CHAPTER TWO “Ugh… We finally made it…” Myuri collapsed on the bed as she said that, and let out her ears and tail which she had kept hidden the whole journey. After she gave them a good swishing two, three times, they fell flat on the bed. “Do not fall asleep like that.” “Mmh…” Her tail twitched with displeasure, but she began to peel off parts of her travel clothes without getting up—perhaps they were not that comfortable when lying down. “Good grief.” Col took her cloak and her belt and placed them on a nearby chest. He glanced out the window beside him and looked down at the main street of Estatt below. “It’s a lot quieter than we were expecting, isn’t it?” Estatt was known not only for being a city ruled by a renowned prince-elector, but also for its grand, thriving market held in the spring and autumn, and the spring market should have been in full swing. So, while it was hardly devoid of activity, the city was rather empty given the season. Perhaps those who were originally planning on visiting the city had followed that preacher’s suggestion and had headed for the tax-free Town of Hope. The town of Ohlburg would not be found on any maps. And then, there were the splendid teachings, said to be given by the Twilight Cardinal himself… Col pulled himself away from the window with a sigh; Myuri had stripped down to her underwear and was quickly falling asleep. Her slovenly, uninhibited behavior was exactly like that of Holo the Wisewolf. That brought back memories of his old travels again. He felt a fondness for the past, and also defeat, knowing it was probably futile fighting blood. “Nngh… Brother, stop…” Col grasped Myuri by the nape of her neck to wake her, but she clung to her sack, which she was using as a makeshift pillow, and refused to let go. Perhaps the humid journey along the coast had been harder for her to bear than he had thought. Ever since she had screamed after pulling out her moldy bread, she had not been able to relax over meals, her one enjoyment, and Col was understanding. But he asked regardless, “We will be going into town. Are you sure you don’t want to come?” Col wanted to get their own grasp on the situation in and around Estatt before they received replies to the two letters they had sent from Aquent. He thought Myuri could use a warm meal while they were out and about, but it seemed she had no energy for it. After another sigh, he unfurled the blanket they had packed on their horse’s back, and draped it over Myuri. He watched her twist a little, her ears flicking in satisfaction, and he could not help but smile. “If only you were this well-behaved all the time.” He patted her head with a hint of a tease, and her ears thwacked against his hand. When he exited into the corridor, Le Roi and Canaan were just emerging from their rooms, too. “Oh? Where is Miss Myuri?” “Surprisingly, it seems her exhaustion has won out.” “There are few things more difficult than a journey without a proper meal.” Journeys through the north were completely different from journeys through the south. One had to be wary of how much distance separated the sparse dots of civilization and bone-chilling cold in the north, while in the south, the enemies of the day were unsafe water and how quickly food spoiled. For Myuri, who was born in a snowbound land and had a fluffy tail of her own, problems with food were more difficult for her to handle than the cold. “What food is Estatt known for anyway?” Col asked, and both Le Roi and Canaan smiled kindly at him. Myuri was a lot tougher than Col was, and thanks to the wolf in her veins, the average man stood no chance against her. That said, Col felt uneasy leaving Myuri alone in an inn in a city he was not familiar with, and so he entrusted Le Roi and Canaan with the preliminary investigations. Col apologized profusely to the other two, and though they reassured him it was all right, Col could not help but give light sighs while he sat beside the happily snoozing Myuri. “I think a good part of why I can never work to my fullest is because of you.” His scolding went in one ear and out the other. Myuri continued to sleep soundly, her wolf ears flicking as though tickled by a breeze. There was not much he could accomplish simply sitting there, so he decided to clean their traveling clothes and throw out the food that had gone bad. Since Myuri had not been able to relax and eat a real meal on the road, Col went down to the tavern on the ground floor to ask for Estatt’s specialty—eel grilled with spices, apparently. He had heard eels as big as Myuri could be caught in the bay, and it was considered a dish for feasts. He figured Myuri would be delighted to have such an extravagant meal, and there might even be more than enough for Le Roi and Canaan’s bodyguard. But when the innkeeper-cum-barkeeper heard Col’s order, he looked at him with mistrust. “Are you eating that?” Unsure of the intent behind the question, Col blinked in confusion. Perhaps it was the sort of food meant only for extremely special occasions in this city. While that was his initial assumption, this is the explanation he was given: “Sorry, but if you’re really gonna eat this, would you mind eating it in your