Chapter 381: The Judge of Original Sin and Penitence

Just as a concubine who bore a son wielded more influence than a queen who bore only a princess, sons were treasured. Especially in the medieval era, where war was both duty and glory, family lines were snuffed out in the blink of an eye.

So many men died, in fact, that the custom arose of releasing captives in exchange for ransom.

Dying in battle couldn’t be helped, but many nobles survived simply by paying ransoms. Personally, I preferred a daughter over a son, but I couldn’t truly relax until a son was born first.

"We both dreamed of the wolf, so it’s definitely a boy."

"It must be, right? That was no ordinary dream. I’ve never seen such a magnificent wolf."

"It was a most sacred and noble wolf. Surely a holy beast that dwells in the Lord’s kingdom."

I comforted Hilda to lift her spirits.

Perhaps my efforts counted for something, because thankfully Hilda seemed to cheer up. From what little I knew, pregnancy could make an expectant mother’s emotions unstable. That might have been the cause.

According to Priscilla, Hilda got like this from time to time.

So she’d been struggling all alone while I was away.

It’s commonly called prenatal depression. How did I, a confirmed bachelor back in the modern world, come to know about it? Chalk it up to the algorithm. In the modern age, you can pick up information in all sorts of ways.

The downside is that such knowledge runs shallow.

If I’d known things would turn out like this, I would have studied properly.

Hilda’s greatest worry was, of course, the possibility of a daughter.

Not that she disliked daughters. It was that the succession issue was simply that complicated.

A daughter could inherit too, but if things went wrong, my domain might pass to some undeserving family as a dowry. Even if we took in a live-in son-in-law, an heiress to a domain would be hounded by every scheme imaginable.

If we wanted to avoid that spectacle, having a son was by far the better option.

Even if she bore a daughter, a couple as devoted as we were could surely have another. But that was no simple matter either, and in many ways it was a delicate situation that could easily drag Hilda into gloom.

More than the toll on their beautiful bodies, wasn’t mental exhaustion the sorrow shared by every noble wife of the medieval era? I resolved to do anything and everything I could for Hilda.

"I should pray to the Holy Mother to grant us a healthy baby boy."

"Come to think of it, Priest Andreas said he was holding a New Year’s Mass."

The Christmas festivities that begin on Christmas Day continue into the new year, and January 1st is the Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God. It is a celebration honoring the Virgin Mary, who bore Jesus Christ, as the Mother of God.

In truth, observance of the Solemnity of Mary varied by country and region, and there were still many faithful who insisted on calling it not the feast of the Virgin Mary but the Feast of the Circumcision of the Lord.

The Duchy of Beren designated it as the feast of the Virgin Mary and held grand liturgical services, and this year it was to be held in Radensdorf for the first time. The aim seemed to be spreading Altringen’s prestige throughout the east.

That said, events held in the provinces were modest affairs. For someone like me who frequently skipped Mass, it was the kind of event where attendance was practically mandatory, like a roll call. So I visited the Feuzen church together with Hilda.

"O Holy Mother, assumed into heaven, please grant that a healthy boy be born."

Hilda prayed desperately to the Virgin Mary.

All I could do was watch her.

I realized Hilda’s stress ran deeper than I had thought. Hmm, what would be best for lifting her spirits? Staying right by her side has to be the answer, doesn’t it? I’d better refrain from leaving her for the time being.

"I’m fine, so go take care of your business."

"But isn’t it better if I stay with you? My business can wait."

"Every soul in this land looks to you, Wolf. You mustn’t waste time on me. That’s not what a prince’s duty is, is it? Just come back to my side at night. That’s all I need."

Hilda’s moods had been swinging like a roller coaster, yet she was still considerate of me. Isn’t that what married love is? Not one side sacrificing everything, but both yielding and thinking of each other?

With that in mind, I first went to meet Aachen, the painter from Brabant. He was still working on the altarpiece for the Feuzen church, and it looked like a masterpiece was taking shape, one steeped in his radical religious ideas.

I was curious how far along it was, too.

"Your painting is as intense as ever. Does this scene represent temptation?"

"There is no greater joy than painting humans who fall so easily into temptation."

But what did the animals and fruit in the painting signify? Seeing me focus on that part, Aachen explained that the animals were demons in disguise and the sweet fruit symbolized temptation.

"Thanks to your patronage, Baron, I expect to finish it in about a year."

