I Became the Patron of Villains

32. What is the Purpose of the Duel? (4)

A little over two weeks had passed since then.

Thanks to the injured soldiers, progress was slower than expected, but they finally arrived at the capital of Caliban, Kirdam, and were greeted with enthusiastic cheers from the citizens.

Everywhere he looked, he saw people with bright expressions, cheering with pride.

Led by Deus, the knights and soldiers entered the royal castle, reported the subjugation of the foreign invaders, and the expedition came to an end.

Alon.

“Let’s get going.”

Without hesitation, he prepared to leave again.

In fact, from Alon’s perspective, there was no reason to stay in Caliban any longer once the foreign invaders were eliminated.

‘I received plenty of gifts as well.’

He glanced at the carriage with a satisfied expression.

The carriage was loaded with many gifts that the King of Caliban, having heard the situation report, had quickly handed over to establish a connection.

Alon, who was looking at the slightly excessive gifts with a pleased expression under his emotionless face, soon spoke to Deus.

“Then, let’s meet again next time.”

It was a typical Korean farewell, like saying “Let’s have a meal sometime,” as Alon turned to leave.

“May I ask you one thing?”

For the first time in his life, Deus suddenly asked a question, and Alon stopped turning around.

“What is it?”

It had been about a month since he met Deus. From the time he left for the northern expedition to the time he returned to the capital, Deus had only expressed his intensified respect rather than asking any significant questions, so Alon waited silently.

After a brief silence, Deus spoke.

“Can I become stronger too?”

It was a somewhat unexpected question, so Alon looked puzzled.

Deus was already strong enough.

Thinking about what intention Deus had in asking such a question, Alon came to his own conclusion.

‘…Surely, the magic I used when fighting the foreign invaders had a strong impact, so maybe that’s why he showed more respect.’

Having finished his reasoning, Alon spoke.

“Of course, you can become stronger.”

“…Really?”

“Yes, as long as you put in the effort, you can achieve what you want.”

“Really?”

“…? Yes, really.”

Deus, with wide eyes, asked again, and Alon answered, bewildered.

Alon was not lying.

In fact, Deus – no, the five great sins, including Deus, had abilities that were almost fraudulent even before the ‘god’ descended.

‘…In Deus’s case, even without using his unique ability, he could become a sword master with just a sword, and if he’s already this strong in just a year, becoming stronger is just a matter of time.’

Listing it out like this made Alon realize how blessed and talented Deus was, and he felt a bit bitter.

Ah, if only I had been reincarnated into a more talented body, he thought briefly, and then spoke.

“So don’t worry.”

“Understood.”

“Then, let’s go.”

“……Excuse me, may I ask one more question?”

“……What is it?”

Deus spoke as he looked at Alon, who was awkwardly turning his body.

“……May I ask why you always make requests instead of giving orders?”

“……?”

Alon, who was puzzled behind his expressionless face at the continued question, momentarily thought, “What is this about?” and roughly grasped the situation.

‘Could it be that he thinks everything I’ve sponsored so far has an ulterior motive?’

Of course, there was an intention not to let the Five Great Sins descend, but the reason Alon had sponsored the Five Great Sins with blood-like money and gifts until now was purely out of goodwill.

……Although the issue of the Five Great Sins was involved, it was still goodwill.

So, Alon felt slightly wronged, feeling that his sincerity was somewhat tarnished by Deus’s thoughts.

“Who would give orders to their family?”

Soon, with a statement hoping his sincerity(?) would be recognized, he bid his final farewell to Deus and left for Asteria in a carriage.

That night.

Deus sat in the study of the mansion, staring blankly at the moon in the sky, maintaining silence.

“Hoo-“

A low sigh.

However, the reason was not the various tasks on his desk or the work he had to handle in the future, but simply because he realized his own ignorance during this expedition.

“…….”

Deus had always thought he was strong enough.

His innate ability, inherited from his birth, was strong enough to be highly praised by Utia.

Moreover, his talent with the sword, which he gained according to the will of the Great Moon, surpassed even Reinhardt, the greatest first sword of Caliban, and Deus himself knew this.

No, he couldn’t not know.

The countless reverence and admiration he received while rising to Master Knights faster than anyone else with the sword made it impossible for Deus not to know this fact.

Therefore, he vaguely thought so.

The strength he had now was surely enough to take revenge on the ‘black ones.’

Even if that strength was a bit lacking, he thought his talent with the sword would be enough to reach that level.

Until he met the Outer God.

“…….”

To Deus, the existence of the Outer God – no, the strength it possessed was shocking.

Just by standing there, it choked the life out of people and instilled fear, making Deus painfully aware that he was nothing more than a frog in a well.

And that feeling became even more acute when Deus saw the Great Moon.

“…Hoo”

Unconsciously, he recalled that moment.

The image of the Great Moon using magic against the foreign god, with the sunset at its back.

And the two eyes behind it.

“……”

Of course, Deus couldn’t understand what it was.

The only thing he could grasp was that those two eyes belonged to entirely different beings and that the Great Moon was using their power.

But, separate from that, Deus instinctively realized one thing as he looked at those two eyes.

‘That’ was something that should not be perceived or known in the first place.

Even though it was his first time seeing it, it lodged itself in Deus’s mind as if it were the most natural thing.

Like the sun rising in the east and setting in the west.

Like all living things being born and then dying.

