Chapter 186 - Chapter 185: The Pope's Register
The third month of the year, the second week, a Tuesday.
Mika was at the Leventein Marquis's residence in Sarbengeal.
It had been a full four years since he last came here.
Since the kidnapping incident involving Cleiria and the subsequent interrogation... he had been confined and stayed here since then.
Waiting in the reception room where Mika had been shown, Marquis's wife Soinlage appeared.
She brought along several handmaidens Ladies Maids and several guard knights.
"You've come all this way. You must be tired from the long journey?"
"No, I'm fine."
After a brief greeting, encouraged by Soinlage, Mika drank tea from a teacup he had no desire to touch.
The setting was that Mika had just arrived yesterday after a long journey from the Royal Capital to Sarbengeal.
Since it takes eight days by shared carriage, even if he departed immediately upon entering the third month, he would not reach Sarbengeal until yesterday evening or later.
However, if using a four-horse carriage for nobles, it takes about five days.
So, it seems Cleiria has already returned to Sarbengeal several days ago.
Even with a four-horse carriage, why do noble carriages arrive so quickly?
It is because there are several relay points for nobles on the major roads throughout the kingdom.
There are more of these relay points than the rest stops for shared carriages.
While some relay points are large, most are small.
And strictly speaking, these relay points are under military jurisdiction.
They were established for the purpose of transferring fast horses, and there are many spare horses available.
However, situations requiring the dispatch of fast horses rarely occur.
While preparing for unpredictable events is important, considering the scale, it is not practical.
So, they were made available for other uses as well.
Such as noble carriages.
One can borrow horses at these relay points.
Leave the horse you have ridden here, borrow a horse waiting at the relay point, and have it run energetically again.
Since it is strictly a rental, if anything happens, compensation must be paid in money, but movement has become very smooth.
Only the heads of noble families and those recognized by them can use these relay points.
Basically, it is for family members.
To use them, one must pay a significant amount annually.
There is also a fee each time they are used, but nobles use these relay points to move smoothly by carriage.
Basically, nobles tend to stay within their domains often.
So, normally there isn't that much demand.
However, allowing nobles to use them is merely a bonus.
The goal is to establish a network for transferring fast horses, so the aim is to make nobles bear part of the maintenance and operation costs by letting them use it.
The road from the Royal Capital to Sarbengeal is the most important main artery for the Kingdom of Ektrem.
It is a trade route with the Trade Union, and also an invasion route from the Gronoir Empire.
Therefore, there are many relay points, and large ones usually have several military companies stationed there permanently.
Besides the garrisons, it seems that troops of that scale are permanently stationed at several relay points along the road.
Conversely, on local, minor roads like from Kotontesse to Yaunasun, there are almost no relay points.
They are often just subletting space at shared carriage rest stops to get by.
Knock, knock.
While having a trivial conversation with Soinlage about the Academy and how Cleiria is doing there, a knock was heard.
Entering was Marquis Leventein.
Seeing Soinlage, he widened his eyes for a moment.
"What are you doing?"
"Nothing. Just having a chat."
As Soinlage smiled softly, the Marquis old man closed his eyes and let out a light sigh.
Then, he turned his gaze to Mika.
"Should I leave?"
"H-Hey!?"
Don't ask me that!
It's probably just a joke, but it's bad for my heart.
Seeing Mika's flustered state, Soinlage smiled.
"I'll take my leave. Please let me hear your stories again."
"Y-Yes!"
Soinlage drained Mika's energy completely and left with a smile.
However, this is where the boss battle begins.
The Marquis old man sat before him with the dignity befitting a boss.
I want to go home already...
"My apologies. I made you deal with her."
"N-No. I am hardly suitable to be your partner, and I am utterly embarrassed..."
"Right, there is no need to be so stiff."
The Marquis old man took a sip of the freshly brewed tea and looked straight at Mika.
"I have already received reports on your grades this year. There is nothing I need to say. It is a flawless record."
"...I am honored."
Please, stop flattering me.
The past trauma...
"I heard you were suddenly made to participate in the Advanced Division exercises. And even in that state, you are active. In the end, you haven't been defeated even once?"
"Y-Yes..."
As a team, there were several times where our base was captured first.
But personally, Mika had never been defeated.
He survived every exercise.
"Fuu..."
The Marquis old man crossed his arms and made a face as if deep in thought.
Mika said nothing, simply waiting silently for the Marquis old man to gather his thoughts.
He would not say anything himself.
He did not want to poke the nest; he wanted to pass quietly and softly.
"...Well, that will do. Continue to improve as you are."
"Yes."
Thus, the Marquis old man reached for the tea again.
But his hand stopped, and he stared fixedly at Mika.
