Not long after, another smaller group arrived outside the city gates.
Upon recognizing them, Jem Woz promptly welcomed them inside.
After exchanging warm greetings, Jem gestured to Shar beside him and said with a smile, "Bishop Saffi, allow me to introduce my friend, Shar!
He specializes in combating cult activities in our Maddon Duchy, though his operations have always been rather covert, so he isn't widely known. But his expertise is absolutely genuine—his understanding of cultists is second to none! He knows them almost as well as he knows himself!
This time, I specifically brought him here to help us identify the most likely hiding spots for the cult within the city, based on previous intelligence."
"Oh?"
After hearing Jem Woz's introduction, Saffi, who had initially paid little attention, couldn't help but feel a flicker of curiosity and turned his gaze toward Shar.
Meeting his eyes, Shar stepped forward, extending his hand to shake Saffi's. His expression was one of barely contained excitement as he stammered, "H-Hello, Bishop Saffi! I've long admired your reputation. I never imagined I'd have the honor of meeting you one day—this is truly overwhelming for me!!"
He spoke with the fervor of a starstruck fan, his words stumbling in his excitement.
Seeing his animated reaction, Saffi was momentarily taken aback before breaking into a smile. "You flatter me too much. I had no idea Maddon Duchy had an expert like you dealing with cultists. What a blessing for Maddon!"
Shar immediately wore a look of humility. "I'm hardly worthy of such praise. When it comes to combating cultists, you, as the head of the Heretic Hunting Division, are the foremost authority. To be recognized by His Highness Jem is already an immense honor for me. I couldn't possibly—"
Listening to their mutual flattery, which showed no signs of stopping, Jem Woz—who knew exactly who these two really were—felt an overwhelming sense of absurdity. A cult leader and the chief executioner of heretics exchanging compliments—how ridiculous is this?
Unable to bear it any longer, he cut in, "Gentlemen, let's save the small talk for later. We have urgent matters to attend to first. There'll be plenty of time to chat afterward!"
The two exchanged a glance before nodding in agreement. "Very well," they said in unison.
Their expressions suggested deep mutual admiration and a shared eagerness for a heart-to-heart conversation once the mission was over, which sent a chill down Jem Woz's spine.
Hastily, he waved at Shar and instructed, "Shar, share a copy of the map with Bishop Saffi."
"Understood."
Taking the map handed to him by Shar, Saffi made no attempt to conceal it, immediately unfolding it and scrutinizing it with a serious expression.
The first thing that caught his eye were circles of varying sizes and colors. The most prominent was a large red circle marking the royal palace at the center of the map!
Saffi couldn't help but pause in surprise. Judging by the colors, the circles likely represented different levels of difficulty—three colors for three tiers. That much was easy to understand.
But seeing the royal palace marked with that glaring red circle, Saffi was still taken aback. He hadn't expected Jem Woz to insist on searching even the palace—especially since Jem hadn't even been crowned yet.
Though his father was dead, his mother was still alive—and she was currently the one managing the palace!
According to protocol, only after the Crown Prince completes the coronation will she relinquish this portion of authority. Jem Woz's overnight search of the palace was undoubtedly an overreach, giving off the impression of forcing the issue!
Such actions would undoubtedly greatly affect his public reputation!
Unfavorable for future development.
And provide excuses for his siblings.
After hesitating for a moment, Bishop Saffi still asked: "Hmm... there are quite a few locations, but why even the palace?"
"There's no other way.
My mother isn't particularly skilled at managing affairs, so with the palace currently somewhat disorganized in morale, it's indeed possible for cultists to have successfully infiltrated. Therefore, conducting a thorough search is absolutely necessary!
I will personally explain to my mother afterward, so you needn't worry about anything."
The implication being that even his own mother didn't know about his plan to search the palace.
Presumably because he harbored some degree of suspicion toward her as well.
Recognizing the underlying meaning, Saffi could only acknowledge that Jem Woz was a ruthless character—someone who didn't even trust his own mother when necessary. Judging by the marked locations, numerous nobles were under suspicion. This was clearly someone who wouldn't hesitate to offend others to achieve his goals, confident in his ability to suppress any backlash. With both capability and decisiveness, no wonder he had completely suppressed his siblings and secured his position as Crown Prince.
However, such a person didn't seem like the ideal cooperative partner the Church needed. He could turn on them at any moment and kick the Church out of the game.
In Saffi's mind, the ideal partner should be someone of mediocre ability—competent enough to maintain stability but lacking great ambition.
At this thought, Saffi's eyes shifted, but finding no immediate solution, he decided to set the issue aside for now and revisit it later.
After all, only by completing today's tasks could the Church's forces officially establish themselves in the Maddon Duchy. If this failed, everything else would be meaningless.
Thus, with a puzzled expression, he asked, "In that case, how should we allocate the targets?"
