Place of Refuge
Translator: Cinder Translations
...
Liszt noticed that ever since Sevya went out to meet the so-called members of the Arcane Order, she had returned with a frown that never left her face.
"Is something bothering you? Let me guess—did they not offer you any help?"
He couldn't hold back any longer and asked. Really, why couldn't she discuss this with him after spending so much time together?
"No, they can help us," Sevya replied. "However, the people in the camp are arguing endlessly about where to go next."
"Arguing about where to go?"
"They've invited us to join their organization. Some want to join the Arcane Order, while others disagree—though the Arcane Order does provide shelter for new members, joining means losing our freedom. We'd have to obey their orders about where to go and do whatever work they assign us, which could likely be something against our will."
Liszt asked with some concern, "And what about you?"
"Me?" Sevya lifted her head to look at Liszt. "I definitely won't join the Arcane Order; I just can't relate to those people."
Liszt let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"Is it really going to be bad if we stay near Niceport?"
"We'd always have to deal with the church's searches, and with such a large group, the supplies we prepared in advance are running low."
"If we don't join them, we can't leave Niceport?"
"Not exactly. The Arcane Order can send you out of Niceport's territory, but then you'll be on your own. Sigh… For those who don't want to join the Arcane Order, where should we send them? We can't stay in Horns Bay; not everyone is as good at hiding as me and Roskin."
Seeing Sevya in a dilemma, Liszt suddenly said, "If you really can't think of anything, I can give you a suggestion. Want to hear it?"
Sevya shot him a glare. "Stop teasing me."
"The Northwest Bay of the Aldor Kingdom."
"Your hometown?"
"Yes, Lord Grayman is actively bringing in talent from other regions, and Horns Bay is a key source. A colleague wrote to me that recently, people from Horns Bay have even formed a settlement in Frand Port. If you come as immigrants, it should be easy to settle in the Northwest Bay. Um… Even though you're mages, you must have some other skills for everyday life, right?"
"It's not a problem to make a living with ordinary skills. Most spellcasters know a bit of alchemy or astrology…"
Sevya seemed to ponder, clearly moved by Liszt's words. She knew Lord Paul Grayman, as Liszt often mentioned him.
Liszt's eyes lit up. "Alchemy? Haha, Lord Grayman is very welcoming to alchemists."
He added, "Recently, I researched some church history and discovered a pattern: besides the church headquarters—the Holy See, for other dioceses, the wealthier the area, the more energy the church invests, and correspondingly, their control is stronger—like Horns Bay, which is a typical example. Before Lord Grayman ascended, my hometown, the Northwest Bay, was a rather desolate place. Though the church had some influence there, overall… how should I put it? The control was relatively weak since there wasn't much profit to be had, so the church seemed uninterested. As far as I remember, there were some witch hunts in history, but there were no intense persecution cases, and those were long ago, almost legendary. In short, if you go to the Northwest Bay, it should be quite safe."
After hearing Liszt's words, Sevya said fiercely, "I knew they were a bunch of hypocrites, just eyeing the lucrative areas to plunder."
Then she smiled mockingly, "I wonder how your lord would feel knowing that a loyal subject like you is trying to squeeze a bunch of mages into his domain. Any normal noble would want to avoid having a single witch in their territory."
"Well…," Liszt blushed. "Ahem! Lord Grayman is a very kind lord; even if he knows about this, he absolutely wouldn't stand by and do nothing. I believe that!"
Although he said that, a great sense of guilt and fear rose within him. If Lord Grayman found out about this, would he hang him?
But the words were already out… Sigh, he was too clever for his own good.
Liszt stared blankly at the floor, and just as he regretted it, he felt a soft hand on his shoulder. He turned to see Sevya looking at him seriously.
"Thank you; the suggestion came from you—this matter will only be known to me and won't be revealed to others."
Fine, he couldn't take back what he said now. It seemed Sevya was seriously considering the Northwest Bay as an option. Lord, please don't hold this against me!
Um… But speaking of which, Sevya looks really charming when she's serious.
…
"Ah-choo!"
Paul, who was crouched over a desk scribbling notes, suddenly sneezed, startling Ladia, who was reading a letter nearby.
"I suddenly feel like some troublesome matter is about to fall on my head," Paul joked, then asked, "Who wrote you this letter? Is it a friend from the old adventuring group? You've been staring at it for quite a while."
Ladia shook her head. "No, it's from my senior at Horns Bay."
Senior? Paul recalled, oh, that was the Grand Duchess, who according to Quik, was a beauty.
"You seem troubled. Is there some unfortunate news in the letter?"
"…"
Ladia hesitated for a moment before saying angrily, "The letter says that the church in Horns Bay has been getting worse. Countless people like me are suffering from their persecution."
She was immensely grateful that she and her mother had moved to the Northwest Bay early.
In fact, Ladia had considered asking Paul for help, requesting permission to go to Horns Bay to guide the persecuted people to flee in large numbers to the Northwest Bay.
However, if not done carefully, it would surely put Paul in a dangerous position. If news leaked, how would others view a lord harboring witches?
If she were free and unrelated to Paul, she would have done it long ago, but now it wasn't possible.
"I escaped the vortex early, enjoying a comfortable life while watching my compatriots suffer there! Isn't that selfish?"
Ladia felt great inner turmoil.
Paul shook his head, walked over to comfort her. "Remember, you're not a savior. There will always be misfortunes in the world, and one person can't take care of everything. Besides, you have no obligation to them."
"Oh right, if you have any relatives or friends in Horns Bay… of that identity, you can bring them over. The church's reach won't extend this far."
He wanted to offer some help within his means.
(End of the Chapter)
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