"What are you doing here?" "Go away." " What about the child?" "Dead." "Is it still in her womb?" " No, over there." "Who are you?" "It was dead." "That is an undead." "No, I breathed some of my soul into him." "He's not an undead." "Take the child and look after him." "I'll come for him in due time." "And woman, if I don't find him here, I'll cut your head off." "I always keep my word." "God is my witness, lord." "It was dead." "And then this man gave it some of his soul." "Is that what he said?" " Yes." "That he gave it some of his soul?" "Yes." "Give it to me." "He said he'll out my head off if I lose it." " I'll out your head off if you don't give it." "Give it to me." "Now go away and close the door." "Forgive me." "Now let our souls compete against one another." "Did Sydal at least get wounded?" " No." "He can't be far yet." "I came too late." "Will you take the child?" " It can grow up at the blacksmith's." "And?" " He's frail." "To survive the winter, he'll have to show iron mettle." "Let him stay without a name." "If he's still alive in spring, let his name be 'Isenhart'." "15 years later" "What are you looking at, Isenhart?" "Come." "Here." "Now listen to me." "Those are daughters from the House of Laurin." "Someone like you mustn't even think about them." "Keep working." "What are you staring at my sister for?" "You know each other." "My son Konrad." "Chlodio, isenhart will as of now only be at your disposal in the afternoon." "Walther von Ascisberg will educate the two." "You will receive something usually reserved for clergy and nobles... namely education." "That's a great privilege." "What is a 'privilege'?" "That word comes from a language you will soon learn:" "Latin." "The preponderances of one of these humours determines one's inclination." "If someone has too much blood, he's the sanguine type." "The phlegmatic suffers from too much slime." "If yellow bile is dominant, he's choleric." "Excessive black bile spells melancholy." "'Give me a fixed point in space, and I'll move the earth."" "Archimedes said that." " Was he a soldier?" "No, a scholar." "Lever action allows us to exert great force with only little effort." "Enough for today." "Et habeo clades." "(Slaves." "Et habeo cleaves." "One, two." "Stop striking like a girl, dammit." "Now listen, I want to hear you scream." "Is there anything forbidden in there?" " Yes...no." "Tell me, what does it say?" "That's Lancelot, by Chrétien de Troyes." "Anna, stay here." "My father will beat me black and blue." "No, we're not going this way." " Yes, we are." "I get to decide." "Come." "For me?" "It's beautiful, Isenhart." " It's a wedding gift." "You know about it?" " Konrad told me." "You'll do well with Oliver von Schundeler." " You think so?" "Konrad says he has connections and owns land." "And he has 42 years behind him." "Von Schundeler is an old man." "I don't want to be his wife." "Oliver von Schundeler expects a virgin." "I don't just want to be the one who..." " Sometimes you can be a real idiot." "I'm a serf, Anna." " I'd rather flee than marry anyone else." "You'll be pleased." "Look here, goods from all over the world." "I have salt from Salzburg, cloth from Bruges." "This might interest the fair ladies." "One pinch a day helps against skinniness." "You'll gain weight faster and easily get the shape you desire." "Lies, all lies." "All that stuff did for me was give me constipation." "Honoured Lady of Laurin, here, a sample." "Would you like to try it?" "You owe me money, Alexander von Westheim" "At six o'clock'?" " Look at him." "Yes." " The Jews is at a loss for words." "But I told you, it only works if you don't sin for three days." "What extraordinary beauty graces the daughter of Laurin." "She has no need of this potion." "The Lord is the beginning and end." "His will is also inherent in the seasons." "In spring the plants sprout, in summer they bloom." "In fall they lose colour and in winter they wither, so that it may all start over again." "Alpha and Omega." "I think the trees shed their leaves so as not to dry out in winter." "Of all your ideas in recent years, this is the most absurd." "How can you say that?" "If you squeeze a leaf in summer, sap comes out." "But in fall the leaves dry out." "The question is:" "Where does the sap go?" "Well?" "In spring the tree sucks up water and distributes it to the leaves." "In winter it absorbs the water again, so it doesn't dry out." "The only explanation is God's will, nothing else." "Are trees creatures?" "Do they have muscles?" "Can they draw humours?" "Why not?" "They also distribute water to the leaves." "That's why..." "That's why until seven o'clock you will recite the penitential psalm." "Today?" "Today I can't." " And now until eight o'clock." "Anna?" "Anna?" "He inserted it here, one phalanx deep." "And then he pressed in further, from right to left." "Do you have to touch her?" " What I'm touching is not Anna, Isenhart." "What constitutes her is her soul, which has gone up to meet its Maker." "I'm only examining her shell, her mortal form." "He inserted it here, till he realized the blade couldn't