Children of the Holy Emperor Chapter 269

269. Penitential offering (1)

Logan, who returned to the dorm together after looking at the gifts that were not gifts, suddenly spoke as Seongjin entered the entrance.

“Go in first and rest, Seongjin Lee. “I have somewhere to visit from now on.”

“huh? “Where are you going?”

“It’s been a while since I’ve been to Regina, but I still have to go to church.”

Logan added that it had been his intention from the beginning to visit the church and meet the vicar.

“what? Then tell me sooner. Isn’t it the complete opposite direction? “You have to come all the way here and then go back to the city.”

“Still, I have to see that you get back to your dorm safely. “I promised Brother Masain that I would take good care of you so you wouldn’t have an accident.”

“… … .”

Seongjin was dumbfounded.

no wonder. Even though I said they wanted to go out alone, they obediently let me go. Was it all because of Logan?

But how far are you going to treat me like an immature child? Sir Masain. There’s no age difference between us, so don’t you think the discrimination between me and Logan is too much?

Even though my mental age is much higher!

[This nonsense is at the level of severe dementia, so it could be treated like an elderly person, right?]

‘shut up!’

Logan explained the church in detail to Seongjin.

Regina’s church is a place that exorcists and inquisitors traveling through the North must pass through at least once.

In the north, where there were no proper parishes and public security was a mess, these paladins often wandered alone without proper support. Then, when I finally arrive in Regina, I gather my tired body and unravel the information I have gathered.

So, it is the first place where you can find reliable information about the Northern Dark Church as well as the current status of devil worshipers.

“It looks like we will have to form a punitive force again soon, so I think we need to gather information from the north in advance and plan a route.”

Seongjin blinked at those words.

“wait for a sec. “Didn’t you decide to stick to the ecliptic this year?”

“I originally planned to do that, but… … .”

Logan’s face darkened as he spoke.

After joining Seongjin and his group, Logan heard in detail about the appearance of the Yakcha, Milo Merchant Marine, and the Demon Tree. It is also almost certain that the dark church is behind it.

I can’t help but think that the Dark Church’s evil forces may have been spreading deep throughout the North for longer than he expected.

Above all, the words the devil shouted at Sigismund’s Territory continued to haunt me.

-There was more at stake in your death than you thought! Even if the Guardian hadn’t stolen you, a lot would have changed now.

They say they are already working with the Knights of Saint Aurelion to dig into them little by little, but is that really enough?

Perhaps we should organize a punitive force and begin a proper long-term investigation.

“Didn’t you raise your allowance as a condition of helping with the monster task force work in the imperial capital? What if it gets cut again? “After investing in ‘Bertrán & Lee,’ there will be almost nothing left, right?”

Logan smiled as he read the look of concern on Seongjin’s sullen face.

“Didn’t you say that if you wait a little longer, you’ll get triple the amount? “But what are you worried about?”

“No, that’s true, but… … .”

“And you’re right too. “Abama is a good person, Lee Seong-jin.”

So, I know you won’t take back the allowance you raised.

As Logan added that, his smile faded for an instant.

“okay. Now that I think about it, I realize I know that person quite well. “And then I awkwardly tried to keep my distance. If you think about it, I guess it was all just foolishness on my part.”

“… … .”

“No, I said something useless. don’t mind. Then, I’ll see you at the dorm later.”

* * *

Seongjin, who was free after breaking up with Logan, visited the logistics relay station in the afternoon accompanied by Sir Martha. He had already sent a message to branch manager Schmidt saying he would visit him.

However, Seongjin, who was climbing the building without thinking, suddenly felt a strange sense of discomfort.

‘Why can’t I almost feel the presence of people?’

It wasn’t just my mood, the top floor of the logistics relay station was truly empty.

The only person breathing there was Branch Manager Schmidt, who was guarding the office with a very nervous look on his face.

“His Majesty Logan of Lilium has returned to Regina. Who would dare to remain around here?”

It was only then that Schmidt breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that Seongjin had left Logan behind.

