Ch.490Empty Castle Gate

After washing our bodies with warm water, we boarded the carriage again and headed toward Arvil.

Though we had gained two more passengers, we had prepared a large carriage from the beginning, so there was no particular discomfort.

Lena sat on my lap, leaning her back against me while humming a tune, while Nigel, having learned that Ceylon was my new guard knight, showed signs of disappointment and muttered about needing to train harder.

Millia engaged in a discussion with Agnes about thirty ways to slaughter Werebeasts, and Hush sat in the corner fiddling with a dagger.

Leonore, sitting by the window, twirled her intricately braided hair while reporting the situation in the Holy City to Lacy and me.

It was quite shocking news.

“The Holy Solar Alliance and the Church of Volberg are clashing?”

“To be precise, they’re about to clash. While you were active in Arad, the troops that the Church of Ceres dispatched to Nashiriya were completely wiped out in a surprise attack by the Church of Volberg. They’re sending troops to punish them…? Well, they should be marching by now.”

“I thought the Church of Ceres was taking too long to arrive… so that’s what happened…”

Lacy sighed, pressing her forehead.

Given how long it takes for news from the Holy City to reach Nashiriya, this was likely the first she’d heard of it.

I slightly opened the window and put a cigarette in my mouth.

The Church of Ceres, which had been picking fights at every turn, and the Church of Volberg, which was not only suspicious but also hostile toward me.

Objectively speaking, I should welcome them clashing and wearing each other down.

The problem was…

“I can hear the Holy State’s forces being depleted from here. Really, do the people in this neighborhood have no hobbies other than waging civil war? Every single one of them is just dying to kill each other.”

If the Church of Volberg wins, the situation could become quite serious, and even if the Church of Ceres emerges victorious, they would still suffer considerable damage.

This wasn’t an invasion war where victory would bring territory, people, and wealth pouring in. This was a civil war where they were literally cutting into their own flesh—giving flesh to take bone.

Even if they annihilated the Church of Volberg, all the Church of Ceres would gain was a city that was originally part of the Holy State’s territory and a mountain of corpses.

Conversely, if the Church of Volberg won, the civil war would only grow larger.

“Sigh…”

The smoke I exhaled with a sigh flowed out through the window.

Lena, nestled in my arms, leaned her back more deeply against me as if to encourage me.

“…Lord Median. If you’re thinking of going to stop them, I’d advise against it. It would be meaningless.”

“I know. I’m just… feeling frustrated.”

I chuckled and tapped cigarette ash through the window crack.

As Lacy said, there was nothing I could do if I went there. The nature of this situation was completely different from what happened in Arad.

The Church of Ceres, which had falsely accused, and the Church of Volberg, which had retaliated excessively. Neither side could be called right.

Besides, the Church of Volberg would choose to fight me to extinction rather than follow my words.

Why? Because they believe they’ll go to heaven if they die fighting a powerful enemy. To the Heavenly Palace that Knut mentioned.

The Volberg people were already hostile to me because of Hersella’s past, and now I had sent all their allies from the Church of Grimnir to their god’s side… If I showed up, they would certainly go berserk and charge at me.

So, the only thing I could do if I went was to help the Church of Ceres annihilate the Church of Volberg.

That would be the best way to minimize power loss.

And that… wasn’t something worth doing while leaving behind Ka’har and cultists who were hiding just a stone’s throw away.

Right. What I needed to do now was head to Arvil and completely eradicate Valkers, Eljur, and all the other cultists.

Nothing was more important than that.

What was the reason for wanting to preserve the Holy State’s forces? Wasn’t it to deal with Ka’har and monsters?

Protecting church forces while neglecting Ka’har would be nothing but a backwards, futile effort.

In the end, I decided not to intervene in the war between the Churches of Volberg and Ceres.

I had returned the Church of Astraea’s forces intact, so they should be able to handle things well enough without me.

—-

We traveled for two more days like that.

When we were about two hours away from Arvil’s walls, we stopped the carriage briefly to fill our stomachs with an early lunch and prepare ourselves. We checked weapons and armor, and loosened muscles stiffened from the long journey.

Not knowing what state Arvil was in, we needed to complete all preparations before entering.