go deep enough." "Is that really important?" " I don't know." "This wouldn't have happened to an experienced killer." "Maybe it was his first murder." "Here he slit the skin open." "But at the ribs he didn't use a knife." "No, these aren't knife wounds." "He smashed them." "But why?" "You can't do that." " Oh yes, in fact I have to." "NO Semen." "He didn't rape her." "It wasn't Anna he desired, but her heart." "Isenhart... the murderer took Anna's heart." "My sister's murderer, we got him." "We got him." "Call the guards." "Quiet." "Did you lay hands on my daughter?" "Speak." " Please, I..." "I have nothing to do with it." "I'd never lay hands on your daughter, I swear to God." "What's wrong with you?" "I gave that stone as a present to your daughter." "I forged the bezel myself." "A present." "Where did you get it?" "You won't believe me." "Isenhart, heat up an iron." " No, wait." "Wilbrand von Maulbronn." "He gave me the stone." "The archbishop." "Let him burn for his impudence." " I swear." "You're lying." " Wilbrand von Maulbronn gave it to me." "Archbishop Wilbrand is after your vineyards." "He will use the merest trifle, and he has the protection of the emperor." "Maulbronn Abbey" "Hand the traveling salesman over to me, Sigimund of Laurin... and I will draw the truth out of him." "He accuses you of giving him this stone." "It belonged to my daughter." " And you give credence to that man?" "I don't give him anything." "I think he wants to take revenge on me." "He threatened my treasurer and I had him chased off my land." "I can assure you I didn't conduct business with that Jew." "That's for the impudence of accusing me of the murder of your daughter." "Konrad." "Isn't it?" "Now leave." "He won't forget about it." "It's just the thing Wilbrand von Maulbronn was waiting for." "It was my fault." "I shouldn't have taken you along." "On your knees." "Pray." "May God give strength to the righteous one." "Whoever drops his arms first is accused of injustice by God." "Please, Lord, don't abandon me." "Don't punish the wrong man." "God has passed judgment." "I'm the wrong man." "You're killing the wrong man." "Please, Lord, have mercy." "Quiet at last." "Why is he allowed to breathe?" "Doesn't it prolong his suffering?" "He'll freeze to death soon, Isenhart." "The pipe isn't meant for breathing." "The soul must be able to leave the heart and rise up to heaven through the mouth." "Why?" "Otherwise he'll climb out of his grave and come after us for revenge." "What news does he bring?" "Wilbrand von Maulbronn demands your surrender." "What did you answer?" " That he'll have to deal with me first." "Konrad, come here." "You look after your mother and sister." "Isenhart, stay on his side." "When the gate falls, flee together." "If you surrender the castle, Maulbronn will be forced to be lenient." "I only serve God and the Emperor." "Draw your bows, fire." "Father, we need every man." "I'm not your father, Isenhart." "I raised you, but I'm not your father." "What's that?" "So who is my father?" " You don't want to know." "Wait." "Fire, now." "The gate is down." "They're here." "Mother." "Help." "Keep still." "Sophia." "Did he hurt you?" "Get out." "Flee through the escape tunnel and wait there." "Get out." " Come." "Konrad." "I'll give your son a fair trial... and sell your wife and daughter for a good price... so that they'll serve decent people." "Come, we can make it." "There they are." "Come." " Konrad." "Konrad?" "What happened?" "What happened?" "He needs treatment." "We can't ride like this." "We don't have time." "Where are mother and father?" " Let's go." "Are they coming?" "Where are they?" "Where are mother and father?" "No, I have to get them." " We have to go." "Let's go." " Mother, no." "Go on, keep going." "Go on." "Keep going." "Keep going, I'll detain them." "Isenhart, come." " Go away." "Don't do that." "Come with us." " Go away." "Is the escape tunnel still free?" " Laurin Castle has fallen." "What?" "And Sigimund?" "Go away." "Leave and go to Spira." "Wilbrand won't find you there." "Five years later" "Heiligster near Spira" "Look who's coming." "Here." "My dear brother." "Are you well?" " Yes." "You?" "I am now you're here." " Good to see you again, Isenhart." "The horses need water." " Put me down." "Konrad, keep your hands off of her." "For you." "How long are you staying?" " We have to go back to Spira tomorrow." "I think I have one." "Can you help me?" " Gently." "One, two..." "Now." "Maybe we caught it in its sleep." "'From sleep to death is but a small step.'" "Aristotle said that." "'Love is one soul in two bodies!" "I think that's his most beautiful statement." "I read it somewhere." "Watchmen of Spira, what has happened?" " My daughter." "What has happened?" " One of the cows is gravid." "Johanna, my daughter, spent the night with her." "I'm going to have a closer look." "Who had she been with?" " With no one." "Johanna was a virgin." "Her heart's been cutout." "No." " My friend has to do that." "How else can we find out if he raped her?" "She hasn't been violated." "Everyone not related to the deceased, get