Ice Vapor Goddess

Chapter 16 The Crusades

“Thank you for your guidance.” Schneider sat on the other side of the solid wood desk, the light illuminating his profile. “You know, people like me are always surrounded by voices of agreement, and therefore are always blinded.”

Aldridge did not speak.

"Life is like coffee. It's so bitter, but you have to force yourself to drink it. If you drink too much, you might taste a little aroma, but that's still a lie. Bitter is bitter. You can't say it's not bitter just because you're addicted." Schneider took a sip of the coffee he brewed and wrinkled his nose.

"You abandoned the title of Rune Master, abandoned your life in Florence, and went to live in seclusion in London for forty years. Why have you come to Speyside again?"

Schneider clasped his hands together, looking at Aldridge's messy hair. The once-genius runemaster had long since grown silver hair, which was spreading wildly on his rugged head.

"You've been hiding for so many years, but you're still on the church's list. You can't escape. Your seclusion is just an illusion. If the church needs you, a transfer order can make you leave your old life and go to the cold north."

Schneider looked at Aldridge's lowered head, a faint smile playing on his lips, but he covered it with his hands, so no one but himself and God could see it.

“You followed behind that young bishop, doing this and that for him, accompanying him across the snowfields, obeying the church’s orders as before. But if that’s the kind of life you wanted, why did you hide away back then? Wouldn’t it have been better to enjoy life in Florence?”

“Look! He doesn’t treat you like a rune master at all. He made you sleep in the cold church hall—yes, he slept there too, but he went to admire his mansion today. And what about you? He’s completely forgotten about you.”

"He probably doesn't care about you at all. It's normal for him to look down on a dog that runs around after being taught a command."

Aldridge clenched his fists and asked in a hoarse voice, "What exactly are you trying to say?"

“Join us, sir,” Schneider said, looking at him.

Aldridge sneered, "Why should I?"

Schneider stared intently at him: "Because we weren't the executioners of the Fourth Crusade."

The Runemaster's pupils suddenly contracted.

Schneider averted his gaze, smiled elegantly, opened the document beside him, and read aloud: "The Messianic Church's Fourth Crusade completely annihilated the Mountain Kingdom. The wealth accumulated by the dwarves over generations filled the Church's treasury, and the runic techniques passed down through generations of dwarves became the Church's [Holy Runes]..."

"...You were a witness to that incident, weren't you? The Order of the Mountains...only artisans who have made outstanding contributions to rune technology can receive it."

Aldridge hissed, "Enough, that's enough."

But Schneider didn’t stop: “They slaughtered all the surrendered dwarves, wiping the race and their gods off the face of the earth… Even halflings, who were half-human and half-dwarf, were discriminated against and persecuted… You set up a halfling shelter in Lundin, didn’t you? You sympathized with them.”

"I've said enough!"

"Not enough, sir! You hate the church's atrocities! The killings and exterminations! You have no other choice, so you have not served the church for forty years, you refuse to cooperate!"

Aldridge angrily stood up, turned and walked through the door, then slammed it shut as he left.

The guards outside exchanged glances, then came in and looked at Schneider with their eyes, asking if he wanted to stop the person, but Schneider just smiled and shook his head.

Ah—anger, captivating anger, the subconscious retaliation when the forbidden zone of the mind is touched.

The Speyer archives contained very little information, but fortunately, the guesses were pretty close.

The governor's task will be completed soon.

Schneider lit a cigar—a habit he'd picked up from the governor, who was happy to see his subordinates imitate him—and exhaled a puff of smoke. "Without the Iron Angel Knights, without Mercury, without runes… burdened with countless blood debts, what is left of the Church?"
-
“None of this matters,” Siren Delland said, sitting in a chair in the underground residence, interrupting Joseph’s rambling description of its luxurious furnishings and exquisite design.

The priest immediately bowed his head respectfully, adopting a posture of attentive listening.

Looking at him, Xilun sighed: "It's enough to get acquainted with the place once. There's no need to introduce these luxury items anymore. Just take me to the Holy Treasury."

Joseph nodded: "Understood. Saint Citadel is on the eighteenth underground level. Please follow me."

Xilun stood up and followed him toward the elevator.

The bishop's treatment was indeed quite good. The underground floors 3-6 were residential areas, with the better the lower the floors. On the sixth underground floor, where land was extremely valuable, he had a huge living space of 300 square meters, exactly the same as the governor across the street.

But he didn't care. What he cared more about was the "Holy Treasury" that Joseph mentioned. It was the church's treasury, where many supplies were stored. The supplies that the Northern Holy See train was originally going to transport were also to the Holy Treasury, but unfortunately, they overturned on the way.

As the platinum-gold elevator descended, Xilun saw layers upon layers of residential areas, the lowest being the third underground floor and the highest the sixth, symbolizing power and class.

The seventh underground level is the control zone, where a massive differential engine operates, controlling the entire city. Beneath layers of steel plates, intricate gears and numbers operate and calculate in places unseen by Xilun.

Further down are the boiler, industrial, pastoral, and agricultural areas, filled with noise and heat, and the complex gear-mechanical structures that make Xilun dizzy are exposed to the fiery red light.

But the twelve core steam engines had not yet started; they were like twelve enormous steel hearts, silent within this complex and sophisticated body.

When traversing the underground of Speyside, Siron always had the feeling of exploring inside the body of some steel monster.

Finally, he passed through the colder reservoir area and arrived at the eighteenth underground level.

This is the shelter's warehouse, located below the waterline. The cold air here helps keep some agricultural products and meats fresh.

Soldiers wearing the armbands of the Governor of Speyer stood along the entrances and passageways, making it impossible for thieves to bypass their patrols and obstruction, even if they could steal something from here.

Siron walked forward calmly, and then two soldiers stopped him.

"Wait a moment, Your Excellency."

Joseph's face twitched, while Siren frowned and walked up to them.

"What's wrong?" Xiren asked calmly.

"I'm very sorry, this area is under the governor's jurisdiction, and you cannot proceed any further."

Joseph shouted, "When did this place come under the governor's control? Does the Holy Treasury already belong to the governor?"

The soldiers said coldly, “The Holy Treasury is naturally the property of the Church, but this passage is currently under the jurisdiction of the Governor. We need to ensure that unauthorized personnel do not approach the nearby gold warehouse.”

“You…you are questioning the morals of the clergy!” Joseph shouted angrily.

The soldiers looked at his round belly and waist, and said nothing.

(End of this chapter)