Chapter 23: The Paladin's Choice
Joshua, who was being curiously observed by others, was now watching Robzek's dream.
It was a desolate and rotting land.
Yellow-green dense fog permeated the gloomy mid-air. The ground was like a swamp, covered in deep green sludge. Around the sludge were many withered and corroded tree carcasses, while countless twisted and horrifying chaotic creatures roamed in this environment.
This was the Plague Land, and these were the minions of the Plague Evil God. They came in various forms, but none had the shape of a normal creature. Even the most normal-looking chaotic creature was like a lump of flesh pieced together from countless internal organs and cysts. Their bodies were covered in constantly waving tentacles and jointed limbs, splashing viscous, foul-smelling liquid.
And there was a team, in such an environment, continuously slaying these nauseating and disgusting magical beasts.
Holy light flickered. A massive hammer, streaking through the air like a meteor, solidly smashed a chaotic creature into a pulp of flesh, which was then burned into a cloud of dispersing black smoke. Led by the leader, this powerful team of young paladins was sweeping away all the surrounding chaotic monsters with the force of thunder.
And Joshua was not surprised to find that the leader was clearly a younger Robzek.
At this moment, Robzek was still somewhat confused. Although he was still cleanly and decisively slaying chaotic creatures, it was apparent that this powerful paladin was somewhat distracted. He was probably wondering why he had come to the Plague Land, and also wondering why his strength had returned to the Gold-rank.
But the priority was not to ponder these things, but to annihilate the evil completely. Robzek perfectly utilized the combat skills honed over many years. He swung his massive hammer, easily killing several powerful chaotic creatures. Holy Light burned away the juices splashed by these monsters, not a single drop landing on him.
The battle was about to end. It was a perfect subjugation. Not a single knight was injured, and all the magical beasts would be slain.
But due to a moment of carelessness, a certain young paladin, perhaps because his Holy Light was not yet strong enough, failed to purify the monster's concentrated juice in time, and his body came into contact with the liquid.
Most of the concentrated juice from monsters was actually harmless, just ordinary bodily fluids. At most, it would make one nauseated by the stench. But this concentrated juice was different. It contained an extremely evil and strange chaotic power. Within just a few minutes, this unlucky young paladin showed signs of lesions all over his body. Semi-transparent tumors bulged on his skin, with viscous reddish-brown mucus flowing inside, making gurgling sounds.
This paladin, at most in his twenties, endured the pain with extraordinary willpower. Then, using all his strength, he employed Holy Light and divine arts to stabilize the spread of the lesions on his body. Afterwards, with a voice hoarse from intense pain, he begged his surrounding companions: "...Save me, Captain Robzek, I don't want to die yet. My mother is still waiting for me..."
—There was no saving him.
With just one glance, Joshua could tell that this paladin's entire body had been contaminated by chaotic power. If they weren't in the Plague Land, there might be a chance to suppress the disease. But they were in the home ground of chaotic power. The disease had an endless source of power to sustain it. This basically sealed the young man's death sentence.
Robzek could also see this, and he knew something even more terrifying—if the paladin's body was not 'thoroughly purified' quickly, it was very likely that other paladins would be infected through contact, and the young man's flesh would mutate into the next chaotic creature.
The power of chaos was so bizarre that it was hard to guard against. Moreover, to bring this corrupted paladin out, they would definitely have to touch his body. The risk was simply too great.
"Let's try! Oli can still be saved!"
"Yes, we're not far from the stronghold. As long as we teleport back to the Great Temple quickly, Oli will definitely recover!"
The other paladins around were all pleading with Robzek to show mercy. They felt they could stabilize their friend's condition. That way, once they returned to the Great Temple, the high-ranking church officials could completely cure the disease. Although some lingering effects might remain, at least this knight wouldn't need to be burned by Holy Light until nothing but ashes remained.
But the silver-haired paladin did not hesitate at all.
"A quick end."
He said softly, ignoring the pleas of all the young knights. In the shocked expression of the young paladin named Oli, Robzek cleanly and decisively snapped his neck.
"This is the only thing I can do for you, and the only thing I can do."
Igniting a blazing holy flame in his hand, the paladin, who had recalled everything, murmured to himself: "I'm sorry, little Oli. Your mother will indeed be very sad."
"So, I cannot let sixteen other mothers be sad."
Although he was apologizing, there was no trace of apology in Robzek's tone. His hand, which burned the young paladin to ashes, did not even tremble. The paladin's expression and will were firm and unwavering: "I have experienced despair once before. Because of momentary leniency, soft-heartedness, carelessness, and wishful thinking, not a single one of the seventeen young paladins present returned to the temple alive. And I only survived by sheer luck, teleporting back to the Great Temple at the brink of death and receiving the Pope's treatment."
"This is the most regrettable mistake. I have remembered it for twenty-five years, tossing and turning every night because of it, unable to sleep for a long time."
His companions, one by one, died from the chaotic plague. Amidst despair and pain, he had to lead the remaining ones to continuously deal with the chaotic creatures attacking from all sides. But even after countless arduous battles, in the end, only he himself survived, incredibly lucky.
