Chapter: 211

Patricia’s weight was almost identical to his memory. Ivan nodded slightly as he calculated the weight of Patricia on his back.

Incredible self-management. The last time he had carried her was almost 10 years ago, and even then she was not in a state weakened by breaking through the Demon Realm. Maintaining such weight during peaceful times is…

“What are you thinking about!”

“About your weight.”

The Saint suddenly hit the back of Ivan’s head. There was no shock. Even if she struck with all her might, Ivan’s body was not fragile enough to be harmed by the arm of an adult woman who had no holy power or mana left.

Instead, he glanced at the entourage trailing behind them.

“Haek— Hoo—!!”

Isabelle, Ecdysis, and Oscar were relatively fine, but Elpheira was stumbling along with a pale, sickly face.

“Just— just let me rest for a moment— Haek—!!”

They were now sprinting through the forest. The forest, widely spread along the northern border of Leonor, was a desolate wilderness with no tenant farmers in sight.

They had to dodge thick roots and branches that stuck out haphazardly. There was no path. Aside from the direction of the train tracks, it was a solitary forest without a single stop.

It was only natural for Elpheira, who could barely run with her body enhanced by magic, to be the first to collapse in such an area.

“Isn’t it said that Elves can run well in the forest?”

“That’s— what— we’re a sea people— Haek—!!”

At Ecdysis’s words, Elpheira was about to explode in anger but bit her tongue and let out a yelp. She was gasping for breath as she started to stagger.

Tsk, Ivan clicked his tongue and stepped back in the order. As Isabelle slowed her pace upon seeing his action, Ivan shook his head and said briefly.

“Don’t stop. Keep running.”

“Do you realize that your training method is problematic, Uncle?”

Ignoring Isabelle’s grumbling, he grabbed Elpheira by the scruff of her neck. With a kek sound, Elpheira was lifted and dangled from Ivan’s arm.

“Huh!? That’s cheating! I’m struggling too!”

“If you collapse, Ecdysis will carry you.”

“Why only me!”

“One arm has to be left free.”

With the Saint on his back and Elpheira in his left arm, he couldn’t carry anyone else with his right arm. Ivan picked up speed again, moving toward the front of the line.

Oscar, maintaining his composure while controlling his breath, calmly asked.

“What’s the plan?”

“Combat at the forest entrance.”

“Will they charge at us?”

“Once they exit the forest, it leads directly to the coffin road. Since surprise attacks have no meaning from that location onwards, they will likely want to settle the matter before we reach it.”

As Ivan continued speaking, he quickly lowered his head.

Bang—!!

Gunfire echoed from the distance within the forest. A sniper was aiming for the Saint. Following the warning of his lateral perception, Ivan ducked down while running, stretching out his right arm.

Click, Bang—!!

Without changing his sprinting posture or speed, he discerned the opponent’s position the moment the gunfire rang out and responded with fire. He shot two more rounds in the direction of the sound before holstering his pistol again.

With his hearing enhanced to its limit by mana, he heard a short scream. It wasn’t a death blow, but it surely caused an injury.

The distance to walk to the entrance of the forest was three days. He aimed to reduce that to a day and a half. Since the standard for walking distance was a regular pace, sprinting at a knight’s level of effort could shorten it even further.

Another full day until he reached Ebron, the capital of Leonor. This time he based it on a flat land sprint.

If he could find horses in Ebron, they could charge through western Lorensia for two days. Even assuming they switched horses once mid-way, it would be sufficient.

Bang—!!

Responding directly to gunfire from another direction, he quickly sketched lines on the mental map that unfurled in his mind.

If they could cross western Lorensia in two days, it would lead them to the Papal Enclave.

In other words, they could reach the Papal Enclave within five days… or at most six. Setting aside a day as a buffer for potential variables, it wouldn’t be difficult to align the days with the Council.

Traveling such distances in this amount of time was something he had already done. Back then, the terrain was even harsher, and they had to manage more personnel.

It was possible. As long as these folks could hold out.

They would take turns sleeping for five days, minimize breaks, and rely on nutritional bars for meals. If only the Saint could endure, it would definitely not be a distance that a superhuman couldn’t cover.

