Chapter 78

Chapter 78

The line was fairly long, but their assessment did not take much time.

From the get-go, those affected by the Gray Plague usually experienced a decrease in consciousness first. There were none who were infected with the larvae of Lophellum and could still walk on two legs.

About half of the people who had filled the prison and courtyard of the capital guard were quickly assessed as they passed by the table.

First Phase: Jibril, the plague doctor from Lyora.

Dressed in almost perfect protective gear, she briefly scanned the patients. If she determined they didnt have the Gray Plague, she immediately sprayed rose-scented perfume.

Before standing before His Highness, thoroughly remove the foul smell to prevent disease! Foul smells are the root of all diseases!

Damn charlatan Lyora plague doctor!

Second Phase: Trustworthy fighting dog Francis.

While incessantly coughing due to the strong perfume, he double-checked whether he felt the aura of demons from the patients passing by.

You promised, Your Highness! To the commander, *cough*! Please properly convey my, *cough* efforts *choke*!

You good-for-nothing, only brag after youve done your job.

Third Phase: The bastard Demon Kingalong with Lee Seongjin.

The Demon King scrutinized the chests and heads of the people passing by and whispered to Seongjin.

[No Lophellum larvae, no inflammation. Confirmation complete. Hehehe.]

Feeling the pride emanating from him was rather uncomfortable.

Fourth Phase: Treasurer Masain.

He handed a few copper coins to the people who had been assessed and emphasized as he uncomfortably looked them in the eye.

The one who saved your lives today is Prince Morres! Live without ever forgetting to be grateful. Understood?

Sir Masain, please stop! Youre making me want to die of embarrassment!

And finally, they received a loaf of rye bread and an apple from Sir Haven and Dame Claudia before leaving the capital guard.

With a puzzled expression, she was wondering whether this was a dream or reality.

After a number of people had queued and been processed, Dame Claudia quietly murmured.

Is giving just a few copper coins really enough? Thatll barely cover a meal on their way home.

Its appropriate, Seongjin replied.

If you can take these people to their homes and watch over them until they spend all the money, then more can be given. But

Unneeded favors can sometimes be poison to those who cannot handle it. Its unfortunate, but thats the limit.

Ah!

Dame Claudia seemed to have an epiphany and looked at Seongjin with twinkling eyes.

She looks at me like that every time shes hungry. Didnt she sneakily eat a loaf of rye bread earlier?

Just when there were only a few people left in line, a burly middle-aged man rushed out from the building of the capital guard.Nêww chapters will be fully updated at novelhall.com

He was the tardy captain of the capital guard who just heard about the situation.

What is, what is all this nonsense?! Why are you releasing all the prisoners?!

Then, Dame Sharon, who had been monitoring the capital guard, stepped forward to intercept him.

I am under the impression that I delivered an official document stamped with the seal for cooperation. Didnt you receive it?

I did, but what do you mean by actively cooperating furthermore, releasing the prisoners on your own! These people were arrested under orders from higher-ups! No one should arbitrarily!

Hehe. If you dont understand, let me explain again. Once the approval review by the Holy Council begins, the temporary emergency measures are deemed to be over. And the Heresy Tribunal has also withdrawn its hand by requesting a review rejection. So, no side has the right to decide their fate now. Hehe.

What kind of nonsense is this! Even if so, these people arent immediately under the jurisdiction of the Monster Special Task Force! At least until the Holy Council decides their policy, they should naturally be managed by the capital guard!

The captain was right. Technically, the Monster Special Task Force was the third party meddling out of the blue.

Isnt it also not within the jurisdiction of the capital guard?

We must follow the temporary emergency measures

But those measures are no longer under the jurisdiction of the Orthodox Church.

But ultimately, they should be imprisoned by the Heresy Tribunal

Unfortunately, theyre not within their jurisdiction right now either. Then why are you interfering with the [official duties] of the Monster Special Task Force?

Krrrgh!

We will devote our utmost effort, Your Highness.

The guard captain, with a drained expression, swallowed his saliva and retreated.

[Didnt you say youd appease them? Why are you threatening?]

Threatening without even raising a fist? Considering the situation, that was quite a mild way of appeasing them.

