Chapter 34: Chivalric Literature and the Bastards Part 9

People turned to the gods whenever times were tough.  

And the current Empire in which Cedric lives is truly an era of upheaval.  

Whenever a territorial war broke out, knights who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere would suddenly shine, and then conscripted peasant soldiers would set off on long journeys from which they would never return.  

In the meantime, there were several crusades to reclaim holy lands, leading to the collection of silver coins by scraping together what little they had, and the near-collapse of the finances of some territories. There were also robberies by starving peasants and mercenaries who had not been paid.  

During these difficult times, the longing for gods existed universally, across both East and West, and throughout history.  

It was no different for the states of the continent, including the Empire, or for the heathens across the seas.  

Unfortunately, in the Empire, heathenism was not permitted.  

Those who were confirmed to be heretics were often whipped with a salt-laden scourge as a form of penance, and if they were considered beyond reason, they were thrown into a bonfire.  

As a result, during this time, reporting heretics became a good cause.  

By simply reporting to the church, one could receive a reasonable reward, which led to many cases where neighbors would maliciously report each other as heretics.  

Given this situation, the church did not just kill those reported outright, but rather, they followed appropriate categorization and legal procedures, holding trials.  

Innocent peasants who had been caught without reason were spared, while those who had been deceived by demons into following heathen beliefs were carefully selected out.  

Though sometimes it did not go as intended, it generally proceeded under systematic classification and trials.  

If Anselm’s daughter was accused of heresy, there would certainly have been solid grounds for it.  

Since Anselm’s daughter had ties to Lord Gebhardt, it was likely that the heresy court nearby had also carried out a thorough classification.  

If Anselm’s daughter had been burned alive as a heathen, she must have been marked as a heretic despite all the favorable conditions surrounding her.  

As to why Anselm’s daughter came to believe in heathenism, Cedric couldn’t be sure, but he did consider the possibility that she had been branded a heretic and burned alive.  

Anselm’s tax evasion fine could have been a reasonable source of grievance.  

However, it didn’t seem like it was a grudge strong enough to betray an entire city.  

But the situation was different if his daughter was burned alive.  

Poor, penniless serfs would sell even their children like goods, but when there was a little wealth, familial love often flourished.  

If Anselm’s daughter had been burned before Lord Hermann became regent, the one who executed the sentence would likely have been Lord Gebhardt.  

In that case, it made sense that Anselm would harbor enough of a grudge to betray the city he had helped build.  

But that still did not clear up all the questions.  

“How about the guildmaster?”  

Cedric formed a plausible hypothesis, but the guildmaster’s seemingly careless confession about his crimes still didn’t make sense.  

Even if Anselm and the guildmaster had cooperated, that would have meant the guildmaster spared Anselm’s life by offering his own.  

Even Cedric, who didn’t believe the guildmaster was a traitor, thought that didn’t quite add up.  

The real bastard who betrayed Baron Bellam and Baron Yaben was either Anselm or the guildmaster.  

Cedric furrowed his brow, deep in thought.  

Just as digging aimlessly in a dry desert doesn’t suddenly bring forth water, a meaningful answer didn’t emerge.  

“Lord Cedric? What’s wrong?”  

At that moment, the room became quiet, and Alisa, who had been watching Cedric become serious, blinked in confusion.  

If he was sometimes seen lost in deep thought alone, it meant that he was truly contemplating a serious problem.

“Alisa. Around you…”

“Hmm?”

“…No, it’s nothing.”

Keldric almost asked Alyssa more about Anshelm’s daughter but decided against it.

From Keldric’s perspective, Alyssa, who was staring blankly while chewing on her bread, didn’t seem like someone who would know anything more.

Keldric needed more information.

If it was something trivial, he wouldn’t have reacted so sensitively, but the instinct that had been quiet until now was stirring because of the information Alyssa had shared.

And as far as Keldric knew, there was exactly one person who would likely be well-informed about such rumors or gossip.

“Where’s the inn where Jorgen is staying?”

“That mercenary captain… he should be staying at the Silver Chalice Inn.”

“I’ll go take a quick look.”

As a mercenary captain, Jorgen had wide connections and had heard many rumors. He had likely been staying in Bellam for quite some time, so he would probably know something about Anshelm’s daughter.

 ☩    ☩    ☩     ☩     ☩     ☩     ☩     ☩

“Uh… are you talking about Anshelm’s daughter?”

Jorgen, who had been summoned early in the morning, looked disheveled beyond words.

He reeked of a pungent, sour odor, a sign of the wild night he had endured, and even Keldric couldn’t help but wrinkle his face at the sight of him.

“Ugh, the smell is really…”

It was no surprise that Alyssa, who was particularly sensitive to smells, made a disgusted face.

When Alyssa openly expressed her revulsion, Jorgen, now used to the finicky behavior of the mage, awkwardly scratched his messy hair.

This was the everyday life of a mercenary who didn’t work.

They lived as if today was their last, drinking late into the night or rolling around with women at taverns where there were hostesses.

