When all the things that Lilith wanted to relay were said and done, the meeting was adjourned. Melina was extremely happy right after she found all the names of her friends on the list. Nayta was happy for her daughter and that their relatives were safe too.
"Then, since I've finished everything I need to do here, I'll return first," Lilith said before using a Return Stone and vanishing in an instant.
As Ein's aide, Lilith is also supplied with mana from the dungeon. When she used her teleportation spell to hurry to Ein's side, it was equivalent to splurging hundreds of thousands of DP in an instant. Ein didn't know this, though, and Lilith didn't bother to explain. As they say, ignorance is bliss.
To make up for her sudden use of mana, she planned to make the farming plan more successful instead.
After that, the days passed peacefully.
Since Lilith already captured the biggest criminal organization hidden inside the city, the other smaller ones decided to either lay low or just leave the city. As a result, neither thieves nor assassins visited the inn anymore.
The whole week, Sophia kept visiting the orphanage and the church and distributing food to the slums. She even had a few small meetings with the city administrators regarding job opportunities for the poorest of the poor.
It was a busy week, but fulfilling nonetheless.
One sunny day, before Sophia finished preparing to go out, a messenger arrived, telling her that the caravan from her territory would arrive shortly. After hearing the news, she commanded the messenger to pass the message to Count Jurim.
When the messenger left, Sophia gave out a few more orders to her maids, commanding them to finish what was on her itinerary for the day.
As Sophia's entourage was busily moving about, Ein and the two were leisurely sipping tea. While they were enjoying their break time, the three of them simultaneously turned their heads to the west.
"What's that?" Ein wondered.
It was a weird sensation that he hadn't felt before. Like warm, sticky air touching his skin, it was quite unpleasant.
"This mana signature... Don't tell me, the Paladins?" Nayta guessed, a deep frown adorning her face.
"Paladins? You mean, like those chosen ones of the church that fight for their God?"
Even back in his world, paladins existed. They had power that could resist the monsters, which is different from those like Ein, who drank Elixirs to be able to fight.
Despite their power, though, they didn't participate in pushing back the waves of invading monsters and instead chose to stay cooped up in their small territory.
"Yes," Melina responded from the side. "And to add to that, they're not friendly towards demi-humans like us..."
Ein could roughly guess what the situation with the demi-humans and the church is. Since ancient times, the church has loved to prosecute those it deems disbelievers.
"So you mean, the church here is pro-humans only?"
Ein thought back to the church that they visited almost every day. The nuns and priests there were friendly towards them, and even the children played with the two elves often.
As if reading what was on Ein's mind, Nayta shook her head.
"No, the church here is the Church of Creation, which worships both the Benevolent God and the Demon God as equal deities. However..."
Nayta took a peek at Ein's expression as if gauging if she could continue. Even now, she was still of the opinion that Ein was either the incarnation of the Demon God or the Demon God himself. What she was about to say next could be taken as blaspheming the Demon God.
"It's fine." Ein nodded, figuring out what Nayta was thinking of. "I don't mind what others think of the Demon God (since I'm not even sure if we're the same)."
Since Ein gave his permission (?) to Nayta, she quickly resumed her narrative.
"However, the church of the Paladins we felt should be from the Church of Purity. They do not believe the creation myth and claim that there's only one God, and it was their God."
"Furthermore, they claim that only the [pure and unblemished] humans can join their cause. Any races besides humans are of malign birth and shouldn't be shown mercy."
"They've caused countless wars with demi-humans in the past. The amount of blood both sides have shed was so much that even after the non-interference treaty between human and demi-human races was placed, their hatred for each other didn't diminish."
Ein got to thinking after hearing what Nayta said. In summary, the Church of Purity and the demi-humans are mortal enemies. If not for the treaty, they would be going after each other's throats.
Furthermore, it had been a week since the talk with Count Jurim. Given the timing, those Paladins should have come together with Sophia's father's entourage.
"It seems like the trade this time wouldn't go as smoothly as we hoped."
Bringing anti-demi-human paladins to trade with elves is like bringing a bomb to the airport. There's no way it would end peacefully. Ein sighed, fearing for what was to come.
...
Outside the west gate of Jurim City, a long caravan was resting. The carriages carry various types of goods, from fabric to pottery. A military official was going down each carriage to check on the condition of the goods.
"Looks like there's no problem with the goods. Great work everyone! You may rest until our departure tomorrow morning!"
The official announced it, earning cheers from the crowd. With permission given, everyone started heading inside the gates to rest. Only the minimum number of guards was left to protect each carriage.
"Sir Gawain, I'm off to report to Miss Sophia. Do you wish to come with me?" The official asked the large man in golden armor riding a large battle horse.
"..."
The golden-armored knight that the official called Sir Gawain was staring towards the city in displeasure.
"I can feel the presence of impure beings inside the city..." he said as he placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. His sharp blue eyes were staring far and beyond, as if he could "see" the impurities he claimed.
"Sir Gawain! By order of the church, you are only here to observe. Please do not cause any trouble!" the official said in a strict tone.
"..." Gawain stared into the official's eyes. The official wasn't afraid at all and returned the stare. After a few seconds of standstill, Gawain let go of his sword and disembarked his war horse.
"Fine. Let me accompany you, General Frost."
"Good. Then, let's go." The official, who was called General Frost, quickly led the way into the crowded city.
...
"Mr. Rain, we are about to meet General Frost, a subordinate of my father and the leader of this trade. Please come." Sophia, with a serious face, quickly requested Ein, who was still seated while enjoying his teatime.
"Of course, milady. At your service." Ein acted theatrically, standing up from his seat and bowing down like a loyal butler.
Sophia just smiled at this action. It was a repeating joke of sorts by Ein to loosen the atmosphere. Sophia, who felt less nervous after his comedic gesture, whispered her thanks before heading off toward the private room of the inn.
Sophia was seated on one of the sofas facing the door, with Nayta, Ein, and Melina standing in a line behind her. This arrangement was the usual lineup for them to protect Sophia.
Soon, three sets of footsteps were heard echoing from the hallway. Other than the one with light steps, probably an employee of the inn, the other two were heavy. It was obvious that they were wearing some heavy armor.
Soon, the footsteps reached the door, and a knock came.
"Enter," Sophia calmly replied.
When the door opened, the employee quickly got out of the way as two bulky guys entered the room. One was a blonde man with blue eyes wearing full-plated golden armor. The other was a red-haired man with red eyes and a red handlebar mustache wearing a more traditional half-plate armor, but his presence was stronger than the gold one.
"Miss Sophia, General Leo Frost, hereby greets you as ordered by Count Auxburn. It's been a while." The man wearing the half-plate armor introduced himself.
"Welcome, General Frost. I've been expecting you. It sure had been a while since we last met; was it during my debutante ball?" Sophia returned his greeting with poise before turning her head to the other one. "And the other gentleman over there is?"
"..."
Despite hearing her question, the golden knight didn't answer. He was squinting his eyes as he stared straight at Ein.
"Sir Gawain?" General Frost asked from his side. However, there's still no response.
Soon, Gawain's eyes widened in surprise before he suddenly started sweating like a waterfall. He trembled as he took three unsteady steps backward before drawing his beloved sword.
"Y-You! What the hell are you?!" Gawain shouted frantically at Ein. "You, your mana isn't something of this world! It's not an amount a single being should be able to hold!"
He quickly raised his sword in a high stance, its tip pointed down towards Ein. His grip, despite shaking out of fear, was firm.
"I, Sir Benedict Gawain, the 1st Paladin of the Church of Purity, hereby deem you as a dangerous being! I will eliminate you here and now for the peace of this world, you Demon God!"