28 – Escaping the church
“The test result is the same, Your Eminence.”
“Check it again!”
“But… it's the fifth time.”
“I said check it again.”
After the discussion we had, Saphira went ahead and cast the ritual Another Death. I watched it closely, and if the occasion ever calls for it again, I could reproduce it. That being said, Saphira was right. There is hardly any difference between this fake death and a natural one. Even I couldn't tell them apart.
And now, we brought Saphira back to the church of light. The priests immediately fell silent. They couldn't believe their eyes. A demon of legends was lying before them, brought by a completely unknown adventurer. They were doing numerous tests, but no matter how many times they would do them, the results were the same. The person before them was indeed the Calamity Witch and she was indeed dead. And since seeing them make a ruckus like that… my temper started to get short.
“How long do you plan to keep ignoring the obvious? Your tests were made, you have the testimony of lady Silkzesta, so what's left to debate?”
“Ugh… mister Magnus, please don't take this the wrong way. It's just that all this feels unreal.”
The archbishop was at a loss for words. It just proves that in their eyes, this little test was nothing more than a suicidal mission. Rose on the other hand, decided to push further.
“Well, Your Eminence, I believe this should be sufficient proof that this adventurer has indeed the favor of the Goddess on his side. Are there any more objections?”
“Anerose-san, please wait a moment. We can't rush such a decision.”
The priests started whispering to one another. Then one of them got closer to Saphira.
“Your Eminence, if we look on the bright side, just think of the gains we could obtain from this. With a premium material such as this body, I’m pretty sure that our other experiment will advance significantly.”
Experiment? What are these guys talking about? Could they possibly be doing something shady like necromancy? Being a monster broker like Rose is one thing, but for all these “holy” people to do something more sinister… makes you wonder why you should bother going to the church. I noticed one of the priests had a lecherous gaze and wanted to touch Saphira’s breasts.
Upon seeing that, I gave his hand a light slap with my tail, before tucking it under my robe again.
“Ouch!”
“Pardon me, but I would appreciate it if you would not damage my property.”
“Huh!?”
“You're all making the assumption that I will leave her corpse here, but you’re all mistaken. As a mage I have my own research that needs to be done. You must understand that for a mage this is a priceless material.”
“Mister Magnus, surely you are not implying that your research is above the Church? The church can do so much more than one single individual.”
“And I hope you are not implying that the Church will break the rules established by the adventurers guild. Before anything else I am a mage and an adventurer. The quest was to show proof that she is dead, and I did. Nowhere was it stipulated that you could have the leftovers. Just like monster materials, I am free to keep it.”
“What you're saying is true but…”
If this guy still intends to push further I guess I will just have to get more scary. Normally I wouldn't want to get on their bad side, but sometimes fear is the best motivation.
“Enough! Please, both sides need to calm down.”
Once again it was lord Percival. And this time he wasn't alone. He was followed by quite a few knights.
First, he turned towards the priests and gave them sharp looks. Then he turned towards me.
“Magnus-san, my apologies. It seems we were rather rude towards you. I hope you can overlook this.”
Oh? He’s taking quite the diplomatic approach. Well he did gave me his word, and lord Percival is known for always keeping his word.
“No harm done. Should I take it that you understand the situation?”
“Indeed.”
*Snap*
He snapped his fingers and one of the knights brought forth a rather fancy scroll which he handed over to Percival. Then, he unraveled it and turned it towards me. The content was clear as daylight.
“This was received earlier this morning. I prepared it just in case.”
“The… Cardinal’s stamp!?”
“Anerose Prismheart! Because your revelation has been proven, by my authority and the Cardinals’ you are hereby relieved of your duties from the Church of Light. You are free to follow this adventurer and guide him on whatever path the Goddess has prepared.”
“And the matter of the corpse?” (Magnus)
“It belongs to you. The Church of Light does not tolerate stealing. Nobody here would dare do something as shameful as that, right?”
As he said that he sent a menacing glare towards the archbishop and the priests who could only grit their teeth and consent. Percival then walked over to me, handed Rose the official document and wanted to shake my hand. I had no reason to refuse. But as we joined hands I could feel his grip was tightening considerably. Was he trying to break my hand or something? I only then noticed that his composed demeanor vanished and he whispered the following words:
“Although I would like to investigate you more and perhaps recruit you under my service, my pride comes first. But heed my words. If I were you, I’d leave town as soon as possible. The Church won't take the events today lightly, so watch your back.”
“I see. I appreciate the warning.”
With that, the handshake was concluded. I pulled out a body bag and placed Saphira in it. I know it's disrespectful, but I can't exactly give her a princess carry in this scenario. We paid our respects, I placed the body over my shoulder and left the Church.
“Seriously, Magnus, I was so nervous, I didn't think you would be able to pull something like this off.”
“I hope you won't make a habit of doubting me.”
“Not anymore. But… how did you manage to kill her?”
“About that… let's just say I’ll explain this later. Shall we head to your hideout?”
“Are fucking retarded? We can't go there anymore. The moment they gave me this scroll, I lost all rights to that place. Besides, it's going to be heavily monitored.”
“I see… in that case, let's return to my room at the inn. Although it's going to be cramped for 5 people, it should suffice to make our preparations.”
“5? Aren't you miscounting? You, me, Leona and the goblin brat. It's 4. Or did Silkzesta have a change of heart?”
“No, no. She's not coming with us. But we are 5. I’ll explain everything, but this isn't the place.”
I just hope Rose won't flip the table when she finds out. What's the best way to tell her that Saphira is actually alive? I'll have to think of the best way to word it out.