Illumasia had dropped any communication with him after this, but Blanche had taken the bait and sent a messenger to meet with him. The messenger had allegedly been especially interested in the Valkyries and me and had asked Dongahar many questions about our activities. The messenger had also told him about a forbidden technique that could increase one’s lifespan, which had piqued Dongahar’s interest. However, the messenger’s conditions for teaching him the spell had been for Dongahar to, one, give him information about Lumina and me, and two, offer test subjects to Blanche for demonization.
As Dongahar had debated whether to accept the offer, the messenger had told him about the rumors circulating about me—the ones claiming I’d lost my holy magic. If that was true, it could threaten the very existence of the Church, so Dongahar had decided to act before it was too late. However, he knew that even if he were to start immediately, he wouldn’t have time to rebuild the Church before his illness took him. So after much hesitation, he had resolved to use the forbidden technique on himself and bear the consequences of his misdeeds.
In exchange for the forbidden spell, he had offered up those who had been a blight on the Church to Blanche: the human supremacists who constantly spewed their toxic beliefs, and those who’d wronged the Church or sold information about it.
“What if I told you that I know of a secret technique that could make you stronger?” he’d asked them.
None of them had shown the slightest hint of hesitation before replying that they wanted it. Even after Dongahar had told them that the powers in question were demonic in nature they hadn’t backed down. And so over the course of three months, the knights had gradually undergone demonization through all sorts of experiments.
“If this is true, it’s highly unlikely he was the one who tried to turn the Valkyries into demons,” I muttered to myself.
The demonized knights seemed to have gained the trust of Blanche, as they had received books containing demon-summoning techniques, which they definitely had not wanted the Church to discover. In the event that the Church did find out, Blanche had instructed the knights to claim it was all Illumasia’s doing. When Dongahar heard about this, he had resolved to kill the demonized knights himself before they were discovered.
But it was at that exact moment that I had returned from Neldahl. Upon learning that I had become a sage, Dongahar had ended up rethinking his plans.
“Did I underestimate him?” he wrote in his letter. “Or perhaps his return is my punishment for deceiving the Church. Either way, as long as the Church can be saved, I do not care about what happens to me. All I hope is that this man will turn out to be a hero as valiant as Lord Reinstar himself.”
I shifted my gaze away from the letter and looked up at the ceiling. “You expect way too much of me, dude,” I mumbled.
Why had he decided to pin his hopes on me, of all people? And if he had this much faith in me, why hadn’t he come to ask me for help directly?
After this brief pause, I focused my attention back on the letter, where Dongahar described the demon summoning books Blanche had offered him and the knights. He wrote that he’d burned the one the messenger had given him immediately after he was done reading it but had made a record of everything he remembered. He’d also made note of everything related to demonization. I assumed I’d be able to find all these documents in the stack Kefin had given me earlier.
I finished reading the letter, and the last sentence revealed the true reason he had written it in the first place.
“If someone reads this letter after my death, please give it to either Her Holiness or the sage. The Church is a noble and sacred institution, and I wholeheartedly hope that it will become a place of salvation for all.”
I let out a sigh. Every sin requires just retribution. If only it were easier to categorize things as good or evil...
No one could see a situation from all perspectives, and some things couldn’t be resolved with pretty words. The glum realization made my chest hurt, and I instinctively breathed another sigh. I wanted nothing more than to take a break and do something fun to clear my mind, but I ultimately decided to read Dongahar’s notes about demonization first. He had documented the effects he’d observed in the knights, recording his observations day by day, much like a journal. A particular sentence toward the end made me pause.
“The dukedom of Blanche once attempted a hero summoning, but instead of a hero, they received the power to dominate the world. It is said that when they tested that power, they managed to reshape the very landscape, turning a plain into a valley. This power is currently blocked, but they say they will soon reclaim it. If this proves to be true, it is a matter of great concern.”
Blanche seemed like an incredibly dangerous nation—perhaps even more so than Illumasia.
“It seems that they plan to make Illumasia’s research on demonization public and use them as a cover to hide their own misdeeds. The messenger from Blanche told me that their plan was already in motion. Therefore, I believe it is necessary to reinforce the barrier around the Church’s headquarters as soon as possible.”
