This was an abandoned manor, the former prosperity long gone, with ruins telling of past wealth and present desolation. The once fertile fields were now covered by snow and withered weeds, with most of the low houses and granaries collapsed, and the fences and walls showing signs of damage and disrepair.
Wandering in the wilderness were ghouls and ferocious beasts, as well as terrifying undead. In this dreadful world, if the dead were not buried properly, they would become horrible undead at night, filled with a longing for life and a hatred for the living, wandering the wilds forever.
It was still daytime when a loud noise erupted within the manor.
"Bang!" The sound of something heavy hitting metal echoed through the empty manor, followed by the roars of a beast and the shouts of humans, "Come on! Beast! Taste my power!"
"Careful, Tohru! Don't be reckless!" Another voice shouted, "Teresa, it's heading your way!"
"Got it!" A calm female voice responded, followed by a soft shout, "Frost Spell!"
"Nicely done, now watch this! Holy Judgment!" A flash of white light, and the beast roared in pain.
This finally allowed a glimpse of the situation.
In the barren and ruined fields, three humans were fighting a giant beast.
Leading the group was a man in full plate armor, holding a large square shield in one hand and a standard paladin's longsword in the other. His blond hair and blue eyes glistened with sweat on his forehead, and the white light of divine power continuously flashed as he banged his sword against his shield, "Come on! Beast!!!"
The clanging sound of metal on metal irritated the monster.
Taking advantage of this, a tall man in chainmail and breastplate, the White Wolf Knight, launched a fierce attack on the monster's right flank, each of his strikes causing significant damage to the beast.
"Ryan, watch out for its poisonous tail!" In the distance, a sorceress in black leather armor, holding a staff, moved while chanting spells.
Under her magical guidance, the stones and fallen rubble on the ground began to combine, gradually forming a two-meter-tall golem made of rocks and wood. The golem, covered in a thick layer of frost, staggered towards the monster under her command.
The full form of the monster was revealed to the three of them.
It was a giant creature resembling a lion, with a face as fierce as a wolf's, fiery red mane, huge fangs, and wings covered in sharp spikes. Most notably, its long tail ended in a stinger.
This was the dreaded Manticore!
Even among chaotic creatures, Manticores were known for their extreme ferocity. Innately stubborn and combative, Manticores would fight any enemy to defend their territory. Whether facing giant eagles, griffins, or even dragon kings, Manticores' response was always the same: they would roar and charge at the enemy, engaging in bloody and brutal combat until one was dead. Unless the opponent was vastly superior in size and strength, the victor was often the Manticore. They would stand atop cliffs and roar, proclaiming their strength and resolve.
"Damn it, I didn't expect Manticores to be this tough!" Paladin Alfred cautiously moved sideways, looking for an opportunity to strike.
The Manticore was incredibly agile, always dodging the Paladin's attacks and immediately countering.
The nature of a Paladin's profession meant slow movements and low attack power but good defense. Faced with the Manticore's attacks, Alfred often felt at a disadvantage.
The beast's tail was especially troublesome, constantly swaying near Alfred's head, looking for an opportunity to pierce his helmet. When the stinger deformed and knocked off Alfred's helmet, the Paladin had to carefully retreat to the second line.
Manticore venom was lethal, and ordinary people poisoned by it were almost certainly doomed.
"Tohru, do you want to fall back?" Ryan called out, deftly dodging the stinger and hammering the Manticore back to the ground when it tried to take off. "Don't push yourself; you've already met the criteria for a glorious retreat!"
A glorious retreat, one of the tenets of the Church of Justice.
To address Paladins' tendency to recklessly risk their lives for justice, the God of Justice established this doctrine. When facing enemies with three times their strength or more, retreating was not shameful but honorable, hence the term "glorious retreat."
Since the doctrine was issued, Paladin fatalities had greatly decreased.
"No need, I haven't used my Holy Shield yet!" Alfred shouted.
"Alright, suit yourself." Ryan stopped persuading.
Holy Shield and Holy Light were known as the two signature protective skills of Paladins. As a Paladin advancing to a temple guard, Alfred could use Holy Shield once a day, a divine power from the God of Justice that would protect him in an almost invincible state for about six seconds.
Although Holy Shield wasn't absolute invincibility, it was enough to deal with a Manticore.
The Manticore pounced on Ryan, kicking up dust and snow. Ryan easily rolled aside, then charged and hammered the Manticore's front paw, immediately dodging the stinger's retaliation.
"Ice Spear!" Teresa quickly formed a long ice spear in the air and sent it hurtling toward the Manticore.
The Manticore dodged, but the frost golem seized the opportunity to grab it tightly.
Ryan began to gather his strength.
The Manticore struggled with all its might, its sharp teeth and claws soon tearing the makeshift golem apart. The stinger on its tail repeatedly struck the golem, chipping away at it.
Soon, the golem's arms and head were nearly detached, and it was losing control over the Manticore.
But that was enough.
"Frost Nova!" Teresa shouted, and the golem suddenly emitted a thick cloud of freezing mist, causing the Manticore to howl in pain. It struggled to break free, but the golem, under the sorceress's control, held on tightly.
Gradually, the Manticore's movements slowed as it froze, while the golem crumbled into rocks and wood.
"Holy Shock!" Alfred's longsword glowed with white light, and he struck a deep wound in the Manticore's back.
Next came Ryan's attack. His war hammer, glowing gold, smashed into the Manticore's head.
Skull Crusher!
Sensing the imminent danger, the Manticore managed to shake off the freezing effect just in time. It turned its head, enduring Ryan's heavy blow to its shoulder, and lunged at Alfred, its stinger aimed at the Paladin's head.
