-Callia-

  I took a slow breath as I looked back at the limp body of the worm. I easily stored the head, which had rotted off at the point where I stabbed, but the body was much too large. I took some time dragging the carcass from the ground and found the total length to be somewhere around 120 to 130 feet. Considering the size of its base, as a creature, it was most definitely not a normal worm. To grow that big under the influence of levels, it would need thousands, and anything that high level wouldn’t have gotten steamrolled so easily. That was one aspect, but the fact the worm had a hard shell and teeth also suggested a different breed.

  I used my instinctive tracking to locate my escort's body and started whittling away at the flesh with my dagger, trying to cut deep enough to retrieve him. It didn’t take much effort to cut deep enough, but pulling a body through the gap was going to be an absolute pain. I noticed in the distance a team of white-clad knights setting out from the citadel in my direction. Maybe they noticed the fight and were just late in arriving? I moved my focus back to the bloody work of cutting a hole in the worm. My danger sense flared just as I penetrated the inner linings of the stomach. I moved back as acid splashed out, widening the gap and spilling the contents of that portion of the stomach across the ground.

  I’m not sure what I planned to do with the body. Maybe bury it somewhere or send it back to his family in the capital, but it was apparent that in this case there was absolutely nothing left to send home. All that remained was a deformed collapsing chestplate that looked like it had been flattened before being deformed by the acid. The armor itself sat in the puddle of acid that was slowly burning away the dirt, forming a pit. The whole time the acid foamed rapidly, evaporating until it came to a stop about a foot down. Leaving a cleanly chiseled pit in the previously flat stone.

  Looking back at the worm, I noticed the whole thing was steaming as the vapors of acid burned away flesh as it dispersed into the air. As I watched, the paladins finally arrived. They didn’t say much, but I noticed one praying at the pit, and another came up beside me.

  “Paladin Galen,” He offered a hand with the introduction, but an introduction felt wrong after the knight, whom I hadn’t bothered to greet, died the moment I tried the very same just moments ago. I pretended not to notice the hand while giving my own greeting.

  “Ser Callia, though potentially a paladin in the future.” The man nodded solemnly before speaking up again.

  “A chosen then. I’m sorry you had to lose a companion so quickly upon arrival. It’s rare for the worms to bypass the citadel.” He gave a pause before looking at the damage to Shadow Town. “You did well in slaying the beast. The damage could’ve been much worse.” We both stood there in silence looking over the kill as various townsfolk approached with gleaming white tools in hand.

  “Typically the meat and leather are given to the harvesters, and in exchange the worm steel is entrusted to the order, but this is your kill; how it gets divided is your decision.” I remained silent as the townsfolk got to work without asking a question. I guess they didn’t even consider that this one was killed by an outsider. Still, the arrangement given sounded suitable to me. I’m sure Callen would’ve liked some leather for a new glider, but the white metal that the paladins all used seemed even more valuable. I noticed a small chunk being extracted from the stomach and set on a nearby tarp. Whatever the material was, it survived the acid that erased a knight's skeleton in mere minutes. My only complaint would be white not being an optimal color for hunters, but there were solutions to that.

  The skilled team didn’t take long to finish, and I stored the pile of white metal. It wasn’t quite enough to make me a full set of armor, but it wasn’t a shabby amount either.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

  “So how does the whole becoming a paladin process go?” With the workers done and nothing left to do in the stony flatlands, I turned to the paladins who had gathered together to head back to the citadel. They waited as I joined up, and Galen spoke up as we headed off.

  “Initial teachings are led by the priests. If you master controlling your allure, you will be offered three paths. The warrior, which will have you apprenticing under a paladin until you're ready, but considering your takedown of the worm, your apprenticeship would likely be until you’ve learned the basics of the order. Another option is the path of a priest, which specializes in mana, using it in manners similar to a wizard. I’m a paladin, so I’m less familiar with the works of a priest, but when hunting demons, they often use their mastery to suppress the enemy while we engage in battle. Finally, there is the path of the craftsman. Some leave and return to their homes now that the gift no longer threatens the community, and others stay with the order, making our equipment or managing noncombative roles in the temple.”

  I just nodded along passively as we finally made it to the gates. It was certainly an impressive piece of work. A large stone door embedded with seams of the white metal and what sounded like large gears clicking together to force the likely extraordinarily heavy door open. It was an impressive piece of engineering that I had no intention of figuring out. Instead I was far more captivated by the large ornate hall that was illuminated by large chandeliers made of glass and stones that glowed brilliantly. It cast light reflecting around the room, giving the entire hall a feeling of life.

  Galen moved to the side to speak with a lady wearing fine robes. She noticed my watching and smiled enthusiastically as she beckoned me to follow.

  “Greetings, Callia, I’m Rebecca, an assistant to High Priest Norold. He’s the priest in charge of coordinating with the paladins to find and rescue the chosen.” She led us deeper into the main hall towards a large stone dais with a glowing white sphere on a pedestal. As we approached, another lady wearing garments similar to Rebecca's left the hall from a side door. “This orb is a magical tool designed by an enchanter to confirm the possession of the relevant trait. It’s our way of maintaining privacy while confirming the status of those who come. There have been frauds seeking status or prestige as members of the order in the past. The high priest will likely be here shortly to conduct the test. Feel free to take a seat in the meantime.” As she finished her introduction, she stepped away and moved back towards the gate that had finished slowly closing.

  Critical Intel

  Callen bent over awkwardly, tightening the last bolt for Nixie’s new truck when realization hit him. He hadn’t alerted Callia about the pseudo immortality of the elves. The paladin and elf that had left had been focused entirely on the issue of the demon. Which, while important, also meant that nobody had warned the queen. He finished tightening the bolt and sat back on his work stool. The existence of the mana veil shielding the elves wasn’t the kind of issue that most people would pick up on. In fact, he wouldn’t have been able to notice it without his mana sense reaching level 100. On top of that, it required extensive use of his tier four mana skills, mana zone and manifest mana, to suppress and collapse the veils.

  On reflection, if he had to bring any kind of knight to fight an elvish invasion, melee and archers seemed overwhelmingly the better option. Elves were fast but generally weak to a single decisive hit. The AOE of mages was better served fighting soldiers and melee knights. The queen would likely consider this in the assembly of her army. Which meant she was critically lacking the key to actually killing the elves. The army coming from the capital might very well be destined for slaughter because he had been too busy to consider how dire the circumstances were. He turned to Nixie, who had a beaming smile on her face as she investigated her new truck.

  “Hey Nixie, would you be willing to give me another ride? Just realized I missed my chance to tell someone something very important, and Callia isn’t available to deliver the message.” Her expression tightened as she hugged her shiny new truck.

  “Can you fly instead?”

  “Haven’t had time to restock, and it's too far.”

  “Will it be dangerous?”

  “We’re behind enemy lines, and we need to deliver the message to friendly lines, so yes, very much so.” She groaned in despair as the fate of her newly remade truck pressed down on her. Callen decided to give the final blow. “If we break it, I’ll make another when I have time?”

  “Ugh, fine. But you have to break the news of whatever it is to everyone else.” Callen nodded and wearily pushed himself from the stool to break the news while Nixie mournfully rubbed her likely soon-to-perish vehicle.

  “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.