"What is it? Is something wrong?"
"Ah, no..."
He had tried to act as usual, but it seemed something had been noticed.
In fact, Mika had something he wanted to ask the Marquis old man.
However, it was a somewhat delicate topic, so he had no intention of saying it...
Without turning around, the Marquis old man lightly raised one hand.
Taking this as a signal, the two parlor maids Parlor Maids waiting in the room left.
"If there is something, just say it. There is no one else listening."
Being treated this way, it would be rude not to say anything.
Mika considered how to start.
"...Um, recently, I have heard rumors often..."
"Rumors...? About what?"
Mika thought about how to proceed without going too deep, without making definitive statements, and to finish it as lightly as possible.
"...About the Gronoir Empire... um..."
"About the Gronoir invasion?"
The Marquis old man understood Mika's vague speech.
"Considering that Your Excellency will not be coming to the Royal Capital this year either, the... credibility..."
The Marquis does not leave his domain.
Thinking about the meaning of that, a gloomy mood overcomes him.
Above all, it is not just a matter of Mika's mood.
Mika was thinking that he might need to seriously call his family to the Royal Capital.
However, in that case, a line must inevitably be drawn.
How far should he reach out to the residents of other villages?
Seeing Mika's solemn expression, the Marquis old man softened his expression.
"Hehe... I am relieved a little."
"...Eh?"
From such a topic, why would the Marquis old man say he is "relieved"? He did not understand.
"Now that I think of it, the thing you want to protect is in your hometown village, isn't it?"
"Yes," the Marquis old man said as if reminiscing.
"Well, whether they actually invade or when they come, I can only tell you to ask them..."
The Marquis old man relaxed his shoulders and leaned back against the sofa.
"The reason I cannot leave my domain this year is different. It is not entirely unrelated, though."
"...Different... reason?"
Is he not staying in the domain out of caution for the invasion?
"A major project is underway, and I am involved as a central figure. If I leave, the project will be hindered. So, I am merely staying in the domain for now. His Majesty has also told me to prioritize this."
"...Ah... Is that so?"
The Marquis old man said it so casually that it made it feel like even less of a big deal.
"Since it depends on them, there is a possibility I could be on the battlefield tomorrow... But according to current plans, I intend to go to the Royal Capital this summer."
Hearing the Marquis old man's words, Mika let out a deep breath.
No, he shouldn't be relieved yet, but it didn't seem like the situation was that desperate.
"Do not let your guard down. But if you start worrying now, you won't last."
"Yes..."
Indeed, sometimes my stomach hurt from overthinking.
Playing with the magic beasts was the only healing.
It was quite bloody healing, though.
"Do you worry about your family and important people?"
The Marquis old man asked such a thing.
Mika looked down slightly and slowly turned his gaze to the Marquis old man.
And nodded.
"That is good. Do not forget that feeling."
Thus, the meeting with the Marquis old man concluded.
...But.
"...I have arrived."
From there, somehow, it turned out he would play Buattre Heed with the Marquis old man.
Recently, Cleiria had started to take an interest, and it seems she played against the Marquis old man after returning to Sarbengeal.
And it seems the topic came up at that table.
"Mika is very strong."
It seems he told the Marquis old man that.
So, the Marquis old man was looking forward to today's match, saying, "Let's try one out."
"It is quite good, but you are still too aggressive. You should pay more attention to the whole board."
"I will continue to improve."
Thus, Mika bowed politely.
Deciding in his heart that he would definitely pull Cleiria's cheeks later.
■■■■■■
【Warterelam's Perspective】
The self-proclaimed theologian Warterelam was compiling his research results from the past year at his home in the capital of the Gronoir Empire.
A year ago, a piece of parchment found in a cave near the ruins overturned more than thirty years of his own research.
He had to start from scratch, separating what was written about "Miracle Miraculum" from what was written about "Word Vocabulum" based on the primary materials he had obtained so far.
However, this allowed him to give a certain interpretation to parts that had been considered mysteries because they had been lumped together until now.
Mostly, however, this applies only to "Miracle Miraculum", that is, the phenomenon currently called [God's Miracle].
Regarding [God's Miracle], there has been no major change in its interpretation.
Rather, the mysterious parts have been separated, making it clearer.
A miracle manifested by manipulating "Power Potestas" = magic power and chanting prayers and incantations to the gods.
But regarding "Word Vocabulum", he simply did not understand the meaning at all.
It is a phenomenon that requires "Power Potestas" just like [God's Miracle], but it seems that something called "Will Voluntas" is also involved.
And this "Will Voluntas" seems to be something different from prayers to the gods.
Above all, the big difference from [God's Miracle] seems to be that it does not require incantations.
