Chapter 166
His gloomy eyes, black with exhaustion, and ash-gray hair spilling over his shoulders looked far from harmonious.
‘Stupid humans. They must have eyes on their asses.’
But that wasn’t the important thing now.
“Has the temple gone mad?”
They said the cardinal had called out the knights to bring Payne in. Now they are ordered to treat him like a criminal and capture him.
Ashtel’s eyes narrowed.
‘Could Duval have lied?’
But seeing Payne so exhausted and constantly leaking s***n didn’t look like an act.
Something was clearly wrong…
She wished she’d come disguised as a different human from the start.
‘I can’t be a doctor. I have to find medicine first.’
The antipyretic had helped temporarily; she just needed more.
So Ashtel sought a quiet place to transform into maid Sue’s form.
But for some reason, even at night, there were many humans around—as if a market were open.
‘Why-why, are there humans in every alley?’
Being wanted made wandering the streets impossible.
She had to change her appearance quickly, but the crowds delayed her search for medicine.
‘Still… I put on magic charms, so it should be okay.’
Even Ashtel couldn’t restrain the ailing Payne for long.
His condition was already poor; wrapping him up tightly here could make it worse.
But she couldn’t leave him alone without a plan, so she placed a necklace enchanted with tracking and protective magic on him.
‘I’m worried about the demonic energy, but it’s only temporary. That’s all I have.’
Besides, think about it: a handsome man wearing a dog collar.
Ashtel had a reason to pick that necklace from among Payne’s many belongings.
“Payne… the dog collar suits you…”
Murmuring as if entranced, Ashtel nodded.
Startled by a group of knights suddenly appearing from a nearby alley, she pulled her hood tighter.
Feigning nonchalance while browsing street food, she overheard their grumbles.
“Look, it’s already night. Do we really have to keep searching at this hour?”
“Told you. We’ve searched everywhere. If he’s not found, maybe he’s already fled the capital.”
“Quiet. The captain said to keep looking till dawn for Father Payne.”
Ashtel glanced at the complaining knights.
They seemed familiar—it looked like the Mediale search squad.
“And Duvalkan, who was originally assigned, suddenly disappeared, right?”
“Yeah, I heard. Everyone’s hush-hush, but they say it’s because of something Father Payne did.”
“No way. What power could a priest have?”
Rumors of Duvalkan’s disappearance had spread widely.
“Well, he’s got friends at the temple, so the search might be faster.”
And now they had a reason to flee.
“No, I heard Father Payne’s divine power is immense.”
“Yeah. They say the pope personally checks during the divine power test.”
“Wow, then he might really be incredible.”
“But he ran off with a mere maid, so Cardinal Prohmen flipping out makes sense.”
Not just a maid—she was a succubus, you rookies.
Ready to leave, Ashtel paused at their next words.
“No, I think it’s not that. I heard it’s because of a demon.”
“What? A demon?”
“Yeah. They say Father Payne was bewitched by a demon and corrupted.”
“Is that why they issued the warrant?”
“Probably.”
This was something Ashtel needed to hear.
Buying food awkwardly with fumbling coins, she wandered nearby chewing a skewer.
“I thought he stole something.”
“Why would a priest do that?”
“At first, they said it was a lover’s escape, so they thought he stole temple goods.”
“No way. That priest has powerful backing and plenty of money.”
“Huh? Wasn’t Father Payne an orphan? What backing?”
“You know the higher-ups care for him a lot. That’s his backing…”
“What are they doing here?”
Just as Ashtel’s ears perked up at the deepening conversation, an icy voice cut through.
The startled young knights immediately bowed with respect.
“C-Captain, we greet you!”
“Do you think we’re out here for fun?”
“No, sir!”
“If you have orders, execute them. Is this how knights of Mediale behave?”
“Sorry, sir!”
Watching the knights scurry away, the tall captain sighed deeply.
“Hey, you.”
He pointed to Ashtel, who had been suspiciously lingering nearby.
“What are you doing there?”
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