Chapter 402: Whispers in the Head
After finally sighing with light still in his eyes, Jeremiah drew the topic back and said, “Of course, these are only things I heard from those scholars. There may be errors among them. After all, I am merely a church bishop—administration is not what I am good at.”
“As for the specific details, you can consult those scholars more in the future. I believe they would not mind a clever marchioness asking them for guidance.”
What Jeremiah said was something Camilla had never heard before, yet she could feel that within these few sentences lay precious wealth discovered and summarized by countless people over countless years.
However, Jeremiah’s final words about launching a war against the Woodlands still struck her in an instant.
And Gregor, who had already been half-asleep, immediately perked up the moment he heard the word “war.”
He said excitedly, “Is the war about to begin? Once I finish cleaning up those pieces of trash, I can also lead troops into battle.”
Jeremiah said, “No, this war has nothing to do with you. Councilor Julian will gather noble armies from elsewhere. They will be the main force, and…”
At the end of his sentence, Jeremiah suddenly closed his mouth. His face turned cold as he changed the subject and said, “Get up. You are already grown, and a dignified marquis at that. How can you kneel at the drop of a hat?”
Gregor obediently stood up.
Jeremiah looked at Camilla, immediately putting on a smile, and said, “He is an idiot. Don’t learn from him.”
Camilla felt extremely awkward. She had simply been frightened to the point her legs had gone weak.
But now she was able to stand.
“All right, Gregor. Now go and gather whatever troops you can. Listen more to Knight Kelton’s advice—he understands military affairs to some extent,” Jeremiah said. “There is still one month before your engagement. Within this month, you should finish this matter in advance. I do not want you walking into the church with blood still on your armor on the day of your engagement.”
“As for Camilla, stay at the Great Cathedral.”
“Got it,” Gregor nodded, turned around, and left.
“…” Camilla’s gaze followed Gregor. Yet until he disappeared from her sight with the two knights, Gregor never once looked back.
“He is very foolish, isn’t he?” Jeremiah suddenly asked.
Camilla instinctively nodded.
Then she jolted, realizing what she had just done.
She was speaking ill of the marquis behind his back.
But when she looked at Jeremiah, her expression changed drastically.
Jeremiah’s face was now deathly pale. He looked so exhausted that it seemed as if he had not rested for a very, very long time. His hair was no longer as smooth as before, but gray and disheveled like that of an old man. He was groping along the church pew, slowly sitting down.
Turning his head to look at the flustered Camilla, Jeremiah smiled and said, “Don’t worry. These are honors earned from fighting the Original Sin Demon.”
Camilla did not dare to respond at all and could only shrink back.
Jeremiah said, “You are very clever—cleverer than I imagined. After I took notice of you back then, I specifically sought revelation from the Lord regarding this matter, and the Lord’s response to me was affirmative.”
“Camilla, the Lord also affirmed your cleverness—or rather, your wisdom.”
Camilla froze, not knowing what to do.
Jeremiah beckoned with his hand. Camilla hesitated, then moved closer and knelt before him.
Jeremiah reached out and placed his hand on Camilla’s head.
He said, “I am going to die. What you saw earlier was merely me maintaining appearances with Divine Word. That fool Gregor is far too noisy.”
Camilla stood stunned, not even noticing the warmth coming from the top of her head.
Jeremiah continued, “Of course, not right now. Perhaps there is still a year, or two, or maybe five.”
“I did not dare to ask the Lord. After sensing my body gradually stepping into the abyss, I suddenly realized that I was not as brave as I had imagined. I did not dare to know the day my future would end, nor did I dare to tell the other bishops. I feared they would tell me to beg the Pope, or to borrow magic to prolong my life.”
“I am afraid of temptation.”
“But I do not regret it. I have already seen the future, and I am certain that when the future arrives, it will indeed arrive.”
“I am only worried about Gregor. This fool, though foolish, has one thing that can be called clever—he is obedient enough, and he is fortunate enough to have met a few people worthy of his trust.”
“When I was still merely a priest and met him, he gave me absolute trust. Even when he had rewarded someone the previous day out of joy from a hunt, and I killed that person the very next day, he only said that I had killed well and even asked whether I needed to wipe out that person’s entire bloodline.”
“He trusted me so completely that even when I was establishing the new city and had already delineated three social tiers, even when I had already planned at that time to kill all his relatives and all his vassals, he still never doubted the city I chose for him. Instead, he happily told me that he could see the cathedral from the top of his castle.”
