The King looked at the old priest before him.

Abbot Anil was dressed in a plain black robe, with nothing that stood out other than the cross hanging around his neck and his deep eyes. Compared with what was written in the records, he was already much older. When he left the Holy See more than 20 years ago, Father Anil was still a theological genius of the Holy Court, the star of hope, and it could be said that he was in right in his prime. But the relentless wind and desolate conditions of the Northland had dyed his hair white.

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He and Archbishop St. Wyth were two completely opposite images.

One must know, red wine and delicious food filled the stomach of the Archbishop of St. Wyth, causing it to be extremely round. In terms of body size alone, the stout body of the Archbishop of St. Wyth was comparable to that of two Priest Anil.

Abbot Anil was also looking at the King, trying to find out any clues to whether he was about to bring a bloodbath to all the churches in the country in a fit of violent rage, as the rumors said. The King was seated in a high-backed chair, and because of the death of the Duke of Buckingham, he was dressed in deep black mourning attire, which, as far as his position was concerned, could not have been more descriptive of his respect and affection for his uncle. Other than this, his expression was extremely calm and difficult to guess.

Abbot Anil sighed in his heart.

Even if he was not the king, it was also a sin to deprive such a young child of an elder whom such a young child loved so dearly by despicable means.

“Please have a seat.” The King said, “Mr. Anil.”

A seat had already been prepared for Abbot Anil in the room. Abbot Anil bowed and expressed that he was not deserving. The King smiled and said slowly: “Please don’t be restrained. After all, it is not as if the priest who will preside over my uncle’s funeral could not even deserve a seat.”

Abbot Anil looked at the King in surprise, this was indeed beyond his expectation: “Your Majesty…..”

The King interrupted Abbot Anil’s words, tapping the armrest of his chair unhurriedly: “You once participated in the Whitsunday Council in 1411, do you still remember the eleven arguments you put forward at that time? I’m curious about your essay “On the Existence or Absence of Purgatory”, would you mind expounding on it for me?”

Abbot Anil now vaguely understood some of the motives why the King invited him here.

“After death, the soul should be in a state of sleep. This state lasts until the coming of the Last Judgment, during which the soul need not undergo any cleansing by the fire of purgatory. The worlds of the living and the dead are completely separated, and no connection can happen between the two.” Abbot Anil answered slowly, “Thus, the prayers, Eucharist, and purchase of indulgences made by the living for the dead cannot save the soul of the dead. Forgiveness and judgment all belong to the Holy Lord. The key to the door is never in the hands of any priest.”

The Eucharist referred to an important ceremony presided over by priests in funerals, and was considered to be the most effective way to redeem souls among all intercession ceremonies.

The Holy Court claimed that reciting prayers could correspondingly shorten the time the dead suffer in purgatory. Because of this, donations to the Holy Court in the upper class often have their motives. When the last King of Bressi, Ferri II, made a donation to the capital cathedral, he clearly stated that “the donation is first used to pay the priest’s salary so that he may pray for Ferri II every day.”

“In your point of view, the Pope has nothing to do with the salvation of mortals. Believers should return to faith and holy scriptures. Even the Pope can’t do anything about salvation. Is that so, right?” The King asked gently.

But the opposite included an underlying meaning in his words.

He requested Abbot Anil to confirm that the Pope did not have authority over souls, and asked Abbot Anil to veto all the power of the Holy See in regards to salvation.

Back then, Abbot Anil was almost burned on the stake because of his protest at the conference, and he was still excommunicated even now. Currently on the other side of the Abyss Strait, the persecution of heresy led by the Holy Court had taken root everywhere. So long as he made affirmative remarks, it would be the same as stepping out and standing at the heart of the struggle.

The Holy Court, which intended to build the Kingdom of God, would not tolerate any voices of opposition.

The King’s icy blue eyes stared sharply at Abbot Anil.

“Yes.” Abbot Anil raised his hand and held the cross around his neck. He nodded, “The piety of faith is higher than the orders of the Holy See.”

The King smiled and handed an investigation document to the abbot: “Mr. Anil, please take a look.”

Abbot Anil took the document and started to read it. As he read page by page, Abbot Anil’s face gradually became more and more serious.

It was a statistic of the distribution of indulgences by the diocese of Legrand.

Before going to the north to fight, the King ordered his financial chancellor to start investigating this. The officials who compiled the doomsday judgment documents of dozens of county lords once again resumed their old profession. This time they counted the issuance of indulgences in various counties in Legrand.

As early as 1312, the Holy Court began to issue indulgences in the name of “amnesty” in order to obtain more financial revenue. Originally, the amnesty year should be once every 100 years, but it didn’t take long for this time limit to be repeatedly shortened again and again. And eventually during the reign of the previous Pope, he completely abolished this boundary.

