Episode 210
After passing through the forest and going up along the river, the cave in Paladinâs memory came out.
A small cave in front of the river.
In front of him, an old man with white hair, who seemed to be one with the secluded scenery, was casting a fishing rod on the riverside.
Naruto was made of shabby but sturdy ropes.
The old man, wearing a straw hat, stared at the fishing pole by the river.
Even if you know that a mysterious man is approaching you.
He only slightly raised his dark eyebrows, which had turned pure white. There was no sign of restraint.
âAre you here to fish too?â
Seruk Fondant.
The old manâs voice rang in my ears with a ripple that spread gently.
âIâm tall, so I sit down because I canât catch fish if I stand.â
After thinking about it for a while, Carlyas sat down and grabbed a fishing rod as recommended.
âHave you ever been fishing?â
âI tried.â
Calliusâ hand stopped as he tried to get the worm out of the old manâs bait box.
There was no bait in the bait box.
âI donât have any bait.â
âWhat do you want to catch?â
âhmm.â
There was no way I wanted to grab it.
Because he didnât come to fish.
But for some reason, I couldnât answer easily. It seemed that the old manâs question was not simply about catching fish.
âFishing is not always easy. Be sure to catch the guy you want to catch and use the bait he likes to catch you. Is that all? They are also very affected by the weather. Also, no matter how delicious something is, you only bite the bait when you are hungry.â
Even though fishing looks easy, the old man muttered that itâs not that easy.
âIf you put on anything roughly, any bastard will get caught. So, is it fishing? Since ancient times, fishing is the aesthetics of careful preparation and waiting.â
ââŠ.â
At the words that sounded like he was scooping, Callius fiddled with the hook on the fishing line.
âWhy are you not talking?â
In response to the old manâs question, Callius threw it into the river without even putting a bait in it.
Fondant.
The pleasant sound of water was heard on the lake shore.
âThere is nothing I want to grab yet.â
âis it? Thereâs nothing bad about that either. Originally, life is half sleep and half wandering, so wonât a goal come naturally as time passes?â
Callius nodded at the old manâs words as if it was no big deal.
There was a strange power in the old manâs tone.
He spoke effortlessly, but strangely, it seemed that Callius was being healed.
Like being comforted that itâs okay.
âItâs peaceful.â
The sound of splashing water.
Birds chirping in the nearby forest.
The sounds of life, the fluttering sounds of the occasional bouncing fish, benefit your ears.
It is a nice and quiet place.
Callius closed his eyes for a moment and enjoyed Narutoâs solitude.
âAre you a pilgrim?â
âyes.â
âWhich god?â
âFirst of all, it is a sword.â
âHehe, first of all, itâs a sword. I guess your faith isnât that deep.â
I didnât deny it.
Although Balterus is said to be a god, he has never truly had faith.
It couldnât have been.
Besides, wasnât he in a position where he couldnât be called a pure sword pilgrim now? Thinking about it makes me laugh out loud.
âNothing bad. Religion is not necessarily a good thing.â
âIs that so.â
âIsnât ignorant belief bound to do many things sometimes? They wield it arbitrarily, claiming that stealing and hurting others is also in the name of God.â
The old manâs eyes were towards the river.
However, those eyes were wet with melancholy, as if recalling a distant past rather than a river.
âA pilgrim of the sword⊠A rare nobleman in this town came to visit. Is Carpe still fighting against the Empire?â
âyes. They should probably be blocking the invasion of the principality by now.â
âis it? Then it will soon perish.â
âMaybe.â
This time, the old man turned his head away as if he was quite surprised by his calm attitude.
âYou donât know religious beliefs, but you donât have patriotism?â
âdoesnât exist. I almost died there dozens of times⊠I have no attachment to the country.â
There is no attachment to Carpe itself.
Itâs enough to ruin it now.
In the meantime, the reason I tried to protect Carpe was for the sake of personal prosperity.
