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nSylvester didn’t let Felix stay back, knowing the man was wild and would break the chair. So they made their way down towards the basement as fast as they could.

nBy then, the entire castle was crawling with soldiers. However, he found one old face when he was crossing by the entrance.

n“Bishop Lazark? When did you arrive?” Sylvester found the black hooded necromancer looking all confused at the scenes.

n“Only now, Archpriest. What happened here? I thought you had come to solve a murder and stop two brothers from fighting. Why are there so many men outside and on the battlefield?”

nSylvester didn’t stop to talk. “Walk with me, Bishop. I’m afraid we have nothing but bad news today. A foreign conspiracy was at play here. It had been going on for years at the behest of the Masan Empire, most likely. They have set their eyes on conquering the northern Gracia Kingdom. Everything seen here is a result of that. We are going to the basement now. Duke Grimton’s granddaughter is supposed to be held there.”

n“Did you write to the Cardinal Suprima of the Duchy?” Bishop asked.

n“Not yet. I am not yet done with the investigation. Once I have all the answers, I will write the report and send it to the Holy Land. Unfortunately, I am not qualified to deal with such international matters. I’m sure the Holy land will wish to put more focus on this matter as it’s their backyard.”

nAs they talked, they finally reached the second level of the basement. It was very dry there, and the various torches illuminated the space. They followed the lights and eventually arrived at the room at the end of the long underground corridors.

nMany people stood outside it and crowded the small area. From beyond, he could hear the loud cries of the Duke calling out his granddaughter’s name.

n“Did she die?” Felix wondered.

n“I hope not!” Sylvester split the crowd apart and made his way forward.

nAt the door, he found Lady Aurora standing as the guard, not allowing any more people to enter. “What happened?”

nShe heard his voice and let them enter. “See for yourself. I hope your healing is good enough for this, Lord Bard.”

nSylvester glanced inside and noticed the big frame of Duke Grimton kneeling on the ground and holding someone in his arms, a small body. He could only see the thin legs, and they appeared too pale.

n“Move aside!” Sylvester pushed Duke Zephyr aside and knelt beside Duke Grimton.

n“Lord Bard! Please save her! Look at what they did to her… poor little girl.” Duke Grimton cried.

nSylvester nodded and checked the little, brown-haired girl’s eyes. She seemed unconscious, but there was a faint pulse still present. Her arms and legs appeared too thin, a sign of malnutrition. “She was likely held here for days without water and food.”

nShe was just ten years old. The fact she was even alive after so many days was a miracle. But her body had suffered a lot of internal damage. Her skin had gone dry, and her lips had become a cracked mess. In addition, she was not responding to any voice.

n‘Wait! Are those keys?’ He noticed a chain around her neck with two small keys hanging.

n“Your grace! Water.” A soldier came running with a jar full of water.

nSylvester quickly slapped it away. “Don’t be foolish! Do you want to kill this poor girl? Feeding her water and food all of a sudden will do more damage to her body than good. But don’t worry, I have other means to help her. Let’s move her out of this depressing place first.”

nHe took the little girl’s body in his arms and started to walk out. In the middle of his way, he whispered to the cat on his shoulder. “Take the keychain.”

nWith that done, he brought the little girl to the room of the Count as it was the closest. He put her on the bed, quickly took out the expensive Solarium Crystals from his bag, and placed a small chunk of it in her mouth. She was a child, after all, too much solarium could kill her.

n“We need to heal her body before we feed her anything, your grace.” He addressed the scared Duke.

n“Don’t worry. She’s a strong girl. She will survive. But you better send someone to your capital and call other healers. My methods are very crude and only good for wizards. For a child so small, I might do more harm than good.” He honestly warned them lest he get her death pinned on his head.

nBam!

nDuke Grimton stepped near Sylvester and clasped his hand as if praying. “Thank you, Lord Bard. I know as long as your light basks upon my little Thea, the warmth of the Lord will not leave her. Please, let her hear a hymn so she may heal faster… I beg you.”

n‘It’s useless.’ Sylvester wanted to say it. But, he relented since his hymns most often calm the minds of men and women.

nHe put his left hand on Thea’s forehead and let out a little bit of light touch her. Then, he sang a little hymn. But this time, as the halo appeared, all men and women bowed their heads, closed their eyes and prayed too. It was understandable since their lands had just faced one of the biggest crises ever.

na??The Lord sees your misery as well as glory.

nYour life, no matter what, is an ongoing story.

nAs long as you keep breathing, there is meaning.

nIf there is hurt, then soon there shall be healing.a??

na??Don’t let these hardships and pain turn you frustrated.

nDon’t let these bitter experiences make your vision obfuscated.

nRemember, only a concerned parent scolds their child.

nFor there is light after dark; Time shall again go beguiled.a??

