Substituting one thing for another

Although he was tempted, Mason still rejected the other party with some hesitation. It was a good thing to have his energy restored. While thinking about how to write a few more words on the leaves of the World Tree, he led the knights into the forest.

The lush vegetation rustled as the humans walked. There were eight people in the Paladin team. The bearded man left four people as guards, and the rest all entered the Dark Forest. Following the guidance of the elves, they quickly found the location of the goblin's nest. Jack went forward to check the cave, then shook his head at them: "Run away."

The bearded man said, "It can't run far."

The paladin who was traveling with him took out a blue herb as bright as moonlight from his package, crushed a corner of it, and squeezed the juice into his eyes. He then passed the herb to the others, and Mason did the same. A cool feeling spread, and he blinked harshly, and a thin layer of light covered his pupils.

The surrounding scenery was covered with a layer of light, and the traces left by various creatures were complex and vivid. There were several sets of footprints on the ground in front of the nest. One of them was particularly small and ran crookedly into the depths of the forest.

The bearded man ordered: "Be on guard, track."

The well-trained team followed the footprints into the jungle. The leading paladin suddenly stopped and carefully untied a lasso hidden in the forest. The group exchanged glances and then chased after him.

The goblin's traps were destroyed one by one, and the footprints became more and more numerous. When the herbs lost their effect, the group heard a sound not far away.

"It looks like someone got there first."

The bearded man looked gloomily at the green-skinned goblins standing in the crowd. The latter were talking to the mercenaries with a flattering and submissive look. Seeing this, the elf's attitude was extremely cold: "I was wondering why the goblins had powder to drive away monsters. It seems that these people gave it to me."

"Captain, what should we do next?"

The paladins asked in a low voice. Although the mercenaries outnumbered them, the paladins were confident that they could annihilate them in terms of strength. However, if this matter were to be leaked, it would be a conflict initiated by the church against the nobles, which would cause a huge shock.

The bearded man turned his gaze towards the elf: "Are you sure it's on it?"

"Yes. If you are worried, you can let me out first."

The young man's carelessness about his own safety made people feel ashamed. The bearded man opened his mouth, but the other party had already walked out. The mercenaries on standby were on guard, but the goblin's eyes lit up when he saw him and shouted, "That's him! The elf who attacked me!"

"That's because you stole something that doesn't belong to you. It's not too late to hand it over now."

The elf said in disgust. The men exchanged glances. The fake mercenary, who had already learned of the other party's existence from the goblin, naturally would not allow this believer to pass on the information. A crossbow arrow was suddenly shot out from the crowd, but was burned to ashes by a sudden ball of fire.

The cute little squirrel leaped down from the lush tree canopy and landed next to the elf, squeaking. It bared its teeth at the human, its eyes full of hostility.

Then, one, two, three... a total of more than ten little monsters rushed out from different places. Mason glanced vaguely at the treetops above his head. The green branches and leaves covered the girl's figure, making her almost merge with nature.

The fake mercenary leader had a gloomy face. The crowd surged up to surround him. The cold light of many crossbow arrows could be vaguely seen. The silver-haired young man stood alone in the encirclement, his eyes burning with anger and bright as stars. The leader said coldly: "Is this what you rely on? A beast-driver who believes in the goddess of nature. Ha, so what? You can't leave here today. No one will know what happened here today, including your god."

Elves can communicate with animals, but only believers favored by the goddess of nature can drive monsters. It seems that Aisana's identity is not simple. Mason thought, and as expected, he waited for that sudden interruption.

"What about us?"

If you still don't come out after hearing this, you are not a holy knight. The holy knights in armor walked out from the bushes behind the elves. The sunlight shone on their breastplates, and the glorious mark of the moon goddess was dazzling. The bearded man drew out his sword, raised his shield, and sneered: "In order to hide your conspiracy, you actually want to kill the believers of the goddess of nature. As knights of the moon and stars, we will never tolerate such injustice!"

"Remember to keep the goblin—"

The elf's words were drowned out by the roar of fighting. The paladins had undoubtedly heard his words. Pica groaned and was kicked by one of the knights. It crashed into the elf's leg and held on tightly. Mason ignored it and searched the crowd for a while, locking onto the enemy leader who was ordering his men to form a formation.

This group of people were not real mercenaries. They fought in formation like well-trained soldiers. The bearded man became more and more confident as he fought, and he stopped holding back. A vast silver light burst out from the holy knights, shining brighter than the sun for a moment.

"Fight for the goddess——!"

The paladins took a step together, roaring loudly. A shadow loomed above their heads, a woman as hazy as a crescent moon. The fake mercenary leader looked pale: "You are not paladins, you are templars. Damn it, why are the templars of the Moon Goddess here!?"

The holy knights naturally did not answer him. The Moon Goddess raised her hand and gently waved it, and the knights' long swords were covered with bright light. They swung their swords in unison, and the sharp swords raged, directly creating huge scars on the ground!

The human formation is naturally unable to resist the power of God and is shattered the moment it comes into contact. At the critical moment, the wrist guard on the leader's arm bursts out with powerful energy, which is actually on par with the power of God!