out." "Go on, get out." "Go on, beat it." "Two stab wounds." "What are you doing?" " I want to see if she defended herself." "There's no blood or skin under her nails." "What's the difference?" "She's dead." " It suggests she knew the murderer." "He could come so close..." " Stop." "Because she trusted him." " Who are you?" "My lord and I were called for." "Gunther von Martensen is the doctor of Spira." "I'm his aide, Henning von der Braake." "Who are you?" "Konrad, watchman of Spire." " I'm Isenhart." "We serve as watchmen and happened to walk by." "You're no longer needed." "I'm going to examine the victim." "Are you the mother?" " Yes." "Did you find her?" " The watchman's already examined her." "Is that so?" "What did you conclude?" "That she's dead?" "Johanna defended herself." "I found red hair in her hand." "The killer had red hair." "He killed her with two stabs in her neck." "But he didn't murder her out of lust." "The girl is still intact." "He wanted her heart." "He cut her torso open and amputated her left breast." "The costal arches were separated with a coarse-toothed tool, like a saw." "And he took her heart." "Why are you leaving?" "What am I supposed to do?" "You can bury your daughter." "Does anyone with red hair work here, or has a stranger been here?" "A man was here." "A man with red hair and one arm." "Do you know him?" " No, he didn't mention his name." "He only said he wanted to cross the Rhine and go to Wurttemberg." "We can still catch up with him." "He has a headstart of a few hours." "And he's heading south." "No, I think he's heading north." "He hopes to send the search parties the wrong way." "If he's heading north, Spira will be his next stop." "So, off to Spira." "Off to Spira." "Did anyone with red hair enter the city?" " Yes, two hours ago." "And he didn't leave the city again?" " No." "Close the gate." "Go on, close the gate." "Nothing." "Did you see a man with red hair?" "If you see a one-armed redhead, tell the watchmen." "All gates are shut and under guard." " Alright, spread out and find this man." "Search every tavern, every inn, every barn." "Hey, get out of here." " I'm going." "Alexander von Westheim didn't kill Anna." " He did have the stone." "Maybe Wilbrand von Maulbronn had it." " Westheim just wanted to save his skin." "We have a clear pattern here." "The murderer didn't rape the girls and he took their hearts." "He actually tore their hearts out." " But why?" "Two identical proceedings, establishing a pattern to the murders." "And if it's the same murderer, Alexander von Westheim was innocent." "That would mean that we buried an innocent man alive." "It was a judgment of God." "He's nowhere to be found." " We went to every tavern, every inn." "He entered Spira and didn't leave again, yet he's untraceable." "As if the earth had swallowed him up." "He must be here somewhere." "We have to find him." "Konrad, weren't you at the lepers' lately?" " I was indeed." "If nothing has fallen off, you can come in." " No, I can't." "Leeks and chervil." "I learned that from the Arabs." "But they're our enemies." " Sure." "I learned it from them before they became our enemies." "Isenhart, back on your feet again?" "Did your aide find out anything?" " No." "Henning is at the city archives." "Isenhart." "Good that you're here." "Follow me." "Come, look what I've found." "Here:" "Spira, the year of our Lord 1193." " On September 24 a murder took place." "You surprise me, not for the first time." "A watchman who knows how to read." "Latin, even." " Favourable circumstances." "I'm sure." "A year ago, during a fight by the river, a certain Michael von Bremen killed a man." "Von Bremen has only one arm and flaming red hair." "He lost his arm in the Battle of Dorylaeum." "I'm sure he's our man." "He's lord of a castle at Tarup." "Does it say from when till when Michael von Bremen was here?" "Yes, why?" " If what I think is true... an unsolved murder of a virgin took place during that time." "Of course." "Here." "Here: 'Heart removed!" "Just two days after the fight by the river." "'Murderer unknown!" "If he's not insane..." "What if he's possessed by the devil?" "Dig her up?" " No." "Konrad." " No, you can't dig up the dead." "It disturbs their eternal rest and they'll come to haunt you." "We'll take the risk." " Come." "If you get caught, you'll be burned at the stake." "Not me." "What is it?" "How was she killed?" "Check." "Great, Isenhart." "Desecration of a corpse as well." "Four stabs to the back of her head." "Let's ride on to Tarup." "He slit Anna's throat." "After that, he refined his method." "You mean that he hones his skills?" " Yes." "He stabbed the girl at the cemetery four times, the girl in the hay just twice." "You think he eats them?" "Their hearts, I mean." "In the Orient they say that you take over all your enemy's good qualities... when you eat his heart." " Only a godless people can think so." "So what does he expect from three young women?" "Not strength, for sure." " Virginity, perhaps." "You're right." "All three were virgins." "At least he could assume they were." "The