Holy Idol [EN]: Chapter 851

Her green hair was exceptionally noticeable, even from afar. Rembrary opened his mouth.

‘Muluda.’

Taller by leaps and bounds over the past few years, she wielded the long spear easily, even atop the red horse.

Each time the massive spear was swung, the monsters ceased their movements.

Then, Muluda would immediately retrieve the spear and plunge it into the next monster.

Rembrary, engrossed in watching Muluda, momentarily forgot to emit his halo.

“Rembrary? Weren’t you going to do something?”

Only after Kentree whispered beside him did Rembrary recall what he was supposed to do, and he activated his halo to a moderate intensity.

As the monsters within the light’s reach halted, it became much easier for the paladins to respond.

Rembrary glared at the demon who had driven the monsters.

Unexpectedly, the demon, who he thought would engage directly, had already disappeared.

Rembrary frowned.

‘What’s the scheme? Why did he leave without giving it his all?’

Just as his thoughts concluded, the situation gradually began to stabilize.

Even in a daze, Rembrary diligently healed the injured paladins as they sought him out.

By the end of the battle, none of the paladins were seriously injured or dead, but all the monsters were lying defeated on the ground.

“Will there be more attacks as we go to other continents?”

Kentree muttered in a frightened voice.

“Perhaps.”

Rembrary answered, his gaze fixed on Muluda.

Her large glasses, wherever they had been, were nowhere to be seen, and her aura had changed significantly.

The girl who used to carry books like a young scholar was now gradually exuding the air of a dashing knight.

Rembrary waited for her to approach.

However, Muluda dismounted, wiped the blood from her spear, and cleaned the blood from her horse’s face, without even glancing at Rembrary.

“Why do you keep staring at her?”

Instead, Kentree asked in a hushed voice.

“I miss her.”

“What? You know each other?”

Kentree asked again, bewildered.

“Of course.”

Rembrary replied simply before approaching the green-haired paladin himself.

Kentree watched his retreating figure with fascination. ‘He’s actually approaching someone first?’

Meanwhile, Rembrary had almost reached Muluda.

Muluda, who was wiping the monster blood from her hands, finally turned her head slightly.

Rembrary smiled even more brightly and greeted her.

“It’s been a while. Where did your glasses go?”

“……”

However, no response came, even after waiting. Still, as he steadily gazed at her, Muluda avoided his eyes and asked,

“Do you know me, sir?”

“Jandi’s younger sibling-“

“No.”

Rembrary blinked. ‘No?’

“You’d need to be taller to successfully impersonate Lord Cheru.”

As Rembrary logically explained why she was Jandi’s younger sibling, Muluda furrowed her brow and repeated,

“I have no intention of impersonating anyone.”

Leaving the bewildered Rembrary behind, Muluda turned away and disappeared into the ranks of the other paladins.

* * *

The senior paladins were holding their breath, watching Muluda converse with ‘the famous Rembrary.’

When Muluda turned away first and approached them, leaving Rembrary behind, the paladins gleefully teased her in hushed voices.

“Muluda, didn’t you come on purpose after hearing Rembrary was passing by? Why are you suddenly acting like strangers?”

“You said you knew each other? It seems more than just acquaintances, doesn’t it?”

“Why didn’t you talk more and just come back?”

“Try to build some rapport. It’s Rembrary! Rembrary!”

No matter how much they teased her, Muluda tightly closed her lips and didn’t budge.

Seeing the still-young paladin trying her best to appear dignified, the senior paladins continued to laugh among themselves.

Rembrary watched the scene from afar, tilting his head. ‘Why is Lord Muluda pretending not to know me?’

* * *

While the paladins reorganized their ranks and cleared away the fallen monsters, the paladin representative, who had joined them late, approached Rembrary and asked,

“Lord Rembrary, how far are you traveling?”

“To the Central Continent. I’ve been invited to the Iira Grand Temple.”

“The Iira Grand Temple? That’s quite a distance.”

The paladin muttered with a surprised expression, then counted the number of paladins who had come with Rembrary, adding,

“Come to think of it, you’ve brought quite a few paladins. Monsters in such numbers haven’t appeared in years.”

“This kind of attack is rare even in this area?”

At Rembrary’s question, the paladin nodded.

Kentree, who had been listening to the conversation, requested in a frightened voice,

“Could you accompany us to the harbor?”

The paladin chuckled and patted the sword hilt at his waist.

“Of course, we should escort you.”

* * *

Having reorganized, Rembrary’s group, now doubled in size, set off again.

However, they didn’t know who remained in the place they had left.

After the paladins, surrounding a carriage, departed with a dignified air, Ardore gripped a tree and gnashed his teeth.

‘Those damn Redrin paladins……!’

Unable to contain his anger, Ardore scratched the tree bark with his fingernails.

The situation had been quite dire when he had arrived. The monsters were too densely packed.

Ardore had drawn his sword, looking for a gap to squeeze through.

He had planned to appear before his benefactor in their moment of peril, wielding his sword valiantly to carve a path.

Ardore was filled with greater passion than ever before. His confidence was also high.

But as he was searching for an opening, a group of paladins had swarmed in.

They had rescued Rembrary and now had become his companions, departing together.

If they had been just ten minutes later, the Redrin paladins wouldn’t have so slyly taken the place that Ardore himself should have occupied.

