The Regressed Mercenary’s Machinations

Chapter 655

"Piote seems similar."

Divine power is largely innate. Increasing it after reaching adulthood is almost impossible.

However, Piote had shown rapid growth in divine power after arriving in the Fenris territory.
It wasn’t just the quantity of divine power that increased; its purity had reached a level incomparable to that of other priests.

There was only one plausible explanation.
"The ‘Choice.’" It was most likely due to that, though no one could be certain. There was no other reason that made sense.

Piote had cultivated his divine power by continuously engaging in acts of self-sacrifice. Until now, he had only been a low-ranking priest at the temple.

Now, Deneb was exhibiting a similar transformation.
Of course, it was unclear whether this change was due to some act of virtue or another reason entirely.

"I’ll have to watch more carefully."

Teaching Deneb mana alchemy wasn’t an option. Divine power and mana were inherently incompatible forces.
Thus, Eileen decided to allocate resources to Deneb in proportion to the village’s size.

This time, the villagers humbly bowed their heads. The resistance that had previously lingered in their hearts was gone.

Instead, they now repeatedly bowed their heads in gratitude toward the two individuals.

"Thank you. Thank you."
"We will never forget this kindness."
"Please forgive us for our sins."

Julien and Deneb graciously accepted their thanks. Their faces were filled with the satisfaction of having helped those in need.

Kyle, however, stood with his sword resting on his shoulder, his lips pouting as he stood stiffly. On his shoulder, Dark squinted his eyes, matching Kyle's pointed stance.

Ghislain stroked his chin, looking intently at the two.
"I’ll need to test this when I get another chance."

If his hypothesis was correct, Deneb wouldn’t have to worry about death. If his intuition proved accurate, Deneb would grow even stronger in the future.

Ghislain and his companions began their journey on an empty road. They had no specific destination—wandering the world to gain experience and knowledge was their only goal.

Ghislain asked Julien,
"You said you wanted to grow strong to protect the world. Don’t you have a more specific plan?"

"Well, Astion said he’d handle the planning…"
"…That’s pretty reckless, don’t you think?"
"Strength is what matters anyway. If we’re weak, it doesn’t matter what plans we have. We’re just doomed hunters if we can’t back it up."

"With your skills right now, you could easily become knights of a small territory."

"We’ve thought about that, but we’d be stuck in one territory. We wouldn’t be able to help people…"

Julien glanced at Deneb.
Regardless of their circumstances, they were wandering priests. Unless the church allowed them to settle, they couldn’t officially take root in any territory.

There was no issue with priests like them constantly moving. If anything, it gave them more freedom to seek out places where their holy power was needed.

Though many would take notice if Deneb were to settle in one place, they had decided to remain where they were most needed.

Ghislain had no concrete plans.
"So you’re saying you just want to keep wandering around and getting stronger?"

Being tied down to a single territory wasn’t the right fit for Deneb either. Ghislain found it strange that they were discussing becoming knights when that wasn’t even an option.

"Do you like him?"

Though Julien didn’t explicitly show it, Ghislain could tell. Why else would he follow Deneb so determinedly, promising to protect him?

The thought made Ghislain curious enough to ask Julien directly.
But Julien only had a vague dream: to become strong and save the world alongside Deneb.

That wouldn’t do.

Getting stronger was important, but so was building a foundation. Astion probably had a plan. Ghislain figured he might as well help out a bit.

He decided he’d help Julien establish a small base sometime soon.

As someone who valued the importance of information, Ghislain regularly asked the group for practical updates whenever they had time.

The state of the world they described was grim.

"Every land seems to be falling apart."
"…Especially the small territories. They don’t even have resources to survive."
"Most people are living because they can’t afford to die."

Greedy nobles wrung every ounce of life from their subjects, rebellions and looting spread like wildfire, and monsters roamed in packs, preying on humans wherever they went.

It was a chaotic, lawless era. And all of it stemmed from the Rift.

The terrible monsters that poured forth during every surge left nothing but devastation in their wake.

