The Medieval Modern Man With A Gamer Mindset

The Medieval-Modern Man With A Gamer Mindset 44

44. Mortal Sin

About a year. That’s how long I’ve been possessed in this body.

Looking back, a lot has happened. I almost married a pregnant single mother, and I had to run away from several raids… In the meantime, I’ve killed quite a few people.

Each one was a major turning point that changed me and others. At the end of all those hardships, I found a comfortable time to rest. I leaned back in my chair in a relaxed position, feeling emotions I hadn’t had time to feel .

It was my true nature that had returned after a year, and it was my room. It was easy to indulge in sentimentality since it was the first place I opened my eyes.

As a civilized person who lived in the 21st century modern Earth, who was both erudite and cultured, there were many emotions that I should have felt.

Especially the moment I broke through the bandits with the escort of the Knights Templar.

I ruthlessly ignored the desperate voice of the modern civilized man echoing inside me, urging me to save time and think efficiently.

In the end, it was only now, when everything was over, that I could finally regret and savor it….

“I should have taken it all back then.”

Was it because the bitter regret had pierced my bones? A sigh escaped my lips.

Perhaps the opportunity to break the oath of the sanctuary had become a hidden regret. It was then that familiar footsteps approached.

“My Lord is still young. Even with your noble blood, you can’t do everything from a young age.”

“Oh, Edwina. How have you been?”

“Yes. I’ve been well while you were away, My Lord.”

Edwina brought grape wine in a pale glass. I couldn’t hide my joy and smiled broadly as I took the glass.

“John rarely takes care of these things himself. I’m glad to be served properly after a long time.”

“…John, you mean the servant who tried to buy hair tonic from the alchemist?”

“Yes. He’s like a clumsy oaf, but he’s quite useful in his own way. He can be annoying at times, but he’s not the type to betray easily.”

Gulp. When I took a sip, I realized it wasn’t very high-quality grape wine.

A low-quality one with small seed fragments or grains being chewed. If I were still acting like a wastrel, I would have spat it out right away. However, even the finest ones taste like acorns to a modern palate.

I savored the sweetness as I slowly sipped the wine mixed with lees. At the same time, I decided to appease Edwina, who was indifferent for some reason.

“Edwina.”

“Yes, My Lord.”

“Have I made some big mistake?”

People can hurt others without realizing it. Even a modern man like me, who is full of consideration and understanding, is no exception.

If I were going to live recklessly, it wouldn’t matter, but Edwina was someone I wanted to get along with in the future. It would be better to ask directly like this and clear up any misunderstandings.

It seemed to be a casually thrown question, but it must have been the right one.

Edwina looked down at me, sitting with her round, bead-like eyes wide open.

“Your Highness… Are you asking me seriously?”

“I’m listening.”

“…What people call you in the castle right now.”

“Let me hear it.”

I promised to accept any criticism with humility. It was for my own growth, after all. Of course, my pride would be a little hurt, but that’s something I must endure.

I tightly shut my eyes in preparation for the harsh criticism that would soon come.

“A patricide who knocked his father out at the age of twelve.”

Even if it is a biased, fabricated story based on facts.

***

Lately, there was a name that was gradually spreading throughout the Dawn Islands.

Narva Orn Stregoz Glerio Phoebus.

People who heard the name reacted differently, depending on their circumstances.

“Narva? I’ve heard of him. He’s a new candidate for Sainthood, right? When was the last time we had a local Saint?”

The devout believers focused on the fact that he was the first serious candidate for Sainthood in hundreds of years since Saint Illenio.

“It seems that Cardal missed it.”

“His Majesty?”

“Cardal missed it. I will acknowledge his military achievements and the fact that he honestly reported his failure. I will end his house arrest in three months. However, give his command to someone else.”

“Yes, Your Majesty!”

Bair Orn Yubas.

The head of the Yubas family, the strongest force in the Dawn Islands, responded indifferently. Of course, his insides were a little different. He didn’t show it to his subordinates, but he raised an eyebrow the moment he heard the name Narva .

“Leave if you’ve heard enough. I have things to think about alone.”

He didn’t even allow a reply. The vassals bowed silently and then retreated like the tide.

After seeing everyone off, Bair looked down at the map with his chin propped up for a while, then let out a sigh of relief.

“It’s fortunate that the Pope didn’t choose the path of coexistence.”

And the Phoebus Duchy, which was closer to Narva than anyone else, especially the people of the main castle, were talking about Narva without a break.

They were putting together a bunch of strange anecdotes, each of which would have been creepy enough on its own.

“Lord Narva…? He’s the one who got angry when I packed his bags because he told me to prepare to carry his luggage, and then kicked me out?”

“Aren’t you mistaken? I heard that he made me follow him around until he laughed?”

“Stop spreading false rumors. From what I know, he spent half a day following the servants around to make sure they were doing their jobs properly.”

“Oh my, you people are making a big fuss about nothing.”

