Saint Rusalka"s Knight
Her blue cloak stood out in the white-themed building. As she walked down the halls, people wearing gray clothes bowed their heads respectfully.
「Lady Conia, you look great today.」
「You too.」
When the woman named Conia answered the greeting, the people in gray bowed even deeper.
Upon closer look, it wasn"t just her cloak that was blue. Her sleeves and trousers were blue as well, including the cross on her chest, a symbol of the Church. The ornament on the grip of her sword hanging by her waist was blue. Anyone would realize that this color meant something.
The Blue Knights. Knights who protected this tower often used the color. Fewer and fewer people used the color blue the farther the temple was from Bios.
「Miss Conia.」
「h.e.l.lo, Father.」
Conia quickly kneeled on the spot. Her long, purple hair tied to the back hung straight down.
「Please be at ease. May I have a bit of your time?」the priest asked.
「Of course.」she answered.
The woman got up her feet and followed the priest. Her purple eyes beamed with intelligence, and her narrow chin and tiny lips made her face look small. Knights evoked an image of a mighty warrior, but she gave off an aura of a brilliant beauty.
Despite still being in her teens, she could walk around the tower as a Blue Knight. That just showed how skilled she really was.
「What"s the matter, Father?」
「Please, come in.」
「Thank you.」
The priest led her to a small room. It appeared to be a lounge where people could take a break. On the table was a tea set, suggesting that the man who called Conia was just resting here.
The man wore a long, red robe, a sharp contrast to her attire; not the bright kind, but a dark, subdued red. It wasn"t too gaudy overall. Although, the embroidery on his cuffs, collar, and belt looked intricate and sewn using expensive threads. His square cap rested on the table.
The Red Priests were a rank higher than the Blue Knights. The people Conia pa.s.sed by earlier were the Gray Deacons, the lowest among the ranks of people allowed to enter this tower.
Above the Red Priests were the Purple Aristocrats, and the White Pope stood on top of them all. This was Bios"s Five Divine Ranks system that had been in place for a long time.
Of course, there were other professionals in the tower as well, like the Pope"s secretary, who were not part of the hierarchy, but still given special permission to enter the tower.
「Have you heard the news?」the man asked.「His Holiness will mediate in the Ponsonian civil war.」
「I have. The conflict between the crown prince and the princess, I believe.」she answered.「Their representative would be here soon, and I was asked to be part of security.」
「Is there a point for this arbitration?」the priest muttered in a low whisper, as if he didn"t want anyone else to hear.
「I"m not sure I follow.」
「What are your thoughts on the Ponsonian civil war?」
「I am inexperienced in the world of politics, but I heard the late king had not chosen his successor. After his death, the princess quickly gained control of the royal capital, and many n.o.bles sided with her. The prince left with only a few troops and he"s currently holed up in Leather Elka.」
「Hmm… Are you saying the prince should surrender?」
「No.」
「Really now?」
「Even if the king failed to choose a successor, other countries know the prince is the apparent heir to the throne. He should take his rightful place and sooth the citizens who are most likely in a state of panic after receiving word of the king"s sudden death.」
「That is a very interesting opinion. But most royalty and n.o.bility worry about themselves first before the citizens.」
「…I see.」
「My question is, what does His Holiness hope to achieve by mediating in this conflict?」
「I cannot possibly imagine what His Holiness is thinking.」
「Indeed, I feel the same. But sometimes we have to think hard so we can walk the right path.」
「I believe you"re always on the right path, Father.」
Her straightforwardness made the priest smile wryly.
「You are marvelous. Marvelous indeed. You"re like Saint Rusalka"s knight.」
「I am honored. My parents taught me to strive to be just like Saint Rusalka.」
Saint Rusalka"s knight was a great figure from the past. They protected Saint Rusalka at all times, putting their life on the line, as she went around places, preaching the teachings of the church. But their name was never known. The knight believed the Saint to be a magnificent person, and was content in remaining in the shadows, disliking for their name to be remembered.
「I"m sure you will uphold the sanct.i.ty of the doctrine…」
「May I ask what you mean by that? I apologize, but I don"t have deep knowledge about the doctrine, unlike you, Father.」
「It"s fine. Forget what I said. Thank you for your time.」
The priest ended the conversation, picked up his cap, and stood up. He then strolled out of the room, leaving behind a confused Conia.
「What we need right now is not the knight of Saint Rusalka. She would be needed once everything was over. Right now…」
The priest walked down a deserted hall, in an area that only few people entered. There were places in this huge tower that were open only to a select few individuals.
「…we need someone to sc.r.a.pe out the darkness lurking in the White Tower.」
Before him was an overlapping wall. The white color and the light made the shadows disappear, so one had to strain their eyes to see it. If you simply walked down the corridor, you wouldn"t notice that there was a pa.s.sage there.
The priest eyed his surroundings to make sure no one was around. He then pressed his hand on his chest, as though to quell his heart"s throbbing.
He then started walking towards the hidden pa.s.sage.
Seven days later, Conia Mercury learned that the Red Priest she talked to had left Agiapole for missionary work in a distant land.
「He"d walk the path of hardship himself. How admirable!」Conia was deeply moved.「Hmm, we talked about Saint Rusalka"s knight. What did he mean by that? Does he want me to accompany him on his journey? Ah, what have I done? I didn"t realize that soon enough, and now he"s gone.」
She felt disappointed.
「But this isn"t the time for being down. I have to show him how I"ve grown the next time we meet. I must focus on my duties!」
Conia quickly stood up, nodding to herself. Then a monk arrived with news.
「An emissary from Ponsonia? I see, so the kingdom had gotten in touch. What? An adventurer? Okay, I"ll check the papers. Ah, wait—」
Conia stopped the monk as he was about to leave.
「This adventurer… Hikaru, was it? Where is he right now?」