abcnovels
Chapter 201
Chapter 201
Giving meaning (4)
“Seongchangryong Velbroke is resurrected.”
It was some time after lunch on the fourth day of my visit to the monastery that I brought up that story.
The saint’s private room which everyone in the monastery is reluctant to approach. In a majestic place at the top of the spire Saint Clarice was praying while looking at the open sky.
There is only one day left until the largest prayer meeting hosted by the Cleric Monastery.
It is a time when representatives of prominent noble families from all over the world take their own rooms in the monastery and wait for the prayer meeting.
The process of waiting for the visiting VIPs every day all the way to the beach at Austin Abbey and then dragging them back in at low tide continued.
In particular when the head of the family was baptized into the Telos Church there was a custom of sending one key member of the family to prove its faithfulness and reaffirm the trust relationship between believers.
The same was true for the Ross Taylor family. It seems like most of the time Tanya took charge of attending the prayer meeting but I don’t think I had very good memories of it.
Actually it’s worth it. There is nothing really surprising about this monastery. It is a place where even famous VIPs have to sit in a small room and chew grass.
As it is a place like that when the fourth day came and it was time for VIPs to visit the atmosphere became heated without knowing it. Just the fact that so many visitors come is a departure and it feels like a different sense of exaltation than usual is flowing inside.
In any case it was a time like this and the brief moment when the gaze on the saint was relatively reduced was the best time to tell my story.
“… yes?
“Actually I wanted to tell this story.”
I was in charge of managing the saint’s life and meals. There were quite a few opportunities to be alone during the day. At least at Sylvania Academy it was something that could be said to be almost impossible.
Now is the most appropriate time as the saintess’s schedule is relatively free and attention within the monastery is divided among the various distinguished guests.
“There were very few people I could say this to without hesitation. so… In fact I followed the saint to the Cleric Monastery.”
“… ”
“I saw the future. “The Holy Spear Dragon Velbrok will be resurrected without warning turning Aken Island into a wasteland and causing a disaster that will remain in the history of the Cloel Empire.”
This is neither a joke nor a guess.
Saint Clarice stopped eating when I spoke in a neat manner. She no she had already finished eating to begin with but she might have sat a little longer so she could chat with me.
“I don’t doubt it but is it okay if I ask the basis of the story?”
“I couldn’t tell anyone because there was no basis.”
“… ”
“I am in a position where I have to demand unfounded trust. so that… . “I came to speak directly to the saint who experienced the part of the future that I saw.”
On the day of the joint combat training Saint Clarice and I traveled together several times and watched the disaster caused by Belbroke.
The resurrection was delayed a bit by taking Belbroke’s molar to Margrave Za’hur’s territory… The fact that Velbroke’s sealing ceremony has already reached its limit does not change.
“I can’t stop it alone. We need people with enough real influence to mobilize large numbers of people. Saint Clarice… “He is a person who is not lacking in those areas.”
It is natural to react by asking what kind of nonsense this is. However if the opponent is Saint Clarice the story is completely different.
To her Belbroke’s resurrection is not a rumor. This is a girl who has already seen the scales covering the sky over Aken Island several times.
“… “If what Senior Ed said is true we can’t just sit still.”
“We need to rally as many forces as possible. At the very least we must be able to summon all the elite soldiers of the imperial power and the church power to Aken Island.”
“If it’s something of that scale… “No matter how much I am a saint I cannot decide arbitrarily.”
We were talking about the coastal scenery seen from the window of our private room.
Even though it was a serious story that came suddenly Clarisse just took a moment to catch her breath.
“Only by convincing the Holy Emperor of the story about Belbroke can we fully mobilize the power of the church.”
that… “It won’t be easy.”
“If I use my status as a saint I can give legitimacy to whether it is an oracle or a precognitive dream. but… “If she doesn’t do as prophesied she will affect my authority.”
Clarice is a saint of the Telos Church and the one who hears the voice of God closest.
He reigns as God’s representative but if he is perceived as a person who misreads his voice his current position may be in jeopardy.
It is not a simple matter but a foreshadowing of Seong Chang-ryong threatening the world. This is a problem that cannot be overlooked with the excuse that you were simply confused or misunderstood.
