, I’ll still have to deal with it sooner or later anyway, so there’s no point.”

“…”

“…Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Hehehe, Brother, it’s really a shame that you weren’t born a Northerner! Choosing to fight instead of running away just for the convenience? Aah, that’s an attitude befits of a warrior! A choice that’s more fitting for a Northerner than anyone else…!”

“…”

He’s praising me, right? Why don’t I feel happy at all, then?

I feel like I’m being insulted instead…

It was an incredibly uncomfortable experience, and Lee Han tried to open his mouth to say something.

However…

Whoosh-!

…He had to swallow his words back as blazing light suddenly exploded in front of him.

“Go in quickly, I can only hold it for 5 seconds.”

“…Turn the blinkers off, you bastard.”

Lee Han lashed out and flew straight away.

Without any hesitation…

And then…

“Lee Han, you said you were going to retire?”

…His regret came just as quick.

“…”

“You brat, think about it again. There’s nothing good about retiring.”

“…Dokgu hyung?”

“Hyung? This brat, I know you aren’t far from being discharged, but there’s no ‘hyung’ in the military!”

“Are you, really Dokgo Hyung? Dokgu Gupae?”

“…I told you not to call me by my full name!”

“…Wow, you’re real.”

Lee Han blinked and looked around. Underneath him wasn’t even a bed, but a yellow floor where soldiers had to sleep huddled together. Nearby, there was a rusty and diseased water tank. Even the water jugs were old supplies from the Korean War.

And also…

This guy… He still has hair at this age, huh…?

Lee Han blinked blankly as he watched his old superior officer, who was unfortunate enough to be Dokgu Gupae by his father, who could barely even boil ramen, let alone wield a sword.

He had prepared himself to face a crisis, but…

Surely, I don’t have to live as a non-commissioned officer again, right?

Whoosh-!

The knight, who was confident that he wouldn’t be scared in front of hundreds of enemies, or even tens of thousands of monsters, shivered in horror.

Please no. I’d rather you make me spend years as a soldier instead of a non-commissioned officer…