With old strength spent and new strength not yet gathered, coupled with the inherently slow reflexes of a Paladin, Alfred immediately activated his divine spell.
A golden ring enveloped Alfred, with countless glowing runes swirling around him. The Manticore's fierce attack was completely blocked by this mystical energy, unable to penetrate the golden protection no matter how hard it tried.
Protected by Holy Shield, Alfred adopted a fearless fighting style, each strike of his longsword leaving deep wounds on the Manticore. Soon, the beast slowed due to severe blood loss and injuries, entering a near-death state.
Ryan smirked.
Holy Shield was indeed invincible in such situations. During its active period, Paladins maximized its value with their aggressive tactics, often earning this state the nickname "eternal charge."
Ryan didn't need to intervene further; the battle was over.
Teresa arrived, standing just outside the Manticore's reach. She raised her staff and unleashed a chilling frost that slowly encased the beast in ice. Alfred then severed the Manticore's head with a single strike, and Ryan arrived to cut off its tail.
"Done! We've kept this thing's body pretty intact. Lady Dieterinde should pay us well for it!" Ryan said with a smile.
"Wrap it up!" The golden ring around Alfred vanished as he sheathed his sword, strapped his shield on his back, and stretched. "It's been years, Ryan. I didn't expect you'd become this strong."
"How could I be your friend if I weren't strong?" Ryan retorted, putting away his war hammer. "You've gotten stronger too, Tohru."
"Of course. How else would I be worthy of being friends with 'Hammer' Ryan?" Alfred laughed.
The two men exchanged a look, feeling a deep bond of mutual understanding.
The sorceress rolled her eyes, wondering if these men boasting about each other didn't make them sick.
"Ahem, we've completed the kill. The Manticore is down. It's getting late; let's head back, Ryan? Al...fred?" Teresa tried to look pleasant.
Although the sorceress didn't like Paladins, Alfred was Ryan's friend and childhood companion, so she felt it necessary to be polite.
"To be honest, Ryan, I'm surprised you called me for this job," Alfred said, sitting on the ground, panting. "But it's good; it fulfilled a wish of mine."
"A wish?"
"Yes, actually, when we entered the city, Mrs. Nora stopped us on the street once. But she couldn't pay the fee, even our minimum. So, sadly, we had to tell her we couldn't do it. You know, Ryan, Manticores aren't like ghouls or goblins that we can easily deal with. We couldn't risk our lives for nothing."
"The children surrounded us, begging us to help Mrs. Nora, but we could do nothing. It was awful," Alfred said despondently. "Sometimes I wonder, as Paladins, aren't we supposed to help the weak? But I've faced this situation many times."
"Ah, Tohru, you must understand that manpower is limited and valuable," Ryan said as he sat down, looking at the dusky sky and sighing. "If justice requires no cost, does justice itself hold any value? If you don't respect order, does the existence of order still have meaning?"
"I know that too, and if there are no costs involved, the power of Paladins can be easily exploited by those with ill intentions..." Alfred quickly recovered, stood up, and brushed the snow and mud off his pants, regaining his cheerful demeanor. "That's enough. Let's head back!"
"You two go ahead. I still have something to take care of," Ryan said, indicating he had personal matters to attend to. "It's something personal, and you don't need to get involved."
"Personal business? What do you have to do in this abandoned manor at night?" Teresa was puzzled, her beautiful face full of curiosity. "And why alone? Didn't we agree to face things together?"
"This is different. It's a personal matter, and I need some private space, okay?" Ryan shook his head, clearly not wanting them to continue.
"You..."
"Alright, alright, Miss Terovec, since Ryan doesn't want us involved, let's head back first!" Alfred intervened, giving the sorceress an out. Teresa reluctantly gave Ryan a look, her lips pursed. "Will you be back for dinner?"
"No," Ryan replied, walking deeper into the manor. The sorceress reluctantly used her spatial ring to store the Manticore's body and headed back to Miodon Haven with the Paladin.
The manor's interior was severely dilapidated. It was clear that after being abandoned, few thieves or scavengers visited, possibly deterred by the Manticore. Ryan walked up a sloping path towards the collapsed manor house.
Manors like this were common in Nordland, typically consisting of a large house or castle surrounded by fields, farmhouses, pastures, and woodlands. In most cases, manors were self-sufficient. Surplus goods could be traded with other manors to make up for deficiencies. Generally, a manor would house ten or more tenant families, dedicated to providing for the manor lord's living and production needs.
Tenants varied. Some had more favorable arrangements and partial property rights, while others were no better than serfs, giving up 70-80% of their yield and taking care of the manor lord's daily needs.
Emperor Charlemagne himself was born a tenant. This founder of the human empire had herded cattle, farmed, chopped wood, and mucked out stalls in his youth. Not ashamed of his humble beginnings, Charlemagne's rise from tenant to emperor inspired countless poor farm boys to venture into the world bravely.
However, the house that now appeared before Ryan was severely damaged. The door and walls had many large holes, and the roof had completely collapsed, revealing the smashed furniture and flooring inside. Snow had also accumulated within the house.
"This definitely fits the definition of an abandoned manor. Mrs. Nora will have a lot of work to do if she wants to move back in," Ryan muttered to himself.
In fact, as long as the monsters were cleared and relative safety ensured, Nora could rebuild the manor with the help of the Church of Life. As for tenants, there were plenty of landless farmers desperate to survive. Recruiting tenants wasn't hard; they just needed food and shelter.
But that wasn't the point. The point was... the ancient saint's relic was here!