Trafford's Trading Club

Chapter 1576: Chapter 303: Another Mission

As he hadn’t had dinner, Vasco picked up a hamburger and started munching as soon as he returned to the apartment—this extremely elderly Knight of the Holy Church, as he claimed, was not a picky eater, even though the hamburger in hand was actually one of the burgers his young subordinate had already eaten earlier.

“Sir, there’s a fresh one here…” the young knight subtly suggested after having his portion eaten.

Vasco seemed not to hear, casually taking the young knight’s cola as well and drinking a few gulps, then wiping the sauce and grease from his lips with his hand. “What’s the status on those people I asked you to investigate?”

The young knight hurriedly delivered his report.

In the recent months, the Holy Church had been persistently searching for traces of the Black Religious Congregation—though the Congregation had always been extremely secretive about their whereabouts.

They lurked in the darkness, constantly prepared to bring disaster upon the Holy Church. The reason for coming to this small town was because they had found clues that might lead them to the Congregation’s trail—originally the task of a few young paladins, Vasco had suddenly joined later, purpose unknown.

“The investigation is complete.” The young knight organized his thoughts and slowly began, “As we suspected, these people indeed knew the Prime Minister of Britannia when they were students at Saint Andrews University… Of course, at that time, the former Prime Minister was just an ordinary student.”

Vasco nodded, beginning to organize the intelligence that the Holy Church had gathered so far.

A few weeks ago, there was a severe Non-Human case in the capital of Britannia, which led to a city-wide riot—the incident was instigated by beastmen, eventually resolved with the intervention of The Magician Association.

The memories of ordinary people were washed away by a memory-forgetting rain, but Non-Humans remain unaffected… there are no impenetrable walls in the world, so the riot in the Fog Capital quickly became known in the Non-Human world by the next day.

Vasco extracted some photographs from the file materials… the photos showed several warriors wearing peculiar exoskeleton battle armor… The Fianna, the Finnian Warrior Group.

This warrior group was personally created by Britannia’s Prime Minister to counteract the traditional Knight Agency as a secret weapon… yet despite the enormous human and material resources expended to create The Fianna, it was easily defeated during a battle against the contemporary Beast King, Caesar.

What’s more, the Prime Minister even lost his life during this disaster… regarding the cause of death, Britannia’s official channels did not disclose anything—but what truly concerned the Holy Church about the Prime Minister’s death was not the cause itself, but the equipment of this warrior group… Dragon Rider Armor!

“Ten years ago,” Vasco slowly said at this moment, “the Black Religious Congregation developed a special armor that greatly enhanced the combat capabilities of ordinary people. If it wasn’t for the inability to mass-produce it, with that armor’s capabilities, the Black Church would have significantly disrupted the Holy Church… Ten years later, Dragon Rider Armor emerges within a secret department of Britannia’s government.”

The young knight nodded, comparing the mysterious battle armor from the Black Church ten years ago with the Dragon Rider Armor of the warrior group, earnestly saying, “Although the appearance has greatly changed, in terms of basic structure, they seem related. After all, ten years have passed, and if the Black Religious Congregation continues to develop such armors… it might very well look like the current Dragon Rider Armor.”

“The Dragon Rider Armor wielded by the Britannian warrior group is closely related to the armor from the Black Religious Congregation back then.” Vasco remarked seriously, “According to the records, the person responsible for developing this Dragon Rider Armor graduated from this university, and though the Prime Minister is dead, he was also a student of this school… there’s no direct evidence, but it’s reasonable to suspect that clues related to the Black Religious Congregation might still be hidden within this university. Therefore, ensure you all move around these days and don’t overlook any suspicious activities.”

“Yes!”

The young knights saluted in unison!

Vasco nodded, preparing to rest inside but abruptly turned back before leaving, inquiring, “By the way… is there a method to take the air from here away? Not just a can or two, but in large quantities!”

“…” The young knight was taken aback, looked perplexed at his companion, and finally forced himself to say, “Well… we could gather a few cans of compressed air?”

“Hmm…” Unexpectedly, Vasco nodded, “Sounds like a plan… Not a bad answer, keep up the good work!”

