I, the wizard, the foolish Buddha.

Chapter 296: True and False Son-in-Law! The Mystery of the Inquisition!

"My dear son-in-law, are you still planning to get a wife?
—Oh, I meant Catherine and Anna."

Roland's pupils suddenly shrank. He paused, held the photo in front of him, and asked, "What do you mean?"

In the photo, old man Saladin happily pinched his beard and smiled triumphantly - he knew that this sentence would work.

Saladin said: "They are both in a room in the Monastery of Saint Wilmik that is dedicated to the treatment of the mentally ill."

Old Biden often told lies. Roland didn't know whether his words were true or not, but he didn't dare to gamble.

But he pretended not to believe it at all and said, "Come on, they're both in Arak Prison right now. How could they be here?"

Saladin in the photo was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter for a long time.

Roland frowned and asked, "What are you laughing at?"

Saladin said slowly, "My dear son-in-law, it has been exactly twenty-four years since we last saw each other. Twenty years is indeed a short time, but it is also enough time for many things to happen."

Roland said, "What are you talking about? More than 20 years?"

Saladin chuckled and said, "To see if I'm lying to you, you can check the news. As for whether Catherine and Anna are at the 'Saint Wilmick Monastery', who knows what they're doing there? Perhaps visiting a patient? Hehehe."

Roland didn't believe that two people could come to visit a patient in the name of a visiting delegation.

Hydra has already torn its relations with Black Sail. Given the current situation in the East and South, if the high-level officials from the East really come here, they will most likely be held under house arrest as hostages.

Could it be that more than twenty years had passed? And since Catherine couldn't get through to him, she brought Anna here to visit?
But ended up being locked up?

The more Roland thought about it, the more cold sweat broke out in his heart.

He asked, "What on earth are you going to do?"

Saladin laughed and said, "My dear son-in-law, we have taken photos of our family. You can't just run away from home and not come back. Otherwise, my dear daughter will be so sad."

Roland said angrily, "You knew your daughter would be sad, but you still killed your son-in-law? I'll be your son-in-law sooner or later, but you'll kill me!"

Saladin's face darkened when Roland mentioned Lawrence.

He said, "Roland, you will gradually find out whether that guy deserves to die. As for you, you are a talented person. The East and the South are about to go to war, and judging by the current situation, the East will undoubtedly lose.

A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.

To put it another way, Hydra is a good way out.

I have no other requests of you.

As long as you treat my daughter well, I promise to provide you and your family and friends with a way out in the future."

Roland was not interested at all, but he wanted to go to St. Wilmik Monastery to take a look.

Lawrence's identity was just right, as his wife Isabella was currently visiting the monastery.

Roland said, "Time. Saladin, I can promise to help you clean up the mess you made for killing your son-in-law. But I won't stay here forever."

Saladin held up a finger. "I have only one condition. As long as my daughter no longer doubts you, you can leave at any time. From now on, the escape route I leave for you will be valid forever."

Roland felt a little strange. He said, "You said that your daughter still doubts whether I am Lawrence?"

How can this be?

At noon, Miss Isabella was still the same.

She is such a cold person. If she didn't think of herself as Lawrence, could she be so passionate in front of herself?
Like a cat, rubbing against itself.

Saladin smiled speechlessly at Roland's words and said, "My silly son, do your best. I believe you are a different person from Lawrence."

Roland said, "Wait, don't go yet! What's wrong with my photo? How come Lawrence in the photo looks like me?"

Saladin stroked his beard and asked curiously, "With your intelligence, can't you guess it?"

Saladin had heard of his son-in-law a long time ago. Or rather, in the past twenty years, he began to pay attention to his good son-in-law.

He read a lot of Roland's crazy theories.

So, there was a bit of a test to test his intentions.

As long as one can speak a little bit about it, he is an extraordinary talent!
Roland frowned, and suddenly he had a guess.

Then he felt unwell.

He murmured to himself, "Impossible, how is it possible? Could it be that part of Lawrence's past and future has become me?
Theoretically, it is possible because Lawrence is an angel, a person who does not exist in this world.

Therefore, as long as his fate in the human world is forcibly pulled onto Roland, everyone will think that Lawrence is Roland.

And if this thread of destiny is stretched long enough, then even his past, future and present will become Roland!

You can't go so deep. You hate your son-in-law so much.

So, you stretched the fate line to the point where everyone thought Lawrence was Roland. Then you just made some fake photos to deceive people.

No wonder! No wonder Isabella thought I was Lawrence!
I guessed wrong before. You didn't tell anyone that Lawrence took over Roland's body.

