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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Teottry
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“Father, we’ll see you in Roxwood.”
The leader of the merchant caravan, who had accompanied him to a small village of about thirty households near Roxwood, made the sign of the cross.
Although Archbishop Racheni hadn’t revealed his identity, his words and actions had made it clear that he was no ordinary priest.
“May the Lord’s blessing be upon you and those who follow you.”
After blessing them with the sign of the cross, Racheni left and walked through the village.
The village was surrounded by a sea of golden wheat. Men and women, drenched in sweat, were harvesting the wheat.
Surprisingly, their faces were unburdened. Was it because it was harvest season, the culmination of a year of hard work? That alone couldn’t explain it.
In regions with high taxes, the farmers’ faces would grow darker as the harvest approached, knowing that more than half of their harvest would be taken by the lord.
-Dong… Dong… Dong…
As the church bell tolled for noon, the farmers in the wheat fields gathered in small groups and raised their beer mugs.
The thick, porridge-like The thick, porridge beer was barely warm and low in alcohol, yet the farmers drank it as if it were a heavenly nectar.
“It seems to be a good harvest this year.”
As Racheni approached, the farmers, who had casually tossed their sickles aside, gripped them tightly. His monastic habit did not inspire trust.
“Who are you?”
The eldest farmer stepped forward and asked cautiously.
Racheni offered a benevolent smile.
“I am a nameless pilgrim, on my way to Quaran to visit the holy sites of the Eastern Continent.”
“Empty handed?”
Racheni’s luggage was meager for a pilgrim who had embarked on such a long journey.
“Too much luggage is a burden on a long journey. It’s better to buy what you need along the way. May I trouble you for a mug of beer?”
Racheni took a copper coin from his pocket and tossed it to the farmer.
The farmer, after exchanging glances with his comrades, handed Racheni a mug of beer.
“It seems this isn’t your first pilgrimage…”
“This is my second. My first was to the holy sites of the Northern Continent.”
“The one where the Pope resides…?”
“The first house built by the Lord? It was magnificent. Its grandeur was beyond what human hands could have created. Moreover…”
An experienced traveler was a popular figure among the farmers, who were bound to the land for their entire lives. And Racheni, as an archbishop, was an experienced speaker…
The farmers were quickly captivated by his stories and gathered around him, their initial wariness forgotten.
Racheni, judging that the time was right, subtly inquired…
“It seems you’re living quite well. I heard there was a war nearby.”
“Oh, don’t even mention it. When the war broke out, we thought we were in big trouble. Nobles, you know, they start by looting, don’t they? We even heard rumors of looting and arson in Roxwood… We spent many sleepless nights worrying about what to do.”
For a moment, Racheni’s gaze sharpened.
“Looting and arson, you say? The new lord must have been collecting his dues.”
“That’s what we thought at first.”
“At first…?”
“Ha! As it turned out, it was the work of those city nobles who were always putting on airs. They tried to blame it on the enemy and line their own pockets. They must have thought they would win, but hahaha, they all paid the price when Sir Allen arrived.”
The farmers, reminiscing about that time, became boisterous. Racheni tilted his head.
“Hmm, could it not have been Sir Allen’s doing? I’ve seen many cases where the occupying army loots and burns, then blames the original nobles.”
“Don’t say that. Sir Allen isn’t that kind of person. Life has gotten so much better since he arrived. Those bastards who were collecting double taxes, claiming it was their land and their right, are all gone. And all those ridiculous taxes on everything have been drastically reduced.”
Racheni looked incredulous. Weren’t nobles the type to think only of exploiting their subjects?
And yet, he had reduced and even abolished taxes? There must be a grand and sinister scheme behind it all.
In reality, Allen had simply considered the efficiency of the tax system. The total amount of taxes paid by the farmers had only decreased slightly.
“Hmm, isn’t there something suspicious about him? For example, does he use evil magic…?”
The talkative farmers suddenly fell silent. The others did as well. Silence descended as the farmers exchanged glances.
“W-Why? Did I say something wrong…?”
By the time Racheni realized that something was wrong, the farmers had surrounded him.
The farmer who had been talking to him pointed at him and raised his voice.
“Get him! He’s an evil man who slanders our lord!”
“You son of a bitch! You have no one else to curse but our lord!”
“Beat him! He’s clearly a spy from the neighboring territory!”
“No, wait, I’m actually…”
Racheni quickly tried to reveal his identity, but…
“What? You’re the famous archbishop? Then I’m the Pope!”
The blows only intensified. The farmers beat him without mercy, like a dog on a hot day.
Racheni, who had been curled up on the ground, protecting his head with his hands, seized the opportunity when the farmers’ hands slowed and swung his staff, then fled.
