Inquisitorial Hearing (5)

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“Is that so? That is nothing special… Huh?”

Prince Kalintz, who had unconsciously dismissed it as nothing special, realized the gravity of the situation only after he had spoken.

“What?”

Everyone could not help doubting their own ears.

“…….”

Triodana and Sir Gareth were dumbfounded after hearing the messenger’s words.

If it was true that the Banreung Kingdom had fallen, then this was no time to be holding an inquisition.

“The Banreung Kingdom has fallen? Rumors may spread that way, but what specifically happened?”

Azadine asked as he rose from his seat.

“Refugees are pouring out from the Banreung Kingdom’s side. They all claim that monsters are surging up from deep inside the Banreung Kingdom. Everyone is escaping from Banreung because of the monsters.”

“What about the Banreung Kingdom’s army, the Academy’s scholars, and the mages?”

“They also failed to hold out and escaped… or according to rumor, a considerable number of magical scholars transformed into monsters.”

“Where were the refugees sighted?”

“Refugees are flooding in at both Sandokar Gate and the Arangiian Gate at the same time. Ships carrying refugees are arriving at coastal cities as well. It is simultaneous.”

“Hmm. Then it is unlikely to be simple information manipulation. As expected….”

Azadine gave a bitter smile and looked at Bishop Sehnat, the presiding judge of the inquisition.

“Your Excellency, excuse me, but could you end this inquisition here? It is hard to imagine how much damage will grow while we continue this pointless meeting.”

“You! No! This is not it!”

“What is not it, Your Excellency?”

“Do not think you will slip out of my hands like this! You soulless blasphemer! You blasphemous and corrupt wretch! Even if you entered the Rescue Knights Order and fooled the eyes of others, you cannot fool mine!”

“…….”

Azadine sighed as he looked at Sehnat, who was enraged, drooling without hiding his senility.

When Azadine put his hand into his robe, Triodana and Gareth flinched in surprise and stood beside Bishop Sehnat. It was because they were wary that the enraged Azadine might kill Bishop Sehnat.

“Now, please watch closely.”

But what Azadine took out was a silver coin. Azadine spun the silver coin between his fingers in front of Bishop Sehnat.

After playing with it in his hand for a moment, the silver coin suddenly vanished cleanly from Azadine’s hand.

“What?!”

“…Where did it go?”

“What are you doing? Playing the clown all of a sudden?”

“No, I was testing whether I can fool Your Excellency’s eyes or not. You said I could not fool your eyes, did you not?”

“You bastard!”

The bishop realized that Azadine was mocking him and tried to get angry, only to groan and clutch his chest.

Even if his body was hidden under splendid bishop’s robes, inside was only a narrow-minded, shabby, senile body that merely followed its own emotions.

The bishop’s dignity vanished, and an old man with shriveled brain cells, one step away from complete senility, was sitting there.

Azadine had not feared Bishop Sehnat from the beginning, but now he ignored him entirely and turned to Triodana and Gareth before asking.

“Now then, since the situation is changing rapidly, I will ask. How many troops do the inquisitors have? It seems to be about two companies of Tercios….”

“…….”

“Write down the specifications of the gunpowder and bullets you mainly use, along with the amount you will use over two weeks. I will see to it that supplies flow smoothly. Ordinary food and supplies will be supported by Fireglyph. Is that right?”

“Ah, yes. Of course.”

Prince Kalintz said so while watching Azadine’s mood.

“Then shall you go with me to Sandokar and see directly how things are progressing? You have a duty to confirm whether I annexed Sandokar or whether I invaded the Banreung Kingdom by force. In other words, whether you like it or not, you must go to the scene.”

Gareth smiled bitterly at Azadine’s swift response. To think he would conscript the troops dispatched to pressure him.

But there was no justification to refuse. Moreover, it was true that his heart was moved by Azadine’s attitude of immediately caring about the supply of ammunition and gunpowder.

That was because, while commanding Tercios, what gave them the greatest headache had been rear-line superiors who neglected supplies.

“Understood, Sir Azadine. It seems it would be better to see the situation directly than to interrogate you.”

“I-I will do so as well, but….”

Triodana was in an awkward position. Unlike Gareth, Triodana had a reason to be hostile toward Azadine. There was the mission given to him by his great father, Northern Emperor Cohen Rioneir….

However, in the current situation, what Azadine said was correct.

“Then follow me. Every moment is urgent.”

Azadine kicked his way out of the inquisition hall.

“Stop! Who said you could leave! Listen! Sir Triodana! Execute that apostate! Hurry!”

Bishop Sehnat could not endure it and immediately ordered Triodana to kill Azadine.

Triodana simply let Bishop Sehnat’s order pass by with a bitter smile. Triodana also desperately wanted to deal with Azadine, but in the current situation, he could not possibly lay a hand on him.

