Hero’s Downfall Report

50 – Man, Lion, Ox, and Eagle (7)

The confused people stood up. Some embraced each other, shedding tears. There were those confessing their wrongs and embracing each other.

The old people couldn’t control their bodies properly. Cain, along with other guards, helped the fallen ones stand. Cain carefully lifted the old man Baolo. He was pitifully light.

“My son…”

The old man sighed.

“My son joined the Crusade of Boys and Girls. And he never returned. Whether he died or lived, there wasn’t even a single letter. No matter how fiercely he fought and went out in anger…”

Cain silently brushed off the old man’s clothes. The old man shivered.

“I was foolish.”

“No, you weren’t.”

“If only I had killed all those heretics.”

The old man’s voice was filled with resentment.

“If I had killed everything that went against the dissidents, heretics, emperors, and popes. So that there would be no need for the Crusade or anything else to arise again. If I had finished all that in my generation. Would my son have joined the Crusade?”

Cain didn’t ask if it wasn’t you who drove your son away. He didn’t say that his son’s choice didn’t need to be regretted. He didn’t even shout, asking why can’t you see yourself.

It was an unknowable matter. Because he wasn’t much different himself.

The old man, like any other old man, walked to his lonely house without strength.

* * * * *

The carriage repair took another day, but no one blamed anyone. It was because they just wanted to rest deeply without thinking. People worked on fixing the broken houses.

The old man and the residents worked silently without a word. No one apologized, and no one casually consoled. As if there was no need for the arm to apologize to the hand, and the stomach didn’t ask about indigestion.

They were all Matsada. Matsada was all of them. Matsada became a city again, and people started another day in Matsada.

Although the time of the day unexpectedly lengthened, Cain, Lily, and Maria did not waste it. Instead, they investigated those who incited the elders of Matsada.

No one knew exactly when they appeared. The elders only vaguely mentioned it was about three months ago.

At first, they thought it was a peculiar young man who liked to hang out with the old people. Sometimes like a child, sometimes like a friend. They knew how to please the elders, lift them up, and listen endlessly to their stories.

The same stories. Tedious stories. They patiently listened to the endless sighs. They mediated conflicts among the elderly and, in doing so, claimed to have created a community that brought the elders together.

But there was one thing the elderly consistently said.

They were not lonely when they were all together. When recalling their youth, it felt like their bodies were rejuvenated. It was around the time when people in brown clothes suggested a special pattern.

Oddly enough, it was similar to the old legends that grandfather’s grandfather and grandmother’s grandmother used to tell on night occasions but had now been forgotten.

When they asked how to know all of that, they simply shrugged. They had only answered that they were students studying ancient history and beliefs at the university.

Maria wrote a letter to Magdeburg’s father. The messenger from the city hall, who had taken a report on the strange events in Masada, set off on horseback.

After dinner, the three returned to their room. Sitting on their respective beds, they silently gazed at each other. However, Cain and Lily’s gaze was directed at Maria.

“Well.”

“Speaking of which, it’s a bit strange. I can’t quite understand it,” Cain scratched his neck.

“Those… does the sacred fire not eliminate them?”

“Do you think the sacred fire is like a bonfire for roasting meat?”

“Not really.” Cain chuckled. A smile also appeared on Lily’s face. Maria stretched her legs.

“The sacred fire has a strong meaning of purification. A clean fire burns impurities. And there are no inherently evil people. There are those who have done bad things, but there are no people whose existence is inherently evil.

Witches and wizards, thinking that they have contaminated their own existence, burn themselves with the sacred fire. But anyway, ordinary people, or even those who have committed sins, cannot be consumed by the sacred fire.”

“So, is it burning those who willingly embrace corruption?”

“Yes.” Maria nodded.

“Sometimes there are very unfair cases. Those who succumb to the devil’s temptation or become wizards and witches unintentionally due to strange contracts. In these cases, there is room for leniency even if they really perform magic. But last night, they were… each and every one of them was wicked and vile.”

“They deceived people?”

“Made them commit sins.” Maria looked at Cain and Lily.

“They cleverly cultivated hatred in people’s hearts, separated them from ordinary folks, and made them lonely and miserable. The one who cannot be forgiven more than someone who commits sins themselves is the one who makes others commit sins. They may claim they are not like that, but no. They just enjoy watching people fall into chaos. They say, ‘Why should I take responsibility just because I fell into a pit of my own making?’ The reason it’s wrong is that they played with others solely for their own amusement. Their own temporary emotions don’t care about the existence of others… that’s an unforgivable sin.”

