C243: Rhapsody on a Rainy Day (2)
"Do you have any business with me?"
Despite Rudger's lack of emotion, subtle hostility was revealed in his voice. To that extent, the person in front of him could not be considered good.
The Holy Land of Bretus was the headquarters of those who branded him, denied his existence, and tried to kill them. Above all, the Lumensis order is a group of fanatics who extol only the Lord Lumensis.
They didn't do that in the past, but now they are left with only pure obsession and madness and committed a myriad of atrocities in the name of faith.
"It's a coincidence that I met such a famous teacher. My name is Freden, a lamb who believes in the Lord Lumensis. It's humble, but I serve as the parish chief of Leathervelk."
Freden, the parish chief of the Leathervelk church, had a familiar religious figure that could be seen everywhere. From a gracious smile to a figure that is not at all daunting.
She looked like the kind lady next door that could be trusted but Rudger knew that this was a mask made to deceive others.
Her voice, tone, and every little action are impeccable therefore it was artificial and even unpleasant.
"Mr. Rudger Chelici, right? I wanted to see you once."
"You haven't answered my question yet."
A cold voice came out from Rudger's mouth, freezing even the rain but Freden bowed her head without changing her smile.
"I've said too much, right? Forgive me."
"I didn't say that because I wanted to apologize. Just explain the purpose of coming to me properly."
Freden's appearance was a coincidence, but Rudger knew that she's been hiding and watching him for a while.
"Yes, I see. I came to see Mr. Rudger Chelici because I wanted to see if you're the same as the rumors say."
"That's why you waited for me on a rainy day?"
"Rain is the grace of Lumensis, who makes crops grow abundantly. There's no reason to hate it. I'm even feeling grateful."
"Too much rain makes the roots of plants rot and the rivers overflow. Do you feel grateful for that?"
"If grace does harm, it is also his will."
Rudger did not contradict Freden's words. He didn't even feel it was worth refuting.
"Mr. Rudger doesn't seem very pleased with me."
"No one welcomes surprise guests. Not to mention that you are a member of the Church of Lumensis."
"Hmm. That's strange. We, the Church of Lumensis, should have had no contact with Mr. Rudger Chelici."
"Now you had contact and it's very unpleasant."
"You don't have to be so wary."
"In the first place, the church that defines magic itself as a heresy, isn't it very suspicious to visit a mage?"
At Rudger's words, Freden smiled, covering her mouth with her hand.
"Hoho. Did I look like that? It may have been like that in the old days, but our teaching has changed. Now wizards are the children of the wise Lumensis."
"You talk too much."
Rudger cut off Freden's words.
"State your requirements. I don't feel like talking to anyone right now."
"……."
Seeing that, Freden let out a small sigh. She realized that no matter what she said, Rudger would not take it favorably.
"All right. First of all, the reason I came to Mr. Rudger Chelici is out of curiosity, but also to make a suggestion."
"What do you mean?"
"Please don't be surprised and listen. Others may not feel it, but I can see that you were blessed by God."
Rudger closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them. His eyes, still cold, tried to read if Freden was serious about what she said.
"What do you mean by that?"
"Holy power flowing out of Mr. Rudger. It's definitely proof that you've been blessed by God. It is a loss to the whole world to rot that talent elsewhere. So……"
"Are you asking me to join the Lumensis Order?"
"Yes, exactly."
"I was wondering what you were going to say, but it's simply not worth listening to. I'll pretend I didn't hear what you just said."
Despite Rudger's cold answer, Freden refused to give up.
Although others couldn't see it she could see the energy flowing from Rudger's body. It would definitely bless the world if it was used in a good direction, but on the contrary, it was a force that would be a disaster for the world if it was used in the wrong direction.
"I'm not saying this lightly. I really think of Mr. Rudger……."
"If you think of me."
Rudger glared at Freden.
"You shouldn't have come."
Freden was at a loss for words due to his intense hostility toward her.
She raised her hands and prayed.
"Ah, God. Give this lamb the right light."
It wasn't that Rudger didn't hear the murmur, but he didn't bother to point it out. No matter what he says here, she will only get more annoying.
"Before I leave, I'll let you know one thing."
"……."
"There's been a lot going on in Leathervelk lately. After the resurrection of the Devil King, there was a hideous flush outside the city today. I hope you don't get hurt."
Freden was genuinely concerned but Rudger laughed at her words.
"I'll be on my way. Have a good time."
Freden left with another prayer.
Rudger stared at Freden and turned his head. He stared at the night view of Leathervelk under the umbrella. With the gradually thickening rain, fog began to rise throughout Leathervelk.
The clear sound of the falling raindrops hitting the umbrella was like a rhapsody.
'It's a bother.'
But even that static beauty did not impress Rudger much.
If it hadn't been for the meeting a while ago, he would have been alone in lingering emotions, but what Freden said was on his mind.
