Chapter 274: The Price of an Alliance

  The sound of the Minotaur High Priest's vow reverberated and rolled through the great hall, lingering for a long time, as if it possessed great majesty and persuasiveness. But when the High Priest returned to the table, Lancelot still shook his head faintly and said, "High Priest Tima, I'm afraid this one vow alone is not enough."

  The High Priest's brow, which had no eyebrows, furrowed, and the two flames in his eye sockets flared up for a moment.

  Before Tima could speak, the dozen or so Minotaur guards at the palace entrance had already let out roars of anger, and charged directly in, wielding double-headed great axes that were as tall as a person. From the moment these seven entered the hall, their eyes and attention had not left them. Like the Temple Knights, the fire and killing intent in their hearts was not small either. And such doubt was not only disrespectful to the Horned Demon, but also an insult to the High Priest.

  "You still don't believe the vow made before the shrine? What in the world do you plucked monkeys want? Do you think we are like you, accustomed to breaking promises and showing no reverence to gods?" Loralei screamed. Harpies did not believe in the Minotaur's Horned Demon cult, but respect for one's own deity was common to all sub-humans.

  The charging Minotaurs were already swinging their great axes. Their nearly three-meter-tall massive bodies and the momentum of their huge double-headed axes were more ferocious and powerful than a charging rhinoceros. But the seven Temple Knights at the table remained seated, not moving at all.

  "That's enough." The voice of High Priest Tima boomed like a giant drum. The Minotaur warriors stopped in their tracks immediately.

  The High Priest looked at the Temple Knights. They indeed had not moved, but he also knew that if just one person had made a move, someone would probably have died.

  "Very well. I understand." High Priest Tima waved a hand at two Minotaur guards. "Go and bring my two sons here."

  A short while later, two young, half-grown Minotaurs were brought into the hall. Their height, similar to that of humans, showed that these two young Minotaurs were far from adulthood. Even someone not very clear on the facial features of Minotaurs could tell that this should be a pair of twin brothers.

  "These are my two sons, my only two sons. I can send them to Celeste as a guarantee for our alliance's vow." The High Priest's voice became deeper and heavier, "How about it, Paladin Lancelot, do you think such a guarantee should be sufficient now?"

  Lancelot's gaze swept over the two young Minotaurs. He seemed to hesitate for a moment, but finally nodded.

  "Good, this will suffice."

  After quickly writing a letter, Lancelot gave the letter to the Pope and two Celeste teleportation scrolls to the two young Minotaurs. Then, High Priest Tima's two sons used the teleportation scrolls and disappeared from the hall.

  Watching the figures of his two sons dissipate, High Priest Tima's facial expression twitched. He let out a heavy snort and then slumped into the stone chair. Low growls came from the throats of the Minotaurs guarding the palace entrance, and their heavy breathing indicated that the emotions of these monsters were extremely unstable.

  The expressions of the Temple Knights, on the other hand, were much more relaxed. Undoubtedly, this signified that they now had the upper hand. But only Lancelot still appeared without joy or sorrow. Looking at the seemingly extremely depressed Minotaur High Priest, he said, "In that case. We can also feel your sincerity. Then, please, High Priest Tima, tell us about your plan and the details."

  Nighon did have a teleportation magic array, and Aunt El surprisingly also had a scroll, but Ethan could not use it. He was not going to the underground world as a guest, and even alone, he had no confidence in finding his destination in a completely unfamiliar environment. It was said that the teleportation magic array was located in the very center of Minotaur territory, where the countless interlocking labyrinths could starve any foreign creature to death.

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  Moreover, Aimee and Talise were traveling with him, so Ethan even less could use this method. Fortunately, he was mentally prepared for a long journey, and among the scrolls looted from the Tower of Fangs, several were high-level Elemental Summoning scrolls.

  Traveling from the Kalendor Basin to Nighon required traversing the continent from east to west. Even using such an extravagantly fast mode of travel as an Air Elemental Summoning, it would still take twenty or thirty days to arrive. Fortunately, there were enough scrolls.

  At first, Ethan wanted Aimee to go to Erathia and wait, but Aimee insisted on following him and Talise, and Aunt El actually agreed for her to go along.

  "This trip of yours to Nighon will either be completely without obstacles, or it will be no small trouble. Sandro has already let it go, and I will not wade into these muddy waters anymore. What I've done is already my limit. I can't help you any further. Having a water mage among you should be of some help."

  Ethan shook his head: "Since the trouble is no small matter, I even less can let Aimee go."

