Circumstances of a Fallen Lord

Chapter 81

Luisen tried to come up with another excuse, but nothing came to mind. His mind went blank.

“Did you know that those people were creating new monsters? How did you come by that information?” Morrison asked, again.

That snake monster was a new man-made creation? That was certainly surprising, but Luisen couldn’t answer. Morrison walked to the wall after realizing that Luisen avoided answering.

He picked out one of the most horrible and gruesome appearing torture instruments–it was hard to fathom what it could be used for.

Bang!

He slammed it down in front of the young lord, as if to show off the tool. The young lord trembled.

“N-No… It’s not that I don’t want to say anything…”

 Even if he were to speak, he didn’t think that the other would believe him. Ah, should he just reveal everything? When Luisen hesitated, Morrison stared at the young lord quietly; the inquisitor’s gaze seemed to urge the young lord to give a speedy answer. That raised the young lord’s anxiety. Struck with fear that Morrison would point the torture apparatus at him, the young lord’s mouth would no longer open.

After trembling like that for a while, one question came to mind.

‘…Why is he just sitting still and staring at me?’

Luisen recalled how Carlton had interrogated Cullen. The mercenary did not wait for an answer nor did he ask questions multiple times. When it became clear that Cullen was hiding something, the mercenary immediately dragged the handyman to the opening and dunked him into the river. The mercenary was sure his victim would open his mouth anyway, so Carlton didn’t waste any time in trying to soothe and assuage the man.

Come to think of it, when Luisen wandered around the land, those who had something to gain from the young lord started the conversation with their fists. Morrison, on the other hand, had cultivated a dreadful atmosphere, as if he were going to do something gruesome, but the inquisitor had yet to place a finger on Luisen.

‘…Now that I think about it, why is he just talking to me?’

 Was it because Morrison is a priest? No–that can’t be it. Priests loathe and hate heretics and cultists. Priests on the extreme end of those beliefs would be selected as inquisitors. There was no way the man was showing mercy.

 ‘Still, there’s no way…that he’s being lenient because he knows me.’

Luisen couldn’t fathom what was in Morrison’s innermost thoughts. ‘There’s a limit to my brain!’ He thought. The young lord remembered two of the best people he had known in his life–the one-armed pilgrim and Calrton. What would those two have done?

Luisen tried to use his imagination. In his head, the two men’s imaginary voices shouted as one: ‘That guy’s not sure either, so he’s just flapping his mouth!’

Yes! That’s it!

Luisen felt enlightened.

If Morrison was convinced that Luisen was a demon worshiper, he would not have been waiting for Luisen to wake up and explain the young lord’s side of the story. He would have started torturing the young lord’s unconscious body, forcing him to come to his senses. The inquisitor would have shaken and overwhelmed Luisen’s senses without giving the young lord time to figure out what was happening.

Morrison waited until fear had stacked to an appropriate intensity in the young lord. He kindly informed the other that he was an Inquisitor and explained why he suspected Luisen. Similarly, Morrison’s question seemed like a tactic to obtain more information rather than to accuse the young lord of heresy.

Luisen’s head was spinning around. As if he had become the one-armed pilgrim or Carlton, the young lord could clearly see the other’s intent. “You don’t think I’m a demon-worshiper, right?”

 The solemn atmosphere in the room was disrupted by that one question. Morrison, at the center of the chilling vibe, was expressionless as if he hadn’t heard the young lord, but Luisen could intuit that the man was flustered.

Now that the young lord thought this far, Luisen was no longer afraid of this situation or Morrison’s gaze. Luisen stretched his shoulders and raised his head. The young lord was in his underwear, and his face was a mess. His body had been tied up, and his appearance was unpleasant; however, that one action was enough to reveal the arrogance that had been an integral part of the young lord’s life.

“You know that I’m not a demon-worshiper, but you’re trying to get information out of me; you’re setting the tone of the situation. Correct?”

“No.”

“What do you mean, no? You’re confirming that you don’t believe me to be a heretic by answering my questions.” Luisen didn’t let up and pressed on, spurred by his momentum. “You’ve been watching me on the ship, right? No wonder–I felt like someone was staring at me. How was it? I’m not a cultist, right? But, you think I know something. However, because I hid my identity, you didn’t think I’d answer if you had asked directly. That’s why you wanted to set this mood. Inquisitors…I suppose it’s true that they’re quite cruel to heretics, but they can’t touch non-heretics, correct?”

“……”

 “Why don’t you answer me?” Luisen looked Morrison in the eye. The winner of the short staring contest was the young lord.

Morrison sighed and raised his hand. His expression returned to something familiar–the kind merchant Luisen was familiar with. “Ah, you’re more perceptive than I thought.”

Luisen’s tension quickly released.

‘My prediction was correct! Thank you, Sir Carlton…One-armed Pilgrim! I’d like to dedicate this honor to both of you!”

 Even though the young lord was speaking so vigorously, Luisen was actually trembling; he thought he would die from anxiety. The General’s ‘poker face in any situation’ lessons were of great help.

