15 Chapter 15: Lay Off

As expected, the royal family suppressed the news regarding the demise of Hero Herman and Priestess Irene.

It was only natural. If the public was to know that a demon had somehow infiltrated into one of the most secure palaces in Havan Kingdom, dealt a grievous blow to the Hero Herman and Supreme Priestess Irene to the extent that they were neither alive nor dead – that they were now a fused abomination of half-melted flesh, impaled together by a cursed spear that ensured that no healing spells cold be cast on them – there would be major panic. The populace might possibly riot.

Well, the citizens who had suffered under Herman and Irene's combined reign of terror would probably celebrate, though. But those in other cities would descend into chaos over the loss of their beloved Hero and Supreme Priestess. Not to mention there would be a mass exodus from the other districts of Royales when the population learned that there was a possibility of a Hero-assassinating demon within their midst.

Never mind the economic damage, the might be a toll in lives as everyone stampeded out of there. Also, the psychological blow to the morale of the soldiers on the border, and civilians still traumatized by the horrors of war.

It might be too much for them to take.

The priests and royal knights had the staff of the Hero's palace sworn to secrecy, on the threat of death if we were to leak out the secret. Originally, I had expected them to silence us in a more direct and ruthless manner, and was prepared to escape when they killed us – disappearing before they could find me – but to my surprise, they merely had us sign a non-disclosure agreement, getting our signatures on paper. Perhaps there was some magic binding us, a curse that ensured that we didn't tell anyone, but I didn't intend to spread the news.

The less the other members of the strongest Hero party knew about this, the better. They would never see me coming.

After the signing of the non-disclosure agreement, the chamberlain gathered us staff to tell us that we were released from our jobs. We were handed the pay for the rest of the month, as well as severance pay, and told to seek employment elsewhere.

"With the…condition of the Hero and the Supreme Priestess, this district has now been handed over to another noble. Count Fairville will be presiding over the district until the Hero and his wife return. Or…permanently, if the worst scenario comes to pass."

"The count will be bringing his own staff with him then?" a butler asked. The chamberlain nodded.

"That is correct. That is why…the count no longer has any need of your services." He then brightened up. "On the bright side, he has offered to help us seek alternative employment. He has reviewed the policies that the Hero had done, and plans to revise many of them. Starting with the lowering of taxes, forming a committee to waive the debts, and revitalizing the labor market. Thanks to the disastrous policies of the Hero, there will be a lot of rebuilding…and he will need to address the issue of homelessness."

He glanced down, looking awkward.

"And so he says he needs…talented personnel to work for him. To help smooth the transition."

While the servants were delighted to hear that, I remained neutral. I rejected the offer and decided to seek employment elsewhere. Fortunately, the severance package had provided me more than enough funds to survive for the next few months. And procure new supplies.

I planned to resume my journey and follow a convoy out of Royales and into the north. I already had the next target in mind.

Before my departure, however, I stealthily dropped by the temple where Herman and Irene were currently treated. The official news was that the both of them had fallen ill and had decided to rest in the Church, praying to the gods for their recent…misbehavior. Through my contacts, I managed to find the actual temple where they were currently being treated. Ghosting across the hill, I used the trees as cover and snuck past the priests who served as sentries.

Grabbing a robe that was hanging on the laundry lines while the young priest in charge had slacked off to doze off somewhere, I pulled it on and hid my head in a white cowl. Hoping that my disguise was adequate, I then brazenly walked into the temple and pretended to help with several tasks.

"Brother," one of the elderly priests called out to me. "Could you get several Mauseline Herbs and bring them to the central chamber?"

"Yes, Father," I responded, bowing my head politely. Mauseline Herbs were often used to alleviate pain. Pushing my glasses up my nose, I then headed to the pharmacy where the herb master was, and requested for the relevant herbs.

The elderly man in white impatiently tossed the Mausline Herbs into a tray and passed them to me without even looking in my direction. He was busy, tending to several requests at once. The pharmacy was full of young priests asking for this herb or that, and he simply didn't have the time for niceties.

That worked out perfectly fine for me.

I traveled through the corridors, curiously peeking into the chambers that lined the walls in hopes of finding my victims. To my disappointment, I couldn't find them. A middle-aged priest caught me looking around and got angry.

"Hey, you! Stop dawdling around! Which chamber are you supposed to go to?"

"Uh, Central Chamber…"

"Are you new here or what? Central chamber is that way!"

"Sorry, Father. I am new here so I got a little lost."

He softened his expression and waved for me to hurry. Not wanting to arouse his suspicion, I hastened my pace and strode past him, heading toward the direction he pointed me toward.

To my surprise and joy, central chamber was the room I was looking for. Atop a massive bed, the entwined and fused figures of Hermana and Irene lay, still writhing from pain as the Blood Spear of Longinus sapped their vitality. The priests had attempted to bandage their hideously melted flesh with balms and bandages, to no avail – and I suspected the bandages served more to obscure the grotesquely merged bodies from view than to provide any real comfort or relief to the suffering couple.

