episode_0179

Astraea.

The goddess of scale, who symbolizes order and justice, was not a very popular deity within the empire.

Justice carried out in the name of God was quite harsh to ordinary people.

For example, what would happen if a young man who stole bread out of hunger was caught by a paladin of Elfinel?

There is no doubt that he has committed a crime, so he will be whipped, but after the corporal punishment is over, he will be given a lot of bread.

If the culprit was a child rather than a young man, they could have found a way to make a living without stealing.

The Church of Grace was merciful to people.

On the other hand, if you are caught by a Holy Knight of Astraea, regardless of gender or age, your wrists will be cut off.

Even though it is a reasonable punishment under the law… It was natural for others to view Astraea’s church members as cold-blooded people without humanity.

It is not surprising that the denomination collapsed long ago after being shunned by the public.

The fact that these people survived the religious war and became members of the 11 Main Churches was entirely due to their military power.

They were as strict with themselves as they were with others, and perhaps because of that, each and every one of the Holy Knights of the Astraea Church was the elite of the elite.

It might be a castle, but it wasn’t a meaningful advantage for the people of the empire.

—-

In short, Astraea faith is a fairly minor faith within the empire.

Even the Imperial Code was compiled with reference to the doctrines of Elfinel, not Astraea.

The evidence was right in front of my eyes.

Compared to the majestic Aix-la-Chapelle Cathedral, Astraea’s church was nothing more than a small chapel, not even half that size.

It was a brick building that could easily accommodate at most 40 people. The decoration was also plain.

That being said, the actual number of church members living there is probably less than ten.

It was understandable that Leonor had bothered to hide in this area.

Since it is a sparsely populated place, the chance of being seen by others is low, and even if you are discovered and end up fighting Isabella’s men, the Holy Knights are nearby, so you will be able to ask for their help.

The location written in the letter was an empty home with no occupants, located about 300 meters away from the church.

The exterior walls were full of spider webs, as if it had been untouched by humans for quite some time.

A familiar figure was waiting for me with bated breath.

Seeing as there was only one human presence detected, it doesn’t seem to be a trap.

I knocked lightly on the creaky door, alerting the hiding person to my arrival.

“Princess Leonor, I came as promised. Was it a little early?”

“… Just a moment.”

Unlike before, when it was full of life, the voice became cracked and soft, like a patient tired of life.

But there was no doubt that it was Leonor’s voice.

With the sound of the latch being released, the old door creaked and opened carefully.

“Come in.”

Without even showing her face, Leonor whispered quietly.

As soon as I got inside, she immediately closed the door and locked it.

The interior, devoid of any light, was even darker than the outside, and as expected from an abandoned house with no owner, it was empty and empty except for the half-ruined furniture.

“I don’t think it’s an appropriate place to hide for a long time… ?”

“Because this is just camouflage. The real thing is down here.”

Surprisingly, when Leonor lifted one side of the floor, a secret passageway leading underground was revealed.

A faint light came from inside the underground space where the wooden ladder hung.

“Underground passage… ? Is there something like this in an ordinary home?”

Well, they say you can’t tell the inside of anything just by looking at the outside.

“Just follow me. I’ll explain after I go in.”

Leonor took the lead and climbed down the ladder.

I also followed her to the basement.

—-

“… What on earth are you doing here?”

The atmosphere inside the basement was completely different from the one above.

Lamps hanging from the ceiling illuminated the interior, and the walls on all sides were solidly repaired with bricks.

Food for long-term preservation was piled up on one side of the wall, and furniture and even a bed were placed on the other side.

“It’s a secret warehouse built by a previously executed smuggler. Thanks to the fact that it was registered under someone else’s name to avoid investigation, even though it is now empty, it is still a family home in good shape on paper. I had no idea that something I had remodeled as a hiding place as a joke would be so useful… .”

Leonor, sitting on the bed, shrugged her shoulders.

He must have had a very swollen liver, as he built a warehouse for smuggling near Astraea Church.

Was he the type of person who believed in the saying that it is dark under the lamp?

“Anyway, thank you for coming. It seems like it’s been a long time since I talked to you like this.”

