Chapter 135

Edmond, momentarily stunned, thought the voice came from the old man in front of him, but he noticed that Favia's mouth hadn't moved at all.

"Hello."

When the voice rang out again, the Sailors in Marseille realized that the voice they had heard before they lost consciousness was not a hallucination, but something that truly existed... The terrifying thing—the dark shadow beside the old man.

"Um, this, what exactly is this...?"

Somewhat frightened, Edmond couldn't help but ask Favia, who seemed to know everything.

"You can think of it simply as a kind of superpower called Magecraft. I'll explain it to you in more detail later. In any case, you don't need to be afraid of it." Favia thought for a moment, then continued, "Generally speaking, people have both a good side and an evil side, right?"

"Hmm, that seems to be the case..."

"To put it this way, she is a part of my heart, my longing, my memories, my yearning; she is the very essence of my evil, the darkness I see before prayer, evil, and hatred; she is the existence I have forever lost in this moment, a fragment of my malice, a side I have stripped away. This is what the power called Magecraft creates..."

Favia's words sounded to Edmond like a fairy tale, but he managed to gain a 'relative' understanding of Magecraft, which he guessed was the so-called True Magic, or the miracles passed down in myths and legends.

However, Favia's statement was actually a mix of the origins of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, as well as Edmund's 'Heidi'. The reason he said it like that... was just something he said offhand, as if it were subconscious.

"So in other words, is this... the evil you?"

After gaining a slight understanding, Edmond cautiously inquired.

"Yes, that's why she's stayed with me."

"I see..."

After learning that the dark shadow was the 'evil' part of the old man in front of him, Edmond breathed a sigh of relief. Perhaps it was because Favia had made a good first impression on him that even the 'evil' part seemed pleasing to him.

In his view, even if he talked about boring topics every day, he would still feel naturally happy when interacting with the people in front of him; it was just that incredible feeling.

"It's getting late, you should get some rest. The guards will be patrolling soon, we can talk properly after they leave."

"Okay, no problem at all."

After Edmond nodded in response, the old man in front of him suddenly reached out his hand.

What's wrong? What are you trying to do?

Just as Edmond was thinking this, Favia looked up and smiled slightly.

"Oh, right, I haven't had a chance to properly introduce myself yet. Hello, I'm Faria, a Priest, and also the twenty-seventh prisoner at the Château d'If. I've been imprisoned for ten years."

In Edmond's eyes, Faria was nothing more than a fraud.

A scammer? Trying to scam someone like me who has nothing?

After muttering this to himself, the gray-haired youth couldn't help but laugh inwardly.

However, to be honest, it really does seem like a fraud, a strange ability to be touted as Magecraft, revealing one's own evil...

Even so, the warmth of his palms was still unmistakably transmitted through his hands.

Very gentle and warm.

So—

Maybe... maybe all of this is true, and maybe Priest Faria has come to save me.

Naturally, Edmond Dantès couldn't help but think this, and couldn't help but say this:

"Priest Faria, hello, I am Edmond Dantès, a Sailors from the port of Marseille, number thirty-four at Château d'If, and I have been imprisoned for six years."

"... Hello, Sailors Edmond. I am Abigail, the evil side of my Faria — Favia. I will stay imprisoned for as long as my brother is imprisoned."

219: Ignite the Dark Flames of Revenge (5k5)

Late at night, after the jailers had stopped coming, Edmond, who chose to continue talking with Favia, felt that the old Priest was an incredibly formidable man.

Calling him a genius is by no means an exaggeration.

For example, it uses the light coming in from the window to determine the time, supposedly based on the Earth's rotation and revolution, and is more accurate than a regular clock and won't break.

To be honest, Edmond could barely understand supernatural abilities like Magecraft, but he really couldn't understand this explanation.

As Sailors, he had only ever seen the Sun rise behind the mountains and set into the Mediterranean Sea, so in his mind, he always thought that it was the Sun that was moving, not the earth.

If someone had told Edmond six years ago that the Earth he lived on could rotate on its own Sun Prince, it would have seemed almost impossible, because he couldn't feel any rotation at all.

Although he couldn't understand what the old man was saying, every word he uttered seemed to be filled with some kind of mystery, Gilgamesh like the treasures he had seen during his early voyages, something worth pondering and thinking about.

In general, he is erudite, experienced, insightful, and far-sighted, and his aura inspires both awe and warmth.

Edmond's current understanding of Favia is this, and he also learns from Favia that he was framed by three people and sent to the Château d'If.

Edmond felt immense sympathy for this, wondering why anyone would frame such a learned old man.

At this moment, the Sailors, despite having contemplated suicide, was still unaware that he too had been framed.

Upon learning of the Priest's past, the young man, gazing into those incredibly sincere blue eyes, couldn't help but speak:

"Priest."

"What's wrong?"

"Can I tell you about my situation? I really don't know what I did. I didn't do anything, yet I still suffered this disaster. I really want to know why."

Is that so?

"Please believe me, I really didn't do anything. I swear on my two dearest people, my father and Mercédès."

Edmond took a breath naturally and unconsciously raised one hand, clenching it tightly in front of his chest.

Tell Faria your story, and he will surely find something to tell you.

That's what he thought.

"Then please speak."

Favia gazed at the young man, and the depth in his eyes made Edmond's heart skip a beat.

