The Holy Man of Another Century Gospel

Chapter 147 My Hub, Her Special
When Elise woke up, it was already broad daylight.

Outside the carriage, the sounds of voices rose and fell, accompanied by the clatter of horses' hooves and the occasional clear ringing of bells.

Looking around and onto the floor, Molly and Eric were nowhere to be seen.

She sat up, feeling a slight soreness in her back, and then Molly's voice came from the small window behind her: "You're awake."

Elise looked back at her and nodded, but Eric wasn't beside her.

Where is Eric?

"I don't know... he woke up earlier than me."

Elise quickly noticed that his two weapons were still on the carriage, so he probably hadn't gone too far.

She got out of the carriage and looked around, only to find that most of the carriages in the inn's courtyard had already left.

In this chaotic land, daytime is precious, and those who need to travel long distances must set off as early as possible.

They don't need to rush. They're not far from the border, and barring any unforeseen circumstances, they should be able to leave Castelfell before the afternoon.

Elise sat down next to Molly. "Was he gone when you woke up?"

Molly nodded, her gaze drifting slightly. "She probably has something to do..."

What could possibly happen so early in the morning?
Do you want to eat breakfast?

Elise looked out of the inn and saw carriages passing by one after another on the road, with many people in a hurry to get on their way.

After waiting a while, Eric returned to the carriage, holding a hot loaf of bread wrapped in paper.

Elise noticed that he seemed to have changed his clothes. She leaned closer and smelled him; he smelled nice. She quickly realized that he had taken a shower at the hotel that morning.

What a leisurely life... Is young master Eric such a clean person?
She didn't pay much attention, her attention quickly drawn to the soft bread in his hand. The three of them enjoyed a decent breakfast by the carriage.

"Did you take a shower?" Molly asked Eric.

"...Yeah, I sweated a little while I was sleeping, and it made me feel a bit uncomfortable."

“Oh.” Molly took a bite of bread.

After they finished eating, the three continued their journey. Eric was still driving, and Elise, who had been sitting in the carriage all day, was getting a little tired of it, so she sat next to him today.

As she came out of the hotel's backyard, she quickly noticed a lot of bloodstains on the street.

Eric said it was left by someone who was unfortunately chosen by the robbers last night.

She shook her head silently, wanting only to get away from this place as soon as possible.

Once they left the town, the carriage sped up.

There were still quite a few carriages and horses on the road, which made Elise wonder just how many people were hiding in the inns here.

“I just inquired, and there are fewer bandits on the road in the morning, so there are a lot more people traveling early,” Eric said.

"Is it because they come out to plunder in the middle of the night?"

"More or less." He looked ahead. "That's for the best, otherwise you'd still have to go back to the carriage later."

Elise nodded.

“I can use magic to deal with robbers even inside the carriage,” Molly said, peeking out of the window.

Eric didn't even turn his head. "Don't burn the car."

"What are you talking about? Did I miss a spell yesterday?"

"Many missed their targets."

The female mage hummed twice, but said nothing.

The carriage sped along without stopping. After all, there were many carriages and horses on the road, and even when some bandits on fast horses appeared by the roadside around noon, they didn't pay any attention to them.

“We were constantly targeted by bandits yesterday afternoon, probably because there were very few carriages on the road at that time,” Eric said.

Elise responded, looking somewhat dejected.

Although no robbers came directly to them, quite a few people were watching her, and some even openly showed their intention to snatch her when she looked at them, making her very nervous.

After traveling for another half hour, Eric suddenly sat up straight, stared ahead for a while, and said, "I know this area; we're almost at the border."

He immediately felt the people next to him relax a lot and lean on his shoulder.

He smiled. "So nervous?"

Elise just gave a weak "hmm".

Near the border, only travelers and carriages remain on the road; bandits dare not and will not appear there.

A moment later, the first border checkpoint appeared ahead.

Eric drove his carriage and had to wait in line. After a while, when it was their turn, the Imperial Guards at the border asked him what was being towed in the carriage.

“Only people,” Eric said.

"Only people?" The guard went to the back of the carriage, lifted the curtain, glanced at Molly who was staring wide-eyed inside, and tapped the floor with practiced ease. "What's down there?"

"A little luggage and some local specialties." Eric also got out of the car and handed him a Charon gold coin.

The guard raised an eyebrow, a satisfied smile on his face, and then held out his hand. "And a toll, five silver coins per person."

Eric counted out fifteen more silver coins for him, and the guard waved ahead, "Go on."

After getting on the bus and passing the first checkpoint, Molly peeked out of the small window and asked, "They let us through just like that?"

"What else do you want?" Eric didn't look at her, but stared at the second checkpoint not far away.

"Although the toll is a bit expensive, they won't check it carefully, which is good for smuggling," Molly said.

"You'd better come here alive first."

"Well……"

Before long, the carriages lined up again at the second checkpoint.

When it was their turn, the guards' inspection was much stricter than before. They opened the floorboards and picked up a can of gray-patterned mithril, asking Eric what it was.

"My husband had the paint specially made."

"You have to pay taxes, one in ten. Either pay the tax or keep a can."

