## Chapter 846 – The Black Knight

“That’s what I found out when I went to solve this case.”
“…”

The Saintess, who had been listening to my report with a serious face, reached for a cigarette but dropped it instead. Her blue eyes slowly followed it to the floor. She bent down to pick up the cigarette, lit it, and took a deep drag.

ㅡPhew.

She exhaled the smoke.

“…A lich, you said.”

After a moment of silence, the Saintess, her eyes closed, rubbed her forehead and spoke heavily. Just from her voice, I could tell she was feeling extremely serious. I’d gone and dealt another blow to her mental state.

But this was a critical matter.

“Yes, a lich. And as I mentioned, the Black Knight was a Death Knight.”
“I’m so shocked I can’t even speak.”

The Saintess leaned back in her chair, put her bare feet on the desk, and tilted the chair back and forth as if she were sitting in a recliner.

“A Death Knight? And a lich on top of that. A Paladin returns, and instead of a warm welcome, I get this incredibly grim news. Can you imagine how this Saintess feels right now?”
“Like it’s the most serious thing in the world?”
“Beyond that. If it’s really a lich, it’s a very big problem.”

I thought so too.

“Of course, it’s a big problem. Do you have any related materials?”
“We only have fragmented records about liches. And those are just collections of testimonies, very old materials. It doesn’t seem like it would be very meaningful to dig through them now.”

It seemed the information held by the Order wasn’t much different from what was generally known. Actually, liches hadn’t been seen for hundreds of years, so it was unlikely they’d have detailed information about them.

Information only comes from experiencing and confronting things.

“…”

The Saintess seemed to be thinking, gently stroking her red lips with her fingertips and slowly rolling her eyes.

I had more to say.

“Saintess, I’m convinced that the heretics we’ve been fighting and the lich are part of the same faction. A while ago, there was a large-scale outbreak of undead near the border.”
“…That incident? I know it was dealt with as a sort of festival.”
“Yes, that’s it. Back then, I killed a Flesh Golem that seemed to be an undead experiment of the heretics. Also, there was a heretic nearby who seemed to be controlling the golem, so I killed him too.”

Claudie had caught him.
Me, Elise, and Copson had beaten the crap out of the Flesh Golem.

“Anyway, after killing the Flesh Golem, I searched the corpse to get loot, and a black orb came out from inside its guts.”
“An orb?”

That was the key.

“This time, I found a similar black orb inside the Death Knight’s brain.”
“Oh?”

ㅡThud.

I took out the black orb I had brought and placed it on the desk.

“This is proof that the heretics and the lich are the same faction. The orb that came out of the Flesh Golem controlled by the heretics is the same as the orb that came out of the Death Knight’s brain, who was likely created by the lich.”

The Saintess’s eyes immediately turned to it.

ㅡThump.

Straightening her posture, she reached out and grabbed the orb.

“I don’t… feel anything.”
“Because its power is exhausted. Right now, it’s just an empty orb.”
“The same orb… Certainly, something like this wouldn’t be so common that it’s just used anywhere. Listening to your explanation, it feels like it’s connected to past incidents.”
“Actually, it’s the same guys continuing to do it, so you could say it’s connected.”

The Saintess closed her eyes as if to think, fiddling with the orb she had picked up. It must be a serious matter for her too.

“That Death Knight.”
“Yes.”
“Was it really a Death Knight? Are you sure you didn’t mistake it for something else? Is there a possibility that it was just a madman possessed by heresy or demons?”

ㅡThwack.

The Saintess put down the orb and asked, staring into my eyes.

“I’m sure. It was definitely a Death Knight. He regained his senses for a moment and spoke… I wrote about it in the report, so let’s skip that for now. The guy’s insides were filled with undead-like things. It was completely different from a normal person. Most of all, his heart wasn’t beating, and he wasn’t breathing, but he was alive. And, crucially, he wielded the dark power used by the heretics.”

It was certain that he was a Death Knight. There was no other way to explain the resurrected knight.

“I see… Certainly. Liches have always been said to have such Death Knights as their subordinates.”
“Yes, I’ve heard that too. That’s why I’m saying this.”

I nodded, placed both hands on the Saintess’s desk, leaned in, and said.

“And the Death Knight himself told me about the lich. Just before he completely shut down, he said in a terrified voice, ‘The skull mage is stealing souls…!’ Something like that.”
“…”
“He also said that he was manufactured in some facility and escaped. Circumstantially, the lich created him. In fact, the Death Knight’s combat power was stronger than mine. To create such a being, he must be a necromancer who has reached at least the level of a master.”

I spoke as persuasively as possible, based on the facts I had carefully organized.

This time, my reasoning must be correct.

Of course, the direct evidence was the armor left by the Death Knight and that orb. And the things that came out of his insides, and the testimonies of me and my wives.

It was a bit lacking to prove the existence of an evil archmage like a lich. Moreover, the Death Knight said it in a state of delirium, so it was even less credible.

Still, I had a gut feeling.

The heretics I had killed so far were also evidence.

“Saintess, please believe me. This is the revelation of the lich’s existence. He is working with the heretics to manufacture Death Knights. And it is also certain that demons are involved.”
“…What.”

