The sky gradually brightened, and Oldtown's first nighttime curfew in more than a decade ended peacefully. Merchants dragged their stall carts out of storage and headed for the market, while ordinary citizens, as usual, stepped out of their homes with baskets. The quickly revived, bustling streets were filled with discussion about this inexplicable nighttime restriction.
"It seems... that ragged monk's judgment of the Hand of the Queen and the Queen yesterday was true. Otherwise, why would they suddenly enforce a curfew last night, right after he spoke that morning?"
"Haha, that's called a guilty conscience! Aegor didn't even think it through. If we can't meet at night, won't we still talk when we meet during the day? What's the point of a curfew?"
"Ah, don't mention it. In this hellish world, only villains can get ahead."
"Our Seven Kingdoms are ruled by people like this. I truly don't know when good days will come."
"Good days? An incestuous bastard on the throne, with an ungrateful wolf of a Hand of the Queen beside her. We should be thankful the Seven haven't cursed us, let alone expect good days."
Amid the chatter, the crowd surged into the market in the center of Oldtown. Here, greetings between acquaintances, the loud cries of vendors, haggling during transactions, and the squawks and fights of cats, dogs, chickens, and ducks were endless, quickly dispersing the discussions about the scandals and dark secrets of Aegor and Daenerys. While gossip about court affairs and the scandals of important figures was certainly exciting, the lives of ordinary citizens were ultimately made up of firewood, rice, oil, and salt. The Queen and the Hand of the Queen... were ultimately too distant.
Not to mention, there were many more soldiers standing guard around the market today than usual. It was easy to imagine that if the nameless monk from yesterday appeared again, he definitely would not be able to easily blend into the crowd and escape this time.
With such thoughts, the citizens all kept quiet and avoided discussing the Hand of the Queen and the Queen, fearing that a slip of the tongue would lead to them being caught and thrown into the dungeon, just like those who had thrown stones at the royal army's soldiers.
But the morning market seemed to be proceeding peacefully and normally. In the open space at the center of the market, around the platform where the ragged monk had accused the Queen and the Hand of the Queen yesterday, a crowd had gathered again at some point. Citizens and vendors who had finished their purchases or sales for the day glanced curiously at the platform as they passed by and saw a middle-aged man in a gorgeous white robe ascend the wooden platform, escorted by several soldiers. He walked to the edge of the center and adjusted his clothes while facing the most crowded direction, as if he had something to say.
"Who is this?"
"Judging by his clothes, he's a septon, and possibly one of the Most Devout."
"It's Lothar Frey, the fifth son of Lord Walder Frey of the Twins, and he is indeed one of the Most Devout!" A slightly more knowledgeable citizen exclaimed in a low voice. "Has the Faith gone mad? Sending someone with a name and reputation like this to make public accusations? Wouldn't it be easy for Aegor and the Queen to seek revenge then?"
Amid the murmuring discussions filled with surprise and tension, Lothar Frey did not keep the onlookers curious for long. He cleared his throat, took half a step forward, and raised his right hand with his palm facing forward in a gesture of oath-taking. "In the name of the Father, the Mother, the Warrior, the Maiden, the Smith, the Crone, and the Stranger, I solemnly swear here that all the words I speak next are true. If there is a single false word, I shall surely descend into hell after death and suffer the endless torment of eternal flames!"
After finishing the solemn oath, he lowered his arm and, in a steady, slow, but clear and loud voice, shouted his purpose to the crowd, whose noise had instantly dropped by more than ten decibels.
"Believers and citizens, please stop and listen! Today, here, under the radiance of the sun, I stake my honor and my life to publicly expose a heinous villain hidden beneath everyone's noses, to cleanse the Faith's ranks, and return glory to the Seven!"
Countless people closed their mouths and held their breath, but contrary to what any of them had expected, the target of Septon Lothar's accusation was surprisingly not the Hand of the Queen, Aegor, or Queen Daenerys, the main figures of yesterday's city-wide rumors. Instead, he turned a hundred and eighty degrees and aimed at his own superior, the supreme leader of the Faith, the first servant of the Seven on earth, the High Septon!
Under the gaze of countless Oldtown residents and their careful listening ears, he listed a large number of extremely heinous crimes in his accusation, including impure faith, blasphemous jokes, child molestation, frequenting high-end brothels in King's Landing and Oldtown, embezzling offerings from the faithful by abusing his position, playing with power to profit personally from the Faith's property, misappropriating public funds to purchase Night's Watch bonds and then claiming the profits for himself... The total wealth amassed had reached the level of millions of golden dragons!
If they were merely accusations, they could be explained as malicious slander and defamation. But for every crime Septon Lothar listed, he would immediately follow it with a detailed narrative to support the accusation. The most exaggerated one was the charge of "amassing wealth," which was so detailed that it even revealed the High Septon's asset distribution, the method by which he had transferred his wealth when he was expelled from King's Landing, and the location where he was currently hiding money in Oldtown.
Its realism and credibility were so high that the listeners felt the urge to team up and go treasure hunting after the gathering dispersed.
...
Unlike yesterday's attack and smear by the ragged monk against Aegor and Daenerys, today there were soldiers patrolling and maintaining order around the market. Septon Lothar's speech was completely condoned and even protected. His continuous, storytelling-like narrative lasted for more than ten minutes without interruption. There were so many onlookers gathered around the platform, three layers deep inside and three layers outside, that even normal trade in the market was affected. At this moment, from the direction of the market entrance, a small team of soldiers with rose emblems embroidered on their chests walked in, led by a stout middle-aged man.
With a script in place, a participant quickly "recognized" him.
"Lord Mace Tyrell! What wind brings you here?"
"Just wandering around, with nothing to do." Mace Tyrell put on an innocent act of having just happened to pass by. Lord Puff Fish had almost no skills or abilities, but his acting could be considered first-class. "What are you all gathered here for? Who is that person on the platform?"
"That is Septon Lothar Frey, who is accusing the High Septon of committing a series of crimes, mainly including embezzling the Faith's property..."
The "enthusiastic person" quickly gave Lord Tyrell a detailed account of what had happened, then, with a "flash of inspiration," turned and shouted to the surroundings.
"Hey everyone, look this way!"
Countless pairs of eyes, filled with curiosity, suspicion, or disgust, converged. Septon Lothar, who had been shouting on the platform for nearly twenty minutes and was almost hoarse, also stopped his performance at the right time. He knew that he had completed all the preparatory work, and the climax of this fine show was about to begin.
"The Warden of the Reach, Lord Mace Tyrell, is right here! As the protector of all the people of Oldtown, he has both the authority and the soldiers... Why don't we ask him to preside over justice and lead us to investigate whether these accusations against the High Septon are true?"
(To be continued.)