room? Not down here.” “Umm…” Col hesitated. The innkeeper tensed. “We’ll catch people’s attention if we serve lavish food.” He was so disgruntled, his lower lip stuck out slightly. The sun was still high in the sky, so it was not an entirely odd request, even if there were few people in the tavern. But the market was in full swing, and festivals often came with feasts. “Is this… Is this because of the Twilight Cardinal?” The shameless question caught in Col’s throat. But it was the only thing he could think of, and all he had to do was think back on what the preacher was saying. The man at the post town had been singing praises of the Twilight Cardinal’s blessed teachings while guiding people down the road to the Town of Hope. The innkeeper studied Col for a moment, then gave a deep sigh. “I get he’s fighting for justice, but our business isn’t one that can just pick up and relocate that easily. We ordered a load of stuff expecting all the crowds the market usually brings. We’re sweating here.” The reason the tavern was so quiet was not because of the time of day, but because there were few travelers. And from what Col could tell, the innkeeper was not hopeful things would get much livelier at night. That was because the Twilight Cardinal, who had stood up to right the Church’s immoral behavior, was just outside the city, preaching about the proper way to live. To drink and be merry would be scandalous. But there was one thing Col was wondering about. “To be honest, we are in the middle of our travels as well, and we have heard rumors about the Twilight Cardinal,” he said, his voice hushed to show he was not a devotee of Twilight Cardinal, but on the fence, if anything. “In the post town outside the city walls, we heard the name Ohlburg. Apparently, it’s the name of another town. When you mention moving shop, do you mean opening an inn over there?” “Exactly. Butchers, bakers, brewers—sure. They can pack their stuff up in a cart and just head on over. Most of the other artisans have packed up their tools and already set up shop. The only ones sitting and twiddling their thumbs are us innkeepers, really. Oh, and—” A wry smile burst across the innkeeper’s face. “The clerics. They’re sticking around.” If a man calling himself the Twilight Cardinal was preaching in Ohlburg, then it was rather obvious priests from the Church would not be eager to show their faces there. “What is Ohlburg anyway? It does not seem to be on the map…” The innkeeper’s eyes scanned the quiet tavern, then said in a hushed tone, “The Town of Hope. The promised land. And…” His eyes seemed to be looking at something far away. “The home of the true Church.” The pot was big enough it needed two arms to carry. When Col lifted the lid, the scent of garlic, herbs, and the sound of crackling grease overwhelmed him. Myuri’s eyes gleamed, Le Roi’s and Canaan’s bodyguard filled their steins with ale, and Col and Canaan prayed for God’s protection before this almost violent, delectable feast. Col cut the fatty eel into slices. When he lay them atop Myuri’s bread, which she was using in place of a plate, she bit into it with a beaming smile. He took a bite of a piece for himself, and the fat and texture made it hard to believe this was a fish. “The town was silent. As was the cathedral.” Everyone was gathered in Col and Myuri’s room; it was rather cramped. But it was better this way, considering the delicate topic of conversation. Not to mention the obviously very popular feast dish that sat in the middle. “It seems to be that Ohlburg is a town made in haste to accompany the holy market, which is being held in place of Estatt’s grand market,” Le Roi said. Col felt uncomfortable in his chair. “Holy market…?” The words fit together like grains of sand in bread. “Since this is a cathedral city, all the privileges surrounding the grand market belong to the cathedral. However, the Twilight Cardinal has denounced the cathedral, saying it is corrupt of the cathedral to levy taxes and make a profit through the grand market.” Le Roi was, of course, using the Twilight Cardinal’s title as a joke, but Myuri did not like that—she kept her eyes tight and narrow. “But if they are holding a grand market outside of Estatt, would that not make them…two eels in a pod?” Col said. The taciturn bodyguard was surprised by the inspired turn of phrase and burst out laughing. “A young assistant priest at the cathedral told me quite a bit after I gave him an offering.” Col did not ask for further details as to what sort of offering he gave, and he helped himself to a bit more of the eel. The mouth-numbing saltiness and smell of garlic was almost addicting. He understood why, now, this was considered a local delicacy, and since eel was not considered meat, he thought it a fitting dish for a cathedral city. “Originally, the market fees went to one noble family, but at some point, it was transferred to the cathedral. That noble family has been unhappy with the arrangement ever since.” “And so they began working with the Twilight Cardinal?” Profits and the Twilight Cardinal. Something about the combination did not quite add up in Col’s mind, much like the idea of the holy market