Chapter 98 : Chapter 98
Chapter 98 Let's see the Prayer.
Squeak, squeak, squeak.
At the time the morning sun rises, Rosenberg’s carriage stands stopped.
The coachman who drove the carriage and Egbaldo are holding the carriage wheel and fitting it here and there.
Adellian, seeing this, sighed and approached Rosenberg.
“I told you to check beforehand, what is this because you didn’t do that?”
“We checked everything before going to pick you up. What do you want me to do about it breaking because a stone bounced up?”
Those two seem to be full of energy from the morning.
“Phew, really.”
“I moved like this thinking of you, what is that way of speaking? Huh?”
“Forget it.”
“Forget what……!”
Rosenberg beat his chest exhaling toward the sky as if heat was rising inside.
Even I would be angry if my daughter acted like that.
Anyway, I need to hear the answer to the question I asked yesterday.
“Adellian.”
“……What?”
Perhaps her irritation hadn’t subsided, she was throwing stones toward the stream across the road.
“Tell me about your brother’s condition.”
“You can go and see. Isn’t that better than knowing clumsily?”
“Still, there is a big difference between having information and not having it.”
Adellian, dusting off her hands stained with dirt, swallowed a big breath. Her face darkened.
It seems because she recalled her brother.
“He suddenly collapsed. No. Not suddenly either. Because he collapsed after his condition kept getting worse. His skin is pale and lifeless, and his hair falls out little by little. At first, he spoke and listened, but at some moment he couldn’t even open his eyes…….”
Perhaps bitterness surged, she swallowed the words she was saying.
“Seems like poisoning symptoms?”
Adellian opened her eyes roundly.
“If the condition gets worse progressively, that possibility is high. Doesn’t seem like simple poison…… aren’t there other characteristics?”
“Veins protrude on his chest. A bit excessively.”
It is similar to the symptoms appearing when the mana circle is contaminated by poison.
Although I’ll know the details when I see it myself.
“Do you know what it is?”
“A little. How was he being treated? I think you said there was no medicine. The Duke looking for the Black Market was also because of new medicine, right? Because existing ones didn’t work.”
Adellian’s face darkened. She bit her lip tightly and clenched her fist with strength. And she kicked the ground nervously thud thud.
Splash.
The stream screamed being hit by a fist-sized stone.
Adellian repeatedly spat out short breaths as if her anger wasn’t resolved.
“There is something called a Priestess.”
What is this sound again?
“Since it couldn’t be treated with medicine, it’s a method Dad found. Saying he could get better if a person serving a god performs a ritual…… Phew.”
“To which god is she performing the ritual?”
“She says Lucius. Ha! Absurd. She doesn’t even know how to use healing magic. All she does is pray. And there’s no improvement for several years. She takes money as money. Swindler bitch.”
Adellian crumpled the bridge of her nose severely.
Splash.
The stream cried loudly being hit by a bigger stone than before.
“Fixed everything!”
At the coachman’s shout, Adellian tapped her cheeks lightly. The thought of shaking off the gloomy mind and getting in the carriage was visible.
“Let’s go.”
I walked following Adellian.
Thinking about Isaac von Rosenberg’s condition and the Priestess.
***
A maid moved busily with quick steps. The place she headed was the entrance of the mansion.
“The Duke is returning!”
The giant iron gate opened, and a navy carriage with gold decorations entered the mansion boasting its majesty.
People managing the mansion stopped what they were doing and ran to where the carriage was.
Creak.
The door of the carriage opened.
The people of the mansion bowed their heads and voiced loudly, ‘Duke! Have you returned?’
“Wow, it’s not even an army but the discipline is substantial.”
The people of the mansion seeing the entity that got off the carriage tilted their heads.
‘What is that brat? Why from the Duke’s carriage…….’
The Head Butler of the Rosenberg family scrutinized the boy carefully, wrinkling his forehead deeply. Shabby clothes, unkempt hair, and the appearance of carrying a sword as big as his body on his back…….
‘Bandit gang?’
The Butler thought this wouldn’t do. So he tried to demand an explanation of who he was toward the boy.
However.
“Why get off first in such a hurry?”
Seeing the girl who appeared behind, Adellian, he hurriedly swallowed a breath.
“Young Lady!”
“Young Lady! We missed you!”
“You aren’t hurt anywhere, right? Look how thin she is.”
The maids flocked to Adellian.
The boy, bumped by people, scanned the maids with a face saying it was too much.
“Ahem! Ahem!”
Rosenberg, who just got off the carriage, cleared his throat forcibly.
Startled by that sound, the maids quickly returned to their places.
“It is a matter to celebrate that the ill-mannered daughter returned, but since the 5th Prince is with us, maintain politeness.”
At Rosenberg’s words, the people of the mansion opened their eyes wide and looked at where the carriage was. To greet louder than anyone when the 5th Prince gets off. However, seeing the boy and girl getting off subsequently, they only tilted their heads. Because just like the boy who appeared first, they were full of shabbiness.
“Tsk, tsk, tsk. Trying to judge looking only at the appearance, does anything go properly?”
The people of the mansion chased the protagonist of the sarcastic voice with their eyes. It was the thug-like boy who got off first.
“Ahem! Offer greetings. It is the 5th Prince.”
At Rosenberg’s words, the mansion people couldn’t hide their shock.
“I would make that face too.”
“Anyone would.”
“M, me too.”
Piontek, Egbaldo, and Odekerkh reacted harmoniously.
“Greetings are enough. You said there is a son…… no. Let’s eat first. My stomach is noisy enough to kill me.”