It was said that the demonic contractors and demons at the logistics relay station had all left the place to avoid Logan. The branch manager, who was shaking and unable to do anything when he was notified of Seongjin’s visit, had suffered so much that dark circles had already formed around his eyes.

“But demon contractors don’t usually emit magical energy. “Don’t you all attend the birthday party?”

“Do you know how much effort we put into concealing our demon energy for that day? “A month before departing for the ecliptic, I prepare by avoiding proper communication with the devil.”

It is said that in the past, Logan tracked down an Ortona noble who was a devil contractor and summarily disposed of him. Even though he was one who made a contract with a lesser demon and had little trace of magic.

This guy’s divine power is so strong that anyone who has used demonic power or summoned a vassal even once recently will inevitably be caught by his spirit.

It was a good thing that Logan had gone to church and not followed me to the logistics relay station.

“… So, is that really true?”

Schmidt looked for the presence of Lord Martha waiting outside the office, then lowered his voice a little and whispered.

“hmm? what?”

“Is Prince Logan really the Sword Master?”

“… “How did you know that?”

When Seongjin asked with wide eyes, Schmidt let out a laugh.

“You should not look down on the information power of the Merchants’ Association.”

Even if the Margrave hisses, rumors eventually spread. Well, it was an incredible feat that would break several records of being the youngest person on the continent.

Anyway, after hearing the confirmation from Seongjin, he tilted his head with a strange expression.

“I often heard that he was a genius. But is it possible for a person who hasn’t yet become a Sword Master? It’s not like they were reborn, so how could it be unless they were from another race or demon with a long lifespan? … .”

“Uh, um, well. “Logan is a particularly special genius.”

Because he is his father’s son.

As Seongjin hesitates, Schmidt looks at him with suspicious eyes. However, Seongjin kept averting her gaze and trying to distract her, so she eventually sighed and continued speaking.

“Well, let’s say so. However, the incident of the appearance of the Penitent Tree this time is also the same, and the sudden birth of the youngest sword master on the continent is also the same. “In many ways, I think it’s very special because it reminds me of events from ten years ago.”

“Ten years ago?”

“The Ortona Civil War.”

A sword talent that humans can have.

Schmidt said that only one person comes to mind who has reached the peak of it.

“This is General Gael Bertrand. He was very famous among the devils from his birth.”

“U, famous? why?”

This time, Schmidt looked at Seongjin, who was wincing and chewing his tongue, with slightly strange eyes.

“Well, that’s right. “His spirit was very special.”

“Is it special?”

“yes. It is said that in the eyes of the devil, his soul could not be more brilliant. “It’s to the point where I want to corrupt them and mortgage them by making some kind of contract right now.”

If this is true even in the eyes of a single devil, how would he look in the eyes of other high-ranking devil kings?

Ironically, it is said that the influence of these demon lords was very large in the way that Gael Bertran grew up safely and became a sword master.

Once it became an established fact that he would be owned by a high-ranking demon lord, from then on, most demons were prohibited from going near him.

‘These people are now controlling other people’s souls… … .’

Seongjin furrowed his brows, and the Demon King noticed this and secretly comforted him.

[Wow. Calm down, Seongjin Lee. Your blood pressure is rising. First of all, you were reborn safely, right? In the end, no one has his soul.]

Meanwhile, Schmidt’s explanation continued.

“And an elaborate ceremony was prepared over a long period of time.”

“Consciousness?”

Is there any special procedure required for the devil to have a soul?

Schmidt shook his head in response to Seongjin’s question.

“If you only wanted Gael Bertrand’s soul, you could have made a contract somehow to extort it. But what happened at that time had a very different texture.”

Even the demons did not know the detailed story. Everything was done secretly at the hands of the Penitent Church that was prevalent in the North at the time.

In any case, it is said that when the civil war was nearing its end, several penitential trees appeared in every corner of the north. At first glance, it seemed like a large-scale offering in which the whole of Ortona was sacrificed at once.

And Gael Bertrand’s soul was scheduled to be placed on top of it. As if it were the most desirable fruit to decorate the center of a large cake.

