Searchers find Conon watering the garden and drag him away
After the city of Magydus is left deserted, Naodorus and Origen lead a party that finds the gardener Conon at Carmena.
Then a man named Naodorus — also called Apelles —, a father of a city, and another man, a temple warden who was himself raving mad with the impiety of the idols, asked the governor to give them help so they could search in the places they suspected. An assistant named Origen mounted up too with the Naodorus just mentioned, along with a peace-keeping detachment and some others, and they found blessed Conon at a place called Carmena, watering the imperial garden.
When they came up to the thrice-blessed martyr, they greeted him, saying, "Greetings, Conon." Conon, Christ's servant, a pure soul and harmless in mind, said to them, "Greetings to you too, children." Origen says to him, "Old man, the governor is calling for you." Holy Conon says, "What need does the governor have of me, a stranger and above all a Christian? If he wants people like himself, let him look for them, and not for a gardener who toils day by day."
Thrown by holy Conon's answer, lawless Naodorus ordered him to be tied to his own horse and dragged along like that. The holy martyr said nothing back to the men dragging him, but gently and meekly followed the lawless men.
Greek
Καί τις ὀνόματι Ναόδωρος — ὁ καὶ Ἀπελλῆς — πατὴρ πόλεως, καὶ ἄλλος τις, νεωκόρος, ἐμμανόμενος καὶ αὐτὸς τῇ ἀσεβείᾳ τῶν εἰδώλων, ἠξίωσαν τὸν ἡγεμόνα δοθῆναι αὐτοῖς βοήθειαν, ὥστε ζητῆσαι ἐν οἷς ὑπώπτευον τόποις. Καί τις βοηθὸς ὀνόματι Ὠριγένης, ἐπιβὰς καὶ αὐτὸς σὺν τῷ προειρημένῳ Ναοδώρῳ μετὰ καὶ εἰρηναρχικῆς τάξεως καὶ ἑτέρων τινῶν, ηὗρον τὸν μακάριον Κόνωνα ἐν τόπῳ τινὶ λεγομένῳ Καρμενᾷ, βασιλικὸν ἐπαρδεύοντα κῆπον. Καὶ ἐγγίσαντες τῷ τρισμακαρίῳ μάρτυρι ἠσπάζοντο αὐτὸν λέγοντες· Χαῖρε, Κόνων. Καὶ ὁ τοῦ Χριστοῦ δοῦλος, ἡ ἀκέραιος ψυχή, ὁ ἄκακος τῇ διανοίᾳ, λέγει πρὸς αὐτούς· Χαίρετε καὶ ὑμεῖς, τέκνα. Ὁ λέγει αὐτῷ ὁ Ὠριγένης· Παπία, καλεῖ σε ὁ ἡγεμών. Ὁ ἅγιος Κόνων λέγει· Καὶ ἐμοῦ ὁ ἡγεμὼν τί χρείαν ἔχει, ξένου ἀνθρώπου καὶ μάλιστα Χριστιανοῦ; Ἐὰν ζητῇ τοὺς ὁμοίους ἑαυτοῦ, ζητείτω, καὶ οὐχὶ ἄνθρωπον γεωπόνον, μοχθοῦντα τὸ καθ᾽ ἡμέραν. Καὶ ἐπαπορηθεὶς ὁ παράνομος Ναόδωρος ἐπὶ τῇ ἀντιλογίᾳ τοῦ ἁγίου Κόνωνος, κελεύει δεθῆναι αὐτὸν τῷ ἵππῳ αὐτοῦ καὶ οὕτως ἕλκεσθαι. Καὶ ὁ ἅγιος μάρτυς οὐδὲν ἀντεῖπεν τοῖς ἐφέλκουσιν αὐτόν, ἀλλὰ πράως καὶ ἐπιεικῶς ἐπηκολούθει τοῖς παρανόμοις.