In the name of the true god

Edmund's follower?!

Jude immediately perked up and pressed on, "We actually have heretics from Edmund's time here?"

"Just this one," Captain Foster said. "Those from the same period either assassinated His Majesty Leonard, causing extremely negative consequences and having to be burned at the stake as a warning to others, or they couldn't endure the torture in prison and committed suicide one after another."

Twenty-one years have passed since Edmund was executed.

It's understandable that almost all of his followers died out.

However, after seeing so many listless "heretics" in the previous cells, seeing Vincent Monroe in this cell, who had been imprisoned for twenty years and was still in a fairly good mental state, was quite a shock to Jude.

"Do you need to empty the sewage bucket?" In front of Captain Foster, Jude didn't dare to make any further contact and could only obediently throw the black bread in.

"Is today October 14th, 448th year of the Christian calendar?" Vincent Monroe confirmed.

Jude affirmed, "Yes—"

The next moment, Captain Foster covered it with his hand: "Don't answer any questions from heretics."

Jude feigned belated realization: "I forgot..."

Captain Foster assumed Jude's action was unintentional and didn't investigate further: "Let's not let it happen again."

"Yes, Captain."

Jude dutifully distributed the food, emptied the sewage bucket, and returned to the temporary rest room with Captain Foster and the others to await further orders.

Fat Alan invited everyone to play cards, but few responded.

"The world kisses me with pain, wants me to repay it with a song... (Note 1)" The poet Anders read the poetry collection diligently.

Captain Foster and his older brother Killian continued smoking one cigarette after another.

Jude closed his eyes to rest, lost in thought.

Vincent Monroe was simply the perfect person to approach.

As a third-tier resonance mage, his mastery of the law of similarity must be considerable.

Moreover, he is mentally sharp and can even accurately remember the date, so communication should not be difficult.

Most importantly, he was a loyal follower of Edmund, and by using Edmund as a starting point to gain trust, his success rate was quite considerable!

The only challenge lies in establishing in-depth communication.

Having spent half a day in the heretical prison by playing cards, Jude had gathered some information.

First, the priests on duty would ask the prison guards to come over and pass the time through entertainment activities such as playing cards, but precisely because they had to stay by the priests' side, they were unable to move freely.

Secondly, when providing food and emptying the sewage bins to the "heretics" at regular intervals, one has the opportunity to have private contact with them, but the time spent there cannot exceed thirty seconds, otherwise it is very easy to attract the attention of others.

Third, to ensure that the heretical prison area was absolutely airtight, there was not even a washroom inside. When emptying the sewage buckets, one had to go through several gates to the first floor to handle them.

Considering all these factors, Jude abandoned the idea of ​​continuing to play cards with those priests and focused his attention on the latter two points.

The contact time was only about thirty seconds.

Should we try to establish effective communication within thirty seconds, or try to extend the contact time further?

Ok……

The former is more feasible.

After all, even if it were extended, one minute would be barely acceptable, but three to five minutes would be absolutely impossible. And thirty seconds or one minute are essentially not much different; both require a foundation of effective communication to realize their respective value.

Furthermore, there seems to be considerable room for maneuver regarding the dumping of the sewage bucket.

It is known that ordinary prison guards need to deposit items unrelated to their work when passing through the gate, while sewage buckets can pass through the gate smoothly and are usually not carefully checked by the prison guards at the gate because of their stench.

So, by hiding something in the emptying of the sewage bucket, one could have the opportunity to bring it into the heretical prison area, or even directly into the cell where "heretics" are imprisoned.

and so……

First, write a secret letter and slip it into Vincent Munro's latrine. Once he knows that you are also a "heretic" and has developed some initial trust, then ask him questions about the law of similarity.

It is theoretically feasible.

But it's not absolutely safe enough.

What if the prison guards at the gate suddenly conduct a thorough search and find the letters hidden in the sewage bins?

Wouldn't that expose him on the spot and make him Vincent Monroe's 'roommate'?

no no no...

At the very least, one must leave room for maneuver when contacting Vincent Monroe, so that even if suspected, one can still protect oneself as long as no direct and compelling evidence is found!

Since we need to leave room for maneuver, methods like writing letters, which would directly confirm one's identity if discovered, cannot be adopted.

Are there any other ways?

During a brief encounter with Vincent Monroe, he quietly revealed that he was involved with wizards and also admired Edmund.

He should believe it.

After all, if it were an ordinary prison guard, or a priest disguised as an ordinary prison guard, there would be no motivation for him to go to such lengths to get close to him.

No one would believe that someone who has been imprisoned for twenty years could still have any secrets. Nor would they believe that such a person could suddenly abandon their faith and join the church.

Even after saying that, Vincent Monroe remained wary, but it wasn't a big deal.

Today is Saturday, and I will be able to see Edmund again early Monday morning.

Wasn't Vincent Monroe a follower of Edmund?

Asking Edmund about secrets known only to his followers can also indirectly prove one's stance.

Jude deduced the feasibility of the plan after repeated analysis.

It's 7 p.m.

Half an hour before the regular prison guards' shift changed, the phone rang precisely on time from the heretical prison section.

"Yes, I'll be right there." Captain Foster hung up the phone, gestured for everyone to stand up, "Let's go, we can go home after emptying the sewage bucket one more time."

The opportunity is coming!

Jude, along with Captain Foster and three colleagues, returned to the Heretics Block and volunteered to collect the sewage buckets from the cells on the north side.

"Go ahead. Be careful, and don't say anything else." Captain Foster didn't suspect anything.

"Do we need to empty the sewage bucket?"

"Do we need to empty the sewage bucket?"

After asking around in cell after cell, Jude finally arrived at the door of Vincent Monroe's cell.

"throat."

He glanced around to make sure the two priests were eating and the other colleagues were busy with their own things, then pulled open the partition below, crouched down, and peered inside: "Vincent Munro, do you need the sewage bucket emptied?"

The cell was pitch black.

Vincent Monroe, with his long, filthy hair and a skeletal frame, approached.

"Do we need to empty the sewage bucket?" Jude asked again, still nervous.

Vincent Monroe ignored him and instead looked past Jude to observe the situation outside.

What is he doing?

Just as Jude was about to speak again, Vincent Monroe, confirming that Jude was alone, suddenly asked in a low voice, "Are you Jude Viera?"

!

How did he know my name?!

Jude's heart skipped a beat: "...I am."

Vincent Monroe, his face full of wrinkles, grinned and said, "I've waited for you for twenty years."

Note 1: From Tagore's *Stray Birds*