NOVEL NEXT Chapter 244
Chapter 244. Childhood Friends – Communication
There are three main categories of items imbued with the power of the main deity.
The first is the ‘consecrated item,’ which has been blessed by a priest and can be personally owned. While it doesn’t have any specific effects, it is believed to repel evil, so couples often have their rings consecrated before marriage.
The second category is the ‘holy relic.’
Unlike consecrated items, which are relatively quick to create, holy relics take an exceptionally long time to form.
There is no fixed format for items that become holy relics. They are often statues but can also be paintings or small ornaments.
The diverse forms of holy relics are closely related to the reasons behind their creation. Holy relics are items that a devout clergy member has poured their ‘heart’ into for many years.
Once the method of creating holy relics was understood, their forms became more standardized.
Clergy members hoped to leave behind holy relics and sought suitable items, and the Church of the Cross distributed appropriately sized statues of the seven saints to priests, paladins, and monks graduating from central church educational facilities.
Considering personal preferences, they could choose one of the seven saint statues, but the number of holy relics did not increase dramatically. Holy relics were rare both in the past and now, and they were kept in churches in each region.
The third and final category is the ‘sacred relic.’
Sacred relics are not created; they are ‘discovered.’
Sacred relics have no distinctive external features. They are usually very ordinary items, but unlike holy relics, sacred relics influence their surroundings.
There are places where the air feels particularly still. The quiet is inexplicable, and noises that should echo fade away. If you feel like someone is watching you in this silence, you might suspect the presence of an undiscovered sacred relic nearby.
Throughout thousands of years of history, around fifty items have been discovered or assumed to be sacred relics.
Some, like the marriage vows of King Maunin and Queen Reti, which were held by the Kingdom of Aslan, were lost due to war, while others, like the scepter symbolizing the Archean Empire, now belong to the Church of the Cross and are carried by successive saints.
The wooden staff and bronze goblet used by the first saint, Azra, are also presumed to be sacred relics but have not yet been found.
In any case, churches across the continent had at least one holy relic. The priests stationed at these churches borrowed the authority of the holy relics to conduct rituals and used them as a means of communication when necessary.
And this was also true for the Bridget Church. In the evening, when the chapel was quiet, and under the flickering light of about a hundred candles, a priest from the Bridget Church prepared for communication.
In front of him was Marquis Drageen, the intended recipient was a cardinal of the Conrad Kingdom, and the person to receive the message was the much-talked-about Prince Leanne de Yeriel, but the priest recited the communication manual calmly.
“Marquis, please sit here. As you know, communication proceeds alternately one turn at a time. You can verbally convey your message, but since even slight differences in pronunciation or expression could lead to misinterpretation, it’s best to write it down.”
The priest mistakenly assumed the marquis would be the one conversing with the prince. Marquis Ebeny Drageen turned to the young man accompanying him.
“Have you ever used this means of communication?”
“Yes. You needn’t worry.”
The young man had dry, straw-like hair. He sat down and, with a practiced motion, picked up a quill. The priest, slightly off guard, waited nonetheless.
“Let’s see…” The young man hesitated briefly before quickly writing something and handing it over. The priest shrugged his shoulders and said nothing more. The paper read:
/ Confirm recipient. From a childhood friend. /
It was a distrustful act, indicating a desire to verify who he was talking to first.
Have you been deceived so much?
Nevertheless, the priest fulfilled his duty. He placed his hand on the thin book, the holy relic of the Bridget Church. The title was worn and unreadable.
After a while, the priest, who had been still as if in meditation, began transcribing the reply with his other hand. Only then did Lev feel assured that Leanne was on the other end.
/ Confirm recipient. From the beggar siblings. /
Now there were no more obstacles. Lev moved his quill swiftly, and while Marquis Drageen waited idly, dozens of messages were exchanged.
/ The childhood friend proceeded similarly to the previous time. Leah has gone to the central church, and I have begun preparations. Everything proceeded without major issues, but securing magical support has hit a snag. /
/ Were you unable to persuade Count Soarel Demetri Ogerton? /
/ I persuaded him. However, it is difficult to receive help from the Bolinu Magic Tower. /
/ Do you need a magician? /
/ I changed the plan. We need the assistance of the Conrad Kingdom. /
/ Speak. /
Reassuring.
But at this point, Lev paused his quill and looked up at the priest.
The communications between him and Leanne would inevitably reach the ears of the Church of the Cross. However, since the head of the Church, the saint, had promised to help them, there seemed to be no need to worry.
There is no need to worry since the person facilitating communication on the other side is Bishop Berg…
Lev’s quill regained its vigor. The paper now contained more significant information.
/ Prince Algeo de Lognum has risen to the rank of duke. He will invade the Conrad Kingdom’s borders this year, along with Marquis Guidan’s army. /
The reply came back a bit late.
/ More details are needed. /
/ Do not worry. Marquis Guidan is on our side. Prince Algeo de Lognum seems eager to annex the Conrad Kingdom. We will use this. /
/ Did the last session end like that? /
This reply took even longer, and Lev was startled. The conversation he could not have through the mirror came back in full.
This was something he did not want to reveal.
Clever Leanne would surely deduce how his and his sister’s future had ended just from hearing the conclusion.
