The Shadowed Legacy of the Soulless Messenger [EN]: Chapter 277

It was an era where purity and romance coexisted with decadence and pleasure. In the dark alleys of the city, anyone could satisfy their desires with a few coins, while others risked their lives for love over a single letter or a line of poetry. It was only natural that Izmilla was flustered by the suggestion of exchanging letters.

‘Why is this person…’

Numerous men had approached Izmilla before. They were captivated by her charming appearance, youth, beauty, and the dignity she possessed as a Celestial. Izmilla looked at herself through the lens of those who approached her. A Celestial who inherited the blood of an angel, the honor and pride of the Knights, and a living weapon. She was constantly reminded of this, so she couldn’t connect with them. She could only awkwardly smile and reject their advances. But Azadin was not a mirror. Unlike others who reflected Izmilla’s image, Azadin was himself. Izmilla was first conscious of him as a man because of his confident and unwavering approach. However, Azadin, unaware that he had stirred her heart, was leaving towards the soldiers of the Vermilion Fortress who were calling him.

“Then, I’ll write to you, Sir Izmilla.”

“Ah, yes…”

Izmilla had made a promise to exchange letters with Azadin.

*********

Azadin, unaware of what he had done to Izmilla, was busy moving around. With so many people under his care, there was much to do. Azadin headed to the alchemy lab. It was originally the private residence of Sir Hexenmeier, the former Chapter Master, but Azadin had divided the building and officially established it as the Fireglyph’s alchemy lab. He placed alchemist Giacomo and blood mage Bernard there, instructing them to produce various alchemical products directly.

“Have you arrived, Sir Azadin?”

“The work is progressing smoothly. We are making mercury directly from cinnabar and using it to create popular medicines.”

“I told you to make whatever you wanted, but I think I was too irresponsible. What are you making?”

“Mostly, it’s the cure for ‘Arangian Plum Blossoms’.”

“You can make a cure for Arangian Plum Blossoms?”

Azadin was surprised by Bernard’s words.

*********

Arangian Plum Blossoms was a sexually transmitted disease that had spread from beyond the Hybris Continent. This disease spread rapidly throughout Hybris due to its fast transmission rate, and it was being mocked as ‘Arangian Plum Blossoms’ because it was first discovered in the Kingdom of Arangi. Of course, the Kingdom of Arangi called this disease Banreung Poison and blamed it on Banreung, and the two kingdoms engaged in a fierce war of nerves. If there had been no further developments, the two kingdoms would have continued their war of nerves. However, the story changed when the Banreung Academy developed a cure for this disease. This cure had to be taken periodically and was very expensive, so only those who could afford the financial burden could live. Ordinary people who could not afford the medicine had no choice but to continue suffering from the STD.

In the midst of this, the Banreung Academy continued to raise the price of this cure and make excessive profits, which angered the Arangian merchants, who then petitioned the king. When the divine king, who inherited the blood of the Yaegas gods [a pantheon of deities], stepped forward, the Banreung Academy presented the following condition.

‘If the official name of the disease is confirmed as Arangian Plum Blossoms, we will lower the price.’

The King of Arangi was enraged by this and beheaded the envoy of the Banreung Academy, which started the war between the Kingdom of Arangi and the Kingdom of Banreung. The dwarves of the Kingdom of Banreung, whose envoy had been killed, took to the front lines with their dwarf artillery and dwarven sorcerer units, the pride of the dwarves, and the King of Arangi personally led his troops with the renowned Arangian Guard. The battle was won by the Kingdom of Arangi. The dwarven sorcerers of Banreung were scattered by the overwhelming breakthrough power of the Arangian Guard, and the fields were filled with the corpses of fleeing soldiers. However, the Arangi army’s winning streak ended there. After the first battle, Banreung began a siege, holing up in their rugged mountainous terrain and lined-up fortresses. No matter how powerful the Arangian Guard was, they could not break through Banreung’s mountains and fortresses. As the tedious siege warfare continued, the Kingdom of Arangi had no choice but to make peace with the Kingdom of Banreung. The victor of the war was the Kingdom of Arangi, which had won a great victory in the battle, and they were able to claim war reparations and the glory of victory, but they had no choice but to accept the shameful name of Arangian Plum Blossoms. After that, Banreung and Arangi became enemies, even though they were both part of the Eight Kingdoms that worshiped the same Yaegas gods, and Arangian Plum Blossoms became a taboo among the people of the two kingdoms.

‘Oh, you won the war, Arangian Guard, you Banreung guys couldn’t even use it, right? The dwarf sorcerer bastards, they valued their lives so much that they didn’t even fight and ran away, losing their beards, right?’

‘Oh, you were so happy to build a victory monument? But why is the disease still called Arangian Plum Blossoms? Huh?’

