Chapter 302 – The Exorcism of Peta Sieri (4)
It was late at night in the central branch of Daecheonsingyo. There was a man walking with a confused face in the midst of the busy steps of carrying documents. Combing his gray hair back and sweeping his aquiline nose, he asked the attendant next to him once more.
“Who said you came?”
“This is Rosalyn Barba, Marquis.”
“The kingdom’s treasurer?”
“Yes.”
“Why is he asking to see me?”
The Marquis Rosaline Barba rarely made personal relationships with others, and was feared for her strict personality. Nelson, the head priest of the Archangel Church, couldn’t understand why the terrifying mogul was looking for him. The attendant also shook his head as if he couldn’t guess.
“I don’t know either.”
“Heh heh, I don’t know how people are looking for me at such a busy time.”
Nelson’s face was full of stress. It was because Peta Lucius, the head of the accident-prone priest, even submitted a letter of resignation saying he would save the little devil. The parish meeting of the headquarters of the Archangel Church saw this act of Peta Lucius as a direct challenge to the doctrine of the Archangel Church, and agreed to go forward strongly.
The Archangel Church has dispatched five paladins to transport Sieri and a southern priest to replace Lucius. The servant began to soothe Nelson, who was even biting his nails.
“It may not be surprising.”
Nelson hoped so too. Beyond the closed drawing room door, Nelson caught his breath once more. Amidst the busy movement of people, only the servant and Nelson were as stiff as a rock. It took quite a while for him to knock on the door. The attendant noticed and slipped back, and a gloomy voice was heard from inside at the sound of Nelson knocking.
“Come in.”
Nelson carefully opened the door. There was the Marquis Rosaline Barba. He’s an eccentric old man with the most northern temperament. Even though he was sitting in a chair, he boasted a physique that overwhelmed Nelson’s stooping frame, and he was a pale and strong figure, as if he had been carved out of stone.
He was smoking a pipe and blowing out a long stream of smoke. Nelson said, cautiously sitting across from the Marquis of Barba.
“Hello, Marquis. My name is Nelson, who is in charge of the general priesthood of the Archangelic Church.”
“Okay. Nelson?”
“Yes.”
Rosalyn Barba Marquis seemed more interested in the pipe she was biting than in Nelson. He glanced at the opening through which his smoke was pouring out and let out another puff of smoke. He added a handful of smoke over the thick smoke. And he looked at Nelson with only his eyebrows raised. Nelson felt uncomfortable seeing the statue as if he were seeing it live.
“Priest Nelson. I heard he had a small problem with the Sarang cult subjugation this time.”
“Ah, if it’s a problem, what are you talking about…”
“About the ‘devil’ problem. A nun named Peta Sierra turns out to be actually a demon? I came here because there’s been a lot of fuss over that issue lately.”
“It’s an internal matter within the Archangel Church, so there’s nothing I can say about it.”
“Internal problems? You mean an internal problem?”
Rosalyn Barba asked, exhaling smoke once more. Nelson hurriedly nodded his head.
“Yes Yes. It’s an internal matter. From before, Daecheonsingyo and the kingdom have been respecting each other’s policy direction without interfering…”
“Is catching one little devil such a big problem from a policy point of view? Aren’t you the ones who are raising a problem that can be overlooked?”
“A bird, a baby devil. All demons are very cruel and terrifying…”
“Whether you’re afraid of the devil or not, I heard that the devil is now under the supervision of Lord Peta Lucius, former high priest of the Archangel Church.”
“The devil must be purified.”
Marquis Rosaline Barba laughed at Priest Nelson’s remarks. Nelson felt uneasy at the sight of a small smile on his hardened face.
“It’s not a problem to purify the demons. In fact, I don’t even care if that kid is really a dangerous demon or not. This, then, is a matter of the prestige of my family. Got it? If that woman, Peta Sierra, is judged as a dangerous demon and ‘cleansed’, then Peta Lucius will be possessed by a demon and turn his back on the Archangel Church.”
“That… The question is how do we judge…”
“Looking at the way you say that you will create a case but not judge, you should have been a politician rather than a religious person. Anyway, listen to the end. That Peta Lucius Knight Commander is now my granddaughter’s husband. Do you know what I mean?”
“Oh that…”
Nelson’s face went white for an instant, then went back to normal. Nelson continued.
“My granddaughter is the daughter-in-law of an idiot possessed by the devil? That sounds funny. That shouldn’t happen. Do you know what I mean?”
“…This is blackmail.”
Rosalyn Barba said, patting her own head.
“I want you guys to deliver it to His Holiness the Pope, this is not a threat. It informs you of what is to come. I’ll ask again. Do you think that Peta Lucius, who has the holy sword of the kingdom, subdued the demon lord, and made a great contribution in the operation to subjugate the Love Cult, is possessed by the devil?”