[]

The real issue starts now.

Everyone lying here is suffering from the grey plague. From now on, I have to decide who to save.

In the past three days, almost 150 people were roughly dragged in by the capital guards.

About half of them, those who could still move, had already left this place.

Seongjin scanned the courtyard and prison cells, quickly surveying those who were lying down. He then selected around ten people who were unconscious due to illnesses other than the grey plague.

After having Jibril and Francis check on each of them, he sent them to the Imperial Medical Center. Now, only those suffering from the grey plague remained within the capital guards.

Will you extract the eggs from all of these people? Time is running out..

Seeing still around 50 people remaining, Masain asked with a worried look.

Seongjin provided a clear criterion.

Tell the guards to give them water. Exclude those who cant swallow.

Soon after, the guards of the capital, each carrying a bowl of water, began to pour water into the mouths of the prisoners one by one.

While Seongjin was walking around inside and outside the prison giving various orders, the guards were somewhat flustered but were following his instructions.

Since the entire monster-specialized unit was operating smoothly under his command, naturally everyone recognized this young boy as the ultimate authority. Even the captain of the guard simply watched as the prince wandered around issuing orders.

Moreover, although he didnt assert his status or authority, his words carried an inexplicable weight. Nobody felt like opposing him.

Thus, another ten or so people who could barely swallow water were selected. Now, only those truly in the late and middle stages of the Gray Plague remained in the prison.

Take those weve filtered out to the medical chamber and begin the extraction process.

After giving that command, Seongjin turned away without hesitation.

Those already advanced in the Gray Plague stages appeared to have no hope of recovery.

Their brains were filled with inflammatory crystals, and the Demon King had confirmed that their brains were completely damaged. Even at a glance, their bodies had hardened like wooden logs; they were barely breathing.

Whether that was a reversible change was another issue. Either way, those who couldnt even drink water had no chance of survival, especially since intravenous nutrition wasnt an option with the current medical technology.

In that case, handing them over to both the Heresy Tribunal and the Orthodox Church would be beneficial for everyone.

It might seem callous, but Seongjin thought it was the best course of action.

From the Heresy Tribunals point of view, they may not want these people, but if another department takes them away, that could hurt their pride. However, if I simply reduce the numbers a bit, they are more likely to accept.

The Orthodox Church was no different.

If they smuggled out all the prisoners, the churchs credibility would be diminished, and the desperate Orthodox Church might again invoke emergency measures.

However, if a significant number of confirmed Grey Plague patients were left behind, the likelihood of quietly waiting for the evaluation to end would increase.

If the initial aim was about half of the total performance from the beginning, then I should be satisfied with just about a quarter of that half.

While Seongjin was lost in various thoughts, Masain was engrossed in a strange sentiment as he studied Seongjins face.

He had cautiously expressed his dissenting opinions since Seongjin moved the Monster Special Task Force in the morning.

If Your Highness is concerned about the fate of the falsely arrested imperial citizens, it would be appropriate to lean toward rejecting the deliberation by exerting pressure on the council now. If its rejected, everyone will be released. Otherwise, you risk making both the Orthodox Church and the heresy tribunal your enemies.

But then, those who were wrongly implicated would suffer, and the early-stage Grey Plague patients would miss their treatment window, wouldnt they?

Even so, I disagree. If Your Highness intervenes and personally decides the life and death of these innocent citizens, there will inevitably be those who later shift the blame onto you, exploiting their deaths. Moreover, there will be many who question your judgment and pour criticism on your qualifications

Sir Masain.

Having grown up watching his father fight bloody battles of justification with brothers and sisters, the activities of Seongjin appeared to Masain as perilous endeavors that could jeopardize his own standing.

Yet, the young prince was surprisingly resolute.

Matters that will happen later can be dealt with later. For now, lets focus only on how many people we can save.

The young prince, who seemed to be brimming with a commitment to help the citizens at great risk, was now ruthlessly dividing those who would live from those who would die. That demeanor was unnervingly cold.

Masain felt that this young prince seemed exceedingly unfamiliar yet, on the other hand, oddly familiar, making him inadvertently shake his head in disbelief.