Eric chose to pay, pulling out two gold coins to give to him.

The guard shook his head and held up five fingers.

Eric didn't haggle, promptly paid for it, and the guard put down the pottery jar and let them pass.

Once the carriage had passed the checkpoint, Molly finally spoke up: "Why did you say it was paint? Is it cheaper?"

"It doesn't matter what you say. If you say it's an alchemical material, you'll have to explain it more. Anyway, you'll still have to pay at least one copper coin."

“Five gold coins,” Molly muttered. “Including the checkpoint we just passed, that’s six gold coins and fifteen silver coins. Add in the other expenses along the way, what would we have to smuggle to make that back?”

“A slave, huh?” Eric replied.

Molly was taken aback.

"I can't have come all this way for nothing. When we get to the slave market, don't resist."

She stuck her staff out of the window and poked him, saying, "You're just trying to scare me!"

Eric twisted his body. "Don't cause trouble."

After crossing the border, Eric and Elise relaxed considerably, while Molly, being in the Empire for the first time, insisted on sitting outside. Elise, also a bit tired, switched seats with her.

“It’s another day’s journey from here to Tallinn, but that’s on horseback. It would take about a day and a half by car, and we’d have to spend another night on the road,” Eric said. “But it’ll be much safer here. At least the bandits won’t dare to openly rob us, and we can spend the night in the wilderness without any problem.”

Molly didn't hear a word he said. She stood up and looked ahead. After a while, she said, "The road is so wide and smooth."

"Haven't you heard of Hero Avenue?"

"Which hero?" Molly countered.

"..."

Eric opened his mouth, and after a long pause, muttered, "Cultural differences."

The carriage sped forward, returning to Heroes' Avenue, which it had already traversed once. Eric knew the rest of the road, so he didn't stop until evening when he finally stopped at a service area by the avenue to spend the night.

"There are still people on their way." As the carriage turned into the service area, Molly turned her head, her gaze still fixed on the carriages and horses continuing their journey on the road.

"Because we have come into the territory of the Empire, at least here, the biggest risk of spending the night in the wild is wild animals, snakes, insects and rodents."

Eric drove his carriage to a decent-looking inn, intending to spend the night there.

Later, while dining at a tavern, he overheard many known and unknown rumors circulating among other passersby. "Lutia, sigh, it's chaotic. The emperor's sister, Princess Natalia, has been exiled to the North..."

"I heard that she volunteered to go there."

"I don't know, but there was quite a commotion on the way... When we got to Northria, the governor even sent troops to wipe out the Arans."

Elise paused for a moment, then continued eating and drinking, but her gaze gradually became fixed.

Eric glanced at her but said nothing, for he soon heard what he was concerned about.

"Speaking of Northria, it seems that two demons have been discovered there... One of them is the demon princess who caused a ruckus in Lutia and then escaped, the one who has been wanted recently."

two?

Eric glanced at the group of merchants who were loudly arguing around a table, thought for a moment, then called over a waiter and ordered each of them a glass of the tavern's best wine.

As the group looked on in confusion, and the tavern waiter pointed in their direction, he smiled and sat down beside them, striking up a conversation.

For strangers who meet by chance, being willing to spend money is the greatest sincerity. Eric won over these merchants with just one drink, and they were willing to answer any questions he asked.

"I just heard you say that two demons were discovered in Northria? And a demon princess too?"

"Yes."

"How did the news from over there reach us so quickly? Is it reliable?"

“Of course it’s authentic. I heard it from a winged man. He was delivering a letter to the governor’s office in Northria and happened to be coming from there. He found out a lot of things.”

The man spoke eloquently, "If we're talking about buying and selling goods, then those winged people are just selling information. How much money can they make just by delivering messages? Which winged messenger doesn't gather information before taking off?"

Eric said he believed him and then inquired about the two demons.

"Escaped."

"Escape?"

"Hmm, one escaped, and one died. The one who escaped was the demon princess, and the one who died was probably her guard, who risked his life to get her out... Come to think of it, what happened on the outskirts of Lutia seems to be the same thing?"

Eric was silent.

In that battle outside Lutia, all the demon guards should have been killed, unless some of them hadn't shown themselves and had been hiding all along.

But Luca is dead, and the demon princess Kiraya is being hunted down. Can he really hide?
Eric continued listening, and then found that the topic had somehow shifted to himself, or more precisely, to the one who had led a group of knights and palace guards to the outskirts to exterminate the demons that day.

"That was the true light of the Holy See! The demons were so ferocious. They routed the knights as soon as they met them. Fortunately, the Holy See's prospective saintess stepped forward, wielding a holy sword and descending from the sky. She cleaved the earth in two, and all the demons fell in. She shouted for the earth to close, and the earth closed up, crushing all the demons to death."

"..."

Eric picked up his glass and clinked it against the man's. "Awesome."

He inquired for a while longer, but whether it was because they had drunk too much or because that was all they knew, the rest of the information was rather uninformative.

Upon hearing that the Vatican's prospective saint was voluptuous with large breasts, a curvaceous figure, and stunning beauty that captivated Lutia, Eric quickly returned to his desk.

