Circumstances of a Fallen Lord

  The ninth worshiper pulled back the blanket. The blanket fluttered; the wind caused duck feathers to fly out. What he had thought was Luisen was instead a pile of pillows.

     In the midst of the worshiper’s confusion, one of the count’s knights had discovered candle wax drippings by the bedside. “The duke was in this room until just a while ago. He should still be in the mansion, so scatter and find him!”

     The count’s knights scattered throughout the mansion in search of the young lord. The ninth worshiper remained in the room, though. Filled with anger at being deceived, he kicked the pile of pillows. Feathers swirled around him like snowfall in winter.

     ‘Luisen Anies, I won’t let this pass. How dare you try to fool me like this?’

     He had no idea how the young lord knew about the attack in advance and ran away, but the route to escape would be long and arduous. The capital was completely under the prince’s control. In turn, the first prince was a pawn manipulated by the hands of Count Doubless, so, even if Luisen managed to survive this night, his life would only be temporarily extended.

     ‘If nothing else works, we can always call out the Death Knight.’

     Should he just call the monster out now? Caught between his leader’s commands and his singular desire for revenge, he agonized over the decision until an ominous premonition brushed past him. The ninth worshiper wasn’t the type of person to ignore this sort of premonition; he approached the window. It was dark outside, but that made the torches surrounding the mansion even more visible.

     ‘Who are they?’

     People clad in armor emblazoned with the pattern of the cross, a torch in one hand and a sword in the other: the Paladins of the Church.

     ‘Hnnrk!’ Sharply inhaling, the ninth worshiper clung to the wall.

     ‘What? Why are the Paladins here?’

     They had the mansion surrounded. They formed a double ring, one along the perimeter of the mansion’s walls and another around the main building itself.

     These men were so strict and meticulous, that not even a single ant could escape their grasp.

     ‘Th-They’re…not coming to capture me, right…?’

     Some of the Paladins rushed into the mansion; sounds of fighting and conflict echoed around. The ninth worshiper cautiously left the room, stood in the shadow of the stairs, and watched as they beat the count’s knights.

      The ninth worshiper had thought the Church had come to help Luisen, but, after a little while, the Paladins had somehow found Luisen from his hiding place and rudely dragged the young lord away. They grabbed him by both arms, treating him as if he were a sinner.

     “What is going on! Do you know who I am?! Let me go. I said, let me go!!” Luisen’s face turned red as he screamed, but the Paladins didn’t seem to care. People from the mansion rushed out in their nightclothes, shouting in confusion. No one from the mansion, not even Luisen himself, seemed to have anticipated the arrival of the holy Paladins. This unexpected turn of events left the ninth worshiper bewildered.

     The Paladins knelt Luisen down before a priest. Luisen’s deputy chancellor came out as if to protect his lord. “What in the world are you doing?! This man is the Great Lord of the South, Duke Anies! How could the Church involve itself in secular matters and commit such great disrespect?!”

     “Duke Anies has violated a religious law!” The priest roared. “Luisen Anies. There have been accusations that you have defiled the name of the Church and our God by impersonating a pilgrim!”

     “How unbelievable! When did I ever do that?!”

      “Here is the evidence!” The priest presented the clothes Luisen had worn and the pilgrim’s identification token. Luisen’s hair was even on the clothes.

     “No–That’s–Why is that there?!” Luisen became pale as he stammered.

     “Are you admitting to this crime? Put handcuffs on the hands of this sinner! He will be taken to the Church, investigated, and will face a religious trial!”

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     Following the priest’s declaration, the Paladins handcuffed the young lord’s wrists. The deputy chancellor who had tried to protect Luisen could no longer intervene.

     The Church was extremely strict regarding the impersonation of priests or pilgrims. The pilgrim’s token was a certified identification document issued by the Church, so anyone impersonating a pilgrim and engaging in immoral acts would reflect poorly on the Church itself. Moreover, if it was discovered that the token belonged to a deceased pilgrim, it would raise the suspicion that the impersonator had killed the pilgrim in order to steal their pass.

     The level of punishment varied from case to case but, in the worst scenario, the culprit may be excommunicated. Being dismissed meant that they were no longer considered a child of God, which meant social death. The duke could be stripped of his title and left to wander around for the rest of his life.

     “T-Then, what will happen to us?” The deputy chancellor asked the priest.

     “This mansion, and all the people in it, will be investigated. If you are innocent, you have nothing to fear. Take the duke away!”

     The Paladins dragged Luisen along with them. Since Luisen had already confessed his crime, he followed obediently. Step after step.

     The ninth worshiper was flustered. He couldn’t quite understand how the situation had unfolded. He pondered intensely, ‘Do I chase after him and kill him? No, but there are too many Paladins around. If I misstep, I’ll be caught. I can’t do it alone. Moreover, I’ve already been scolded by the sect leader about self-preservation…’

     Even if he called the Death Knight out, there was no guarantee of victory if a fight broke out. The more he thought about it, the more he realized there was nothing he could do, currently.

      ‘Damn it. I can’t believe the Church made their move today of all days…’

     In fact, the story that Luisen had traveled to the capital by pretending to be a pilgrim was already so famous that everyone knew about it. The Church must have already known as well. But, no one stepped up to punish Luisen.

     After all, no one truly believed in those rumors!