Speaking with my face still close, the Saintess, slightly avoiding my eyes, opened her mouth.

“Yes?”
“Ahem. What are you saying as if this Saintess doesn’t trust the Paladin? This Saintess trusts everything the Paladin says.”
“As expected!!! You are the Saintess!!!”

That’s what a Saintess should be!

“It is an extremely reasonable inference and conclusion. Even if this Saintess had been at the scene, she would have thought so too. Circumstantially, the skull mage mentioned by the Death Knight… As the Paladin said, the probability that it is a lich is quite high. There aren’t any other high-ranking necromancers who have become skeletons, after all.”
“That’s true.”
“All the information the Paladin has gathered so far proves that it is a lich. So, just a moment…”
“Yes.”
“Could you please move your face away? You’re, you’re too close.”
“Ah, yes.”

I immediately straightened my posture.

“Liches are very terrifying beings. The legend that liches created a kingdom of undead during the Idol War is famous. At this point, we don’t even know their proper combat power.”
“It’s terrible. The information is lacking.”
“We’ve been killing necromancers and everything else as soon as we catch them, so we can’t know. At times like this, I become dissatisfied with the Order’s policies.”

Well, they kill them as soon as they catch them, without even having time to interrogate them.

Still, Holy Knights need to be brainwashed with that kind of personality. They may not be able to interrogate, but at least they won’t be tempted by enemies or leak information. And an indomitable will is a basic passive skill.

“The Death Knight he created is Paladin-level… I have to think about how to deal with this… Actually, we still haven’t caught their tail. It’s going to be very difficult.”

The Saintess’s face was etched with deep worry as she said that.

“But what can I do? This Saintess is the Saintess. It’s something no one else can do if this Saintess doesn’t do it.”
“…”
“Leave this matter to this Saintess. Good work, Paladin. You’ve done a great job once again. This time, we’ll receive all the data from the local church and then review the rewards. Oh, and if it’s okay, I’d like you to submit the Death Knight’s armor as well.”

Her tone was full of fatigue and gloom.

It was already ominous these days, and now things were getting even more numerous.

“…Recently, liches and heretics have all been actively operating. They clearly have a purpose, and seeing as things have come to this point, there will be even more obvious events in the future. Then we’ll be able to catch their tail.”

I couldn’t help but worry.

“I’m sure of it. So don’t be too distressed. No matter what happens, the Holy Knights and I will solve everything.”
“…”

Saying that to give faith to the Saintess, who looked tired, the Saintess, who had been looking at my face for a moment, smiled faintly.

“…Heh, you really are trustworthy. The Paladin is a very good person to have by your side. It’s really amazing. When I hear what the Paladin says, I’m convinced that it will definitely happen.”
“That’s because I’m Kim Kat, the embodiment of faith and trust.”
“Indeed, it seems so.”

The Saintess nodded as if satisfied.

ㅡHng.

The Saintess, who nodded, shook her head once and stretched, shivering. Every time I saw this, I was conscious of her pure white armpits.

“Haa… Still, the stress is no joke. But when I talk to the Paladin… I feel better.”

The Saintess was a woman who needed intensive care due to stress from excessive work.

It would be nice if she could take a short vacation and rest well. She needed to relieve stress to be able to overcome this difficult work in the future.

Unlike before, demons, heretics, and all sorts of monsters were rampant these days. Could there be anyone more tired than the Saintess?

Originally, internal affairs were difficult in their own way.

“Ah, by the way.”
“Yes?”

The Saintess, who was leaning back in her chair with her hands behind her head, said that.

“Did you act with your wives this time too? If so, I’d like to hear their testimonies as well.”

The testimonies of my wives?

“Ah, well, I did go with them this time, but I ended up solving it alone by accident. Isn’t it in the report? That I was trapped in a barrier.”
“But you watched the Death Knight’s end together, didn’t you? The testimonies of those who watched the end would be useful, no matter how many there are.”

Testimonies.

Even though I saw everything, the more witnesses, the better.

“Because the data on these things is absolutely lacking right now. The things in the Order are all old and outdated. Liches and Death Knights haven’t been discovered, so they haven’t been updated.”

That was quite possible.

“So each and every one of those testimonies is precious.”
“That’s right. Then I’ll go and let them know.”
“Well, there’s no need to bother telling everyone. It’ll be enough to meet just one person… Your first wife is a half-elf, you said. Was she there too?”
“Yes. She was right next to me.”
“Then I’d like you to tell her.”

To Claudie?

Karin would be better than Claudie. Her explanation was that the undead in the desert were quite different in nature from the ones here. So Claudie knew almost nothing about the Death Knight either.

“I’d like to hear about the Death Knight, of course, but also about the faith of the Shurdic.”

Ah, so she was going to ask about that as well.
Then it wasn’t a difficult task.

“I understand. Then I’ll tell her.”
“Good.”

The Saintess nodded as if satisfied and smiled. With her saying I had worked hard, I came out of the Great Temple. First, I’d go and tell Claudie.

And next time I came, I’d submit the Death Knight’s armor as well.

“…”

I had a feeling that this was the prelude to a serious event. This winter was going to pass in such an uneasy atmosphere. Whatever it was, the conclusion was that I had to increase my strength.