Published: July 3, 2025
The exploration party, having parted ways with the centaurs, returned to Onge, the northernmost town of the Ariēpurōgu Northern Country, after three days.
Along the way, they did not encounter any red bears this time.
Perhaps the bears avoided them.
However, they were attacked by harpies once again.
They protected themselves with an ice wall once more.
The carriage they had entrusted was with the Onge Church.
Ryo had encased it in ice to prevent any mischief, and around the carriage, knight-like men were gathered.
"They're here!"
One of the men shouted, and knightly figures began to gather from all around.
In the distance, trembling, the priests and deacons of the Onge Church were watching them.
They seemed to be bowing their heads repeatedly, as if apologizing.
The knight-like men appeared to be quite intimidating...
A figure who seemed to be their leader stepped forward and introduced himself.
"We are the Templar Knight Order. I am André de Bashrel, captain of the third division."
(The Templar Knight Order!)
A water attribute mage felt a surge of joy in his heart upon hearing the name.
The Templar Knight Order... a knightly order of the same name existed in Earth's history.
The Earth’s Templar Knights were established in 1119 to protect pilgrims heading to Jerusalem after the First Crusade.
Later, the land and assets donated to the Templar Knights became immense.
From the 12th to the 13th centuries, they engaged in international finance in Europe, wielding such power that not only royal families but even the Holy See opened accounts with them.
However, in the end, they were subjected to the Inquisition by King Philip IV of France, who sought to seize the vast wealth of the order, leading to the order's destruction.
Ryo recalled this history in his mind.
Perhaps that was why he was smiling just a little.
Nils, who was watching from the side, muttered, "Ryo is up to something again..."
Eto stepped forward to respond.
"What business do you gentlemen from the Templar Knight Order have?"
His tone was polite, but there was power in his eyes and words.
Normally a gentle and quiet priest, Eto's three years of adventurer life and his prowess as a B-rank adventurer were not to be underestimated.
This was a manifestation of his strength as someone who served God, and the members of the Templar Knight Order, who were both knights and sacred officers, could certainly feel it.
However, Captain André de Bashrel declared, "We would like you to hand over the information you have regarding the demon king."
"I refuse," Eto replied without hesitation.
"Wha...?"
He clearly hadn’t expected such a straightforward rejection.
Captain André was left speechless.
The other members, pressured by Eto's priestly aura, regained their senses and began to show signs of anger.
"Do you know what will happen if you anger us?"
Saying this, Captain André took a step forward...
"Ugh!"
He slipped and fell.
In shock, no one spoke.
However, Zeek instantly understood what had happened... or rather, who had done what.
He glanced at Ryo beside him.
Almost simultaneously, Nils, Eto, and Amon also understood.
But they didn't look at Ryo.
They merely sighed softly.
"This..."
While attempting to stand, André said...
"Whoa!"
He slipped and fell again.
"You scoundrel..."
Seeing this, twenty members of his party rushed out, and they all slipped and fell.
The sight was quite spectacular...
And just as they all tried to get up, they slipped and fell once more...
The nightmare had begun for them.
Zeek kept glancing at Ryo, who wore his usual expression, behaving as he always did.
No one could possibly guess he was generating magic...
It was that seamless.
At the moment each of the twenty-one members attempted to stand up, Ryo generated an ice path solely beneath the foot they were putting their weight on.
Their timing for trying to stand was, of course, staggered, and Ryo captured the real-time situation of all of them, generating magic instantaneously.
This was an astonishingly intricate magical control.
It was creating an astonishingly ridiculous situation...