Chapter 15
Chapter 15
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Translator: Ebonarch
Chapter: 15
Chapter Title: Half-Baked Sanctity
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The carriage came to a stop at the main gate of the Divinum Grand Temple. Since we'd have to go on foot from here, Hubeo and I had no choice but to climb out.
A holy knight guarding the temple's front gate soon approached and demanded that we disarm. The Divinum Grand Temple was the very first temple established in this world by Saint Prosia and the Seven Great Saintesses. It was a holy site among holy sites. Anyone except the guards who dared enter armed would be punished for blasphemy.
"You're Young Master Hubeo, aren't you? Please, come right in."
The holy knight escorted Hubeo into the Divinum Grand Temple, and I tagged along behind them.
The holy knight shot me a dirty look.
"Servants aren't allowed inside."
"I'm not a servant. I've got a reservation too."
"And who might you be?"
"Yahn Sergio Karl. Eldest son of the House of Karl."
The holy knight's eyes widened in surprise as he sized me up. It must've been hard to believe that I—a ragtag mess who didn't even look like a proper servant—was the infamous wastrel of the Karl family.
"A-are you really...?"
Hubeo, catching the holy knight's glance, nodded firmly.
"He's the real deal. I vouch for him."
"Ah, in that case, very well."
I strode into the temple with a smug grin.
Bringing Hubeo along had clearly been a stroke of genius. I'd run away with nothing but the clothes on my back—no proper identification at all—and he'd solved it in one shot. Friends really are worth keeping close.
'Still as vast as ever.'
The Divinum Grand Temple was enormous. Countless ornate buildings stretched out across grounds so wide that the gaps between them seemed endless. It was the poster child for wasteful space.
No matter how sacred the Divinum Grand Temple was, cramming architecture like this inside a citadel seemed excessive. The priests might love the grandeur, but the workers building Divinum Citadel's walls must've sweated bullets.
But when you've got money to burn, why not? The church was the wealthiest organization in the world. Weekly tithes from across the continent and revenue from ventures like the Halls of Divinity were nothing to sneeze at.
"This way, please."
The holy knight led us to a building that handled admissions for pilgrims entering the Divinum Grand Temple. Unlike the other offices, this one catered exclusively to high-ranking nobles of the Faith of Light, so it was dead quiet.
I stepped inside with Hubeo.
"Welcome. Please, have a seat right here."
A middle-aged priest handling paperwork tilted his head at the sight of me sitting down. My outfit must've thrown him off.
"And who might you be?"
"Yahn Sergio Karl. Ring a bell?"
The holy knight trailing behind nodded, and the middle-aged priest broke into a beaming smile.
"Ah, Young Master of the Karl Grand Duke. Of course."
"Yeah."
Suddenly, a ripple of mana distortion swept through the building. Looked like the priest had activated a magical communicator.
I tensed up a bit, but nothing happened right away, so I brushed it off. VIP guests always got special treatment. Probably summoning a personal guide priest for me.
The middle-aged priest rummaged through some documents.
"That said, Young Master of Karl Grand Duke, your visit was canceled."
I'd half-expected that. I patted my pockets, then paused. Come to think of it, my coin purse was in the luggage Shura had taken.
"Funny thing—I'm flat broke right now. You take credit?"
"No tithe required. The Karl Grand Duchy has never asked for a refund."
True. My father would never stoop to demanding a refund from the temple. And the temple never spat back a single coin once it was in.
"Oh? Nice."
"You'll need to wait a moment, though. Getting your name back on the ritual participant list involves some paperwork."
"I-I'm kinda short on time."
"It'll be instant."
Different meaning, but damn if it wasn't quick. No sooner had the words left my mouth than a squad of armed holy knights burst into the office en masse.
Startled, Hubeo jumped up and backed against the wall. I scratched my nose bridge and fixed the middle-aged priest with a stare.
"Hey. What's this supposed to mean?"
A blond man with a sword at his hip entered the office next, trailed by a group of knights. It was Count Meyer and the knights of the Karl Grand Duchy. I'd thought I'd shaken them clean, but they'd been lying in wait here too.
"Young Master. It's time to go."
Count Meyer regarded me with a complicated gaze. He couldn't quite believe that the family's black sheep had slipped through the search net thrown by the entire Karl Grand Duchy and imperial army to reach the Divinum Grand Temple.
But that paled next to the shock of him entering the holiest of holies—the Divinum Grand Temple itself—with a sword at his side.
Fuming, I grabbed the priest by the collar. I'd thought reaching this point meant it was all over. Never imagined Count Meyer would pop up here.
