Chapter 227
Chapter 227
-----------------------------------------------------------------
Translator: uly
Chapter: 227
Chapter Title: Freiburg's Secrets
-----------------------------------------------------------------
“…Um….”
“I won’t tell anyone. Why is the Freiburg Archdiocese called one of your ideals?”
Silence stretched on.
I looked at him and quietly opened my mouth.
“I thought I’d been quite accommodating to you so far, Congressman, but it doesn’t seem to have registered with you.”
The congressman’s lips twitched as he swallowed hard.
The fear in his eyes was plain to see. Lichtofen just wore an awkward smile beside him, clearly not yet used to threatening someone of a Federal Council congressman’s stature.
I steered the conversation to make it easier for him to speak.
“I have a rough idea already. I was in that region earlier this year, after all. As you know, the Freiburg Archdiocese encompasses the Grand Duchy of Baden.”
He caught on immediately to what I meant.
He knew he shouldn’t fall for it, but his eyes were already clouded with turmoil.
He bowed his head and slowly spoke.
“…You’re right, Excellency. It’s the Freiburg Archdiocese that’s pushed the nation to the brink of a state of emergency, just like now. The runaway experiments started in the Grand Duchy of Baden, and they spread it nationwide.”
Baden-Baden, where we’d visited at the start of the year, fell under the Freiburg Archdiocese. The Papal Court had deemed the odd phenomena there the work of demons, but in truth, it was all Pleroma-induced runaway incidents.
“To think you consider this some great achievement. Unbelievable.”
“…For the time being, yes.”
“But there’s more to it than that, and I know it. Tell me everything you know.”
Of course, he hesitated.
Where does he think he’s slipping away to?
Time to add more fuel to the fire.
“We can tell how much you’re hiding and how much you’re revealing, Congressman.”
“…Ahem. You might already know, but Pleroma ranks dioceses by merit every month, and Freiburg was always at the top. It provided so much blood it was called the heart of Pleroma.”
“The heart, you say. There must be a reason it evaded the investigation nets.”
“Yes, being on the border, it recruited a lot of foreigners… It had a reputation for safely operating beyond the nation’s scrutiny.”
Naruke’s smile grew stiff. Lichtofen’s expression soured too.
“Then, around the latter half of last year, they developed the runaway drugs we use now. Turning people into runaways to extract vitriol—what a breakthrough, right?”
I rested my chin on my hand and shook my head.
Freiburg developed the runaway drugs?
Something didn’t add up.
“Was the Meppen contaminated mosquito incident your doing too?”
The contaminated mosquito experiment in Meppen, led by Werner Strauch.
It was the first attempt to induce runaways using tainted mana. It could be seen as the trigger for the nationwide runaway crisis.
With competition heating up between dioceses, they were saying Osnabrück’s Meppen used drugs developed in Freiburg.
The congressman tilted his head, then clapped his hands with wide eyes.
“Now that you mention it, the Osnabrück contaminated mosquito incident came first. Talking with you is really expanding my information.”
“Information, you call it. Do you think the two dioceses were collaborating?”
“Probably. I’m not high enough to know all the alliances between dioceses, but I’ve heard of them cooperating sometimes. It looks like they closely shared tech—and the profits.”
“I see.”
I nodded, lost in thought.
He seemed to enjoy digging new info out of me and kept talking.
“Our Brandenburg Archdiocese is competing with Munich-Freising. Being in Prussia and Bavaria, respectively. We don’t outright reject each other, but we’d prefer outperforming them. Since you showed up, Munich-Freising has taken hits left and right, so things have been good lately.”
Yeah, must be nice….
Bragging about that in front of Nikolaus.
I smiled and replied.
“Regional rivalries are still alive in Pleroma, I see.”
“Exactly. We’re all Imperials, after all.”
“But if there’s regional tension, why is someone presumed to be from the Wittelsbach family the bishop of Baden’s diocese?”
Baden and Bavaria were neighbors, so there was a subtle tension, if not as fierce as Prussia-Bavaria.
The congressman pondered, then lowered his voice.
“…That’s got me curious too. But it’s not that shocking. There are others like him. Osnabrück’s bishop is from Prussian Junker stock.”
Bringing up Ainsidel.
I didn’t have time to dig deep now with my meeting with Heike coming up soon, but it was worth noting.
I stared at him silently. He read my eyes right away and began talking about Ainsidel.
“…Well. All I know is he’s been with the order since its founding days…. He’s exceptionally capable, marked for archdiocese leadership long ago, but for some reason he insisted on Osnabrück and only rose to bishop there.”
“So, he could’ve had the archbishop position?”
“Yes. I don’t know why he’s so attached to that diocese. Shame…. With his skills and achievements, he could’ve joined the top leadership by now, bypassing bishop altogether, but he keeps turning down chances and now he’s just under scrutiny.”
High chance the leadership has more juniors than seniors now. Unless he’s got real prestige as a senior, Ainsidel wouldn’t look convenient—or favorable—to them.
The congressman returned to Freiburg.
“Anyway, that Freiburg archbishop looks inhuman. We joked among ourselves that he must be constantly transfused with Wittelsbach blood.”