And there was no actual combat without threats, which would act as training. Ivan was a rational person who would never miss an opportunity that allows for double gains.

“Diego has been taken down!!”

“Damn, is that guy a monster?”

Luis bit his teeth and loosened his grip on the telescope. Considering how quickly the distance was growing between them, that little guy’s pistol shooting down his subordinates in response seemed unrealistic.

They had been running at the speed similar to a horse’s trot for a few hours now. Just that alone was astonishing, but they were also performing shots at a level of difficulty that was incomparable to horse-mounted shooting, and they were doing it with a pistol.

Just chasing him and occasionally firing suppressive shots was causing casualties among his troops. The non-combat losses were at a serious level.

“Tsk.”

Luis clicked his tongue as he scanned his subordinates. Morale had hit rock bottom. The morale that remained when given orders to kill the Saint was plummeting severely in actual combat.

He internally cursed under his breath.

‘It’s not just some powerless woman…!’

It was an assassination squad that included two knights. Just being mobilized for such a vile task was enough to make one sigh, and yet failure was imminent.

“If they maintain that speed, they’ll leave the forest within two days! Sir Castano, we need a decision!”

“A decision? There are at least four knight-level opponents over there, what kind of decision can be made? Stick to the plan. Lords Otis and Montero, you two head to the entrance of the forest and lead your troops. I will draw them that way.”

“Understood.”

The knights departed. When they inferred the enemy’s route, they were heading directly toward the northwestern plains of Leonor.

In front of them was Norvik Fortress. The fortress located at the northernmost part of Leonor, it was a military stronghold with at least 500 of Count Escalon’s private soldiers.

Since Count Escalon was deploying troops in this area to control civilians, even if they escaped the forest, the operation wouldn’t fail immediately.

“Alright, stick to the plan…”

In the end, all he could do was drain as much stamina from the Saint’s support forces, who were composed of knights.

It was painful to see his meticulously trained elite troops falling one by one, but it was all he could do at the moment…

Feeling an eerie chill running down his spine, Baron Luis de Cartano ran through the forest, tightly gripping his rifle.

“Let’s take a short break.”

“Ugh…”

“Hehuk… Hoo…. Haaah—.”

At Ivan’s gesture, the troupe halted. They nestled under a giant tree trunk, sprawled out and panting.

Ivan tossed the unconscious Elpheira in a corner and carefully set the Saint down. Despite being carried for almost half a day, the Saint was smiling as if nothing had happened.

“It was a nostalgic experience.”

“You’ll need to endure a bit longer.”

“It seems I will have more time to reminisce.”

At the Saint’s words, Ivan chuckled as he handed her a nutritional bar. The Saint’s smile broke for the first time.

Ivan handed the nutritional bar to her and began collecting fallen leaves.

“Um, can we light a campfire? You mentioned something about visibility.”

“Our location is already continuously exposed.”

If they were in a situation where they had to survive in the heart of enemy territory, they should never light a campfire. But now the pursuers clearly recognized their position.

After all, an ambush could happen at any time. It was better to enhance the quality of their rest.

“Let’s rest for 30 minutes and then depart again. I’ll prepare the meal, so you all just rest.”

“Preparing a meal means…”

“If we cook it over the fire, it’ll be easier to eat.”

Ivan quickly took out flint from his belongings and prepared the campfire. His dexterous hands caught Isabelle’s attention as she watched him in a daze.

Crack, Crack. In an instant, flames sprang up. As evening approached, beneath the dimming sky, the red flames illuminated their faces.

Ah, if I could just survive by eating faces, that would be great. Just opening my mouth is a problem, Uncle.

Isabelle grumbled internally as she accepted the nutritional bar Ivan offered her. A strange smell wafted from the sticky, melted surface.

“Ew.”

Ecdysis tearfully bit into the nutritional bar. The sticky, melted pig fat clung to her mouth, making it twice as horrible as usual.

Oscar quietly opened his nutritional bar, while Lucia looked at Ivan’s neck with sad eyes but made an effort to turn away. When Isabelle sighed and took a bite, Ivan stepped forward.

“What is it? You’re eating.”