itself. As Myuri finished her first slice of eel, she slapped his knee. “Brother. Did you forget you’re the Twilight Cardinal?” “………” She was right. The Twilight Cardinal they were speaking of was a fake, and it was very possible this person was running some sort of scam. And that meant it was not unusual if they were doing something that did not quite make sense. “You need to have a little more self-awareness, Brother. Self-awareness!” she said. There was a lot he could say in return, but she was, unfortunately, correct. Canaan coughed lightly—the spices used in the eel must have been a little too powerful for him, and he washed it down with some wine before he spoke. “It is plausible the cathedral was indeed making excessive profits with the grand market, causing the people undue hardship, which eventually prompted someone to rise up against them. Perhaps the name of the Twilight Cardinal is nothing more than the banner of someone who is challenging the Church.” It was not entirely unthinkable, but the conversation Col had had with the innkeeper led him to believe that might not be the case exactly. “Another possibility is this is purely a contest for privileges.” Col felt this was more plausible, but there was one thing he was wondering about. “I’ve heard about this taxless market—how exactly will that be accomplished?” Lively places with many people, at a glance, looked prosperous and like the perfect place to make money. But behind the scenes, these places often came hand in hand with a considerable amount of trouble; Col understood this painfully well due to his experience helping with running the bathhouse in Nyohhira. A crowd alone had its own problems, and cleaning up after a commotion always cost money one way or another. It was perfectly possible the cathedral was collecting taxes through the grand market, not to make money, but because it was essential to maintaining the city. “It depends on the circumstances, but…I believe the holy market may be no more than ground bait.” “Ground bait?” Myuri looked up, sensing a topic about new food. “One sure thing is the Town of Hope itself. While the nobles have lost their historic right to levy taxes on the grand market, they still likely own quite a lot of the land surrounding the city. But as we saw on our way here, crops do not grow well in the peatlands, and peat itself is not a very popular fuel nowadays, so it is rarely used. This can only mean one thing.” When Col was a child, he had traveled with a very talented merchant for a short while. “They’re building a new town to raise the land value.” It was likely an appropriate grift for a swindler to take on the Twilight Cardinal name, even if it meant risking their own neck. “However, it is impossible to tell if the nobles are being fooled by a scammer, or if they are knowingly taking advantage of the situation, or if someone who genuinely believes himself to be the Twilight Cardinal has the backing of a noble who believes him as well.” While it still felt unreal knowing someone was using his name for their own benefit, Col knew one thing for certain—this was not going to be a simple situation. “How does the cathedral seem to be handling the situation?” he asked. Canaan reviewed what they currently knew. “It felt as though saying they were using the grand market to make extravagant profits was excessive. I cannot say if they were telling the truth or not, but what I do know is that the cathedral is exquisitely grand—enormous angels dance in the stucco on the ceiling, and the nave was thick with frankincense.” In a city this big, ruled by an archbishop, it made sense the cathedral was impressive. The teachings of asceticism rang empty here, but to equate taxes with greed felt a bit extreme as well. The main question was whether or not that was fair. “If anything, it seemed to be that the cathedral was hesitant to take firm measures against the Twili—against the false cardinal. Apparently, they believe a noble who owns quite a bit of land outside the city is working with someone who has assumed the name of a world-renowned Church reformist. But if we look at it from another perspective, that means a major city in the empire is cowering in face of the name of the Twilight Cardinal!” Canaan’s cheeks were flushed, either from the wine, or from the spice on the eel. “This is proof your name has spread throughout even the mainland, Master Col. We cannot allow swindlers to take advantage right under our noses!” Canaan was leaning quite close, and his bodyguard had to physically stop his eel from slipping out of his hands. Myuri stared at him with wary eyes—she always wondered if Canaan was really a girl, and she was very conscious of intrusions into her territory. “But it’s not gonna be easy to prove you’re the real one, right, Brother?” As things currently stood, she was correct. And for that reason, they would have to carefully lay out a plan, and depending on the situation, they might have to wait for reinforcements. But there was value in using this situation where no one knew who the real one was. And one thing the innkeeper said had stuck with Col. The Town of Hope, Ohlburg—the start of the true Church. Was the