Chapter 159: The Blood Tears of the Faith of the Seven (IV)
Chapter 159: Chapter 158 – The Blood Tears of the Faith of the Seven (IV)
Clarisse climbed up with the first septon, a man of fifty, bald in the center of his head with hair flourishing at the sides. The Morning Sword brought the man behind the guillotine and made him kneel. She locked the man’s head and arms into the guillotine’s lunette.
After that, she approached Maekar and handed him a scroll containing all the crimes of the septon, now bound to the guillotine.
Eugene was terrified. Yesterday he had been in his own home when he was dragged from his own bed and imprisoned in the dungeons beneath the Red Keep. Now, seeing the crowd of people before him and the lords watching him, he was utterly terrified.
“Prince, I am innocent; I swear by the Seven that this is all nothing but a misunderstanding!!!” Eugene shouted loudly, but Maekar simply ignored the man as though he were nothing.
Maekar opened the scroll and, seeing its contents, felt his stomach turn with disgust.
The church could be a very good thing; it often helped people in need during hard times, giving food and even shelter. At least that was how it had been in Maekar’s previous world, but, as always, there were rotten apples that needed to be destroyed.
In this world, there was no manner of consequence for the crimes of clergymen; these men were simply demons in human form.
Eugene, who claimed to be innocent and that it was all a misunderstanding, was nothing but human garbage. He liked to blackmail and rape women, especially married ones, whose husbands he would force to watch while he carried out the act.
Once he finished, he would torture the woman for infidelity and then do the same to the man for failing to defend his own wife. He was a demon.
Of all the imprisoned Septons, Eugene had been the hardest to gather evidence against. The bastard was surprisingly cautious and always chose the most invisible targets in society. He never touched a noble so as not to draw attention.
Maekar looked over the crimes and looked at the people in the front row; they were men and women. There were no victims of Septon Eugene there; those people were already dead. The only reason they had this evidence was because the Septa, who had been Eugene’s assistant, confessed everything after a few hours of torture.
The prince turned his gaze back to the crowd, raised his fist, and closed it. The crowd fell silent at his gesture, everyone looking at the handsome young man on the platform as they listened to the septon’s screams.
Then, Maekar began to speak Septon Eugene’s crimes aloud.
“Blackmail, rape…”
Hearing the long list and the meticulous details, the crowd, at least the part that was listening to Maekar, grew utterly furious.
“KILL HIM!!!”
“DEMON!!!”
“SINNER!!!”
Something surprising happened: the herd effect began to take hold of the people.
The crowd further back, who could not hear Maekar very well, simply followed what the crowd in front was doing, without thinking or even examining why these people wanted someone dead. They simply followed along, assuming all these people were right.
Some people picked up stones from the ground and threw them at the platform. Many missed their mark, but some still struck Eugene. One hit his forehead, opening a small cut that soon began to bleed. Another stone struck his left eye, making him howl in pain.
Maekar even had to dodge a few stones but watched it all with a calm gaze. Seeing the crowd growing wilder by the moment, an imperceptible smile appeared on his lips. Honestly, if the crowd lost control, he himself would be torn apart by these people, already stressed and full of resentment.
The only thing Maekar regretted was that they were not starving, for if they had been, they might have eaten the septons.
Suddenly, Maekar raised his hand and closed his fist again. Surprisingly, it took the crowd a full minute to stop, but eventually they fell silent again. Yet the tension in the air felt suffocating. These people were thirsty for blood and wanted to see it spilled.
“In the name of Jaehaerys, First of His Name, King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men; Lord of the Seven Kingdoms and Protector of the Realm. I, Maekar of House Targaryen and Lord of Harrenhal, sentence him to death for the crimes of blackmail, rape, and the murder of twenty-four people.” Maekar placed his hand on the lever beside the guillotine and spoke in a calm, cold tone.
“I AM INNOCENT!!!!”
“DON’T KILL ME!!!!”
“LET ME GO, YOU FILTHY BASTARDS; I AM A SEPTON!!!”
“I AM A SEPTON ANOINTED IN THE SACRED WATERS OF THE SEVEN. I CANNOT BE JUDGED BY MORTAL MEANS!!!!”
No one wanted to die; Eugene was no different. He struggled and tried to break free, but it was useless. Besides hurting himself, he did not budge the guillotine’s frame at all.
Maekar looked at Eugene and then at the crowd listening in silence.
“PEOPLE OF KING’S LANDING,” Maekar shouted, drawing everyone’s attention. “WHAT SENTENCE DO YOU WANT?”
What do human beings love most to do when gathered in a group? They want to belong somewhere; this kind of feeling often drives a person to do things they normally would not do, all in order to fit in.
What Maekar wanted to do was create a sense of belonging and pride; only then would the instinctive fear of the church be broken. Combined with the sense of security the crowd provided, it created a power that no noble wanted to see.
“DEATH!!!”
“DEATH!!!”
“DEATH!!!”
The crowd roared, a sea of people shouting at Maekar’s words. It looked like some famous artist’s show in life, surpassing even Maekar’s own. However, these people were not clamoring for a beautiful song but for blood.
The lords on the platform were frightened by what was happening. Some of them had seen the power of the people’s fury before, but on a smaller scale. This time, King’s Landing, one of the greatest cities on the continent, seemed to come alive.
The roars, screams, and shouts of the people seemed to make the very air shudder and the ground tremble as never before seen in history.
This frightened them; even Ellard wore a solemn look. Fortunately, the North was sparsely populated, and its people could not gather on such a large scale for lack of food. Even so, it was the first time he had seen common people wield such power. It was frightening to think something like this could happen anywhere.
Ellard had to be grateful that Westeros was not France, known as the Capital of Revolution. The French staged a small revolt every day and a great revolt every week. If there was no revolt, it was because they were plotting an even bigger one.
Being the emperor, king, and president of France was a sad thing to be.
Jaehaerys looked at the people and seemed to understand something he had never seen before. At the same time, he looked at Maekar and felt the last of his reluctance vanish within him at that moment. At that moment, the king no longer cared whether Maekar or Viserys would be king.
“If Aegon had lived longer, perhaps the Faith of the Seven would not be so powerful.” Jaehaerys murmured, lamenting that Aegon had died so young. That man might have seemed solemn, but he had the ability to make you believe the impossible could be achieved.
It had simply been incredible, standing beside Aegon the Conqueror and his sisters.
Unaware of Jaehaerys’s thoughts, Maekar smiled and pulled the lever; it was already time for the people to claim the blood they wanted.
“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!” Eugene showed a terrified look and screamed desperately, like a pig being slaughtered.
As soon as the lever was pulled, the blade fell with a red gleam against the sun. It all happened in an instant. The blade’s cutting sound rang out before a heavy thud was heard. Septon Eugene’s head separated from his body.
The head rolled to a stop at Maekar’s feet. Blood pooled beneath the headless body.
Maekar crouched down, grabbed the head by the hair, and raised it toward the sky.
Were the people satisfied? Yes, they were absolutely satisfied, but they were far from sated; one death was not enough!
“KILL MORE!!!!”
“ALL SEPTONS MUST DIE!!!”
“DEATH TO THE DEMONS!!!”
Just as Maekar was about to continue, he noticed Clarisse approaching and whispering something in his ear. Hearing those words, he smiled.
“The pig has left its cage.”
——-
Read my other books:
House of The Dragon:The Rise of the Emperor of the Seven Kingdoms
Game Of Thrones: The God-Emperor of Planetos
Percy Jackson: Godwyn the Golden.
Game Of Thrones: The King’s Court Wizard