Maria gripped the edge of the bed.

“When they asked why the sacred fire couldn’t drive away the bad things, there were reasons it was dark, and people were all confused.”

But the most important thing is that they themselves believe they cannot be saved. Everyone was filled with distorted and amplified guilt. Even those without guilt, they believed that their lives would not improve.

Even to the point of tormenting oneself, thinking that it is an objective fact. If there is no expectation that things could get worse or better by abandoning the current state. Holiness cannot accomplish anything.”

“Isn’t that too incompetent?”

“No. It’s just respect.” Maria looked at Cain.

“If you wish to remain in sin. If you prefer it that way. Just let God be. If you forcibly hold onto someone who is not prepared… terrible things will happen.

Would someone who has been in darkness suddenly be pleased by a bright light? If you prepare a sumptuous feast for a starving person, their weakened stomach will suffer and it will be even more painful.

You cannot skip that stage. It is inevitable that if a person is not ready, God cannot do anything.”

“But.” Lily, who had been silently listening, spoke up.

“But… what I saw last night. It was not something I wanted to have. It is a memory I want to erase. It was exaggerated and distorted even more than reality, something that gives me shivers just imagining it…”

“I was talking about a general situation. The same standards cannot be applied to what happened last night. That’s why humans like me exist in this world, to prevent such things. No one is at fault. Not you, Lily. Not you, Cain. If you ever feel that way.”

Maria smiled mischievously at Cain. Cain couldn’t agree.

“I thought there must be a reason, but how… how could you shamelessly ask someone to stab you in the heart?”

“You seemed like you could do it.”

The smile disappeared from Maria’s face. Lily screamed, “What?!” “You’re not that cruel! Who would… eek!”

Cain turned his head, and Lily covered her eyes with her palms. It was because Maria suddenly started undressing.

“Hey, Miss Future Bride? We’ve seen everything already, haven’t we? Why are you pretending not to know?”

“Why are you undressing all of a sudden!”

“I don’t have any desire to show off my figure in front of anyone, so stop trembling and open your eyes properly. I’ve covered everything that needs to be covered.”

Lily spread her fingers wide. Cain hesitated as he looked at Maria. Fortunately, there was no bare skin exposed.

Instead, she was wrapped in bandages. On top of the bandages, she tightly fastened a full-body leather harness that knights wear. The leg guards and the wrist blades that pop out when the wrists are skillfully twisted were also there, just as they were.

“Difference, you say? Hmm. Let me give you a hint. Left arm and right arm.”

Lily pointed at Maria’s left arm. “Why is there a leather strap on the right arm and not on the left?”

“Because it got cut off last night.” Maria sighed deeply, swinging the severed leather strap from the discarded pants pocket like a dead worm.

Maria tossed the cut strap to Cain. Catching it with one hand, Cain examined the strap. Unfamiliar characters were written on it—no recognizable language, not even a script.

“What is this?”

“Ancient script,” Maria said, sitting on the bed. “To be precise, it’s a seal. A seal from an ancient tribe that worshiped the Tree of Life. Rather than a seal, it’s more like a comforting quilt for tormented souls.”

“Come to think of it,” Cain said, inspecting the leather strap, “something was odd. No, it wasn’t just one thing. I definitely knocked out, yet I woke up as if nothing happened. But there was something peculiar about the tone. Even yesterday, everyone… I mean, Lily and I suffered in the shadows, but you didn’t seem affected at all. You even fought against monsters. I thought you were just a mere inquisitor…”

Maria tilted her head. Her chestnut hair, reaching down to her shoulders, sparkled.

“Why. Do I seem more like a witch now?”

“How does a witch become an inquisitor?”

“A part-time witch.” Maria picked up an upper garment and casually put it on. However, she remained without pants.

“Yeah. Father Haspel is my uncle, and Father Heinrich is my father. And my mother is a witch. Not an ordinary witch, though.”

“So?”

“A very, very, very powerful witch.” Maria laughed brightly, revealing her teeth.

“Powerful enough to claim and sit on her daughter’s half-soul. A strong witch. But not the kind who performed human sacrifices or kissed the devil’s butt or anything like that.

My mother is a descendant of a tribe that believed in the ancient Tree of Life. So, she’s much older than a prophet of life and death or a follower of the bonfire faith. A truly primal faith.”

ps:the mtl will switch fron here on