## Chapter 973 – The Sea

“Get out of my wayyyyyy!!!”
“Waaaaaaaah!!!”
“Krrrrrrrrrrrk!!!”

These religious zealots had become pure madmen. Even berserkers high on drugs would sober up upon encountering them, offer a polite bow, and then try to leave the scene with a dignified model walk.

“Oh, for fuck’s sake!!!”

I was feeling something similar.

The truth is, I couldn’t really say anything about the religious doctrines of the Brass Celestial Host, and I couldn’t stop those who were acting according to their principles in the first place. Even though my contribution to investigating and arresting these mermaid bastards was over 100%, wasn’t I the one who called these people from afar for help?

Then I had to respect them.

Even though they seemed abnormal, they weren’t doing it with bad intentions. Right, whether they exposed the schemes of the kids or not, driving the mermaids out of this land was ultimately the same thing.

I should just leave this matter entirely to the church.
As Ari had pointed out, it wasn’t something I could do.

There was no need to cling to something that couldn’t be done.

“Swoooooossshhhh!!”
“Step aside!! Step aside!! Step aside!!!”
“Meeeeeeh!! Meeeeeeehhhhh!! Meeeeeeehhhhh!!!”

I released the religious zealots who were bursting with fanatic murderous intent.

—Whoosh!

With that, the religious zealots shot out like arrows, drawing their respective weapons and slaughtering the bound mermaids. The same went for the mermaids in the other rooms. The religious zealots, having finished their work, went to the other rooms and annihilated the mermaids.

It all happened in an instant.

—Kyaaaaaaaaah!!
—Kuaaaaaaaaah!!

I went out into the hallway, pulled up a chair, and sat down to watch the scene.

“Verde, God!!!”
“Hooray!!! Hooray for the Brass Celestial Host!!!!!”
“Wooooooaaaaaaaah!!!”

The religious zealots who had slaughtered all the mermaids were genuinely rejoicing. They raised their arms and shouted with smiles on their faces. They even danced, reinterpreting modern tap dance as medieval tap dance, contorting their bodies inhumanly and laughing loudly.

“Hehehehe!!”
“Hooray, and hooray again!!!”
“Wooooooooh!!!”

Watching them, I couldn’t help but start laughing too.

Ah.

So that was it.

This pure smile.

Whatever it was, if they were genuinely happy and enjoying themselves, wasn’t that enough? That realization settled in my heart.

—The true value of Fusion Confucianism is harmony.

“So that’s what it is.”

In the end, people’s thoughts were bound to be different. There was no such thing as absolute correctness. Just because A was the answer for one person didn’t mean that everyone else would consider A to be the answer.

A single correct answer. A truth that everyone could agree on was just an illusion. To call myself a seeker of Fusion Confucianism and seriously think about something that didn’t exist was pathetic.

The only ones who talked about a truth that the whole world could agree on were devils.

So there was no need to force my way of thinking on others. Because that was the answer for them.

The act of forcing my answer was something that should only be done to enemies.

Were the paladins my enemies?
No.

So I would respect their answer.

“Guooooooooh!!!”
“Mooooooooh!!!”
“Uooooooooh!!!!!”

But what was with this animal farm, for fuck’s sake.
The kids’ screams were all like something else.

How could I not laugh at this?

Anyway, the religious zealots who were shouting there gave me that realization. As I became aware of it, it felt like a very intense power was rising from within. The power that rose spread throughout my body, making my body even stronger.

—There is no need to force my answer on allies.

The only ones who can be forced to accept my answer are enemies. Once I had that firmly in my head, I felt like I could use my power a little more correctly.

—Gooooooo.

Feeling cheerful, I just laughed.

And I watched the religious zealots who were holding a feast of joy.

“…You seem to have gained some enlightenment.”
“Lord Miles.”

Just then, Lord Miles, who had been sprinting down the hallway for a long time, making a goat-like scream like a rutting male goat who had been scammed out of his testicles, approached me with a kind expression as if his reason had returned.

“We acted rudely just now because we were too excited. I apologize. We made too much noise.”
“It’s okay. I’m the same way.”

It’s something I see every day.

“May I sit next to you?”
“Please do.”

I shifted my butt a little to make room for him.

“The Paladin’s claims were all understandable enough. In fact, it’s only natural. We already know that extracting information is more rational than killing indiscriminately. Most people would think so too.”
“Yes.”
“But as I explained earlier… that is the answer for us. Just as the Paladin has his own answer.”

Right.

“That’s right.”

His words, which seemed like those of a fanatic, were not wrong. Because it was his answer, with its own basis and teachings.

“That’s what I realized too. It was a good opportunity, Lord Miles.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”

—Swish.

I got up from my seat.

The paladins could do it that way.
I could do it my way.

That’s what this was all about.

If I hadn’t asked the paladins for help, I would have handled things my way. Calling them meant that I had to accept their answer.

Good.

From now on, I would judge the situation more coldly and call them if I thought that `the paladins’ way` was necessary, and if I judged that it was better to do it `my way`, I would solve it myself.

Because that was my way.

“Thank you for your hard work. I’ll leave the rest to you. Lord Miles will be able to eliminate the evil seeds embedded in the city.”
“I will have to try to do so. I will also have to crack down on the sailors and ferret out the other mermaids who have infiltrated.”
“Good luck.”

After saying goodbye to them, I went outside the prison.

Let’s go home.

* * *

And so, I finished my vacation that wasn’t really a vacation and started preparing to go home. Seriously. I didn’t even get to play properly in the sea, and I just kept working.

But I made a lot of money.

