Paladin of the Dead God

Isaac examined the decorative tiles with a grim expression.

“Could these be the symbols of the cultists?”

He deliberately refrained from mentioning the Nameless Chaos. He knew all too well what Isolde’s reaction would be if he brought up the Nameless Chaos, and he had no desire to hear it.

Originally, the term “cultist” referred to worshippers of ancient religions. However, since the Nameless Chaos was also considered an officially extinct faith, the term “cultist” included followers of the Chaos as well.

Contrary to Isaac’s expectations, Isolde shook her head.

“We can’t be sure yet. It might be an angel from the Salt Council, or perhaps it’s a misunderstanding due to some distortion. Therefore, we need to investigate further.”

There was likely only one reason she showed Isaac this first. Remembering the tentacle he had shown Isolde, Isaac sighed deeply.

He considered leaving Isolde behind, suspecting the Nameless Chaos might be involved. However, Isolde was not someone who needed his supervision, and her expertise as an inquisitor was essential for analyzing theological knowledge like the teachings of the Owl.

“Alright. Let’s head down and take a closer look.”

The two of them stepped back into the columbarium. Isolde had already scouted the path, so their descent was much quicker. They soon reached the collapsed hole Isolde had discovered. The lower sections appeared neglected, causing the floor to give way.

Isaac looked into the gaping hole and, igniting the flame of the Luadin Key, jumped in. The flame burned fiercely, illuminating the surroundings as if devouring the darkness. Isolde quickly followed him down.

“…Wow.”

A sizable space appeared before them. It was a catacomb built in a different architectural style than the columbarium or burial sites above ground. Despite its rough construction, it was grand and vast. The walls were lined with shelves, stacked densely with something like books.

Isolde groaned softly as she surveyed the space. Countless white bones were neatly arranged. Examining the skulls, Isolde spoke.

“These are purified remains, cleansed after burial. Even if a deranged necromancer came here, they wouldn’t be able to do much with these bones.”

The presence of these bones indicated the site was at least 300 years old.

However, evidence of recent human activity was apparent on the floor, including collapsed areas. Noticing the differing amounts of dust on the floor, Isolde frowned.

“It seems there’s another secret passage besides the one we entered.”

“A drainage system leading to the old city, perhaps?”

“Yes. No one really knows how complex the underground of Ultenheim is…”

Traces of the Nameless Chaos faith that Isolde had been concerned about were unexpectedly easy to find. Decorative bricks, patterns, and even coffins were blatantly adorned with tentacles or strange fractal designs.

Isaac recalled the world shown to him by Amundalas, the angel of the Salt Council, right before the outbreak of the White Plague.

At that time, the Nameless Chaos was a widely revered faith, embraced by both the upper and lower echelons of society. Although it was a clandestine faith, a third of the population knew the name of the god, to the extent that public worship might not have been opposed.

‘It wouldn’t be surprising if Claire and those MZ priests had unearthed teachings buried in this cemetery.’

Isaac hadn’t delved deeply into Claire’s mind, but even a brief conversation revealed they were not deranged cultists. Their minds were filled with youthful curiosity, scholarly zeal, and a desire for recognition.

It was likely they gathered in this underground cemetery to discover knowledge they had not been taught. When they were discovered, rumors of them being cultists likely spread.

However, they might not have been unrelated to the “serial killings in the cemetery.”

‘Those strange monks appearing in the old city and the potential monsters in Ultenheim… maybe Claire and his delinquent friends learned forbidden knowledge.’

Perhaps, like discovering the teachings of the Owl, they also uncovered knowledge of the Nameless Chaos. Although the knowledge about the Nameless Chaos was obsessively censored by the Nine Faiths, they probably didn’t check every coffin in every grave.

***

Isaac and Isolde searched the cemetery thoroughly, but found neither cultists nor monsters. They found places where people had gathered or performed rituals, but without the perpetrators, it was meaningless.

Isolde stood up after examining the ritual circle drawn on the floor.

“Is this an unfamiliar spell?”

“No… it’s so poorly drawn that I can’t tell what it is. It looks like they tried to imitate various rituals with fragmented knowledge, combining the rules of Olkan, Chaos, and the Salt Council.”

Isaac had a different impression than Isolde.

Although the ritual was crude and disorganized, there were signs that it had partially succeeded.

[The Nameless Chaos is watching you.]

The Nameless Chaos was clearly observing the situation. Isaac could sense from the scratches and energy around that something had emerged from this ritual. Even if the summoning of a specific entity had failed, fragments of Urvansus’ energy might have appeared.

Isaac shrugged as he looked down at the floor.

“We have no choice. Let’s return for now and come back tomorrow.”

“Hmm, wouldn’t it be better to stay hidden and wait?”

“The air is stale, and we don’t know when they’ll return. We aren’t prepared to stay here long. We need at least water and food.”

Isolde nodded, as his words made sense.

It was already late at night. The area around the ritual circle appeared long-abandoned, making it unreasonable to wait indefinitely. Isaac, however, planned to leave a rat infected with the Parasite from Beyond to monitor the area.

