Chapter 119

I turned to 4815ec8fba Ismail with wide 5079db8df1 eyes.b1c6829f8f85a35f

‘Come to think of it… he’s not pretending to be mute anymore, is he?’1fbec32076af90ae

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Since we met earlier, 40cf3b1928 he had been responding d14b8b9848 to me with his 7e4a4162fa voice, but I hadn’t ebef17ff29 noticed.21f9c12051a10b26

And yet, he had 2576f5b086 been just as wary 091eea42b0 of Magnus as I 5cebc5deb0 was.9ed86ef27543d6cb

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Why was he speaking as 8ffd33681b if he was defending him?9841f00d2ad83bd9

‘Could it be… mind control magic?!’4c0d8845152d4e95

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These were people who 3d87f40506 used dark magic—I couldn’t f3d2b34af9 rule out the possibility 606bc73929 that they had done 07e2cef9fa something to him.bf78e16a057b7797

As I watched him with b66c9e37b0 a worried expression, he continued 3daa3d8c42 speaking.cbbfa4daadba4d44

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“The one who often hit and locked up Belze and me… was actually High Priest Dunkeski.”936d1e75c32d9f99

At those words, the a8ce199424 Pope’s face darkened instantly.0c2ac4eaaf0e5c9e

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And so did mine.6b9e5814da6e788a

The fact that Ismail 87f29daa1d was placing all the 2ca92e0726 blame on Dunkeski, who f6afe77799 had already fallen from aed910f0af power, only made me 478b68ecca more suspicious that he 34dce98562 had been brainwashed.00905afc579100f9

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Just as my doubts deepened—7b92a181aa8864bb

“But.”b6bba76b253d68dc

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“……”8789392626c26695

“When I tried to explain why I pretended to be mute, the Headmaster got mad at me for lying.”afe0a43c07d094cd

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“……”46936d8206468156

“Even when I told him that I had been bullied by the other kids all this time… he didn’t seem to care.”87e63d8484b366fd

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With clear, unblinking eyes, 1cb5397e6e Ismail stared straight at 76cb13fa23 Magnus.1a030d982c5b8748

“Ismail, that’s…!”c8facc7467a51c63

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Magnus flinched, his shoulders trembling fd26930042 as he tried to come 9afe6a444f up with an excuse.b0272f0676bcb4f0

But his lips only moved 82205c424e soundlessly—he had nothing to say.49891ddee677656e

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Because everything Ismail had just 08a4e7a187 said was true.508c018082c8ac27

“I-It’s a misunderstanding, Headmaster! It’s true that I asked Belze to write a letter to the Duke of Kallios for help, but I never told her to bring him here!”94a6b4bd72c1acd1

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Back when his control 2ce4d9b04a ability had been discovered, 986c746a2a Ismail had prepared this 53f78b781f excuse in advance, clinging c6bfacc6f8 to it desperately as 62d5bafb95 he pleaded.a566349079ab64b9

Since those under 453ebf287b his control wouldn’t ea90f02b84 remember the moment 215b4c4dcb they were influenced, 533e7449fd he could get 1d7ba71ecb away with such 2349bbc63d a claim.dbc9f7ddc21b3b80

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Just as expected, 69be5f76b0 Magnus didn’t take a63cdb535a that part too 68ec846673 seriously.d21909e2c8d9c5bf

But then—59f1e60df094c79c

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“I see. Putting that aside… why did you pretend to be mute and hide your ability?”11cfdbee137a31be

“T-That’s… I was scared that High Priest Dunkeski would hit me again.”f08394d119f1bda4

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“High Priest Dunkeski was dismissed quite some time ago, Ismail.”3c2b0eb2ce517f26

“B-But before I could tell the truth… Tommy and the other kids started teasing me for being mute, and I never got a chance to speak up….”7d282cf0098fcaea

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“Your explanation doesn’t add up. If they started teasing you, wouldn’t that have been more reason for you to speak up and prove you weren’t mute?”cb1ac5302eccf6dd

Ismail fell silent at Magnus’s fee674cc60 words.d6ffdaccbe1eac40

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The High Priest, 8c6072abc8 watching the hesitant b455c9ea96 boy with an 5cc84c95fc expressionless face, eventually 2acf5dd823 dragged him back ce1f277063 to the temple.c33d366d23724201

Fortunately, unlike Dunkeski’s 86d66308e7 methods, he wasn’t 31fb6c096a beaten or locked e5e5121a5f away in a e56ade4d5c dark room like ecc1e06fe9 the Chamber of b1857a0687 Repentance.3662bdf2e2a42230