question remains:" "Why does he kill virgins?" "Why does he want their hearts?" "I said there's a pattern to his murders." "That also goes for his victims." "They're young, inviolate and..." " Female." "A malicious weapon, the cross bow." "One shouldn't use it against Christians." "The man we're after is no Christian." "People say that since '91 the dead have been walking around at Tarup." "People say many things." "Many serfs of the Lord of Tarup starved to death at the time." "The ones who survived ate the dead." "The Lord himself devoured three hearts." "One of those hearts belonged to a Hun." "A man so big and strong, the like of him had never been seen." "Then something strange happened." "The Lord was suddenly able to run as fast as a horse." "And he was able to bend iron." " Nonsense." "He was much stronger than before." "This Lord was Michael von Bremen." "The one-armed man." "Tarup Castle" "Tarup." "We'll split up." " Alright." "During the famine, they ate their fellow men here." "Can you imagine?" "I mean, if you hadn't eaten for a week... and we were alone?" " I don't think you taste well, Konrad." "Good to know." "Over here." "What have you got?" "Here's an entrance." " Let's go inside." "Gunther?" " Yes?" "That's incredible." "What knowledge." "Is that why he sinned against creation?" " What is that?" "Maybe the course of blood through our body." "He's investigating the human body." " Is that why he kills?" "Out of curiosity?" "No, we have no disemboweled victims." " That's sick." "The man is a monster." "Monstrous only because the Church forbids it." "They're creatures of God, also in death." "He had no right." "Their souls had already gone up, Konrad." "The dead have no use for their mortal shell." "That's true, Konrad." "Do you somehow admire this butcher?" " Of course not." "But I have understanding, understanding for scientific curiosity." "This here, this is progress." "This is a mark of the future." "This man has inestimably valuable knowledge." "He can probably treat the ill better than the clergy with their four-humour theory." "But he sinned." "It's against God's will to lay one's hands on His creatures." "Who says so?" " The Church." "These drawings provide answers to important questions." "But we live in a time in which we have to swallow everything." "In which you can't ask questions and everything that happens is God's will." "But it is, isn't it?" " No." "God's will doesn't explain everything." "God's will doesn't explain why the trees shed their leaves in fall." "If we'd only study birds and their flight movement carefully... we might just learn how to fly ourselves." "But just thinking that is already forbidden." "Because otherwise they'd dry out." " What?" "Yes." "The USES." "They shed their leaves because otherwise they'd dry out." "I know it sounds absurd..." " Not at all." "It's the most sensible explanation." "We're not chasing a lunatic." "We're chasing a man of learning, maybe a genius." "What are you doing in my home?" "You only have one arm to contend with, but three hearts." "He's downstairs." "Blood." " There's more over there." "If there is no other exit, he'll come this way again." "I'll stay here." "Excuse me." "Gunther, careful." "He can be anywhere." " Let's keep searching upstairs." "He took his own life." "Come, Isenhart." "There's nothing for us to do here." "Why did he hang himself?" "I don't understand." "In Spira they'd have quartered him for his crimes." "So he'd have died anyway." "In any case, your sister's death has been avenged." "I'll miss your company." "I feel the same way." " I can accompany you part of the way." "What are we doing here?" " Just a little rest stop." "Hieronymus, Maria, they're here." "Sophia of Laurin, Henning van der Braake." "What did you bring?" " I'm glad to see you." "Grain, flints, salt, dried fish, flour and dried fruit." "Come." " Excellent." "Take care of the horses." "Come, take off your shirt." "You're very fond of him." "We grew up together." "The blacksmith raised him." "Is he an orphan?" "His origins are obscure." " He's an undead." "Undead?" " Yes." "What do you mean?" " Why don't you go and feed the hens?" "Chitchat, nothing more." " Who is his father?" "Why does that interest you?" " Isenhart can't just read and write." "Most people aren't able to see past their own life, into the world at large." "But he is." "I know." "And you?" "We have to go." "His name was Michael von Bremen." "Him." "He also fought at Dorylaeum." "He lost his arm at Dorylaeum." "How do you know the killer had red hair?" " One of the victims defended herself." "We found these drawings... on Michael von Bremen." "You're suspecting someone else." "Yes." "But he doesn't have red hair." "Have you ever meta living dead?" " No." "Then you may just be about to." "What's that in front of your eyes?" " A lens." "That's not a lance." "It has no point." " It's beryl, a rock crystal." "You can use it to magnify things." "My eyes are growing weak, you see." "Here, look for yourself." "Perhaps people will suspend glasses like this in front of their eyes one day." "It wasn't Michael