The Fever Cure (4)

“There are a lot of refugees around here. With so many mosquitoes, diseases must be spreading.”

“Indeed. That’s why the situation is quite dire.”

The scribe said so and then asked Azadine,

“Brother, what is your name?”

“I am Adan.”

Azadine gave a false name.

The Messengers, the Aragasa, have mixed blood with the Hubris people and thus have various kinds of names. However, Azadine’s name follows the very old Aragasa cultural tradition, so he decided to use an alias to conceal his roots.

“Brother Adan. As you can see, everyone here is struggling. In the midst of this chaos, our Blue Turban Party protects refugees and drives away bandits and monsters.”

Given the refugees’ poor conditions, endemic diseases like malaria, dysentery, and fevers were spreading throughout Vthuma.

Among the refugees, Vthuman people wearing blue scarves moved about handing something out.

“Here! Medicine from the Blue Turban Party! A blessing from the Heavenly Lord! Whether malaria, dysentery, or any disease—this will cure it all!”

Azadine flinched at those words.

According to the pharmacology passed down to the Messengers, a medicine that claims to cure every illness is nothing but a narcotic. Only powerful painkillers can alleviate all suffering; they can never cure the disease itself.

‘A narcotic? But I only sense faint magic power?’

[It’s Nether magic.]

The Emperor’s voice answered for him.

‘Nether magic?’

[That’s the power I sense from that medicine. Not only that, but many people in the area have latent Nether energy within them. Likely, they’re the ones who’ve taken the medicine.]

The Emperor’s voice was issuing a warning.

[With troubled times comes a flood of false prophets. Be wary. Taking the medicine won’t addict you immediately, but do not accept Nether magic lightly.]

‘That’s a serious problem.’

Just then, the scribe guiding them came to a halt.

“We’re here. Brother Adan. From this point on, you’d best be careful with your words.”

“Are we meeting the Prophet?”

“The Prophet isn’t here. This is the Priest who oversees proselytizing in Adirov.”

“The Priest….”

“Leave your weapons.”

“Understood.”

Azadine set down his weapons and proceeded to the audience with the Priest.

The so-called audience chamber was little more than a few large tents, resembling a field barracks.

However, since it was set up in front of the Baron of Adirov’s castle, it was clear that the acting baron and the Blue Turban Party had a close relationship.

“This place is…”

“The acting baron is also deeply interested in the gospel of our Blue Turban Party.”

The Blue Turban Party members boasted, but Azadine gave a wry smile.

‘Well, no matter how much of a cult it is, your group holds power in this region. The acting baron probably doesn’t want to get on your bad side. As an administrator, why would he risk a deadly confrontation with you?’

The Priest was a noble-looking man in his twenties. With an elegant air, he looked more like a scholar or a merchant than a priest. His androgynous features even made Azadine wonder if he was a woman in disguise.

“First, remove your helmet. Won’t you show us your face? How can we understand someone if they speak with their face hidden?”

“I apologize. I only covered it because it’s unpleasant to look at.”

When Azadine said that and removed his helmet, not just the Priest but also the surrounding Blue Turban Party members were startled.

“Eh?”

“Th-those eyes?”

“Incredible. You’re blind? But how?”

“I substitute vision through magic.”

“Ah, a mage then. Remarkable. I’d heard of your talents, but I didn’t expect you to be a magician. But how do you work with a holy knight while being a mage?”

“That holy knight has recently grown hesitant due to the strange happenings all over the Kingdom of Korasar. Moreover, after a fallout with his superior, he was expelled from the church.”

“Ah, I see.”

Everyone seemed to understand at the mention of trouble with a superior.

“Then, may I receive the teachings of the Blue Turban Party? What does the Blue Turban Party follow, and what are its goals?”

“Before that…”

The Priest began hesitantly.

“As you can see, the people around us are sick and starving. While you say you’ve come to learn our teachings, salvation in the Blue Turban Party is not something gained by one person alone. Isn’t a world where the people help us and we help the people, the very world the Heavenly Lord desires? So, I was hoping you might make a donation.”

“Ah, yes. Will money do?”

“Of course. It will help us acquire much-needed medicine and food.”

“Hm, understood.”

If they had just asked outright, it would’ve felt like extortion, which would’ve rubbed him the wrong way. But since they used the excuse of helping the suffering people, Azadine willingly gave money.

When he handed over about three gold coins, the Blue Turban Party Priest was impressed.

“That’s quite a lot. Thank you, brother. I will recognize you as a member of the Blue Turban Party. The initiation ceremony is scheduled for next week, but until then, this will serve as your temporary token.”

“This is…”

Azadine received a blue scarf. It had a pungent, bitter smell.

“It’s been dyed simply using fruit. Since it’s not a proper dye, it’ll wash out in water, so be careful.”

“Then please teach me. Who is the Heavenly Lord?”

“The Heavenly Lord is our Prophet. He was originally a merchant from Vthuma, but one day, he was struck by lightning and survived—and after that, he attained enlightenment.”

“Struck by lightning… and enlightenment, you say?”