To force me to put my everything my position as a saint on the line for a story told by a person named Ed Rosstaylor without any basis… However it is not easy.
That’s why Clarice asked for evidence to convince Seonghwang.
Regardless of whether Clarisse herself trusts my words whether I can convince Seonghwang is a completely different question.
“I thought about that. Senior Ed who lives a busy life every day and treasures every day like gold why did he follow me to the monastery?”
“… ”
“I really don’t think you came just for me. You may have moved for various political decisions or the big picture. The time to feel bad about that fact is over. “If you’re in a position like this things like that happen every day.”
It’s strange even if I apologize here.
Even taking all that into account Saint Clarice was just happy about the fact that I was staying with her at Cleric’s Monastery.
“You said it as if you were shameless because you were in a position to demand trust without any basis but you don’t have to worry about that. I believe even if there is no basis for it. “If Senior Ed said so Bellbroke would be a very real threat.”
“Saint… ”
“At least it’s a question I can’t give an answer to right now. Just because I trust Senior Ed that doesn’t really serve as a basis for me to take the entire Telos Church into my hands. But I will try my best.”
It’s different from when we’re casually talking about the scenery.
Saint Clarice often appears immature unaware of the world and intoxicated by a strange romance… After losing Adele she felt more calm and rational.
Aside from achieving internal growth the situation itself was just serious.
“I’m also embarrassed because they accepted it more harshly than I expected.”
“There is something I vaguely learned while I was in the position of a saint. If she is intoxicated with peace she will be unable to cope with sudden tragedy. The tragedy… “It always comes to me when I am most at peace.”
Clarisse had a vague look in her eyes but continued speaking clearly.
“So please tell me everything. What does senior Ed know? What will happen next?”
“I think the story will be long.”
“I’m rather happy. “I feel like Ed is finally relieving me of the burden he has been carrying internally.”
Contrary to the expectation that she would be embarrassed Clarice actually smiled softly.
“I am ready to carry it together.”
*The royal family is the main character no matter where they go.
This was the case with Princess Selaha who reigned like a main character in the Rosstaylor family’s social church and this was the case with Princess Fenia who received everyone’s attention among the new students in Sylvania.
That fact was no different from the Princess of Persica. In the monastery ladies from all kinds of noble families were introducing themselves and exchanging greetings but no one was allowed to talk to Princess Persica.
A noble appearance and dignified behavior are natural for members of the royal family. It feels like there is some kind of energy surrounding my body that makes it impossible to talk to me carelessly.
It is difficult to talk to Persica let alone to Tune the knight who follows and guards her.
Therefore even if they encountered her in the monastery hallways most ladies would just bow their heads and pass by.
“Are most of them just Bibles and religious books? It seems that the quality of the shelves is difficult to match that of the imperial library. “It’s worth it.”
The place where the Princess of Persica was sitting was a fairly large library on the lower level of the monastery.
There were many old books but most of them were contents contained in the Princess of Persica’s mind.
She was a person who was so obsessed with books and knowledge that she was called the ghost of the library.
Knowledge and information are the essence of the world. If the person who reigns is ignorant and not well-informed he or she will never be able to maintain that position for long. That was the unwavering Persica value system.
That’s why the Princess of Persica always stayed in the library whenever she had time and focused only on reading the books. As soon as she arrived at the monastery she locked herself in the library prepared inside her which was truly her characteristic.
The problem is that this is not the time to just read books.
As the imperial power dispute is intensifying Emperor Cloel will also soon feel the burden.
The easiest way to end the heated dispute over imperial power is to formally declare a successor.
However the successor to lead a great nation cannot be chosen arbitrarily. He may have been suffering in his own way but rumors circulated among his subjects about when his suffering would come to a conclusion.
Perhaps the upcoming regular imperial meeting will examine the support of imperial influential figures for each princess. To use as a reference in one’s judgment in deciding on a successor.
What Emperor Cloel considers most important is whether he has the ability to take over power without much disruption and continue to lead the empire to its heyday.
To do so it is most important to receive support from both the imperial family and various influential forces in the empire.
