East Road Quest

Chapter 23: The Departing and the Pursued

“It’s truly been an odd day,” thought Bishop David as he loaded the still dazed Brother Franco onto the back of the cart, reflecting on the day’s events.

The strangeness began with Cardinal Lorenzo’s visit to the Saint Vesta Cathedral. He had come only to speak of matters that neither required immediate attention nor provided any cause for concern.

Bishop David had always harbored a fear of Cardinal Lorenzo, despite the latter never having resorted to threats, doctrinal disputes, or political pressure.

In fact, Lorenzo had often been helpful, dealing with troublesome matters and even recommending talented individuals. He had always been polite when asking for assistance with his own troubles.

Once, Bishop David had visited Lorenzo’s home. Carrying a few apples he had acquired, he decided to stop by Lorenzo’s conveniently located house to offer them as a gift.

After knocking politely and waiting, Lorenzo appeared a minute later, seemingly with a halo of light shining from behind his head, as if an angel was descending. The sight was so startling that David stood speechless, gaping.

Lorenzo, unaware of his own luminescence, asked casually what brought David there. David handed over the apples and hurriedly left the house.

David never mentioned the incident to Lorenzo. It could have been a trick of the light or a mere illusion.

Afterward, there were several more such occurrences, subtle phenomena that only David seemed to notice around Lorenzo. Some priests envied Lorenzo’s apparent political transformation or rumored conspiracies against the emperor or the pontiff, but David felt that if Lorenzo were plotting something, it would be beyond the imagination of ordinary priests.

Lorenzo’s lack of response regarding the Holy Grail was particularly suspicious. While the pontiff was the only one visibly excited about the Grail, the Rafal Priesthood officially sided with him, and Lorenzo’s silence was taken as agreement by most.

Only David thought differently.

“Lorenzo isn’t distancing himself from the Grail. Like the emperor’s silent opposition to the Grail expedition, Lorenzo is expressing an opinion through his silence. But whether it’s opposition, support, or something else, I can’t tell.”

After Lorenzo left the cathedral, David felt trapped, unable to leave. He needed to hurry and protect Jade, but it seemed as if Lorenzo’s agents were watching.

He had also been waiting for Daniel’s arrival.

The news of Daniel’s death reached David at noon. The messengers, a patrolling guard and a security officer, both confirmed Daniel’s demise and the likely death of an unknown companion.

David felt as if the sky had fallen.

He and Daniel had been close enough to exchange wills. David’s own will was lengthy and complex, detailing the intricate relationships surrounding the Saint Vesta Cathedral to prevent future conflicts within the Rome Priesthood.

Daniel’s will, however, was overly simplistic, leaving everything to Jade to handle as he saw fit.

A month after the emperor entrusted the Grail expedition to Jade, and less than half a day after his return to Rome, Daniel died in a sudden fire.

David was convinced it was murder. Now, it was time to protect Jade and let him deal with Daniel’s problems, as per the will.

David prepared to leave, disguising himself as a disheveled wine merchant.

As he was leaving the cathedral, a ragged girl approached him. Normally, he would have cared for such a person, but the anxious David tossed her a coin and left.

The girl seemed out of place, her dignity intact despite her muddy clothes and indiscernible hair color. She didn’t cling desperately like other beggars. She didn’t rejoice over the coin nor did she greedily ask for more.

David felt a pang of guilt. For some reason, he was reminded of an ancient scripture that existed before the nine bibles were written.

The angels had decided to burn the corrupt city of Sodom, but one angel objected, believing there must be at least one righteous person in the city.

The angels postponed their punishment, and the dissenting angel descended to earth disguised as a beggar girl.

The girl, hungry and sick, asked for help. The townspeople ignored her, other beggars chased her from their territory, and soldiers assaulted her.

Finally, she found a small church on the outskirts of the city. A poor priest named Jacob fed her, sheltered her, and cared for her illness.

At dawn the next day, the girl revealed herself as an angel and warned Jacob.

“Tonight, a rain of fire will fall from the sky. But this church will be safe under my protection, so do not go outside!”

Jacob warned the people and invited them to take refuge in the church. Only those who believed in God and followed him sought shelter there.

At midnight, as the angel had forewarned, a rain of fire fell from the sky…

After seeing the girl, David was lost in thought until he met Jade outside of Rome.

“If the girl is still there when I return, I must do as Jacob did. I’ll clean her up, dress her in fine clothes, and bring her into the church. If she wishes, I could even send her to a convent.”

David was so engrossed in these thoughts on his return journey that he didn’t notice Brother Franco had disappeared from the back of the cart.

Bishop David only realized the cart was empty just before entering Rome.

“Brother Franco? Brother Franco!”

The first thought that crossed Bishop David’s mind was that Brother Franco might have fallen off the rattling cart. However, there were no broken parts on the cart or places from where he could have fallen off.

‘Brother Franco must have gotten off without me noticing. But why?’

Bishop David looked back along the road they had traveled, but there was no sign of anyone on the horizon.

‘Why indeed? Good heavens!’

Overwhelmed with guilt, Bishop David sat helplessly in the cart.