“Okay. I’ve been doing well so far… It doesn’t look like it, but I’m glad it looks safe.”

Leonor’s appearance, revealed under the lights, was haggard.

Perhaps because she didn’t have time to take care of it, her blonde hair, which had been rolled up vertically, was loose and had a strong smell of flesh, as if it hadn’t been washed properly for several days.

The uniform I always wore was dirty and covered in dirt here and there.

The area around my eyes was slightly swollen, probably because I had been through a lot of emotional distress.

It was difficult to express that we were doing well even with empty words.

“Musara… Okay, for now, I guess I’ll say you’re safe. At least I avoided being caught by that woman.”

A bitter smile appeared on his dark face.

“That woman? I had a rough guess after reading the letter… . As expected, Empress Isabella did something. What happened?”

“What kind of demon-like woman is the Empress? I will definitely kill you… .”

Leonor gritted her teeth and muttered.

—-

The story she told was nothing particularly new.

Because it was exactly what Leopold and I had guessed.

“You mean you don’t know what exactly happened between the two or Isabella’s true feelings?”

“Okay. That night, as my brother said, I left the imperial palace, warned my children, and came here to hide. Judging by your visit, it appears that the members are safe. To be honest, it was half a gamble.”

Leonor let out a sigh of relief, as if she was at least relieved.

” Speaking of that letter, what specifically are you asking me to help you with? I thought it was a request to at least find a hiding place, but looking at this place, it doesn’t seem to be that kind of request.”

“No, thinking about it later, I need another hiding place. There are limits to being alone in being wary of other people’s approaches… First of all, there isn’t much water here. If you use only drinking water, it will still last for 15 days. If I had known this would happen, I would have found an underground water source and connected it.”

Was that why I couldn’t even wash?

I guess I have no choice but to ask Asha.

“I have a place in mind, but I’m not sure if it will be okay. Have you ever heard of the name Asha?”

“A special student, half-race, who received a medal some time ago? I heard you are quite close.”

“That’s right. He has now bought an entire building in the city and is using it as a workshop.”

… Maybe we don’t have just one building.

“Because she is a half-human, she would not be particularly interested in the imperial power, and Isabella would also be concerned about others for her to barge in recklessly… I think it would be perfect for hiding as long as you don’t go outside.”

“It’s definitely better than here. Half-humans are not a particularly trustworthy race, but… If you guarantee it, I can trust it.”

Leonor nodded as if she also agreed.

With this, we can say that the hiding place problem has been solved.

What is the probability that Asha will refuse? I didn’t even consider that.

All you have to do is promise to pay a huge amount of compensation after the job is done.

Of course, with Leopold or Leonor’s money.

This is compensation paid by the royal family, but wouldn’t it be too much for her to refuse?

“The hideout issue is settled with this… What’s next?”

It’s unlikely that he took the risk of contacting me to ask for a hiding place.

If they were going to continue hiding like this in the first place, it would have been better to escape the system.

“Brother told me to rely on you for my personal safety and live my life. You would protect me. Leopold said he couldn’t believe it. but… There is no reason why I should follow that, right?”

Leonor grabbed the hilt of the sword she was wearing.

Tendons sprouted and wriggled on the back of my white hand.

The left hand was clenched, the nails were digging into the flesh, and blood was flowing down.

“I have no intention of being protected and living in the shadows for the rest of my life. Princess Aishangior, I want revenge. I want to tear the enemy who took my entire family from me into a thousand pieces. If I don’t repay this grudge, I won’t be alive even if I still have breath.”

A gloomy voice filled with bitter resentment.

Like a wild beast growling with its fangs bared, Leonor clearly revealed her hatred.

If Isabella was in front of him, he would pull out his sword and tear her to pieces at any moment.

“To pull that prostitute down from next to the throne and throw her into the bottom of the abyss. That’s the only help I want. How about you, can you help me?”

Leonor held out her right hand that was holding the hilt of the sword.

The end of his words were trembling slightly, as if he had no one but me to rely on.

“Our hearts were connected. It was something I really wanted to try.”

I held her hand.