The unease or fear swirling in her mind gradually disappeared like an illusion, and so she slowly began to tell her story.

It tells the story of Edmond Dantès's last voyage, how the old Captain who entrusted him with the message died, how he returned to Marseille to see his father, how he fell in love with Mercédès, how they married, how he was arrested, tried, and temporarily imprisoned in the courthouse, and finally, how he was imprisoned in the Château d'If.

Before meeting the Priest, everything was a blank for Dantès; he knew nothing, not even how long he had been imprisoned.

After Edmond finished speaking, Favia sighed softly.

"Do you know? There's always malice in this world."

"Are you implying that I've offended someone? But I never argue with anyone, and I don't do anything wrong..."

"Pure malice was also possible." Favia shook her head, then continued, "You yourself said you were about to be promoted to Captain of the Pharaon, right? And you were married to a girl, weren't you?"

"Um."

"If neither of these things goes smoothly, then who will get everything from you? Who wouldn't want you as Captain of the Pharaon?"

"No, the crew all like me. If they had the right to elect their own Captain, I believe they would definitely choose me. There's only one person who dislikes me a bit. I once argued with him and even challenged him to a duel, but he refused."

What's that person's name?

"Danglars, he's a guard."

"If you were the Captain, would you keep him in his position?"

"No, because I often find that his accounts don't match up."

"That's right. So tell me now, when you had that last conversation with the old Captain, was anyone else present?"

No, it's just the two of us.

"To put it another way, is it possible that someone overheard us?"

"... Ah, I remember now, Danglars happened to be passing by when the Captain entrusted the things to me."

"In that case," Favia continued, gradually building on the point, "Where did you put the letter when you received it?"

"It was tucked inside my notebook, and since it was too big to carry around, I left it on the ship."

"Where did you put this letter before you got back to the ship?"

"I've been holding it in my hand the whole time."

"So when you return to the Pharaon, everyone will be able to see you holding a letter?"

"That's right."

"Is Danglars one too?"

Edmond nodded, indicating that was indeed the case.

What is Danglars's handwriting like normally?

He has beautiful and fluent handwriting.

"What did the handwriting look like in that anonymous letter?"

"Leaning slightly backward."

"Looks like it's a disguise." Favia smiled. "Wait a minute."

After he finished speaking, he removed his finger, dipped it in his homemade ink, and wrote a few words on a small piece of cloth.

Edmond glanced at it and immediately looked surprised. "This handwriting is exactly the same as the one on that letter of denunciation..."

The instructions were written with the left hand.

"Why?"

"Because the handwriting of those who write with their right hand is different from everyone else's, while the handwriting of those who write with their left hand is all very similar."

"Priest, you're really amazing..."

"So, do you still remember what that letter of denunciation said?"

"Please allow me a few minutes to think." The gray-haired youth concentrated on recalling the contents of the letter from six years ago, and after a dozen seconds, he said, "The letter reads: 'I am a supporter of the Royal Family and the Church, and I am reporting to you that Edmond Dantès, the first mate of the Pharaon, arrived this morning from Smyrna via Naples, stopping at Portoferraio. He was ordered by Murat to deliver a letter to the traitor, and by the traitor to deliver a letter to the Napoleon Party Committee in Paris. Evidence of his crime can be obtained upon his arrest; the letter is either on him, in his father's house, or in his room on the Pharaon.'"

"Actually, it's easy to guess what happened, but you're too kind to think that way."

"... Is that really true...?"

Edmond looked dejected, probably because he hadn't expected to be framed like this.

"Then let's continue."

"Okay, okay."

Who wouldn't want to see you and Mercédès get married?

"Mercédès Fernand likes Mercédès... but he's not that kind of person, and he doesn't know the contents of the letter either; it's probably just a misunderstanding..."

Favia didn't say much to Edmond, who still harbored illusions, and continued to ask:

"Do Fernand and Danglars know each other?"

"I saw them sitting together in the pergola the day before my engagement. They were very affectionate. Danglars was making good-natured jokes, but Fernando looked pale and angry."

Are there only the two of them?

"There was another person with them, someone I know well, and who most likely introduced them. His name is Caderousse, a tailor, but he was drunk at the time... Wait, wait, how come I never thought of that before! On the table between them, there were pens, ink, and paper. Oh, could that be what they were planning?"

Edmond clutched his head and shouted.

"It seems you already know, Edmond," Favia said with a smile. "What else would you like to know?"

After these several conversations, the Sailors was now completely in awe of the Priest before him, and therefore eagerly continued to ask:

"Priest, explain to me why I was only interrogated once, why I didn't go to court, and most importantly, why I was convicted without going through proper procedures?"

"Okay, so first, who is the person interrogating you, how old are they, and what was their attitude?"

"Gérard de Villefort, he was very young, only twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old. When he read that letter that framed me, he was very agitated. He seemed unable to bear the misfortune I had suffered. He burned the letter in front of me and said that for my own good, I shouldn't tell anyone about the letter to Monsieur Noirtier, and that he would definitely help me..."

"Do you know, Edmond," Favia waved her hand, interrupting the young man, "That there was a man named Noirtier de Villefort during the French Revolution?"

"What... is wrong?"

Edmond was puzzled as to why the Priest suddenly mentioned someone with a similar name.

No, Villefort... could it be...?