na??It’s the law of the Lord; those dead may never return.

nBut no matter how much we yearn.

nLet’s hope their souls never take a wrong turn.

nLet’s pray that in the embrace of the Lord–they return.a??

n“Amen!”

n“Amen!”

nThe crowd’s silence finally broke as they all responded to the prayer. Duke Grimton also seemed relaxed now and silently looked at his granddaughter.

n“She has no mother… and her father is a wastrel,” Duke spoke. “We are the only support for one another. She is my little sun, and I am her best friend for the little tea parties. Hehe… she calls me mister fatty bear.”

nSylvester smiled and glanced at the little girl. He could imagine her playing around with her grandpa, giggling and running around.

n“I have no one in my life other than her. I want to see her come of age and be the Duchess… my inheritor. Lord Bard, thank you for saving her.”

nDuke Grimton held Sylvester’s hands and rested his forehead on them in complete resignation, showing his sincerity in his actions.

nSylvester patted the man’s shoulder and let him sit back, although he knew he did nothing. “It’s my duty to serve the faith, your grace. And kids are the purest creation of the Lord, so if I could save her, I’d be blessed. Don’t worry, Thea will live and become a strong Duchess.”

nCough!

nDuke Zephyr alerted them. “Grimton, how about you marry your granddaughter with my second son? Both are of a similar age.”

n“Fuck off, Zephyr! My little Thea will not marry the son of a wastrel like you.” Duke Grimton snapped.

nIn turn, the little crowd in the room chuckled as they all knew this was friendly banter. After all, the two Dukes had known each other since they were young. But a few faces didn’t smile as they remembered the cruel demise of Count Jartel’s family. The two Count brothers were still mourning beside the pile of dead bodies.

nDuke Zephyr scoffed. “Well, as you wish. My second son has the talent to be an Arch Wizard one day. What does your granddaughter have?”

n“She, too, has the talent to be an Arch Wizard and a Golden Knight. Hmph! Keep your lowly brats to yourself. I will find her a strong man like Lord Bard!”

nSylvester silently cursed them both. ‘Keep me out of these foolish discussions.’

nDuke Zephyr laughed at his rival’s face. “My friend, at least dream about something possible. Lord Bard is a once in a millennia creature. Folks with monstrous talents like him are not your run-of-the-mill boys. I guess little Thea will be single forever then.”

n‘What do you mean creature? Am I being dehumanised?’ Sylvester frowned in silence and slowly started to back away.

n“I don’t know! Even if not as strong as him, then… I won’t settle below how strong Lady Aurora is!” Duke Grimton barked back.

nSylvester walked to the door. He whispered to Lady Aurora as he passed by. “Follow me if you don’t want to be dragged into their banter.”

n“Thank you!” She did so.

nSylvester had the keys, so he went towards Sir Walder’s room. Felix, Gabriel and Bishop Lazark were with him too.

n“Where are the Crusaders?” Sylvester asked his favourite necromancer.

n“I left them to set up a camp around the main monastery in Raftel County. The people there told me about the war, so I came to check here.” Bishop answered.

n“I hope they don’t make a mess. I believe this whole region will soon be swarming with the Holy Army and Inquisitors. I wonder how the folks up high will respond to this.” Sylvester wondered.

nLady Aurora chimed in. “I’d rather worry more about what’s happening in the remaining two duchies in the north. If the Masan Empire is behind this, then I’m sure they have plans for that region too.”

nSylvester shrugged. “I won’t bother with it anymore. This whole conspiracy is way beyond my pay grade. I’ll let the experts handle them.”

nThey soon made their way into the room, and Sylvester immediately proceeded to open the armrests of his wheelchair.

n“That slimy guy,” Gabriel muttered, seeing the secret chambers of the wheelchair.

nSylvester first opened the left side and found a red feather of a strange bird. He looked at it in wonder at what it could mean. “Any ideas?” ｂ𝚍ｎｏｖ𝚕．ｃｏｍ

n“It’s a message.” Bishop Lazark voiced. “It’s a feather of Fire Eagle native to the western coast of the Masan Empire.”

n“What does it mean?” Sylvester inquired.

n“It’s a sign of respect and that one has accepted that their opponent is better than oneself. It’s usually given in competitions in the west. I received one from a necromancer I bested.” Bishop explained.

n“Who is it for?” Felix wondered.

n‘I think I know.’ Sylvester thought as he proceeded to open the right armrest of the wheelchair.

nPop!

nIt plopped open, and from it fell out a thick, folded parchment.

nSylvester unfolded it and sighed after a single glance at the content. “It’s a letter… addressed to me.”

n_______________________

n400 GT = 1 Bonus chapter.

n1 Super Gift = 1 Bonus chapter.

nAPE TOGETHER STRONG!

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