Without praying and without using incantations, what exactly was happening?
The parchment pieces only wrote "Dangerous thing" and "Terrifying."
However, this is only when considering the parts that can currently be deciphered.
The damage was severe, making it unreadable, and there were many words he had never seen before, so he couldn't grasp the meaning in many parts.
If he could understand the meaning of words like "Vene...um" and "Ade...tus" related to "Power Potestas" and "Will Voluntas", he thinks his research would progress greatly...
As Warterelam stared at the documents as if biting into the desk, someone suddenly tapped his shoulder.
Standing behind him was a tanned man in his early forties.
It was Sestendof, who was helping him investigate the documents.
"Master. Teacher Ranbaluel has arrived."
"Ranbaluel?"
It seems he was so concentrated that he didn't notice being called several times.
When Warterelam turned toward the room's door, a man in his late fifties stood there.
"I heard you haven't gone out for investigation for about a year and have been cooped up. I thought you finally collapsed from alcoholism... but you look fine."
Ranbaluel grinned.
It is rare for someone to speak so rudely to Warterelam, who holds the title of Cardinal.
But there is a reason for that.
It was none other than Ranbaluel who taught Warterelam the game of exploring the darkness of the Church of Light.
To Warterelam, Ranbaluel was a fellow enthusiast, a master, and an ally sharing secrets.
"If I die, I'll have them sink me in a barrel of fruit wine. Speaking of which, it's rare for you to come out of your hole. Did you get raided?"
Both Warterelam and Ranbaluel had something bad to hide if their homes were searched.
"Don't be an idiot. I told you, I thought you collapsed from alcoholism, so I came to visit."
Saying that, Ranbaluel took out a bundle of papers from his bag.
"I thought if you saw this, you'd jump out of your coffin."
Saying that, Ranbaluel dropped the bundle of papers onto Warterelam's knees.
"These are the documents I compiled. Not primary materials... No, we have secondary materials. They aren't exactly things you can carry around."
Ranbaluel explained while sitting on a chair prepared by Sestendof.
Warterelam took the documents placed on his knees and flipped through them... rustle, rustle.
"Huh!? W-What is this!?"
Warterelam's eyes widened, and he shifted his gaze from the documents to Ranbaluel.
Ranbaluel grinned.
"Well, read it."
Warterelam, encouraged, glanced through the documents.
Sestendof peeked from the side, unable to even make a sound of surprise, but Warterelam was devouring the documents so much he didn't notice.
Those documents were the answer to Warterelam's years of research.
A list of those erased from the register of Popes through the ages.
Forty-three in total.
Some from over a thousand years ago.
Up to Popes from about three hundred years ago were erased.
The eras were wide, but one could see a certain tendency at a glance.
Names were erased in succession, then there were hundreds of years with no erasures, followed by erasures in succession again.
"Where did you get this!? Where did you find such documents!?"
After reading through them once, Warterelam turned bloodshot eyes toward Ranbaluel.
Seeing Warterelam's state, Ranbaluel smiled bitterly.
"Don't get so excited. I told you, what we have are secondary materials. Probably, the primary materials no longer exist."
"No longer exist...?"
What is the basis for saying that?
Answering Warterelam's natural question, Ranbaluel began to speak.
The secondary materials Ranbaluel obtained were memoirs of those involved in the disposal of the primary materials.
The name of the person who wrote the memoirs was Hezbalt.
A priest who served the gods at the Holy Land Uup Saktu over two hundred and fifty years ago.
At one point, Hezbalt and about thirty others were ordered by the Pope.
"It seems there is a major error in the register of Popes through the ages. Gather them all."
The erroneous items must be collected or corrected.
It was an absurd task.
It was difficult enough to gather them from the Great Cathedrals across the continent, but they were ordered to do it secretly.
It was an unreasonable request.
However, it was not that it must be hidden from everyone, but rather that it could not be announced on a grand scale, and it was explained that they were only temporarily gathering them.
Thus, over several years, they went around collecting them not only from Great Cathedrals but also from churches in small villages, if they existed.
One day, Hezbalt was consulted by a friend, a priest.
It seems that priest was currently engaged in a strange duty.
It was simply copying the provided documents exactly as they were.
And the content being copied was the register of Popes through the ages.
It seems about ten people, besides his friend, were engaged in this duty.
Hezbalt felt a bad premonition about his assigned task of collecting the register and his friend's task of copying the register.
Hezbalt begged his friend to get him a part of the copied register.
Comparing the old and new registers obtained that way, forty-three Popes' names were erased.
He wondered why they were doing this, but he found a commonality among the erased Popes.
While Hezbalt was worried about what to do, his friend disappeared.