von Bremen." "Our man disguises himself." "He colours his hair before murdering." "Here." "'The Non-Existence of God"?" "Yes." "It was written by an extraordinary man." "'The real world can only be understood by rejecting God as an explanation." "Anyone who answers a question by invoking God's will just doesn't know." "The way to knowledge is paved by curiosity and inquiry... not by faith and dogma." "Inquiry means movement... faith means stagnation, for faith is content with ignorance]" "Sydal von Friedberg wrote that." "The non-existence of God." "He wrote it right here." "Ever heard of him?" " No." "We were acquainted." "We both took part in the crusade to Jerusalem." "After the Battle of Dorylaeum, Michael von Bremen was badly injured... and Sydal moved to Toledo, in Iberia." "He came back a changed man." " Changed in what way?" "He'd lost his faith." "Sydal had become an atheist, without hope of life eternal." "Then he started killing." "Virgins, whose heart he'd take." "He did just what Anna's murderer did." " Yes." "Let go of me." " Konrad." "Why?" "Walther, speak up." " He didn't tell me." "You also encountered him once." "You owe your life to him." "I think I'd have known." " No, you can't." "You were stillborn." "You already saw the hereafter once." "What?" "Shortly after your birth, a man breathed life into you, and your heart beat again." "That's sorcery." " Oh no, not necessarily." "Your mother had died." "I brought you to Laurin Castle." "The blacksmith raised you." "But you owe your life to that man." "To Sydal von Friedberg?" " Yes." "Why did he do that?" " He was your father." "Isenhart." "And who was my mother?" "Who was my mother?" "Her...her name was Loretta." "I personally..." "She was a virgin." "Sydal von Friedberg raped her, and she died after giving birth to you." "Isenhart, it..." "The son of a beast." "What is that?" "I don't know." "I..." "I don't know what he wanted to tell us with that." "I don't know." "To Toledo?" "Do you realize it'll take months to get there?" "It's where my father became a murderer." " What do you hope to find there?" "I have to know if we're chasing my father's ghost." "What's the motive?" "Why the murders?" "We couldn't ask Michael von Bremen." "And you think Toledo has the answers?" " He left Toledo as a changed man." "The answer lies there." "My father and Anna's death are related." "Isenhart." "What happened at Dorylaeum?" "You didn't just come home, did you?" "I have to know." "Michael von Bremen had lost an arm in the battle." "He was more dead than alive." "He'd saved your father's life, so your father felt responsible for von Bremen." "They'd captured a Turkish doctor." "He offered to help von Bremen, in exchange for his freedom." "He also demanded... the heart of one of the dead, of a strong man." "You got into a quarrel with my father." " Yes." "The next day Sydal and the doctor had disappeared with one dead man's heart." "Did my father and this doctor go to Toledo?" "Yes." " What was his name?" "Ibn AI-Hariq." "Are there any more truths?" "Anything you haven't told me?" " No." "Isenhart." "I got it from..." "My father gave it to me." "It protects its bearer." "Since I have no biological son..." "May it protect you on your way to Toledo." "Sophia, Isenhart and Konrad are here." "Come with me." "One day Anna brought me a seashell from the market." "When you put it to your ear, you heard the sea." "I don't really know, of course." "I've never been at the sea." "I hear rushing." "That's what the sea is supposed to sound like." "Isenhart, if you had the choice, where would you like to live?" "Here or by the sea?" " In the future." "In the future." "Do you still think of Anna often?" "Always when I see you." "But you're not Anna." "Don't forget me." "How could I forget so much grace?" " What grace?" "The grace of her behind?" "How can you be so coarse?" "Isenhart, you lost a father twice." "I'd ride to the end of the world to spend an hour with mine, while yours still lives." "Go to Toledo." "Don't wait." "Go at once and don't give up." "Don't give up." "At least you find your peace." "We should go." "Take care of that foolish brother of mine." " I promise I will." "And of yourself." "How did they wind up here?" " Children's Crusade." "They followed faith rather than knowledge." "Do you see that?" " I'm so hungry I can't see." "Moors, Jews and Christians." "And they're not at each other's throats." "You're right." "I don't like this city either." "I need some bread." "I'm so hungry." "Bread, my friend." "Please, have some." "Thank you." "You're very generous." "Here, olives." "Please try." "Try before you buy." "Very good, really." "I'm thirsty." " Thirsty?" "Orange, very good for thirst." "Thank you, friend." "My friend, you have to peel it first." "You don't eat the skin." "Ibn Al-Hariq, does he still live in Toledo?" "Who?" " Not so fast." "Friends..." "He often stayed at the fortress." "You can see it from that crossing." "Draw your bows." "Muslims." "Who are you and what are you doing here?" "We are Konrad of Laurin and Isenhart...of Laurin." "We're here to talk