How to Live as a Knight After the Ending

Chapter 197: Looking at the sky (2)

The meeting with Juseppe was not long, but Osian could feel many things.

Especially the last words Juseppe had uttered.

Although he had dismissed it as mere delusion of an old man, the momentary look in his eyes was completely different.

‘Is he aware of something?’

Juseppe had already left by the time Osian could ask what that was. Instead of forgetting these words, he decided not to dwell on them too much.

‘Rather than worrying about such things, taking care of the immediate tasks is the priority.’

Just then, Martinez arrived, bringing the rescued children.

The children froze in place when they saw Hermut and the Reflection Unit.

Martinez tried to guide them, saying it was okay, but the children remained immovable.

No matter how deep their trust in Martinez was, the fear of the clergy instilled in the children was even greater.

Martinez knew this and made a complex expression that was hard to put into words.

If it were his usual self, he would have been at a loss for how to comfort such children.

All he knew how to do was burn enemies with holy fire but now he knows that his power does not exist only to punish someone.

“Children.”

When Martinez spoke in a soft voice, the frightened children’s gazes all focused on one place.

“Look at this.”

Martinez raised his divine power on his palm.

The soft golden light changed like flames, and then transformed again.

It was a small, cute-looking doll.

Martinez had created dolls equal in number to the children using holy fire and divine alchemy.

The dolls walked awkwardly according to Martinez’s intention and approached each child, extending their hands.

The children looked at the dolls with curiosity and held their hands.

“Wow.”

“It’s warm.”

Smiles appeared on the faces of the children who had been overworked.

The dolls naturally guided the children, and the children moved along with that guidance.

The dolls led the children to the Reflection Unit. Some children shivered as they got closer to the Reflection Unit, but when the doll turned with a cute face and nodded that it was okay, they soon found courage.

The doll that arrived in front of the Reflection Unit held out its other hand, not holding a child’s hand, to the paladins.

The paladins of the Reflection Unit silently extended their hands and held the doll.

The doll’s form melted in mid-air and became golden threads connecting the children and the paladins.

Only then did the children realize that these were not bad people, and they joined the paladins.

Hermut, who had been watching the scene from beginning to end, said to Martinez, who had approached him:

“You’ve rescued all the children.”

“Not all.”

To Martinez’s response, Hermut nodded with a bitter smile.

“That’s right. Not all. That is clearly our, no, my negligence. I should have paid more attention to internal matters.”

“It is not Hermut’s fault. Isn’t this something that happened in Tirna, where the Petra Order’s influence hardly reaches?”

Tirna was the city least influenced by the Petra Order.

No one, whether Hermut or someone else, could have prevented such terrible acts in the 29th district.

“I will take responsibility and send the children back to where they originally were.”

“Yes. But there are children with nowhere to go.”

Most of the kidnapped children were orphans with no definite place to live.

They were struggling day by day, barely surviving.

Because of this, they were easy targets and were only used.

“Do not worry. I will think about all of that.”

Of course, the success of this would depend on how Juseppe, the Holy Lord, would make the deal.

But Hermut was not worried at all.

Because he believed that once the Holy Lord intervened, this matter would be resolved well.

“If you do it that way, I could not ask for more.”

In response to Martinez’s words, Hermut stared at him and spoke.

“Ash-covered nobleman.”

“Yes?”

“In the past, I knew a kid.”

Hermut used honorific language towards Martinez.

He drew a line there.

You are not the 13th Purification Judge Martinez, but an ash-covered person.

However this was not an act of denying Martinez.

Rather, they were words spoken to match what Martinez wanted.

“An incredibly shining gemstone. A gemstone so bright that it was almost blinding, and I could hardly imagine how brilliantly it would transform if properly polished.”

“…….”

Martinez listened to Hermut’s words in silence because he knew very well who Hermut was talking about.

“But that child was, how should I say, was somewhat stubborn, in vulgar terms, frustrating. That wasn’t bad as a clergy member, but anything excessive is ultimately not good. So I am often worried. Of course, I didn’t show it, and I would often tease that child playfully, calling him a young man or a brat.”

“…Is that so.”

“One day, I heard that the child had failed his mission. I was surprised, but at the same time, I understood. There are no people who only succeed in the world. Even I went through many trials and errors to get here, and I still make mistakes, so how could that child be any different?”

And that child was sent, not quite in exile, but to the city of exiles upon the Holy Lord’s orders.

He was sent to the city of criminals that the child had so hated.

“The Holy Lord said it was for that child’s sake, but I was inwardly worried. I was unsure if that child, who would rather break than bend, could survive in this harsh city.”

Hermut looked at the ash-covered Martinez and gave a faint smile.

“It seems I’ve been seeing that child wrong all along.”

“……!”

Martinez was deeply moved by those words.

There were times when he thought Hermut, who used to tease him, might hate him.

Having been taught by him, it had been a wound and trauma for Martinez.

But realizing it was all out of concern, he was overwhelmed with emotion.

However he shouldn’t react.

He was now not Martinez, but just an ash-covered nobody.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Confession.”