false cardinal truly nothing more than a swindler? “I do have an idea…” When Col laid out his plan, Myuri slowly stood, brandished her wooden spoon in the air, and shouted, “Let’s do it!” After filling her stomach with fatty eel and toasted bread with a satisfying crunch, Myuri promptly fell into a deep sleep and snored soundly. In the morning, she rose before the sun, went through her sword exercises, and then jumped directly onto Col to wake him up. “Brother! It’s time for adventure!” “Mmh…” Perhaps it was revenge for the day before, but regardless, it was effective at getting Col out of bed. He was still feeling a little heavy after eating eel, and he groaned at the sensation. He was shocked by how energetic Myuri was—Col was sure she had eaten three times as much as he had. “What kind of disguise should I wear? Should I dress up as the heir to a great merchant family with you as my private tutor, as usual?” She laid out on her bed her knightly clothes, lent to her by Hyland, her saintlike white robes, and the boyish disguise that made her look like a noble’s young son; she stood there in her underwear, her tail happily swishing back and forth. “I don’t mind. But…I believe you need to be a bit more prudent.” “Oh right, Brother! Go wash yourself! You smell like mold!” “………” Col’s scolding fell on deaf ears, only to be met with the stinging declaration that he smelled—she had almost certainly crawled into his blankets during the night. He admitted defeat and went to wash off at the well in the courtyard, prayed a good deal while he was there, then returned to the room. There, he found the scion of a noble family on a leisurely journey around the world to broaden his horizons. “Good morning,” Canaan said in greeting as he entered the room—he must have heard the loud chatter from outside once they had both gotten mostly ready. “Have you managed to get some rest?” His question came with a little smile; he could tell Myuri had been full of energy from the moment she got up. “Yes—Myuri has, at least.” Though she could have easily hidden her hair under a hat, Myuri insisted on having braids. There was nothing out of place about boy-Myuri wearing braided pigtails—perhaps her confident bearing made the difference. “Good luck infiltrating the church here, Canaan,” she said. She was pleased with how her braids swayed like a tail, and so she slotted in her sword at her hip and checked the condition of its blade. “Thank you. I will do everything in my power to see it done. Master Le Roi and I will conduct a perfect preliminary investigation into the city.” The night previous, Col had proposed he and Myuri conduct reconnaissance on Ohlburg. Due to Le Roi’s profession as a bookseller, there was no telling where or when he might run into an acquaintance. Canaan could not visit Ohlburg, considering its antagonistic stance with the cathedral—they needed him to get as much detailed information from the cathedral, after all. And so Col’s thought was that the actual Twilight Cardinal, whose real identity was not yet known, could get a better grasp on what the fake was doing in Ohlburg, and what sort of person he was. “What about Uncle Le Roi?” Myuri was wondering about Le Roi, who was absent, and Canaan gave an unusual lopsided smile. “It seems he and my companion were up late drinking Estatt’s specialty liquor.” They had mentioned it was alcohol made from barley smoked in peat. Upon hearing about the drinkers, Myuri seemed envious. Col sighed. “You may not.” She shot up straight, as she always did when he found out about one of her pranks, and she turned to hiss at him. “I don’t think we will be in Ohlburg for very long. We should be back tomorrow, or the day after at the latest.” “All right. Our reply from the Winfiel Kingdom should arrive by then as well. We will keep an eye on things here.” With total disregard to Col and Canaan’s conversation, Myuri, having been warned about alcohol, draped her cloak over her shoulders a bit more dramatically than usual. “Men, march!” she called. Col knew she was imitating Pierre; while Canaan smiled with delight, Col simply hung his head in exasperation. They hopped on their horse and plodded along the road east. Estatt was a major city ruled by an archbishop who also served as a prince-elector, so unsurprisingly, it took quite a while to get outside the city walls. While the city was north of Aquent on the map, its culture was decidedly not. As a core part of the southern empire, it was full of all things southern. The luxurious shops that liberally used glass in their construction had all sorts of colorful hats on display, while goldsmiths and silversmiths worked all along the bridges that crisscrossed the river flowing through the city—there were plenty of things that caught Myuri’s eye. Considering the city’s specialty was liquor, when they passed through the artisan village and saw the copper stills being made, shiny and smooth enough to reflect the faces of passersby, she leaned so far forward she almost fell off the horse. Everything fascinated her. But the city did not seem to be as lively as it was supposed to be; when they passed through the central square in the heart of the