As for the herbs, balms and elixirs that the priests and priestesses attempted to apply to their scorched skin, their mystical effects were instantly dispelled by the curse of the Blood Spear of Longinus. Therefore none of the magical medicine was working. Consequently, there was no way for the priests and priestesses of the Holy Church to alleviate the excruciating agony that the Hero Couple was currently experiencing.

It honestly was a fate worse than death.

"The Elyon Elixir isn't helping either," an elderly priestess said sadly. "Its effects are immediately dispelled by the demonic spear."

"Neither healing spell nor elixirs work." A doctor-like priest growled in frustration and wiped the perspiration from his face. "What can we do?"

"We can only wait for Father Frank and his team to develop a way to extract the demonic spear without killing the lord Hero and Supreme Priestess." The matronly priestess sighed, trying not to give in to despair.

"You should take a rest, Mother Mary," the priest told her, placing a kindly hand on her shoulder. "You've been rubbing salves into their wounds all day. You must be tired."

"My exhaustion is nothing compared to the suffering lord Hero and Supreme Priestess are going through right now."

"Nonetheless, it does nobody good if you were to collapse from overwork now." The priest turned to me. "Brother, can I leave the honorable two to you? Try to make them as…comfortable as possible."

From his expression, even the priest himself knew that it was an impossible task. But I nodded anyway.

"Yes, Father."

"Come, Mary. Let's go."

I watched the priest escort the matron away, and then proceeded to rub the extract of the Mauseline herbs into their wounds – precisely because I knew the futility of it all.

While I slowly did so, pretending that I was being careful not to hurt them, I leaned over to where their fused faces were and whispered into their half-ruined ears.

"Hello again."

There were a couple of frightened, muffled shrieks from the two of them. I grinned and continue to gently apply the salve.

"Don't worry, my friends. I'm just here to pay you a visit. I'm not here to take your lives."

Something that sounded like pleading came from them. I imagined it was either them begging me to kill them already, or for me to help them. Whatever the case, I had no intention of doing either. Instead, I continued to smile.

"I'm only here to inform the two of you that I have the power to find you and kill you anytime I want. That's all. A little reminder…to warn you that, even when you think you're finally alone, that you're safe and protected in the most secure place possible, and even in your most private, intimate moments…I can still waltz in, find the two of you and take your lives. After all…" I chuckled ominously. "It was during your most intimate moment that I did this to you."

There were more muffled moans of fear, and their bodies were trembling despite the pain even that minute movement might cause. I savored their agony, their horror…that was right. I wanted them to live in perpetual dread for the rest of their short lives. Even though they were blinded (the acid dissolving their eyes) and couldn't look over their shoulders, they would still be aware that I was hiding in plain sight, always having their throats' within reach of my blade.

After all they did to me and so many others, I wasn't going to allow them to rest easy.

Continuing to chuckle in a low voice, I then finished the treatment, picked up the tray and returned to the pharmacy.

That night, when I returned to the tavern, I spotted a group of knights. They looked familiar – then I realized that they were the same ones who patrolled the Hero's palace. With Fairville replacing Herman and Irene, the count had decided to bring along his own staff and private army, and thus the knights were also out of a job.

"Where do you plan to go after this?" one of the knights asked. "Be a mercenary?"

"Yeah, combat is all I know of. I think I'll just join the northern regiments. I hear they are in need of manpower."

"Oh, I heard that too. They are constantly warring with the remnants of the Demonic Legions in the north."

"Good idea. That's all we can do, anyway. fight." The third knight leaned back in his seat. "Let's head up north tomorrow. There's a convoy heading to Bravia tomorrow. I say we take it…"

"Wait," a fourth knight spoke up, his voice panicky. "While I agree, I need to warn you guys. We can join the northern regiments, but whatever you do, do not step into Bravia Province."

"Bravia Province?" The first knight frowned. "Why?"

"Ah, Bravia!" the second knight exclaimed. "The province just only recently taken over by that new duke a few months ago? The former warrior from the strongest Hero party?"

"That's right! That's the one!" the fourth knight lowered his voice. "I heard he's just as bad as the Hero and Supreme Priestess. That he has been abusing his power."

"Aren't they all the same?" the third knight grumbled. "Get a bit of glory killing the Demonic Emperor, and then they let all that pride get into their head. And now they think they are kings or something."

"Yeah, but this guy…he's bad news. He's been gathering women…even abducting them, for his harem. Many of them were killed, trying to survive his sexual appetites."

"As bad as Hero Herman was, at last he never went that far," the first knight remarked. Then he grimaced. "But he and his wife went around killing people for nothing. Commander Gregory…"

"That's the thing," the fourth knight interrupted. "This Duke Bradley, he's the same. He doesn't hesitate to kill anyone who pisses him off."

"Fuck. I'm not dealing with that shit again." the second knight buried his face in his hands. "I have enough of tiptoeing around fucking Heroes, fearing for my life every time they look in my direction and hoping I didn't offend them."

"It's just Bravia. So as long as we avoid Bravia…"

"Go it." the first knight nodded. "We'll just head to the other northern provinces then."

"So we'll ditch that convoy to Bravia then." The third knight sighed. "I'll go ask around and see if there are other convoys."

Adjusting my glasses, I smiled to myself and downed a mug of sweet juice. Seemed like I didn't need to search too hard for my next mode of transport tomorrow.