“Kkamdong, I’m so sad. Those bastards haven’t opened the beach even once since then.”
“What am I going to do with our Winia who’s so sad?”
“But when I first went into the sea, it was so good…”

My heart aches.

I stroked Winia’s back and comforted her.
If she gets any more depressed, her breasts will droop.

“I’m sad too, but it was fun enough!! I got a good rest in the first place!!”
“Thanks, Hilde.”

Hilde shouted energetically as if to cheer me up. Her heart was so warm that I stroked her head.

“Well, you caught the Sea God and made a lot of money. I was satisfied.”
“I had fun making a lot of money too. Is this also a kind of entertainment? With this much, I could make a big investment somewhere, right?”

It was enough if the two of them were happy.

“Don’t be too depressed. Can’t we come again next time?”

Risha was also trying to comfort me.

“Well… yeah. The opportunity isn’t just today.”

Certainly, there will be another time.

But if those kinds of external enemies continue to expand their power and activity, a world may come where this kind of vacation is impossible.

“Would a lake be better than the sea? There would be almost no mermaids or fishmen in a lake. The Sea God too.”

Ari offered that opinion.

“Hehehe, shall we try that?”
“But to be honest, it’s better to be on the bed.”
“No.”

You lewd flower.

Anyway, whatever the case, I feel too sorry that I only worked when I came all the way to play. I can’t stand it.

“Katt.”

Cloudy grabbed my face.

“Mama is happy with anything as long as she has Katt. Let’s not be too depressed?”

Ah.

“There are always opportunities. We can live a long time. Okay? Got it?”

That’s right.

“Oh, I’m not depressed. Then let’s go now.”

We promised to come on vacation somewhere else next time and left the sea that we had grown fond of.

Anyway, the work was mostly done. The mermaids were caught and slaughtered, and the paladins said they would take care of the rest. No worries. I can trust them because they showed their ruthlessness. The paladins will be the guardians of the coastal park. No. The coastal area.

And what. Didn’t we sweep up almost all the money?

* * *

Of course, the Saintess was greatly angered by the vacation period that was longer than planned. I calmed her down and explained what had happened there calmly.

“Hoo… Seriously. Paladin is too diligent. Well, if that happened, it couldn’t be helped.”

She nodded, convinced, and took out a cigarette.

“Why does Paladin have to work even when he goes to play?”
“That’s what I’m saying.”

Work follows me like a magnet.

“By the way, there was such a thing with the paladins… Certainly. That can be said to be the extremely common tendency of paladins. They are not wrong. That’s the principle of the Order.”
“I know everything.”

The Saintess doesn’t really like the behavior of those paladins.

“But that’s the way of the Church. To be honest, this has nothing to do with me anymore. Don’t I do things my way? So there’s no need to worry about it.”
“Hmm… If Paladin thinks so.”

She put out her cigarette and put her hand on my head.

“Anyway, good job, Paladin.”
“Yes.”
“I gave you time to take a sufficient rest, but you ended up solving a new problem. Mermaids who have transformed into humans were spreading heretical teachings in the port city? It’s a good thing that you identified them early. It’s a very good thing.”

I agree.

“What Paladin did was that. He confirmed the existence of the enemy who was lying dormant. This is a very big deal. It’s like finding out something that no one knew.”
“Listening to you, it seems like I’ve done something very big.”
“It’s a big deal.”

She leaned back in her chair and put her feet on the desk and continued.

“The complete expulsion and blocking of heresy is almost impossible. We just try to prevent it and mercilessly annihilate it when things break out.”
“Yes.”
“I will discuss this matter properly. It goes without saying that everyone will realize this because of this incident. That we must expand the Church’s influence even to the coastal areas.”

The Saintess who said that seemed to be in a pretty good mood.

“This must be promoted.”

Expansion of the Church’s influence.

“Are you planning to spread the Church throughout the entire Karga Kingdom?”
“This Saintess has always been thinking about that while living. In order to properly deal with the external enemies from other worlds who are invading, we must do so.”

That’s true. In fact, there are not many churches in the southern part of the kingdom, so they will be relatively vulnerable to such things.

“Ironically, now is the time to expand the Church’s influence, when external enemies are acting like crazy.”
“As expected, Paladin has a very good head.”

Kadya is taking advantage of that situation.
She’s a really scary woman.

“Therefore, this Saintess likes and loves Paladin very much. To the point of willingly dedicating my body… So, keep your time open. I want to whisper love for a long time.”
“Hehehe, if that’s the case.”

Well, since I returned, I had such a conversation with the Saintess and heard about the recent situation in the kingdom.

At this time when the Lord of Another World was killed and the sealed ancient demons were killed, the power of the Brass Celestial Host was higher than ever. Therefore, the Saintess’s voice has become very loud, and she is properly promoting various things.

“The Holy Exploration Team also returned to the capital once. I received a lot of data from them. Everything about the last incident.”
“Oh.”

The explanation continued.

“As a result of searching through the records of the entire Order, it seems that they are definitely demons. This proves that the beings of the Demon Realm are sealed somewhere in this land. Besides, all kinds of threats are emerging.”
“It’s a big deal. But there’s no problem if you’re here, Saintess, right?”
“Of course. Since I was able to raise more money from the royal family and nobles, I have more things I can do. I’m also thinking about a kind of military reform.”
“Military reform?”
“It’s about creating an army belonging to the Order. Well, it hasn’t been discussed yet. I’m telling you because you’re Paladin, but don’t tell anyone.”
“Yes.”

After finishing the story, the Saintess kissed me.

“Then, when I call you next time, you can go to work at this Saintess’s house.”
“I understand.”

Let’s go back.