“He may be foolish, but he is fortunate. As for his relatives, they were left with nothing but foolishness. They colluded privately with outsiders, inviting outsiders into the castle for banquets when he was absent. Of his eight children, half were not of his bloodline, and two unmarried daughters secretly gave birth to children while he was away from the castle.”
“Even that could still be explained as remnants of Old Testament habits, or impulses of reproductive instinct. But they secretly sold some weapons—purchased in Doyle City under my name as a bishop—to external nobles.”
“They were Gregor’s relatives. Gregor had never withheld anything they needed, yet they still did such things.”
“Who knows whether this was due to greed, dissatisfaction with my governance, or simply resistance toward Gregor himself.”
“So in the end, I decided to keep Gregor and give him a chance—killing only them.”
“In fact, even though I trusted him, Councilor Julian had already given the order: if Gregor showed any resentment over this matter when returning with you, he would have died outside the city.”
“But in the end, he still made the correct choice. Perhaps this was also the Lord’s favor upon him.”
“Of course, I did not use revelation to ask the Lord, because I felt that the Lord favoring such a fool would be an insult to the Lord.”
“He is unworthy.”
At this point, Jeremiah took a breath.
Camilla lowered her head, her eyes cast down.
Jeremiah continued, “However, he will continue to live. But just as I said, I am going to die. Lately I have been sleeping poorly. I dream of his relatives entering my dreams. That bone-deep resentment leaves me unable to rest. I know this is evil exploiting the cracks in my heart.”
“But I truly am going to die.”
“And your appearance has greatly comforted me. Choosing you was correct. After I die, he should not trust other priests. Idealistic priests are inherently opposed to self-interested nobles, and after that there will also be the involvement of officials.”
“Even though Teacher Agamemnon had long determined that this must be done, he also knew long ago that while those old scholars who are likewise idealists may still have firm wills, those officials who pursue power will corrupt faster than anyone imagines. Therefore, at that time, you must represent Gregor—represent the nobles—in contending for power from the hands of the officials.”
“The church’s priests will not help you. As I said, priests will stand opposed to you, opposed to them as well. The priests merely maintain a bottom line—a set of rules.”
“You will have a hard time, especially since you also have to look after that idiot Gregor.”
“But I believe in you.”
“I must say, thinking that in a few days I will be moving out of York City and taking up residence in the new Great Cathedral of Doyle, away from that fool, I am almost happier now than I have been in these past few years.”
Jeremiah no longer needed to restrain himself and laughed heartily.
That laughter made Camilla, who was basking in the warmth of baptism, open her eyes.
She felt as if she were kneeling before an elder, while the elder gently stroked the top of her head.
Yet she clearly remembered that Bishop Jeremiah of the Church of the Sanctuary seemed to be only around twenty-four years old.
In the Woodlands, at that age, noble heirs were still riding speckled deer, dressing flamboyantly, and displaying their charm to noble ladies.
Even if they already had wives and children at home.
Seeing Camilla’s gaze grow ever purer, Jeremiah’s laughter slowly stopped.
He continued, “I did not take a wife, and the evil of Original Sin has already taken root in my body. This sin must not be spread, so I will not have children.”
“Although a proper baptism requires completing certain procedures, my body is very tired, and the other priests are currently stabilizing local affairs. So I omitted those cumbersome rituals and completed your baptism.”
“Of course, do not tell anyone else about this. Otherwise, when the bishops convene at the end of the year, those two will use this to tease me.”
“And if I am still alive after you are married and have children, I will baptize your child. I will give him my name, Jeremiah, as his baptismal name, and I would like to become your child’s godfather.”
“If I have already died, then let the bishop of Doyle Church at that time baptize your child.”
At this moment, Camilla said, “I will implore that bishop to give my child your name as his baptismal name. I remember that in the civilization of Greenwood and the rules of the church, it is not mandatory for the baptizing priest to be the child’s godfather. I will also implore him, saying that my child already has a godfather.”
Jeremiah smiled, withdrew his hand, slightly bowed his head, and said, “Thank you.”
Camilla merely lowered her head.
Jeremiah continued, “You are clever, so I do not hide my situation from you. But do not tell that fool what I told you. Though he has no brains, his voice is loud and very noisy.”
“And do not tell him about my moving elsewhere either, lest he come to bother me. Right now, my head feels as if countless voices are whispering within it. I do not want to add more noise.”