Chapter: 300
With Bedler’s intense gaze, my confusion suddenly blossomed. If you’re going to bring up heresy out of the blue and spark my curiosity, you might as well carry that responsibility! Leaving me hanging like this is just diabolical. One of the two ways to drive someone mad is by cutting them off mid-sentence—
“Oh, I’m sorry.”
Fortunately, Bedler seemed to realize his rudeness, breaking out of his earlier silence. Good thing he spoke up before I had to urge him along.
“As I mentioned earlier, I sensed a presence of heresy from you, brother. However, I can’t quite pinpoint which deity’s influence it is.”
But the curiosity remained, so I stealthily glanced at Tannian. If I’ve got some unknown heretical aura, how on earth did Tannian, who has been with me for nearly a year, fail to notice it? This priest sensed it immediately, yet Tannian—who’s striving to become the next saint—did not? Come on!
If Tannian were an apprentice priest, I’d have brushed it off as inexperience, but he’s NOT. If this Bedler guy can’t find it, then Tannian certainly cannot be oblivious.
“I’m not very skilled in searching for heresy.”
And then Tannian, feeling my gaze, quickly defended himself. This isn’t his area of expertise.
That’s a weird statement. Last summer during break, Tannian annihilated the Twilight Cult with his tracking abilities with ease. It felt like having a god’s-eye view. Yet this same Tannian claiming he’s bad at detecting heretical vibes? If he’s weak, then Enen must be strong enough to be a saint!
“If it’s a tracking spell, shouldn’t you be able to determine it?”
“Haha, tracking spells can only find those heretics who have directly received a deity’s power. It’s a different matter altogether if it’s merely a trace.”
Still makes no sense. Whether it’s a heretic or just remnants, it implies a heretical presence. Isn’t it the same in the end?
“If I go into detail, I’d have to discuss theological matters… do you need that?”
“No.”
I shook my head firmly, sensing it might turn into a TMI situation. I didn’t want to know that much.
“Those of us like me who are heresy recorders are quite sensitive to heretical energy. At least in this field, I’m more of an expert than you, Tannian.”
Since Bedler provided a reasonable explanation, I chose to accept it. After all, it’d be comical for me, having no knowledge about priests or spells, to dispute their expertise. If the pros say so, I’d better trust it, right?
Plus, the notion that priests have different specialties sounds pretty convincing too. Just like knights or wizards have distinct skill trees, priests aren’t an exception.
“Brother, if it’s not too much trouble…”
Anyway, Bedler, still tilting his head in confusion, cautiously began to speak again, unable to deduce the owner of the aura.
“Could you, uh, take off your clothes?”
?
In that moment, my mind went blank.
Of course, he didn’t mean it in a dirty way.
“It’s just that I can’t grasp the feeling only from a distance. I think it’d be easier to identify if I could examine the trace directly.”
To put it metaphorically, it’s like saying you can’t understand a person’s identity from just their voice— you need to see their face. It’d definitely be better to trust visual observation than rely solely on feeling something beneath the fabric.
“Of course, it’s a request driven by my personal curiosity, so you can refuse if you wish. I feel embarrassed even asking…”
“It’s okay. I can take off my outer garment.”
Naturally, it’s not a typical request, so Bedler backed off a little, but after he had already piqued my interest, pulling away now would be wicked. Now I’ve reached the stage where even if Bedler lost interest, I’d still be curious.
And after I heard that request, something clicked in my mind. I should’ve gotten it the moment he was staring at my upper body.
‘Scars.’
A highway-like scar stretching from my left shoulder to my right hip. The last gift left by Kagan before his death. No matter how I think about it, that’s gotta be it; I mean, it’s a total mark of “eternal blue skies” or whatever he mumbled about.
“Oh, this is it.”
So, when I went to a less crowded spot to show my wound, Bedler, who had been wearing a complicated expression, broke into a wide smile.
Seeing it up close, it’s genuinely bizarre. Even the Judicial Minister grimaced when he first saw these scars.
‘Is this guy just curious for curiosity’s sake?’
Looks like he shares that insatiable thirst for knowledge like Gerhardt, who’s devoted his life to Northern history. He wouldn’t react this way otherwise.
“Interesting. It feels vast yet constricted, turbulent but gentle. With that complexity, it’s no wonder it’s hard to grasp.”
“That’s true.”
While he was spewing nonsense with those weird expressions, I ignored it. If that’s how experts speak, I just let them be.
After quite a while examining my wound, Bedler nodded with a satisfied look. I could tell he’d figured out whose trace it was since the confusion he’d shown earlier vanished entirely.
“Thank you for indulging my unreasonable request.”
I lightly shook my head at Bedler, who bowed nearly 90 degrees. I was just as curious and cooperated since I wanted to ask an expert about heresy.
“So, what’s the deal with that heresy?”
“It’s the Eternal Blue Sky, a god worshiped by the Northern nomads; it’s a unique deity who embodies both nature and animals.”
