Sylvester stormed out of the Duke’s Solar, knowing very well that he couldn’t force the man. Nor was he a divinator who could see what the Duchess was planning. He also feared what hidden military strength the Duke might have as he was also a Crown Prince.
“Oh! Are you done talking, Sylvester?” Isabella eagerly awaited outside, wanting to return and speak with her brother.
Sylvester thoughtfully glanced at her. “We are leaving the castle. Your brother has denied any assistance. He sees this as an opportunity to let King Harold fall to his doom.”
“What? But this is bigger than that… Why would he do this? Let me go and talk to him.”
Sylvester didn’t stop her. “Go ahead, try if you can. Remind him that this isn’t just about King Harold but the entire Gracia family. If more noble women die, the Gracia family will lose much of the support it enjoys.”
She resolutely nodded. “I will, Sylvester. I will try all I know to make him help us. I know he would have been a better king, but Harold had the support of the nobles as he was the oldest. There was no foul play, so this animosity does not make any sense.”
But Sylvester didn’t have much confidence in her that she’d be able to convince him, not when that Duchess was with him. “If you can’t change his mind, you can find me near the castle gates. Remember, Isabella, the toughest thing to control when dealing with your loved ones is rationality. So don’t let your personal bias affect your logical mind.”
“Y-You mean he is the o…”
Sylvester interrupted her. “I mean nothing. Our investigation needs facts and tangible evidence. Good luck, and see you later.” .
He left to meet with the rest and inform them about the Duchess. Initially, Sylvester was worried that coming to Ironstone Duchy and meeting the Duke was proving to be pointless. But, on another thought, the Duchess was the living, walking point of interest they had to investigate now. They had at least something, so he needed more people, trustable to some extent, to help him.
He met with everyone near the castle gates. The fifty crusaders acting as their guards had also arrived. “Change of plans, the Duke does not care about the murders. So we are on our own.”
“Do we have any leads?” Lady Aurora asked.
“Much more than leads, but it’s better we don’t discuss it here, for even the walls have ears. So let’s return to the camp and speak in your carriage.”
Soon, as expected, Isabella also arrived, her face appearing depressed, and she didn’t even look Sylvester in the eye. “Let’s go.”
That was all she said before climbing up her small mare that she was learning to ride. Clearly, she had failed, as the scent of sadness made it apparent.
Sylvester led everyone out of the three walls of the castle and entered the large town outside. They ignored all the bustling crowd and reached the Crusader camp outside the town. The camp was basic, with a waterproof tent for every team of ten men. They were not small and had enough space for each person to sleep.
Of course, the four commanders had their own private ones, as well as Sylvester, their commander. The carriage was parked near his tent and worked as the army’s sick bay, too, since Isabella lived there with Lady Aurora.
They all sat down around the table inside the carriage, and Sylvester told them about Felix’s last night.
“So this is why she was acting so close to him. She planned to use him from the moment he declared his wish to not always be a virgin clergyman?” Lady Aurora muttered, rubbing her chin in wonder.
But what surprised Sylvester the most was that Isabella didn’t say anything, nor was there any scent of anger or hate from her. So he asked her directly. “Isabella, were you able to do anything there?”
“He’s not my brother anymore.” She exclaimed angrily. “He has changed so much. No matter what that witch says, he agrees with her like a loyal trained dog. I tried to tell him how important it is to the family that we solve this murder mystery. But Lady Artemis said it was not in their best interest not to use this opportunity, and he agreed. She’s controlling him!”
Bishop Lazark refuted her words. “She probably is a witch, but I don’t think he’s being charmed or something. You said your brother was extremely smart, so it goes against the fact that he’d be dumb enough to fall for her. Is he not a wizard-knight as well?”
“Yes, he’s an Arch-wizard and Golden Knight. But… maybe she did something similar to what happened to Felix.”
Sylvester was in doubt too. “No, if that were the case, then she wouldn’t have let the Duke speak for himself. She could have possibly brainwashed him and changed him. But I don’t believe he’s being actively controlled.”
“Then what now?” Felix asked frustratingly.
Sylvester passed them parchments. “These are the maps of the streets of the town that I asked a few crusaders to make last night. Each of you will cover a sector and interview the people, asking them about Sir Kenworth or anything mysterious happening. Meanwhile, I will head to meet Cardinal Suprima, whose monastery is nearby. Lady Aurora, you will come with me, and you too, Isabella.”
Knock Knock!
Before he could finish the briefing, someone knocked on the carriage’s door. Lady Aurora just flicked her hand and opened the gate.
Two crusaders appeared outside. Sylvester recognised them as the men he had left behind to solve that adultery matter. “What’s the report, soldiers?”