Some of them may have families, but those types of mercenaries would have long since abandoned such a lifestyle.

“My apologies, Sir Keldric. I was in the middle of sleeping when I was called down, so I didn’t have time to wash up properly.”

“Forget about that, just answer the questions I ask.”

“If it’s about Anshelm’s daughter… well, yes. I’ve heard a few rumors.”

While it was more like gossip, it was something that might have actually happened in the past.

If one were to investigate, they’d likely ask the church clergy, a minstrel who sings at inns, or a merchant with wide connections.

However, the clergy, being high-ranking in the city, were likely to provide distorted information.

Minstrels were prone to changing stories and turning them into songs or poetry, and asking a merchant was no better; it would be faster to ask Anshelm himself.

Jorgen seemed relatively trustworthy.

Since he hadn’t been in the city for long and had been devoted to his mercenary lifestyle, only thinking about drinks and women, the likelihood of the information being distorted was small.

“Most of the information isn’t reliable, but should I still share it?”

“It’s fine. Just tell me everything you know about Anshelm. I’ll filter out what I need.”

“Ah, understood. Then, um…”

Jorgen, still half-asleep, began to rattle off the information and rumors he had gathered, his mind working hard to recall everything.

There were rumors that Anshelm frequently visited the brothel outside the castle, that his wife came from a family of prostitutes, and that he coveted the wealth of Lord Geberhart…

What Jörgen was saying was mostly unfounded rumors, floating in the air.

Keldric brushed off the ones that were not worth paying attention to. The information he was looking for was still not forthcoming.

“I also heard a rumor that Anshelm’s daughter was burned at the stake. There was a lot of talk about the reasons behind it.”

“Was there any particular reason?”

“Well, it’s a common story. I heard it from some merchants, but the tale goes that she was influenced by foreign religions and eventually converted to them. 

According to what I heard, Anshelm’s daughter became interested in her father’s business of meeting various people, which led her to be drawn to foreign beliefs. Over time, she began meeting with practitioners of those religions, conversing with them, and eventually became fully converted.”

“And when Geberhart and the Church discovered her, they exposed her and it all came to an end.”

“It caused quite an uproar. The daughter of a famous merchant’s guild leader in the city, daring to commit the sin of apostasy.”

Keldric nodded. 

“Indeed, if she had committed apostasy, it would make sense for her to be burned at the stake.”

“So, Anshelm’s daughter was caught as a heretic and burned at the stake?”

“There are many rumors, but the most common one is that she was a heretic.”

“….”

If that were the case, it meant that Anshelm had lost his daughter to a heretic faith without even realizing it, and his misplaced resentment was directed at Lord Geberhart.

As Keldric thought this through, a sense of incongruity arose.

If his daughter had become a heretic, no matter how strong his paternal love, the most common response would be immediate shock and then seeing her burned at the stake.

While it might seem strange to burn one’s own child, people from this empire at the time would have done exactly that. 

If Anshelm had held resentment over his daughter’s execution, it would be illogical for him to ignore her heresy and blindly hate the Cassel family, as a shrewd merchant would not act without calculating the consequences.

“This doesn’t add up.”

“I’m sorry. I don’t know much, so it’s probably just that.”

“No, it was enough. Thanks to you, I feel more certain now.”

At least the rumor about Anshelm’s daughter being a heretic didn’t seem like it had come out of nowhere.

Considering the approximate time and the penalty of execution by burning, this wasn’t just a rumor—it was likely the truth.

Burnings were usually public executions, carried out before the eyes of many people.

Even if it was a long time ago, there were probably still people alive who had witnessed the event.

Keldric organized all the information he had gathered so far.

The guild master had unknowingly been caught by Keldric for refusing to sell him goods, which had been a sloppy move.

Anshelm, who had sent Joseph as a peddler in Carlton Village, had been accused of tax evasion, leading to a strained relationship with Lord Hermann.

Moreover, his daughter had been burned at the stake for heresy.

Keldric’s brow furrowed.

“Why did he commit tax evasion?”

Was it in some way related to his daughter’s death?

He couldn’t be sure. The more he thought about it, the more complicated the situation became.

“Have you heard anything related to Anshelm’s tax evasion?”

“Tax evasion, you say? Tax evasion… 

…Ah, you mean the tax evasion that was caught by Lord Hermann?”

Jörgen had heard rumors about Anshelm’s tax evasion from time to time.

For some reason, Anshelm had committed tax evasion after the death of Lord Geberhart.

It had come to Lord Hermann’s attention, and thanks to a hefty fine, Anshelm had managed to escape with his life, according to Jörgen’s explanation.

“He had to pay a fine of a hundred florins. Well… it seems that a guildmaster of a merchant’s association really has a lot of money.”

“Of course. The Mormon guild has a lot of peddlers under its wing.”

“The wizard knows quite a few guildmasters, doesn’t he?”

While Alisa and Jörgen were talking about trivial matters, the shadow on Keldric’s face grew deeper. 