“Even with mana influence, transfusions don’t change appearances.”
“Right, of course. Just a joke.”
I jotted it down in my notes and organized the real must-knows.
I’d gotten unexpected new info. But time was too short to probe further.
“Do most Pleroma members wear mental resistance artifacts?”
“No. Even if they did, they wouldn’t work against a mage as strong as you, Excellency. Mental power’s mechanisms are less studied than physical ones. If there was a universal tool, everyone would use it… Were you using something like that?”
“No. I’m asking because we’re developing mental enhancement artifacts tailored for it. Wanted to test the new one’s effects.”
“…….”
The congressman’s smiling face turned ashen.
My lie sounded true. Well, we’d start development soon, so not entirely false. I didn’t explain and moved on.
“Which dioceses are hostile to Freiburg? Or at least competing ones.”
“None really, but we in Brandenburg aren’t on the best terms.”
None really.
I shook my head and noted his words differently.
“Sounds like performance rivalry. Perfect topic. Pentaron’s coming up—what’s your plan?”
“…….”
His eyes shook wildly. He averted his gaze to hide his agitation.
“Uh, that Eschet top student just foiled our diocese’s plan. Don’t know which one jumped the gun with something so reckless…. It halted everything. And big plans like that aren’t shared with low-ranks like me this far out from execution.”
“Why?”
“To prevent exactly this kind of situation….”
Prevent?
“Then we’ll meet every day from today through the weekend.”
“…Haha…?”
“I mean it.”
His face darkened.
“Any Pleroma plans for that Eschet top student?”
“She’s scout priority one, so probably. But details? I wouldn’t know.”
I picked up my wand, and he flinched violently, waving his hands.
“I-I-I’m telling the truth…! I’ve only spoken truth to you today, Excellency. You said we’re in the same boat… I answered faithfully….”
Naruke nodded at me.
Seemed he hadn’t lied.
I’d squeezed all I could from him.
“Alright, that’s it for today.”
I smiled and lightly tapped my notebook with my palm. He flinched, hand to his chest.
“I’ll write soon.”
“Y-Yes….”
The congressman replied weakly, looking anything but pleased. He saw us off to the first-floor lobby.
Outside the government building, I glanced at the high sun and checked my watch.
“Still 3 o’clock.”
“Your team slacked off all day.”
I ignored Lichtofen’s nonsense.
Ever since the terror attempt on me at Pentaron Stadium, we could freely adjust schedules anyway.
“Thanks for coming, senpai. I can call on you more?”
“You think I’d come if I said no?”
“Nah. Thanks in advance.”
I replied, removing my mask and reverting my hair and eye colors. Lichtofen grinned.
“Show your thanks at the catacombs.”
“Will do.”
He drove me home, waited while I changed to plainclothes, then took me to the student barracks.
Now, time for Heike.
Half an hour after the congressman, switching from Bavarian politician to high schooler felt odd, but no choice. Every minute counted.
‘Gotta seal the deal.’
I’d gathered 7 points so far—couldn’t blow it needing 5 more for the proposal.
In the barracks lobby, Heike was glancing around.
“Heike!”
“Hey, Lucas.”
Heike turned expressionlessly, flicking his hand in greeting.
He scanned me up and down, face still blank, then snapped his fingers.
“Wondered what changed. Haven’t seen your hair down in ages.”
“Haha, yeah.”
“First time in plainclothes too.”
“Probably. Wanna change? We’re hanging out—get comfy.”
Comfy here meant loose-weave shirts, jackets, wide pants. Not modern levels, but less stiff than his uniform.
“…Maybe.”
Heike dashed upstairs, into his room, and returned to the lobby after 10 minutes. Smiling, I pointed to my beige jacket under my black robe.
“Oh, matches mine~”
“Picked it to match.”
Heike said solemnly.
Saying it so seriously threw me. I mirrored his grave look and mumbled something.
“Huh, yeah. Feels closer already.”
“Right?”
Heike beamed proudly, so I looked away slyly.
Anyway, time to decide what to do.
“Heike. Eaten?”
“Not mealtime, is it?”
“True.”
I jerked my chin toward the window.
“Spree River?”
Heike seemed fine with anything, nodding vigorously.
He tried heading back for warp coordinates, but I dragged him out walking.
What fun is warping? From the side gate, it was a 10-minute stroll to the river.
We exited the nearest barracks postern and walked slowly toward the river.
Sun still up. Last night’s snow melted, water droplets sparkling in roadside grass.
Post-January, leaving campus was banned, but the student corps went out often, so rules meant nothing now.
As we left school behind, Heike glanced at the narrowing residential alleys.
“Walking’s nice.”
“Yeah?”
“But feels roundabout.”
“Good eye.”
Detouring via pubs, not straight to the river. Right on cue, a small tavern with a wooden sign appeared.
I bought small beer bottles there and handed him one. Heike, noble that he was—like me now—hesitated till I entered. Not used to commoners’ pubs.
Chatting idly, we sat on a sunny riverbank meadow. I raised my bottle; Heike tilted his head, clueless.