city, they encountered several stalls, set up for the grand market, but missing their keepers. “I wish we’d come when it was busier,” Myuri said sadly—she loved festivals. And surprisingly, Col agreed. When they passed through the city walls, the damp breeze brushed their skin once again, and Myuri tensed her shoulders in disgust. The reason the entirety of Estatt was thoroughly paved with flagstone was most likely not because of an excess of money. They were protecting themselves from the humidity by covering the ground. The damp was a breeding ground for disease, and paving the ground also helped prevent floods. And of course, it cost money to maintain everything, which meant taxes were necessary. As these thoughts rolled in Col’s mind, Myuri quickly grew agitated. “Ugh… I never got this sticky sitting by the springs!” “Then why not put your tail away?” They rode on the same horse, and Myuri sat in the spot between Col’s arms as he held the reins. There was no one else around, so she had her ears and tail out. At this time of year, when spring was turning into summer, her fluffy tail was a bit suffocating. “No, I’m okay because you brush it.” Whether she realized it was warming Col up or not, she spoke plainly and shuffled her tail around a bit. That she was not as attached to the fur on her tail as she was the hair on her head was the exact opposite of her mother. “More importantly,” she said, leaning back into him. “Canaan and Uncle Le Roi aren’t here. That means I don’t have to hold back, right?” After a moment, she turned to look at him. She studied him with her red eyes gleaming and narrowed. “Only if there’s no other option,” he replied. Her eyes narrowed further, but that she did not immediately argue was proof she agreed; her cheeks relaxed into a smile, and her wolf ears flicked happily. “If your fake happens to be a scammer, then I’ll drag him by the scruff out to an empty field and scare him so bad he’ll wet himself.” A large shadow, appearing in the dead of night. That would be the only thing people saw before watching a man get dragged off faster than he could scream, vanishing completely in the darkness… It would be effective, yes, but there was no way to tell what sort of rumors that would bring about. “We still do not know what this individual’s intentions are. If anything, you should be listening with these first.” Col laid his chin on one of her wolf ears, and she drew up her shoulders, ticklish. “Then should I be a wolf the whole time?” There were a number of hagiographies that featured saints with animals under their command. The image of a young traveling priest commanding a silver wolf stirred not Myuri and her dreams, but Col’s own childlike spirit he was so close to forgetting. “There is little point in quietly conducting reconnaissance if I end up standing out so much.” Col threw up a shield before Myuri could sniff out the excitement in his chest. “Boring.” Despite what she said, her tone was enthusiastic. “Hey, hasn’t it been a while since we’ve done this?” Travel alone together, she meant. “We have met quite a lot of people thus far.” “Yeah.” Myuri gave a little nod and leaned against his chest again. It seemed she felt free to cling to him as much as she wanted today, since she was not wearing her knight crest. “I don’t mind having a bigger party, but…it means I have to hide so much.” “Now do you understand why I do not like standing out?” Col was the Twilight Cardinal. If he were to declare himself to the world, then his life would never be the same. “I guess so.” Myuri straightened and turned around to look at him. “But I don’t think it’d be that bad, Brother.” “Is that to say because you’re with me?” When he said that, Myuri’s eyes softened in a smile. “Sure, but you know how there are so many fun stories about a princess sneaking out to have fun in the castle town while her knight protects her, right?” “Yes, there are quite a number of… Hmm?” Myuri always brought up examples of princesses and knights. Because she always was the one who took the role of knight. She chuckled and thumped the back of her head against his chest. “I hope we keep having more and more adventures!” Her voice was so loud and bright the horse almost reared up, and he was too busy calming it down to give more than a halfhearted “Yes, yes,” to Myuri. Ohlburg, the Town of Hope. Col had pictured it as a little community that had popped up beside the temporary market. As it turned out, he was only half right. What surprised him was the scale and the energy of the town. “Wow!” Myuri exclaimed in wonder and stood from her spot on the horse’s back. Despite her unsightly behavior, not a single person glanced in their direction. That was how busy it was. As a matter of fact, Ohlburg was very much in the process of being built. “This is so cool, Brother!” Back in the Kingdom of Winfiel, Col had supervised the repair of an abandoned manor so it would be fit for use by Sharon’s monastery, and for their scripture printing workshop, but that was nothing in comparison to this. A wooden signboard with Ohlburg, Town of Hope carved into it stood proudly on the side of the road, with bricklayers laying bricks and woodworkers