Valerian, The Legendary

307 Decision & Departure.

Valerian and Valerie came to the Altar hall and sat on the benches after greeting the High Priestess. Valerie, the young and naive child, took the initiative and asked, “Your Grace, why did you summon us?”

Solaria smiled and said, “I called you over to have a discussion, child. Valerian, any idea what the discussion might be about?”

Valerian shook his head calmly. He did have some thoughts but thought it best to keep them to himself. Solaria nodded and said, “A decade or so ago, the saintess decided that the order of the mercy will not follow the path of blindness.”

Valerie wanted to ask something, but Valerian raised his hand to stop her. Solaria continued while she gazed at the mural of Vita, “The path of blindness was a reference to those who performed merciful actions but, in the end, suffered brutally. It was one incident in the eastern continent that changed everything that we believed in.”

She took a deep breath and said, “The tyrant killed all the arch-bishops of the order when they went to him to convince him to stop his quest for world unification as it harmed the world balance.

The Saintess was aggrieved and enraged at the situation. For the first time, anybody saw her like that. So she decided to form a force dealing with the people who harm the followers of mercy. The force was called knights of mercy. They were all gifted people who joined the order when they had nothing else to deal with. These people were handpicked from the many followers after they took and completed the tests.”

Valerian placed his hand down, and the girl asked, “Your grace, what are the tests?”

She had grasped Valerian’s thought process as if she was a little mind reader. Solaria smiled and said, “Out there in the southern continent, people move against us. They do not like us helping those in need. So hunting down those people, that is the test.”

Valerian raised his eyebrow, and Valerie asked, “Who are these people, Your Grace?”

.....

Solaria shook her head and said, “They can be humans or be beasts. It is a group of people that dislike the distinct. They think that loving a being of another race is a sin. A sin that needs to be cleansed.”

Valerian’s eyes turned cold, and he asked, ‘You want me to hunt these people down?’

Solaria nodded and said, “You need a hundred thousand merit points to meet with the Saintess. After two months, you have earned a hundred. Do you think this pace is good?”

Valerian shook his head, and Solaria said, “I would like you to hunt these people. However, there is a condition.”

The young man nodded, and the high Priestess continued, “You must bring your sister along.”

Valerian stood up in surprise. He asked, ‘Your Grace, are you joking? This is a dangerous task, and in such an atmosphere, you want me to bring along a child?’

Solaria nodded and said, “You probably do not understand it yet. Your task is to hunt down these people but not to kill them.”

Valerian cast her a glance in askance, and the lady said, “You will have to contain them, apprehend them, and capture as many of them as you can without killing them. After that, they will be sent to the north every six months and sentenced to hard labor. Just like prisoners would.”

Valerian raised his hand and asked, ‘Why do all this? What difference does it make?’

Solaria said, “The idea is to tell the world that mercy is given to those who deserve it. The temple never intervenes in any conflict outside until it has large-scale implications for a person’s life. However, these people not only inflict the young, but they also harm the followers of mercy.

In the past two months, we have lost seventy lives to these people. Seventy followers of mercy were killed or injured in a way where they could not help others but needed help for even sitting up. When the Saintess asked me why I did not take action, I told her that no one could wear the temple’s red and white habit.”

Valerian was surprised, and Solaria asked, “So, Valerian, do you want to have a shot at meeting the Saintess three months later?”

The young man asked, ‘How many you said I need to catch?’

Solaria said, “As many as you can.”

Valerian thought about it, then looked at Valerie and asked, ‘Would you come with me? The path can be perilous.’

Valerie smiled and said, “I will come. You can also teach me how to fight, as you promised.”

Valerian patted her head, and using his hand, he said, ‘We will see about that.”

The young man turned to look at Solaria and said, ‘I agree, but I have a few conditions.’

Solaria nodded to him, indicating for him to list all of them. The young man said, ‘I would like a protection rune engraved on the habit you provide for Valerie, and she will also be receiving armor.’

The high Priestess nodded and said, “I would have done that without you asking me to.”

Valerian nodded and asked, ‘When do I leave?’

Solaria looked outside the window and said, “At night, you will be provided the details of your target by the church. We have ways to keep tracking these people.”

The young man nodded and said, ‘I have things to pack. I will see you at night, Your Grace.’

Solaria nodded, and Valerian bowed to her slightly before leaving with a young girl in tow. The high Priestess gazed at the mural and said, “Goddess, please bless them.”

...

Valerian and Valerie returned to their room and began to pack their stuff. The girl stayed in his room the entire time. She did not go to the other room that was arranged for her. After a night with her new roommate, she said the lady could not tell stories.

Valerian did not know whether to laugh or cry. So, after the high Priestess spoke up, they became roommates. They did not have much to pack, so they were done relatively quickly, and just as they were about to find the High Priestess, the door was knocked on.

The young man opened the door, and two clergies he had never seen, appeared in his sight. However, these people wore a habit with white sleeves and red torsos. Valerian asked, ‘Who are you, Sirs?’

A man on the left said, “We are here to deliver your uniforms. May Vita bless you.”

The man on the right gave Valerian four sets of habit, two for him and two for Valerie, as they were smaller. The young man thanked them and closed the door. Then he turned around, handed a set to Valerie, and kept one for him with the rest in his magic pouch.

He thought and said, ‘We shall get you a magic pouch so that you can carry some important things with you.’

Valerie nodded like a chicken pecking on grains. Then, the two people changed their clothes individually and met the High Priestess. Valerie knocked on the door, and after a few moments, Solaria opened the door. She smiled and said, “This color looks good on you two.”

Valerie said, “Your Grace, we are about to leave.”

Solaria nodded and joined her hands to mutter a prayer for them under her breath. After she was done, she handed Valerian an envelope and said, “Go. May Vita watch over you.”

Valerian and Valerie greeted her, and under cover of night, they left the high temple. The envelope carried the name and location of his first prey. Valerian held the little girl’s hand as he walked away from the settlement. After they reached a seemingly secluded place, the young man opened the envelope and read the contents of the letter.

The two did not have trouble walking in the dark. One had the vision of a feline, completely unaffected by dark, while the other used mana to enhance his vision. The little girl asked, “Where are we going?”

Valerian said, ‘The first target is located in a small settlement near the Triya river. A small inn there is where we will find him.’

Valerie nodded and said, “That place is seven days away from here on foot.”

Valerian thought of something and said, ‘We need to find a mount to travel or we will be too tired.’

The little girl nodded. Valerian said, ‘Well, despite this continent lacking borders, they do have concentrated settlements. We might be able to find one mount when we leave this place.’

That said he walked ahead and suddenly stopped. Valerie ran into his back and said, “Ow.”

Valerian smiled and rubbed her nose as he asked, ‘Do you want to ride on my shoulder?’

Valerie forgot her pain and opened her eyes wide as she nodded. Valerian picked her up and then after he made sure that the child was settled properly, he dashed forward. A cheering howl echoed in the dark of the night as the two set out to hunt.