     What kind of man was Luisen Anies? He was the one who had beaten out all other scoundrels who had gathered from all around the country and won the title of the worst scoundrel. The capital residents saw and experienced first-hand his turbulent life story. In particular, the priests remembered Luisen’s pathetic, constantly drunk appearance at every national event or holiday–the man couldn’t properly memorize a single prayer line.

      How could a pathetic troublemaker like that pretend to be a pilgrim?

     Moreover, the so-called pilgrim that Luisen was said to have been was famous for his numerous acts of kindness. Many folks remained skeptical of those rumors because of that. While Luisen’s reputation had undergone a significant change in the duchy, the young lord still remained horribly infamous in the capital.

     Luisen Anies was that pilgrim?

     That trash?

      He went around committing good deeds?

     Good deeds?

     What good deeds? He probably would have violently assaulted people!

     People were convinced that Luisen couldn’t possibly have performed acts of charity and kindness, and they dismissed the rumors of him pretending to be a pilgrim as lies. But, all of a sudden, accusations and evidence surfaced. With clear evidence in hand, the Church took action.

     ‘Lucky bastard. Let’s see how long his luck holds.’ The ninth worshiper watched as Luisen moved further away. Though, at a surface glance, the young lord’s face was filled with grief, it also seemed as if there was a small smirk on his face.

     ‘I must be seeing things. There’s no way the duke intended for this situation to happen…’

      The ninth worshiper didn’t want to admit that he had been fooled once again by Luisen and deliberately turned his head away.

      However, the ninth worshiper was not mistaken. Luisen was indeed smiling. ‘Ahahah! It’s a success!’

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     He was so excited that he had to lower his head because he was unable to maintain a poker face. Even as he was being dragged away by the Paladins, with shackles on his wrists and his arms, he could barely contain his laughter.

     ‘The Paladins came at the right time.’

     Anyone could see that a suspicious group had come to assassinate the young lord just as the Paladins arrived at the scene. As the Paladins questioned them, clues regarding who had ordered his assassination would emerge.

     Tonight’s sudden happening was all part of Luisen’s scheme.

     Initially, he had devised a plan to make the Royal Knights retreat. The pretext that first prince had used to control the Royal Knights was “protection.” If that pretext were to disappear, the first prince would have no choice but to withdraw his knights. Luisen had attempted to shatter that excuse by arranging for the imprisoned knights and soldiers of the duchy to be moved to the mansion, but those forces failed to enter the capital.

     The other nobles turned their backs towards Luisen because they were wary of the first prince. Although the Eastern Great Lord remained friendly to Luisen, they were careful as two Great Lords joining hands might be perceived as an act of hostility towards the royal family.

     ‘Moreover, if I receive help from the Eastern Great Lord, he may take that as grounds for me to marry his granddaughter.’

     Luisen thought about Carlton–his relationship with the mercenary had not been clearly defined yet. He couldn’t think about marriage now–what utter nonsense.

     After considering various plans and possibilities, the Church came to mind. The Church was an independent entity and could move autonomously from the royal family; additionally, it had as much influence as the royal family. It was a natural course of thought to consider the Church as a means to eliminate the Royal Knights.

     Luisen snuck Carlton’s lieutenant out of the mansion and asked for protection from the Church. Of course, that request was rejected in a heartbeat. They stated the Church’s long-held policy of not getting involved in politics.

     ‘They may be saying that, but it’s clear the first prince’s influence is involved here.’

     Luisen held a powerful ace up his sleeves: the heretical cult. But, it wasn’t so easy to use that card. Without any clear evidence, accusing the first prince and Count Doubless of being heretics could backfire.

     So, after a while, the young lord came up with the plan to accuse himself. If a clear accusation with evidence were to be made, the Church would send priests and knights to investigate him and the mansion. While he was under Church jurisdiction for violating religious law, he might be able to eliminate the Royal Knights without appearing openly defiant against the first prince!

      The method was sure to work, but the risks involved were great. He had given up the plan after opposition from the deputy chancellor, but, after hearing Sir Boros’s warning, he had no choice.

      This time, Luisen instructed Carlton’s lieutenant to go to the Church and accuse the young lord. The lieutenant went above and beyond: he burst into the midst of a worship service and publicly accused Luisen for all to hear.

     At that point, the Church couldn’t pretend to be ignorant even if it wanted to.

     All according to Luisen’s plan, the Paladins surrounded the mansion and captured Luisen as a sinner. While investigations were conducted, the knights would guard the mansion, ensuring the safety of its inhabitants.

     Luisen would also receive the Church’s protection. Although he would be confined to prison as a sinner and undergo a trial, it was a hundred times better than dying.

     ‘I’ve even thought of a way to escape.’

     It was no time for laughing. ‘Alright.’ Luisen raised his head and looked at the deputy chancellor. In turn, the deputy chancellor nodded meaningfully. They had already coordinated their plans. Now he could trust that the deputy chancellor would handle the rest effectively.

      After that brief exchange, Luisen looked forward once more. However, far in the distance, the Death Knight was standing in the darkness. That thing merely stood still before disappearing.

     ‘What is that bastard thinking?’

     Ultimately, the Death Knight had indirectly helped Luisen. But why? Whether alive or dead, Ruger was unpredictable.