The journey lasted over two weeks.
Even so, the schedule was possible because the people of Actilus were strong and generally had excellent physical abilities. As for an example, Cisen and I were suffering from muscle pain throughout the ride on the low mountain, but Sylvia was fine.
Raniero looked at me as if I was pathetic as I couldn't move properly and kept making a groaning sound—heuu.
I thought he was going to say something, so I looked at him, a little intimidated, but he just sighed.
Then, he put me on his horse.
As my field of vision grew dizzyingly high, I closed my eyes and grabbed the handle of the saddle quickly. The proud black horse, like its owner, shook his head slightly and kicked the ground with his foreleg as if he knew my anxiety.
Just as he was about to lose his temper, Raniero jumped on his horse and took the reins.
At that, the horse that seemed like it would toss me down quickly became docile. Raniero said nothing and rode with me in front of him. I glanced at him bewildered before slowly relaxing and leaning my back on his chest.
Then, I looked back at Cisen, worried, as I met Sylvia's eyes. She couldn't hide her surprised expression as she was looking this way.
'…His Majesty the Emperor?'
It seemed as though she was thinking that.
My face blushed, and I quickly turned forward. It was awkward for me, too, that Raniero was being 'considerate,' but it must look really strange in the eyes of Sylvia, who was born and raised in Actilus.
After the hike, a rough wilderness appeared.
I could hear the rolling and breaking of pebbles under the horses' hooves. It was a place where nothing could be seen except for the chilling wind and thorny bushes and a few small animals that could withstand the cold and hunger.
I couldn't believe that there was the Temple of Tunia after traveling for a long time.
After walking for a full day, villages began to come into view. Even if you look at it, it didn't look like it was a good situation. As the knights of the Actilus Empire proudly passed through the villages, people glanced at the procession through the windows.
Still, no one came out to see as Actilus was an object of fear.
They just pretended not to be in the house, holding their breath. The woman whose eyes met mine caught her breath in surprise and drew the curtains furiously.
For the first time, I realized what people outside of Actilus thought of Raniero Actilus.
He was a risk factor that could destroy their home at any time. Obviously, the people of Actilus knew that. Nonetheless, he wasn't ashamed at all, but rather proud of his strength—force was a virtue, weakness was a vice.
So, a nation without any guilt for plunder and war.
'I'm in the position of a weak person, so I can't sympathize with that idea.'
I gazed at Raniero's hand holding the reins as I pondered.
'That kind of existence makes me…'
While we continued walking, on the other side, I saw a building with a larger scale than what I had seen so far… it was the temple of Tunia. Even the abode of God, which must have been made with the best things, seemed simple. It felt as if I had truly seen the situation of the Temple of Tunia face to face.
The Archbishop, who came as an envoy to Actilus, welcomed us with open arms.
"Thank you to the descendants of the God of War."
On the contrary, Raniero stood on his horse and glanced at him indifferently. The greeting he gave was simplistic.
"I'll feed and clothe my knights with what I brought. Just arrange a bed."
It was a conversation I had grown accustomed to, with no manners or anything. In fact, the meaning of the words was less polite than his way of speaking. It was like saying, 'Your supplies are shabby, and I can't be using them so we'll take care of it with what we brought.'
'But, who cares?'
I eagerly shot telepathy at the shaking eyes of grandfather Archbishop.
'Change your mind and consider yourself lucky! If you try to feed and clothe so many knights, the poor Tunia God's back will break!'
"You must be grateful for this decision."
After insulting them, he had the audacity for them to say thank you…
"Prepare the dwelling place for me and my wife with sincerity."
Saying so, he turned his head.
It seemed to me that Raniero wanted him to guide the horses to where to tie them, so the grandfather Archbishop had to follow us around like an attendant.
˚: * ✧ * :·˚
I wandered around the temple alone.
Cisen fell ill as soon as she got to the room due to muscle pain, and Sylvia was taking care of her. Meanwhile, Raniero was in the meeting room with the Archbishop and the head of the order of the paladins. It seemed like they were discussing the location of the monsters and the size of the wave.
He asked if I'd like to attend the meeting too, but I shook my head. It was because I was worried about Seraphina.
I decided to find Eden first.
The Temple of Tunia was quiet, and it seemed like I was the only one wandering around. So, I silenced the sound of my footsteps and moved on.
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