The world had fallen apart and rebuilt itself countless times. Thousands of years—perhaps tens of thousands—of this endless cycle.

No wonder people were weary.

Immediate gratification and profit had become the norm. People trampled on the weak to survive.

Only the strong survived. And the world had cynically accepted this harsh truth.

Even those who knew better despised the weak. The world had become fiercely competitive.

In such a world—

Julien’s eyes shone as he spoke.
"I want to change the world."

His voice carried sincerity.
It wasn’t a fleeting wish but a deep, burning desire for change.

Julien wanted to stand on the side of the weak and break the chains of greed and violence that choked the world.

He wanted to protect the powerless, establish justice, and build a new order.

A world where the Rift, the nobles’ greed, the raiding enemies, and the monstrous attacks would vanish.

A world where everyone could protect these ideals and live respecting one another.

He genuinely wished to create such a world.

Deneb shared Julien’s dream once again.
“Let’s just keep living like this together,” she said.

The two exchanged smiles, fully aware of how far-fetched their dream was.

Still, they desperately wanted to achieve it. That was why they endured the hardships of helping others.

Ghislain couldn’t dismiss their dream.

The darker the night, the brighter the stars shine. Conversely, for stars to shine brightly, they must be surrounded by absolute darkness.

In this dark world, the two were like flames. One day, they would achieve their dream.

"...And... Ghislain knew that. That’s why he couldn’t bring himself to say anything against it."

“Argh!”

Ghislain’s staff came down on Julien’s head. He squinted mockingly at Julien, his eyes narrowing.

“If you’ve got time to spout nonsense about dreams, focus on practical skills. Do you really think you can save the world when you’re this weak?”

“...Yeah…”

Julien scratched his head. He knew better than anyone how impossible it was to achieve his dream.

He felt annoyed as he looked at Ghislain. At his current level, such a feat was out of reach.

Astion had tried to instill confidence, telling him it was possible.

From where Dark sat on Ghislain’s shoulder, the familiar chimed in with a dry remark.
“Yeah, dreaming big without the skills to back it up just gets you killed early. Don’t stick your neck out.”

Dark, too, had seen the future alongside Ghislain. He knew that Julien and Deneb would ultimately achieve their dream.

But it would come at a great cost. That was why neither of them spoke too freely about it.

Dark whispered to Ghislain in his mind.
“Master, you’re not going to tell them now, are you?”
“No.”

“Then who’s going to save the world? Are we just going to leave it be? Should the two of us do it instead?”

Collapse.

The longer Ghislain stayed in this place, the more his head throbbed.

To save the world, the two of them would have to die. Or perhaps the Saintess would become an existence neither living nor dead.

And yet, saving the world was the only way to ensure the future Ghislain envisioned.

If the world fell, Montana, the kingdom, and the Ferdium family would all be destroyed.

Ghislain looked back at Dark, his expression conflicted.

“You said it wouldn’t work, didn’t you?”
“Yeah, I just need to get stronger. But those two? They’re too naive.”

“...Naive?”

“Julien’s got a few screws loose. He’ll do something stupid and get himself killed. And all this talk about saving the world? It’s nonsense. When someone like that dies, they just die. That’s all there is to it.”

For realists, Dark’s perspective made sense. And yet, for some reason, Ghislain couldn’t deny the truth in Astion’s seemingly nonsensical words.

Ghislain furrowed his brows in pity. He didn’t want those kind souls—no, those two kind souls—to save the world at the cost of their lives.

But he couldn’t tell them not to save the world, either.
So, there was only one solution.

Smack!

“Ow! Why’d you hit me again—”

Julien stumbled back, clutching his head, as Ghislain spoke in his usual indifferent tone.
“Hey. Just get strong enough to survive, even stronger than what I’ve seen.”
“What? What are you even talking about?”

Ghislain tilted his head slightly and said,
“I’ll teach you proper swordsmanship and mana alchemy.”

He started by observing their sword techniques and then began teaching them the basics of both combat and mana alchemy.

