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Chapter – 59
“Why haven’t we heard from them?”
“Could it be… that they’re planning to refuse?”
The priests sitting around exchanged uneasy whispers.
After demanding “500 million silings” from the Duke, they had received two replies.
The first reply said, “We will provide the requested 500 million silings as a donation, so prepare the contract for the apprentice priest’s patronage.”
The second reply, however, stated, “There are some matters to discuss regarding the ‘patronage contract,’ so please temporarily hold off on proceeding with it.”
When the first letter arrived, the temple was buzzing with festival-like excitement. But upon receiving the second letter, the atmosphere instantly turned as gloomy as a funeral.
The longer the suspension lasted, the more depressed everyone became.
“We shouldn’t have been so greedy.”
“At this rate, we might not get a single coin.”
“This is all because of Master Antis’s greed…”
The priests’ resentment naturally fell on Antis.
No one openly complained, but such feelings are always visible.
Damn it.
“That unlucky Duke of Panteibe…”
Antis cursed the Duke under his breath, frustrated at the humiliation.
He was a mid-ranking priest, yet here he was, fretting over his subordinates’ reactions.
“This won’t do. If we don’t get a reply by today, tomorrow I’ll have to bring that half-breed myself.”
It had already been well past the week they had initially promised.
If they were to proceed with the ‘patronage system,’ the half-breed would have to leave the temple anyway.
So there was no real need to summon him—leaving him with the Duke was their act of mercy.
“If the Duke acts lowly, we can’t just sit idly by either.”
“…Yes, sir.”
“Alright, let’s do that.”
Despite Antis’s solemn declaration, the priests remained nonchalant.
What difference would it make to bring the half-breed if they weren’t even getting the money?
It would just look like a pointless tantrum.
Ugh, what a waste of money.
The gloomy mood finally reversed that evening.
“A letter! A letter! It’s from the Duke’s house!”
A letter arrived via special delivery, stamped with the Duke’s seal.
The priests gathered around Antis once more.
Everyone’s mouths watered and eyes shone with anticipation.
Their hands, clenched tightly, were more earnest than any prayer.
“Hurry, read it, Master Antis.”
“What does the letter say?”
“Everyone, just be quiet. Master Antis is reading it.”
Gulp.
All eyes fixed on Antis.
He read the letter silently.
At first, his face was tense, but gradually it relaxed.
By the end, he was—
“Ha ha, hahaha!”
Throwing his head back, he laughed heartily.
At once, everyone’s expressions brightened.
That could not be the reaction to bad news.
Sure enough—
“Foolish Duke! We’re rich now! We’re rich!”
Antis’s triumphant shout rang through the room.
“Rich? The Duke is giving 500 million silings?”
“500 million? Did he say it’s only 500 million?”
“‘Only’ 500 million? What nonsense is this?”
The priests’ eyes widened in disbelief.
Antis, grinning arrogantly, handed the letter to them.
Desperate hands snatched it up to read.
‘This is…’
As they read, the priests could hardly believe their eyes.
The letter’s contents could be summarized as follows:
“Currently, our cash flow is tight due to other business ventures. Instead, we will transfer a mine valued at over 1.2 billion silings.
However, the gap between 500 million silings and the mine’s value is too great, so we would need something else in addition to the apprentice priest’s patronage—something worth at least 300 million silings. Cash would be unbecoming; if possible, please send something non-monetary. Should you refuse these terms, the ‘apprentice priest patronage’ will simply be null and void.”
“…This is truly incredible!”
“Yes, absolutely incredible.”
The Duke was offering a mine worth over 1.2 billion silings.
Even if they handed over something worth 300 million silings, they’d still gain over 800 million silings in profit.
Eight hundred million silings…
An ordinary priest could never hope to handle such an amount.
“But where can we find something worth 300 million silings?”
“No need to look. We already have the perfect item.”
Already? Could it be…
“Oh, the mine purchased last month was worth exactly 300 million silings, wasn’t it?!”
“Yes. We can trade that mine and receive the Duke’s 1.2-billion-siling mine.”
The mine Antis had bought would yield a future value of only 400 million silings.
By trading it for 300 million silings, they would net a 100 million siling profit—already a huge gain, which justified the risky purchase.
“Now that we have a 1.2-billion-siling mine, giving up that small one is nothing!”
“Exactly. That’s right!”
“Yes, absolutely!”
Clapping, the priests echoed Antis’s enthusiasm.
“The price of the mine you bought, Master Antis, coincidentally being exactly 300 million silings—what a miracle!”
“Indeed. Surely Bellus is watching over Master Antis!”
The priests, in their excitement, didn’t question the sheer improbability of the coincidence.
1.2 billion.
Faced with such a sum, all judgment was paralyzed.
Dawn, still faintly dim, found Calix waking out of habit.
A glance at the clock showed it was 5:20 a.m.
For a seven-year-old, that was quite an early rising, but—
“I overslept.”
For Calix, it was considered oversleeping.
At the temple, he always woke at 5 a.m.
He had countless duties: cleaning the large main building, removing weeds that grew overnight, checking for fallen ingredients in the kitchen, and running errands in the market every three days.
He needed at least twelve bodies to manage all of it, so waking by 5 a.m. was mandatory.
But here—
“There’s nothing to do.”
Two weeks had passed since he had been staying in Panteibe.
Though his body woke automatically at 5 a.m., unlike the temple, there was no work.
So Calix spent about an hour sitting on the bed, staring blankly.
He didn’t know what to do.
Leaning against the bed, his mind wandered to the conversation with the Duke last night.
“You don’t need to go back there anymore. As of today, I’ve become your guardian.”
“……”
“Oh, you won’t continue as an apprentice priest? Speak up if you want to continue.”
“I won’t.”
“Good choice. Being a priest won’t help you in life.”
“Where am I going now?”
“Well… that’s up to you.”
The Duke’s reply left Calix speechless.
He already knew where Calix would go?
“If you ever want to go somewhere, just tell me.”
“……”
“If not, you can stay here until you want to. I’ll give you a guest room in the annex.”
At the permission to stay, Calix replied that he would.
He had nowhere to go.
He had no place he wanted to go.
And—
“Good morning, Calix! Did you sleep well?!”
Every day at 10 a.m., a small girl would come cheerfully to his room.
“Is this going to be your room from now on?”
“Yes. The Duke said I could stay here.”
“Our Avadi is awesome, right?”
“Yes.”
The girl giggled, her tiny teeth like grains of rice.
“Since we’re friends, I can talk freely with you.”
“……”
“Tch. Not giving in this time either.”
The girl pouted, clearly disappointed.
Seeing her like that, he wanted to indulge her.
But.
“…How dare you.”
