Chapter 29

Ｒｅａ​ｄ ｏ​ｎ​ ​Ｋ​ａｔＲｅａｄｉｎ​ｇ​Ｃ​ａｆｅ

[Letter to the Papal Court]

This is Oswin, Bishop of the Diaz Cathedral.

While carrying out my sacred duties, I have discovered signs of grave heresy and hereby submit this letter.

Recently, ominous events have been occurring in the Leyton territory.

Monsters have appeared, sacrificing innocent lives, bandits run rampant, and there have been attempts to assassinate the heir—chaotic situations that continue without end.

This is undoubtedly a sign that dark energy has seeped into this land.

And I believe I have found the cause.

I sensed an ominous aura from the youngest daughter of Lord Leyton, a girl named Ellie.

While there are no outward signs, my intuition and experience as a bishop warn of a clear danger.

She has shown extreme wariness toward me, rejecting my blessings without reason and displaying discomfort.

In all my years of blessing countless children, this is the first time I’ve encountered such a case.

The moment I saw her, I strongly suspected she was a witch and wanted to investigate, but Lord Leyton vehemently opposed it.

It seems Lord Leyton is aware of something about his daughter and is trying to hide it.

Moreover, Lord Leyton did not hesitate to blaspheme, saying, “My child has no need for God’s blessings.”

In this situation, investigating his daughter will not be easy.

The possibility that she is a witch is very high, and if left unchecked, a great calamity will befall us.

Therefore, the power of the Papal Court is urgently needed.

To eradicate heresy and save this land, swift action from the Papal Court is necessary.

I humbly request the dispatch of the Holy Knights, hoping this land will regain peace as soon as possible.

Bishop of the Diaz Cathedral.

Oswin.

“…B-be wise, Lord Leyton.”

Oswin trembled.

Currently, Lord Leyton’s sword was pressed against his neck.

If Lord Leyton moved his sword even slightly, blood would gush from Oswin’s neck.

“I-if you kill me now, you’ll make an enemy of the Papal Court… Do you think you can handle the Papal Court?”

“…My daughter is not a witch.”

Lord Leyton spoke coldly.

The murderous intent in his voice sent a chill down Oswin’s spine.

Oswin swallowed hard.

“…O-of course, she might not be. It’s not confirmed. We’re just going to investigate. This is all for the sake of the territory. Do you think I’m doing this for no reason? Monsters have appeared in this territory, after all.”

“…”

Lord Leyton silently glared at Oswin.

Currently, the swords of the holy knights were also pressed against his neck.

The moment he drew his sword, the holy knights had reacted.

But unlike the trembling Oswin, Lord Leyton remains unshaken.

“Send the holy knights outside the gates back immediately. We’ll talk afterward.”

At Lord Leyton’s words, Oswin made a desperate expression.

“Th-that’s not something I can decide. The Papal Court already suspects your daughter of being a witch… Just cooperate willingly. If your daughter isn’t a witch, there will be no problem. I promise. But if you resist, the Leyton family will be ruined. Whether your daughter is a witch or not, everything will be over. You know that, don’t you?”

“…”

Lord Leyton’s silence continued.

Oswin was right.

If he resisted here, the Leyton family would be branded as heretics.

The Papal Court would dispatch even more troops, and countless knights and soldiers of the family would face certain death.

From a rational standpoint as a lord…

Oswin spoke again.

“It’s just a simple investigation. We won’t treat your daughter roughly. I promise. And if she’s judged not to be a witch, we’ll bring her back safely to the castle. Is that so difficult?”

“…”

Lord Leyton began to waver.

Noticing this, Oswin pushed harder.

“The more you resist, the more you need to cooperate actively. Your actions now are no different from heresy. If your family is destroyed, what crime have the people who trusted and relied on you committed?”

Lord Leyton’s sword trembled slightly.

As if the weight had become too much to bear.

The corner of Oswin’s mouth twitched upward.

“You are a lord, wiser than anyone. To protect your family and territory, you must make the right choice. Just hand over your daughter, and if she’s not a witch, everything will be resolved. Isn’t that right?”

“…”

After hesitating, Lord Leyton finally lowered his sword.

“Fine… I’ll allow the investigation…”

“Good!”

Oswin beamed.

“You made the right choice!”

“But if anything happens to my daughter…”

Lord Leyton gripped his sword tightly and glared at Oswin.

“You will pay a price beyond imagination, Bishop Oswin.”

“…”

Oswin felt a chill run down his spine at the murderous gaze.

But he quickly nodded and smiled.

“Of course. Your daughter will be safe. Trust me.”