Under the protection of this energy, the fake mercenary leader turned around and ran away without hesitation. The bearded man didn't want to let him go, but the power was so strong that he could only stop where he was with an ugly face: "Damn the magic device, it let him escape with his life."

The battle was over, and the glory of the paladins gradually dissipated. But the goddess, whose face was blurred, suddenly glanced at Mason before she disappeared. It was impossible to distinguish the color of her eyes, but Mason felt that he was seen through from head to toe. When he almost held his breath, the goddess suddenly smiled lightly, like a full moon rising, so beautiful that it made people's heart beat and their souls tremble.

With a bright smile, a little moonlight flew out from her body and fell on Mason's forehead under the dull gaze of the paladins, forming a round, shining mark. After doing this, the figure of the Moon Goddess gracefully dissipated, leaving only silence.

This scene shocked the Paladins so much that they didn't even notice when all the monsters left. The bearded man looked dazed: "My Moon God... Elf brother, are you really not considering changing a church?"

He didn't even care how rude it was to say this to a devout believer, and asked from the bottom of his heart: "You have already obtained the mark of our Lord. Do you know that only a few people have obtained this mark over the years? Only the believers who are most favored by our Lord can obtain His mark, and you! And you!"

...He's not even a follower of the Moon Goddess!

The bearded man was so angry that he couldn't breathe properly, and even felt a little jealous. Even if it was given to him, it would be fine. After all, he would dedicate his life and faith to the Lord, but what about the elf in front of him? He was a believer of the goddess of nature next door!

If anyone tells anyone about this, the Pope of the Moon Goddess will be furious!

But as a Knight Templar, the bearded man quickly calmed down, but his tone was a little complicated: "Forget it, let's clean up the battlefield first and don't delay the rest of the work."

The Templars, who were also in a trance, quickly swept the battlefield. With their attack, the fake mercenaries should not have died so many. However, due to the strong collision between their leader's magic device and the power of the Moon Goddess, all the mercenaries on the ground were killed. After checking the situation, even if they were enemies, the Templars' hearts became heavy.

One of them couldn't help but say: "It's really a bargain that guy just ran away like this."

"Don't worry, they will eventually show their true colors."

The bearded man comforted his companions for a while, then walked towards the pickup truck, his expression becoming cold and serious. The goblin was lying on the ground trembling. As soon as he opened his mouth, he saw the other party immediately took out a leaf from his pocket and respectfully presented it to him: "This is the leaf of the world tree, I, I, I am really innocent! Please forgive me!"

The bearded man, who was ready for the interrogation, opened his mouth: "......"

Its movements were too crisp and too skillful, but its attitude was so sincere that no one could tell there was anything wrong with it. The bearded man checked it from head to toe, holding his breath, and ruled out all the dangerous items. Then he took it and quickly read through it.

He also didn't recognize the words on it, but anyone could sense the pure aura of the leaves of the World Tree. After confirming the truth, the bearded man took out the box with a solemn expression and put the book in. The mysterious aura was immediately blocked.

He turned to the elf with a much more friendly attitude: "In view of the possible danger that may exist, please leave this holy relic with me first. I swear in the name of my Lord that I will never take it privately."

The elf nodded and said in a friendly manner: "Even if you don't swear, I will believe you. You are a true knight. In addition, I have a request."

He pointed at the trembling goblin and said, "As a goblin, he was able to steal the holy relic. There must be something wrong. I hope you can give it to me. I need to know the truth."

The bearded man said without hesitation: "Okay. But we have to leave now. We can't leave the prison van for too long."

Mason certainly would not refuse, he took the pickup truck and followed the group back to the prison van to continue the guard mission. However, due to the delay for a long time, the Knights Templar finally failed to reach the destination as planned and had to camp in a safe area.

A blazing bonfire brought light and heat. The knights assigned to hunt killed several prey, cooked them and served them as meals. Because the goblin did not bring extra shackles, he was locked in a prison car on the way. After arriving at the camp, the elves allowed him to be temporarily free. He obediently set up the tent and cleaned the camp. After finishing his work, he took the initiative to return to the elves and wait to be detained. Even the most picky Templars could not find a problem with it.

The silver-haired elf still had a poor appetite, so he just tasted the food and declined it. The bearded man was a little worried and sent a few more bottles of holy water, which the elf accepted with a smile.

Sitting in the tent, Mason felt the energy gradually filling up in his body and wanted to study what the so-called Moon God Mark was. But he suppressed the urge and waited until late at night. After everyone except the paladin on night watch fell asleep, he whispered to the goblin: "Are all those who know dead?"

Pica shuddered and replied in awe: "I only told a few of the senior leaders about you holding the World Tree Leaf. Except for the leader, they were all killed by the energy explosion."

"Did you sprinkle the powder too?"

"I spilled it on the prison van while I was working."

Of course, there was nothing on the pickup truck when it was checked. When the knight kicked it over, it took advantage of the opportunity to stuff the powder into Mason's body while holding it, and took it away from Mason when it was released, cleverly completing the trick right under the knight's nose. Mason blinked, and a little light penetrated through the gap in the tent and fell into the young man's blue eyes. He stood up and walked towards the door.

"Everything is ready. The time has come. Tell Shana to get ready to take action."