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But that didn’t 5de7e793e2 mean he was d993653068 set free either.72dfa6ec2df83a66

Ismail had been 4d07da354d confined to Magnus’s ddc94a2a35 quarters the entire 98524ec328 time and had 0f641766ed only just returned 84db28ba02 to the orphanage.a80fe1035f789a97

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“…What if revealing that I can talk doesn’t change anything?”63bd72b62337143f

After recounting his experiences b0373fab27 with Magnus, Ismail finally 64a9a90305 voiced the thoughts he 38b46e0495 hadn’t been able to 49a62843d7 say before.598158de20e97342

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“What if the bullying doesn’t stop?”5b3ca7338a25f245

“……”27b1287cfb771859

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“Then what am I supposed to do?”84962269bb937811

His voice was 092c8c76a9 quiet, almost emotionless, 53ed4432d5 but it struck 90ebbad0bf me like a cc77d4055b thunderclap.f2758c172978793f

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It was the 974c2cbfe1 first time I f06d4e7107 had heard him 10905a4cb8 speak like this.1c329ef7b9278be4

I had assumed he continued 1728a7248f pretending to be mute even f4cb121cf5 after Dunkeski’s downfall because he 07a140c063 was wary of those trying 7829244173 to exploit his ability.5a826d3187d29ab1

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…Now that I think about it, he did keep pretending even after Dunkeski was gone, didn’t he?89afb3f6128c0203

I had never given it 797fc4d5c8 much thought.6b0bad88a108211a

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Until I asked him to ef7c0051bd control Magnus, Ismail had been c9b731630a little more than an afterthought 27fb99c995 to me.3ab8fe967ffcef80

I had helped e92f15dad7 him escape the be3f04cc74 orphanage out of 2a9cb58a7d a vague sense 7cb44bb083 of camaraderie—nothing more.33ab8aef82279cef

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After all, in the original 3aa31e1e6a story, he was just another ea52261084 male lead candidate who would 10d4f0d7d3 eventually fall for the heroine 9577f59b2a and despise me.0c546899e97e02de

But I had been e15a139e25 so fixated on the 50a6d0bc20 novel’s plot that I 1cc0738ca1 overlooked something important—00d17ea326b560bd

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Ismail was still 4596686a3e just a child.78c6f091e848537e

Even though he a38942d70a could speak, he 42a5381590 feared the bullying a76cd2020c wouldn’t stop.6223b3bc81e579b4

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And strangely, I 1518ec91eb understood that fear 9369aa86f3 all too well.502a422d57877cfe

When I first lost 2eb5b28cfa my Healing Eye, what 017fb716fe I dreaded most was b187bbc2eb being seen as useless.6ecde839d657b1e6

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It was almost laughable.647b37a00494ede9

By then, my abilities and 541746d964 reputation had already hit rock f3970a262a bottom.be3e8e32b0420757

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Even so, I had a8e9066728 clung to that fear—acea3832455bf6ce

Even though hardly 35977b9f24 anyone truly understood ce5ef69a91 what my Healing b4ca0452dd Eye could do.adbbc39f8a67c45d

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For someone like 8f01e9d3ef Ismail, who was 61f5ea5e3c far more intelligent 33c35056a1 and had a 1ced8aebb3 more obviously useful 14b5863874 ability, the fear c17fef5c24 must have been 56ebf02581 unbearable.68f9fcd365953432

Even if he started speaking bccb2e36ba again, he knew the way 8272b3e7cc the other children and priests c7718e5fac saw him would never be 83dfdcaaf7 the same.a176a1d74d59bfa3

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Because even if 21fc76f7f1 he stopped pretending 86e12f8ec4 to be mute—he f32714c4d4 couldn’t stop pretending 2c99467912 that he had 5623ee8b72 lost his ability.0ae47c90ff809ad2

To protect it from 201d167936 being taken away.c3144bac5df120a4

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“…So High Priest Magnus didn’t harm you, but at the same time, he did nothing to stop the bullying you suffered.”cca640d1a107b133

After a brief silence, the ce155b746a Pope finally spoke.0866fe04af4b30fb

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“Did I hear you correctly, Ismail?”c5f9aea8a1170ed4

“Your Holiness!”b11e803f8537e080

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Magnus’s face twisted 57e72fe4fd in panic as c8561adf15 he hastily interrupted.41f0b06f689ee5bf

“E-Even so, what Ismail did was still wrong! He shouldn’t have used his ability on me—he should have spoken to me and asked for help instead…!”8549bb755fcfbf8b