One of them answered, still kneeling like a knight. “Lord Bard, the end was happier than we expected. As you may remember, the woman, Jenny, had revealed that she was forced to be married—it turns out her husband was also forced.
“All because her husband’s parents had found out his sexual interests aligned with the same gender instead of the opposite. Since Jenny was the most eligible and in a hurry, they got married—forcibly. So, the man was thrilled when she went to him to apologise, not to mention, the man knew already that the kids were not his.”
Now that was a great turnaround, Sylvester felt. “What happened to the kids and that man, Harris?”
“Well, since Jenny and her Husband were happy to break their marriage, the monastery found no problem and let them be. As for Harris, since the man’s parents discovered their son already had kids together with Jenny, they are now set to wed in a few days. The best thing is that Harris will still inherit his father’s shop. Hence, the future of the twin kids is safe.”
Lady Aurora questioned then. “Did you do something to Jenny’s husband?”
“N-No, Lady Tenth. Since we have heard that homosexuality is not a punishable offence unless done forcibly, we let him be. We didn’t reveal his secret to anyone in the village.” The Crusader said.
“Good job, boys. Go and report to your squad leader and get some rest. We might be moving tomorrow.” Sylvester dismissed them with praise.
“May the holy light enlighten us!” The two saluted and left with faces full of smiles. To them, the praise and job well done were worth more than money at this point, for they considered themselves servants of someone divine—Sylvester.
With that, Sylvester got up to head out. “Well, that was the end of that matter. All of you, head out. Lady Aurora and Isabella, come with me.”
It was still morning, and the sun was shining clear in the sky as slowly the spring knocked on the continent’s doors. The breeze felt warm, but for Sylvester, it was also annoying.
“We’re being followed.” He revealed the instant they left the Crusader camp and entered the town.
Lady Aurora clenched her hand on the reins of the horse. “Can you tell me from which direction?”
“One behind us, on foot, and one on the right, jumping through the rooftops. Don’t look, Isabella!” Sylvester answered.
By now, Lady Aurora had grown accustomed to not questioning his certain abilities and accepting them as talents or boons. In this case, she prepared herself to strike if anything happened. “Be careful. And Isabella, jump onto my horse—in case of an attack, you won’t be able to control the animal.”
“It’s alright… no need to worry.” Sylvester dismissed her concerns. Miraj was already instructed to sit on Isabella’s horse, after all, and the fluffy boy had some great threatening skills.
Eventually, they reached the edge of the town, on a different side, still near the cliff but far away from the castle. The monastery was huge and even had multiple elevators that went down the cliff since the monastery also operated a port for itself.
A single, ten-foot wall surrounded the monastery. There were multiple five-story buildings with red rooftops, each connected with the other through multistory walkways between them.
Since Sylvester was in his regular church robes, he was allowed in without question. Only at the main administrative building gate was he stopped by two guard clergymen.
To his surprise, though, nobody in the entire premise wore any armour, surprisingly. But Sylvester could see the leather armour under the robes. The Clergymen seemed discreetly ready for warfare at any moment.
‘Interesting. Why do they not have any men from the Holy Army protecting such an important Monastery?’
“I am Sylvester Maximilian, working under the direct command and in the capacity of Inquisitor High Lord, Third Guardian of Light. This is Lady Aurora, the Tenth Guardian of Light. We are from the Holy Land and wish to meet the Cardinal Suprima.”
“Ah! Forgive us!”
Thud!
The two men standing guard fell to their knees instantly and saluted with their arms crossed. But Sylvester took a step back, as the way they knelt was like a knight.
‘They are not clergymen! These must be the knights of the Holy Army disguised as Clergymen. But why?’
Sylvester saluted back and entered the building. By then, a man came running in his regal church robes and a mitre of a Bishop on the head. “Welcome, Lord Bard and Lady Tenth.”
“Where is the Cardinal? It’s urgent.” Sylvester didn’t waste a second, for he knew what was to come next.
Bishop’s face turned sweaty. “Cardinal Cornelius is away, my lord. When he may return, I do not know.”
“Lies!” Sylvester replied and brushed past the man. “Do not sin, Bishop. For I, with the Authority of the Inquisitor High Lord, can—and will—punish evil, as he would! Now move!”
Sylvester walked to the end of the hallway and pointed at a door that appeared the most luxurious as its handle was made of gold-plated steel. “Is this his office?”
“My lord… he’s not in the monastery.” Bishop seemed like he’d cry at any moment.
Sylvester tried to open it, but it was locked. So he took a step back and lifted his foot. “If you say he isn’t… then he’s definitely inside.”
Bam!
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750 GT = 1 Bonus chapter.
1 Super Gift = 1 Bonus chapter.
APE TOGETHER STRONG!