Ch.484Those Who Heard the Rumors

========[ Lacy ]========

The situation in Arad was resolved well… but Haschal overlooked one fact.

While she was lingering in Arad, rumors about her were already spreading throughout the Holy State.

The rumors didn’t contain all the facts, only what was known on the surface.

The information Lacy received was of the same nature.

—-

– Crash!

The teacup slipped through her weakened fingers and shattered into pieces.

A sharp sound of breaking. The spilled holy water spread across the floor, staining it dark.

“…What? What did you just say…?”

After hearing the report from her subordinate, Lacy asked with a pale face and trembling fingers.

Aishan-Gioro Haschal’s declaration of occupying Arad. Her relinquishment of her honorary Paladin authority.

And the subsequent clash with the Church of Astraea branch.

For Lacy, who had been feeling anxious ever since sending Haschal to Arad, this was extremely shocking news.

…In fact, the truly shocking part was yet to come.

“That’s… not all. After the confrontation with Wilhelm, Baron Median…”

The informant kneeling before Lacy continued his report while carefully observing her reaction.

The arrival of Astraea’s main force after Wilhelm’s death, and their contact with Haschal who was occupying Arad.

News that Haschal met with Ceylon and attempted some kind of negotiation during an “intimate” conversation in his tent, and the duel that took place as a result of that negotiation.

“…And so, the Holy Corps of the Church of Astraea accepted their defeat in the duel and withdrew. Afterward, Baron Median and Ceylon… Lady Elmaine?”

The informant, continuing his report, felt something was wrong with Lacy’s silence and slightly raised his head to look at her.

“……”

It was natural that there was no answer.

Lacy had already fainted while sitting in her chair.

It was too shocking for her to handle right now.

Especially that part about the “intimate” conversation.

========[ Church of Astraea Headquarters, Cardinal’s Office ]========

On the desk of Ernriter Zaisus, Cardinal of the Church of Astraea, lay two pieces of paper.

A report sent by the Holy Corps that had decided to withdraw under Ceylon’s independent decision, delivered by a swift messenger.

One was written by Ceylon himself, and the other was a petition sent by the Inquisitors who were withdrawing with the Holy Corps.

—-

“How dare…!”

About ten minutes ago, when Zaisus heard about the withdrawal through the messenger, he could not contain his fury.

He had dispatched Ceylon to judge the heretics, but instead, he had engaged in a duel and then retreated.

It was tantamount to insubordination… no, it was insubordination itself.

If other Inquisitors or Paladins had done such a thing, they would have been excommunicated without mercy, captured, and sent to the church’s underground chambers.

The only reason Ceylon wasn’t subjected to such a fate was for one reason alone:

The merits and trust he had built up until now.

Instead of immediately pronouncing excommunication, Zaisus chose to suppress his anger and read the two letters handed over by the messenger.

After all, he needed to understand what Ceylon was thinking when he made such a decision, before sending him to the underground chambers.

Was Ceylon protected by Astraea?

Fortunately for Ceylon, Zaisus picked up Ceylon’s report first.

If he had read the other Inquisitor’s petition first… Ceylon might have been looking for a burial plot by now.

Zaisus cut open the strictly sealed envelope and sat down to carefully read the report.

And about ten seconds later, he stood up with his eyes wide open.

‘What…! Stigmata, Stigmata…?!’

Never in his life had he been so shocked.

Zaisus rubbed his eyes in disbelief, then pulled the report close to his face, staring at each letter as if engraving it on his retina.

But that didn’t change what was written.

“Astraea…”

After reading the entire report, Zaisus looked up at the ceiling of his office and murmured the name of the goddess.

With a chaotic mix of awe and bewilderment surging in his heart.

That was the only word he could utter.

Afterward, Zaisus locked himself in his private room and prayed for a full day.

Praising the goddess, reflecting on the path he had walked, and contemplating the direction he should take.

Astraea did not answer his prayers, but isn’t that the nature of faith?

The next day, after twenty-four hours of prayer, Zaisus emerged from his private room with a much gentler expression.

As if he had finally found the answer to the concerns that had filled his mind.

Afterward, when Zaisus appeared at an official venue, he accepted all the requests made by Haschal and Ceylon.

He recognized Haschal’s rule over Arad while keeping the truth about the Stigmata hidden, swore not to interfere further in Arad’s affairs, and even affirmed that Ceylon’s decision to withdraw was carrying out the goddess’s will.

Other cardinals suspected that Zaisus might have gone senile, but it wasn’t their place to interfere, so they didn’t raise any particular objections.

—-

What Zaisus deliberated on until the end was whether to publicly announce that Ceylon and Haschal were in a “romantic relationship.”