While everyone was buzzing about his stormy return, it was John who put together these rumors, the truth of which was hard to verify.

John patted his chest as if he was frustrated, watching the servants arguing with each other about who was right.

“Are you people looking down on Bishop Narva, the great Kirin, who knocked out His Majesty the King with just a few words!!!!”

John admonished those who tried to downplay and belittle Narva’s actions and told them the truth. Fortunately, John’s dedicated efforts soon came to light.

Before long, the people of the Phoebus Duchy were calling Narva this:

The great Kirin who knocked out his father at the age of twelve.

Fortunately, Narva’s father, King Athelstan, only fainted for a short time.

He regained consciousness the next day, looking refreshed, and showed his gentle side like a father with medieval top 1% personality and family love.

He summoned Narva alone to his chamber and read him the riot act calmly.

“Narva. I order you to remain in confinement. Do not leave until I give you further orders.”

Aethelstan, the knight who once traveled the duchy fighting off raiders.

He stifled the boiling rage under his reddened neck. Instead, he only moved his trembling lips and gave a silent warning to his beloved son.

Un der no cir cum stances.

***

Narva’s stormy return presented a great dilemma to the Duchy of Powys.

Duke Aethelstan walked down the corridor, pressing his pale forehead, with Lord Oberth by his side. Duke Aethelstan opened his mouth with difficulty, groaning like a wounded beast.

“Is Narva quiet?”

“…Yes. He is very, very quiet.”

“….”

I wish I had castrated him. I would have ended up beating him half to death.

Duke Aethelstan was tormented by a wish he couldn’t bring himself to say. The Duchy of Powys was not the only one facing a dilemma.

Is Narva a hateful or a lovely son?

He was proud of his son’s amazing determination and quick judgment, but he was also furious that he had done it without permission and demanded his inheritance from his living father.

“What about the papal envoys?”

“…They are reportedly waiting in the reception room.”

“Is this any different from a show of force?”

There were twenty of the Pope’s own capital knights. Duke Aethelstan couldn’t throw them out, saying it was rude.

He had nominated his son Narva as a candidate for the bishop and even escorted him safely on his way. He couldn’t insist on the independence of secular power, saying it was a show of force, because he had received his favor.

He even nominated him as the next bishop.

If the papacy had not wanted the right to invest, it would have been welcomed with open arms. If only it wasn’t for the right to invest…

“…Your Majesty, it’s not all bad.”

“…”

“Of course, it was an unplanned and impulsive decision by the prince, but even if Your Majesty had ordained another bishop, your vassals would not have recognized him.”

Aethelstan regretted that he couldn’t deny it. The vassals saw Aethelstan as a usurper who had colluded with the dismissed Bishop Barnard and taken his brother’s place.

When Aethelbear, who was tired of Barnard’s tyranny, was about to dismiss Barnard, Aethelbear suddenly died without leaving a successor. Now, everyone was rolling up their sleeves over who would succeed him, and Barnard, the problem itself, stepped forward.

He said he had received the will left by Aethelbear.

The vassals had no choice but to doubt it. From Aethelbear’s sudden death without a successor to the will that the bishop suddenly produced, nothing made sense.

“If we ordain Prince Narva as bishop with the authority of the papacy, they will have no choice but to accept it, even if there is some backlash. Perhaps the prince… expected this to happen. I don’t know if he knows the circumstances, though.”

Oberth finished speaking, stroking his gloomy bangs. There was an awkward silence for a while.

Then Duke Aethelstan suddenly burst out laughing.

“Oberth, you’re right. It’s already happened. Narva is very, very annoying, though!”

His anger had not completely subsided yet.

The blood vessels were still protruding from Duke Aethelstan’s eyes. However, a sense of anticipation and satisfaction bloomed in his heart like a mist, obscuring his anger.

“I’ll make sure to use him as much as he took without permission.”

“….”

Children resemble their fathers. Of course, fathers also have parts that are like their children. Aethelstan, who was originally a knight, was a man who charged forward like a rhinoceros’s horn once he made up his mind, suffering from a lack of legitimacy. Oberth couldn’t help but feel sorry for Narva.

‘Prince, I did the best I could…’

They arrived at the reception hall after the Prince’s pledge was over.

And as soon as Prince Aestelon and Oberth opened the door, they felt a sense of breathlessness. Priests in black capes with gold borders were looking at the door at the same time, without a single inch of error.

In the very center, Chief Inquisitor Bonichego was standing with his hands clasped together in a calm manner.

“The Raven of the Stars. We greet the descendants of Powys, who were the first to accept Lux Stella at the will of Saint Illenio.”

“…Is this the way of the Holy See?”

“If you wish for a secular meeting, we shall do so.”

Bonichego took a step back. Instead, the tired-looking Vice-Captain Marcello came forward.

“I am Marcello, who will lead the negotiations with Your Highness.”

Marcello’s eyes sparkled as he placed the thick codex he was holding in his arms on the table in the reception hall.