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In the sandy field, Lucia was performing a German suplex on Camila, while a similar situation unfolded thousands of kilometers away in the desert.

Literally, Akande had just fallen from the sky.

It wasn’t enough to cause immediate death, but the impact was substantial enough that he lost consciousness. Naturally, diving headfirst into the sandy ground would yield such a result.

To save the pancake-shaped lump buried in the sand, I mustered all my strength and managed to pull him up. After a professional (unlicensed) evaluation, it was concluded that aside from slight concussion symptoms, he was fine.

“The healing is done; he’ll regain consciousness soon.”

“Really?”

“Do you doubt me?”

Veronica shot me a glance full of discontent.

“It was just a simple concussion. I could treat it with my eyes closed.”

“Are you bragging?”

“Of course!”

Anyway, her confidence was sky-high. What a ridiculous person.

I shook my head in disbelief.

—

Episode 17 – The Tree that Drinks Blood

Having successfully treated Akande, Veronica began discussing the plan in earnest.

“I’ll gather the colleagues. It’s good to have a specific goal, but do we have a way to find them?”

“Of course.”

The knight clanged his gauntlets and breastplate together.

“I know a few places where the colleagues might be hiding. If we get closer, we can sense each other.”

“Oh, that sounds good. But can’t we just call them out instead?”

“Well, there are ways to directly call them….”

His words trailed off awkwardly. He looked somewhat dissatisfied.

After a moment of silence, the knight began to caress the chin of his helmet.

“The angels that can be called that way aren’t my colleagues.”

“If they’re not your colleagues, then what are they?”

“Perhaps neighbors. Or acquaintances, at least.”

That meant they weren’t particularly close.

So there were connections even among angels. I glanced at Veronica, half expecting her to know something, but she seemed just as bewildered.

Anyway.

It seemed like it would take quite a while to find the colleagues. Seeking out the ‘angels’ mentioned by the knight wouldn’t be a problem resolved overnight. We’d need to establish a base and operate for at least a week.

“Alright. Let’s settle on a hideout first.”

“Sure. Let’s secure accommodations and then think.”

Just as I was about to suggest finding a good location, both Veronica and I spoke simultaneously.

“Veronica, please search for a hideout.”

“Get us a place to stay, Colonel.”

“…?”

“…?”

—

With the two of them and something that might be either human or angel leading us to the hideout, I thought deeply.

As the old saying goes, if you get tangled up with a woman, you’ll be ruined.

How true that was.

“Now I’ve gone and handed over a house deed to a woman….”

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

Slap! Someone’s foot smacked against my right cheek. It was Veronica, sprawled out on the sofa.

“What the hell are you doing?”

“I was just messing around to snap you out of your daze since you were talking nonsense. Yes.”

I was flabbergasted by Veronica’s audacity and couldn’t string together a response for a moment.

I pointed at her, lying on the sofa, and finally managed to speak.

“No, what do you mean by talking nonsense? This is my house, you know?”

“It’s a hideout, right? Then isn’t it property of the company?”

“I got it transferred from an acquaintance!”

The house I led the two of them and an ambiguous being to was a safe house managed by me on the Mauritania Continent. Specifically, it was a house within the territory of the Hassan Warlord.

It was a place Victor, an orc information agent I’d been connected with since our days with the Empire, had procured for us.

We had used this place as a base when making connections with the Hassan Warlord, and it was also where the shaman and Camila had stayed during their showdown when the warlord was betrayed. Given its nature as a safe house, it had been left unattended since our operation concluded.

I thought there would no longer be a need for it, so I was planning to return it to the owner, but when I met Victor, he insisted that “a house is only a good house when someone is living in it,” and told me to take it.

“You have a good acquaintance. I wonder if I have a friend who would gift me a whole house like that?”

Veronica began to express envy at the news I had gotten a house. It was somewhat absurd to see a saint behaving like that. Aren’t they supposed to be indifferent to material desires?

Isn’t there something in Buddhism that emphasizes breaking free from the shackles of craving and gaining the ability to transcend the three realms or something…?

“Isn’t a good house like this a mere trifle for someone as wealthy as you?”

“Isn’t it true that someone else’s cake always looks bigger?”

Ah, so that’s why she had directly approached the guy my younger sister had the hots for.

Of course, this was something I couldn’t say aloud. After all, it would be talking to a wall. Just reading scriptures to a deaf audience.

As soon as we arrived at the hideout, Veronica began to lounge around as if it were her own home. I decided to lay the unconscious Akande on the bed until he regained consciousness.

