“He will lead us to destruction.”
The purple-feathered medium who had been quietly listening to Erne and Gelard's conversation opened his mouth. The sound of phlegm boiling was not pleasant to hear.
“Thank you. Sir Gelard, you are a knight of honor, and you keep your promises. You are quite different from other imperial people who do not know faith.”
The purple-feathered medium laughed, then coughed.
“Promise? Now you even make promises to traitors?”
Erne looked at Gelard, ignoring the purple-feathered medium. He answered without even looking at Erne.
“He said he would cooperate readily if I let him meet you.”
“So that’s why you brought me here?”
“That’s right. Shouldn’t you also know why he wants to meet you? I’m sure you’re curious about the reason, too.”
Gelard threw a water bottle to the purple-feathered medium, who couldn't stop coughing. After drinking the water, the medium was in a state to talk.
“Why did you want to see me? Were you curious to see if I was walking around okay?”
“I was curious.”
The medium wiped the corner of his mouth and looked up at Erne. Even in the darkness, his bright yellow eyes shone ominously.
“Was you worthy of ruining us like this?”
The medium babbled incomprehensible words.
“I’ll have to explain it to you so you can understand. The First Division Commander may be old and feeble-minded, but I’m not.”
Erne came close to the iron bars and whispered.
“I’m not even a knight anymore.”
His low voice was colder than ice.
“I will tell you. If I had kept my mouth shut, I would not have come here alive. But there is a condition.”
“There are a lot of conditions.”
“There are also children in our tent. They do not know anything, so spare them. There are also the Shartins who help us, thinking that we are just fellow countrymen. Spare them too. They only wanted to help their fellow countrymen. I ask the Empress to vouch for this.”
“That won’t happen.”
As soon as Gelard cut it off, the medium shook his head.
“I will not open my mouth unless Her Majesty guarantees our way.”
The 'our way' that the medium spoke of was their own method, guaranteed by blood between the Shartins. The purple-feathered medium did not believe the guarantees made by the imperial people through words or by their honor.
“It would be of the greatest help to you, so would you really refuse?”
The purple-feathered medium looked at Gelard this time and spoke.
“I was going to teach you how to break the ban.”
After hearing the story, the Empress readily offered her guarantee. Since it only took a single drop of blood, the Emperor also gave his permission.
Erne waited until late at night, unable to leave the palace, and then went back to interrogating the purple-feathered medium.
“One, cough, ha, big, say, start, keuk, huh.”
“...”
“Ahem, let me say something, keke, keke.”
“...You start by saying one thing? What is that one thing?”
“We, ahem. We, cough, about us, cough.”
“...”
Say a word and cough, say a word, and clear your throat.
“Us, keeek, keuk.”
As Erne watched the purple-feathered medium coughing as if he was going to vomit out a long organ, veins popped out on his temples.
“No, you can’t say anything about that.”
I'm going to turn around because I'm so frustrated. Erne sighed, running his hands through his hair. Thanks to the Empress's assurance, the children of the Followers and his own people who helped him were saved, and the purple-feathered medium seemed relieved.
His body, which had been barely holding on because of the purpose he had set out to achieve, began to crumble.
The purple-feathered medium didn't seem to care much about his worsening condition, but Erne and Gelard were getting mad with frustration.
“Please bring me some medicine, please. If this keeps up, I’ll wake up without even hearing a word, sir.”
“...It’s been a long time since I agreed with your opinion.”
Finally, the purple-feathered medium was given a light meal and cough medicine before the full-scale interrogation.
The purple-feathered medium's lung disease was not curable with cough medicine, but it did buy him enough time to testify.
“I don’t know if you know us well. We are under the guidance of the priests and the eight elders.”
Although the priest was the leader, he was more like an honorary captain.
The priest is a person who studies and studies magic, emptying himself and then, when the time comes, making a sacrifice for those who follow him.
Therefore, they are respected, but they are not in charge of practical work. The remaining practical work is divided among the eight elders under the priest. So, the real power is actually in their hands.
“In the last rebellion, five priests and elders were killed.”
The five elders were replaced by their designated successors, and the priest was also chosen from among the candidates for the priesthood.