 ‘General, you must still be suffering because of me. I’ll listen carefully to you when I return.’ Luisen, recalling everyone’s faces, thanked them from the bottom of his heart.

 “So, who are you?” 1 Morrison asked.

Luisen flicked his fingers, quite impetuously and annoyingly, “Undo these first.”

“Ah, yes.” Morrison untied Luisen’s hands and feet.

Honestly, the young lord wanted to rest now because he was exhausted, but it would be a waste of his reputation as  ‘trash.’ Luisen stood up, straining his trembling legs. He slapped Morrison on the cheek without hesitation. With a loud clap, the inquisitor’s face turned away. The strong hit made Luisen’s wrist tingle.

“Would you please forgive me for my mistake with this?” The inquisitor asked.

“Forgive you? I’m going to make a formal complaint to the church. How dare you make me suffer such an insult–and you want to get away with this with a simple slap on the cheek? I’m going to visit the archbishop and tell him everything that you’ve done to me.”

     “You’re someone that can meet with the archbishop? Seriously, who are you?”

“Luisen Anies. I’m the guardian of the gold fields and one of the Great Lords.”

“Ah…!” Morrison exclaimed. “You look better in person than in portraits.”

“I hear that a lot,” Luisen said apathetically before sitting back down in his chair. “I was on my way to the capital at the behest of his majesty. To think that I’d be kidnapped on my way to fulfill my sacred duty of defending the kingdom and its sovereignty. I guess the church must have many complaints about the royal family.”

“N-No. It would be troublesome for you to interpret it that way. I’m just faithful to my duty–this has nothing to do with politics. Besides, you acted quite suspiciously, right?”

“No? Not at all. Why blame me for your loss of common sense.”

 Honestly, Luisen thought that even he would have misunderstood, but Luisen backed off from that line of questioning. Shamelessness was a common virtue for the nobility.

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Morrison soon realized that he had fallen into an awkward situation. He falsely threatened an innocent man–someone who was one of the top five political powerhouses in the country at that!

 Although inquisitors weren’t swayed by secular values and only followed God’s word, the church couldn’t be maintained by building atop clouds and drinking only morning dew. If they wanted to build on the kingdom’s land, they needed to live in harmony with the royalty. It was foolish to pretend to have any sort of political power. Especially now, when the current king’s life was about to end and the Great Lords’ power authority was increasing.

 “What can I do for you to let this slight pass?” Morrison stood in front of Luisen. Their positions harkened back to the beginning of this conversation, but their relationship had completely reversed. Luisen now had the upper hand.

“The people who have the ability to control monsters. Tell me everything you know about them.”

“You’re talking about the demon worshippers, yes?”

 So, he’s saying that Ruger and his gang are demon worshippers. They belong to a heretical religion so influential that an inquisitor was chasing them. Ruger and cultism–what an unfitting combination.

  ‘Well, It’s not like I know much about Ruger,.’ Luisen worriedly groaned.

“By the way, if you’re the duke. The mercenary you were with…is he perhaps Carlton? The first Prince’s hands and feet?”

“That’s correct.”

  “Oh, so the rumor that was circulating on the streets about you two escaping together out of love wasn’t completely off course?”

  “Can you spout nonsense in this situation? Huh?” Luisen glared coldly at Morrison.

“No, I truly mean it… In anycase, I can’t beat that man, so please save me.”

What is this nonsense he’s spewing now? Luisen opened his mouth to ask further, but the ceiling collapsed. At the same time, a big sword plunged through from above. Morrison narrowly blocked the initial attack; when the blade chipped, the inquisitor had to roll backwards. A familiar backside blocked Luisen’s view, as if he were protecting the young lord.

“Carlton!”

‘I knew you’d come looking for me!’ Luisen hugged Carlton’s waist, overjoyed to see the mercenary.

Carlton flinched and trembled. “Let go. First, I’m going to beat up that bastard…”

“My duke, please save me!” Morrison begged.

“As expected, he knows who we are. We can’t let him live…”

“I told him–it’s fine. Calm down. There’s still a lot I need to ask him.” Luisen hugged Carlton even harder. Carlton froze like a man that had been cursed. Carlton’s face looked grim, as if he were eager to break the inquisitor in two.

As he watched the young lord gently clinging to his defender, Morrison’s tongue clicked. “And you said I was speaking nonsense! Ah–I get it. By the way, are my men still alive? I should pick them up first…before their corpses are found. Please excuse me for a moment.” Morrison ran outside without looking back.

He gave long-winded excuses, but they were certainly quite useful in escaping Carlton’s wrath.

“Can we let him go like that?”

“He’ll return anyway. He must still have many questions for me.” Luisen loosened his hold when he saw Morrison was far away. Carlton turned back. Only then did the mercenary notice that Luisen was wearing only underwear. The anger that had subsided just a moment ago erupted like a volcano.

‘Morrison, I’m going to catch and kill you.’ Carlton vowed.

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TL: I just had the biggest grin on my face this entire chapter. +1 to Luisen for his adorably shameless act (?).

1. Even though the English won’t let me show this nuance, Morrison has returned to his incredibly polite demeanor. He’s calling Luisen ‘Sir’ etc.