The reason he tried to take control of the Elte Company the most famous company in Sangdo and the reason he tried to receive the full support of the Imperial Knights was all to prove that point.
What is important is that she receives overwhelming support even more so than her two sisters Selaha and Fenia who are born in the same bloodline as her.
To do so it is important to strengthen one’s own power but it is also important to keep the opponent’s power in check.
Isn’t it much more efficient to take away one of the opponent’s forces than to increase one of your own?
That is why the Princess of Persica came to this far-off Cleric Monastery under the pretext of a prayer meeting. To appease Abbot Austin who supports Princess Fenia to his core.
Preparations for that conciliation… It was all over. Perhaps Abbot Austin would never be able to refuse the Princess of Persica’s offer. The investigation into her character and temperament had already been completed.
“Hmm… ”
The problem is Ed Rosstaylor.
He is the most famous of the survivors of the Rosstaylor family and is also one of those who support Princess Fenia.
If you can appease him you can win over one more of Princess Fenia’s key supporters.
“My thoughts are getting complicated.”
Abbot Austin is like a great mother to the Telos Church respecting even saints and saints.
Ed Rosstaylor is a key surviving member of the Rosstaylor family which is currently at the center of controversy in the imperial council.
Even if these two people are brought into their own power it can be said that they have made truly great progress in the competition for imperial power. For that alone it would be fair to say that this monastery business trip was truly a great success.
The problem is that Persica has almost no information about Ed.
Selaha and Fenia met Ed but to Persica the existence of a man named Ed Rosstaylor was completely in the fog.
He is a person who must be judged solely on information and rumors. Even the Princess of Persica did not want to confront her without prior information so she tried to gather information in her own way… It is not smooth sailing.
“Do you think we can appease with money?”
“According to rumors within the monastery his hobby is drinking wine while looking at the vineyards stretching out to the horizon from the huge golden castle… ”
“Is there a vineyard of that size in the Duchy of Rosstaylor? ?”
me too… I do not know… In any case he doesn’t seem to be a person obsessed with money. “This is certain considering that we did not give in to Elte Company’s appeasement.”
Guard knight Tune was standing next to the Princess of Persica in the reading room of the monastery library with an embarrassed expression.
How to appease people ultimately comes down to one of three things. Money fame or power and justice.
“What would you think if I offered to promise you a position of at least the prime minister level if you take power in the imperial family?”
“I have already grown up as a nobleman of the dukedom. “I honestly think it is uncertain whether he will be swayed by fame or power.”
“According to what you found out?”
“According to rumors within the monastery it is said that he declined the position of chief magic researcher which boasts the highest authority within the imperial family because of pressure. He is said to have made a long speech saying that noble achievements in academic research are not achieved through authority.”
“… “I guess the imperial family has never made such a suggestion?”
“… “I was curious too.”
“Well matters related to academic research are not managed by the Rose Palace… The report may not come to me but… ”
Princess Persica accepted Tune’s report with a dumbfounded expression. As soon as she arrived Tune’s work skills were evident as she quickly ran around collecting information.
“No what on earth are these rumors in the first place? It seems like it’s full of things that don’t make sense in terms of common sense… ”
“… There are many things omitted from the reporting documents. “There are quite a few things that I thought didn’t make sense and weren’t worth reporting.”
for example?
“You can make ice freeze with your eyes or you can stop a person’s heart with just your voice…” ”
“… ”
“Walls can split with a single swing of a dagger he can control any number of high-ranking spirits he knows a lot of powerful people in the Old Deck underworld and Saint Clarice is completely fascinated by him… ”
The scary thing about the rumors about Ed that Tune is reciting one by one is that some of them contain a grain of truth.
These things also strangely combine with the background knowledge about Ed making it difficult to judge. As if a smokescreen had been put in place the exact image of Ed as a person was not revealed in his mind.
“It has the power to split the sea with a single arrow or it can unleash high-level magic just by snapping its fingers…” ”
“Leave it at that… done… ”
“… ”
“Now I don’t know either… ”
Honestly I don’t think this is all true. That can’t be possible.
