The Shadowed Legacy of the Soulless Messenger [EN]: Chapter 312

“First, the most suspicious one is… Inquisitor Zekt, Sir.”

At the mention of Zekt’s name, everyone groaned.

The strongest knight of the King’s Church. A figure skilled in black magic, insidious plots, and everything in between.

If the scroll of reincarnation had fallen into his hands, it would be a major disaster not only for the Order of Wisdom but for the entire Order of the Knights of Salvation.

“He must be the one. There’s no way he wouldn’t be interested in the Celestial Fire, is there? We need to contact the Northern Empire right now and come up with a countermeasure.”

At the Celestial Knight’s words, everyone was taken aback.

“Wait a minute, Sir Triodana. That seems a bit too hasty.”

“Contacting the Northern Empire now would take too long. It’s not too late to report after we find the scroll of reincarnation ourselves.”

If they revealed their incompetence to the Northern Empire, they would become completely subservient to the Northern Empire, especially since they were already losing their grip on the initiative.

They wanted to avoid such a situation at all costs.

“And before suspecting Sir Zekt, isn’t there another threat? The Soulless Blasphemer.”

“Yes, just the day before yesterday, Azadin of Chadra passed through the gate.”

“What was he doing?”

“There are reports that he was fighting wereboars outside the gate.”

“Wereboars?”

“Yes.”

“What a strange fellow. What was he doing on the day of the incident?”

“On the day of the incident… he booked a room at an inn and, after asking the innkeeper, found a tour guide. This morning, or rather, since it’s past midnight, it would be yesterday morning. He registered for a group tour in the morning and then made contact with the Order of Mercy. He was dragged into their interrogation room.”

Haine knew that the Order of Wisdom was also tracking Azadin’s trail, so he had disguised it as if he had been taken to the Order of Mercy’s interrogation room.

This disguise strategy worked effectively, and the Order of Wisdom believed that Azadin had been under investigation in the Order of Mercy’s interrogation room all this time.

“A group tour?”

“Pfft.”

At that moment, the Celestial Knight burst out laughing. He couldn’t hold back his laughter during the solemn meeting, and everyone’s eyes were on him, but he was unfazed.

“He’s an interesting one. Whether it’s a smokescreen or genuine… I’d like to meet him.”

“We’re in the middle of a meeting, Sir Triodana.”

“Ah, I apologize.”

“So, is it true that he went on a tour?”

“Ah, I apologize. The official name is the Saint Mallory Pilgrimage Guide. He paid the fee and was dragged away by the Order of Mercy in the middle of the pilgrimage.”

“……”

Everyone was speechless at that point.

Did the Soulless Blasphemer really get hooked on a group tour package for ordinary pilgrims and go on a group tour? After coming all the way here from the Chadra Plateau?

“If the Order of Mercy called him in, he might have joined hands with them.”

Azadin’s absurd behavior left them dumbfounded, but that didn’t mean he was off the list of suspects. Rather, his strange actions further fueled their vigilance.

“Let’s interrogate him first. Have him brought here. If he refuses, eliminate him.”

“What should we use as a pretext?”

“He’s an accomplice of Sir Zibeck, the Kingslayer. Just for hiding Sir Zibeck, he’s committed a great crime.”

The Order of Wisdom decided to secure Azadin first. Zekt, the Inquisitor of the King’s Church, was someone they couldn’t easily touch, but Azadin had no backing and was a member of the Heraldic Clan, which they didn’t like from the start.

They had been looking for any excuse to punish him, and now he was flaunting himself right in front of them, which couldn’t be better.

“Understood. Then I will go and meet him.”

Sir Triodana, a descendant of the Northern Empire and reborn as a Celestial [A being of immense power], volunteered for the task.

*********

The inn street, where lamps flickered, and darkness descended upon the inn street of Saint Mallory, the holy land of the Order of the Knights of Salvation.

However, this street refused to succumb to the darkness of night, driving it away with expensive candles, cheap torches, and the light of desire, and was open for business.

Inns and brothels were bustling with customers, thriving in a way that didn’t seem to fit the solemn holy land.

Azadin was packing his bags in an inn on that street, preparing to leave Saint Mallory. Even though his luggage wasn’t anything special, it had definitely increased a bit since he first arrived.

They were souvenirs from Saint Mallory.

Each tourist spot in Saint Mallory sold crudely made monument models, embroidered flags, and paperweights to keep documents from blowing away, and Azadin had bought and collected them.

Even though he knew the reality of the Order of the Knights of Salvation and no longer had any expectations for them, Azadin bought these tourist souvenirs because there was still a blind and wounded boy inside him.

Besides that, he bought some gifts for his subordinates.

Precious sweets, spices that were hard to find in Chadra, perfumes, high-quality fabrics, and sturdy tape measures with luxurious rods, etc. He chose items that could be found in big cities and wrapped them as gifts, making his luggage quite substantial.

He was carefully packing his luggage to minimize fatigue during the long journey when it happened.

“S-Excuse me!”

The inn’s errand boy came up from below, and the wooden stairs began to play a bone-creaking melody.

The creaking sound, like an old man’s knees, echoed like thunder throughout the inn.

“Is Sir Azadin here? You have a visitor.”

“A visitor.”

It would be difficult to escape without making a sound in this wooden building where even a small step made a loud noise.

