3 bar menu

Volume 7 Chapter 157

The Holy City and Suspicions

Afterward, a group of over a dozen Holy Knights from the Holy City arrived and began collecting the knights who had been attacked by the demons.
We joined this group to travel to the Holy City, and Seira, Elmia, Shin, and I rode together in one of the carriages brought by the Holy Knights.
Here, everyone introduced themselves again, and I learned that Elmia was the captain of the Sanctum’s Holy Knight Order.
Is this alright? The captain of the knight order dressed like that……
She’s not a holy knight, she’s more like a seductive knight.
Elmia took the seat across from me, making it incredibly awkward to know where to look.
Well, I pretended to look forward, but I couldn’t help glancing at her ample cleavage.
By the way, I remember reading in an article from my previous world that women notice when men are looking at their chests.
Suddenly, I looked up and our eyes met.
She had a somewhat proud expression.
It’s as if she’s saying, 『If you want to look at this magnificent body, go ahead』 —-
Feeling frustrated, I averted my gaze.
I managed to divert my gaze from her cleavage, but my attention was now fixated on Elmia’s beautiful legs.
They were really, really beautiful.
Of course, Tina and Refa also have stunning legs, right?
But they usually wear long skirts or robes, so I rarely get a chance to see their legs.
Moreover, in this world, it’s quite rare for women to wear outfits or armor that reveal their thighs so blatantly.
Having the opportunity to see exposed legs like this outdoors is quite precious. So, I can’t tear my eyes away…….
Elmia must definitely be aware of my gaze. She was sitting with her knees together in a very polite manner, but suddenly she crossed her legs.
Oh, ohhh!
I just saw a bit of her panties!
As expected, holy knights wear white underwear.
I get it—-
「Haruto-sama」
「─-!?」
Tina, who was sitting on my left, emitted a cold, quiet killing intent.
「Haruto-san」
Rifa, sitting on my right, had a smile on her face, but for some reason, it was incredibly intimidating.
Unpleasant sweat trickled down my forehead.
Damn it!
It’s mostly—- no, entirely Elmia’s fault……
I looked at Elmia, and she was smiling.
She seemed to be enjoying this situation where I would be scolded by my wives.
……. I’m definitely going to do a 『cruelty play』on her one day.
In my head, I know that Elmia isn’t at fault.
But my heart—- My soul is shouting at me to torture her someday.

　──＊＊＊──

We arrived in the Holy City and managed to get out of the uncomfortable carriage.
In front of the gate leading to the Holy City, there were soldiers dressed differently from the Holy Knights, lined up.
「Holy Maiden, we heard you were attacked by demons. We’re relieved to see you safe」
A man with an imposing aura, clad in expensive-looking attire, stepped forward to welcome Seira and the others.
His words of 『relieved to see you safe』felt like they lacked any genuine concern for Seira.
「Duke Ifel, thank you for coming out to greet us」
Seira politely greeted the man, Duke Ifel, who ruled over the Holy City.
Although Duke Ifel held dominion over the Holy City, Seira was well-liked by the people and nobles alike. Furthermore, being the only person who received divine guidance, her influence was something Duke Ifel couldn’t easily disregard.
It is said Duke Ifel wasn’t pleased by Seira’s popularity and would occasionally make snide remarks to her or the Holy Knights who protected her.
During our journey to the Holy City, Shin had filled me in on such matters.
Seira denied that anything of the sort was happening, but judging by Duke Ifel’s attitude towards her, it seemed evident that he didn’t hold her in high regard.
「Holy Maiden, who are these people?」
Duke Ifel seemed interested in us as we got off the carriage along with Seira.
「They’re the ones who saved my life」
「Nice to meet you. I am Haruto Elnor, the Sage of Glendale」
「Oh, a Sage at such a young age. Thank you very much for aiding our Sanctum’s Holy Maiden this time. We are truly grateful」
Duke Ifel extended his hand, and I shook it.
──Hmm?
For some reason, I felt suspicious about him, so I tried to use mind-reading on him. But something blocked me, preventing me from reading his thoughts.
Could he be wearing an item that protects against mental attacks?
There was one more thing that bothered me—-
I sensed something that felt like a slight aura of the Evil God from Duke Ifel.
However, it was incredibly faint, like one-thousandth of the aura I had sensed from a demon in the Alheim Elf Kingdom.
Perhaps he possessed an item related to the Evil God.
That’s what I thought.
The possibility that Duke Ifel was connected to the Evil God was unlikely.
After all, we were already within the Holy City’s holy barrier.
There’s no way they would allow a disguised demon or devil to enter such a barrier where even demons vanished in an instant.
By the way, Yoko and Shiro were already inside their anti-holy barriers. They seemed to be able to move without any problems within the holy barrier.
In front of Seira’s eyes, Yoko had materialized her tail and fought. She later confessed to being a demon race, and when she mentioned being my contracted demon, Seira allowed her to enter the Holy City.
In this world, there are friendly monster races that have established good relations with humans. The Hobgoblins, evolved from Goblins, and the Onijin, evolved from Ogres, are representative examples.
Among these demon races, some seek help from the Holy Maiden and come to the Holy City.
While they are demons who pose no harm to humans, the holy barrier still rejects them. To accommodate such demon races seeking entry into the Holy City, they are provided with 『Restraining Charms』.
With these charms, even demon races can enter the Holy City without being repelled by the holy barrier. However, their powers and magic are temporarily restricted to those of humans or even lower.
Although Seira offered to prepare the magical tools for Yoko and Shiro, I decided to go ahead with my plan to set up the Anti-Holy Barrier since limiting Yoko and the others’ powers might be problematic in case of emergencies.
「Well then, I’ll take my leave here. Thank you so much for your help. If you encounter any difficulties during your stay in the Holy City, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me」
We entered the Holy City.
Thanks to Seira acting as my guarantor, I was able to get in smoothly.
「I understand. Holy Maiden, please don’t hesitate to let us know if you need anything. We plan to stay here for about a week」
「Yes. If the need arises, I will rely on you」
With a smile and a wave, Seira departed, surrounded by Elmia and the Holy Knights.
I was satisfied with having made a connection with the Holy Maiden. Even with just this, it was worth coming to the Holy City.
However, the main event was tomorrow.
I would negotiate with the Creator God to see if I could be entrusted with the management of the dungeon in the ruins of the Vestier.
If I said I had no anxiety, that would be a lie.
But I had prepared various negotiation materials.
Now, let’s do our best for my first negotiation with a god in my life.