“N-no… I don’t want to…”

Ellie, who had been playing with her doll alone in her room, was dragged out by the holy knights without understanding what was happening.

“Wh-where are you taking me… Let me go…!”

Ellie struggled desperately, but her resistance was meaningless against the burly holy knights.

“Ellie!!”

From a distance, Ed and Ron came running.

A glimmer of hope lit up Ellie’s face.

“Brother…! Help me… These people are…”

But soon, someone blocked Ed and Ron.

It was none other than Lord Leyton.

Her father.

Her father grabbed Ed and Ron and said something to them.

As if trying to persuade them.

“F-father…”

Meanwhile, Ellie continued to be dragged away.

A moment later, Ed’s voice rang out, shouting, “No—!” and Ron, trying to dodge their father, was caught by another knight.

And then, her father looked back at Ellie, but when their eyes met, he quickly turned his head away.

“…”

At that moment, Ellie gave up resisting.

She instinctively realized that resistance was futile.

“Sob, sob… Sob…”

Ellie wept.

Why were they taking her away?

She hadn’t done anything wrong.

And why was her father pretending not to see?

Big brother Ed, big brother Ron, you said you’d protect me…

Ellie was put into a carriage.

It was a lavishly decorated carriage.

Under normal circumstances, she would have been excited to explore it, but this was not the time.

Ellie slumped to the floor and cried.

And then, a moment later…

Creak—

The carriage door opened, and someone entered.

“Hehe, we meet again.”

“!!”

Ellie froze.

The person who opened the carriage door and entered was none other than Oswin.

Ellie instinctively backed away, cornered in the carriage, trembling uncontrollably.

Oswin’s small eyes gleamed as he began to observe Ellie.

‘She’s truly first-class…!’

Ellie’s frightened, adorable face strongly stimulated Oswin’s instincts.

Oswin’s body trembled, and his fingers twitched, but he didn’t reach out to Ellie.

If he touched Ellie now, it could cause problems.

If Ellie screamed or tried to escape the carriage, Lord Leyton might draw his sword again.

Moreover, the holy knights from the Papal Court would find it suspicious.

‘Just be patient…’

Now that he had Ellie in his grasp, there was no need to rush.

As long as he successfully took Ellie out of the Leyton territory and brought her to his mansion in the city…

‘Hehe.’

A sinister smile spread across Oswin’s lips.

‘Then I can do as I please.’

“…”

The holy knights had left.

And Ellie had left too.

Thud—

Ed slumped weakly to the ground.

“Ellie…”

In the end, he couldn’t protect Ellie. She had been taken away.

“…”

Beside him, Ron sat down as well.

He wore the same hollow expression as Ed.

The book Ron usually read lay on the ground, trampled and crumpled by the holy knights.

Thud.

Ron punched the ground.

Thud.

Hard, as if out of frustration.

Thud!

His fist was scraped and bleeding.

“S-stop it, Ron…”

Ed tried to stop Ron, but Ron kept punching the ground.

“Please stop, Ron…”

Ed hugged Ron.

Tears welled up, but he tried not to cry. He didn’t want to cry anymore.

Especially in a situation like this, crying felt too powerless.

Ron seemed to feel the same, biting his lip and letting out a groan.

“Ugh…”

“Ron…”

“Ed… Ellie isn’t a witch…”

“I know…”

“Then why did Father…”

Tears finally streamed down Ron’s face.

Ed clenched his fists. He wanted to say something to his brother.

“I-I’ll… figure something out… so don’t cry…”

“…How?”

“Well…”

At that moment, a person came to Ed’s mind.

“I’ll go find the real witch…”

◈

Lucy was enjoying a leisurely time.

Her grandfather had gone out early in the morning to chop wood, and Kairos had disappeared somewhere, saying he was going to pick mushrooms.

No one was home, and Lucy was just lounging on her bed, relaxing.

Knock knock knock!

Then, there was an urgent knocking at the door.

Lucy got up and approached the door.

Just as she was about to open it, the door swung open on its own.

“Lucy…!”

Standing at the door were Ed and Ron.

“E-Ellie’s been taken…”

Ed said, panting heavily.

Lucy tilted her head, wondering if she had misheard.

“…Huh?”

Then Ron shouted loudly beside him.

“Ellie’s been taken!!”

“…”

Translator Note

T/N (Translator’s note):
‘What happened to saying that you’ll protect her?’ -Lucy probably.

That said, hate him or despise him, he sure is doing everything he can to achieve his goals…

To think that he would die in that hole alone, how putrid~