Older people would say hurtful things to each other and eventually end up in a fistfight. And yet, Bernard was able to create a cure for the very Arangian Plum Blossoms. This STD had now become an endemic disease, and its toxicity had weakened. It was fortunate that those who would die from the disease had already died. If the cure for Arangian Plum Blossoms had been leaked during its peak, it would have caused another war.

“If we sell it openly, there will be chaos. Bernard, what exactly are you?”

Surprisingly, it was Niselda, the half-vampire nun who had followed Azadin in, who answered Azadin’s question.

“He’s my father. It’s been a long time, Father. Do you recognize me?”

“That appearance… I see. You look just like your mother, Niselda.”

From Bernard’s words, it seemed that this father and daughter had not seen each other for a very long time.

“You’ve aged a lot, Father. You were once called the most handsome man in Banreung.”

“And you’ve grown up a lot.”

Bernard recognized her and had a bitter expression on his face.

“It seems like you two have a lot to talk about, should I leave?”

“No. It’s alright, Sir Azadin.”

Bernard looked at Azadin with an earnest gaze, as if a person who had fallen into the water was asking for help. However, Azadin pretended not to see and left the lab with Giacomo.

“What do you mean it’s alright? Have a sincere conversation between father and daughter. You’ll need a lot of time, right?”

“Sir Azadin!”

Bernard, who usually didn’t show his emotions, was truly desperate for Azadin’s help at this moment. However, Azadin closed the door mercilessly.

*********

“So, Giacomo. What kind of guy is Bernard?”

“He was the most… handsome man in Banreung.”

“Handsome?”

“He was handsome when he was young, even though he looks like that now. The Banreung Academy is dominated by dwarves, so he couldn’t rise to a high position, but he was famous among the students for his outstanding looks and talent.”

“Really? That’s unexpected.”

“He could have risen to a higher position, but he became an alchemy slave like us for stealing medicine from the academy to save his daughter. I only heard about it, but I never thought that his daughter would be Niselda.”

According to Giacomo, Bernard, who was successful in his youth, stole rare medicine from the Banreung Academy to save Niselda. He became an alchemy slave for that crime, and then escaped with Giacomo’s group, which led to where he is now.

“You also suffered a lot because of your daughter, right? You must have felt a sense of camaraderie since you’re in a similar situation.”

“Yes. And to meet like this here. The world is so small.”

“He knows the cure for Arangian Plum Blossoms, so why didn’t he join the Kingdom of Arangi? If he had defected when the disease was at its peak, the reward would have been enormous.”

“Sir Azadin, why are you a Hospitaller Errant in this remote place? In my opinion, you seem much more outstanding than that? Everyone has their own circumstances.”

“I guess so.”

Bernard had said from the beginning that his goal was the blood of the ancient gods. This calm and composed mage had not told everything about his goal, but at least he was honest. Just then, the sound of a bell began to ring in the distance. It was the servant announcing the evening time when the city gates would soon close.

“Oh, I have to go to the evening banquet. Tell Bernard I said hello.”

Azadin turned around to attend the evening banquet.

*********

As the sun set, Azadin headed to the meeting place. Prince Kalintz’s banquet hall was located in the heart of the Fireglyph city’s downtown area. If you walk up the stairs along the hill in what appears to be a red-light district, you will see luxurious shops. Originally, it was a high-end building built for wealthy pleasure-seekers, and the most expensive rooms were made into pavilions overlooking the Fireglyph reservoir. This extravagant space, where one could enjoy the surrounding natural scenery and indulge in entertainment and cuisine from this high pavilion, was the banquet hall chosen by Prince Kalintz.

‘To hold a banquet for Hospitallers in a place like this. What an outrage? I’m starting to have prejudices that I didn’t have before. This is… I’m not in a position to be prejudiced against others.’

Azadin was a member of the Messenger Clan and a Holy Knight of the Relief Knights. He shouldn’t have been prejudiced against others, but he couldn’t feel good about Prince Kalintz holding a banquet for the Holy Knights in a place of pleasure. However, there was something even more surprising than the banquet hall itself…

Knights of the King’s Church were standing guard in the banquet hall that Azadin entered.

“No…”

Azadin said that and then closed his mouth. A familiar figure had emerged from among the knights of the King’s Church.

“Since you, the Emperor’s messenger, are here as a member of the Relief Knights, is there any reason why we shouldn’t be here? Sir Azadin?”

“…”

It was Inquisitor Zekt, the Inquisitor who had been chasing Azadin from the Kingdom of Corasar, seeking the Divine King’s Scripture. A dark mage who wielded evil Nether magic and used the Holy Knights of the King’s Church as undead. That man was now facing Azadin again in the distant Chadra Highlands.