hammering wooden posts into the ground just beyond it. Muddy men carrying baskets full of earth and sand rushed by—they were in the middle of digging a well. Among the clamor, many other people were conducting business at handmade stalls—to call them huts would be far too presumptuous considering their size and quality. Behind the steamy cookers was a pen where chickens and pigs scampered about. If the people’s faces had not been brimming with lively smiles, Col might have mistaken it for a war camp. “It…seems to be a little more than just a temporary market.” The word “settlement” immediately came to mind, but it was scarcely a day’s ride away from the beautiful walls of the cathedral city of Estatt—that made them very close neighbors indeed. It was not a remote area where people who survived a dying land came to in hopes of it being a new world for them. Why here? was Col’s genuine question. “Ah, travelers?” As they stood shocked by Ohlburg’s muddy, squalid vigor, a voice called out to them. They turned around to see a man dressed in a monk’s habit, lightly splashed with mud. “Welcome to Ohlburg, Town of Hope, my friends.” The man smiled and held his hand up to Col. Col greeted him in kind, somewhat overwhelmed, and grasped his hand. Myuri shook his hand, too. “How may I serve you?” he asked. This was their first time here, and Col was wary of scam artists, being greeted like this, but the town around them was so loud, he could scarcely think. “Um…” “We’re traveling around the world to see lots of things!” Myuri exclaimed with great enthusiasm as Col failed to find his words, and she hopped down from the horse. “We were so surprised! You’re making the town right now!” Myuri’s smile shone so brightly, genuinely eager in her question, it did not seem to be an act. The man dressed as a monk chuckled and nodded proudly. “Yes, precisely. This is the Town of Hope, Ohlburg. Gathered here are those who cannot bear living in a place as dishonest as the cathedral city of Estatt. We are building a new town here in the name of God and justice.” There came the sounds of hammering wood, carriages going to and fro, and people calling to each another. It was the smiles on everyone’s faces that confirmed this was no war zone, though it was just as busy. When Col dismounted the horse, he asked, “We heard about the Twi…the Twilight Cardinal at our inn.” It still embarrassed him to say Twilight Cardinal himself, and he felt his throat constrict. But the man dressed as a monk did not seem to mind—if anything, a broad smile crossed his face, as though waiting for those very words. “Of course you did! The spark that birthed Ohlburg came about when God brought together the lord of House Hobeln, who has been denouncing the corrupt Archbishop of Estatt for many years, and the Twilight Cardinal, who preaches God’s true teachings!” House Hobeln must have been the noble family that challenged the archbishop over the privileges surrounding the grand market. But Col felt like he had heard that name somewhere before. As he wondered where, Myuri spoke up. “Is the Twilight Cardinal here now?” Myuri asked innocently, perfectly playing the part of a boy with a good upbringing. But when she glanced at Col, her eyes revealed her usual self. “Ah, yes. He is praying for the people within our Church of the Beginning.” “Wow,” Myuri whispered before turning to look straight at Col. “Brother, let’s go ask the Twilight Cardinal about God’s teachings!” Myuri’s look of delight was not fake. While she was likely enjoying her own theatrics, she was obviously looking forward to seeing what sort of fool had decided to play the part of the Twilight Cardinal. “Oh, but…I don’t know if he would like it if we were to suddenly intrude…” “Not at all! Unlike the archbishop at the cathedral, the Twilight Cardinal accepts all who seek out his teachings. He offers the opportunity for all to speak with him once he is finished with his sermons at the Church of the Beginning.” Col pictured the Twilight Cardinal surrounded by men and women of all ages, holding the hands of the sick, and cradling babies. It did seem like a scene straight out of a saint’s legend. “You will always know when the Twilight Cardinal’s sermons will begin, because the bell will toll. But I suggest going early to line up. Everyone in town will be there!” “Did you hear that, Brother?!” The joy in her smile was that of a hunter who had found her prey. Col’s smile in return was strained and twitchy. He turned to the man in monk’s garb and said, “Thank you. I believe we will look around Ohlburg a bit before paying a visit.” “Of course. May God watch over you.” The man prayed for them, then immediately spotted another traveler, and he turned to call out to them. Those who greeted travelers like that often had a reputation of being scam artists, forcing visitors to take them up on their guidance through the city then demanding they be paid for their services. But that did not seem to be the case this time. If his monk’s habit was real, then perhaps he had taken the initiative to serve this town in his own way. “So this confirms the fake’s here,” Myuri huffed, then turned to look at Col. “We’re going to hear