Because you don’t need it!
Because in the memory of this world, Lawrence looked like me from the very beginning!

But how is this possible? How did you do this?"

This is equivalent to inserting a person into this world. Roland once met Leonard.

In other words, the King of Yellow Fern!
The King of Yellow Ferns has such power.

Saladin did not answer Roland's question.

But one could see a hint of shock in his eyes.

After a moment, Saladin nodded with satisfaction.

This kid is a little too smart, there are many things he can't say directly.

One is that after he finished speaking, Roland could easily misunderstand and make a wrong judgment.

One is that after I finish speaking, I will no longer know whether this guy can be entrusted with an important task in what happens next.

In response to Roland's question, "How did you do it?", Saladin said something meaningful: "My good son-in-law, do your best. The sky won't fall. There are many interesting mysteries in the south. Explore them with my two daughters."

Two daughters?

Catherine and Isabella?
Roland had a strange look on his face.

Saladin finally said: "They left the hospital. Go find them at the city hall or the Inquisition, which is diagonally opposite the city hall.

Remember my request.

Only when Isabella no longer doubts you will you have a way out."

This old guy didn't seem to be worried at all. After Roland went to the monastery, he rescued Catherine and Anna and ran away.

Roland fell into deep thought, and he became increasingly confused about who this person was.

He initially suspected that Saladin was the Thousand-Eyed King - the King of Yellow Fern who had come forcibly and was eaten by him!
So, he moved his fingers on Lawrence's belongings, and just like someone spreading pheromones on an ant nest, everyone suddenly began to think that Lawrence was Roland.

However, there are many mysteries in the South that can do this.

Moreover, if Saladin is the King of the Thousand Eyes, many of his actions are very confusing - at least in the eyes of Roland, the person in charge, many things cannot be explained.

Roland didn't understand and didn't want to think about it any further.

He now has three things to do.

First, confirm the current situation in the East Territory.

Second, play the role of Lawrence well, don't let Isabella become suspicious, and find an opportunity to go to the mental hospital together.

The third is to confirm whether Catherine and Anna were placed under house arrest in a mental hospital.

He looked at the three people still kneeling in front of him.

These three gang members were really unlucky. Roland had originally planned to let them go - after all, they all considered themselves monks of the Order of the Chant, not dark wizards.

Now, they heard such a secret. Roland would not modify their memories, not because of the trouble, but because of the consequences.

So, they are already dead.

Unfortunately, these three guys weren't wizards, not even nobles or minor officials. They didn't have such a keen sense of smell. They didn't know what secrets were hidden in what they had just heard.

They didn't even understand a lot of things - what the masters of the Chant Order said was too complicated.

Of course, even if they could never understand these words, they had heard them, so their souls had to be sent to the Styx, allowing the water of the Styx to completely cleanse all their memories.

Roland asked kindly, "Do you have any newspapers?"

The three of them still thought they could survive, so they answered all the questions that followed.

They really didn't have any newspapers, not to mention that Roland was asking about old news.

But they know a lot of things that the public knows, and they know more.

After asking some questions, Roland's expression turned extremely ugly.

It has indeed been more than 20 years.

A few days ago, an event occurred that was big enough to shock the South - the three major councils in the East announced their merger.

In other words, the three major parliaments were dissolved - the parliaments existed to restrict the king, and their dissolution meant the centralization of power by the king!

Regarding the matter of the King of Yellow Fern, the South probably doesn't know much about it, at least there is no news.

But Roland was certain that the King of the Yellow Fern was finished.

Because the three gang members were talking about the 'Three Major Councils'!
All the members of the secret society crawled out!

The second major event was that after the dissolution of the three councils, everyone established a monastic order called the Pure White Secret Magic Order.

The Pure White God, this is what the southerners call the 'White Queen'.

She was obviously the leader of this order, and all the schools, including Twilight, Black Abyss, White Chess, and the Conclave, had joined the order.

It became a super university school.

At the same time, it is completely open to the South, welcoming anyone to come and exchange magic.

That's right, this isn't a wizard's council, it's a divine order. So, you southerners who believe in the gods, come here and learn!
This is the important reason why the Pure White Secret Magic Order exists in the form of a 'order'.

The name 'Magic Order' was obviously more acceptable to the southerners than 'Magic Council'. The third major event was that the good Goddess of Pure White had married the evil God of Thousand Eyes!
This incident caused great controversy in the South.

But some people accept it because in the written documents of the Holy See, the Thousand-Eyed God has always been a neutral god.