“I just couldn’t figure out the devil’s identity.”
“It means that neither the holy sword nor A.A., The hero who accompanied Priest Peta Lucius, could see through the identity from a distance, only through rumors. Listen carefully. Countless soldiers and knights of our kingdom have died on the Eastern Front. Your proud priests were changing bandages in the back. What is the intention of belittling the man who risked his life on that front line? If you do that, will your gong increase? Gero, who became a hero, wanted to build up his prestige by executing the demons he couldn’t capture. Right?”
“…If our knights had known that demons would appear, they would have fought.”
“Right. You delayed your departure because the Love Cultists are not demons. I’ll put it off again.”
Marquis Barba beckoned. It meant to come out. Nelson trembled with his face red. But he couldn’t say anything more to Marquis Barba. Nelson opened the door and came out to catch his breath. Even when I came out to his hallway, the remnant of cigarettes still lingered on the tip of his nose. He did not know how to convey the Marquis Barba’s message to the replacement pope. The attendant walked up to him and bowed his head.
“Ah, priest. How have you been?”
“First, go to His Holiness the Pope…”
“Supervising Priest! General Priest!”
“What is it?”
A priest was running in a hurry from the direction of the front gate of Daecheonsingyo Headquarters. His face his was white as if he had met Marquis Barba in the hallway. White-faced attendants were running hurriedly in different directions from the direction he was running. Nelson grabbed the priest and asked.
“What is it? How?”
The attendant took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak.
“Boo, Grand Duke Emilia has arrived!”
“What?”
*****
A new drawing room was prepared for the Grand Duke of the North. The reception room used by the Marquis of Barba was not a place to greet the Grand Duke of the North because of the strong smell of tobacco. Northern Grand Duke Emilia. She was the iron woman who led the northern part of the country, which was collapsing due to the subhumans, into a period of revival. She looked around the room with large red eyes and benevolence, not befitting her nickname of the Iron Lady, then sat down on her sofa. Priest Nelson saw Emilia’s gentle face her and felt her heart sink a little. It was a different atmosphere from Marquis Barba, who had made people bleed from the first meeting.
“What are you doing?”
Emilia asked while stroking her fur coat.
“You’re doing something very interesting this time.”
“…What are you talking about…”
Nelson felt uneasy. When he faced the Marquis of Barba, he felt
“There are rumors that they are trying to kill the wife of Peta Lucius, the priest of the south, as a demon.”
“I don’t drive as a devil, I am a devil. Sorcerers have witnessed it, and Peta Sieri herself has admitted that she is a demon.”
“Is that important?”
“Important.”
Father Nelson said firmly. She could have been a little more determined with Emilia. Emilia opened her mouth with her calm face.
“Obviously, fact-checking is important. But Peta Lucius defended her by abandoning her own priesthood, and tried to take her with her, even though he assured her several times that he was her good man her and not her devil her. “
“The former southern priest, Peta Lucius, was tricked by the devil. The devil is very cunning…”
“Is that important?”
“…Important. Grand Duke Emilia. Why are you talking like this…”
“Suddenly, an old incident came to mind. My father-in-law, the Grand Duke of North Korea, made a huge donation to Daecheonsingyo every year. He encouraged me to donate as well, saying it was the easiest way to give back to society. And when he passed away and the aggression of the subhumans accelerated, Daecheonsingyo sent a letter instead of sending the Holy Knights. [Considering the poor situation in the North, we will not accept donations.]”
“As far as I know, they formed a group of priests for service and sent them out several times.”
“I didn’t actually go out. I heard that you can’t use your power to harm the demihumans.”
“Does it matter? That’s the doctrine of Daecheonsingyo…”
“Important.”
Nelson shut his mouth. Emilia looked straight at Nelson and continued her words of her.
“When you turned away from the invasion of the demi-humans, it was Peta Lucius who solved the case. Even now, Peta Lucius is called a hero in the North where I rule. Nelson Superintendent. Is it so important that one little woman is the devil? Does she have the power to destroy the world to that demon? Do you not care at all about the aftermath of those words?”
Cried Priest Nelson.
“If you set a precedent! The demons will surely find their way through the cracks! So, we must not show a gap! That Peta Lucius made the wrong choice…”
“Priest Nelson. It doesn’t matter.”
Priest Nelson froze. Emilia rose from her seat and said,
“If you want to treat one person as a demon follower and make all the northern territories into fools who adore demon followers, then we have no choice but to respond accordingly. As soon as the execution of Petasieri is carried out, the North will cut off all support for the Archangelists. In addition, we will issue a formal statement to protest to the kingdom about this act of Daecheonsingyo.”
“Ah…”
Nelson’s face went white. Said Emilia.
“Tell the Pope. It is a very important story.”