Now that I have enough strength to protect my body, it doesnât matter.
âBut there seems to be something else.â
ââŠthere are things I want to protect.â
However, Carpe is another place that cannot be left unattended.
Because it is a land where many people who have a relationship are risking their lives to protect it.
furthermore.
âIt is also a place to return to.â
âThatâs right. Patriotism is originally like that. Even if youâre tired of jingling, itâs a bad feeling when others try to break through.â
Callius pondered at the old manâs attitude when he spoke as if he fully understood.
He came here for two reasons.
First, he had to wander intentionally because of those who were targeting him, and second, because Narutoâs old man was the purpose of this poem.
His name is Demetri.
He was no ordinary old man.
âWhat did the old man come out to catch?â
âIâm here to catch the bad guy.â
The old man swallowed his saliva as he looked up at the clear sky.
âBut he never bites whether itâs the weather or his belly button.â
The old man picked up his fishing pole and looked at the needle.
There was nothing on the hook on which the bait should be hung. However, as if he didnât care, he threw the needle into the river again. Fondant.
âI have two fishing rods in my hand, but there is no bait, and my eyes are looking at the riverside, but my heart is elsewhere, so there is no way I can catch it.â
After memorizing a verse as if reciting it, the old man shook his head as if he had no choice.
âThis is why bait is so important. If the bait is halfway, the odd one will be caught.â
You wonât know if itâs a blessing or a curse until you try it.
âThe gray renegade. Why did you come to me?â
The old manâs prayer was always the same.
Shichiu was leisurely like a river flowing like the wind.
But his eyes were sharp, like a beast hiding in the reeds, hiding himself and aiming for prey.
âI have a request.â
Callius pulled out his armor from his bosom.
It was a main armor made of a paladin who used a hook.
âThey told me to give it to you.â
ââŠItâs a main glove.â
Demetri, who was handed the armor, touched it bitterly, hooked it on a fishing hook, and threw it into the river.
with a plop!
His mouth opened with a sound.
âDerrin must have died at your hands.â
It was to say the name of the paladin who used the hook.
âDerrinâs idiot. I warned you that you would die if you went, but you managed to find the place to die.â
âHe missed you before he died. Former Pope Demetrius.â
Dim, the god of hooks.
Demetrius, the former pope there.
A person who rises to the ranks of adults and gradually disappears and chooses to live in seclusion.
He was the true identity of an old man fishing.
I didnât recognize him at first, but when I saw him fishing and the cave, I couldnât help but know.
Adults have a choice.
Will you create your own sanctuary?
whether to make a holy object.
Or go to God.
Retiring to contemplate choices has long been a common feature of adults.
âThe oracle descends even on an old and useless body. He said to purify the gray renegade.â
And Demetrius, one of the few saints on the continent.
âItâs annoying.â
He was quite skeptical of what God was.
It was then.
pop! boom!!
Something gushed out of the river near Naruto.
Several people dressed in black and wrapped in hoods came out, hiding near the reeds by the waterâs edge.
âProtect the Pope!â
They charged at Colius with hooks with only slightly curved ends in their hands.
âDonât do anything stupid. these guys.â
âThe Pope?!â
The paladins, who stood tall, responded with glaring death-like glares at Colius.
âBut he is the one God said.â
âEven if the oracle is like that, itâs an opponent that you canât do anything about even if you attack them in droves. Itâs a dogâs death, stop it.â
âBut he killed Darrin!â
âDerrin tried to kill him too. I couldnât kill it, so I just died. It is natural.â
Then he got up from his seat and patted Paladin on the shoulder.
âIt suits you well. Itâs what Derin left behind, so cherish it.â
ââŠAll right.â
I did something by hanging the armor on a fishing hook, and it seemed that I was trying to tell it to the guy in the water.
Leaving Paladin behind, Demitri tilted her head as she looked at the sword in Coliusâ hand.