Elise greeted him with a smile, but Eric glared at her.

"We don't even know if the quasi-saintess is male or female, so we probably can't believe much of what she said before."

The smile on her face faded slightly. "The part about the Arameans should be true, but I don't know how it will turn out."

“Let’s ask around again when we get to Tallinn tomorrow,” Eric said. “Information in big cities is usually more comprehensive and accurate.”

She nodded.

Molly, sitting opposite them, looked at the two of them and said, "You two are definitely not ordinary people, you pay attention to these things."

"I am a cardinal of the Papacy, and she is an Aranian agent. Don't ask any more questions; nothing will happen."

The female mage rolled her eyes.

After filling their stomachs, the three returned to the hotel and spent the night peacefully.

The next morning, they got up and continued their journey, finally arriving in Tallinn around noon.

The sheer size of the city was awe-inspiring to Molly, a foreigner. Although the Star Origin Academy was luxurious and vast, it was all concentrated in one place, with a dilapidated outer perimeter. There were even shacks and dormitories for mages and alchemists right across the street. She had never seen such a large city before.

When she first entered the city, she even stood at the front of the car looking around. After a while, she sat down, crossed her legs and clasped her hands, behaving herself obediently, even somewhat reservedly.

Eric glanced at her, then looked ahead, making way for pedestrians.

"Look at your face, with that 'I'm from the countryside and easy to fool' look. I don't want to see you at the slave market in a couple of days."

Molly glared at him, but spoke in a very soft voice, "There are so many people... This is the first time I've ever seen such a big city, it's terrifying. The people who live here must be very happy."

Eric let out a breath. "Pretty much. It's prosperous enough as it is. Even if the demons attack, they won't be able to reach this area for a while."

He paused, then turned to look at her. "We're already in Tallinn. Where do you plan to stop with us?"

Molly paused for a moment, then looked at the streets on both sides, her face showing genuine bewilderment.

"I don't know... I'll just go along for now..."

Eric didn't say anything, since the gray-patterned mithril was all in the car, and drove directly to the workshop of the elven craftsman Mason.

When he parked his car in front of the workshop, Mason came out looking unhappy and was about to kick him out, but he quickly recognized him and his eyes widened.

Mason looked at him, then at the carriage. "You... got it?"

Eric smiled. "It took some time and effort, but I managed to get some gray-patterned mithril. I hope Master Mason will be satisfied."

"How many?" Mason asked hurriedly, both hopeful and hesitant to be too optimistic. "Are there two cans?"

Are just two cans enough...?

Eric felt he might have wasted some money and time.

Give him ten cans, and his favorability rating should skyrocket, right?

Eric decided to surprise Mason by having him open the floorboards of the carriage himself.

When the wood elf opened the floorboards and saw that there were ten pottery jars underneath, he was completely speechless.

"You and I……"

The elven craftsman patted his chest, then Eric's shoulder, nodding and shaking his head, "I...you..."

“What’s wrong with him?” Molly looked at Elise. “What is he mumbling about?”

“‘You are the most generous and trustworthy human being I have ever met. I’ve decided that if you ever need anything in the future, just come to me.’” Elise translated.

Molly looked at him with awe. "You really understand?"

Elise smiled.

Eric overheard their entire conversation and, looking at the incredibly excited Mason in front of him, thought to himself that his favorability rating had truly skyrocketed...

After personally making five round trips to carry ten jars of gray-patterned mithril into the workshop, Mason brought up the matter of crafting equipment with Eric.

"Just build it according to the blueprints, right? Are there any improvements you need? Feel free to ask, just ask anything."

Eric, however, said that he was the master, and that he could fully unleash his potential while maintaining the original lightweight style.

He pulled Molly, who was watching the commotion from the sidelines, over. "It would be even better if we could make her a set of protective gear that she could wear."

Mason said no problem.

He then brought Elise over, saying he would also forge her a weapon for self-defense, either a short sword or a dagger would do.

Mason said it was a trivial matter.

Eric asked him how long it would take, and Mason glanced at the three of them before saying, "I will prioritize making the weapons and armor that Mr. Eric needs, but I also have a few orders that are about to expire. By the time I finish making them all, it will be at least a month later."

"There's no need to wait here any longer," Eric thought, nodding to Mason. "I'll come back for it later."

Mason let Elise choose her favorite weapon style, such as the pattern on the hilt, and then had Molly measure his body measurements. Eric watched from the side and asked him how much the total cost would be.

“We don’t need to talk about money,” Mason said seriously.

After finishing their business here, the three of them left and drove their carriage to find an inn.

“We’ll stay here for a day to make some preparations, and then we’ll head to the ancient battlefield tomorrow,” Eric said to Molly. “You need to think it over carefully: do you want to stay in Tallinn to develop your business, or come with us?”

Molly glanced at him, then looked at the bustling streets on both sides: "Where is there any space for me to do business here... Big cities are terrifying, I want to go home."

"..."

"You're not going to give it to me, are you?"

"What do you think."

Molly sighed, "Then let me stay with you a little longer."

(End of this chapter)