Was it Blanche’s plan to use Illumasia as a decoy to buy themselves time until they’d regained their power? If that was the case, Saint Shurule could find itself in a tricky position, caught between the dukedom and the empire.
Still, I couldn’t help but wonder why Dongahar had told me to go to Illumasia and not Blanche. I supposed I wouldn’t get the answer to that question until he woke up, though. Regardless of the situation, the fact remained that Saint Shurule was at a disadvantage when it came to military strength, so we absolutely needed to devise a plan to deal with the situation.
“I’m going to have to tell everyone about this, not just the pope.”
If I didn’t act now, I might regret my decision in the not-so-distant future. A sense of urgency washed over me, and I found myself hoping that by the time I reached the age at which I had died in my past life, things would be calmer and I could finally live the carefree life of my dreams.
I exited Dongahar’s mini-library with mixed feelings just as Kefin came to tell me he was done inspecting the room. From what he said, he’d looked into every nook and cranny.
“Did you find anything of note?” I asked.
“There’s a magic circle under this rug, but it wouldn’t react no matter what I tried. Other than that, the Executive Division claimed that Dongahar was a human supremacist, but I can’t find any evidence of that in here,” Kefin told me.
It would indeed be weird for Dongahar to be a human supremacist, considering how much he admired the pope, who was a half-elf. Perhaps he had simply been faking those extremist views to keep the rest of the Executive Division in line. In the end, only he knew the truth.
All righty, then. What was that about a magic circle?
I considered leaving it alone if it hadn’t reacted to Kefin’s attempts, but once I cast Dispel on it, the magic circle disappeared and the floor gave way to reveal a staircase.
“Oh, wow,” I said.
“Should I call for reinforcements, sir?” Kefin asked.
I peered down the stairs and saw a light shining below, which told me it most likely led to a rather small chamber.
“No. It doesn’t seem like whatever’s down there is all that big, so I’m just going to check it out real quick.”
“Then allow me to go first.”
With that, Kefin began to cautiously descend the stairs, and I followed him. The room we arrived in had a cell in which, to my surprise, Granhart sat kneeling on the floor.
“Mister Granhart?!” I exclaimed.
My voice caught his attention, and he opened his eyes, though he didn’t make any move to stand up. He nodded slowly. “Has Mister Dongahar passed away, as he wished?”
“I take it you knew what he was up to?” I replied.
“I accidentally found out about the knights’ demonization. But Mister Dongahar saved me before they could kill me and hid me here until things settled down. Then he told me about his plan.”
“Can I ask you to relay his words to Her Holiness?”
“Of course. That was Mister Dongahar’s last request as well.”
With that, he stood up and left the cell. The door wasn’t locked, meaning that Dongahar had most likely told him the truth when he’d said he would let him hide down there.
“Oh, by the way, I couldn’t get behind Dongahar’s last request, so I healed him so that he can tell the pope everything himself,” I said casually as we started up the stairs.
Granhart bowed his head to me. “You have my thanks, Sage Luciel.”
“None of that, please. I did it for myself, not for you or anyone else,” I replied as the three of us headed back up to Dongahar’s room. “Mister Granhart, can you please go to the pope’s chamber and tell her everything Dongahar told you?”
“Of course.” Granhart nodded, offering me one last bow before leaving.
“All right. I wanted to investigate Dongahar’s room myself, but I should probably head back to the training grounds for the time being.”
I was a bit worried about my master and Lionel. They were much weaker than before, and I was scared they wouldn’t listen to their bodies’ limits and would push themselves too far.
“Sir,” Kefin called out to me after a short pause. “May I stay behind and inspect the other rooms after you head back?”
“Something bothering you?” I asked.
“Yes. I didn’t come across the demonization medicine Dongahar mentioned in his letter. I’d like to find it to confirm that what he wrote in his farewell letter was true,” he explained.
“I see. Well, almost all members of the Executive Division are behind bars, so you can roam around freely. But we don’t know what else could be hiding here, so be careful, all right? Don’t do anything reckless.”
“Yes, sir.”