Unaware that his temporary ally had just been scheming against him, Jem Woz maintained his smile and replied, "We'll handle the red-marked ones together last. For the other locations, let's split them left and right. Would you prefer the left or right half?"
Hearing that he was expected to take on half the tasks, Bishop Saffi's eyebrows immediately shot up, his expression turning displeased. "Oh? But this is Your Highness's territory. We're merely here to assist. Isn't this arrangement somewhat inappropriate? After all, our Church's manpower is only about one-tenth of yours, yet we're expected to cover the same area."
Jem Woz explained with an earnest expression, "That's not entirely accurate. Your Heretic Hunting Division was specifically established to deal with cultists. Your experience in this area is extremely extensive—you probably understand their methods better than they do themselves. While my soldiers are brave, they lack such expertise, and casualties would inevitably be much higher among them."
To this, Saffi simply shook his head and firmly refused, "Even so, our Church shouldn't bear such significant risks. I can't treat my priests' lives as trivial!"
Faced with his firm refusal, Jem Woz showed no surprise, merely offering a calm, faint smile as he casually remarked, "The parish's territory will expand by one-third, and the Maddon Duchy will cover 600,000 gold coins for the construction costs."
"Deal."
Bishop Saffi's expression shifted dramatically. He placed both hands on Jem Woz's shoulders, his face solemn as he declared, "When it comes to combating heresy, we of the Church take our responsibilities very seriously. Over the years, we have never slackened, for it is the divine duty bestowed upon us by the Lord. Your Highness, you are far too courteous! My earlier refusal was merely words—why stand on such ceremony?"
'Old bastard, shameless as ever!'
As if moved by the other's apparent resolve, Jem Woz's eyes reddened, and he embraced Bishop Saffi emotionally. "Your words move me deeply. The Maddon Duchy and the Church have always been close, like brothers. This is but a small token of our goodwill—please, you must accept it!"
Bishop Saffi refused with grave seriousness. "How could we? Such conduct goes against the Church's principles!"
"No, you must accept it!"
"No, the Church cannot—"
"No, today you absolutely must—"
Watching the two of them put on such righteous expressions, Shar discreetly spat on the ground when no one was looking.
Their heartfelt performance had genuinely sickened him.
Back in the days of the struggle between royal and divine authority, the Maddon Duchy and the Church had crossed blades more than once, leaving many dead.
If not for the intervention of other factions, they would have been locked in a fight to the death centuries ago. What friendship was there to speak of?
'Truly, politicians have the thickest skins. Even I, an Evil Sorcerer, couldn't stomach such nauseating words.'
After another round of polite refusals, Bishop Saffi finally accepted Jem Woz's proposal with an air of shame, choosing to take responsibility for cleansing the left half of the city. Jem Woz even thoughtfully assigned a squad of soldiers to accompany them, ready to assist at any moment—and incidentally, to ensure they didn't slack off.
As they parted, Jem Woz clasped Bishop Saffi's hand earnestly, urging them to take care of themselves. "The mission is important, but life is even more precious!"
Once the Church's procession had disappeared into the distance, Jem Woz's smile vanished instantly. He wiped his hands with disgust and spat on the ground.
Immediately, he took a bottle of liquor from one of his subordinates, washing his hands and rinsing his mouth.
Even he found his own words revolting.
If he had to repeat them, he'd probably vomit.
'Allies in name only! Just wait—I'll find a way to screw you over someday, you old bastard!'
He fumed inwardly.
Meanwhile, Bishop Saffi, visibly uncomfortable and squirming as if covered in lice, drew concerned looks from the priests behind him. "Your Grace, are you unwell?" one asked.
"It's nothing. I just need a change of clothes."
Clearly, like Jem Woz, he too had been thoroughly disgusted.
But in the end, he restrained himself, merely removing his outer robe to shake it out before putting it back on.
Once everything had returned to normal, he asked the priests beside him with perfect composure, "Has anyone here heard of a man named Shar?"
"No."
"Never heard of him."
"Not..."
Looking at the priests exchanging bewildered glances before him, Safi stroked his chin.
He clearly remembered that several of the marked locations on the map in his hand were previously identified problem areas the Church had investigated.
Originally intended for negotiation with the Kingdom of Marton, they had unexpectedly been pinpointed outright, forcing them to abandon the plan.
'This doesn't add up. If the targets on the map were truly deduced by that man based on intelligence alone, then his expertise and experience in dealing with cultists must be extraordinarily profound. Otherwise, he couldn't possibly understand them so thoroughly.
No matter how such a person conceals their tracks, rumors would inevitably circulate to some extent. After all, unless every single cultist is eradicated without exception, information is bound to leak…'
After a moment's thought, he first glanced at the soldiers trailing not far behind them before issuing an order: "By the end of today, I want all available information on that man named Shar. I suspect both he and our Crown Prince Jem Woz are hiding something significant from us…"