“Hey! Aren't you the warden here?”
“Well, that's true, but Robert is a highly prominent figure in our town. If he wants to bail someone out, no one dares to stop him.” The warden paused his page-turning for a moment, then continued, “Oh, you know how those big shots are. I'm just a lowly worker.”
This warden was practically a master of slacking off. It was hard to imagine how he had managed to become the head of this prison.
Cecia continued turning the pages to inspect the files.
The further back she flipped, the more records of this nature she found.
“What about this one named Dunn? He was imprisoned for theft.”
The dark-skinned warden put down his book, stood up with his belly protruding, and glanced at the file in Cecia's hands.
“Bailed out by Robert. Well, minor crimes don't really count. Atoning for one's sins at the church is a great deed, after all.”
“What about this one named Magee? He was imprisoned for robbery.”
“Bailed out. Robert said he was a once-in-a-decade woodcutting genius and sent him to the church to atone. Old Priest Robert really is a benevolent soul.”
At first, it was robbers and serial killers with severe criminal impacts who were bailed out. Then, rapists and fraudsters were also bailed out. Eventually, even petty thieves and street brawlers were all bailed out as well.
The warden's answers were airtight, yet the destinations of the inmates remained ambiguous.
Cecia was so exasperated she laughed.
“Where did these people actually go to atone? Take Magee, for example.”
The warden's chubby finger pointed to the text on the stamp.
“Doesn't it say right here? It's the 【Logging Camp】.”
“Where is there a logging camp near Tide Town?”
The warden's voice began to tremble.
“Then it must be the church.”
“Where in the church?”
“Inside... the church.”
Cecia raised her eyes, her pale grey pupils staring at the warden. For the first time, the warden felt a chill down his spine from the gaze of a twelve-year-old girl, as if she possessed an immense, overwhelming power.
“The church's basement couldn't possibly hold that many people; we just visited it today. How about this?”
Cecia took a gold coin out of her pocket.
“From now on, if your answers are valuable, I will give you one of these.”
The warden's eyes locked onto the gold coin. He nodded frantically.
Seeing the warden's reaction, Cecia pointed to the bail dates and asked.
“Do you notice any patterns in these dates?”
The warden didn't hesitate either, staring intently at the dates.
March 18th, April 2nd, April 17th, May 2nd...
“Well, if you really want to talk about a pattern, there is one. It happens every fifteen days, always two days before the high tide.” The warden rubbed his bald head. “The people of Tide Town are always very sensitive to the tides. The day after tomorrow is the Tide Festival... The Tide Festival is very lively. On that day, the massive waves wash the fish from the sea onto the shore. You really should stay and watch.”
The warden rattled on endlessly, but he had finally provided some useful information.
Cecia flicked a gold coin over to him anyway. The warden's shifty eyes locked onto the gold coin, which finally lit up as he caught it with a grin. He brought it to his mouth and bit down on it with his teeth.
“So, the day after tomorrow is the Tide Festival?”
Perhaps because he had received the gold coin, or perhaps because this topic was not sensitive, the warden was clearly much more relaxed.
“Yes, the Tide Festival is the most bustling holiday in Tide Town. At that time, the roadside inns and the crowds at the docks will be packed to capacity.”
“Every household will stew fish soup, and the Church of the Holy Light will hold a Blessing ceremony.”
“Ah, that day is truly wonderful.”
Cecia did not look up, her fingers tapping rhythmically on the desk.
Tap, tap, tap.
“Have any of those bailed-out prisoners ever returned?”
“Probably, maybe, it seems not.”
“You don't even know that?”
Vesper, getting a bit tired of flipping through the files, joined the conversation. “For a warden, you certainly have a remarkably easy job.”
“My goodness, you ladies don't understand my difficulties. I'm just a commoner by birth. None of the local church, the nobility, or the gangs are groups I can afford to offend.”
“By turning a blind eye to these things and doing favors when it matters, I can keep my position stable.”
“So candid?”
“Being candid is exactly how I survive so well. It's obvious at a glance that you two are of no ordinary status.”
Cecia rolled her eyes. She wasn't particularly used to being flattered, so she quickly threw out another question. “Is there absolutely no news regarding those bailed-out prisoners? Have no family members ever come looking for them?”
“They're all criminals. Who cares about them?”
“They never returned? Not even one?”
“Well, you know, I can't speak with absolute certainty on that.”
Cecia rubbed her temples with a budding headache.
Now it was Vesper's turn to inquire. “Isn't Tide Town a seaside town? Why don't they worship the Sea God? Why do they prefer the Goddess of the Church of the Holy Light instead?”
The warden's expression shifted instantly, but the temptation of money was still too powerful.
After choosing his words carefully, he finally spoke slowly, “How can your history be so poor? It's because His Majesty the Emperor decreed that all religions requiring human sacrifice were no longer allowed to hold ceremonies.”
“And just like that, the Sea God couldn't eat people anymore, so he stopped protecting the town. But Tide Town relies entirely on the sea for its livelihood. What could they do if they couldn't worship the Sea God? For safe voyages and abundant catches of fish, they set their sights on the Sea God's familiar, Kraken.”
“Kraken has a smaller appetite. Worshipping with cattle and sheep is enough to ensure favorable weather and smooth sailing out to sea.”
One couldn't really blame Cecia and Vesper for their poor historical knowledge. That entire vast era of history, technology, and magic from the Old Calendar had turned to ash and dust following the overthrow of the Emperor's tyranny.
“Is it at White Sand Reef?”
“You even know that? Yes, it is.”
Vesper tossed him a gold coin in satisfaction.
“You answered very well. I'm pleased.”
Cecia was still putting the pieces together in her mind.
The church bails out prisoners, and then those bailed-out prisoners completely vanish. What is the church doing with them?
In the past, Tide Town had a tradition of worshipping the Sea God to secure favorable weather, but human sacrifices were banned by the Emperor.
So, they began using simpler offerings to worship the familiar, Kraken.
There seemed to be a missing link somewhere, preventing Cecia from reaching a definitive conclusion.
Cecia was familiar with the Church of the Holy Light. The Goddess's blessings spanned the entire world. Even after the collapse of the empire, the Church of the Holy Light continued to endure, relying on its immense influence.
It had become the most widespread religion in the world.
Those within the church held a devotion to the Goddess that was pure and selfless, and the Church of the Holy Light was highly renowned and respected across the entire continent.
Cecia couldn't bring herself to believe that they were colluding with the Starfolk. After all, Cecia's original body—the shepherd girl—had once received the church's kindness.
They had given her bread and milk, as well as holy water capable of curing illnesses, allowing Cecia's original body to continue her life herding sheep.
Once those within the church committed a sin, they would, at best, suffer agonizing pain with stigmata creeping over their bodies, and at worst, experience a plummet in their cultivation and severe mental exhaustion.
“For those who have received God's grace and trampled upon the Holy Light, yet still deliberately commit sins, there remains no sacrifice for their atonement.”
Yet, all manner of clues pointed straight to Robert of the Church of the Holy Light.
This was the second night.
Rate on N.U.