Pretending to be lovers was an impious act, and if it involved a candidate for sainthood, it was even more impious…

But after seeing the phrase “Sir Ceylon has undoubtedly fallen into corruption due to the seduction of a harlot” written in the other Inquisitor’s petition, Zaisus finally decided to permit it.

There could be nothing more impious than having a candidate for Astraea’s sainthood insulted as a harlot by none other than the followers of Astraea.

Zaisus officially recognized that the two had been in a relationship since before the Arad incident and ordered the faithful to refrain from insulting her.

He emphasized that insulting her was equivalent to insulting Inquisitor Ceylon, which in turn was insulting Astraea who had bestowed the power of judgment upon Ceylon.

The Holy State was turned upside down.

—-

Everyone was astounded.

A romance between a virtuous Inquisitor who had lived as a bachelor for thirty years and a foreign barbarian female warrior thirteen years his junior.

It was gossip that transcended their common sense by far.

The followers of the Church of Astraea refrained from insulting Haschal as per the Cardinal’s order, but there was no reason for followers of other churches or ordinary citizens of the Holy State to follow that order.

“They say barbarians are quite hot-blooded. It seems even the ‘True Gold’ Ceylon wanted a heater as winter approached!”

“Haha, a heater that can’t be bought even for a thousand gold! I wish she would warm my bed too!”

Those who were hostile to Haschal mocked her, saying the heat of the barbarian woman was enough to melt even true gold.

“By the order of His Eminence Zaisus, in the name of Astraea, I arrest you. Come with me.”

“Wh-what…! Sir Paladin…?! No, we were just…”

“I won’t say it twice. Get up now!”

Of course, those who uttered such words in the presence of the Church of Astraea had to pay a very high price for insulting the church’s Inquisitor and his lover.

The Church of Elpinel also did not tolerate insults against Haschal.

Although she had relinquished her honorary Paladin position, the Church of Elpinel had not yet accepted her resignation.

However, no matter how strongly the church responded, they couldn’t prevent Ceylon’s reputation from plummeting.

As for Haschal, well, most people thought she was just a woman of marriageable age who had caught a partner she liked in true Ka’har fashion, but Ceylon…

As the leading Paladin of the church, he couldn’t escape criticism for being so captivated by a foreign woman thirteen years his junior that he couldn’t separate public and private matters.

When barbarians act like barbarians, people tend to shrug it off, but when someone who appeared virtuous reveals a shameless side, they face tremendous criticism.

Thus, Ceylon the “True Gold” acquired dozens of new nicknames.

Ceylon the “Huge Rod,” who conquered the Empire’s strongest female warrior.

Ceylon the “Gilded,” whose facade had been stripped away.

Ceylon the “Lover,” pointing to how he withdrew his army after being captivated by a woman.

Various other derogatory names sprouted like mushrooms, such as “Plundered Gold” and “Night Inquisitor.”

No one dared to speak these names openly, but in places beyond the church’s ears, groups of people gathered to sing songs about the Inquisitor conquered by a barbarian woman, washing them down with alcohol.

If Ceylon had known about this, he would have collapsed while clutching the back of his neck.

========[ St. Elunel Cathedral. Leonore and Nigel. ]========

After Haschal left for another city with Lacy, Leonore and Nigel, who remained in the Holy City, spent their time repeatedly sparring with nothing else to do.

There wasn’t much else they could do.

Going out to hunt monsters wasn’t an option as the Paladins were taking care of all of them, and even the task of relaying news from the Holy City to Haschal’s group was being handled by Lacy’s subordinates.

The rumor about Haschal and Ceylon reached their ears on the very day it was officially recognized that they were in a relationship.

“Lady Haschal, having a lover…? That’s a false rumor. It can’t be true.”

Nigel’s reaction was denial.

Her attitude suggested she would sooner believe that Orhan had fallen off his horse and been trampled to death than believe that Haschal was dating a man thirteen years her senior.

“Why not? The young lady is at that age, isn’t she? Though the partner is a bit unexpected. I actually thought the young lady preferred women, since she acts differently around women than men.”

“…It’s a false rumor. Someone who rejected even the Emperor’s marriage proposal, now suddenly with a mere church Paladin…!”

“They say love always comes suddenly. It seems our young lady has a taste for strong men.”

“No, that can’t be true, I tell you!”

Leonore chuckled as she teased Nigel.

She too thought it was a false rumor, but she was already excited at the prospect of teasing Haschal when she returned to the Holy City.

‘The talk of seduction and lovers is obviously a lie, but given that someone as high-ranking as a Cardinal officially recognized it, something must have happened… Seeing how they’re actually protecting the young lady who showed hostility toward the Church of Astraea, perhaps things in Arad went better than expected?’

That was as far as Leonore could speculate.

Even she couldn’t have anticipated that the Stigmata of Astraea had descended from heaven.