‘It was my offer to help that has put Jade in danger.’

‘Jade, this man had the Fourth Scripture with him!’

Brother Franco had no intention of betraying Bishop David or putting the Rome Priesthood in danger. On the contrary, he was filled with a sense of mission to triumph over the competition with the Raphael Priesthood and bring about a revival.

Bishop David and Cardinal Pietro always preached, ‘The Rome Priesthood and the Raphael Priesthood have a symbiotic relationship.’ To Franco, these words felt hypocritical.

When the Raphael Priesthood announced that God desired the Holy Grail and began their secret expedition, Franco was anxious.

‘People want to see the effort to find the Holy Grail! Even if it’s not found!’

Franco hoped that the Rome Priesthood was secretly pushing forward with the Grail expedition to an extent he wasn’t aware of. However, as time passed, his disappointment grew.

‘If the Raphael Priesthood actually finds the Grail, it’ll be the end of the Rome Priesthood. The world will revolve around the Vatican, and the Rome Priesthood will be left as a footnote in history, remembered as a small congregation that once existed.’

While preparing to set off for the eastern continent alone if necessary, Franco sensed something was happening around Father Daniel. Soon after, Bishop David assigned him to protect Father Daniel.

‘Good heavens, he’s asking me to protect Father Daniel? Daniel who possesses the Fourth Scripture? This is divine revelation.’

He had long investigated the whereabouts of the Fourth Scripture. He spared no effort or distance whenever there was a hint of related material, seeking it out and sparing no time or effort on rumors that seemed even remotely similar.

A commentary that could reinterpret the Bible, a book containing all the secrets of the world, a grimoire with the power of miracles… Any rumor was good enough for him.

Franco was so captivated by the Fourth Scripture that he tirelessly searched for it alone.

It was a month ago when he heard the rumor that Father Daniel possessed the Fourth Scripture. Without hesitation, Franco sneaked into Daniel’s house to investigate and searched the inns and cathedrals where he had stayed. But it was nowhere to be found.

‘He wouldn’t carry such an important book around.’

As Franco pondered how to get closer to Daniel, Bishop David entrusted him with the task of protecting Daniel.

How could this not be divine revelation!

He recalled the plan he had prepared on his own.

First, he would seize the Fourth Scripture from Father Daniel. Regardless of the power it held or if it was merely a rumor, he intended to take it and decide what to do next. Then, he would search for the Holy Grail and set off for the east alone…

If he had to kill someone in the process, he was prepared to believe it was God’s will.

‘My intentions are noble. It’s not personal greed, and if it happens in accordance with God’s word, then it’s not wrong.’

When Brother Autis displayed the power of the devil in the underground tomb’s crypt, Franco was not surprised. In fact, he had been considering sending Autis to the Inquisition for preaching strange doctrines, so it seemed only natural.

The problem was Jade.

Jade had opened the ‘Bible’ and, with a bright light, incinerated Autis. The book Jade held was one that Franco had personally handled and verified as the Bible. Aside from being wrapped in a luxurious leather cover, it was an ordinary book.

‘Of course! The Fourth Scripture had been hidden in plain sight all this time! That’s why it never appeared despite my diligent investigations.’

Franco did not want to think of himself as someone who was not chosen.

‘There must be some secret. A knack for holding the book, a way to rearrange the pages, some sort of cipher. Of course, there must be!’

Pretending to be unconscious in the crypt, Franco eavesdropped on Jade and the Emperor’s conversation. Indeed, Jade had been tasked with joining Father Daniel on a mission to search for the Holy Grail.

It was Franco’s dream to be entrusted by the Emperor himself with the Fourth Scripture and embark on a Grail expedition. Yet, that honor was falling to someone else right beside him. And to a green young man who had been excommunicated for committing murder!

Franco was consumed with inner turmoil as he was carried by Jade.

‘Should I strangle this lad now and take the Scripture?’

But his mind had not fully recovered yet. His head, struck by Autis, was still spinning. There was no guarantee his body would respond well in that state. Moreover, Jade possessed the terrifying magic that had burned Autis. If he wasn’t careful, that magic could be used against him, so he had to wait for the right moment to strike.

When he felt strong enough to overpower Jade physically, Bishop David arrived. Franco pretended to be unconscious and listened to their conversation.

The foolish bishop had sent Jade off alone. On one hand, Franco envied Jade for earning the trust of both the Emperor and the bishop.

Although unofficial, the Raphael Priesthood had sent the knights of Glitton’s Round Table and the first knights of Parnassus to find the Grail. They were the strongest knights recognized by everyone. Yet, the Emperor and Bishop David were sending a weakling who looked like he could be crushed with a single punch.

‘Maybe this too is divine revelation. This task should have been mine, but the bishop and the Emperor misinterpreted God’s will and gave it to someone else.’

Franco jumped off the cart driven by Bishop David, seizing the opportunity. The oblivious David noticed nothing.

Now, free from anyone’s restraint, Franco could pursue Jade.

‘Isn’t everything falling into place for me? To refuse this is to deny God’s will. I must follow it. It’s what God wants me to do!’