As if it were the most natural thing, the realization that he should not try to know it came to him naturally.

“……”

Thinking up to that point, Deus suddenly felt ashamed.

Unlike Fenia, who seemed to know Alon’s strength, he had not noticed the power of the Great Moon at all.

On the contrary, Deus thought the Great Moon was weak.

From what he saw, the Great Moon only had a little bit of magic power.

But that was just Deus’s ignorance.

Unlike Deus, who was frozen and unable to resist the foreign god, the Great Moon stood before it as if it were the most natural thing and fought it, eventually destroying it.

In fact, Deus had followed the Great Moon to repay a favor, but instead of repaying it, he had received another favor.

This time was no different.

‘As expected, this won’t do.’

Deus recalled the thought he had had repeatedly since returning to Caliburn after dealing with the foreign god.

But despite having the same thought dozens of times, it had never extended beyond that.

It was because of doubt.

Doubt about himself.

Seeing the foreign god,

Now, not only was he a benefactor to whom he owed a debt of gratitude, but also someone he truly respected. As Deus looked at the great moon, he fell into doubt about whether he could rise to that level.

Even though he knew that his own talent was at an absurd level, the strength shown by the foreign press and the great moon was enough to crush the talent Deus possessed.

Thus, until today, Deus had been in a state of uncertainty about himself, repeatedly asking himself the same question.

But today.

Deus was able to end the doubts he had been pondering for weeks.

‘Of course, I can become stronger.’

‘Yes, if I just put in the effort, I can achieve what I want.’

‘Really, though.’

He recalled what Alon had said today.

Although it contained no emotion, the voice of the great moon had spoken without any hesitation.

That he had the talent to kill the black ones.

That if he just put in the effort, he could rise to that position.

The words that Alon had uttered without a moment’s hesitation were enough to give Deus an unprecedented sense of certainty.

‘I must become stronger.’

Deus clenched his fist tightly.

‘More.’

The thoughts that had been stagnant began to progress for the first time.

‘To avenge the black ones-‘

The vague thoughts progressed concretely with certainty.

The concrete thoughts quickly multiplied, branching into dozens of thoughts.

Thus.

The frog in the well, who had gained the certainty to venture out into the world for the first time, began to prepare.

‘-to the point where I can become his sword.’

With a newly found reason as motivation.

‘Family…’

Using the recognition left by the great moon, which warmed his heart just by thinking about it, as a talisman.

He began to truly prepare to move forward.

“……”

The blue moonlight shone on Deus, who was sitting in the dark office.

And then, a moment later.

“…….”

Deus, who had been silent, suddenly recalled that moment and raised his left hand, extending it forward.

‘At that time, he certainly did it like this.’

Just as Alon had done when dealing with the foreign press, Deus extended his middle and ring fingers forward, spreading his magic to check if anyone was around.

“……Line of Silence.”

He murmured quietly in the empty room.

A twitching left hand.

……Of course, nothing happened.

However, alone in the room, mimicking Alon’s actions, Deus felt a mix of slight embarrassment and satisfaction, and soon adjusted his posture again.

A fleeting thought crossed Deus’s mind, wishing he had a talent for magic like him.

.

.

.

At that moment.

“Count.”

“Why?”

“Sometimes, I notice you really like sweet potatoes.”

“Because they are delicious.”

Alon replied to Evan’s words while roasting sweet potatoes in front of the campfire.

“……Hmm.”

The sweet potatoes were indeed delicious.

It was late at night, about a month later, when Alon finally arrived at the Palatio Count’s residence.

‘It’s tiring.’

Calculating, it had been about three months since his return, leaving Alon with a low-key reflection.

In fact, nothing much had happened since the time he left Caliburn.

The only slightly bothersome thing was Evan’s relentless curiosity about Alon’s power, asking questions every other day.

Other than that, the only notable thing was the rumor slowly spreading among the kingdoms that the Palatio Count had made a significant contribution in capturing the foreign press in Caliburn.

Anyway, after a long journey, Alon intended to rest for a while.

For now, he had been so focused on returning from Caliburn to the Count’s residence that he hadn’t properly paid attention, but he needed to visit Colony once and had several things to investigate.

There were immediate matters to investigate: the nature of the black and blue, the reason for the outer gods, and why Ulthulus bore a true name.

In short, there was much to be done.

Yet, despite this, he chose to rest.

For Alon, the very purpose of his existence was to leisurely enjoy the life of a noble.

Though he found joy in the exploration of magic, it was not for the sake of grand achievements; rather, it was a means of self-preservation.

In essence, all these endeavors ultimately aimed at securing a comfortable life, leading Alon to conclude that granting himself a brief respite was a fitting reward for the hardships he had endured.

Thus, upon arriving at the Count’s estate, Alon planned to spend about a week doing nothing, allowing himself to unwind, while he settled into his office to swiftly handle the backlog of tasks that had accumulated.

As he unfolded the letters from Yutia, which had piled up unanswered, he muttered, “…Huh?”

A moment of dazed surprise escaped him.

For within the letter lay the revelation.

“Evan.”

“Yes?”

“What rank does a cardinal hold in Rosario?”

“…A cardinal…? Well, if you break it down, they’re essentially just below the Pope or a saint, right? But why do you ask all of a sudden?”

“…It seems Yutia has become a cardinal.”

“…What???”

The letter stated that Yutia had ascended to the position of cardinal in the Holy Kingdom of Rosario.