  Aimee also said firmly: "Right now, I only have Sister Talise and you as my family. No matter how great the trouble, I must go with you."

  In the end, due to Aimee's persistence, Ethan had no choice but to let her board the air elemental with him. Since she had started treating Talise as an older sister, the young girl had finally recovered some of her liveliness and energy.

  Talise's complexion, however, had been quite poor ever since she heard Aunt El's words.

  "You must want to know what happened, right? Fine, I'll tell you. Twenty years ago, Magnus, who was a Cardinal then, hired me to kill Dracon, and then he took the opportunity to seize the Pope's throne. Of course, I kept this half of the scepter as a souvenir. I have to admit he was the most difficult person I've ever killed, and also the last person I killed before taking on that contract." Aunt El looked at the female knight who seemed determined not to rest until she knew the truth, and said faintly.

  "Impossible. How could someone like you possibly kill His Majesty Dracon? He was... but he was...?" Talise was so shocked by this truth that it took her a long while to utter such a sentence.

  "Killing and fighting face-to-face are two different matters. Didn't that boy Lancelot teach you this principle? Besides, I wasn't the only one who acted. That fellow Magnus certainly helped a lot. In the end, that fellow seemed to have a thought of kicking me when I was down to silence me. Fortunately, it was only a thought, otherwise today's Pope would be Ronis or Eschol."

  "That boy Lancelot probably knows something about it. Although he wasn't part of the Church back then, you can go back and ask him. But I advise you not to ask Magnus himself. Otherwise, I guarantee he will silence you, and might even bring your head to me as a sign of his apology and sincerity."

  "This is impossible. How could such a matter... how could such a person become Pope? How could he sit in such a high position?"

  "Don't be frightened by such a small thing. I don't need to tell you more of the complex reasons behind it. You should know that the more sublime and glorious a place seems, the more complex it is. The more complex it is, the dirtier it is. You'll understand when you see and experience more. Celeste and the Pope's position are so high; of course, one cannot climb up with ordinary means. Compared to The Radiant Citadel, the restroom in a low-class inn seems cleaner." Aunt El paused, then added with a smile, patching up Talise's spirit, which was on the verge of collapse, and also making Ethan's and her own heads spin a little, "But your teacher, that boy Lancelot, is truly a good person. A good person like that, and a good man, is rare. It's a pity he was just a young brat back then, with a bit of a temper, so he missed his chance to pursue me, hehe."

  If it were the Talise of the past, these words would have been enough to make her draw her sword and charge forward without regard for anything. But now, she could at least endure these things that sounded unbelievable and were completely different from what she knew, because everything that had happened during this time had made her realize that these things might indeed be true.

  But knowing is knowing, and enduring is enduring. To accept and identify with them from the heart was definitely not something that could be achieved in a short time.

  The summoned air elemental could at most maintain its form for half a day. Every day, after flying until dusk, Ethan and the other two would land to make camp, eat the wild game they had caught by the campfire to rest, and then set off again after dawn. Although they didn't need to move on top of the air elemental, facing the great wind generated by the flight for a whole day would tire anyone out.

  "This world... how can it be like this? Even the highest embodiment of light on the continent, the Pope, is like that. Then... what about justice? What about light? Do these things still exist?" For the past two or three days, these were the words the young female Temple Knight muttered, her expression dazed and uncertain.

  "I'm just now realizing, you really resemble a friend of mine... a former friend." One evening, when Ethan heard Talise's words again, which he couldn't tell were a complaint or a mutter to herself, he said.

  "Your friend? I'm like him?" Talise was startled and asked. She was in this dazed state all day long.

  "Yes, very much so. At least the words you speak when you're confused are the same." Ethan smiled. "It's that Paladin Order squad leader who betrayed us in the royal capital of Ainfast. He was my friend, a very good friend of mine from before."

  "I'm like him? That shameless villain who colluded with Javi? What nonsense are you talking about?" Even in her daze, Talise was a little angry.

  "A long time ago, he also very much believed in ideals like justice and light. Perhaps even more than you..." Ethan smiled as he looked at the campfire. The fire was burning brightly, dancing constantly in his eyes. His gaze was distant, lost in memories. Although it was only a matter of two years ago, things were no longer the same, and the people even more so, so much so that not a single trace remained. Recalling it now felt like a lifetime ago.

  "At least you're a Temple Knight, with the ability to carry out the maintenance of your ideals, so you believe. But he was just a young knight who had just returned from Erathia back then, yet he still had to believe in these things..."