Ch.15Report on the Fall of Innocence (2)

Generally, monasteries are not places where just anyone can come and go. They are places of spiritual cultivation for those who seek to emulate the divine, beyond merely believing in God.

But monasteries are still places where people live. They need to eat and seek medical attention when ill. That’s why they usually don’t completely sever their connections with the secular world.

An enclosed monastery is not one of those “usual” places. As the name suggests, no one can leave, and no one from outside can enter.

Once someone sets foot inside, they cannot leave their designated area even after they grow old and die. After death, they are buried in the monastery cemetery. One is allowed to give up and leave of their own volition, but they can never return.

That’s why enclosed monasteries are typically built in difficult-to-find and hard-to-access treacherous locations.

The Otranto Enclosed Monastery, where Kain and Lily were heading on horseback, was no exception.

A small monastery located in a basin between sheer rocky mountains. The wind was so fierce that it was difficult to find trees taller than a person. The ground was literally bedrock, with no place for even moss to take root. It was truly a barren mountain.

For this reason, Kain was grateful for the chain mail provided by the Security Bureau for the first time.

It was an outdated model not even used by the Imperial Army, and while well-balanced, it was excessively thick and heavy, making it unpopular. With a thin shirt over it, the discomfort was doubled.

But on this windy mountain path, that discomfort actually provided stability. Seeing the Mercy Knights soldiers struggling not to be blown away by the wind at the edge of the path deepened his gratitude twofold.

“Halt! Halt! The path ahead is blocked. Turn back!”

“We’re from the capital!”

Kain shouted as he dismounted. He waved the long wooden cylinder containing the letter from the religious order and Anna’s certificate.

The wind was blowing so fiercely that he couldn’t take out all the documents. If they were blown away by the wind, it would be troublesome. Instead, Kain showed just the seal at the end. The soldiers, recognizing the Pope’s seal, signaled them through with expressions of surprise.

It was an almost disappointingly quick approval, but on second thought, it wasn’t that surprising. The knights would have already known they were coming, and it was simply a matter of confirming their identity.

After passing through the windswept rocky field, a V-shaped gorge appeared. The insanely strong wind diminished, but instead buzzed like a trumpet being blown directly into their ears. The wind seemed reluctant to release its victims once it had caught them.

Five minutes, perhaps ten. After passing through the gorge, the basin came into view. It had none of the typical coziness of a basin. Even a neglected dog bowl would probably feel more comfortable than this place.

The ground was red, and the mountains were bare without any trees. The stone monastery built in such a place looked imposingly desolate.

Still, it was a building with all the necessary elements.

Centered around a fairly large chapel, assembly halls and monk quarters were arranged on both sides. There was also a neat building that looked like a library. Though somewhat worn from the wind constantly rubbing against it, the stone structure had a stable quality with its characteristic blunt solidity and heaviness.

In the courtyard, numerous fluttering tents had been erected. There were palisades visible, and horses tied to stakes. A temporary stable had been built right next to the building wall.

Knights were busily moving around the area. While some wore full armor, most appeared to be squires and apprentice knights. Squires wore robes without hoods, while apprentice knights wore hooded robes, just as rumored.

“It looks like a massive construction site.”

Lily whispered as she approached Kain. The knights appeared quite busy. They were sawing logs, planing wood, and hammering nails—though it was unclear when they had brought the timber. Wooden planks were arranged in a circle to block the wind, and water was boiling in a large pot on a temporary hearth.

It wasn’t difficult to guess what it was all for. Diapers. Blood-soaked bandages. Sheets covered in filth… Passing knights glanced at Kain and Lily, but perhaps too exhausted, none approached them. They seemed too tired even to be wary of strangers.

“Lily. I think it’s better if we dismount and lead the horses. It’s too uncomfortable.”

Kain and Lily calmed their horses. After they stopped with a snort, they dismounted and put on their gear. Both wore Imperial swords and scabbards on their left hips, but Kain carried an ash staff with iron bands in his right hand, while Lily held a round wooden box containing precious documents and certificates.

