"I see. You stay here while I deal with this."
The Bishop said to the nun. The nun responded.
"By your will."
The three of them walked outside the tent to see a chubby man with a receding hairline and a seriously tired face.
Aldric looked at him for a while.
"This guy.. I saw him at the church multiple times recently."
The Bishop looked at him with her blue eyes.
"We are in a similar situation. I'll just assume he is there for the same reason."
Jack looked at the both of them walking in front of him.
"Can I ask for the reason?"
"You'll see for yourself soon enough."
The Bishop answered him.
The man recognized the Bishop and immediately moved his attention from the Brave that was guarding the area and rushed toward her. The Brave in turn quickly stopped him. He yelled toward the three.
"Your eminence! I beg of you to please investigate the matter. I swear to you, ever since that bastard showed me the clay tablet my luck had turned for the worse."
She walked toward him.
"Mr. Randam, we already checked both you and your family."
She raised her voice.
"You are not cursed!"
The man dropped to his knees and began to beg. Jack looked toward Aldric.
"Did he get cursed?"
Aldric responded.
"No. Priest Aldwin checked his home and family personally."
He continued.
"He got really unlucky as a trader recently, with the blockade and all.."
"We eventually gave up the investigations because we were forced by the law to turn the case over to the guardsmen."
The Bishop herself added to the conversation.
"I also don't like it, but if we interfere with the territory of the Count we lose all support and be forced to leave."
"We don't have the long standing of Mardrago. If we mess up, many people will suffer."
.. they can't investigate the matter.
Investigate..! Right, I now remember that I re-read some of the Sherlock Holmes. And I remember it.. But it's only in imagery not text, but it's still useful. But how do I get myself on this case..
"What is the exact reason you were forced to do this?"
He looked at Aldric who turned to him, but before he responded the Bishop answered in his place.
"Dealing with curses are the territory of the churches. But since we proved that this is not a curse it had turned into a civil matter, which the Count has absolute authority over."
"Thus the guardsmen take it over."
Jack looked at her. Mr. Randam was still pleading on the ground.
"So why is it that the guards didn't deal with this matter?"
She answered.
"You see, unlike in the north where the Goddess's influence is strong, this place doesn't have a dedicated police force."
"The guards here are also soldiers and sometimes even militia. Due to the war the Count took most of his soldiers and left this territory's security in a very bad state."
"This also hurts in treating the disease, since we can't properly isolate the slums and treat them. The disease began to spread in the nearby areas."
Aldric looked at her.
"He is from one such area."
Her eyes opened slightly in surprise.
"I apologize. I didn't know."
He looked back at her, remembering his neighborhood.
Jack looked toward the man and changed the subject.
"Is there really no way to help the man?"
The Bishop responded.
"We cannot take direct action, and the man's faith is in Mardrago so we can't provide spiritual relief either."
Jack began to walk toward Mr. Randam. Seeing this, she asked.
"What are you doing?"
Jack didn't even look back.
"Seeing if I can do anything about it."
Aldric just watched his friend. His mouth twitched slightly but he didn't speak or move to assist Jack.
The Bishop spoke again, slightly louder.
"I'm still waiting for the answer to the question from before!"
Jack, now crouching toward the man, spoke.
"I still need to return every three days. I'll answer that question then."
Aldric, who was next to the Bishop, spoke.
"Let's continue the chat from before back inside."
She pursed her lips while looking sideways at Jack.
"Very well."
Jack looked toward Mr. Randam, who was now sobbing while looking at the dirt on the ground. The Brave standing next to the two of them had a tinge of sadness in his eyes.
Is it because of the sedative? Normally I would be too afraid to do such things. So why is it that I'm helping someone who won't bring me any benefits?
He exhaled deeply before speaking.
"Mr. Randam?"
The chubby man looked upward with his teary eyes filled with desperation. Jack looked at the man's eyes.
Well, I can make use of the refreshed knowledge..
Jack continued.
"Tell me exactly what happened."