He could not trample on his father’s honor while trying to carry out his father’s command.

“Your Excellency. Since we have come here, we must conduct the investigation first. We will move to Sandokar first. Your Excellency should rest here in Fireglyph for now.”

“What… Cough!”

The enraged Bishop Sehnat could not endure it and suddenly vomited blood. Blood flowed from his nose, and his eyes became bloodshot until bloody tears streamed from them as well.

“Guh….”

When Bishop Sehnat could not endure it and collapsed, the priests around him were startled and supported him.

“What….”

No matter how old Bishop Sehnat was, he had still been hale and healthy until he came to Fireglyph.

“Haa….”

Bishop Sehnat vomited blood and collapsed, but Triodana left Bishop Sehnat to the priests and began moving together with Azadine.

“Haa.”

Azadine sighed as he came out of the inquisition hall.

He was not particularly afraid of the vampires invading. The ceramite longsword Azadine possessed, Aurelia Dawn, was the very manifestation of a nightmare to vampires.

However, the Banreung Kingdom had fallen. What on earth was this? Something unforeseen had happened, but Azadine had to feign composure as much as possible.

‘I will have to investigate. I need to manage my expression well.’

Azadine’s warlord faction was maintained entirely by Azadine’s charisma.

Azadine showed quick judgment even in urgent situations and resolved incidents. He acted calmly, as though he had known something like this would happen, and gathered his subordinates’ loyalty.

In this anxious situation, with Fimbulbert approaching, Azadine’s calm attitude reassured his subordinates and inspired trust in them. If there was one lighthouse in a place full of bewildering fog, ships would be drawn to it even if it were a lighthouse leading them onto reefs.

Only when Azadine showed a firm image would people believe in him and follow him.

“Captain! Something terrible has happened. They say monsters are pouring out of the Banreung Kingdom!”

Azadine’s subordinates, the soldiers stationed at Fireglyph, approached in a fuss.

“I know that. Can we contact Sandokar?”

“Well… Sandokar has no problem, but you know, don’t you? The caravan is isolated.”

“…….”

After taking control of Sandokar, Azadine had once again created a caravan and sent it into the Banreung Kingdom in order to examine the Banreung Kingdom’s internal situation.

He had sent a merchant caravan into the Banreung Kingdom, led by Dilia of the Van Dyke Trading Company, with Camilla and Kuntachi joining them.

But as the Banreung Kingdom collapsed, contact with the caravan was cut off.

“What is Firewinter’s condition?”

“He is exhausted. He made a forced march from Sandokar to here, so he cannot return to Sandokar again right away. He needs to rest properly for at least a day.”

Azadine’s hippogriff, Firewinter, was depleted of stamina.

“Then good. I will need to make some preparations until Firewinter recovers his stamina. If we rush and depart immediately, we will actually miss many things. The caravan has Dilia, Camilla, and Kuntachi, so they should be able to hold out at least that much.”

Azadine looked at Triodana and Gareth.

“You two also need to reorganize, do you not?”

“Of course, Sir Azadine.”

An unexpected event had suddenly occurred, and they now had to march, so food, weapons, and supplies had to be prepared anew.

Azadine’s hippogriff, Firewinter, also needed rest, so they decided to prepare for the march during that time.

‘I want to run out to rescue the caravan even now, but… I must stay calm at a time like this all the more.’

Although Azadine was inwardly flustered, he maintained composure on the outside, and his subordinates, Gareth, and Triodana admired him.

‘To be this calm in such a situation. As expected, he is a remarkable person. He has the skill to plunder the Wisdom Order.’

Because Gareth had already admired Azadine from the beginning, he did not think this calm attitude was an act.

‘There must certainly be some profound insight. This man….’

Gareth decided to follow Azadine’s orders and immediately ordered his subordinates to procure supplies and prepare for the march.

Meanwhile, Triodana was feeling something close to jealousy toward Azadine.

‘He is an enemy, but he is impressive. The problem is that he is too impressive. The only one who should suppress this chaotic age and be reborn as the idol of all people is our great father. Ah, Father, what should I do?’

He was jealous of Azadine, yet also shaken by his firm attitude.

Now that the forces of evil were even worsening the weather, countless people saw visions of destruction. In this situation, even Triodana, who had been reincarnated as a Celestial, was trembling with anxiety.

The one who steadied his center was the ambitious Northern Emperor Cohen, who had long coordinated the Rescue Knights Order and the northern kingdoms with firm ambition.

But now there was Azadine, who opposed that Cohen….

‘I will follow for now. And if necessary, if possible, I will eliminate him!’

Triodana prepared to purge Azadine, and he also had his subordinates make preparations.

Everyone, not knowing Azadine’s true thoughts, was making premature assumptions based only on Azadine’s indifferent outward appearance.