Even if that wasn’t the case, Azadin was curious about who this visitor might be.

So, he went down the stairs and met someone he hadn’t expected.

‘Karna, or is it someone else?’

A young man with a face so similar to Karna’s, but with a slightly more toned-down overall appearance, was waiting for Azadin, revealing his pearly white teeth.

As soon as Azadin came down the stairs, he recognized him.

“Wow. You have a noble air about you. I thought the Heraldic Clan would have horns and fangs, but you’re such a handsome figure. Ah, I am Triodana, a Hospitaller from the Order of Wisdom.”

“I am Azadin. Sir Triodana. It’s a pleasure to meet you. But what brings you here at this hour?”

“That’s strange. I thought I met Karna on my way here, but you don’t say a word about my resemblance to Karna. Are you perhaps wary of me?”

The knight who introduced himself as Triodana was well aware that Azadin had already made contact with Karna.

However, he found it suspicious that Azadin was pretending to be meeting him for the first time. But Azadin’s answer was beyond his imagination.

“I thought it would be rude to bring up someone’s appearance on a first meeting.”

Azadin’s sarcasm made the other knights who came with Triodana flinch. Azadin’s words implied that he was criticizing Triodana for making comments about his appearance on their first meeting.

“Hmm, so you’re saying that you’re displeased that I made comments about your appearance on our first meeting?”

“No. If I were to be displeased by just talk about appearance, it would be hard to live as a member of the Heraldic Clan. There are so many rude people that I have no choice but to get used to it.”

Azadin skillfully parried Triodana’s words.

“Hmm… I understand. Let me get straight to the point. You need to come with us.”

“Where to?”

“There are people who want to meet Sir Azadin, avoiding the eyes of other orders. I’m trying to arrange a meeting with them.”

“Who exactly are these people?”

“It’s Sir Durio, the Saint Mallory Chapter Master of the Order of Wisdom.”

Sir Durio, the commander of the garrison knights who protect the Order of Wisdom in Saint Mallory, wanted to see Azadin. It was nothing short of a threat to come to their investigation room willingly.

Azadin put on a troubled expression. He didn’t expect the other party to be so blatant in probing him.

Judging from Triodana’s attitude and reaction, it didn’t seem like they knew that Azadin was the real culprit. However, they were acting recklessly because they believed that they could treat Azadin however they wanted, whether he was the culprit or not, without any repercussions.

Since there would be no problem even if they treated him badly, the Order of Wisdom was trying to secure Azadin and keep him locked up.

If he complied with their words and was taken away, they would continue to imprison and torment him until they got the results they wanted.

“I’m busy, can’t we do it later? Is it important?”

“That might be difficult. They’ve made time for you despite being busy. Do you have other matters to attend to?”

“I’ve been away from the Chadra Plateau for a long time, so I was packing to go back. How long will it take?”

“Rest assured. Even if it takes a long time, would we really imprison you for an unfair reason?”

“Tell me what this is about first.”

“Yes. Actually, the Order of Wisdom is currently experiencing a strange incident. Just this afternoon, there was an inappropriate intrusion into our order’s headquarters, and the intruders stole an important item from our order.”

“So, you’re suspecting me, is that it?”

“Rather than that, we need your cooperation, Sir Azadin. Of course, there’s no reason why you should help us, but…”

It would be no fun if he refused. Was that what they were trying to say? Azadin smiled bitterly.

“What exactly was stolen? A treasure?”

“It’s a magic scroll. It’s a scroll that seals a powerful spell, and the intruder stole it.”

“What is the scroll used for? Do you have any guesses?”

“If we were to guess, it would be the King’s Church. Sir Azadin, you know Inquisitor Zekt, don’t you? I know you’ve met him recently. Anyway, it’s not appropriate to discuss it here. We can’t talk about issues involving the King’s Church in a crowded inn, can we? So, would you please come with us?”

Triodana skillfully led him into a situation where he had no choice but to go. He couldn’t talk about the King’s Church in a public place. So, come to the Order of Wisdom’s headquarters, into the interrogation room. That’s how they were setting the stage.

Of course, Azadin knew that if he was dragged away like this, it would be the end, so he refused.

“That’s a bit difficult.”

“Why is that?”

“It seems like it will take too long. I have to go back to the Chadra Plateau tomorrow.”

“We will send you back before the gates open. We’re just asking for a little cooperation.”

“……”

Of course, Triodana had no intention of sending Azadin back at that time.

Once they brought him in, once they put him in their interrogation room, it would be over.

After that, even if they changed their promise and held him captive, no one would criticize them, and even if Azadin had the ability to fly, it would be nearly impossible to escape from the Order of Wisdom’s headquarters.

‘Tsk. These guys. They’re persistent? They’re so brazen after doing such a thing. Should I just get rid of them?’

Azadin was also furious about the Order of Wisdom’s actions of replacing the angel statues and reincarnating influential figures as Celestials. And now they were trying to forcibly drag him into their investigation room…

Should he just deal with the guys in front of him without thinking about the consequences? He was feeling that temptation.

But then, it happened.

[The Emperor’s Gold Coin has been used. Azadin. The petitioner’s life is in imminent danger.]

Suddenly, Araiel’s voice informed him that the Emperor’s Gold Coin had been used, meaning that someone had petitioned the Emperor’s Herald.