“But I heard that there are no records of the Penitent Tree appearing in the materials kept by the exorcists? The last time there was a record of penance was hundreds of years ago, so was it during the Five Great Times? “I said it was around that time.”

When Ortona was destroyed, wasn’t my father young?

“The Penitent Tree was summoned at the same time, devouring five small villages. Because it was a remote place and the entire continent was in turmoil due to civil war, everyone probably passed by without knowing. “Anyway, even if there were witnesses, they would all have been caught in the tree of the demon world and died.”

And the subsequent results were just as Seongjin and Mawang had guessed.

“However, despite years of thorough preparation, the ritual somehow failed and the penitents were summoned back to the demon world. “All that was left were villages that were in ruins, so they could not be properly recorded.”

“… … .”

While listening to Schmidt’s explanation, Seongjin was thinking of something strange at the same time. These were the words of Cadmus, the first king, who was eagerly targeting Sisley’s body.

-Why would you intentionally harm the child who will become my new body? You will sacrifice everything to me!

Sisley did that.

In the Delcross Chronicles, he was said to be the key to the descent of the High-ranking Demon King and the culprit in destroying the world.

‘Of course, the Delcross Chronicles was a bad joke made up by Sigurd Sigurdsson,’

But could this really be a coincidence?

Whether it’s a precognitive dream that doesn’t come true or a plan that fails. How could it be that two of a father’s children become targets of high-ranking demon lords at the same time?

While Seongjin was deep in thought, Schmidt stroked his collar and spoke shyly.

“ah. Anyway, this story has nothing to do with us now. “The topic of penance came up, and as I thought about it, I realized I had been talking too much nonsense.”

“… … .”

Seongjin secretly wanted to hear more, but he still didn’t stop Schmidt from changing the topic.

This is because the desire to find and kill all those involved coexisted with the thought that I did not want to dig too deep yet.

“I wasted my time for no reason. “I have a lot of things to report to you from now on.”

In any case, since I don’t see Schmidt often, I had to use this opportunity to discuss everything I could. Not only about the preparation status of the salmon specialty store, but also about the operation of ‘Bertrand & Lee’.

In the process, I mentioned a deal I had with Margrave Hendrick, and Schmidt slightly raised his eyebrows.

“I am truly grateful that you asked about the antitrust opportunity. At this point, you may be able to make up for some of the investment losses from the initial stage of the business. But Margrave Hendrick is not such a soft opponent.”

“He’s definitely not someone who will just lose money.”

“yes. He was a person of considerable interest to merchants traveling to and from the North. “If you get caught up in a conversation with him, everyone clicks their tongues, saying that without even realizing it, they become absorbed in price competition with other merchants.”

In the past, this was the reason why no merchant was willing to sign an exclusive contract with Sigismund. In many ways, the exclusive deal with Milo was unusual.

“So, have you heard anything about Giacomo Milo? “What happened to him?”

I thought the top must have headed to Regina after that incident. So, I had ordered him to be detained as soon as he showed up at the logistics relay station.

But Schmidt shook his head.

“Unfortunately Giacomo Milo did not appear here. Even if he had come, he wouldn’t have easily revealed his face. This is because a large-scale arrest order has been issued in nearby large cities, including Regina. “Maybe you should have taken refuge somewhere safe?”

“… wherever?”

Did he have anyone else to turn to?

According to Dasha’s investigation, Giacomo runs a business named after the Count Milo family, but I heard that he has completely broken up with the family?

Then Schmidt lifted his dry gaze and looked down at the window.

“well. “Once you hide underground, there is only one place that immediately comes to mind.”

Seongjin immediately understood what he was saying.

“… “Is this the Church of Penitence?”

“Yes, probably so.”

Schmidt, who was nodding his head and responding like that, looked at Seongjin’s face to see what he was thinking at that moment.

“why?”

“No, it’s nothing. “I’ve thought about it before, but I think you can easily understand and notice anything other than what you think.”

I thought, that’s why it’s so easy to talk to him. Schmidt muttered that, looked into space for a moment, and then added:

“But why on earth did you not understand that the salmon business was not possible?” … .”

“… hey!”

fantasy,