"I see. Might I ask what you plan to paint in this empty space?"

"I want to paint a demon passing judgment on mankind, but no inspiration comes to me, and it troubles me."

"You said demons disguise themselves as animals, yes? Then what about a figure that blends animal and human?"

It’s an extremely common motif in the modern era, but apparently it was a shockingly bold idea in this age. Judging by how wide Aachen’s eyes grew, anyway. He immediately began sketching.

"The Bible itself tells of demons that blend man and beast, and to think it never once occurred to me! O Lord! Is this truly the Judge of Original Sin, drawn by my own hand!"

...Hmm, they say genius and madness are separated by a hair’s breadth.

To my eyes, he looked like a madman in the grip of a fit.

This painting would do Hilda no good. I must never let her see it.

"What do you think of my Judge, Baron?"

"A fish-man devouring humans. Convincing, I’ll give you that."

"A pity your reaction is less than I hoped for, but this shall become the Judge of Penitence, one who drives those steeped in original sin to repent. The Judge of Original Sin and Penitence!"

With his tremendous imagination, Aachen painted a grotesque vision of hell. Where once there had been only a hell of flames, he sketched in monsters of every description and sins of every kind, promising he would finish it within half a year.

"By the way, I need a portrait worth hanging in the lord’s castle."

"Our contract calls for ten paintings, and you have given me tremendous inspiration today, so I shall paint it for you in short order. Heh heh heh."

Aachen grinned, clearly pleased.

Hmm, something tells me that if I leave the portrait to this fellow, I’ll end up with something ghoulish. Only after begging him repeatedly to paint a normal, proper portrait was I able to leave his workshop.

While I handled my business, Hilda had been playing with Maria. Maria, dressed in a tiny nun’s habit, was so cute I could just eat her up. Now that she had really started talking, she spoke remarkably well.

"Wolf, Maria’s Latin is incredible."

"Hm? She can speak Latin?"

"Hehe. Maria, show the Baron."

Fluent Latin flowed from Maria’s mouth.

She even recited the teachings of Scripture perfectly in Latin.

As I stood there dumbfounded, Maria puffed out her chest with pride.

"Learning doctrine in the holy tongue is the duty of the faithful, Baron."

"...She really can speak Latin. That’s amazing."

"Praise be to the holy Lord, Hallelujah!"

"R-right. Hallelujah."

Plenty of nobles couldn’t even read, let alone speak Latin, yet Maria wielded it with ease. Seeing my genuine astonishment, Maria was so delighted that her nose rose even higher in the air.

Entrusting her to Priest Andreas seemed to have been the right call.

If Anton ever finds out about this, he might just faint.

"The priest said Maria will become a wonderful nun."

"Life as a nun sounds terribly dull, but if that’s what she wants."

"Hehe, then shall we hire her as our children’s theology tutor?"

"Wouldn’t we have to send Maria to a theological college for that?"

"My, what a wonderful patron she has by her side. Lucky little Maria."

You’d think theological colleges were all male, but women weren’t so rare there. Isn’t speaking Latin at six years old proof of a talent for learning? This was beyond mere talent.

If Maria wants to keep studying theology, then supporting her is a patron’s role. Perhaps it was fate, too, that I took in that child, who had survived in the arms of parents who perished on the battlefield.

On the way home, Hilda asked about Bodo.

"Is it true you’re considering Angela as a match for Bodo?"

"For now, she’s the strongest candidate, I’d say. It would be ideal if Count Euz accepts."

"Isn’t that a bit too optimistic? Bodo becoming a noble was astonishing, but I doubt he makes an attractive match in Count Euz’s eyes. Above all, the label of bastard viscount is the problem."

"Well now... Is that really so?"

By conventional thinking, yes. A bastard viscount, and a vassal of Count Reinfeldt at that. Hardly an attractive match for a prince. There was a real chance Count Euz would coldly refuse.

But the power players surrounding the Viscounty of Elsheimer were worth paying attention to. Reinfeldt and I were bound together with Elsheimer at the center. And Angela, as Lily’s handmaid, was a link to the royal family.

A marriage between those two would become the link uniting all of these forces. It fell short of a blood alliance, but it was more than enough to make the offer too attractive for Count Euz to refuse.

Why go to such lengths to forge these ties?

Because of Duke the Bold’s Burgundy.