“Yes…”

Watching the extremely elderly knight from the Holy Church retreat into his room for rest, the group of young paladins finally exhaled, feeling as if the long passage of time abruptly concluded.

The young knights who dared not even breathe loudly in front of Vasco suddenly relaxed, becoming more at ease, less constrained.

“Why do you think Lord Vasco followed our team to this remote place this time? We’re merely on an ordinary investigation mission, it’s unlikely for such a prominent figure to accompany us, isn’t it?”

“About that, I do know a bit.”

“Do tell!”

The group of young people quickly huddled together, so closely that their heads almost touched.

“I’ve heard that a powerful priest of the Holy Church is in hiding at this place… It seems to be a high-level secret. I overheard the Great Sect Leader slip and mention it once.”

“In hiding? A powerful priest? Just how powerful? To warrant Lord Vasco’s personal arrival?”

“It’s rumored he was the former Warden of Shenwei Prison… Later on, because he secretly released a knight who had betrayed, he was removed and came to hide here…”

One knight skeptically remarked, “Even if he had betrayed, since he’s the Warden of Shenwei Prison, how could he be deposed so easily?”

“It’s said that this traitor wasn’t just any ordinary knight, but a member of the Holy Order of the Temple Knights, a comrade of Lord Vasco from the same era. Subsequently, this traitorous paladin even joined Britannia’s Knight Agency, likely exposing many secrets of the Holy Church… so the situation was quite severe.”

The young knights exchanged concerned glances.

“I feel… as if this mission isn’t your average investigation but has instead begun as a nightmare-mode hidden task?”

Just then, the door to the room was abruptly slammed by something, creating a loud noise.

From inside the room, Vasco’s voice boomed, “Get out and investigate if you have so much energy, you bunch of trash!”

The group, scared stiff, rapidly evacuated the apartment as if fleeing for their lives.

…

Suddenly, the apartment grew quiet.

Inside the room, Vasco only removed his coat and then sat before the mirror—a transformation occurred in the mirror… the surface began to melt away until a face slowly emerged.

“Stretta’s demeanor is quite unyielding; it seems persuading him to return anytime soon is unlikely.” Vasco remarked as he observed the reflected face.

“It was expected.” The face responded calmly, “At the time of the incident with Amunst, the Church merely criticized him without imposing any further punitive measures; he decided to leave Shenwei Prison on his own and came here. Having known him for years, you must understand his personality.”

“I will seek him again.” Vasco exhaled slowly.

The face in the mirror stated, “If you could bring Stretta back, all the better, but there’s no need to force it. Stretta possesses an unwavering and loyal faith, which is beyond doubt… This time, you should focus your primary efforts on investigating the Black Religious Congregation, as well as another matter.”

“Don’t worry, I will.” Vasco nodded.

The face in the mirror immediately said, “According to the information, Farael has privately escaped from prison… The most notorious of the Twelve Knights is like an unstable bomb. He might be hiding somewhere in Britannia, so be extra vigilant.”

“Rest assured, if I get the chance, I’d also wish to duel with this legendary Mad Knight.” Vasco chuckled quietly.

Farael, the most notorious of the Twelve Knights… but before that, he was also the strongest knight in history.

The Twelve Knights of the Round Table and the Holy Order of the Church’s Temple Knights both share the name of knight… but for the past hundred years, the name of Farael has overshadowed the entire Holy Order of the Temple Knights.

Though they are the servants of God, whether they accept this deep down, probably only they truly know.

“Don’t create complications.” The face in the mirror, knowing Vasco’s temperament well, repeatedly warned him before sighing, “Our faith might be facing an unprecedented challenge; the reemergence of the Black Religious Congregation might just be a sign, the real enemy is still lurking in the shadows.”

“The club, is it…” Vasco mused.

But the mirror had returned to its original state… Vasco took a deep breath, then moved to the window.

He kneeled before the window; before being a Knight of the Temple, he was a devoted believer—a believer who naturally never skipped his daily prayers.

…

…

Fog Capital.

Inside the former base of The-Fianna Warrior Group.

Why is it former?

It’s like this: ever since the Prime Minister died in the Fog Capital uprising, the base he had created was immediately taken over by the Royal Family and incorporated into the Knight Agency.