This kind of thing, once in a lifetime, was enough.
"So, rest in peace. At least this time, your companions will not die because of this."
He said this, but the surrounding young paladins did not feel they had been saved. One by one, they angrily raised their swords, pointing them at Robzek, their eyes filled with uncontrollable rage.
"Indeed, it's a dream. A true paladin should face the pain of sacrifice. The departure of a companion is certainly sad, but it is no excuse to vent anger wantonly, much less to point a weapon at a companion."
Looking around at these young knights, Robzek said calmly. Feeling the gazes filled with hatred and anger, his tone did not waver in the slightest: "It should have been you who gave your companion release, but I have done it for you now... Although it's a dream, let me teach you now what it means to respect your elders."
"First, point one: Do not actively raise a sword against an elder."
—Well done.
Seeing this, Joshua nodded. Robzek was indeed very likely to pass this trial on his own without needing anyone's help. However, those young paladins were clearly trials shaped by the Divine Calamity Mist. Their strength was definitely different from real paladins. If Robzek wasn't a bit careful, he might capsize again.
"That's about it. I've figured out the characteristics of this Divine Calamity Mist."
Next, even if he accidentally fell into a dream, Joshua was confident he could clear it quickly. He turned his head to look at the direction shrouded by another patch of black mist: "Next, it's off to the Mage Association to deal with that Erebus Box."
Decision made, action followed. The warrior's gaze seemed to penetrate the surrounding black mist, quickly pinpointing the range. Then, he walked towards the entrance of the Royal Mage Association.
Along the way, the black mist gradually churned, no longer as calm as before. Joshua's act of throwing Muir and Robzek out had clearly angered this Divine Calamity Mist, but since neither had actually left the dream, coupled with the divinity on the warrior, it did not actively attack him.
The Mage Association was entirely constructed from special magical clay and cement, so it was not afraid of the corrosive nature of the black mist. There wasn't even a trace of erosion on the entire building. After entering the Mage Association, Joshua found that the concentration of the black mist had increased another level. A dull pressure came over him. He keenly noticed that the black mist was closer to him. Previously, the diameter of the transparent shield around the warrior was about five meters, but now it was only four and a half.
"The closer to the main body of the divine imprint, the higher the concentration of the mist. The repulsive nature of my divinity will also be counteracted."
This was easy to understand. Joshua wouldn't stop because of this. Following the path that Brandon and Nostradamus had once led him through and told him about, he quickly crossed the hall and corridors shrouded in black mist, entering the spiral staircase leading to the underground laboratory.
Along the way, the black mist surged. In a strange silence, only the warrior's footsteps echoed in the empty corridor. Joshua listened intently but heard no breathing from any living creatures around him, nor did he see any signs of other life fires burning in his vision.
It seemed that almost everyone in the Mage Association had run out, leaving only the group in the Second Underground Laboratory, who were closest to the Erebus Box, unable to escape.
There wasn't much to say about the journey. Due to the protection of spells, all the important things in the Royal Mage Association were not corroded by the black mist. Only some scattered documents and the warrior had turned into a pile of powder and mud. After a while, Joshua arrived at the entrance of the Royal Mage Association's Second Underground Laboratory.
At this point, the shield around the warrior was less than half a meter thick. The thick black mist was like liquid ink, surging like a tide. If Joshua couldn't judge the range and surrounding environment through his Heart Eye, he wouldn't be able to see the direction clearly at all, and naturally wouldn't find the target.
"It seems this is the place."
Muttering to himself, judging by his Heart Eye, the warrior walked straight in.
Inside the door, seven weak life fires were flickering. Clearly, these were the seven mages studying the Erebus Box. Their life fires were extremely weak, as if they could die at any moment, sustained only by a few flickering runes. Joshua could vaguely sense that, except for one old mage, the expressions of the other mages were pained, as if suffering some torment in their dreams. Their chances of passing the trial seemed low. That old mage should be Hasu, whom Nostradamus mentioned. He seemed similar to Robzek, having already found a way to solve the dream trial.
And at the very center of the entire research room was a huge protective shield made of white crystal. There was a tiny, almost imperceptible crack on this shield. Endless black mist was gushing out from this small crack like a submarine volcanic eruption.
Undoubtedly, the center of that shield was the source of this incident, the location of the Erebus Box. But Joshua couldn't be bothered with it right now. The warrior's purpose in entering the black mist was first to save people, at least ensuring these mages didn't die from the corrosive mist.
He could solve the Divine Calamity Mist anytime, but he didn't know how long it would take. If any of these seven mages died while he was dealing with things midway, it would be a hassle. So Joshua walked towards these seven people, preparing to take them away first and throw them out of the mist.
But halfway there, the warrior stopped.
He turned his head, looking towards the direction of the white crystal shield. Joshua squinted his eyes and said in a low voice: "Such a faint divinity, and it can still condense into consciousness?"
"As expected of... the God of Luck. Even in a fallen state, it can have such good fortune."
Just as the warrior was muttering to himself.
A huge, sturdy, two-headed shadow vaguely appeared within the white crystal shield.