BXBX NOVEL Chapter 98 98 – Troublesome Opponent
After interrogating the Fallen Archbishop, I healed him to close his wound and left him to Gerald. I couldn\'t let this sorry excuse of a human die yet.
Gerald left the room while dragging the fat human using the rope I lent him. Because I cut all Jasper\'s limbs, he wouldn\'t be able to escape by himself unless he killed himself.
Even so, I bet he would just revive in the revival chamber in the church, so I asked Gerald to send some knights to guard the revival chamber in case that happened.
Left alone, I went to the golden-plated desk to find something. There should at least be a letter of his exchange with the Duke that could serve as evidence, as well as the long-distance communication magic item that I could use to contact Sana, my beloved Archbishop.
As for the magic item, I found it easily as it lay bare on the desk. Many silver earrings with blue gems were encased inside a box. I was certain they were a magic item due to their design and, more importantly, the description from <Appraisal> I used on one of the earrings.
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[Earring of Communication – Capital City]
Allow someone to communicate with another pair of earrings by using 3 MP.
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A simple description that I preferred. I opened the box and tried to find one that got connected to Academy City. After appraising around 7 out of 10 earrings, I found the one that connected to Academy City.
I wore the earring in my left ear. Once it settled nicely, I activated it by using my MP, and the blue gem glowed bright blue. A buzzing sound entered my left ear, but a click and a soft voice belonging to someone I knew well soon followed it.
(Archbishop Jasper? Is there something that matters?)
Her tone was filled with curiosity and worry, probably after no communication came from Jasper after she asked him to declare Alexander Bluerose as a Sinner. A serious air could be felt even though we didn\'t talk face to face; it was clear from her voice.
So I decided to mess with Sana for a bit.
"Of course, milady. This humble servant of Goddess Teri needs to report something to you."
(Hya! S-Sir Arthur?! How are– Cough, why are you in the Bluerose Duchy?)
Even though she sounded surprised to the point she was coughing, Sana immediately calmed down and asked the most important question in this situation.
"I heard something from a certain someone and wanted to fix a problem," I replied as I opened the drawer of the desk to find something. There was nothing, so I moved toward the bookshelves on the side.
"Who knows that I would find something bigger than the problem I tried to fix, including the existence of a Succubus in Bluerose Duchy and a case of missing young girls in the past 2 days." I continued.
(A Succubus? Are you certain, Sir Arthur?)
"Information from Sandra and the fact Alexander Bluerose became a Sinner were the fuel for me to investigate it," I replied to her as I went through some documents I found on the bookshelves.
As I expected, the letter was hidden between thick documents. There was a total of 5 letters, and one of them had something that caught my attention. It was the name of the senders.
Instead of Duke Bluerose, the name on the letter on the bottom was really familiar to me. Beatrice.
\'Got you.
"And I think the fact that I met a Devilkin in Bluerose Duchy on the first day is enough evidence for the evidence that there is a Succubus nesting in this Duchy."
(A Devilkin?!) A loud, surprised voice rang in my ear as I heard a loud thud from the other line. (Does that mean?)
"Yes." I nodded without waiting for her to finish her sentence. "We faced a Succubus that came from Hell Realm instead of the ones from the Sin Kingdom. Garcia had given me some information too."
A primordial Succubus, that was Beatrice\'s race.
Unlike normal succubus that lived in Sin Kingdom, her race was older and… wilder. Maybe that wasn\'t the correct term, but she wasn\'t tied by the rule of Sins and Virtues made by the Goddess of Lust, Lilith.
Why? Because primordial Succubus was a Race born from a drop of the Goddess\' love juice in the Hell Realm. It was a messed up lore from Sins Paradise, but that was just how it was. This world had always been crazy due to the Goddess.
Naturally, because the rule didn\'t tie them, they couldn\'t be dominated or dominate people. One of the reasons why I didn\'t think I could control her.
They, however, could turn the people they charmed into their kin, changing their race from whatever it was to a Devilkin.
Devilkin was akin to dominated people; they couldn\'t deny the order from their \'Master,\' just like what happened to Jasper. He probably fell before the church even declared Alexander a Sinner. And looking at him, probably Duke Bluerose had also fallen too.
Still, for whatever reason, primordial Succubi could also still revive like normal Succubi in the Sin Kingdom if they were killed. So dealing with them was a hassle before I knew about the penalty behind the revival.
(… May I know who had fallen to the Succubus and turned into a Devilkin?)
Sana sounded unsure, as if she already had some guesses about it. Maybe she was suspicious of the church in Duchy too, and probably connected the dots with the information I had given to her earlier.
"It\'s Archbishop Jasper. I have plenty of evidence in front of me that connected him to the Succubus as well as Duke Bluerose. I will use them to take care of them tonight."
Once I answered her, silence followed suit. Figures. An Archbishop, a big figure of the church, had fallen that low and turned into a Devilkin.
It only showed how low Castitas Church had fallen in grace, too, mainly due to the government stopping aiding them with funds. It wasn\'t to the point where it couldn\'t be saved yet. In fact, from our discussion with King Cassius a few days ago, the church regained its footing.
However…
\'King Cassius\' response to our demand is too late and slow. He has too many enemies among Noble and high-ranking society.\'
We could use it to further pressure the government to aid the church. But for now… I needed to resolve this problem directly.
(Is that so…) Her tone was filled with disappointment. (I\'ll report it to the Pope. I am truly sorry, but may I request you to take care of the office for a few days after you resolve the problem in the Duchy, Sir Arthur? I shall ask for someone to replace the fallen Archbishop Jasper immediately.)
"Unfortunately, that\'s not something I can do."
After dealing with Duke Bluerose and Beatrice, I still needed to get to Rose Barony to get my reward.
(Then…) Sana\'s tone returned to normal even though I had just refused her request. Well, she knew my personality already, so at least she could guess that I would refuse her request.
\'She was just saying that in case I want to take care of the church, maybe gaining some popularity among the believers in the Duchy.\'
I didn\'t need that, however. Resolving this incident would already make me famous and trusted
(I would send a Bishop under me to help take care of the church. She will arrive tomorrow morning at the fastest, and her name is Ertha.)
"Tomorrow, huh? That\'s perfect. Sorry for not being able to take care of the office here, Sana. I have another agenda waiting for me."
And that agenda was to make progress with Eliza and get her mother while I was at it, if possible.
(Please don\'t be sorry. It\'s our fault, rather, my fault for not checking whether the former Archbishop Jasper could be trusted with such an important duty. I am truly sorry to inconvenience you due to our mistake, Sir Arthur.)
"Once again, it\'s not a problem."
It was still within my original plan\'s range, dealing with Beatrice. I just didn\'t expect that woman to already make such progress with her plan to get me.
Truly, she was such an enchantress.
\'Fit to be the protagonist\'s helper.\'
Though she was truly a troublesome opponent.
"Anyway…" I spoke with a grin on my face as I learned what was written in the letters I found. A location was written in it, complete with a time.
There were no other words besides those, but it was the only letter with Beatrice\'s name.
"… I have a date tonight. Contact me through this magic item if you need something, Sana. I\'ll wear it all the time until Ertha arrives."
(Yes, Sir Arthur. May Goddess Teri\'s blessing be with you.)
"Thank you, Archbishop Sana. May Goddess Teri\'s blessing be with you too," I replied, deactivating the earring.