Besides, that weed head! Who is she to look so familiar with Lord Rembrary? Why is Lord Rembrary staring at that weed head with such fascination?

Unable to bear his rising anger, Ardore even banged his forehead against the tree.

‘Those sneaky Redrin paladins! Those vile paladins! Even if I transfer temples, I’ll never become a Redrin paladin!’

* * *

The paladins took turns riding in Rembrary’s carriage to rest.

However, when the third person was rotating in, one of the paladins, while adjusting himself to get comfortable, brought up something strange.

“Come to think of it, I saw a boy on the way here. Do you happen to know a boy, Lord Rembrary?”

“A boy?”

“Yes. A boy with messy silver hair. He had a horse and luggage, and he didn’t seem to be an enemy, so I left him be. But now that I think about it, he might have been with your group, Lord Rembrary. He wasn’t wearing the attire of a priest or paladin, though.”

Rembrary shook his head and looked at Kentree.

“I don’t know him. Do you?”

“I don’t either.”

“Then he must be a child traveling alone.”

The knight scratched his nose, seemingly bothered by leaving the child behind.

However, he had been rushing to deal with the monsters that had appeared in the distance, so it was difficult to take the child with him.

Taking the child would have been like leading him into a monster’s den.

Afterward, he had forgotten about the child’s existence while cleaning up and reorganizing the group. Now that he thought about it, he felt uneasy, thinking, ‘I was negligent as a paladin.’

Fortunately, Kentree checked the map and said,

“If he’s on horseback, he’ll reach a village soon. There are three villages along the fork in this area, so don’t worry. We’ve already dealt with all the monsters anyway.”

Hearing Kentree’s clever words, the paladin finally felt relieved and nodded.

* * *

As the paladin began to doze off, the carriage became quiet again.

With no one speaking, Rembrary leaned his arm against the window frame and gazed at Jandi’s younger sibling as before.

However, Jandi’s younger sibling didn’t even glance in this direction. No, she didn’t even turn her head while sitting rigidly on her horse.

Rembrary found it fascinating that Jandi’s younger sibling only looked straight ahead.

And Kentree found it fascinating that Rembrary was showing interest in someone.

Since this was Kentree’s first long journey with Rembrary, he knew nothing about the connection between Rembrary and Lord Cheru.

“Rembrary, why do you keep looking at the green-haired paladin? Is it because she’s your age?”

Unable to contain his curiosity, Kentree asked outright as the green hair receded into the distance as they passed through a forest path.

The two paladins who were riding with them also pretended not to listen, but they were all ears.

Rembrary finally turned his gaze from the window and smiled contentedly.

“Because the spear is pretty.”

“What? A spear? What about a spear?”

‘Are you just making excuses because you’re embarrassed about being ignored?’ Kentree almost asked, but he closed his mouth upon seeing the curve in Rembrary’s eyes.

‘He really likes it. He’s… always strange. Why does he like someone else’s weapon?’

* * *

The carriage, moving without rest, finally arrived at its destination.

Rembrary got out of the carriage and gazed at the harbor, which was densely packed with ships of all sizes.

Perhaps to prepare for monsters, there were as many mercenaries as sailors in the harbor.

“Wow……!”

Kentree gaped, admiring the plaza crowded with people.

As the number of priests and paladins traveling around had increased after the rise in monster activity, the sailors and mercenaries didn’t pay much attention to Rembrary’s group.

The paladin representative, who had joined them along the way, spoke to Rembrary while Kentree went to buy tickets.

“It would be good to continue together, but it’s difficult to take such a large group all the way to the Central Continent. We need permission to go.”

“It’s okay.”

“If you’re not pressed for time, would you wait here? Then we can officially send a request to supplement the number of paladins.”

“It’s okay.”

Rembrary answered lightly, but the paladin representative couldn’t easily shake off his unease.

Even though they had already brought a sufficient number of paladins, a demon had suddenly appeared.

If that demon had appeared targeting Rembrary, he didn’t know where they might attack again.

“Are you very pressed for time?”

The paladin asked again.

Still, as Rembrary didn’t seem likely to change his mind, the paladin considered various other options before asking,

“Then, take just two or three more with you. We can send the official request later for that many.”

Rembrary was about to say it was okay again when he noticed that Jandi’s younger sibling was still unnaturally staring in another direction.

“Alright. Can I choose who to take?”

Having changed his mind, Rembrary asked that and quickly approached Muluda.

Muluda had been staring only at the bell tower, but when Rembrary approached, she deliberately changed direction.

It was a clear signal that ‘I’m not going with you,’ but Rembrary didn’t care and asked,

“Lord Muluda, you’re coming to the Central Continent with me, right?”

It was even in a voice that confidently assumed Muluda would naturally go with him.

Muluda frowned and refused firmly without even looking at him.

“No. I’m busy.”

The paladin representative chuckled at the sight.

Muluda had become a paladin quickly due to her outstanding skills, but she still lacked practical experience.

But instead of seeking out a strong paladin with a lot of practical experience, he was approaching a paladin of his own age and asking her to go with him. ‘Even if he’s amazing, he’s still a child,’ the paladin representative thought, shaking his head.

The thoughts of the other paladins watching were almost the same.

“I’m going to find out the cause of Lord Cheru’s disappearance.”

Except for the individuals involved.

Muluda whirled around and stood facing Rembrary.

“What are you talking about?”