They had barely taken two steps when something rolled in front of them. It was an apprentice knight.

Whether squire or apprentice knight, they all wore tattered clothes. The so-called robes were little more than rags forcibly stitched together. The apprentice knight clutching his stomach in pain before them didn’t seem much different.

A red-haired man ran out from between the tents. Though not wearing a helmet, he wore iron-studded boots and a tunic with the Mercy Knights symbol on the chest, marking him as a full knight.

The man kicked the apprentice knight.

“You idiot, you slow bastard, you dull-witted fool who can’t do anything right! Didn’t I tell you to come report to me immediately if anything changed?”

“Yes, sir!”

The apprentice knight shouted with a voice close to agony. The man seemed even more enraged.

“And you understand that, you remember that! Hey, you son of a bitch. Who are you to humiliate me? Who! Are! You! To! Make! Me! Look! Bad! Block with your arms, block your stomach with your arms, you idiot, unless you want to piss blood like last time!”

The steel boot flew mercilessly into the apprentice’s abdomen. The apprentice desperately clutched his stomach. A sinister smile appeared on the man’s face, and then—

Thwack.

He kicked the fallen apprentice in the head. The apprentice’s neck jerked back violently.

“I told you! To block! I told you! You’ll die on the battlefield like this! Ha, this idiot, really. You listen! And forget! You listen, and forget! Fine, let’s settle this today! I’ll carve this lesson into your skull!”

Kain shoved the red-haired knight hard. The knight nearly fell backward. Kain said “Oops!” and tripped the knight’s leg with his staff. The knight fell backward ungracefully.

“Oops, I’m sorry! It’s just that the wind is so strong!”

Kain, looking alarmed, forcibly grabbed the knight’s arm and then suddenly let go. The knight’s head hit the ground.

“Aaaagh!”

“Oh my, did you hurt your head? Can’t you move your body?”

The red-haired knight flailed on the ground.

“Who the hell are you?!”

“I’m from the capital. I seem to have been quite rude at our first meeting. This blonde knight is my colleague.”

Kain and Lily had agreed beforehand to act as equals—as “colleagues.”

This incident required much higher security than the Maxiburg case. Given that they were dealing with “the Pope,” discretion was even more necessary. Therefore, Kain decided not to reveal that he was the Section Chief of Department 4, and Lily agreed to keep her status as a trainee agent secret.

Minimal clues, not even revealing who was whose superior or subordinate—it was an attempt to delay the identification of the investigators.

That’s why Lily confidently helped the apprentice knight to his feet.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t know where to tie up our horses. Could you help me for a moment?”

Though she asked for help, it was more like a command. Lily grabbed the reins of both horses, and with her other hand, pulled the apprentice knight along. The red-haired knight hissed at the apprentice who was looking to him for guidance, waving his hand a couple of times.

“Your name?” he asked.

Kain bowed politely.

“You can just call me ‘Agent.’ My friend too. And your name?”

“Ha! ‘Agent,’ you say? Then call me ‘Lord.'” The red-haired man made no attempt to hide his sarcasm. “I heard agents were coming from the capital, and I guess that’s you.”

“What’s happening inside?”

“Something as absurd as a stranger physically assaulting me upon first meeting.” The knight spat on the ground.

“Are you in charge? I’d like to speak with the commander here.”

“The command structure is a mess. The higher-ups change almost daily, and it’s infuriating.” Again, he spat. This time not far from Kain’s feet.

“But if you want to know, let’s go over there. To the library. The master here is the Abbot, so speak with him. That place is heaven compared to the main building. This place is more like purgatory.”

“What’s the main building like then?”

“Hell.”

The wind howled loudly.

Lily walked back from the other side. The apprentice knight was nowhere to be seen. The red-haired knight escorted them to the library entrance, then left, grumbling that he would smash that bastard’s skull.

Before opening the door, Kain nudged Lily with his elbow.

“You did well back there.”