The Purple Feathered Medium was also one of the Eight Elders who survived the rebellion.
Unlike the elders, the priests had to be pure-blooded Shartin, making it difficult to select a successor.
“There were two candidates for the position of High Priest this time. Since the rebellion seemed likely to fail, we abducted those two first.”
“Is the snake charmer one of them?”
“Yes. Although he was a bit weak, he was a very talented child. I had no doubt that he would become a priest and be the cornerstone of our rebuilding and establishing the Shartin Empire.”
But things have changed.
After becoming a priest, the boy became greedy.
“He's become a man who only knows money. If he can make money, he doesn’t hesitate to sell even curses. He even sells his ancestors’ secrets without hesitation.”
Among those secrets were the records of a madman who came up with the idea for this cosmetic and arthritis medicine.
“It’s a new thing. Wasn’t the curse supposed to be sold from the beginning?”
“Yes, but that was because we needed money to fund our living and our cause.”
“So you’re not a priest now?”
The purple-feathered medium nodded, sipping water like it was alcohol.
“He is saving money to indulge in luxury. For his own self and revival. He neglects his own work and only wants to make money. He pretends not to listen to the advice of the elders.”
The priests did not hesitate to sell the secret prayers kept secret by their Followers in order to make money.
“We, the Empire, value the lives of our own people as if they were flies, but we value the lives of our own people. But that is not the case with priests.”
There were only two priests.
People who are helpful to you and people who are not. If they are helpful, they are your kind, if not, they are your enemies.
“A group led by such a person is bound to perish.”
The purple-feathered medium spoke self-mockingly.
“So I decided to find a new place to live.”
The purple-feathered medium betrayed the priests but did not betray the Followers.
He set out to find a new home, prepared to be branded a traitor.
He tried to find a new place to start by using all the information and connections he had, but it wasn't easy. He was being chased by the royal family as a traitor, and he was being chased by the Followers as a traitor, so it was even harder.
With luck not on his side, he encountered robbers and even contracted tuberculosis, so the purple-feathered medium had no choice but to admit that he had failed.
“You speak as if you have given up.”
“Why should I be foolish now? My breath will soon cease even if the Emperor does not pronounce the death sentence.”
“It’s not like we gave you cough medicine to make you lie.”
Erne flicked his fingers and lightly hit the iron bars.
“You want us to kill that priest instead of you.”
If the priest is killed, the group of Followers will lose their focal point. However, those who have already fled or are planning to flee, like the purple-feathered medium, can remain somewhere and start anew.
The purple-feathered medium wanted to establish a new foundation for the Followers to stand on again through the Imperial Army.
“There’s a saying that goes, ‘The enemy of my enemy is my friend.’ Think of it that way.”
The purple-feathered medium didn't deny it at all. Erne let out a mocking laugh.
“Then give us the right information so we can catch the priest. Where is the main headquarters?”
“That one is under a gold ban.”
“It’s different from what was promised.”
Erne quietly muttered that if this were to happen, the young ones of the Followers would not be spared.
“Instead, I’ll teach you how to break the gold ban.”
“If you know how to break a ban, you can break the ban on yourself.”
“The method of placing a ban varies from medium to medium, so only the medium who placed the ban can remove it. Furthermore, you cannot place a ban on yourself.”
Erne felt cheated for a moment.
Even if you ask a purple-feathered medium how to break a ban spell, doesn't that mean that it only works on the person he cast the ban on?
“You don’t have to make that face. I can make most of the ban.”
The purple-feathered medium wrote down on a piece of paper the method of breaking the ban.
“The one who put the ban on me is this high priest. So only the high priest can release my ban.”
He spent a long time scribbling on paper, wondering how complicated the method of solving the problem was.
Erne returned to the Rhineland mansion late at night. Judith cleaned up the store with Henry and returned to the mansion first to wait for Erne.
“You said that the Followers who escaped after releasing Cliff and Ceres’ ban were caught?”
“Who told you that?”
“The Marquis. He came earlier to deliver the reward money.”
“Was it gold this time?”
Judith nodded, but her nod seemed somehow listless.