I looked around the quiet living room and hallway before finally asking.

“Where is the knight?”

“I saw him go into that room earlier.”

She pointed to an empty room. What was he doing in there?

I momentarily considered peeking inside, but soon abandoned the thought.

“What am I supposed to do now? Can we really find some angel or whatever?”

“I have no idea.”

Veronica shrugged her shoulders nonchalantly.

“Unless we know what plans the Knight has, we can’t jump to conclusions. I might have some insight regarding demons, but as for angels, I’ve only seen them in literature.”

According to her, ‘angels’ are transcendental and mysterious beings that frequently appear in religious texts.

They are the heavenly beings that serve and accompany deities. Angels often appear not only in scripture but also in paintings and sculptures, making them inseparably linked to religion and regarded as companions in religious life.

“For instance, the choir and the arrangement of worship in the cult were originally inspired by the formation of angels. Since angels are frequently mentioned in statues, sacred art, and scripture, there was a time when the worship and faith towards angels reached its peak. At that time, the Holy See was even in a frenzy trying to determine whether it was idolatry or not.”

In that sense, angels and demons stood on opposite sides of the spectrum.

One side was beloved to the extent that they had to worry about idolatry while the other was met with immediate extermination orders at first sight.

“Now that I hear it, it makes sense.”

I nodded willingly.

While demons require urgent tracking down, from a religious standpoint, there’s no real reason to chase angels. Theologically, they are close agents of God and are, for the time being, considered benevolent beings.

In reality, even if I wanted to chase them, I wouldn’t know how to go about it.

Though demons had wreaked havoc countless times, I had never heard rumors of an angel appearing on Earth. Veronica shared this sentiment.

“If a demon crawled up from hell, we could have easily found it with relics alone. With the navigation charts, split dragon scales, Lucernatus, Plaga, and the remains of Saint Balthazar… well, it’s likely they’d have been too well-cooked to borrow. Anyway.”

At the moment, we concluded that we had no way of finding the allies the Knight spoke of.

Even though the Knight boasted he had a method, there was no guarantee that the method would actually work. It was also troublesome to just sit back and do nothing.

Therefore, considering the failure of the initial approach, I began to devise a new plan, but clear results were not forthcoming.

“Hmm….”

I sat shoulder-to-shoulder with Veronica, pondering.

What should I do?

The most certain method would be to seek the help of an expert.

Religion.

“I think we should at least ask the people from the cult for help.”

I wasn’t sure if they were angels or not, but if the Knight truly was an angel, we needed to borrow the power of religion here.

Veronica rested her chin on her hand with an indifferent look and muttered.

“Even I, a Saint, find it hard to grasp the situation, so do you think our old folks would be of any help?”

“Not those old folks. What about the High Priest?”

“Aha!”

The High Priest. Looking back, he was someone who understood the Knight better than anyone else.

Given that the High Priest had strongly advised treating the Knight respectfully, and judging by the Knight’s demeanor, which suggested he had some sort of connection with him, it seemed like those two were quite familiar with each other.

Perhaps the High Priest might know where the Knight’s allies were located.

“Or Akande might know too. The tribe has preserved the Cedar Coffin for generations.”

“There could be other coffins belonging to the tribe?”

“Perhaps…?”

It was too early to judge, but there was a possibility that there were more angels in Akande’s tribe.

Of course, this was all speculative. If I was right, great; if wrong, so be it.

“That’s a good speculation. Let’s first see how the Knight goes about finding his allies and then decide. Agreed?”

“……”

“Colonel?”

…Sigh.

“By the way, isn’t something strange?”

“What do you find strange?”

“About the Knight.”

If he really is an angel.

“Why hasn’t he mentioned from the start that he is an angel?”

*

The pendulum clock signaled that the promised time was approaching.

A bird sat in the yard.

With its body slightly arched backward, powerful muscles coiled with tension, and its sharp beak tightly shut, its fierce eyes gazed toward the sky.

And then, with a sudden takeoff.

The majestic creature resembling a hawk soared from the vast ground. Having flown thousands of miles at the request of its master, Aquila returned once again to its master’s side.

After releasing the powerful bird into the sky, Veronica opened an envelope and gathered its contents to hand to the Knight.

As the helmet slightly nodded up and down, a rustling sound echoed through the gauntlets.

In the Knight’s hand were two pieces of paper.

“I found them.”

A letter from the High Priest and a map.

“My allies lie in their resting place.”

 

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