Helmut: The Forsaken Child - H.F.C Chapter 445 (Part 1):

The underground dungeon was shrouded in darkness.

It was the first time since the establishment of Renosa’s royal castle that this dungeon had hosted a high priest as its guest.

High priests visiting Renosa had always been treated as honored dignitaries.

Thus, the presence of a high priest in this damp, grim prison, typically reserved for the worst of criminals, felt utterly foreign.

Only a select few in Renosa knew he was here.

If word got out that a high priest was imprisoned in this place, Lumen’s devotees would surely rally to free him.

The stone floor, radiating a chill from below, was cold to the touch, covered only by a single thin cloth.

High Priest Agato sat cross-legged upon it, motionless, immersed in meditation.

The food was unpalatable, and the sanitation was far from clean.

With no sunlight to mark the passage of time, he had no way to gauge how long he had been there.

Not even a single book was permitted, leaving prayer as his only solace.

High Priest Agato was not a man accustomed to asceticism.

Thus, it was his innate patience and unwavering faith in Lumen that sustained him through this unfamiliar hardship.

As the Grand Duke’s party approached the iron bars, Agato sensed their presence and opened his eyes.

The Grand Duke’s low voice echoed through the cell.

“High Priest Agato.”

“…So, you finally have business with me.”

High Priest Agato faced the Grand Duke with a serene demeanor.

He had sustained significant injuries in his confrontation with Helmut, but those wounds had already healed.

Restoring the body was a simple matter once holy power was recovered.

However, immediately after his wounds healed, shackles that suppressed his holy power were fastened around his wrists. Drained of strength, he could not resist.

With his holy power restricted, escaping through the sturdy iron bars was impossible.

Thus, he simply waited—for someone to come to him with an offer.

It had been a lonely and grueling time.

The Grand Duke of Renosa fixed his gaze on the high priest seated within the cell.

Helmut had wanted to hang him alive on the city walls as an example, but he had relented at the Grand Duke’s persuasion.

Until such a situation became unavoidable, they could not afford to treat a high priest too harshly in public.

To do so would risk turning Lumen’s followers into a mob and providing justification for those who condemned the one bearing the Seed of Darkness.

Even though the temple had recently been disgraced, its influence remained deeply rooted in human society.

And Helmut, as always, was still forced to endlessly prove himself.

After confirming his visitor, Agato spoke slowly.

“If the Grand Duke himself has come to see me, it seems you don’t intend to hang my head on the city walls.”

“You stand before the Grand Duke of Renosa. Mind your manners.”

Charlotte’s voice was icy as she snapped at him.

But far from yielding, Agato’s eyes flared with indignation.

“How dare apostates who shelter the bearer of the Seed of Darkness demand courtesy from me?!”

Agato’s voice thundered with defiance.

To remain so bold even in captivity suggested either a lack of wits or a conviction so deep that he would choose death over submission.

Most would fall into the former category, but astonishingly, High Priest Agato appeared to belong to the latter.

A man willing to lay down his life for Lumen. A high priest among high priests, one who could sway the temple’s decisions.

“Does it seem to you that the temple has been fulfilling its role with such bravado?”

The Grand Duke’s tone lowered naturally. Before Agato could respond, the Grand Duke cut straight to the point.

“If so, how could the temple have thought to strike Renosa while the sacred barrier is crumbling?”

Agato’s body flinched. His eyes widened in disbelief.

“The sacred barrier is crumbling?”

It was a statement he could not bear to hear, even as a jest.

No matter how much he branded his opponent a heretic, Agato knew the Grand Duke of Renosa’s character well enough.

The Grand Duke was not one to visit him for mere jests.

Nor was he the sort to harbor dark schemes; his actions were always clear, his intentions upright.

“Do you, a high priest, not have the ability to sense it? Was there not a single one among the six high priests who felt it?”

At the Grand Duke’s accusation, Charlotte added softly.

“This is the truth. Soon, the entire nation will learn that the collapse of the sacred barrier is imminent.”

It should have been the temple’s duty to announce such a thing.

Agato’s trembling pupils stilled. Countless thoughts raced through his mind.

His once-calm head felt on the verge of overload.

Yet, he could accept reality.

“If that is true, then the cause would be your son. Not long ago, the Archmages were seen acting strangely around the barrier. They must be involved.”

The only external factor worthy of suspicion was that. How could the sacred barrier, steadfast for a thousand years, be on the verge of collapse?

“It is the temple that sent my son to the Forest of Roots that is involved.”

The Grand Duke stood his ground without yielding.

Agato’s expression twitched.

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