Ch.683Dispute Between Apostles

“Have I been found out? Well, I didn’t exactly go to great lengths to hide it.”

The Third Apostle clicked her tongue softly as she looked down at the crystal ball.

It wasn’t particularly surprising. From the moment she moved Ragnar to withdraw the Dane forces, she had been certain that her secret pact with Ragnar would be discovered.

So, it was something she had done knowing it would be exposed from the start.

No, to be precise, having her relationship with Ragnar discovered was actually part of her plan.

The Third Apostle’s intention wasn’t to join hands with Ragnar to kill Feirius, but merely to send Feirius a warning.

A warning that if he continued to be indifferent to the safety of the other apostles, they could turn their backs on him at any time.

‘Though Ragnar seemed to have different intentions.’

The Third Apostle knew well the inferiority complex of the Eighth Apostle, Ragnar Lokan.

To her, he was like a slave in silver chains. Despite being in chains all the same, he was a man who envied slaves with golden chains and felt inferior to them.

He was a foolish slave who didn’t seek to break free from slavery, but rather made it his life’s purpose to steal the golden chains and put them around his own neck.

‘He probably wanted to step on Feirius to prove himself as Alfodhr’s most excellent slave.’

Though Feirius didn’t seem to care, Ragnar had always glared at him with envy.

Despite both being apostles of Alfodhr, he resented that Feirius, who had only converted later, monopolized Alfodhr’s favor instead of himself, who had believed in Alfodhr from the beginning.

To the Third Apostle, who didn’t believe in the god Alfodhr, it was quite the farce. How ridiculous was it to see slaves fighting over hierarchy?

‘When both are merely chess pieces moved by Alfodhr’s will.’

Still, that jealousy had been useful to the Third Apostle. By stimulating his resentment toward Feirius, she had easily persuaded and drawn in Ragnar.

Though she hadn’t anticipated that the Ragnar card she had just acquired would be torn away before she could properly use it.

“I told you to trust me and wait. Was that such a difficult request? Because of your impatience, we’ve lost an apostle and the ability to control the Dane. How do you plan to take responsibility for this?”

Feirius spoke again, his tone clearly rebuking the Third Apostle.

The Third Apostle snorted.

“Ha, responsibility? Responsibility? You sound like you’re scolding a subordinate. That’s rather unpleasant. Since when were you above me?”

The position of First Apostle was merely meant to represent the apostles, not an emperor’s throne to coerce and control the others. The Third Apostle pointed this out directly.

“You say you’ll hold me responsible? You have neither the authority nor the justification. You are not my master, and if you hadn’t allowed Aishan-Gioro Haschal to grow so much, the Eighth wouldn’t have lost his life.”

Her voice was razor-sharp.

======[ Feirius ]======

‘That snake of a woman…’

Feirius Haransior, the First Apostle of the Order of Forgotten Gods, sighed lightly as he looked down at the crystal ball with a face mixed equally with displeasure and awkwardness.

He knew better than anyone why the Third Apostle could be so bold.

The Third Apostle was somewhat special compared to the other apostles.

When recruiting the other apostles, Feirius had placed a sort of leash on them by either bestowing favors or making soul contracts. So they couldn’t easily go against his will.

It was the only way to command and control apostles who could be unpredictable.

The Second Apostle, Paulus Eisen Hindenburg, was persuaded through his faith. By teaching him the truth about the being he had served his whole life and explaining about ascension.

Paulus was shocked to learn that the faith he had believed in was full of lies, and accepted the position of apostle to ascend to the heavens himself and hear the truth from Menes.

The Fourth Apostle had sought out Feirius on his own. To explore ancient knowledge that had been forgotten and erased. A very mage-like reason.

He had said that having a leash put on him was nothing if it meant achieving that goal.

The Fifth Apostle’s purpose aligned with Valenstein’s.

Unable to cross the wall until death without breaking Heaven’s Wall, he chose to cooperate with Feirius rather than struggle in vain with his talents rotting away. He was, so to speak, Valenstein’s senior.

The Sixth Apostle had been Feirius’s man from the beginning.

Someone he had found with talent and raised with full support. He was loyal to Feirius, who had lifted him from the bottom of life.

To the Seventh Apostle, Eleonora Wittelsbach, Feirius was nothing short of a savior.