“Cheers.”
“Ah.”
Heike clinked bottles, lips tight. Looked grumpy to outsiders, but after a month, I saw he was shyly holding back a smile.
I sipped beer, watching sunlight on the river and little wooden boats.
“Local kids jump in here a lot.”
Casual remark lit Heike’s eyes.
He started shedding his robe; I yanked his shoulder.
“Whoa, no…. Wait. Not us.”
“Oh. Commoner thing?”
“Kinda, but not why. We gotta watch our privacy now.”
“Right…. Too bad.”
“Find a spot just for us next time? Summer maybe.”
“Cool.”
Silence fell; Heike fidgeted, mumbling.
“You usually hang with Elias or Naruke. Weird being just us?”
“Nah.”
I enjoyed the quiet, but Heike couldn’t stand it.
Almost let it drop per usual, but he needed more.
I sat up, smiling.
“Weird how? I wanna get closer—that’s why we’re out.”
Affinity aside, as teammates, yeah I did.
5 points to proposal—hoped for max. He’d barely given any so far, no big expectations.
‘Even 2 from Heike would be win….’
Win-win—I’d learn more about him too. Least close teammate, most likely to drift in our seven.
Heike smiled from his thoughts.
“I see.”
“No pressure—enjoy it. Soon we won’t remember being awkward.”
I winked, grinning.
Wouldn’t say that to others. Pointed at the ground, kept going.
“Know your robe’s soaked here?”
“Huh, yeah?”
“Dry it with mana?”
“Nah…. That’s real fire, right?”
Not a joke, but it lightened the mood; Heike chuckled dryly.
I looked around.
“Where next? Sitting’ll soak us in meltwater.”
“Drinks.”
“You. Later. Anywhere you wanna go?”
No ideas or clueless? He just stared at the river.
“Heike. Kegling or billiards? They’ll stare, but. Or tennis?”
Kegling’s bowling precursor.
Options limited, really.
Riding, shooting, golf—estate days. Theater, opera….
Left: light stuff sparse. Simplest: booze, cards, books, picnic riverside or field.
‘Cards? Overdone at school/barracks.’
Wanted him trying new stuff—out of school, pure friend hangout, no houses.
Earlier training rounds, he’d said he wandered Berlin solo, never with friends.
Heike blinked, spilling beer nonstop. How’s he chug without pause? Finally, quieter:
“Never kegled or billiards with friends.”
“Then definitely today. Hate sports? Join a local club. Theater’s good too.”
Heike drained his bottle, nodded.
“Nah, fine. Kegling if you’re game.”
Decisive.
Rising, he tugged my hem lightly.
“First, Lucas. Something I wanna try—come with?”
‘Something he wants?’
Faint tension under his blank face.
Why tense? I’m thrilled.
Grinning, I offered my hand, pulling him up.
“Sure. What?”
“Photo together?”
“…….”
Polaroids in the 19th century?
First thought.
“…Photo?”
Totally unexpected.
People suggest that here? Modern, sure….
“You like photos? Why?”
“Records are all that lasts.”
I nodded slowly.
Everything sticks in my memory—no envy. But normal for most.
“Cool. Know a place?”
“Yeah.”
Heike downed his beer in seconds, led me 15 minutes through Berlin.
About to ask location, he stopped at a single-story building on a quiet street. No sign, but dusty window showed divider and camera—photo studio.
“…How’d you know this? Thought you weren’t Berlin-savvy.”
“Nope. Only this. Or woods, parks. Not billiard halls like you… or trendy friend spots.”
Heike gripped the rusty doorknob casually, knocked thrice.
No answer after ages. Shrugged, turned handle, entered.
Looked decrepit outside; inside, antique charm—mahogany furniture, stuffy but elegant, relics everywhere.
Elderly human emerged from inner door.
“Oh, back again.”
Smiled at Heike; Heike grinned back wordlessly. Rare for him with others.
‘Comes alone often.’
Surprise.
Photo hobby? Would’ve bought him a camera, scouted spots.
Owner glanced at me, asked Heike.
“Friend today?”
“Yeah.”
Heike’s reply oddly quick.
Adjusting glasses, peering at me, owner said unbiasedly.
“You’re student Lucas Ascanien?”
“Yes. Hello.”
Owner tipped hat smiling, turned to Heike.
Already chummy. How often for this guy?
Done chatting, Heike stood rigidly by chair, gestured me to it—photo time. Posed as expected.
Brief hesitation for show, plopped beside him smiling.
Photographer adjusted us, stepped back.
“Taking it. One, two, three!”
‘Out playing, but profiling….’
Eschet profile rehearsal….
Shutter twice/thrice, clap.
“All done~”
Heike nodded, led me to another chair.
Solemn but pleased.
Owner boomed at me.
“Mana camera—photo quick. Wait a bit.”
“Yes, got it.”
Predictable result.
Standard 19th-century B&W, stiff poses, hands behind backs.
‘Nice vibe, but….’
Since snapping, for Heike’s sake, spice it up.
Pointed at small window camera.
“Can we borrow that? Wanna shoot ourselves.”