Chapter 94: Chris the Tulip
“Eh?”
Rekto raised an eyebrow at that.
“Chris Labres, also known as ‘Tulip,’ the Pope Knight and the general manager of the choir’s second division, is also the chief conductor of the choir. He’s the only disciple of Lady Romani Abinyo and her best assistant,” I stated, propping my chin up with my hand and tilting my head slightly as I spoke.
No need to beat around the bush. I told him directly what the man named Ramiel had informed me back when we were still in Chielis City, highlighting the key points.
“He’s known as the ‘Crimson Thorn’ and is recognized within the choir as the best candidate for the next chief conductor. He’s a genius doctor, an expert in pathology, an aromatherapist, a master poison mixer, and so on… There are likely some titles I don’t even know about.”
“Whistle~”
Rekto let out a low whistle upon hearing this.
“Well, this sounds ominous.”
His expression grew serious: “So, you’re saying we might have to face the choir’s ‘number two’ next?”
“Exactly,” I nodded.
But Chris was more than just the “number two” of the choir.
As an indispensable right-hand man to the Romani Doctor, that guy once surrounded me in Woodward Forest upon the summons of Pope Angel. Along with Ramiel, Emily, and a bunch of other ‘clinic’ personnel, they were trying to take me away for ‘medical treatment’ when I had just stumbled out from the Land of Dragons and was extremely weak.
Clearly, they were the ones who knew the truth best, well aware of the ordeals I might face in the Land of Dragons and what was truly locked away inside.
Afterward, they thought I had died, so they initiated ‘Phase Four of the Fate Plan’ in Silent Fortress.
That ruthless and despicable experiment executed by the second choir division, with the first division supervising, was something you could guess was orchestrated by Chris, the choir’s general manager.
These thoughts flashed through my mind. I thought about it and decided not to inform Rekto about what I had witnessed in Silent Fortress.
Although Rekto had conducted some investigations in that regard before, he likely knew very little about the so-called “Fate Plan.”
If I told him more, it would also mean telling his majesty, the Queen.
I didn’t think that was needed, nor did I want to share too much with her.
“I’ve known that guy for a long time.”
With a shift in my thoughts, I continued with Rekto: “Before I arrived in the Royal City, Chris had made a trip to Winter City. He seemed to be old acquaintances with Carlos. At that time, they were investigating heretics and Lotus Seed Grass, and it was my first encounter with him.”
“A flashy, slick, and unreliable mediocre medic, wearing a birdbeak mask to hide his face, maybe because he was too ugly—that was the first impression Chris left on me.”
But now that I think about it, the purpose of “Tulip” back then was probably not to investigate heretics after all.
Running errands for the Pope or Romani, he probably came to Winter City to check on my condition, see if the Skarlij family had any suspicions, and ensure that the trajectory of events aligned with Angel’s expectations. That might have been the reason he met me initially.
“Heh, sounds like a guy who’s good at hiding his true self and not easy to deal with,” Rekto remarked, his gaze distant. “So that explains it. This Chris is most likely the reason Hogtus got connected with the choir.”
“I’m not sure about that,” I shrugged, picking at my nails to find a comfortable position to lean back in. “I don’t know Hogtus at all. Never even seen what that birdbeak doctor looks like. I suppose it’s unlikely he’ll wear a mask this time… Maybe he always wears a mask just to make it easier for times like this, doing shady stuff.”
I shrugged off without a worry, lifting my gaze to Rekto’s face again: “So, you dragged me in here because you already thought of a way to catch their trail, right?”
“Or what?” Rekto shrugged. “Am I taking you for a secret rendezvous?”
Before I could open my mouth to curse, he straightened: “They must still be in the city. They can’t have left so quickly. Whether it’s the choir or some general doctor, regardless of whether they’re wearing masks or not, getting into the city isn’t that hard. But slipping out won’t be easy.”
“Hmm, I can see that… Huh.”
I opened my palm and gently blew on my manicured nails, then shoved them into my mouth, mumbling, “The big city gates are heavily guarded, and all the main roads have checkpoints. There have been quite a few conflicts with the church lately. Is this like shutting the door to get the whole pack of dogs?”
“Pretty much. Anyway, the ones guarding the city gates are all little Reikmon’s trusted ones, and also the d*ath warriors trained by the Reikmon family. There’s almost no chance of outside infiltration. This concerns the fundamentals of the Advisory Council and their interests, and Her Majesty the Queen takes it very seriously. No one dares to slack off.”
“Chris is the Pope Knight,” I reminded him.
“Can he fly?” Rekto laughed. “This is the Royal City we’re in.”
“So?”
“Gmas.”
“What?”
“We separate those kids and interrogate them, making each of them give us a different evacuation location. If they mess up, we punish them… uh, by not giving them candy! That way we’ll get names. Gmas, an underground black market in the Royal City.”
“……”
No candy?
Do I look like a fool?
“They probably want to use the black market’s cargo ship to escape via the Sabal River lock, leaving the Royal City. The Sabal river has frequent ship traffic, with countless fishing and merchant vessels coming in and out daily, and unlike the city gates, ships aren’t like merchant caravans. The search procedures are complex and fraught with difficulties; most of the time, it’s nearly impossible to check every nook and cranny of every ship. That’s why this is their best chance of sneaking out of the city.”
“Oh.”
I bit my nails and blinked: “So, are we on our way to the black market now?”
“No.”
Rekto shook his head at me: “Let the guards from the palace check over there; the chances of missing them are high. We need to head to the west riverbank first, try to block the waterways. The arbitration team will act first. If this plan has been in the works for a while, I suspect they might have already boarded the ship by now.”
“Alright then…”
I nodded: “I’m not good at finding people anyway; I’ll leave it to you. I told the academy the same thing—finding and checking people is your job. I can help you retrieve the relic; I’ve already discussed the terms with Teacher Melville. Just inform Her Majesty the Queen…”
“Hmm?” Rekto pretended to be surprised. “So there are conditions?”
I ignored him and went straight to the point: “Once you have the relic, give it to me. A day later, I’ll return it to you intact. If I can’t, I’ll return another one; I’ll keep my word… Oh, and, cough.”
My throat felt a bit dry.
I unscrewed the water pouch in my pack and took a sip to moisten my throat.
“If the mastermind behind this theft is really that birdbeak doctor from the choir, once you see him or find out his whereabouts, don’t act rashly. No one can engage without my permission; leave him to me.”
“No problem,” Rekto quickly agreed. “But I can’t make decisions on the first matter; it has to be reported first.”
“You just report it,” I said.
The carriage fell silent for a moment.
“Peilo.”
Suddenly, Rekto spoke again: “What do you think their purpose might be for suddenly stealing that Divine Reliquary?”
“Who knows?”
I shrugged, gazing out at the car curtain, a slight smile forming at the corner of my mouth: “Once I catch him, I’ll ask, and it will all be clear.”