Maxim approached the Butler who had frowned at him and urged him to move saying, ‘Let’s go to the dining room. Quickly.’
Seeing this, Rosenberg let out a long and deep sigh.
“Should have just let her go…….”
The words of regret he left behind.
Adellian scoffed as if serving him right and followed behind Maxim with light steps.
“Phew. That, that. Phew, she has no tact either.”
At Adellian’s appearance smiling brightly looking at Maxim, Rosenberg let out a longer and deeper sigh than before.
Others nodded looking at such Rosenberg as if they knew the reason.
***
“Young Master.”
A woman dressed in ritual robes, the Priestess, looked pitifully at the sleeping Isaac von Rosenberg. She carefully touched Isaac’s face.
“You must not go anywhere. Since I will always take care of you by your side.”
The woman held Isaac’s hands with both hands and started praying.
Candles around Isaac flickered perilously.
Knock knock knock.
At the sound of knocking on the door, the woman opened her eyes. She let out a long breath. She dropped a drop of smile on her face which contained nothing like white drawing paper.
“Who is it?”
“Priestess. The Duke has returned.”
“Is that so. I will go out immediately.”
The Priestess put on her outer coat and opened the door.
But in front of the door stood only a maid alone.
“What happened?”
“Yes?”
“Didn’t you say the Duke came?”
“Ah, yes. He came. He is in the dining room right now.”
“Dining room?”
“Yes, that is so.”
The Priestess frowned and tilted her head.
It was strange. When Rosenberg returns after going out, he looks for her first. To ask about Isaac’s condition. But to go straight to the dining room without looking for her…….
“Did anyone come with him?”
“Lady Adellian has returned. And friends came together as well.”
“Is that so? So that was why.”
The Priestess passed the maid and walked toward the dining room clip-clop.
Clack.
As the dining room door opened, everyone’s gaze who was eating directed to the Priestess.
“Duke.”
The Priestess approached Rosenberg boasting a calm voice.
Rosenberg drew a subtle smile and reacted kindly, ‘Priestess. Have you eaten?’
On the other hand, the face of Adellian sitting next to Rosenberg darkened.
Maxim scanned the Priestess, Adellian, and Rosenberg slowly as if it was interesting.
“I am full just by the Duke returning safely.”
“Still, you should eat something, shouldn’t you? Taking care of Isaac must not be an ordinary task…….”
“It is fine. If I do so, all of that is Lucius’s will.”
As the Priestess smiled softly, a louder snort rang out.
Anyone could see the snort felt like mocking the conversation between the Duke and the Priestess.
Everyone’s gaze naturally followed the snort.
“Ah, I thought the conversation was interesting. Please continue. I will only listen.”
Maxim waved his hand as if telling them not to mind.
But the Priestess was very bothered by his action. Because it was clearly ridicule, not laughing because it was funny. However, she couldn’t ask the reason for ridicule to a person she met for the first time, a guest who came with Rosenberg.
“How is Isaac?”
Rosenberg asked the usual question to divert the Priestess’s attention directed at Maxim.
“He is getting better little by little. Prayer…….”
“Pfft!”
A laugh more explicit than before.
The Priestess turned not only her face but her body toward Maxim.
“Don’t mind me. Because a funny thought suddenly occurred. I am fine. Fine.”
Although she disapproved of Maxim’s action, she couldn’t say anything. Because he is Rosenberg’s guest.
“The appearance that Lucius listened to the prayer offered with sincerity…….”
“Kukuku.”
The Priestess, feeling the limit of patience, approached Maxim.
Rosenberg sighed deeply looking at Maxim whose corners of the mouth were twitching.
“Can I hear the reason for laughing?”
“Yes?”
“I think you keep laughing, what point of mine was funny?”
Maxim looked at the Priestess drawing eye smiles.
The smile disappeared from the Priestess’s face. Because she read the meaning ‘Asking because you don’t know?’ from Maxim’s expression.
“It would be good if you tell me directly. Because of what you are doing so.”
“Hmm…… I don’t know if it’s good to tell you or not?”
As Maxim scratched his head and smiled playfully, the Priestess’s facial muscles trembled.
“No, well…… usually to cure a person, one uses healing magic, not prayer. But since you say he gets better just by praying. Wondering what that is about.”
“Are you ignoring me right now?”
“No. How could I do that? Just fascinated. Thinking there are such things in the world too.
But what kind of prayer makes a sick person healthy? I’ve seen magic many times but haven’t seen prayer even once.”
“……Lucius guides with light.”
“If you pray to the God of Light, with light.”
Maxim tilted his head and scoffed.
The Priestess crumpled her brow severely.
“Are you mocking Lord Lucius?”
“No. Just wondering if the God of Light drags a sick person to the sky when he meets one.
Saying welcome to the afterlife. Like that.”
“Truly rude.”
The Priestess looked at Maxim with eyes full of anger.
“Oh my, I offended the Priestess’s feelings. Then what should I do? Ah! It would be good to see the wonderful scene of the Priestess praying over the sick person. Then wouldn’t I also gain enlightenment? Saying Ah! The God of Light doesn’t drag the sick person to the afterlife but heals him! Like that.”
“Stop it!”
“No. Not stop. I think it’s right to go and see personally. Just in time, I ate heartily too. I think I can watch the Priestess’s sincere prayer for hours. Let’s go.”
Maxim started walking toward where Isaac was.
“You cannot. Prayer must be offered sincerely without receiving anyone’s disturbance. Look here!”
Despite the Priestess’s words, Maxim didn’t stop walking.