him preach, right?” “Well, I suppose.” Col’s noncommittal response caused Myuri to look blankly at him. When he saw the way she was staring, he gave a little sigh. “I was picturing something more overtly underhanded.” “………” Myuri blinked, then looked around them. “I think I get what you mean.” “Are the townsfolk being tricked? All of these people?” “Everyone looks like they’re having fun.” He had a feeling the girl beside him was having the most fun out of anyone in this town, but what she said rang true. “Shall we take a little look around?” If a bell always went off before the Twilight Cardinal gave his sermon, then there was no chance they would miss it. “But, wow, the Town of Hope…” Myuri took a deep breath, then exhaled. She could not hide her excitement. “So you can make cities…” From the way she spoke and the expression on her face, Col finally realized what it was she was looking at in this town. They were going to build a country just for spirits and incarnations on the new continent. She had found the potential for turning her dreams into reality here. “Did you bring your pen and ink?” Col asked, a slight teasing tone to his voice. Myuri lifted her head and exclaimed, “Of course!” Whenever Myuri asked him about certain turns of phrase in the scripture, no matter how busy he might be in the moment, Col always found himself delighted to answer her questions. Much in the same way, the bright-eyed workers and artisans also did not seem to mind when the duo asked them about their work. No matter where they went, the workers would gather, and they would teach Myuri all sorts of things. Col knew he would only be a bother if he joined in haphazardly, so he decided to look into the one thing Myuri had no particular interest in. Specifically, he was investigating the street sermons taking place throughout the town. “And so God gave us not just wheat, but food for our souls—” While the streetside sermons were in a way conventional, none of them would have been out of place if they were given inside an actual church. Passersby came to a stop to listen intently. Street sermons were not unusual in larger cities, but that also meant most people did not take the time to stop to listen. Any who loitered too long were chased away by the guards protecting the city’s peace, and most cities were divided into smaller parishes, which meant there were priests who looked after their people, and who handled everything from baptisms to funerals. There was very little need to stop and listen to a stranger’s sermons. But it was only the priest the locals were familiar with, not the parish leader who managed the priests, or the bishop that managed all the parishes—whenever a priest took a step up the ladder, they were drawn further and further away from their flock. Archbishops, who had the authority to confirm bishop appointments, rarely had an opportunity to speak with the common people. Their acts were essentially that of a noble—it was most certainly not an exaggeration to say they wielded massive amounts of wealth as they pleased, rode in extravagant carriages, and often kicked away their commoner adherents like so many stray dogs. While Col could not say if the archbishop of Estatt was that bad of a person, the man in the monk’s habit who told them about Ohlburg clearly did not think of Estatt favorably. And since this place was a gathering of those who were not fond of living in Estatt, they were particularly fervent in their beliefs. Perhaps traveling preachers had heard similar rumors and eagerly made their way here. Those who preached on the roadside were all clad in different types of clothes—some looked like theology professors, speaking softly with the scripture in one hand, while there were some who preached with surging passion, much like Pierre. To test them, Col asked a question with a theological bent, and he received an excerpt from the scripture in reply. At the very least, not all of them were fake preachers. Or perhaps they were veteran scam artists who did their research… While he could at least suspect the individuals, if he did not hold a shrewd outlook, then all he could see was a gathering of people who sympathized with the Twilight Cardinal’s ideas and wanted to support him. As they strolled through the town, they came across a group of monks who seemed as though they had just happened to stop by the town on a pilgrimage, and they were fervently observing the town while exchanging words of surprise. Artisans busily running to and fro, and merchants occupied with their business, cut between them. Priests stood on every street corner. Col started to feel like he was dreaming. A quiet voice rang in his head: But you’re the Twilight Cardinal, Brother. But no one paid any special attention to him, even though he was right here. And the one who had decided to take up the Twilight Cardinal’s name had indeed gathered enough people to build an entire town. Someone had once told him that if the Twilight Cardinal put his mind to it, he could wield great power, and that was being demonstrated in reality right before his eyes. Col glanced down at his hands. Did they truly have that sort of power? Power strong enough