After all, it was Feirius who had saved her when she was sold to Panam by Isabella’s machinations and her spirit was dying from all manner of humiliation and abuse.

Feirius had subdued King Danon’s mind and gifted control of him to Eleonora, allowing her to escape her status as a plaything and become the shadow ruler of Panam.

Though she had lost that power due to the Empire’s “rescue” operation.

The Eighth Apostle, Ragnar, was originally a crusader of Volberg, but after learning the truth about the god Volberg, he joined the Order of Forgotten Gods. As a crusader of the ancient god Alfodhr.

To Feirius, he was a fellow believer serving the same god.

Though Ragnar didn’t particularly like Feirius, thinking himself the true champion of Alfodhr.

In any case, the apostles couldn’t defy Feirius’s will.

Whether because of contracts made to achieve their goals, favors bestowed by Feirius, or because they served the same god.

However, the Third Apostle was completely different from the others.

She had not made a soul contract with Feirius. She didn’t want anything from him, nor had she received any favors from him.

The Great Sorceress of the White Valley.

Even before Feirius approached her, she was already the queen of sorcerers, with all the eastern sorcerers under her feet. Her external status was also of the highest nobility.

A woman who couldn’t be tempted with ascension as bait, nor could favors be bestowed to extract payment.

All Feirius could do to draw her in as an apostle was to form an alliance of equals without imposing any restrictions.

Still, since bringing her in as an apostle, they had maintained a relatively close relationship, exchanging various information and help…

‘Once the variable was confirmed to be Aishan-Gioro Haschal, this was bound to happen eventually.’

Feirius couldn’t directly interfere with whatever Haschal did.

The other apostles called her a “variable” just because Feirius did, without really understanding what it meant, but only Feirius knew the true meaning of the variable.

A foreign object that could twist all predetermined fate. The only variable in this world. A soul from another world.

Moreover, having entered the body of a Heavenly Killing Star, she was a being who would lead the world into chaos beyond its predetermined fate.

‘If left alone, she might help our plans, but if carelessly provoked, she will bring destruction. The Heavenly Killing Star with the power to twist fate will lead all who oppose her to death. Even those who weren’t destined to die originally.’

That’s why Feirius hadn’t touched Haschal. He had indirectly intervened in her movements by adjusting the world’s political situation, but he had avoided direct confrontation at all costs.

For his grand plan, Haschal needed to stay alive until the end. Even if it meant parting ways with the Third Apostle.

“…I advise you once more, don’t act rashly. Don’t drag other apostles into your personal grudges, and if the variable’s existence is burdensome to you, don’t oppose her—rather, get out of her way.”

“That’s ridiculous. You want me to abandon everything I’ve achieved and run away? You call that advice?”

The Third Apostle responded in an irritable tone.

She couldn’t run away. To escape from Aishan-Gioro Haschal, she would have to give up all her external advantages.

Like Paulus, who went from being a cardinal of the Holy State to a fugitive, or Eleonora, who went from being the shadow ruler of Panam to being confined in a small palace.

Moreover, even if she threw away all her external power and status and fled, her safety wouldn’t be guaranteed.

“Right. Let’s say I run. Where could I flee that she wouldn’t follow me to the ends of the earth? What difference would hiding make? Why not advise me to just meekly offer my neck instead?”

The Aishan-Gioro Haschal she knew was a woman who would follow her to the depths of hell to avenge her mother.

“…If you won’t follow my advice, I can only give you a warning. If you drag in other apostles again, I will have no choice but to take measures to protect them.”

“Are you threatening to kill me? Come and try. Let’s see how far you can fight with that precious half-soul technique of yours.”

The Third Apostle bared her teeth openly.

In her mind, facing Feirius in battle offered better odds than facing Haschal leading the imperial army.

After all, unlike hundreds of years ago, the current Feirius didn’t have the resources to wage war against an entire nation.

However, Feirius had no intention of attacking the Third Apostle in the first place.

“Why would I need to go myself? It would be enough to simply inform Aishan-Gioro Haschal, whom you fear so much, about who you are and what you’ve done.”

He had someone who would gladly step forward in his place.

“……”

The Third Apostle fell silent. Presumably because she had no way to refute Feirius’s words.