“Aren’t you the one who usually hears confessions?”

“That’s right. But sometimes, the person who listens also wants to tell someone something.”

“I’m not sure if I can hear this. I’m just a person covered in ash.”

“That’s exactly why.”

As Martinez looked puzzled, Hermut looked at him directly and answered carefully.

“Because you are nothing, because you are covered in ash, that’s why I’m telling you. Because you carry what others don’t care about, because you understand its preciousness.”

Hermut turned his back.

“So, I thought you would remember and not forget even my complaint.”

*

Martinez came out with Colleo but the drizzling rain had already stopped.

The 29th district will be well organized by Hermut and the Reflection Unit.

“The rain has stopped.”

“Indeed.”

Osian also looked up at the sky and responded.

Osian, who had released his sacred armor, had returned to his original form.

“I felt for the first time today how clean the air in this city is.”

The air in Tirna after the rain was clear.

Until then, even breathing had felt painful. The air was full of dirt and murkiness, as if it symbolized the city’s own sins.

But that wasn’t it.

It was the same here. There was nothing different from the outside.

Martinez recalled the events of the day.

A black magician who helped find people, vagrants, mafia and clergy who kidnapped and exploited children.

What felt different was simply that he had been looking from a different perspective.

He had tried to see only the evaluated appearance, not its essence.

He realized that was wrong. Tirna, called the city of criminals, was not fundamentally different from other countries when viewed broadly.

“Let’s go back.”

At Osian’s words, Martinez nodded. Colleo did the same.

“But it seems there are no trains because it’s late.”

“Indeed.”

To get from the 29th district to the 41st district, they had to use transportation.

If they tried to walk, it would take a very long time.

“You don’t need to worry. I have a method.”

Osian spoke this way while raising starlight on his palm.

At the beautiful starlight softly illuminating the dark street, Colleo involuntarily let out an exclamation.

Martinez’s divine power was beautiful, but Osian’s starlight also gave a different feeling.

When Osian scattered the starlight on the floor, the light dispersed as if constellations were spreading in the air.

The scattered powder gradually took the form of a massive warhorse.

At the sudden appearance of the large horse, Colleo and Martinez opened their eyes wide in surprise.

“We’ll ride this guy.”

The warhorse looked at Martinez and Colleo, then gave Osian a slightly disgruntled glance.

Having been summoned after a long time, it was dissatisfied with having to carry two children instead of going into battle.

“Don’t complain. Next time, I’ll call you to a glorious battlefield where you’ll be exhausted.”

-Pureung.

The horse bowed its head quietly as if to say, ‘Then I have no choice.’

Osian first sat Colleo on the saddle and then naturally sat behind him.

“A horse…”

Unlike the somewhat excited Colleo, Martinez looked uneasy.

In a world like this, riding a horse was not an experience easily had, especially in the middle of a city, not in a vast prairie or pasture.

But Martinez, while looking hesitant, sat behind Osian.

“Let’s go.”

As soon as Osian’s words ended, the starlight warhorse started running.

The clattering hooves pushed away the humid night air with a resounding sound.

Some people opened their windows to check what the noise was, but all they could see was the faint light trail left by the warhorse.

The horse was that fast. Soon, the horse running on the road leaped high and reached the rooftop of a building.

Then it ran lightly across the rooftops.

It was truly a miraculous experience, running on the rooftops without breaking them.

The horse had controlled its strength and despite the speed, the surroundings flew by quickly.

But they didn’t feel afraid. Instead, they felt unprecedented refreshment.

It was the first time they realized how pleasant riding a horse could be.

Then Osian spoke.

“Can you see?”

Even while running like the wind, his voice was clear.

“Yes?”

“The sky.”

Instead of the uncomprehending Martinez, Colleo responded.

“Oh, the clouds are clearing.”

After the rain stopped, the dark clouds that had filled the sky were pushed away by the wind, revealing what lay beyond.

Martinez and Colleo were captivated the moment they gazed at the landscape beyond the clouds.

It was a beautiful night sky.

The stars, which they had never seen due to Tirna’s pollution, were densely scattered, embroidering brilliance like a beautiful jewelry box.

“Didn’t you just say you realized the city’s air was clean?”

“That’s right, yes.”

“It could only be the same.”

Colleo stared at Osian, who was gazing at the sky, as if entranced.

“Ultimately, it’s the same world under the sky.”

“Ah.”

At that moment, Martinez felt a fresh shock.

He had been vaguely comparing himself with Osian, wondering what was different about him.

Certainly, he had his own firm beliefs and used a pure and powerful force.

But fundamentally, something was different. Martinez hadn’t known this and felt a frustrating inability to scratch an itch.

However at this moment, he realized.

‘He lives while looking at the sky.’

What about himself?

He had always bowed his head to offer prayers, believing that was right.

Saying the world was dirty and needed purification, he had lived looking only below, not above.

But that wasn’t it.

Those truly living in this world should look at the sky, not the ground.

Martinez let out a small laugh.

“Yes, that’s right. It’s a truly beautiful sky.”

The not-yet-matured boy seemed to have grown up a little that day.