The first thing that comes to mind is that the flower-headed nuns were so fascinated by Ed Ross-Taylor that their imaginations ran wild.
… Actually that is the correct answer.
However what complicates Persica’s mind is her background knowledge about Ed Rothtaylor.
Princess Selaha and Princess Fenia are more obsessed with him than necessary. He is a survivor of the Ross Taylor family which was on the verge of extinction and a man who endured several life-threatening dangers in Sylvania… He is an expert in ‘survival’ itself.
In fact Ed Rothtaylor once foiled Persica’s plan to take control of Elte Trading Company and he even receives full support from Lortel Kecheln the current incumbent.
He is a person who is receiving surprisingly generous evaluations and there is bound to be a reason for such consistent evaluations.
So I thought he might be an extraordinary person but… ‘Even if I do this just a little… Isn’t this too much… ?’
Still isn’t there such a thing as degree?
It is rather strange that a person who can fly and crawl to this extent has not been included in Persica’s information network until now.
also… Wouldn’t it be better to meet him once?”
“I’ve come to this opportunity but I can’t just attend the prayer meeting and leave. Make some space. but… “I’m a little nervous.”
Princess Persica closed the book she was reading and sighed.
“Well it’s all just rumors anyway. “Checking that is also an important process.”
For now we have decided to dismiss all rumors about Ed Ross-Taylor as nonsense and reserve judgment on Ed Ross-Taylor who is still an imaginary being.
This can’t be true.
*
“Hello Master Ed. I heard the story from Abbot Austin. As rumored you are at the monastery. My name is Mary the second daughter of Count Flosin. The head of the family gives full support to Princess Fenia and has a special bond with the Ross Taylor family. I hope our good relationship continues.”
“Hello Master Ed! Where has Grandma Wang gone?! that… She is trying to repair her monastic habit… Looks like Ellinir in charge of repairs is busy! Hey maybe… Can I ask you a favor… ?! “I’m sorry if I was rude!”
“Master Ed. Have you eaten? It is said that high-quality lamb arrived in the monastery restaurant today. “The nuns were all going to the restaurant happily.”
“Where’s Grandma Austin?! I stayed in my room last night why am I getting penalty points?! Gaaaargh! Ah ah.. Master Ed. There you are… ”
“I need to check the progress of tomorrow’s prayer meeting… The abbot who entered the room didn’t answer… Hey maybe… Can you watch it for me… ? Master Ed also manages the saintess’s schedule directly… You have authority… ?”
After dealing with noble ladies who approached me all day about political issues and nuns who talked about daily life at the monastery I returned to my room.
When I closed the simple but fully equipped door the sky was already full of stars.
A monastery in the outskirts of nowhere.
Since there is almost no light source there are so many stars in the sky that it is majestic. The spread out Milky Way was almost as bright as daylight if only a little exaggerated.
“Whoa… ”
It’s tiring in a different way than surviving life in the wild. I wiped my face sat down on the shabby wooden chair and looked up out the window for a moment.
After spending all day at the center of noise and attention I finally found myself sitting alone in the dark late at night.
Only then do I feel comforted because the night sky I look up at is the same as usual.
Being unchanging over time often provides a strange sense of psychological stability. It seems understandable why the little wizard wearing a large witch’s hat always sits on the rooftop and looks up at the sea of ??stars.
“Did he also feel this strange sense of security?”
Although I have interacted with Lucy in many ways I still don’t feel like I completely understand the wizard.
There are times when he lies here and there like a stray cat and is bored and there are times when he roams between buildings in a more serious and mysterious manner than ever before… He is a person who cannot tell whether he is serious or lazy. Well maybe both.
“… “This is not the time to be thinking about things like this.”
Tomorrow is the long-awaited prayer meeting. The Princess of Persica who is resting in a room assigned to her somewhere in the monastery will attend the prayer meeting tomorrow and come face to face with me.
Basically mornings at the monastery are early. If you go to sleep early you will be able to face the Princess of Persica in a normal condition.
I lifted the blanket to get some sleep.
Lucy was sleeping in my bed as expected.
“… ”
I felt like I heard a strange wheezing sound earlier but I guess it was an auditory hallucination.