Otherwise, the two sides would have cut off trade long ago.

In any case, the East seems to have resolved the great division that troubled the people of the East for more than two hundred years through a political marriage.

The great unified wizarding world, once under the rule of Alexandra, has merged once again.

Today, there are two kings in the East—His Majesty the Thousand-Eyed King and Her Majesty the White Queen.

The crown prince has also been decided - Catherine.

After hearing these things, Roland felt terrible.

So, it’s really been more than 20 years?
It seems to be true
So, Katherine really brought Anna here?
These two idiots!
So, since Arraca's issue has been resolved, why hasn't the senior contacted me?

Grass!
This seems to correspond to what Saladin's old Biden said - they were locked up, so they didn't contact me!

Old Biden never did anything wrong, and Roland couldn't tell whether he was telling the truth or not, but he didn't dare to gamble. He could only be his son-in-law for the time being.

"Damn, if the Thousand-Eyed King finds out that his son-in-law is married to a southerner, won't he kill me?!"

"I was trying to save your daughter!"

In his heart, Roland heard the three people say, "Master, can we leave now?"

Roland nodded and said gloomily, "I'll give you a ride."

A few minutes later, there was not even a living rat left in the alley.

Putting on his felt hat, Roland flipped through Lawrence's files while walking out of the alley.

Half an hour later, at the City Hall.
A small carriage stopped by the roadside. Inside the carriage, a young man wearing a felt hat and a suit paid the fare and got out.

He muttered, "It's far enough, and expensive enough. Sixpence to boot. How expensive it is for respectable people."

The young man was dressed very maturely, like an aristocratic gentleman.

But he is too young.

If he went to a bar, no one would dare sell him alcohol.

Because he looks only sixteen years old!

In fact, if he were in the Eastern Territory, this kid would look like he was twenty years old.

But in the South, people like to grow big beards. Gentlemen, in particular, all like to grow beards. They may not grow beards as big as missionaries, but a pair of neat and slender mustaches on the nose are a sign of aristocratic elegance.

This guy has a clean-shaven beard. He looks like a student or a factory worker!

But he was wearing a gentleman's felt hat and carrying a small suitcase. He was probably a newcomer from the Royal Academy.

So, the guard at the city hall stopped him directly.

"What? Just left? Where did you go? Oh~~~ But you don't need to go in, I'll go diagonally across the street."

After chatting for a few words, Roland turned and looked at a very gloomy and somewhat dilapidated six-story building diagonally across the square.

The street is bustling with traffic, and there is a bustling crowd in front of the City Hall.

The square in front of the door was also full of people.

But there was no one around that building.

Many carriages would rather circle the circular square than pass through there.

It's like the place is haunted.

After saying goodbye to the security guard, Roland walked towards the building amid everyone's strange gazes.

The building looks quite formal, with a small courtyard at the entrance. Overall, it looks like a small office building for the county magistrate in a county town.

Not impressive at all.

The courtyard was small, barely big enough for three or four carriages. There were some thorny vines at the entrance, draped over the walls of the building. It looked ancient and eerie.

The building is red, but there is no bell tower. There is a small pond in the small courtyard at the entrance, but there is no water in it. It is overgrown with weeds and the statues on it are a bit worn.

There are some very simple mythological carvings in front of the building, which is the only place in the building that can prove that it is related to the church.

There was no gatekeeper in front of the yard. As soon as Roland entered the yard, he smelled a faint smell of disinfectant.

Well, besides the smell of disinfectant, there is also the smell of formalin.

As a necromancer, Roland closed his eyes and sniffed twice, and he knew the location of the morgue and the number of corpses.

Roland looked at the small building in confusion and muttered, "Lady Isabella, have you really been working here lately? Why does it feel like you've been demoted and exiled?"

Roland is indeed a wizard, he guessed it right.

It's not a demotion, but for the Grand Master of the Holy Medical Knights to serve as the Director of the Heretical Mysteries Department is a demotion in itself.

Originally, she also had an office in the Vatican.

Now, even the office has been lost, and they have come here, claiming that there have been many mysterious incidents in the city of Saint Wilmik recently, and there is a serious problem with dark wizards. Therefore, the Vatican must send a heavyweight here.

But in reality, isn’t this just being exiled?

It seems that Miss Isabella has not been doing well recently.

But the key is that she is quite ambitious.

As soon as you enter the door, you can see corridors on both sides and an iron-grated elevator on the left - although it is small, it has everything you need.

If you walk straight in, you'll find the backyard—hey, there's a backyard! And there seems to be a building in the backyard too.