“I never thought we’d be welcoming the new year in the Holy State. This has turned into quite a long trip.”

Nigel murmured, cutting his hair that had grown quite long, as if suddenly realizing it.

Indeed, since we left Nashiriya at the end of the year, the new year had now arrived.

Having welcomed it inside a carriage, it didn’t particularly feel real.

“I know. I didn’t expect resolving the Holy State’s problems would take this long.”

I replied with a smile, entrusting my hair to Hush’s hands.

The fighting itself wouldn’t take long, but the time consumed by matters outside of combat was considerable.

At this rate, by the time we finish everything and return to the Empire, late winter will almost be over.

“At least Ka’har quiets down a bit in winter.”

“Indeed. If it were autumn now, we would have had to return to Wall of Berengaria immediately.”

Nigel nodded.

From what I heard from Hersella, Ka’har’s raids stop abruptly when winter comes.

When the weather gets cold and snow begins to fall, it becomes difficult for them to utilize their advantage in mobility.

So when winter arrives, they cease military actions and hole up in their dwellings, consuming the supplies they’ve plundered throughout autumn and the grain harvested by their slaves.

It was truly fortunate. If not for that, Orhan’s invasion would have been several times faster.

—-

Arvil, which we finally reached, was a bustling city whose vitality could be felt even beyond the walls.

As if it had nothing to do with heretics. It was filled with the noise of seemingly peaceful everyday life.

On the surface, at least.

“…There’s no one guarding the gate.”

Ceylon hardened his expression as he glared at Arvil’s wide-open gates.

The other companions also didn’t hide their suspicious glances.

In any city in the world, guards are stationed at the gates to check visitors’ identities and inspect for dangerous items.

Even small villages post guards to be wary of travelers, let alone a major city like this.

The absence of guards meant…

“…It feels like they’re openly inviting us in. What do you think?”

“It could be a trap. If it were me, I’d choose a different entry point.”

“With both Lady Lacy and Sir Ceylon here, we should be able to handle most traps… but it’s better to be cautious.”

Nigel and Leonore showed strong vigilance.

Like true knights, they advised choosing another path rather than walking into an enemy trap.

“If they’ve set traps at the gates… the entire city might already be occupied by heretics. Though we haven’t received such information.”

“Let’s prepare a holy barrier. So we can block any attacks from heretics immediately.”

Lacy and Agnes seemed to be thinking of charging in head-on.

It was the typical confidence of religious people—an attitude that they could handle any heretical trap without issue.

“I smell kobolds…”

“With that height, even if there’s a trap, we could retreat by jumping over the walls.”

Millia was busy smelling kobolds that weren’t there, while Demian, true to his mastery of leaping, was already thinking about jumping.

“Um, Haschal…? You haven’t forgotten how we suffered at the Grimnir Cathedral, have you? This place looks almost as ominous…!”

Hush, who was like a living danger alarm, already looked full of worry.

“You’re saying it’s less dangerous than back then. That’s a relief.”

“That’s not what I meant to reassure you…!?”

Do you know what color you get when you mix black with white?

The answer was right there in Hush’s complexion.

I patted Hush’s shoulder, who couldn’t even turn pale and had to settle for a gray face, and smiled.

“Both you and I survived that place just fine, so how could we possibly fall in a place that’s not even as bad?”

“Aaahh…”

Hush looked even more dejected, but she never had a choice to begin with.

—-

After a brief discussion, we ultimately chose to charge straight in.

Whether the gate was left unguarded because of us, or to target others who came unknowingly, we couldn’t tell. So entering boldly to confirm the enemy’s reaction would be the quickest way to resolve the situation.

If it wasn’t a trap meant for us… this could actually be a good opportunity.

A perfect chance to either slaughter those who attack us thinking we’re ordinary visitors, or to capture and interrogate them.

And so, our carriage proudly passed through the gates and entered the city.

And we immediately realized.

There was indeed a trap.

It definitely wasn’t a trap meant for us, and it wasn’t particularly dangerous to us either…

But even so, we couldn’t help but be shocked.

The moment we entered the city, I dropped my cigarette in shock at the scene that unfolded before us.