Thinking for a long time didn’t always bring quick answers.

At this point, Keldric was starting to get annoyed. 

After all, the guildmaster, who he had no personal acquaintance with, would die sooner or later, and Keldric could easily leave Bellam and go elsewhere.

If the real betrayer managed to survive, Bellam might face a major crisis, but frankly, Keldric wasn’t concerned with that.

However, if he thought about it further, it wasn’t Keldric’s problem if Hilmer died either.

Yet, Keldric had saved Hilmer’s life. The same went for Lady Bellaf.

If he were asked for a clear reason, Keldric would hesitate and eventually mutter, “Because it seemed like a bad dream.”

This was the same situation. Keldric felt like he was sinking into a maze, but still made every effort to find the real betrayer.

But all he got in return were vague rumors and useless stories.

Eventually, Keldric gave up on thinking deeply.

At this point, all assumptions were meaningless.

Testing the bridge by tapping it before crossing was one thing, but building a steel bridge beside it because the stone bridge was untrustworthy was another.

“Should I just throw it all away?”

Keldric wasn’t a monk. His patience had its limits.

Anshelm’s daughter was a heretic. That’s why she was burned at the stake. Keldric decided to accept this reasoning.

If that were the case, there was only one possible reason why Anshelm might harbor resentment over his daughter’s death.

“Is it possible that Anshelm is a heretic as well?”

Alisa and Jörgen, who had been chatting idly, fell silent at the same time. 

They looked at Keldric with expressions that seemed to say, “Did I mishear that?” and then, noticing Keldric’s slightly irritated expression, they swallowed their words.

However, Keldric was right. Any merchant would deal with wealthy heretics.

“Anshelm, the guildmaster, you mean? Well, that’s…

…yes, he does engage in active trade with heretics. He hates the heretics, but he doesn’t hate their money.”

Spices, silk, jewels, coral, dates… 

All things that merchants drool over, and all things sold by the heretics.

However, Anshelm’s daughter had already been influenced by the heresy. Keldric decided to believe this for now.

But Anshelm’s daughter hadn’t been simply influenced by the heresy for no reason. There must have been a connection.

What if Anshelm, who traded with the heretics, had converted to the faith first and then influenced his daughter?

What if his daughter followed suit, converted to the heretic faith, and was caught while trying to practice their form of worship?

Seeing this, Lord Geberhart could not easily kill Anshelm, who had contributed so much to the city. Instead, he decided to put his daughter on the pyre.

Anshelm barely managed to save his own life, but as a fellow apostate, he was enraged by his daughter’s death.

Lord Geberhart ordered him to be forcibly converted. Anshelm, crying, reluctantly renounced the heresy once more.

Filled with resentment, Anshelm stopped being loyal to the city from that point onward.

To embezzle taxes, he began scheming, and eventually, Lord Hermann caught wind of it.

To hide the fact that he had spared Anshelm after his apostasy, Lord Geberhart told no one about it. 

Because of this, Lord Hermann remained unaware of Anshelm’s heresy.

A fine was imposed on Anshelm. Once again, he managed to save his life but grew bolder in his actions.

He manipulated the guildmaster, spinning lies to him. The greedy guildmaster, blinded by the possibility of earning more money and by Anshelm’s misinformation, was marked as a traitor to the city.

Thus, the true traitor, Anshelm, smoothly slipped away.

“This is it.”

Keldric, suddenly alert, rose to his feet.

Alisa and Jörgen, who had been watching him with slightly tense expressions, stood up as well.

Keldric had made up his mind to go after Anshelm now.

No matter how plausible a hypothesis might be, it remained a hypothesis.

That being said, there was no time to waste waiting days to verify the truth when the guildmaster, who had no real connection to the situation, would likely die soon.

Instead, Keldric decided to go directly to Anshelm, using his position and power to get the answers he needed.

As for procedures, presumptuous actions, and the principle of presumed innocence—honestly, Keldric had no qualms about ignoring all of that.

From now on, he had resolved to act decisively.

Of course, Lord Hermann might not be pleased with this approach.

So what?

The situation had already gone too far for such considerations to matter now.

Since Anshelm’s behavior had seemed suspicious, Keldric felt that if he let this slide, it would feel dishonorable. 

It could even be that Lord Hermann, who had no fondness for Anshelm, would take the lead in exposing him.

All things considered, Keldric didn’t want to think about this any longer. If he did, he felt he might die of frustration.

“Jörgen.”

“Y-Yes, Lord Keldric.”

“You stay here. I appreciate the information.”

Two silver coins were handed to Jörgen’s hand.

Unexpectedly, Jörgen’s face brightened with a smile, pleased by his small windfall.

“Alisa, come with me.”

“Uhm… may I ask where we’re going?”

Keldric patted the mace at his waist.

Most knights were brutal. Keldric wasn’t any different in that regard.

If he needed to, he could easily become vicious.

“We’re going to the Mormon guild.”

And, in Keldric’s view, now was the right time for this.