Chapter 28: 24 Kelsay's Plan
Ulu had always been very nervous in the presence of Kelsay, the Knight Master.
Not to mention now, Ulu was well aware that the person the Knight Master was searching the town for was himself, yet he still stood before the Knight Master, somewhat like walking into a trap of his own volition.
But this was not Ulu's true nature; had it not been for Lord Visas's request, he wouldn't have dared to appear before Kelsay at all.
Yet this was precisely Lord Visas's request, which he couldn't refuse, and he also knew that Lord Visas was right—"If you don't go to him, do you want to wait for him to come to you?"
The more precarious the situation, the more one should act proactively instead of passively.
Ulu took a deep breath and then folded his hands across his chest.
This appeared to be a prayer on the surface, but in reality, it was so that Bai Wei could see more clearly.
"I'm sorry to disturb you, Kelsay," Ulu said, "but I feel I must come. Clearly, something is happening in this small town, and Priest Lu Ji has also not returned. Last night, you were unwilling to tell me what happened... To be honest, I don't think this is very appropriate for me as a priest of this place."
Upon hearing Ulu's words, Kelsay slightly narrowed his eyes.
He looked at Ulu and read a hint of nervousness in his eyes, but this did not surprise him, for he had always known Ulu feared him.
And Ulu's reasoning had no problems, so Kelsay didn't think much more about it and calmly said, "You don't have to wait for Lu Ji anymore, that old guy is already dead."
Ulu's eyes widened, and he made a perfectly timed expression of surprise: "Dead?! How did this happen?!"
"It's simple, because he took something he shouldn't have taken," Kelsay said indifferently, "and then he was killed by someone from Esoteric Buddhism, and now that item has been taken by those from Esoteric Buddhism. We're searching for that item now."
With that said, Kelsay waved his hand, as if he was not interested in revealing more information.
"That's all you need to know, now get going."
Ulu felt relieved when he heard Kelsay telling him to go, and he instinctively wanted to turn around and leave, but that finger that wasn't his tapped lightly on the back of his hand, freezing him in place.
Ulu knew what this meant; after all, Bai Wei had already explained it to him on the way here, and now he wanted to run, but Bai Wei stopped him.
Helpless, after taking a deep breath, Ulu still turned to Kelsay's back and stammered, "Yes, it's something related to a finger, right?"
Kelsay's body tensed, and then he turned abruptly, pinning Ulu with eyes full of killing intent: "How do you know about it?"
As he moved, the other knights also gathered around, focusing their gaze on Ulu's hand.
At that moment, Ulu's heart leaped to his throat.
He knew that if his explanation didn't satisfy Kelsay, he would end his life right here. Trying to maintain his composure, he spoke the words he had agreed upon with Bai Wei: "On the way here, I was checked by the knights three or four times. Everyone had to look at my middle finger and thumb... To be honest, it's difficult not to think in that direction."
After hearing Ulu's explanation, the murderous look in Kelsay's eyes gradually dissipated.
He glanced behind Ulu, thinking that indeed there were several checkpoints from the church to here, and Ulu was not an ignorant man. Having his hands inspected in such a manner, it was normal to associate them with that particular item.
So Kelsay waved his hand, and the knights surrounding Ulu immediately backed away, while Kelsay's expression gradually turned teasing: "You seem to know quite a lot."
Seeing that the crisis was temporarily averted, Ulu breathed a sigh of relief and then laughed: "Heh, I have some understanding of those Corpse Blocks... Of course, that is only based on knowing this much."
"Heh, since you already know this much, is there anything else you want to know?" Kelsay asked Ulu, his tone somewhere between jest and earnestness.
"Well, I just wanted to ask if there's anything I can help with, after all, I am part of the clergy…"
"All you need to do is give out porridge in the church," Kelsay interrupted Ulu, "This is our job, as support staff, there's no need to think too much about it, right?"
Seeing that Kelsay had made his position clear, Ulu took a deep breath in front of Kelsay and managed a forced smile: "Okay, I got it."
And with that, he turned and left.
Watching Ulu's dejected figure walking away, Kelsay felt it was a bit dull to just let him go back, so he called out to Ulu: "Actually, if you really want to help, you could."
Ulu turned around, looking at Kelsay with some surprise.
Kelsay flicked the sheet of paper in his hand and said, "This is the method Bishop Corey devised for dealing with 'Taboo Twenty-Nine'. It's to use earplugs to block your ears so that you won't hear the sound of snapping fingers."
"Not hear the sound of snapping fingers... That's all it takes?"
"Yes," Kelsay spread his hands and said with a smile, "It's really that simple, after all, it's just a finger, lacking any aggressiveness. So if you really encounter the Cultist who stole 'Taboo Twenty-Nine', don't hesitate, just plug your ears and go at him. As long as you capture him, that would be the greatest merit, Bishop Corey will definitely transfer you back to the East Church."
After that, Ulu left.
The Knights, somewhat puzzled, asked Kelsay, "Knight Master, is plugging our ears the way to counter 'Taboo Twenty-Nine'?"
"Of course, I didn't lie to him."
"Then, has Lord Bishop not come up with a method for 'Taboo Twenty-Four'?"
Kelsay glanced at the Knight who asked the question, smiling as he said, "Of course he has come up with one. Whether it's 'Taboo Twenty-Nine' or 'Taboo Twenty-Four', Lord Bishop has provided countermeasures."
The Knight was even more confused, "Then why didn't you tell him everything?"
"Why should I tell him everything?" Kelsay said indifferently, "After all, with that guy's strength, a Cultist could take him down without even needing the power of a Taboo."
"Then why did you..."
Kelsay replied faintly, "What is the twentieth article of the Rhein Rules?"
The twentieth article of the Rhein Rules...
The Knight was taken aback, then suddenly understood everything, and asked no further.
Because the content of the Rhein Rules' twentieth article is this: When Rhein Clergy encounter a "Taboo", if they have not mastered the "Rule of the Taboo", they may retreat immediately. If they have mastered the "Rule of the Taboo", they must seal it. If they retreat with knowledge of the rule, it is considered dereliction of duty. The degree of punishment later depends on the level of threat posed by the Taboo (execution by hanging for the top hundred Taboos).
Kelsay looked indifferently at Ulu's departing figure.
Lu Ji was dead, and he had been executed for the grave sin of secretly hoarding a Taboo, which would be troublesome for the Church to investigate later on. Kelsay just happened to have some unclear and unspoken relationship with Lu Ji.
And this relationship was known only between two people, one being Bishop Corey, and the other was... Priest Ulu.
So, to be on the safe side, Kelsay had to make some arrangements for his "old friend".
Him taking the same road as Lu Ji seemed like the best choice.
Lu Ji, Ulu...
When these two names were linked together, Kelsay suddenly felt as though he had forgotten something.
What was Ulu doing when they first met yesterday?
Kelsay paused, recalling the moment, then something came to mind.
Ulu seemed to have asked him to send a letter, and the letter was from Lu Ji to Bishop Corey. But Lu Ji had fled that very night, so why would he still want to send a letter to Bishop Corey during the day?
Kelsay felt that something was amiss, immediately searched through his belongings, and found the letter.
It was still there.
Kelsay could not bother with the fact it was meant for Bishop Corey any longer, he tore open the letter and read it carefully.
The content of the letter was quite ordinary, all about details of transactions best kept secret.
But Lu Ji had already obtained Visas's finger, so why would he still care about these things?
Kelsay still felt something was off, then his gaze slowly moved upward to the top of the letter, where there was a red stain.
He rubbed it with his finger, then sniffed it near his nose. His eyes immediately narrowed.
It was blood.