The purple-feathered medium who had been quietly listening to Erne and Gelard's conversation opened his mouth. The sound of phlegm boiling was not pleasant to hear.
“Thank you. Sir Gelard, you are a knight of honor, and you keep your promises. You are quite different from other imperial people who do not know faith.”
The purple-feathered medium laughed, then coughed.
“Promise? Now you even make promises to traitors?”
Erne looked at Gelard, ignoring the purple-feathered medium. He answered without even looking at Erne.
“He said he would cooperate readily if I let him meet you.”
“So that’s why you brought me here?”
“That’s right. Shouldn’t you also know why he wants to meet you? I’m sure you’re curious about the reason, too.”
Gelard threw a water bottle to the purple-feathered medium, who couldn't stop coughing. After drinking the water, the medium was in a state to talk.
“Why did you want to see me? Were you curious to see if I was walking around okay?”
“I was curious.”
The medium wiped the corner of his mouth and looked up at Erne. Even in the darkness, his bright yellow eyes shone ominously.
“Was you worthy of ruining us like this?”
The medium babbled incomprehensible words.
“I’ll have to explain it to you so you can understand. The First Division Commander may be old and feeble-minded, but I’m not.”
Erne came close to the iron bars and whispered.
“I’m not even a knight anymore.”
His low voice was colder than ice.
“I will tell you. If I had kept my mouth shut, I would not have come here alive. But there is a condition.”
“There are a lot of conditions.”
“There are also children in our tent. They do not know anything, so spare them. There are also the Shartins who help us, thinking that we are just fellow countrymen. Spare them too. They only wanted to help their fellow countrymen. I ask the Empress to vouch for this.”
“That won’t happen.”
As soon as Gelard cut it off, the medium shook his head.
“I will not open my mouth unless Her Majesty guarantees our way.”
The 'our way' that the medium spoke of was their own method, guaranteed by blood between the Shartins. The purple-feathered medium did not believe the guarantees made by the imperial people through words or by their honor.
“It would be of the greatest help to you, so would you really refuse?”
The purple-feathered medium looked at Gelard this time and spoke.
“I was going to teach you how to break the ban.”
***
After hearing the story, the Empress readily offered her guarantee. Since it only took a single drop of blood, the Emperor also gave his permission.
Erne waited until late at night, unable to leave the palace, and then went back to interrogating the purple-feathered medium.
“One, cough, ha, big, say, start, keuk, huh.”
“...”
“Ahem, let me say something, keke, keke.”
“...You start by saying one thing? What is that one thing?”
“We, ahem. We, cough, about us, cough.”
“...”
Say a word and cough, say a word, and clear your throat.
“Us, keeek, keuk.”
As Erne watched the purple-feathered medium coughing as if he was going to vomit out a long organ, veins popped out on his temples.
“No, you can’t say anything about that.”
I'm going to turn around because I'm so frustrated. Erne sighed, running his hands through his hair. Thanks to the Empress's assurance, the children of the Followers and his own people who helped him were saved, and the purple-feathered medium seemed relieved.
His body, which had been barely holding on because of the purpose he had set out to achieve, began to crumble.
The purple-feathered medium didn't seem to care much about his worsening condition, but Erne and Gelard were getting mad with frustration.
“Please bring me some medicine, please. If this keeps up, I’ll wake up without even hearing a word, sir.”
“...It’s been a long time since I agreed with your opinion.”
Finally, the purple-feathered medium was given a light meal and cough medicine before the full-scale interrogation.
The purple-feathered medium's lung disease was not curable with cough medicine, but it did buy him enough time to testify.
“I don’t know if you know us well. We are under the guidance of the priests and the eight elders.”
Although the priest was the leader, he was more like an honorary captain.
The priest is a person who studies and studies magic, emptying himself and then, when the time comes, making a sacrifice for those who follow him.
Therefore, they are respected, but they are not in charge of practical work. The remaining practical work is divided among the eight elders under the priest. So, the real power is actually in their hands.
“In the last rebellion, five priests and elders were killed.”
The five elders were replaced by their designated successors, and the priest was also chosen from among the candidates for the priesthood.