to Ibn AI-Hariq." " Hand over your weapons." "We need our weapons, to decapitate a couple of infidels." "Who told you where to find Ibn AI-Hariq?" " Some merchant." "His name?" " We don't know." "Kill them." " No." "I'm Isenhart, Sydal von Friedberg's son." "Let them go." "The undead child." "Gentlemen, Ibn AI-Hariq left us two years ago." "He was a great philosopher, and an even greater doctor." "But I'm sure you didn't undertake your long journey without a reason." "I'm here on account of my father, Sydal von Friedberg." "After the crusade he came here, together with your master." "When he returned to the Holy Empire, he started murdering women." "What happened is terrible." " What took place before my father left?" "Their conversations revolved around the human soul." "Around the question whether it is immortal." "And where it's located." " In the heart?" "That was the conviction of both of them." "But there was no certainty, of course." "I remember very well that it almost made them ill." "They believed that what constitutes us... the I, that this I is located in the soul, or even is the soul... chained to a mortal shell." "That's how your father called it." "Did AI-Hariq and my father think you could see the soul?" "No, they thought... it was invisible, at least to the human eye." "Did they also talk about purity?" " Yes." "The purer the soul, the more valuable." "That's what they said." "Why did my father leave?" "They got into an argument, unfortunately." "Your father had crossed a limit." "You understand?" "He was possessed." " My father wanted to investigate the soul." "He wanted to watch a soul escape." "Yes." "What is this here?" " An exchange." "Between the East and the West." "A bazar of knowledge." "Scholars no longer believe the soul is located in the heart." "But instead?" " In the brain, behind the eyes." "Are there doctors here as well?" " Those without hope come here." "Doctors try out new methods and ointments on them." "This room is yours for as long as you wish to stay." "How do you call that knot?" "That's a cross knot." "It comes from seafaring." "Your name is Isenhart, right?" "That's correct." "And you?" " I overheard your talk with Khamud." "Did you know my father?" " Oh yes." "Your father is alive." "My father is alive?" "I was told my father was dead." " By Walther von Ascisberg, right?" "Why would Walther von Ascisberg..." " Lie?" "Walther didn't kill Sydal that day, but he captured him." "He let him live under three conditions." " What conditions?" "That he'd never set foot on German soil again... that he'd stop murdering... and that he'd never reveal himself to his son as his father." "Isenhart, you won't believe it..." " I've just..." "Wilbrand von Maulbronn." "What is he doing here?" "Inside these walls no one but me carries a weapon." "So if you need to settle anything, settle it outside the gates." "Wilbrand von Maulbronn..." " Don't let him provoke you." "I'm surprised to see you back alive, young Laurin." "You can remedy that tomorrow at dawn outside the gate." "You and me, if you're man enough." "What do you want, bastard?" "I've never seen a dead man on two feet." "Interesting place." "A lot of soul searching." "Finally, Isenhart." "Now Wilbrand von Maulbronn can't hide behind his lord." "What's he doing here anyway?" "Here in Toledo, at the Puente?" "I have no idea." " It can't be a coincidence." "First my father was here, now Wilbrand." "What brings the archbishop here?" "We always run into him in places of death." "Maybe I'll let him live long enough for you to ask him." "He won't wait that long, Konrad." "He won't wait that long." "What's the matter?" "Konrad of Laurin." "It's my father's blade you feel." "You get the horses, I get the weapons." " No, you get the horses." "What was Wilbrand doing in Toledo?" " You killed him before we could ask." "Your father lives." "Maybe he committed the murders." "Or somebody copied him." "The only one we can ask is Walther." "Gerhard." "Walther von Ascisberg is dead." " What?" "Since when?" " A month ago." "He had business in Spira." "He must have been attacked on his way back." "He was found dead by the roadside." " And the murderer?" "Speak." " What did he go to Spira for anyway?" "I don't know." "A young monk had been murdered." "My lord wanted to inspect the corpse." "His heart had been torn out." " How do you know?" "A monk doesn't fit what you call a pattern." "Ever since celibacy was introduced, a monk is also immaculate and pure." "This is all yours now, Isenhart." "Walther von Ascisberg appointed you as his sole heir." "Where did you bury your lord?" "You needed it more." "Who would have had a reason?" "The murderer disguises himself." "He pretends to have red hair, while in fact it's brown." "That rules out Wilbrand." "You think the murderer is still out there?" "Sophia, someone's coming." " Isenhart and Konrad." "What happened to you?" "Let me take care of you." "Come." "Where's Father Hieronymus?" " He's very ill." "You can't see him now." "Come, you need to be washed as well." "There." "Reimar von Vogt has been courting me for some