“Yes, that’s right. So he wrapped the blue scarf around his head and began gathering people in preparation for the Age of Jupiter, offering blessings to those suffering from disease. Our role is to spread his teachings and deliver the Heavenly Lord’s voice to the people.”

“I see. That makes me even more curious about the Heavenly Lord.”

Azadine’s words were by no means insincere.

With the Age of Jupiter approaching, a cult expanding its power using Nether magic couldn’t be ignored.

As a Messenger under imperial order to safeguard the people, and as a man named Azadine, he couldn’t help but watch them closely.

“To be granted an audience with the Heavenly Lord, you must devote yourself accordingly to our Blue Turban Party.”

“Of course.”

“On that note… what about the holy knight traveling with you? Is he trustworthy?”

“I already told you, didn’t I? He’s been expelled from the Church.”

“Yes, I’m aware. But many of the clergy and holy knights of the King’s Church are of noble descent, and such people—even in the face of Korasar’s divine punishment—cannot accept the blue scarf or acknowledge the Church’s failings. Even when expelled, they often refuse to pledge to the Blue Turban Party.”

To the Blue Turban Party, Zebec seemed like a potentially dangerous element.

Fortunately, this Priest was mild-mannered, hence the cautious tone. If it had been a more hardline member, they might have been itching to kill him.

“Hm. Thank you for your concern. I’ll speak to him.”

“Be careful. Oh, and I’ve heard that you’re quite capable. I have a request.”

“A request?”

“In fact, another group approached us before you. We accepted their offering and let them in to help save the people… but they seem to be spies.”

“Spies?”

“Yes. We are curing malaria and saving lives through the Heavenly Lord’s grace—a miracle. But they’re treating it as dark sorcery and trying to investigate us.”

Azadine flinched.

He, too, had thought of it as sorcery and intended to investigate… but someone else had beaten him to it?

“Could you look into them for us—whether they’re from the King’s Church or some other faction?”

“You want me to do it?”

“Yes. Those formerly from the Church tend to leave a trail, so it’d be easier for someone like you. Think of it as your initiation.”

“Ah… Understood.”

Azadine reluctantly accepted the Priest’s request.

Azadine returned to the group, where Scott waved at him.

“How was it, Captain?”

Scott, Zebec, and Shati had stayed behind while Azadine met the Priest. After glancing around, Azadine leaned in and whispered to Scott.

“I got shaken down.”

“Wha?!”

“That, and something else.”

Azadine explained the mission the Priest had given him.

“Wow, next time a new guy comes in, they’ll probably get sent to investigate us.”

“Right?”

“So what’ll you do, Azadine? Are you going to do it?”

Shati asked, curiosity piqued.

“Hm. I’ll have to meet those people first. Whether they’re from the King’s Church or a new group… I’ll talk with them and figure it out.”

“Why not forget all this and just head to Vthuma to meet Arael?”

Zebec posed an unexpected question, surprising Azadine.

“They’re spreading a cult here. Shouldn’t we deal with that?”

“Calling it a cult for collecting donations and treating civilians poorly seems harsh. Even the King’s Church and the Rescue Knights do the same. And these people really are curing malaria and dysentery.”

Zebec’s voice had a strangely sharp edge.

Diseases like malaria and dysentery were often fatal.

But seeing these so-called cultists heal the sick and win people’s favor left Zebec conflicted.

The self-proclaimed orthodox King’s Church had weakened healing magic, and when saving people, they judged them by social class and wealth—ultimately letting most die. In contrast, the “heretical” group was doing more good.

Ever since seeing Dimia perfectly cast restorative healing magic, his inner conflict had only deepened.

“Still, I’m going to investigate the Blue Turban Party. Since their religion originated in Vthuma, it’s better to establish our position with them before heading there.”

With that, Azadine asked a nearby Blue Turban Party soldier where to find the group he was to investigate.

The place he was led to was a traveling troupe’s cargo wagon.

Atop a four-horse wagon, two dancing women smiled under the crowd’s attention. Around them, peddlers and street vendors hawked their goods.

One of the dancers looked strangely familiar to Azadine.

“…Janis and Dimia.”

Dimia of the Flower and her younger sister Janis were dancing as traveling performers.

Selling wares nearby were Seraph of the Bird and Aleph of the Wind. The coachman was Indim of the Moon.

The four members of Flowers, Birds, Wind, Moon.

Arguably the strongest among the current generation of Messengers, they had disguised themselves as merchants and infiltrated the Blue Turban Party headquarters.

‘So that’s how they escaped Coral Sahar—overland.’

Azadine’s group had departed later, but by hitching a ride with the Nagas’ ship, they’d arrived in Adirov around the same time.

That meant Arael was likely nearby.

“Good. Looks like I won’t need to go all the way to Vthuma—I can meet them here.”

As Azadine spoke, Indim—disguised as the coachman—approached. Covered head to toe in a black robe with a black leather mask, Indim looked suspicious at a glance.

“Azadine…”

“It’s Adan, for now. The Blue Turban Party are watching, so be careful.”