Furthermore, by order of Her Majesty the Queen, instead of being abolished, the original The-Fianna Warrior Group began reconstruction—while the few members of The-Fianna who survived the uprising served as trainers for the new Warrior Group.

The reconstruction of The-Fianna is careful and deliberate… In the uprising, though the Queen successfully centralized power and reorganized the Knight Agency, many of its knights sacrificed themselves in the rebellion… the Knight Agency is currently undergoing rebirth through flames; the future is bright, but right now, Britannia’s power in the Non-Human sector has weakened, so the Royal Family must swiftly fill the gap in their Non-Human forces.

The reconstruction of The-Fianna naturally fits in with that—besides, although the first was dead, he left behind a lot of information in The-Fianna’s base, which has facilitated things for Her Majesty the Queen.

After all, it’s picking up something ready-made…

By the way, members of the Tactical Music Ensemble, suggested by one of the Twelve Knights, Bedivere, are also trained regularly in this base.

The Dragonriding Armor of The-Fianna can well protect someone like Will, just an ordinary person, and, by modifying the Dragonriding Armor, it can greatly increase the battlefield agility of the Beastman siblings—of course, all of this is premised on the Tactical Music Ensemble members being adept at using the Dragonriding Armor.

“Run ten more laps! Listen, only a strong physique and will can support you to go further on the battlefield!”

On the training field, aside from the new recruits selected for the Warrior Group’s reconstruction, three older young men, drenched in sweat, were running at the back.

Will and his two pals.

“Why do we have to undergo physical training here… what happened to the promised Hot Bassara? I want to sing, I want to play guitar, I don’t want to run!”

“Lale and Oga are the singers.”

“I don’t care, I’m here to play music, I want to sing, I want to pick up girls… Oh!! Shit!! The big devil’s here again…”

Will’s buddy immediately covered his butt, awkwardly but with a face full of horror continued to run… a shiny flying knife was currently stuck in his hip.

The Origin, a man dressed as a clown, was lying on a lounge chair under a tree, sipping juice, enjoying the beautiful sun… Knight Agency, Twelve Knights of the Round Table, Clown Dagonet.

After Sir Pukins’s fall, Mr. Gareth of the Twelve Knights became the new head of the Knight Agency, while the remaining Twelve Knights returned to their original positions… except for this Clown Knight, who now serves as the chief instructor at The-Fianna’s base and receives a dual salary.

At this moment, a drone slowly flew in… hanging from the drone was a mobile phone. It landed in front of Dagonet.

The Clown, enjoying the leisurely afternoon, immediately switched to a sad face upon picking up the phone… the call was from Mr. Gareth who was working in the Knight Agency.

“Hey, Gareth, have you finally remembered that you owe me a year’s salary and plan to pay me? I’ve recently had my eye on a sports car…”

“There’s been a smuggling entry by the Holy Church,” Mr. Gareth from the agency said plainly. “I suspect it’s related to the Dragonriding Armor.”

“Do you have evidence?” The Clown asked curiously.

“Not yet,” Mr. Gareth mused, “But we found in the files that the first left behind at the base, that he had contacts with the Black Religious Congregation… Dagonet, most parts of the Dragonriding Armor were originally sponsored secretly by the Prime Minister and taken from America under the guise of piracy by Caesar… but the most crucial blueprints and technical support are still a mystery…”

“What do you want me to do?” The Clown asked directly.

Mr. Gareth said in a vexed tone, “I want you to investigate… especially the Holy Church’s entry. Back in those days, due to the Amunst incident, the Knight Agency and the Holy Church have had some degree of conflict.”

“Just ‘some degree of conflict’ in your mouth?” The Clown joked, “We poached a Paladin from them, didn’t we? Only now do I realize how generous the Holy Church is.”

“Are you going or not? Stop dodging the issue!” Mr. Gareth sharpened his tone.

The Clown replied, “I can go, but the key is, is there any travel allowance? I’ve recently set my eye on a villa…”

“You just said sports car!!”

“Yeah! Buy a villa, get a sports car… do you want one as well?”

The Clown still happily laughed; his time always accompanied by laughter… the sound of laughter from a face of tears.