he could make an entire town appear in the middle of a field with one wave? Just as that thought crossed his mind, he heard a bell ringing. It sounded like a handbell, one without any weight, unlike that of a bell that might toll deeply in a church bell tower, but it was perfectly fitting for a town where everything was handmade. The restless sound invited all to one place, and everyone began making their way there. “The Twilight…Cardinal…” They were going to hear his sermon. With unsteady steps, Col joined the flow of people, and on his way toward the center of town, he rejoined Myuri. It seemed Myuri had used up all the paper she had on hand in an instant—every page was crammed full of writing, front and back. And now, she had the papers turned sideways, perpendicularly writing across what she had already written. There were also plenty of diagrams Col did not really understand, but they seemed to be tools, blueprints of stalls, and everything else under the sun. He even spotted what looked like a map. “Is that the layout of Ohlburg?” Col asked. Myuri, with smudges of ink and mud on her cheeks, beamed and stuck out the paper for Col to see. “The town I’m going to make in the new continent!” “………” This town had been built up from nothing in the mud. Myuri’s attention had completely shifted from collecting information on the imposter to the country or town she was planning on founding for nonhumans one day. Not even a colony would be filled with such energy, so he could understand why she was so focused on it. “You said I can’t have a monastery, so I could have a town instead, right?” For a moment, he was not sure what she was referring to. But he recalled the conversation they had when she suggested they build a monastery like Sharon and the others were doing. “The reason I said no is because you would not be able to stand life as a nun.” “That’s why I picked a town. See? Look, look at it!” He sighed, confounded by the way she casually jumped from one thought to the next, and looked at the sketch of her dream town, which she seemed to have concentrated exclusively on. “Is that a…bath? In the square?” Only a girl born in Nyohhira would think of such a thing. “Yeah. And in the north is a really big archive building and Uncle Le Roi’s bookstore. In the east, there’s a chapel—your favorite. And around the whole square is a path for walking, and I think it’s perfect for when you need to think. See, there’s a nice sunny hill over here.” Col nodded, despite himself. A bookstore for Le Roi’s stock, archives where they would be stored, and a walking path and a chapel for thinking. He pictured the town in his head and hummed. “It’s not…bad.” “Right? I think in the west I want to put stores. And maybe workshops. One workshop will make books, one will make weapons, and then another will brew alcohol.” “Alcohol?” he asked in turn, and Myuri puffed up in pride. “I’m not going to be a child forever.” “………” It was a very childlike thing to say, but she was not wrong, and so Col let it pass with a little sigh. “And what is this?” Something that was clearly not a walking path surrounded the little town. “The city walls!” Myuri loved adventure stories—of course she would not forget those. There were towers in each of the four corners, and figures holding bows and arrows stood on them. “You won’t get kidnapped in a town like this, and you can walk around the chapel and the bookstore and the walking path forever, see?” Myuri had been so shaken by the prospect of their journey coming to an end that she had decided to help Lutia in her dark schemes. It was not like her to mope about and drag her feet in the face of a distant end. There was nothing more perfect for her than to innocently chase the brightest future she could possibly conceive. “But does the town really need this?” “Hmm?” “If you surround it with walls, that keeps the number of people who can live there limited. I believe it can be a very good town if you were to reconsider that.” Perhaps it was a bit pedantic of him to point that out in a child’s dreamlike, simple town plan. But the foundation Myuri had laid was very good, and if Col were ever to be posted as a priest in a town somewhere, a place like this would be ideal. As that thought crossed Col’s mind, Myuri took the paper back from him, looked hard at it, then hugged it to her chest. “It’s fine the way it is.” Col was about to apologize for unnecessarily bringing in an adult’s point of view when Myuri looked at her dream town again, a look of pure delight on her face. “Because it’s a town just for you, Brother.” “………” Myuri was enchanted as she held her ideal town to her chest. A chapel, a bookstore, and a walking path meant Col could walk around these places forever. He pictured himself standing inside the town. It was like a little pocket garden with large city walls that surrounded it. He could not help but ask. “I have just one question.” “Hmm?” Her red eyes came from her mother. At times they shone intelligently, and at times they glinted sharply. But they were still the eyes of a child, and it was only when she was thinking of her worst ideas that they were at their most beautiful.
Chapter 116
38 min read