They returned immediately to Pucyura.  The chiefs wished to “slay the monks and tear them into small pieces,” and undoubtedly would have done so had it not been for the regard in which Friar Diego was held.  His skill in curing disease had so endeared him to the Indians that even the Inca himself dared not punish him for the attack on the Temple of the Sun.  Friar Marcos, however, who probably originated the plan, and had done little to gain the good will of the Indians, did not fare so well.  Calancha says he was stoned out of the province and the Inca threatened to kill him if he ever should return.  Friar Diego, particularly beloved by those Indians who came from the fever-stricken jungles in the lower valleys, was allowed to remain, and finally became a trusted friend and adviser of Titu Cusi.

One day a Spaniard named Romero, an adventurous prospector for gold, was found penetrating the mountain valleys, and succeeded in getting permission from the Inca to see what minerals were there.  He was too successful.  Both gold and silver were found among the hills and he showed enthusiastic delight at his good fortune.  The Inca, fearing that his reports might encourage others to enter Uilcapampa, put the unfortunate prospector to death, notwithstanding the protestations of Friar Diego.  Foreigners were not wanted in Uilcapampa.

In the year 1570, ten years after the accession of Titu Cusi to the Inca throne in Uiticos, a new Spanish viceroy came to Cuzco.  Unfortunately for the Incas, Don Francisco de Toledo, an indefatigable soldier and administrator, was excessively bigoted, narrow-minded, cruel, and pitiless.  Furthermore, Philip II and his Council of the Indies had decided that it would be worth while to make every effort to get the Inca out of Uiticos.  For thirty-five years the Spanish conquerors had occupied Cuzco and the major portion of Peru without having been able to secure the submission of the Indians who lived in the province of Uilcapampa.  It would be a great feather in the cap of Toledo if he could induce Titu Cusi to come and live where he would always be accessible to Spanish authority.

During the ensuing rainy season, after an unusually lively party, the Inca got soaked, had a chill, and was laid low.  In the meantime the viceroy had picked out a Cuzco soldier, one Tilano de Anaya, who was well liked by the Inca, to try to persuade Titu Cusi to come to Cuzco.  Tilano was instructed to go by way of Ollantaytambo and the Chuquichaca bridge.  Luck was against him.  Titu Cusi’s illness was very serious.  Friar Diego, his physician, had prescribed the usual remedies.  Unfortunately, all the monk’s skill was unavailing and his royal patient died.  The “remedies” were held by Titu Cusi’s mother and her counselors to be responsible.  The poor friar had to suffer the penalty of death “for having caused the death of the Inca.”