The Purple Feathered Medium was also one of the Eight Elders who survived the rebellion.
Unlike the elders, the priests had to be pure-blooded Shartin, making it difficult to select a successor.
“There were two candidates for the position of High Priest this time. Since the rebellion seemed likely to fail, we abducted those two first.”
“Is the snake charmer one of them?”
“Yes. Although he was a bit weak, he was a very talented child. I had no doubt that he would become a priest and be the cornerstone of our rebuilding and establishing the Shartin Empire.”
But things have changed.
After becoming a priest, the boy became greedy.
“He's become a man who only knows money. If he can make money, he doesn’t hesitate to sell even curses. He even sells his ancestors’ secrets without hesitation.”
Among those secrets were the records of a madman who came up with the idea for this cosmetic and arthritis medicine.
“It’s a new thing. Wasn’t the curse supposed to be sold from the beginning?”
“Yes, but that was because we needed money to fund our living and our cause.”
“So you’re not a priest now?”
The purple-feathered medium nodded, sipping water like it was alcohol.
“He is saving money to indulge in luxury. For his own self and revival. He neglects his own work and only wants to make money. He pretends not to listen to the advice of the elders.”
The priests did not hesitate to sell the secret prayers kept secret by their Followers in order to make money.
“We, the Empire, value the lives of our own people as if they were flies, but we value the lives of our own people. But that is not the case with priests.”
There were only two priests.
People who are helpful to you and people who are not. If they are helpful, they are your kind, if not, they are your enemies.
“A group led by such a person is bound to perish.”
The purple-feathered medium spoke self-mockingly.
“So I decided to find a new place to live.”
The purple-feathered medium betrayed the priests but did not betray the Followers.
He set out to find a new home, prepared to be branded a traitor.
He tried to find a new place to start by using all the information and connections he had, but it wasn't easy. He was being chased by the royal family as a traitor, and he was being chased by the Followers as a traitor, so it was even harder.
With luck not on his side, he encountered robbers and even contracted tuberculosis, so the purple-feathered medium had no choice but to admit that he had failed.
“You speak as if you have given up.”
“Why should I be foolish now? My breath will soon cease even if the Emperor does not pronounce the death sentence.”
“It’s not like we gave you cough medicine to make you lie.”
Erne flicked his fingers and lightly hit the iron bars.
“You want us to kill that priest instead of you.”
If the priest is killed, the group of Followers will lose their focal point. However, those who have already fled or are planning to flee, like the purple-feathered medium, can remain somewhere and start anew.
The purple-feathered medium wanted to establish a new foundation for the Followers to stand on again through the Imperial Army.
“There’s a saying that goes, ‘The enemy of my enemy is my friend.’ Think of it that way.”
The purple-feathered medium didn't deny it at all. Erne let out a mocking laugh.
“Then give us the right information so we can catch the priest. Where is the main headquarters?”
“That one is under a gold ban.”
“It’s different from what was promised.”
Erne quietly muttered that if this were to happen, the young ones of the Followers would not be spared.
“Instead, I’ll teach you how to break the gold ban.”
“If you know how to break a ban, you can break the ban on yourself.”
“The method of placing a ban varies from medium to medium, so only the medium who placed the ban can remove it. Furthermore, you cannot place a ban on yourself.”
Erne felt cheated for a moment.
Even if you ask a purple-feathered medium how to break a ban spell, doesn't that mean that it only works on the person he cast the ban on?
“You don’t have to make that face. I can make most of the ban.”
The purple-feathered medium wrote down on a piece of paper the method of breaking the ban.
“The one who put the ban on me is this high priest. So only the high priest can release my ban.”
He spent a long time scribbling on paper, wondering how complicated the method of solving the problem was.
***
Erne returned to the Rhineland mansion late at night. Judith cleaned up the store with Henry and returned to the mansion first to wait for Erne.
“You said that the Followers who escaped after releasing Cliff and Ceres’ ban were caught?”
“Who told you that?”
“The Marquis. He came earlier to deliver the reward money.”
“Was it gold this time?”
Judith nodded, but her nod seemed somehow listless.
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