Ghislain instructed Deneb lightly, offering her only what was necessary.

He focused on teaching group combat strategies and basic swordsmanship to the trio, and they quickly became absorbed in the lessons.

“Whoa... There’s swordsmanship like this?”

“With this, I feel like I can get stronger fast!”
“Mana alchemy is amazing. It gathers mana so quickly!”

The three were thrilled. Despite their complaints, they began to think it was fortunate Ghislain had taken over Astion’s body.

Once they’d grasped the basics of their new techniques, Ghislain spoke.
“Now, we’ll move on to training that feels as real as an actual battle.”
“Can’t we just keep practicing when we have time?”
“…No.”

Whack!

Ghislain’s staff flew at the trio. That day, the three were beaten senseless, leaving them bruised and crying as if caught in a rainstorm.

The next day, the trio faced Ghislain’s relentless training again, taking hits at every opportunity. Even in their sleep, they were woken up to face his staff. It got to the point where even the staff seemed to feel wronged by how much it was used.

Of course, they didn’t just take the beatings passively. Whenever they had the chance, they retaliated, charging at Ghislain.

Thud! Thud! Thud!

Each time, they ended up sprawled on the ground after being struck down.
“This isn’t training—it’s abuse!” Kyle shouted in desperation, only to be struck unconscious by Ghislain’s staff.

“Sorry, but if you don’t want to die later, then train until you feel like you’re dying now,” Ghislain said with a bitter smile.

He genuinely wanted to help them grow stronger. He had merely adjusted the intensity of the training.

“If you’re planning to save the world, you’ll need to be unbelievably strong.”

Ghislain’s determination was absolute. He would shape them into warriors capable of surviving.

Even if it meant they hated him now, survival was the priority.

“Alright! I’m leaving you guys and going to train on my own! It was fun while it lasted. Bye! Take care!” Julien shouted.
“Nope. Get back here.”
Thwack!

Even when Julien tried to leave, frustrated, Ghislain forced him back into training.

“This is ridiculous! And get out of Astion’s body already!” Julien yelled, gripping his sword in anger.
“Not happening,” Ghislain replied.
Whack!

Titles like "Hero" and "Saintess" meant nothing in this training. Ghislain mercilessly drilled them, pushing them beyond their limits.

It was only then that the trio began to realize what kind of entity had taken over their companion’s body.

“He’s a demon! A demon has possessed Astion’s body!”
“Goddess, please save us!”
“We’re doomed! We’ve been captured by a sadistic devil!”

As the trio begged for relief, Ghislain focused entirely on how to make them stronger.

He contemplated how to prepare them without pushing them too far.

A full-scale battle would be too much at this point.

For now, getting them to master the new swordsmanship and mana alchemy techniques was the priority.

To achieve that, the best method was to beat it into their bodies, forcing their reactions to develop naturally.

And so, the trio trained relentlessly, their bodies and minds constantly pushed to their limits. Despite their exhaustion, the intensity of the training drastically improved their speed and reflexes.

“Well, maybe I’ll go easy on them today.”

As they traveled endlessly, they finally approached a small town. For a change, Ghislain decided to let them rest at an inn.

When they reached the outskirts of the town, Kyle’s eyes lit up, and he bolted toward the gate guards.
“Guards! Guards! Have you seen my friend—”
Thwack!

Ghislain struck Kyle down without hesitation and sighed as he looked at the unconscious body.
“Relax. I’m just doing this for your own good, so you’ll get stronger.”

Before Kyle lost consciousness, he mumbled with his last bit of strength,
“Just... kill me already...”

Ignoring him, Ghislain walked forward without missing a step. Julien and Deneb exchanged nervous glances before hurrying to follow him.

When they reached the inn, Ghislain smiled slightly.
“You’ve worked hard, so let’s rest. Resting is also part of training.”

“...Fine,” Julien and Deneb replied, nodding wearily.

Rest was indeed important. Ghislain planned to use the opportunity to pause the training and experiment with some lingering suspicions.