Chapter 399

The idea of removing female cardinals from the suspect list and investigating only the rest became meaningless due to the Holy Kingdom’s macho hiring practices.

Not to mention, there wasn’t even a single overweight cardinal.

“Fattening the flesh is a sign of gluttony and a luxury unbefitting a priest. Moreover, the gods do not welcome such individuals, and they often meet an early death compared to those who lead a healthy and devout life. It’s something to be avoided in many ways.”

It was an undeniable truth.

While the Archbishop in the Empire could afford to become a pig without worrying about others’ opinions, cardinals, as leaders of their respective orders, had to set an example and thus avoided gaining weight as much as possible.

In the end, narrowing down the suspect list beforehand failed.

I thought it would be easy, but it just didn’t work out that way.

My fate really has no easy tasks, huh?

—

“We will enter the country as a sort of diplomatic envoy. Officially, it will be to gain recognition from the Church Order for the survival of the Empire’s Archdiocese and Sir Median’s lineage.”

“My lineage? Wasn’t that already acknowledged?”

It had been months since Leopold publicly announced my lineage in response to Isabella’s propaganda. In the current Empire, there was no one who didn’t know I was a descendant of the Twelve Knights. It was just a matter of whether they were lineage-obsessed traditionalists or realists who dismissed it as mere ancestry.

Thinking about it, I’ve made good use of my ancestors’ name.

I gained the trust of the people who revered the legend of the Twelve Knights, solidified my cooperative relationship with the Elpinel Church Order—or rather, Lacey—and even inherited the position of Elector Count with little resistance, half of which was thanks to that lineage.

“In the Empire, yes. But the Holy Kingdom hasn’t officially acknowledged it. Since the Twelve Knights are not only founding heroes of the Empire but also saints of our Church Order, gaining their recognition is a must. If you’re acknowledged this time, you might even receive one of their holy relics.”

A relic of the Twelve Knights, huh?

Specifically, it would be an artifact left by the knight who wielded Durandal. That’s something to look forward to.

“Hmm… that sounds good. It might help with this situation too. If I’m officially recognized as a descendant of the Twelve Knights, I could use my authority to interrogate cardinals and their subordinates, pressure them to recognize the Archdiocese, and so on, right?”

“Not a chance. Honorary titles are just that—honorary. Unless the Twelve Knights themselves descend from the heavens, a distant descendant eight hundred years later won’t have that kind of influence.”

So, I can’t just coast on my reputation, huh?

Lacey even warned me not to underestimate the world.

“…Then what about Archbishop Trier? He’s admitted to being involved with Isabella, so if we use that as a pretext to search for witches within the Holy Kingdom—”

Lacey shook her head as she poured holy water into her teacup.

…That’s a no too? I thought it was a decent pretext.

“Hmm… it’s not a beneficial move. It might even backfire. Since he’s a member of the Elpinel Church Order and a figure from the Empire’s diocese, they might counter by saying they should be investigating the Elpinel Church Order and the Empire’s diocese instead. Given the weakened position of the Elpinel Church Order due to losses in Ainfeld and the Archbishop Trier issue… we might end up handing them the initiative.”

So, pushing the Trier issue would only put us at a disadvantage.

“This is a headache… I feel like just storming the cardinal meeting, tying them all up, and interrogating them.”

“If you want to follow in Peirus’ footsteps, I won’t stop you.”

Right. Doing something like that would make us eternal enemies with every Church Order.

If we don’t know who the culprit is, we’d have to brainwash or torture every cardinal… and how would we clean up that mess?

Cripple ten cardinals just to catch one villain?

Even I’d want to string that guy up on a cross before dealing with the villain.

Unless I have the power to take on the entire Holy Kingdom… no, even if I did, it’s not something I should do.

Unless I plan to live alone in the wild, I can’t solve everything with brute force.

I’ve never seen anyone who thinks like that live long.

They either get betrayed, poisoned by those they’ve wronged, or hunted down as enemies of the world.

That’s just how power works.

Strong power gives its wielder a sense of omnipotence.

It allows them to do things they couldn’t otherwise, force those who disagree to submit, and take whatever they desire from others.

But that pleasure is ultimately a trap—a trap that leads the wielder to ruin.

Those who use power with restraint in appropriate situations can prosper, but those who overestimate their power and crush others according to their desires never live to see old age.

History proves this truth.

Few of those called tyrants died peacefully.

Those who couldn’t distinguish heaven and earth and ran amok with their power always met with downfall and ruin.

“…I get it. I was just talking.”

“That’s a relief. I was worried that the increased weight of your Life Force might be causing you to lose your proper mindset.”

Lacey let out a sigh of relief.

The Life Force has become heavier… that’s true.

Among the knights I’ve killed on missions, many were just my enemies without having committed any evil deeds. There were even times when my Life Force increased after killing bandits, so I’m not sure how the judgment criteria work.

Maybe it was their first time banditry, or something like that.

If they met me on their first bandit raid, they probably hadn’t committed any crimes before, so they were essentially innocent.

“It’s not like I’m showing any signs of that. Is it even possible for someone to go mad just because their Life Force has grown stronger? It seems more like the cause and effect are reversed.”

In my opinion, it’s not that a stronger Life Force makes you mad, but that mad people accumulate that level of Life Force in the first place.

[ Are you implying that I’m mad? ]

Hersela, having caught the implication, sharply retorted in my mind.

‘Well… honestly, I can’t say no……?’

Put your hand on your chest, which is the size of a child’s head, and think carefully. Are you mad or not?

If you have a conscience, you can’t deny that you’re half-mad, right?

Of course, I couldn’t say that outright.

It’s troublesome to make an enemy of her, and I don’t particularly want to at this point.

Maybe it’s because we’ve been bickering so much that I’ve grown somewhat attached to her.

Lately, I don’t feel like despising or antagonizing her as much as I used to.

So, I had to brush it off as a joke.

‘Honestly, isn’t that true? The embodiment of the heavenly wolf, with the power of a ghost, sealing a black flame dragon in your left arm, our Heavenly Demon.’

[ Wha…! No, that’s different! That’s not the behavior of a madman… it’s, well, an expression of confidence! Understand? Besides, you’re the Red Empress, the Knight of Radiance, the Winter Slayer, the Daffodil Goddess—you have just as grandiose titles as I do! ]

As expected, Hersela exploded.

Even though I could only hear her voice in my head, I imagine her face was as red as a tomato.

‘Well, I didn’t give myself those titles.’

They were all given by others.

I wouldn’t go around calling myself something so cringe-worthy—

[ …Ah, right! There was that! ‘Divine Punishment!’ You called yourself Divine Punishment! I remember clearly. You said it in that village of rapists! ]

‘Ah…….’

I was speechless.

Yeah, that did happen once. I even gave myself a title on par with the Heavenly Demon.

[ You, who once called yourself Divine Punishment and ran amok, dare to mock me? The audacity! Divine Punishment, Divine Punishment… what a laughable self-proclaimed title. Isn’t it? Claiming to be Divine Punishment without even serving a god. Whose Divine Punishment are you, anyway? I’m dying to know. ]

Taking my silence as an admission of defeat, Hersela triumphantly repeated ‘Divine Punishment’ like a chant.

I had no retort and could only listen to her mockery in silence.

…What was I even thinking back then?

Was it because it coincided with the ‘Day of Wrath,’ and I was overwhelmed with anger and irritation?

—

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