weeks now." "He couldn't have made a better choice." "I'm going to feed the hens." "What did you say to her?" "I told her I wish her all the best with her future husband." "You idiot." "You're blind and deaf." "She wants you." "I know." "I know." "What's the matter?" "I'm not the right man for her." "Sophia deserves better." "Isenhart, sometimes you really are dumb." "I often feel like an island, unconnected to the mainland." "Without a bridge or ferryman to get me across." "She deserves better." "Father, we're back." " Isenhart." "How are you?" "Father, a question." "You went out to sea." " True." "But that was long ago." "I was still a young madcap." " Do you know the cross knot?" "Yes." " Can you tie one for me?" "Isenhart. .." " Try it." "Try doing it with one hand." "Do it for me, Father." "I can't." "The cross knot..." " It's okay." "Is too elaborate." "Why do I have to do that?" "Because Michael von Bremen only had one arm." "So someone must have hanged him." "Is that what you're saying?" "We were in Tarup with the four of us." "Henning stayed with Konrad and me." "Only Gunther von Martensen could have killed him." "The question is: what does Henning know about his master's murders?" "Hail." "The doctor and his aide left months ago." "Gunther von Martensen was very ill." "They wanted to go to Maulbronn" " Maulbronn." "The dead monk von Ascisberg wanted to examine... had two stab wounds in his neck, right?" " Only one." "How do you know?" "There's a connection with another murder." "Henning van der Braake." "Isenhart was here, right?" " Yes." "Isenhart, you're alive." "I'm glad to see you." "What about Konrad?" "I hope he's fine as well." "Sure, but after our long absence he didn't feel like riding out again." "You're right, it's been a long time." "Come." "I heard that Gunther is ill." "How is he doing?" "The Grim Reaper will come for him." "But on his way to the Lord he wants to be of use for an experiment." "Come." "Come." "Step aside." "We did all this while you were gone." "Gunther." "Look who's here." "Isenhart." "I'm so happy... to see you." "I don't have any pain any more." "Don't be sad." "I'm..." "I'm curious... like a little child." "What are those cots?" "Keep an eye on him." "They are all terminally ill." "They come here to die." "I take them in and look after them till the end." "Those cots suspended above water." "Those ropes." "I've seen all that before." "In a drawing by a man who'd lost his faith and searched for the location of the soul." "Sydar von Friedberg?" " Yes." "You knew Sydar von Friedberg?" "No, Gunther knew him." "They met in a place in Iberia." " Toledo." "Konrad and I were there." "Yes, you were there." "At the bazar of knowledge." "Tell me, is it really as wonderful as Gunther always tells me?" "Scholars striving for knowledge, unfettered by origins or religion?" "Exchanging ideas?" "It was impressive." "And is it true that the only barriers there are those of the mind, not of the Church?" "Yes, religion hardly plays a role." "What progress." "What does Gunther know about Sydal von Friedberg?" "A whole lot." "He told me, for example... that Sydal didn't tolerate it... when they tried to curtail his thoughts." "He murdered women." " The time has come." "He's dying." "Your soul has set out on its journey." "And is released." "On the way to a better world, if there is one." "Did you see the rope?" " I did." "Did you see it go up?" "At the moment of death." " After he died, Gunther became lighter." "The Soul." "The Soul." "How many grams?" "45." " Always?" "Always." " And with the dogs?" "Not one gram." "Have you been able to see one?" "We tried with water, but no air bubbles issued from the mouth of the dying." "Maybe..." "Maybe it doesn't leave through the mouth." "Did you try it with smoke?" " Also without success." "You have to get Gunther ready." "Of course." "Isenhart." "We saw that at Michael von Bremen's." "The same handwriting?" " Yes." "Look, that's Michael von Bremen's." "It's identical." "Gunther or Henning." "One of them left it in Tarup, so that we'd find it." "And you thought he was a genius." "All those visitors." "You were leaving already?" "What do you know about the murder of Anna of Laurin?" "Let go of her." "Put that dagger away." " Let go of her." "Put it away or I'll ruin her beauty." " Don't talk so much, Simon." "Stop." "M ay I?" "Murderer." "And now you." " No." "He doesn't even know who he is." "Murderer." "My sword, give me my sword." "Detain them." "Where are we?" " In Maulbronn Abbey." "Trapped." "On your knees." "Konrad." " That's impossible." "I'm afraid not." "Did you still want to measure yourself against me?" "If your courage has doubled and you feel man enough by now... to fight a blind man, anytime." "You are under my jurisdiction." "Tomorrow Cardinal Ernst of Regensburg will come to me... to be present at your trial." " And what are the charges?" "That we defended my father's castle against you?" "That you tried to kill me in Toledo." "Then you might as well sentence us right away." "Not so hot-tempered, Konrad of Laurin." "Not so hot-tempered." "Tomorrow