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“High Priest Magnus.”1497956d8a330c63

“……”c2b84e07b326cfa2

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“It seems I overestimated you. You begged for this position so earnestly that I expected you to take your duties seriously.”57660ffccb8e059f

The Pope’s voice was calm, 56b96069e7 yet carried a chilling weight.d89128b511c9fed9

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Magnus quickly forced a 22586e12f8 smile, trying to salvage 571a90398d the situation.4728604257b03b8e

“Your Holiness, I have only been in this role for two weeks! That’s hardly enough time to fully grasp the orphanage’s situation—”afa84a996cd19b53

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“If you truly intended to understand the situation, you should have listened to the children who were being neglected first.”e399f52d190c6e05

At the Pope’s sharp c176c42e8a rebuke, Magnus finally shut 0676094f34 his mouth.5bbd493d8c998322

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Somehow, the discussion had 801de15106 shifted from Ismail’s hidden 4b8244b733 ability to Magnus’s incompetence.5d4e922f5330a852

That hadn’t been my ed1a21d9bc original goal—I had intended 680e8f6fa9 to expose him as e24e04f461 a heretic.35bb29bff04dfb2d

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But either way, with the 042102e61a Pope’s involvement, things were progressing 278cf098e3 much more smoothly than I ed46f7be10 had expected.b233400cccd1d290

“What exactly have you done today? While a child from the temple orphanage was forced to seek outside help, what were you doing?”7feedc15d4308c2c

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“Y-Your Holiness, that is….”5525cee20fcd794b

“You downplayed the situation to me, saying it was nothing serious, and now all you can say is that you lacked time?”44a3e0c69088b800

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The Pope had already been on edge since the noble guests had witnessed the previous orphanage priests’ misdeeds during the volunteer day.ea449e3ae990e901

And now, seeing 073354634b that even the 103523de95 newly appointed priest f65220c157 had failed to 9ef58b0e0a meet expectations, he 7364e99cac couldn’t hide his 067c67830e disappointment.a8f364acba12890b

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“Since, as you say, it’s only been two weeks, you probably haven’t even had time to form attachments with the children. I’ll find a new replacement, so you may step down now.”5333cdf1010c1dbe

“Your Holiness!”b992586d1c60f3f8

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Magnus’s head snapped up 139d605076 at the Pope’s unwavering 7ccf60cb00 decision, which left no 72e4736bb4 room for negotiation.ead8ac79465fffc9

“I-I was foolish! Please, just give me one more chance…!”6e35c53eddbfccf0

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“I don’t wish to see you for a while. Go to the Saint Arkia Monastery and spend time reflecting in prayer. And while you’re there, study again why the temple operates an orphanage in the first place.”3b455837881b6d6e

Even as Magnus hastily bowed 20ef9d8799 and pleaded for mercy, the cb2b80191c Pope remained unmoved.fb9630fd30d35f47

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As he had 03f5c2121d said, it was 82831d4f63 fortunate that Magnus c878f90674 had only been 470e393e43 in his position cb92ef4a2c for a short fa7c3fd457 time.800dc499d77f6a06

At least this way, 6e00d14c9b there hadn’t been too e4874b9d02 many more victims like ac519c4104 Ismail and me.5c01807f66b90843

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To be honest, I wanted 21dd6272f2 to expose Magnus right then 12ee50bb45 and there—6e53d5568e78a0f2

To reveal that he had 70933fd2e7 colluded with Logan.f6333bcc06ca661c

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To declare him a 3bdcd9e1b5 dangerous heretic who deserved e20a3d4b83 immediate punishment.7d59f50d1c586cd3

But…2c0eb0e263897406

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Ismail had told me that 91ecad39ac he justified controlling Magnus as baa6c1260e a way to ask for 12447c89e1 my help.df7ea3f4fa550d71

I recalled his explanation b71271b321 and bit my lip.a2ee7fde0893fb28

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Unlike Logan, who edd63fae92 had been caught 8b0bf07390 using dark magic 4a46fec05d and reciting ancient a2967bde61 heretical texts, there 5123c3d569 was no solid 9149c2a44a proof against Magnus c9b1eeb74c yet.f95e704599d53aac

If I acted recklessly and 3cdb3bdcf3 made it obvious that Ismail f53237939f knew something, we could end 6299709d6b up in even greater danger.ed9152b9d1461deb

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…Either way, he’s been sent far from the temple. I can deal with 543158ad2c him later.5ea950741ab9a29d

Morbid thoughts of 1891274b46 assassination and accidental 6d1093539f death floated through 58a136b3dd my mind.15f32cd3c7c8aa13