'Is the power of God, which had been suppressed before, now visible to the parish leader?'
Freden said he had a divine energy blessed by God. The parish chief, who is much higher in position and more capable than an ordinary priest, said such a thing so it was not a lie.
Perhaps if this was the reason for her approach, Rudger could not help but understand.
'I didn't get caught by anyone before.'
Since he maintained the seal, Rudger has not been pursued by the Lumensis Order, and he has not been caught even when he met the Lumensis Order while wandering around the world but today Freden, the parish chief, saw the energy flowing out of Rudger.
That meant that the force he had been suppressing began to flow out.
'The cause it's the frequent use of God's power in recent times.'
He thought he did a thorough calculation when he used the power of God but the result was different from what he thought.
'Seeing that she withdrew for the time being, she must still feel ambiguous about it.'
If Freden had really known Rudger's power, she would have tried to persuade him even if her eyes were turned upside down.
No, she may have guessed Rudger's identity. Since she is a parish chief, she might've heard something from the home country.
'Is it time to seal it again?'
That the power of God cannot be completely ruled out in the events he will face in the future.
'Moreover, the Church of Lumensis has begun to move in earnest. Now that they've opened the door that was closed for so long they're starting to influence the outside world and are probably all over the place.'
The process of succession to determine the next king has finally come to an end after a long period of time.
'Sooner or later, the world will be noisy about the rise of the new king.'
Since he had to deal with the Black Dawn Society, the moves of the Holy Land of Bretus were not a good thing for Rudger. Even if he tried to ignore them, Rudger's birth will someday come back to haunt him.
He could flee again by sealing the power of God and hiding his identity but he would just delay the inevitable.
'In the end, I have to speed up, too.'
In order to do so, he had no choice but to collect the Relic fragments.
'The next target is the Relic fragment in the imperial family. I'll have to pack for the trip.'
* * *
"Ugh, it's annoying."
Back at her accommodation, Casey Selmore flopped onto the bed.
From the standpoint of being held in detention until just before, today was the worst but it would have been more terrible if she hadn't known the officers.
When she turned her head slightly while lying on the bed, she saw water droplets flowing outside the window.
It was raining outside.
"Come to think of it, it rained when I first came to this city."
Casey choked up when she remembered her purpose for coming to Leathervelk.
'Come to think of it, it's all because of that person that today became like this, right?'
In fact, Rudger did nothing, but for Casey, Rudger had already established his image as the source of all evil.
Casey took a piece of paper out of her pocket.
Tainted with Rudger's magic, it was the only key to his past.
'Even now….'
It was a moment when she thought that she should watch.
"Tap, tap."
The sound from the window raised Casey's upper body from the bed. When she looked, she saw that a crow was knocking on the window with its beak.
"Crow?"
The crow had a letter in his mouth, and when he saw Casey saw him, he left it on the window frame and flew away.
Casey opened the window and picked up the letter. It was a little wet, but it didn't matter.
When she gently created a spell, the water that permeated the letter turned into a drop and escaped outside.
'This is…'
As soon as I saw the crow, Casey naturally thought of a man.
'James Moriarty. What's his trick this time?'
Casey opened the letter and examined the contents. Contrary to what she thought that there would be quite a lot of writing, the words inside were monotonous.
– Be careful.
Straight and neat letters as if they were printed by a typewriter. However, Casey, who realized the meaning of the letter, unwittingly raised her alertness to the limit.
'Be careful?'
There may be no particular reason why Rudger sent the letter but Casey's instinct recognized that the warning was sincere, and that it was a blatant representation of her situation now.
Casey's eyes looked inside her room. Her own dizzy but quiet space, full of her own things. No one questioned the natural interior appearance that was no different from usual.
'……never minded. What am I thinking?'
Casey shook her head and roughly threw the letter in her hand into the trash.
Then a white blade popped out of her chest. It was a surprise attack from a black shadow that fell from the ceiling.
"What?"
Casey saw the blade of the sword that broke through her chest but she smiled.
Soon, Casey's figure turned into water and disappeared as if it were torn down.
"What?"
The assassin couldn't hide his surprise when he saw a person suddenly turning into water.
At that moment, Casey's voice came from the air.
"Why are you surprised? Did you think I didn't know?"
From the moment Casey entered her room, she knew that was hiding inside. However, the analysis and reasoning close to Casey's superpower did not miss even a clue to a very subtle change.
I purposely created an opening with her water clone just in case, but she didn't expect someone would kill it.
'A surprise like this when he just sent a warning letter.'
Casey, who was hiding by distorting light with a thin film of water, laughed at the assassins.
She could roughly guess who instigated this kind of thing.
"You've had bad luck."
The hidden assassins appeared at once on the ceiling, on the floor and over the curtain. Their movements were silent and stealthy just like beasts.
They threw daggers at Casey, but Casey's expression didn't change.
"Well, today it's a rainy day."