After the cleric ended the mass, he accepted five villagers for confession. The last one was the little girl he had met earlier. "Could you tell me your name?" he asked gently.
They were far enough from the others that no one could overhear their conversation. "My name is Maria," she replied softly.
"Ahh, Maria, what a beautiful name, just like the mother of Jesus. I'm sure your life will be blessed," the cleric said with a warm smile, which made Maria smile in return. "Now, Maria, tell me your sins so I can help you."
"Sir, there is a... The devil is in our village!" Maria blurted out, her voice tinged with fear.
"The devil? Could you tell me more about it?" The cleric was skeptical but decided to hear her out.
"He appeared the day before yesterday! He came with a wagon of evil. It's the truth! The wagon is still inside the forest! I can show you!" Her voice grew louder with each word, attracting the attention of a few villagers nearby. Although they couldn't hear her exact words, they noticed her almost shouting.
"Calm down, my child. There's no need to panic because I'm here now, okay? First, you said this devil is in the village, right? What does he look like?" the cleric asked, trying to soothe her.
"He's a man, tall, and wears white and black clothes. I saw him, sir. I saw him when he arrived... My father even fought with him! You can ask him!" Maria insisted, her eyes wide with urgency.
These commoners always have the most absurd stories, the cleric thought, recalling similar tales from other villages. He didn't put much stock in what Maria was saying but decided to play along.
"I understand, Maria. For your protection and well-being, I want you to pray ten times for our Savior. I'm sure this devil won't harm you or your family if you have faith," he reassured her.
"Wait! You have to believe me! I can show you the evil object he left in the forest!" Maria pleaded desperately.
After some back and forth, the cleric reluctantly agreed to see this cursed object she spoke of. "But only tomorrow. It's too late, and everyone is tired," he said, trying to calm her. Maria wanted to argue but eventually nodded in agreement.
Turning to the rest of the villagers, the cleric spoke, "I believe everyone is tired after a hard day's work, so let's stop now. Tomorrow, there will be another mass, and I will listen to all of you then. May God bless you and your night."
With that, the villagers took their chairs and returned to their homes to rest. Some, exhausted from the day's labor, went straight to sleep without even eating. Cenric, however, decided to eat the leftovers from lunch.
My scout will arrive in two days. By then, the harvest will be complete, and this group will be gone with the grain, he thought.
I'll send the book to Frederic... Hmm, it's too dangerous to send just one scout. That book seems important, so I can't risk losing it to smugglers along the way. Cenric decided he would send three men on horseback to ensure the book's safe delivery, but only after his scout returned.
Cenric was about to enter his bedroom when a knock on the door interrupted him. Opening it, he saw the guard who had replaced Amis in watching Rafael. "I'm here to report my observations, sir," the guard said.
"Come in." Cenric motioned for the man to enter, then closed the door behind him. "Tell me. Did he do anything suspicious?"
"No, sir. He didn't even go out to get food from Richar."
"And about that weapon? Did he explain it to you?"
"Yes, sir," the guard replied, recounting Rafael's explanation in detail. If it works the way I'm imagining, then it might actually make some sense. Something that big could indeed be powerful. Tomorrow, I'll ask him to draw it for me, and I'll send it along with the book to Frederic. If this weapon is real and useful, he'll earn my trust, Cenric thought.
"Anything else to report? Did someone replace you there?"
"Yes, Arion replaced me, and that's all I have to report." The guard was dismissed and left, leaving Cenric alone with his thoughts. As he prepared for bed, his mind raced with ideas about the weapon—how it worked, how it could be built, and so on. In his preoccupation, he forgot to check if the book was still in its hiding place.
The night passed, and as always, the rooster's crow woke everyone who wasn't already awake. Rafael, having slept better than the previous nights, didn't curse the bird this time. He ate the last of his fruits and squeezed the lemon into a cup of water.
"Ahhh, so refreshing," he sighed in contentment. He then headed to the river to relieve himself, taking longer than usual because the guard was nearby, keeping him in sight without directly staring.
The water was cold, so Rafael quickly cleaned himself, thankful he had brought some rags to dry off before dressing again. Tsk, the same underwear for three days straight. Okay, this afternoon, I'm definitely washing and cleaning it, he resolved.
By the time he returned to the village, the sun was barely visible through the treetops. Rafael wanted to go about his business, but the guard ordered him back to his house.
When will they leave me alone? Cenric will notice the book is gone, and I'll be the prime suspect, but I can just say I stayed inside the whole time. That should clear me a bit. Then I can explain something new to him and maybe regain his trust... If he ever trusted me, Rafael mused.
The commoners started their day as usual. The morning was chilly, but it would soon warm up. After breakfast, the adults headed to the fields to continue the harvest, while the children stayed behind to clean the house, wash clothes, and do the dishes before joining the adults.
Lothar, dressed in well-made leather armor over his gambeson, supervised the commoners as they bagged the grain and loaded it onto the wagons.