Lev hesitated for a moment before picking up the quill again.
/ Yes. /
In this communication devoid of commas, question marks, or ellipses, Lev felt guilt.
Forgive me for affirming so stiffly. I’m sorry I can’t elaborate that you became a great king and a magnificent general, that you ultimately defended your kingdom.
Did our sister write letters to her brother in a similar way after she married into the Aisel Kingdom?
Hiding the hardships of living in a foreign land, praising her husband, the arranged marriage partner, as a good person… Leriana, our dear sister, you must have lived as a lonely queen.
Eventually, a reply came. Leanne de Yeriel calmly asked about the future plan.
/ How do you intend to use him? /
Sighing, Lev wrote with a bit of bitterness.
/ I will assassinate Duke Algeo de Lognum at the border. /
The priest receiving the paper was visibly startled. Lev stared at him intently, and a response came back after a while. The message also contained a hint of anger.
/ I will support you. What do you need? /
Lev requested what was necessary to kill Duke Algeo de Lognum. Leanne expressed concern, but Lev replied simply.
/ Leo has joined us. /
Satisfied with that, Leanne asked about something else.
/ How is Lena? /
/ She is learning to cook. How is your sister? /
/ She goes out with Tian every day. /
Ah, Santian isn’t dead.
The one who died instead of saving Leriana… Lev felt a warmth in his chest, then suddenly thought of something and asked.
/ Why did you stay in Orville so long? Was it because of Katrina? /
Leanne had stayed in Orville until the following summer, starting from the beginning of the beggar siblings’ scenario.
Their father, Kaderick de Yeriel, died in winter. Leanne’s uprising coincided with Prince Eric de Yeriel’s coronation, but his movements were unusually slow.
Didn’t their father die because of this delay? It’s unlikely that Leanne, who had never met his father, would have cared.
Leanne was on the verge of ascending the throne.
Was that his objective? But Leanne’s answer defied Lev’s speculation.
/ Do you remember the beggar with the broken arm? /
* * *
A few days later, Lev’s party, now significantly larger in number, was heading towards Marquis Guidan’s territory.
A large group of Marquis Ebeny Drageen’s knights had joined them. Including Leo and Lena, they now numbered thirty-five and were facing the warm spring breeze.
It was a dangerous season that made one lazy.
However, Lev did not neglect learning swordsmanship, having recently been thoroughly defeated in a formal duel with Leo.
Though they were both sword masters wielding the same weapon, he couldn’t match Leo. Even though
[ Achievement: Knight ’26’ – Stronger when facing knights. min(1) ]
Leo Dexter was a retired ‘knight,’ so only Lev benefited from the achievement of killing knights, he still lost.
Well, to make an excuse, Leo had one more achievement counter for hunting demonic beasts than Lev…
‘Damn it. How much difference could that really make?’
It was just a lack of swordsmanship sense. {Swordsmanship.3v: Bart Style}, {Swordsmanship.4v: Jacob Style}, {Swordsmanship.5v: Forte Style}… With sword styles and mastery at this level, he should have been able to hold his own even against someone of a different caliber.
Leo Dexter made a remark.
“If achievements grant you abilities, do you think that’s all there is to swordsmanship? Even if you perfectly mimic someone else’s swordsmanship, you can’t surpass the creator of that style. It embodies their philosophy.”
Lev retorted impulsively.
“Then what’s your philosophy?”
Leo trailed off, silently turning away as he watched his wife pester Ban Bizan to teach her cooking.
How boring.
However, it was some kind of advice, so Lev pondered his own swordsmanship. When he became too tired to continue, he set his sword down and thought about something else.
It was a story Leanne had told him.
He advised that if Lev ever had the chance to go through the beggar siblings scenario again, he should avoid meeting the beggar with the broken arm and refuse any requests.
The beggar with the broken arm. Lev had a faint memory of him.
A long time ago, during the second beggar siblings scenario, when he hadn’t met Xenia, couldn’t imagine meeting Katrina in Orville, and didn’t know where Cassia’s shoe shop was.
On their way to find Cassia, who had helped them in the first beggar siblings scenario, they had been accosted by a gang of beggars.
“Hey, why are you two always wandering around alone? We see you at the market every day. It’s pretty unfair, don’t you think? We all share what we get, but you two always come early and take everything. Where do you sleep, anyway?”
“If you want to survive by begging, you should pay attention to others. It’s better to stick together than to roam around alone.”
It was hard to tell if it was a threat or a suggestion.
Of course, Leo (he didn’t know his true name or identity back then) had refused, and the beggar who made the suggestion had an arm that was badly twisted, likely from an untreated break.
But why mention that beggar now? Lev thought he might explain later, so he was about to reply, “I remember,” but then he hesitated.
At the time, he hadn’t realized it, but now it struck him—the beggar…
Court etiquette.
The beggar had used royal etiquette. Despite the twisted arm, his movements had a refined elegance, but Lev hadn’t recognized it back then due to his lack of {noble society} knowledge.
Leanne gave a very limited warning.
/ If you comply with his request, you will meet Grand Duke Astaroth. I barely escaped. It’s best not to meet him at all, so don’t go looking for Cassia next time. /