the Cardinal of Regensburg will come to Maulbronn." "He'll be present at the trial... where you'll be sentenced to death." " Where is Sophia of Laurin?" "In my rooms." "There she's able to assist me." "Here you can rot away." "Isenhart?" " I'm over here." "Maybe it's our destiny that it ends like this." "What are you doing?" "Digging?" " There's water under this flagstone." "The flagstones are too heavy." "You can't lift them by yourself." "'Give me a fixed point in space and I'll move the world.'" "Archimedes and the lever rule." "Walther taught us, remember?" "No." "How many have you opened?" "Many." "Alive?" " Of course not." "I don't enjoy inflicting suffering." "You and I are of one kind." "We're both ahead of our time." "Sydal von Friedberg made a start, back in Toledo." "I've continued his work." "First Gunther assisted me, now von Hainfeld does." "But what could we accomplish together?" " Gunther was your student." "I know the theory of the four humours is false and can do harm, even kill people." "Don't you want to share that knowledge with me?" "We can expand it." "There's so much more to discover." "What's so funny?" "Your knowledge is an incredible treasure." "Your light would outshine my father's many times over." "But it won't happen, because you can't share your knowledge." "You'd be burnt." "Tomorrow I'll breathe in your soul, Isenhart, so you will be inside me." "What does Wilbrand von Maulbronn have to do with all this?" "An alliance of convenience." "I wanted to study the soul, he wanted to possess it." "And he got what he wanted." " What does that mean?" "He breathed it in. 45 grams." "Did you forget already?" "I didn't give him this one." "Her shell was unusually beautiful." "Anna of Laurin." "Murderer." "Wilbrand von Maulbronn picked her out." "He wanted her soul." "He gave the stone to a merchant." "Anna would never have been harmed if I'd known it would cause you such grief." "If I ruled over life and death, I would give her back to you." "Who killed her?" "Who is there?" "Murderer." "To study the soul, people have to die." "What?" "So many lives destroyed for the sake of your curiosity?" "A few destroyed lives for many fulfilled ones." "The death of a few can prevent the death of many others." "Only when they let us study typhus and smallpox... and no longer keep us from studying God's creation more closely... only then will we be able to help alleviate suffering and perhaps even defy death." "If we didn't sacrifice a few, it'd be as if we killed thousands by not helping them." "So who of us is more humane, more just?" "Why did Wilbrand want to breathe in the souls?" "Don't you understand?" "The soul's essence." "That's what it's all about." "Immortality?" " An ancient dream of mankind." "Life unlimited." "What would a genius like Aristotle be able to achieve in two or three lifetimes?" "Only the ideas we leave behind are immortal, and the soul itself." "Is that right?" "So how old is Wilbrand von Maulbronn?" "I don't know." "76." "He's 76 and moves like man in his mid-thirties." "What would that be?" "Chance?" " Exactly that." "You also think Sydal von Friedberg showed up at your birth by chance?" "He was on the run from Walther von Ascisberg." "He knew his time was running out and Walther would kill him sooner or later." "He wanted to leave something behind, so that in a certain way he'd live on." "Something of the souls he breathed in is alive in you, Isenhart." "And in me." "Sydal fathered two children." "Two boys." "He kissed both of them upon their birth." "Both grew up with adoptive fathers." "One with a blacksmith.." "The other with a doctor." "We're not just soul mates, Isenhart." "Ernst of Regensburg has occupied Maulbronn Abbey." "Murdered for their souls?" "Is that what you want to tell me?" " Yes." "Those are serious allegations." "Wilbrand, my friend, it's very questionable... that you didn't know what Henning van der Braake contrived in your dungeons." "I swear it's true." " That does you honour." "Still, I can't form a clear judgment." "Or you must want a judgment of God." "If Wilbrand von Maulbronn and Henning van der Braake win... the accusations against you will be deemed lies." "But if Isenhart and Konrad of Laurin win..." "Henning van der Braake will be convicted of heresy... and you and Wilbrand von Maulbronn will suffer God's punishment." "And I'll personally assume responsibility for the estates and lands of Maulbronn." "I call for a judgment of God." "Then let the judgment of God decide." "Tell me where they are... and I'll vanquish them." "Not today, my friend." "Not today." "Let your rage guide my hand." "You're not immortal." "No." "Isenhart, don't." "No, let go of me." "I don't want to kill you." "What for?" "What for?" "We're half-brothers." "We have the same father." "We both carry him inside us, Isenhart." "We both stand outside our own time." "That's an illusion." "We're stuck in this time, whether we like it or not." "No." "No, stay here." "Stay here." "Will you follow the way of your father?" "I don't have to." "I'm home." "Translation:" "D. F. Frank The Service Station"