To establish the Kingdom of God on earth, apart from prestige and troops, there was also a need for a steady stream of money. In order to establish the Kingdom of God, the Holy Court began to sell huge amounts of indulgences in the name of the “Kingdom of God” before the Bressi Incident began. The scope of its release was not limited to the other side of the Abyss Strait, all parishes had the right to sell indulgences——so long as they paid a sum of money to the Holy Court.

When the King and the Duke of Buckingham led their troops to the north, many parishes in Legrand were sending the money they got from selling indulgences to the other side of the Abyss Strait.

The rebellion in the North was not over yet at that time, so the King held back and did not take any action. He just sent his people to start collecting data.

“The money obtained in the name of redemption was funding the rebellion in the North.” The King said flatly, “Mr. Anil, why does atonement fuel the flames of war and crime instead?”

“This is not atonement.” Abbot Anil looked down at the unimaginable numbers, and scenes of corpses everywhere, burnt houses, people’s wailing appeared in front of his eyes. He closed his eyes in pain, “This…..this is sin.”

“I hope to print and distribute your essay “On the Existence or Absence of Purgatory”.” The King paused, “Also, I hope that you will preside over my uncle’s funeral. There is no need for a Eucharist during the funeral.”

No Eucharist needed, and no pardon for the Duke of Buckingham needed.

There was no need for redemption from anyone.

“The Holy Lord above.”

Abbot Anil stood up, and he saluted the King.

“Thank you for your kindness.”

Before Abbot Anil was led out of the study by the Master of the Households, he stopped and looked back at the King: “Are you not worried that if purgatory really exists, the sir Duke who has not been redeemed would go to hell?”

Abbot Anil could understand people’s support for the Holy Court’s theory of purgatory…..Who would want their loved ones to suffer in purgatory? When he refuted the theory of purgatory, he also received a lot of ridicule and cold eyes from the common people. Now the King had canceled the Eucharist at the Duke of Buckingham’s funeral. Nothing could bring more infamy to the King than this.

He could almost think of all kinds of accusations the people would make against the King.

All reformers have always suffered infamy.

The King looked down at the documents in his hand without saying a word, and the Master of the Households closed the door.

The sunlight fell on the document held in the King’s hand, which was a just-drafted call for a state conference. A new meeting would be held after the Duke’s funeral.

The King took a pen and signed his name on the writ.

“I actually wish he could go to hell.”

In the room where the King was alone, he suddenly whispered to himself. The King turned his head to look out the window, blinking away the momentary wetness.

……………………

All the shops in Metzl were closed today.

There was no singing, nor laughing.

Some people stood on the streets of the city, distributing black ribbons to passers-by. The clown who stood on the street throwing oranges in the past changed the painted smile on his face, replacing it with heavy black tears under his eyes. Madams and ladies had tears in their eyes, the people gathering in a long street, waiting for a procession to arrive.

A gray-haired old man leaned on a cane and stood among the crowd on the side of the street, supported by his grandson.

The old man had come from another region, having traveled for nearly a week to arrive.

“The Duke of Buckingham…..the Duke was a very good man.”

The old man held his grandson’s hand and repeated these words over and over again.

All Legrandians know the story of the Duke of Buckingham.

Unlike William III, the Duke of Buckingham was knighted on the battlefield when he was only sixteen years old. On the day he was conferred the title of knight, he swore that he would defend the empire with the sword and shield in his life. He would defeat the enemy with the sword and protect the people with the shield.

An oath.

An oath he spent his life fulfilling.

After their father died of illness, he followed his brother William III to conquer the thirty-six states, and led his troops to defeat Bressi’s expedition three times. After the sudden death of William III, he became the pillar of the whole kingdom. Over a long period of time, people got used to the figure always standing sentinel on the territory of Legrand, and got used to that straight spine that remained unchanging and firm from youth to old age.

“Besides him, who else can be called the lion of the empire? Who else can be so loyal, so brave, and so selfless in guarding this country?”

When news of the Duke of Buckingham’s death came back, a court poet called it “an unbearable grief of the empire.”

A shield had shattered suddenly, and a long sword had snapped as well.

Legrand lost her most beloved knight.

The death knell finally sounded.

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The moment the bell rang, the funeral procession appeared before the people’s eyes.

In the crowd, the old man who had been repeatedly rambling to his grandson suddenly let go of his hands and slipped down to the ground.

——It seemed that only then did he finally understand that the Duke of Buckingham had truly left when he saw the coffin approaching from afar.

AN: Those who guard the country will be loved by the country.

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