There's a mailroom at the entrance, kind of like the ones you see at the entrances of old apartments and hotels, fenced off with iron bars.

There was a sleepy old white man inside.

This old white man looked a little fat and greasy, but this was the most churchy thing Roland had seen so far—he was wearing a linen monk's robe!

And she also has a Roman Mediterranean hairstyle!

But the clothes are so new that they look like they were just bought.

His hair was also clearly freshly shaved, and the shaving was very irregular, most likely from an outside barber, rather than a tonsure at the monastery.

Roland's eyes couldn't help but light up slightly.

It seems that Countess Isabella must be here!

The occult office received the news in advance, so everyone was busy for a long time. Some people even shaved their heads to please the new leader.

Seeing a stranger breaking in, the guy knocked on the iron fence with a jingle, revealing an impatient and arrogant look on his face.

He said nothing, just stared at Roland, waiting for him to speak first.

Although this place is not big, the doorman is very arrogant.

As for the "gatekeeper" who handled the situation, this old white man was really tactless.

He was probably thinking, why the hell are you barging in without even seeing where you are?
How could an ordinary person dare to enter such a place?
What's more, Roland is dressed so well.

Obviously, the quality of many people in this mysterious place is very average. The entire mysterious place is also in a very marginal position in this "quasi-holy city".

No wonder Isabella brought some of her own knights here.

Roland politely told the guard his purpose.

Naturally, the security guard didn't give him a good look - what a joke, he didn't know the rules, he didn't have any ID, and he came to see the new director right away?
A new official has three things to do when he takes office. Half an hour ago, Lady Isabella just started the first one. If another one is thrown in, will he still be able to do his job?
The doorman had nothing unpleasant to say—though he lacked a little refinement, he did have the slickness of a Greater Wilmick civil servant.

Roland saw through his thoughts and suggested, "Isn't that a telephone on your right? I suggest you call and ask according to the normal procedure. Just say 'Lorens' is here and someone will come downstairs to pick me up."

This is indeed normal process.

The security guard was no fool and did nothing stupid. He made a phone call according to normal procedures.

Roland pricked up his ears and heard the voice on the other end of the line.

There was a woman on the other side with a very nice voice. After the guard said a lot of things, she said one word - let it in.

After a pause, she said another sentence - take him around first.

After hearing this, Roland's forehead was covered with three black lines - the security guard called directly to the director's office.

This dignified head of the sacred medical group didn't even have a secretary. She answered the phone herself.

What does this equate to?
It's like going to the Municipal Public Security Bureau. Then, the person on duty at the gate directly calls the director and says, "I'm the security guard at the gate. There's a random person at the gate who wants to enter our bureau. Do you want to let him in?"

Moreover, this security guard didn’t call the deputy director, but called the director directly!
After hanging up the phone, the guard's attitude immediately improved. He even smiled a little.

He took the key, opened the mailroom door, and walked out. He said to Roland, "Are you the newly assigned 'Tribunal Clerk' from the 'Malrod Theological Monastery,' or a recent graduate of the academy and trainee Knight of Judgment? Come on, you're not familiar with this place. I'll take you."

After Roland heard this, his eyes moved suddenly.

Unexpectedly, this small "Office for the Administration of Heretical and Mysterious Affairs" also has the functions of a court and public security.

The tribunal is the court.

The Judgment Knight is the mysterious policeman!
This is incredible! Because this is a 'special inspection office'!
So, the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs are all gathered in this small place!
And there's even a fucking morgue here, and there's probably also a small prison!

Roland thought to himself, "This place is amazing! It has police, procuratorate, court, prison, and even a morgue!"

Although this place is small and its functions seriously overlap with those of government departments, it seems marginal and useless.

But if a particularly strong leader comes along and lets her start a war, then most of Saint Wilmik City will be in her hands - if she accuses the mayor of heresy and colludes with dark wizards from the East, the mayor will have to be judged and the knights will rush to try him!

Roland couldn't help but rub his hands in anticipation. If he could make it here, this city would become the Black Abyss Wizard's lair. The entire city could be controlled and turned directly into the territory of the Eastern Territory Wizards!
But when he thought about it, Roland broke out in a cold sweat.

That’s right, this is a place dedicated to catching dark wizards.

I am a fucking dark wizard!
If you show any sign of weakness, you will have to go through the whole process first!

"Old Biden, Old Biden, no wonder you insisted on asking me to deal with Isabella. Is your daughter any good?"

'Don't tie me up as soon as we meet!'

(End of this chapter)