“You bastard! You’ve finally shown your true colors! Don’t let him escape! Capture him and bring him to the lord!”
Of course, the angry farmers didn’t give up. Farmers from the surrounding area, hearing the commotion, joined the pursuit, and the crowd chasing Racheni quickly grew.
‘T-This isn’t right…!’
Racheni, seeing this, had no choice but to flee for his life.
‘Nobles are all the same. That village must be an exception.’
Racheni, who had traveled the continent to spread the word of the Lord, prided himself on knowing nobles better than anyone.
Greedy, barbaric, and willing to use violence and power to get what they wanted. That was Racheni’s perception of nobles. Therefore, he dismissed the village he had just passed through as an anomaly.
However, all the villages he passed through on his way to Roxwood were similar. On the contrary, the closer he got, the more favorable the sentiment towards the new lord was.
‘I can’t believe it. They’re all being deceived.’
His suspicion grew. This was a phenomenon that defied his understanding.
Even he was shaken when he finally reached the city.
The children running and playing tag had smiles on their faces, and the adults voices were filled with life.
The streets were unusually clean for a city, and there were no housewives throwing waste out of their windows. The city guards patrolled with sharp eyes.
‘It’s alive?’
The entire city felt alive. It was a sight he had never experienced before, despite having visited countless cities.
What made the difference? It was an atmosphere that couldn’t be created simply by cutting taxes.
He tried to take in everything, to solve the mystery. Just then, he arrived at a construction site on one side of the city.
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They were digging a canal to bring water from the Rhine River, which flowed past the city, into the city. After hearing the foreman’s explanation, he tilted his head.
“It seems to have been going on for quite some time.”
“It started not long after the lord changed.”
“That was only a few months ago, wasn’t it?”
Racheni still didn’t understand. The construction was too far along to have started just a few months ago. He was about to ask for more details.
Just then, the shopkeeper who had been selling snacks to the construction workers rolled up his sleeves and grabbed a shovel. The foreman chuckled at Racheni’s surprised look.
“The citizens who have free time are helping out.”
The foreman’s explanation only confused Racheni further.
“They’re helping voluntarily? Why?”
The person who answered was the shopkeeper turned worker. He stopped, his shovel resting on his shoulder, and said…
“Hmph. Who’s helping whom? What does the lord gain from digging a canal? He lives in the inner castle anyway. This is for us, the citizens. So the lord is helping us.”
“Ahem, not everyone is like this man. I’m getting paid to work.”
“You old fool! Your shift is already over.”
“Hahaha. So it is.”
As the worker chuckled sheepishly, the shopkeeper continued, as if boasting to Racheni…
“Come on. A pilgrim shouldn’t be so surprised by this. Maintenance has begun in other parts of the Rhine River as well. An official from the castle said they’re planning to maintain the waterway so that boats can travel from Roxwood to Quaran in one go. If the plan succeeds, the city will prosper.”
“And not just this city. All the cities along the Rhine River will benefit.”
“That’s the same thing. It’s all the lord’s land anyway.”
The shopkeeper and the worker spoke as if they were competing to see who could praise the lord more. A merchant I met on the way to the inner castle said something similar.
“Frankly, aren’t nobles just bandits with power and justification? You can’t even imagine how much money we lose every time we pass through a territory, a domain, or a manor.”
“Of course! Since he has a monopoly on the Rhine River, he must have been even more ruthless.”
“Not at all. We were worried about that too, but the new lord is a man of his word. He doesn’t demand anything more than the set customs duties. And there are regular patrols on the roads along the waterway. So next time, we’ll hire fewer mercenaries.”
Allen had eliminated so many of the ruling class during the war that there were few left to extort money.
On the other hand, there was a shortage of mid-level officials, and the work was piling up at the castle, weakening his control over the provinces, but thanks to the hard work of Allen’s women and Janbolt, things were somehow managing.
“That can’t be…?”
“I understand. I wouldn’t have believed it either if I hadn’t experienced it myself. In any case, the new lord seems to be quite interested in commerce. Some of the surrounding merchants are even thinking of setting up a base in Roxwood or Quaran. It’s a great opportunity to make a lot of money if you invest now. So…”
In fact, the merchant who had accompanied Racheni to the nearby village was also looking for a base in Roxwood. Racheni belatedly realized this.
After refusing the merchant’s investment proposal, his mind was in a turmoil. What they said and what he knew about Allen were completely different.
‘A noble who cares about the common people…?’
The Allen that Racheni knew was a bloodthirsty tyrant. He was a devil who rejoiced at the sight of unnecessary bloodshed.
If he hadn’t believed that, he wouldn’t have believed the King when he confessed that his sister was a witch, and he wouldn’t have taken action himself.