Since my guess was right, I nodded. It was indeed a mark left by Kagan, something to do with “eternal whatever.” If it had been a typical curse, losing it wouldn’t have been a possibility.
That nasty piece of work, did he really imbue it with the essence of a god? So his average strike becomes divine punishment? Makes sense now why it’s so damn powerful.
Anyway, as long as I have its identity, that’s all I needed. It’s not like some random god just popped up out of nowhere, and since Bedler knows this deity, I can comfortably ask for help.
“I have a favor to ask as well.”
“Oh, yes. Please feel free to say it. I’ll do whatever is within my capabilities.”
Thank goodness Bedler didn’t have any plan to mooch off like some preparator with his clerical identity. His upbeat response eased my mind.
Alright, he’s said so much, so I can now approach with confidence.
“That heretical energy… can it be purified?”
Stilling my slightly trembling heart, I cautiously asked. If he’s a heresy expert, can’t he eliminate that heretical essence?
Given the context, the reason why my wound is so stubborn is because of this eternal blue jerk. It’s been lodged in my body without so much as a hint of leaving, leading to unhealable conditions. If I can evict that crazy illegal tenant, maybe my wound can heal too?
Please. I don’t want to carry this for the rest of my life. Wouldn’t wives be crying if they saw these scars on every night of fooling around? Louise and Irina don’t even have a clue about this!
“Oh.”
But upon seeing Bedler’s muted reaction, I instinctively knew. There’s no way that’s gonna happen.
‘Damn it.’
Yeah, no matter how good of a heresy expert you are, if a priest could have fixed this wound, they’d have done it ages ago. How many priests have joined me post-war, and none of them have sensed this heretical energy?
“I think I spoke out of line. Please don’t worry about it.”
Still, it was a bummer. Now that I know the source of my wound, I had high hopes for healing it—
“It’s possible to lessen it.”
“What?”
My excitement surged back. Lessen it? You mean, this illegal occupant can be weakened?
“If it’s a divine punishment ordained directly by the god, suppressing it is tough, but your wound appears to be from a human. If this energy came through a human medium, we could suppress it.”
After that hopeful statement, my mind raced. So, since it’s a mark from Kagan and not the Eternal Blue, it isn’t entirely hopeless, huh?
My bad, Eternal Blue; I might’ve thrown Kagan’s mess onto you.
“Of course, completely erasing it will be impossible. Still, even just reducing its impact could significantly help your health, so take solace in that…”
“Of course! I’d be grateful for that!”
“I’m glad to hear that.”
As Bedler broke into a small smile while reciting a prayer, he placed his hand on my shoulder.
“Gah!”
“Cough—”
And at the same time, we both vomited blood.
What the hell’s going on this time?
Bedler and I lay side by side, squirming on the ground. In a state filled with anticipation, it’s practically impossible to imagine the jolt that hits you. This must feel like getting a titanium spear embedded right in the heart.
Bedler, who shared this bloody moment with me, groaned and barely lifted his head. The thought of calling him a fraud almost escaped my lips, but looking at his face, I stopped myself.
“This is strange. The divine essence and will are too overpowering.”
Bedler mumbled in confusion, spitting blood from his mouth. Anyone could tell he was far from being negligent; rather, he looked like someone caught up in a serious healing attempt.
“This should only happen when a god is furious…?! That it would interfere with a mere human wound…?”
While he continued to murmur without pause, Bedler suddenly regarded me with a questioning look.
“Brother, I have something I’d like to confirm.”
“What is it?”
“Have you ever killed a disciple of the Eternal Blue Sky, desecrated a temple, or insulted a divine artifact?”
Just hearing that sends chills down my spine. What kind of insane actions are those?! Any god that loves humanity would turn evil if treated like that.
Plus, the suspicion creeping in makes it creeper.
“A disciple is one who receives the god’s favor to perform their will, much like a saint from the Dawn Sect. A divine artifact is something bestowed by the god to such disciples.”
Something clicked in my mind, and I briefly fell silent while Bedler generously provided explanations for the terminology.
Unfortunately, once I heard the definitions, my suspicions transformed into certainty.
‘A disciple?’
“I must have been the final offering to the Eternal Blue Sky.”
I think that had to be Kagan. I definitely landed the finishing blow.
‘A temple?’
“Sir. There seemed to be a building resembling a religious facility—”
“Burn it down. We can’t have anything serve as a unifying hub for the Gar clan.”
I must have burned that place while scouring for the remnants of the Gar clan. I remember smashing a wolf statue at the entrance.
‘A divine artifact?’
“Master, this—”
“Just dump it in storage. No need to manage it.”
Could it be that massive sword and sickle? Kagan always carried those around.
…
‘Crap, I’m dead.’
What now? Looks like this whole mess with my wound is due to the Eternal Blue Sky and not Enen like I thought.
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