Hezbalt thought it was dangerous to keep the register, so he decided to preserve the data of the erased Popes as his own memoirs.
He entrusted the memoirs to a trustworthy person, instructing them never to look inside.
It was written at the end of the memoirs that he intended to burn the old and new registers he kept and turn them to ash.
"Just two hundred and fifty years ago...?"
That the register itself had been intentionally tampered with was as expected.
But that it was done only two hundred and fifty years ago...
"If such a thing happened and not a word leaked, isn't that strange!? How could such a thing be covered up!?"
"Two hundred and fifty years ago. There were several famous events that happened around that time. I think they are related."
After prefaceing that this was speculation, Ranbaluel spoke a shocking prediction.
One month after the last date in the memoirs.
A major accident occurred at the Holy Land Uup Saktu.
A fire.
A major accident where a building near the Great Cathedral was completely burned down, with over two hundred dead.
It was a historical accident where even the Pope was among the victims.
The cause of the fire was unknown, and the identification of the victims remained ambiguous, making it a mysterious accident with many unexplained aspects.
However, this accident is considered one of the Church's greatest taboos Taboo and remains unsolved to this day.
"If Hezbalt was among the victims of this accident?"
Ranbaluel's words were too heavy, striking Warterelam's head like a hammer.
The impact made him feel dizzy.
"Those involved... the collected items... You mean they burned everything to ash...?"
"There were too many people involved. Including related documents, everything was swept away? If the victims of the accident were involved in this historical tampering in some way, they absolutely had to be silenced."
Why go to such lengths just for a register?
Warterelam violently opened the desk drawer and took out a bottle of fruit wine.
Opening the lid with trembling hands, he gulped it down in one go.
Warterelam, who liked to savor his drinks, was overcome by the impulse to just pour down alcohol this time.
When Warterelam slammed the bottle onto the desk, Ranbaluel took out a single sheet of paper from his bag.
"Here is the explanation. This is the commonality among the Popes erased from the register."
This should be the answer Warterelam had been searching for for years, but for a few moments, he hesitated to reach out.
He wanted to know.
But he didn't want to know.
Such a conflict he couldn't even believe in himself was in his chest.
Warterelam took a deep breath, made up his mind, and took the paper, looking at it.
Listed there were "Suicide" and "Mad Death."
All the erased Popes had either committed "Suicide" or "Mad Death."
"...This is a lie... It's impossible..."
Warterelam could not suppress the trembling in his voice.
In the long history, it wouldn't be strange for a Pope to commit "Suicide" or "Mad Death."
But—
"Twelve in a row committing suicide or mad death!? That's strange! Can such a foolish thing happen!?"
A Pope who served for nearly a hundred years.
Among them were twelve erased Popes.
And all those Popes had either committed "Suicide" or "Mad Death."
This was the answer to the mystery of the hundred-year reign.
Warterelam leaned back against the backrest, hanging his head.
He didn't want to think about anything today anymore.
It was too deep, truly darkness.
"Master..."
Sestendof called out with concern.
Warterelam let out a deep sigh and shook his head weakly.
"...I'm sorry. Today... for today, please go home..."
Ranbaluel remained calm even after hearing Warterelam's words.
"You don't mean to say you've given up just because of this, do you?"
"............Wh-What?"
Ranbaluel snorted.
"The darkness of the Church is not over."
He said it with confidence.
"The register is just the tip of the darkness I finally grasped. Only a little of what was hidden has become visible."
Hearing Ranbaluel's words, Sestendof swallowed hard.
"But, it seems a little bigger than expected."
Ranbaluel scratched his nose noisily.
Warterelam heard Ranbaluel's words with a blank expression.
"How about it? Until now, we've just done whatever we wanted treating it as a hobby, but how about joining hands here?"
He made such a proposal.
"Maybe the documents we've been hiding are actually the other's answer?"
Saying that, he pointed to the bundle of papers.
Ranbaluel had obtained the answer Warterelam sought.
Of course, there is a possibility that Warterelam holds the answer Ranbaluel sought.
"So, joint research?"
"Setting aside the form, why don't we disclose what we have for now? Just that might allow us to check the answers easily."
Indeed, even if detailed examination comes later, just telling each other what documents they have and what research they are doing seems to be interesting.
Warterelam felt his chest pounding, forgetting the despair from before.
"...As thanks for the register. Let me disclose one first."
Thus, Warterelam murmured.
"Are you not interested in the difference between 'Miracle Miraculum' and 'Word Vocabulum'?"
"Difference...? Isn't it both about [God's Miracle]?"
Ranbaluel made a suspicious face.
Seeing Ranbaluel's face, Warterelam felt his mouth corners rise naturally.