“Your technique was impressive.”

Kain grinned and flung open the library door.

Inside were mendicant monks. Among them was a man who looked very old. He was hunched over, leaning on a wooden staff as gnarled as his wrinkles.

“Who are you? I don’t recognize you.”

“We’re from the capital,” Kain said simply. “We have our credentials here.”

Lily quickly took out the documents from the box and presented them. The old man looked at the papers. His eyes bulged greedily, as if searching for hidden food.

“Take them… I am Brother Bartolomeo. I am the abbot of this quiet place, though recent events have put me in quite an unseemly position. Let’s go to my room.”

It was a room that could have passed for a storage closet.

A desk that looked over a hundred years old. A wooden chair without even a backrest. There were no guest chairs; instead, a wooden water barrel had been overturned with a plank placed on top. The cold stone exuded chilliness, and the rolled-up papers in the skinny wooden bookcase looked as dry as fallen leaves.

“In all my life, I’ve never experienced anything like this,” the abbot began his lament.

“They drop patients here like throwing away garbage, and the knights immediately set up tents in the courtyard! I’ve told them many times this isn’t right, but they won’t even consider listening. They claim it’s by order of His Holiness the Pope, but I’ve never seen a single such order! The Otranto Enclosed Monastery is sacred ground blessed by God, and even past Popes have respected this place…!”

According to the abbot, he woke up to noise and found Mercy Knights swarming the monastery. There were many wagons covered with black cloth, and when the coverings were removed, “unspeakably terrible things” were revealed. Surprisingly, they were people.

The Mercy Knights cited the Pope’s orders. They were requisitioning the monastery. The knights who forced their way in broke the chairs in the chapel to make makeshift beds. When that wasn’t enough, they brought furniture from their own headquarters.

Not only that, they set up temporary command posts, quarters, and a dining hall. The monks of the enclosed monastery were suddenly forced into various labors. They could tolerate everything else, but they couldn’t accept the request to serve the knights.

“They won’t listen. They simply won’t listen. This is an enclosed place, so even mail barely gets through. I managed to send a letter to the diocese with great difficulty, and only then did the so-called regional knight commander pretend to listen. An impolite fellow who just shouts without being able to command properly.”

“Is that the red-haired knight? The one who spits everywhere?”

“Cursed man! Such behavior in sacred grounds again! Ah, I no longer have the strength… Yes, that’s him. Brother Aldric, Lord of Herburg. He’s the regional knight commander.”

“Can’t you control him somehow, Abbot?”

“Those knight commanders only listen to their own gang leaders and His Holiness the Pope. They won’t listen to an old country vine-creeper like me.”

The long-standing friction between the knightly orders and the bishops is well-known. Much like the conflict between military and civil officials. They need each other, yet they try to trample over one another whenever the opportunity arises.

“Why is he so angry?”

“Because he’s about to lose his position as the top dog.” Brother Bartolomeo gave a hollow laugh.

“First, an Inquisitor is coming. In your Imperial terms, you might call him an inspector. And his superior is coming too, which must be quite uncomfortable for a regional knight commander. He was pushed here after falling out of favor with the Marshal of the Southern Region. So all this fellow does here is clean and change diapers.”

“This is confusing.” Kain and Lily’s eyes met. The old monk folded his hands. His protruding joints were pale white.

“Can we see the situation inside?”

“As you wish. You’re not church people anyway, are you? As long as you refrain from wandering in and out of the quarters, I’ll tolerate whatever else you do. Guido! Are you out there?”

Brother Guido was also a mendicant monk. What distinguished him from other monks was perhaps his large, gentle eyes like those of a calf. His brown eyes looked kind but also frightened.

“Please guide these important visitors from the capital to the inner area. And, everyone, whatever you see in there, I politely request that if you need to vomit, please use the prepared baskets, not the floor.”

“Vomit?”

The abbot waved his hand again as if shooing away flies, with an expression of utter weariness.

Brother Guido said, “Let’s go,” and led Kain and Lily away.