"Fuck me, this is insane. Hey, this is the Divinum Grand Temple, humanity's greatest holy site. Why are you meddling in family business, and why the hell is sword-swinging Count Meyer here?"
"Young Master, to be precise, this isn't the Divinum Grand Temple yet. It starts beyond that door over there."
The priest pointed to a small side door leading outside. It was the gate to the Path of Penance. I was so flabbergasted I shook him by the collar like a rag doll.
"Then what was that main gate I just came through? And what the hell is this place? A doggy door and a kennel?"
"Young Master! Mind yourself!"
The middle-aged priest bellowed, offended, and I shook him even harder.
"Hey! You mind yourself! How much did they pay you? Or what imperial perks did you snag?"
"Young Master!"
"Oh~ So money and power fix everything? Bet you'd fuck the pope too if the price was right. Nice."
"Young Master! Blasphemy!"
I chuckled dryly.
Truth be told, I didn't hate those who genuinely upheld sanctity. Nor did I particularly despise the rotten ones. What I despised was rotten scum with zero sanctity of their own, forcing it on everyone else.
"Sanctity? Oh, that half-baked crap? Yeah, I know it well. Too bad—I don't plan to give half a damn about it."
"Heretic!"
The holy knights drew their swords in unison. By blaspheming, I'd crossed a line I really shouldn't have.
As tensions escalated, Count Meyer stepped in hastily.
"Young Master, stop this."
I hurled the middle-aged priest away and turned to Count Meyer.
"Count. Head out for today. I've got urgent business here."
"Impossible. We have strict orders from His Imperial Majesty and Grand Duke Karl to bring you back the moment you're found."
"Give me a few hours."
Count Meyer shook his head firmly.
"The situation isn't that simple. Your little runaway stunt has created delicate cracks between the Yosrahim Imperial Family and the Karl Grand Duchy. You know what your bloodline means, don't you, Young Master?"
I knew. That's why I'd sworn never to return when I left home—yet yielded this far.
The Karl Grand Duchy had once been the royal house of the Kingdom of Karl, a pillar of the forces of darkness until surrendering to Grand Duke Claude's army seventy years ago. Many nobles from the old kingdom under Karl rule still harbored nostalgic dreams of independence, and the Yosrahim Imperial Family watched them closely.
There was one way to seal that issue: me. I carried strong Yosrahim imperial blood while being the Karl Grand Duchy's heir. The moment I became Grand Duke, the independence faction would lose its spiritual anchor.
"Ah, so it's politics in the end?"
"And reality."
I bit my lip.
"Go. We're done here."
"Young Master. Have I not made myself clear?"
"Whatever. Go. Father and Uncle can handle up to here, but what comes next is my mess."
My eyes hardened, and Count Meyer drew his sword.
"I'll stop you."
"Heh. Think you and your ragtag knights can take me?"
"That's why I'm here."
"Oh, others can't, but you can? Seen plenty like you back in the day—botch the job, then get your men killed through sheer stubbornness."
"Young Master!"
I ignored Count Meyer and scanned the menacing holy knights.
"And you lot—don't get too full of your sanctity. Looks cool and holy now, but soon you'll curse it. Bet when someone mentions sanctity then, you'll rip their mouth off—not me."
"Shut your mouth, you heretic bastard!"
One holy knight charged in rage. I twisted his sword arm, yanked him by the hair, and smashed his face into the table.
The table shattered with a crash. I snatched the sword from the collapsing knight and severed the arm of another swinging at me.
Blood sprayed everywhere as the cowering middle-aged priest spat curses.
"Daring to spill blood in the sacred Divinum Grand Temple... Young Master, you'll suffer the gods' wrath!"
"Fuck! I told you this ain't it!"
"Young Master!"
Count Meyer and his knights rushed me all at once. I hurled myself toward the side door to the Path of Penance.
The door splintered. Beyond lay the Path of Penance, walled by high barriers. As the guarding holy soldiers thrust their spears, I rolled to my feet and bolted forward.
"Intruder!"
Shouts of alarm rang out. Alert magic arrays activated, and the Divinum Grand Temple's warning lights blazed to life.
I flattened a holy soldier passing the path, snatched his spear, and vaulted the wall like a pole vaulter.
"Young Master!"
Count Meyer's desperate cry echoed from beyond the wall. No wonder—he'd be rattled watching me cause this massive incident in humanity's greatest holy site.
But I couldn't give up Yojjo. I'd abandon my life, my future—anything but her. Yojjo was my sole companion in this one life. My talk with Count Meyer just now drove it home again: without Yojjo, I was alone.