He climbed up to the inner castle, located on the mountainside, and turned to look down at the city. He felt like he finally understood why the city was so alive.
The farmers, the workers, and the merchants he had met along the way all harbored the hope that tomorrow would be better.
It was a stark contrast to the many territories where the majority of the people lived without hope. This realization led to another.
‘Yes. What was important was hope…’
Helping the poor in the name of the Lord was just a temporary self-satisfaction. To actually save people, you had to give them hope.
In that respect, Allen was a better shepherd than he, a renowned and devout man, was. Racheni’s thought.
However, there was one thing that bothered him.
This kind of canal construction cost a fortune. And they were even paying the workers.
Perhaps it was all just a facade, and he was secretly doing something evil.
‘The devil tempts humans with sweet words.’
His suspicion grew as he entered the inner castle.
“The lord has ordered that no one be admitted.”
“Did you tell him who I am?”
The guard at the gate bowed his head, looking troubled.
“We are also forbidden from entering the inner chambers.”
A visit from Archbishop Racheni was something to boast about for nobles. Some nobles had even offered him a mountain of gold and silver, begging for just one visit.
In other words, his visit was valuable enough to warrant disobeying the lord’s strict orders.
And yet, the guard wouldn’t even announce the arrival of the archbishop? Racheni’s suspicion deepened.
In reality, Allen simply didn’t want to be disturbed while spending time with his women, who had gathered together for the first time.
And the guard, a senior mercenary who had witnessed Allen’s legendary deeds for the past two years, valued Allen’s orders more than the archbishop’s.
“Hmm… then I’ll come back later.”
Racheni decided to retreat. Of course, it was a strategic retreat.
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That evening, two guards stood watch at the main gate of the inner chambers, while two others patrolled the area. The security was tight.
However, Racheni, with the help of the head priest of the inner castle chapel, found a gap. He climbed through a window like a thief, his eyes gleaming.
‘There’s… no one here?’
Unlike the heavily guarded outside, there was no sign of anyone inside. That only fueled Racheni’s suspicion. He concluded that they had cleared the area because they were hiding something.
He began his search, and soon, he stopped in front of the only door from which he could hear any sounds.
‘Lord, protect this young lamb.’
He made the sign of the cross and, after a silent prayer, threw open the door without hesitation, certain that some evil deed was being committed inside.
-Bang…
However, what greeted him was the sight of three men and women eating a perfectly normal meal.
And the food on the table was simple, not the lavish feast one would expect from a noble who prided himself on luxury, indulgence, and gluttony. It was even more modest than what a wealthy commoner would eat.
“This can’t be…?”
Racheni, taken aback by the unexpected scene, missed a few things.
First, the sticky, rich smell that lingered in the air, and the traces of sex on the floor, the chairs, and the table.
It was proof that a sexual act had taken place in this hall just a moment ago. If he hadn’t been a virgin, he would have noticed it, even in his surprise.
“Who’s there!”
Allen eventually drew his sword and pointed it at Racheni. He was also using his body to shield the traces on Anya’s and Eleanor’s bodies, which would have been visible upon closer look.
Meanwhile, the mother and daughter of the Rasino family, who had gone to get more food, peeked out from the kitchen door, spying on the scene. Fiore, who had gone to get some wine, was with them.
“I am… Gah.”
Before Racheni could answer, Allen’s hand chopped down on his neck. Racheni collapsed like a puppet with its strings cut.
Allen clicked his tongue and sheathed his sword. Anya, who had emerged from behind Allen, asked, her face filled with curiosity…
“Why didn’t you kill him?”
“A useful horse has wandered into my grasp. I can’t just kill it.”
“A useful horse?”
Eleanor answered. She clutched Allen’s arm and mumbled,
“Archbishop Racheni?”
“What? This bald thief is the famous archbishop?”
“I’ve seen him once before.”
Eleanor, who had lived in the capital until a few years ago, was an acquainted with Archbishop Racheni. Anya turned back to Allen.
“Then shouldn’t you kill him even more?”
He was a famously devout archbishop. If he learned about Anya and Eleanor’s abilities, he would immediately brand them as witches and have them burned at the stake.
“If I can use him, he’ll be a great help.”
In an era where faith was a part of life, the cooperation of Archbishop Racheni, whose name was known even to the lowliest peasant, would grant Allen a powerful, intangible force.
Dozens of ways to use him had already crossed Allen’s mind.
Moreover, he had a weakness. Even for a famously devout archbishop, breaking into a noble’s inner chambers like a thief was an unforgivable crime.
Even the church wouldn’t be able to protest if Allen killed him after learning the truth.
“Of course, before that, I need to interrogate him and find out what he was planning.”
Allen grabbed Racheni’s hood and dragged him away.
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Gotcha rat…
