Roddy struggled in the mud, coughing in pain. Yet, his heart remained unusually calm, as if nothing around him could affect his thoughts even slightly. Roddy knew that if his disguise failed, Lotte might have his men capture him and bring him to the castle, ruining his plan to escape.
Deceive him, deceive everyone present, then escape from Coro and survive...
"Is he the genius of Coro?" A stranger's voice emerged from the darkness. Taking advantage of his coughing, Roddy stole a glance and saw a priest in a holy robe. Clearly, this person was the new clergyman sent to replace Father Sedo. Holding a scepter, the priest instilled an inexplicable panic in Roddy. He must not let the priest discover he is a necromancer, or everything would be over.
"Indeed." Lotte nodded and then asked with a smile, "My brother is unwell. Could Father Nari kindly perform a healing spell on him?"
"Healing people is Nari's wish," Father Nari raised his scepter, chanting, "O Supreme God of Light, praised for Your kindness, please bestow Your divine power and grant this person before us a joyous deliverance!"
Roddy's scalp tingled hearing this. Father Nari wasn't chanting a Light Magic healing spell, but an attack spell, 'Fist of Light'. Though he couldn't learn Light Magic, he knew the chant from Father Sedo. The 'Fist of Light' was often used by temple knights against evil, as Roddy had read in the 'Light Magic Codex'. Its power was formidable; the most powerful use described was when Pope Frederick III annihilated the demon lord Ruesmyra with it.
Even if Father Nari was far from Frederick's level, killing Roddy would be easy. A shadow of death filled Roddy's heart.
Bits of light elements rapidly gathered, forming a light orb on Nari's scepter, which then morphed into a glowing giant fist, roaring towards Roddy. Believing this blow would leave him dead or crippled, Roddy closed his eyes in despair, just a little more, and he could have escaped Coro. Now, fate seemed to mock him cruelly.
As the fist was about to hit him, a burst of holy light shot from above Roddy, dazzling and transforming into the image of the Holy Mother, full of infinite love and purity, shielding Roddy in her arms. The Fist of Light disintegrated into light feathers upon touching the image, scattering across the sky. The image of the Holy Mother gradually faded, leaving two tears of light falling into the void...
"Song of Life's Guardianship!" Father Nari gasped in shock. This was the ultimate protection exchanged with a clergyman's life for God's grace. Unexpectedly, it appeared to protect Roddy.
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"How could this be! Damn, it must be that old man Sedo..." Lotte was stunned but quickly recovered.
"All praise to the Holy Mother, Your kindness showers every corner of the world, reaching millions of your children." Everyone from the temple drew their swords in salute to show their devotion. Even an enraged Lotte couldn't defy this. Seeing the Holy Mother's image protecting Roddy, if he dared to act, it would be a blasphemous death sentence.
Father Nari and Lotte exchanged glances and hastily left on horseback. Being a clergyman, Nari couldn't afford to be seen using magic to invoke the Holy Mother's image, or his position would end. Lotte also hurried after, with only a month left until his knighthood initiation; he couldn't linger.
"Leave two men to escort the third young master back!" Lotte instructed his subordinates before leaving. If Roddy died weakly, he could blame the subordinates. The scout who had mocked Roddy and a companion were left behind, looking dejected as they watched the horsemen gallop away, then turned to the motionless Roddy, sighing at their bad luck.
Roddy hadn't fainted; he saw everything, including Nari's shock and Lotte's change in expression.
He was deeply moved at that moment.
Although I do not know when I acquired this 'Anthem of Life Protection' magical protection, it must have been the doing of Father Cedo. Now I understand why Father Cedo died peacefully at the age of sixty-four; it must have been a protection he obtained from the gods in exchange for his life. Tears inevitably overflowed from Rody's eyes, soaking into the ground.
Fate, abandoned me; the gods, also abandoned me.
And my father...
But Father Cedo, he didn't. He even exchanged his life for this protective magic today, just so I could survive at the most difficult moment. He ruined his own life, feeding me the forbidden demon-martial potion, but he also used his life to make up for the harm done to me.
Rody wanted to cry out loud, to cry until the heavens and earth shattered, but he didn't, because the danger was not over, and it wasn't the time for wailing.
"What should we do with this waste? If we lay a finger on him and he dies, wouldn't we become scapegoats?" Two warrior scouts whispered in each other's ears, hesitating to approach, aware of the risks involved. If Rody died by their hands, they believed Lord Lott would unceremoniously send them to the guillotine as his scapegoats.
"Find someone to move him... Marcus, what are you waiting for? Hurry up and take the young master back!" As soon as they saw Marcus slowly emerging from the darkness, they were overjoyed, shouted loudly, threw a few silver coins as a reward, and hurriedly mounted their horses to flee.
Watching them ride away, Rody finally released the teeth clenched on the back of his hand, large hot tears fell, dropping onto the bloody wound.
Finally, he escaped this ordeal, for the first time, life and destiny, back in his own hands.
All this, was bestowed by Father Cedo, all exchanged with his life.
Suddenly, it started to rain heavily from the sky, drenching Rody's head and face, unsure whether they were tears or rain. He supported his body with a short stick, step by step towards home, and Marcus, his ever loyal servant of darkness, followed slowly and clumsily behind.
Upon returning home, Rody dealt with his mother's concern, fed her a 'sleep potion', carefully wrapped her in a thin blanket, and covered it with oilcloth to keep out the rain. He had made all the preparations, just waiting for tonight. He believed that after the recent encounter, the castle guards' attention to him would lessen, trusting that it would take three to five days before anyone noticed his escape.
After drinking two sips of 'Weakness Healing', to regain some strength, Rody brought out a four-wheeled wooden cart he had made, ready to carry his mother away.
Suddenly, a bolt of lightning flashed across the sky, followed by a rumble of thunder, prompting Rody to have a thought he had never had before.