Lucy Mayril was sleeping on the bed hugging my pillow with a happy expression on her face.
Why are you sticking out here? Before the question was asked Lucy opened her blank eyes as if she felt empty because the blanket was gone.
Then he made eye contact with me and broke into a cold sweat.
“Oh hello.”
“Why are you here… ”
Did I suddenly lose sleep?
Lucy raised her upper body frowned and lowered her gaze.
“I was taking a walk… It just so happened… ”
“… ”
At first glance it looks like he is hiding in a monastery. Without even thinking about it this girl is probably the identity of the rumor that ghosts haunt the monastery.
It looks like he tried to lie down on the bed for a moment and fell asleep. I knew it would be like this.
“Now that the walk is over I have to go back to Ofilis Hall. I’m going to get scolded by Belle. then… this much… ”
“… Just say it out loud and honestly.”
“I followed you in the carriage. “I just want to come to the monastery.”
As I looked at her in bewilderment Lucy finally told me everything.
“I once heard a story from Grandpa Glokt… ”
This… This was not discussed on Aken Island. I couldn’t quite figure out why he wanted to come to the monastery.
Lucy twisted her white hair with her fingertips and spoke with difficulty.
“He said he had seen this monastery. I remember saying that it was a memorable and beautiful sight… “I just wanted to see it too.”
This is Lucy who rarely talks about her personal life.
Even when he came to this monastery he didn’t show his face and just looked around the building.
You can ride on the roof of this huge monastery wander around the basement or the facilities between rooms… Was it just people-watching? It roughly matches the rumors about ghosts… As expected was the identity of those ghost rumors actually Lucy?
“Then the abbot caught me.”
of course… How long did you think you wouldn’t get caught? ”
“Maybe it’s because he’s so old but he’s also acquainted with Grandpa Glokt… “He told me a lot about Grandpa Glokt.”
I sat down on the wooden chair and quietly listened to Lucy’s story.
I sat down on my bed hugged the pillow tightly… The sight of Lucy slowly continuing to speak was vaguely vague.
“Actually it seems like they just pretended not to notice me wandering around the monastery. “When I talked to him he turned out to be a more understanding person than I thought.”
“I guess so. Even at first glance he seems like a bold and cheerful person.”
“Yeah so… We sat side by side on the roof of the monastery looked at the stars and talked about various things. He was a person who could communicate better than I thought… And he listened to everything I was thinking about.”
worry?
What could be worrying about a girl who was just taking a nap with her body hanging around comfortably?
But Lucy took a deep breath and hugged her pillow tightly.
that… Rather than feeling ashamed or embarrassed he seemed sad.
“… “What on earth did you talk about with Abbot Austin?”
“… it is a secret.
“… “Yeah there’s no reason to ask.”
I didn’t really expect Lucy to follow her to the monastery but it seems like she was quietly going around the monastery on her own anyway.
I haven’t suffered anything so all I can say is that it’s ridiculous. However does Lucy have a story of her own that she wants to tell? He had a worried expression on his face.
Hey.
Once I finish my prayer meeting schedule tomorrow I will return to Aken Island.
I was thinking of telling him to confidently ride in the carriage instead of in the luggage compartment when returning.
“What is a meaningful life?”
Lucy’s attitude as she suddenly gave me a strange philosophical thought was strange. What on earth were we talking about?
Of course I cannot give a clear answer so I can only speak frankly.
“I don’t know either.”
“I guess so. huh.
“Anyway I’ll just complete my schedule tomorrow and return to Aken Island… Next time don’t get in the luggage compartment. Although there isn’t enough space in the carriage… “It would be more comfortable to ride on your lap than in the luggage compartment.”
After saying that I checked the schedule for tomorrow.
If I finish everything I have to do tomorrow I should return to Aken Island. There’s a lot of work to do when I get back.
There were a lot of things to do but I thought I could finish it well and return to Aken Island.
Of course things do not always go as expected.
Still there was a degree to sudden changes in circumstances.
The next morning.
Austin an elder of the Telos Church and abbot in charge of Cleric Monastery for decades.
She was found dead in her room.
It was just a few hours before the prayer meeting was held.