Before leaving, Isaac needed to address something with Isolde. He couldn’t leave her defenseless when there was a chance something had been summoned by the ritual.

“Isolde, I have a favor to ask, and I hope you won’t be upset.”

Isolde looked at him with a puzzled expression.

“I’ll accept any favor you ask, but… what kind of favor might make me angry?”

“You’re unable to use miracles right now, aren’t you?”

Though she had armed herself with useful relics, the miracles from her days as an inquisitor were no longer granted to her. Therefore, Isaac decided to take a bit of a risk.

“I might be able to… grant you some miracles.”

He could secretly plant a ‘safety device.’

In fact, there was already a kind of safety device in place. However, it would be more certain if he obtained Isolde’s consent to grant her miracles directly.

Isolde remained silent for a moment, taken aback by the idea of Isaac, rather than another priest, granting her miracles. However, her gaze inevitably shifted to Isaac’s left hand.

“Does this have something to do with that tentacle?”

“I’ve tamed and controlled the tentacle. I assure you, it will never harm you.”

This could potentially impede Isolde’s path, but Isaac reasoned that as an inquisitor from the Codex of Light who had already consumed the heart of the Red Chalice angel, a small blessing from the Nameless Chaos wouldn’t be a significant blemish.

Isolde hesitated for a moment before nodding.

“I believe in the Codex of Light, Isaac.”

She cautiously extended her right hand and interlocked fingers with Isaac’s left hand.

“But I also believe in you.”

“…Thank you.”

***

“Ugh, ah!”

Claire, who had been sleeping in the dormitory of the theological university at Ultenheim Cathedral, awoke with a start.

At almost the same time, the other priests sleeping in the same room also woke up. Seeing the priests awake in the middle of the night, drenched in sweat, Claire realized that it hadn’t just been a simple dream.

They shared a silent understanding, wrapped in fear, curiosity, and guilt, and carefully stepped out into the hallway.

“You all had the same dream, right?”

“…Yeah. That person was calling us.”

“What do we do?”

As uneasy whispers circulated, Claire’s eyes gleamed with fervor behind his glasses. Unlike the frightened students, he was consumed by an academic zeal.

“Of course, we have to go back! This is our chance to find out why we failed and to correct it!”

“But…”

“Chaos is a crack in the orderly world established by the Codex of Light. We need to look into that crack, explore it, and learn how to seal it! That’s our research and our mission!”

Despite Claire’s passionate appeal, the students exchanged nervous glances.

“The Holy Grail Knight is currently in and out of the cathedral. If we get caught, he’ll cut our throats.”

“No, it might actually be because Sir Isaac visited. We’ve already confirmed that he shares our intentions. Sir Isaac would say that we need to learn how to tame and control the Nameless Chaos as well.”

The students shook their heads at Claire’s absurd remark.

“No matter how great Sir Isaac is, that’s a bit…”

“Yeah. Maybe we should confess our sins to the Holy Grail Knight and ask for his forgiveness. He might tell us how to make amends.”

Claire frowned at his friend’s suggestion.

“We are not sheep who seek help; we are brothers who will one day stand shoulder to shoulder with Sir Isaac. He’s our age but is already slaying angels and reprimanding swordmasters. Are you going to continue living so pathetically?”

The students fell silent at Claire’s words. Adjusting his glasses, Claire whispered covertly.

“Prepare yourselves. We’re going back to the underground cemetery. This time, we’ll do it right.”

***

Watching the fog roll over Ultenheim at night, Isaac found himself deep in thought.

‘Could those young priests be cultists involved with the Nameless Chaos?’

Though they were about his age, they were much younger if he included his past life. He had been pleased to find young priests who understood him well, but the thought that they might be cultists capable of summoning monsters made him feel conflicted.

Isaac felt an odd irony in his emotions.

‘…Would people like Gebel or Isolde think similarly if they knew my true identity?’

The individuals themselves didn’t seem bad. However, associating them with the Nameless Chaos made Isaac view them through a biased lens. This was unavoidable.

Everything related to the Nameless Chaos involved insane monsters and cultists who dreamt of destruction, so anyone entangled with it was likely similar.

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Thinking about Claire and his gang, Isaac lay down. He decided it would be best to release a parasite from beyond in the cemetery to monitor the area and confront Claire directly for questioning.

Since they seemed to respect him, he hoped they would listen to reason. If not, he would have to resort to force.

At that moment, Isaac felt a strange sensation of his awareness fading. It was as if he were either falling asleep or about to experience vertigo.

In this muddled state, Isaac opened his eyes to find himself in a dim, shadowy place.

“Did it… work?”

He heard a familiar humming voice. His senses were blurred; sight, touch, hearing, and smell were all faint. It felt like all his senses had dulled to an extreme degree. In his hazy vision, he saw a group of priests in dark gray robes.

“O, forgotten god of names, we have summoned you! Obey our commands!”

_____________

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