“Take off your shoes.”

“…Huh?”

Did I hear that wrong? As Isabelle tilted her head in confusion, Ivan seemed to feel it was a waste of time and directly reached out.

“Y-yeah???? What are you doing right now?!”

“Take off your shoes.”

“T-this is sexual harassment! It’s sexual harassment! S-sexual harassment!!”

Since Ivan was a rational person, he ignored Isabelle’s protests. He forcibly grabbed her trembling calf and pulled.

“Huh? E? Eek?!”

Isabelle’s face turned completely red, flailing around. Her pants rolled up, revealing her white ankles. Ivan skillfully untied the straps of her work boots and took them off.

“Ahhh!!!”

“Quiet.”

He unscrewed his canteen and poured clear water over Isabelle’s feet. After checking for blisters, he completed the treatment on both feet and got up.

“Keep your feet out until they cool down. You can put your shoes back on once they’re completely dry. Thirty minutes should be enough.”

“Eh??”

Isabelle’s eyes spun around like a broken toy. When Ivan approached Oscar to do the same, Oscar, with a stern face, took off his shoes and poured water on his feet.

“I’ll do it myself. Sir Yereimov, please help Ecdysis.”

“You, you, you are not helping! You’re feeding me! Uncle! Don’t do it! Don’t do it! I’ll do it! I’ll manage!!”

“Oh, I can handle it. I don’t sweat from my feet.”

Lucia, being a vampire, wouldn’t have blisters on her feet. She was an excellent agent who didn’t need treatment. Ivan shook his head and quietly watched Ecdysis pour water on herself before leaving.

The Saint, who had been observing, chuckled.

“Would you like me to do it, brother?”

“You haven’t even walked.”

“I just wanted to receive it, so it’s a pity.”

While gazing at the campfire, the Saint slowly hid her nutritional bar and spoke.

“Do you know why Leonor, Lorensia, and Bellacria supported the Pope?”

“Because they are close to the Papal Enclave.”

“That’s only partially correct. The full answer is that those three countries are at least adjacent to the ‘strong powers.’”

If one of the three countries, Drovian, Tylesse, or Krasilov, was excommunicated due to the outcome of the Council, the three countries closest to it—Leonor, Lorensia, and Bellacria—would be the first to benefit.

“In fact, the King of Leonor was gathering troops in this area. Though he was avoiding conspicuous movements while waiting for the Council to convene, he was openly mobilizing military resources.”

“Hm.”

“In contrast, the southern nations such as Albina, Equitania, and Elsloth have not responded significantly. Even though they would be influenced by the Papal Enclave, they are positioned in a way that doesn’t provide them any substantial reason to oppose strong powers.”

“Does that mean they will help us?”

“If the Council ends with my excommunication, there will not be a split amongst the Church’s internal views; then yes, that’s likely.”

The Saint covered the nutritional bar with leaves and dusted her hands.

“If Leonor, Lorensia, and Bellacria follow His Holiness’s opinion, the remaining three countries will lend their hands to me. They would prefer to devour a neighbor rather than confront a strong power.”

“Does that mean the Southern Six Nations will be divided in half?”

“Optimistically, that would be half. In the worst case, I suppose it would be just one.”

“Equitania.”

“Yes, my homeland.”

If the Saint were designated a heretic and excommunicated, Equitania, her homeland, would certainly fall.

“Perhaps I should be glad that at least one nation remains to hide in if all plans fail.”

“There are many variables.”

“I’m not Brother Veolgrin; how can I control all the variables? Hehe.”

“Thus, it’s vital to conserve power better.”

Ivan took out the nutritional bar he was roasting over the campfire and placed it into the Saint’s mouth. For a moment, the Saint shut her mouth and turned her head, but she couldn’t surpass the reflexes and eyesight of a superhuman.

Struggling to chew the bar filled in her mouth, the Saint quietly made the sign of the cross.

“We depart in 10 minutes. The next break will be after 12 hours. Make sure to prepare thoroughly.”

Ivan scanned the party once and settled at the edge, chewing the nutritional bar.

Bang—!!

He tilted his head to avoid a bullet and immediately returned fire while continuing to chew the bar.

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