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“…Understood.”5450337647bdbd24

Magnus, who had been glancing e81596854b back and forth between the 695bde2a6c Pope, Ismail, and me with 18419ae635 a deeply resentful expression, finally 303816cb2c lowered his head.42f16ebf0789f920

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“I will prepare to leave immediately.”c18502e6708cc81e

With that, he 0a7bd9c242 rose and trudged 32c8cdc7d4 out of the 88ea01bc31 headmistress’s office.e240a873aab81803

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Saint Arkia Monastery was 22d8aea427 located far in the fdf023243a southern regions, far from 11ab282a69 the capital.85d1ec208cf18fc7

Unless he was summoned c4f9290a30 by the Pope or 32374a5507 accomplished some extraordinary feat, 4f50274b47 he was unlikely to 8030280568 return.e26fc9e25d457fc5

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It was, for 8cb777d0de all intents and a4ee2369e6 purposes, an exile.371415505e654e6a

For failing to da6cad69f6 listen to a 6ea3867920 neglected child, it fb5983e238 was a rather cbac5a191a severe punishment.a6b0f8e37d5652f1

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But it seemed the Pope 330bdfdd09 wanted to set an example—not f62271cb97 just for the orphanage, but bcd62df7e3 for me as well.ac63d4456e5c4e3b

Honestly, I didn’t mind.97f2ed93c517e978

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As I watched Magnus’s retreating 694d6d0ca8 figure disappear beyond the door, e7cddb4460 I felt an odd sense 3d07bc1bc6 of satisfaction.3e9ba1015e8c5a22

First Dunkeski, and now Magnus—I’m f08474a711 the one identifying these villains 748fc178bc and casting them out.19bd49c2887c7197

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If I hadn’t d87f13a884 asked Ismail to 210b8276e2 control him, none bf7d2474c9 of this would 663585482c have happened.f1ba81dcc5f989b6

I’m changing the original 7cb1235477 story, bit by bit.30a28a8c4476e9a8

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And finally, I admitted it.e02848e1bd11fd41

That because of me, 6957b30266 the events of the 186f280cbb novel were shifting in f0c74596f2 countless ways.ed5c936c52122c7a

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Diana was still ce45cc81c4 the protagonist, so 03f0357e15 I might not 6cc7a97090 be able to b4a3e67f75 alter the main 4735815b99 plotline.08b5566aaa26cc19

But if I kept making 07f332fccf these small changes, then maybe…38d5b72890a9ebb7

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Maybe I could remove Edwin 7e61fa3bf4 from the list of male b5f299ac73 lead candidates altogether.6209a734c27d8b8f

At the very 79fb6cfc84 bottom of my 027ad21d1b heart, a small, 79d400b02c secret hope began feb4ccb7a6 to bloom.7ad32166f145413c

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Just then—c1b7e96a3fefa1d9

“…It must have been quite a surprise to suddenly have a sponsor.”82c25bde87c870ac

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The Pope’s voice echoed through 84fbe0b1e1 the now-empty headmistress’s office.96b35d5af431301a

At his words, c7b53af932 Ismail cast a 569e768a65 wary glance in 73de6020cb my direction, looking 6f094febff rather unsettled.2e2421d2dbbbd0da

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“…She’s my sponsor?”a03cdab85f0dd552

“Yep! I’m your sponsor!”01f9ea528c5cffee

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I declared proudly, watching his af6fc9f008 dark amber eyes flicker.3d1f8d0d1f577842

For some reason, he 0bd50f92c4 looked troubled.c2e78b52bc83ba99

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This entire plan had been 8f890f3dbc something he knew nothing about.cb4268d17e746038

And honestly, I 633569fc5d had only thought 6b779a8fbf of it in 24aa5b179b passing before—only deciding bd678429cc to act on 80f19a2452 it just yesterday.21c828b263c743da

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Maybe he’s just shocked?a6f95770a4f16ac8

As I rationalized his 11b5bbc532 reaction, I suddenly remembered 96daeb0e60 something.dfd17dae03b28d43

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Feeling the weight still 1047d18840 hanging at my waist, d2b70cc96a I gasped.520942dce042eda4

“Ah!”9374183f2943169e

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With a short exclamation, aca81fbedb I quickly untied the a10f2362f8 heavy pouch strapped tightly 5ddb1c7ac2 to my belt and f64ab63f69 handed it to the 58e7dd1262 Pope.e5f70aa9f6b9d16a

“Here, the remaining 48 gold!”95e51a389de5dc29

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