âWho is this sword you got from killing?â
âThis sword was obtained after defeating a dragon that lost its children.â
âA dragon that has lost a child⊠Interesting.â
A sword obtained by killing the Fire Dragon, Erbiwe.
It was Erbiwe.
Devouring Sword â Loas is broken.
Now that the heartbreak is completely shattered.
Except for the Iron Lord and the Light Dragon Sword, there were no other useful swords, so it was a sword that he had been using frequently lately.
His unique ability is frozen fire.
A sword that emits cold blue fire.
âIt must be a lie, Pope. The word of a renegade cannot be trusted.â
âWhy would he lie? They said Lumpad was weird, so it seems like a dragon appeared.â
âPlease. Lumpard is a country that is the main axis of the National Federation. If the dragon had appeared, we would have immediately asked for help from our allies.â frŃewebηovel.cŃłm
Demetri shook her head.
âThe place where the sky opened was Lumpad. And he has a main glove. Heâs an old man, so heâs deaf, but heâs not busy enough to turn his back on rumors.â
Perhaps the armor he is wearing is the symbol of Lumpard.
âIsnât it Lumpardâs Holy Grail?â
There was no need to hide.
âLumpardâs holy grail was a symbol of benevolence and bravery. The first armor that made Lumpard what he is today! But now that itâs lost, Lumpard must be finished. I can guess why the gods were angry.â
âWhy do you think so?â
âIsnât that natural? They are busy competing with each other, but they probably donât want to witness the birth of another god.â
birth of god. He was hinting that now Colius would become the new god.
Something so absurd that even the person himself would think it was nonsense.
But why? There was a pretty big echo in the word of Godâs birth.
âWould you like to go to my place for a while?â
âHis Holiness!â
âGo away. What are these guys with a bright future doing to protect an old man who is about to leave?â
âBut GodâŠâ
âEnough. Even God knows what kind of guy this old man is. So, there is nothing to say now.â
A person who does not properly serve God despite rising to the position of pope.
Nonetheless, those who have reached adulthood.
At Demetriâs words, the paladins bit their lips and retreated in unison.
âWould you like to go?â
A small cave in front of Naruto.
His abode was talking about that place.
Callius pondered for a moment and followed him.
âYou want Dimâs hook? Thereâs nothing I canât give you. Itâs not that great.â
As if it had dyed Lumpadâs Holy Grail.
He knew at once that the Relic of the Hook was meant to do the same.
I felt it from a while ago, but whether an adult is an adult, his insight was great.
âhoweverâŠ. Have you decided who to catch?â
Heâs a needle hanging on a fishing line. No, I grabbed the small hook and grinned.
âHow far do you know?â
âIsnât there a saying that neither spring nor summer is mine? It is convenient to know that it is the result of searching for the truth and the questions I had while doing the right thing in my short life.â
As soon as I entered the cave, I glanced at the paladin following me and asked.
Even if they were told to step back, they would keep their distance and follow them.
âWhy are you helping me?â
âSympathy. Old people are naturally weak when they see young people wandering around. Besides, water is clearer and cleaner when it is freshly poured than when it is stagnant.â
And thereâs something I want to ask of you.
âWhat is it?â
âI want to make a holy relic.â
ââŠwhy is my help there?â
Creating a holy relic requires a price.
Like Vera who made Veraâs rings.
It is to make a sacred relic, just as a saint burns the last part of himself to make a jugu.
A sacred act performed in a place where no one interferes or enlists people of the same denomination as Bondi.
But to do so requires the help of Colius and no one else?
âI am convinced after seeing the renegade who made the god angry. I must make a holy relic.â
âWhich holy relic?â
âA holy relic that no one in this world has ever made. An arrogant holy object that tries to embrace everything in the world.â
If you put a sword, itâs a scabbard. If you put a spear, itâs a spear case.
A house to be used as a container for all weapons.
âThatâs this old manâs last wish.â