Ch.205Chapter 205 – I Met the Great Goddess

My body has recovered. Just as I was preparing to return to the academy, a magic communication came in.

Wondering who it could be, I accepted the call, and the Prime Minister’s face appeared through the crystal ball.

[It’s been a while. So, how are you feeling?]

“It’s been a long time, Prime Minister.”

The Prime Minister’s face looked a bit older than when I last saw him.

It seems he’s been busier than usual.

“You look quite worn out, sir.”

[Well, that can’t be helped. The entire country has begun operations to root out the demon cult.]

Ah, well.

Come to think of it, the Prime Minister’s hardship was partly because of me.

[Hahaha. Don’t feel burdened. This was work we needed to do eventually. It’s just that the catalyst happened to be your death.]

The Prime Minister laughed heartily, seemingly trying to ensure I didn’t feel responsible.

“That’s a relief, but…”

[Oh, by the way, someone from the Imperial Palace will be coming soon.]

“From the Imperial Palace?”

[It’s about the reinstatement of your family name.]

From his mention of family reinstatement, I understood what the Prime Minister was getting at.

For nobility, when all members of a family disappear, the family is considered extinct.

However, if even one family member is discovered to be alive, they are given the opportunity to rebuild the family. The person who rebuilds the family must go to the Imperial Palace and pledge loyalty to the Empire before the Emperor, formally reinstating the family name.

“I completely forgot about that.”

[Heh heh heh. Understandable. When a person dies and comes back to life, how could they be expected to remember every little detail? Don’t worry about it. There’s no time limit for family reinstatement anyway.]

It was fortunate to hear there was no time limit for reinstatement.

After all, it would be quite unfair to lose my noble status after everything I went through to obtain it.

[Anyway, someone will come soon, so I’ll see you at the Imperial Palace before long. Both the Emperor and I have many questions about what happened to you.]

“Understood, Prime Minister. I’ll see you at the Imperial Palace soon.”

With that farewell, the magic communication with the Prime Minister ended.

For some reason, I anticipated this would lead to a very tiring day.

◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈

As the Prime Minister said, someone from the Imperial Palace delivered a letter to me.

[Count Pathos Severio. Report to the palace immediately upon receiving this letter.]

The content was simple.

Enter the Imperial Palace as soon as I read the letter.

However, there was this postscript:

[P.S. – Enter through the palace’s secret teleport station.]

Secret teleport station at the Imperial Palace?

Does such a thing really exist inside the palace?

“Regina, sister.”

On a hunch, I called for Regina.

Today wasn’t her workday, so she was probably in her room.

“Yes?”

When I called her, she responded with a questioning look on her face.

“Do you know anything about a secret teleport station at the Imperial Palace?”

“…Where did you hear about that?”

When I asked about the secret teleport station, Regina’s expression turned serious.

…What’s going on?

“It was in a letter from His Majesty. He’s ordering me to come to the palace immediately, through the secret teleport station.”

“Oh… I thought for a moment that information had been leaked somewhere.”

Hearing my answer, Regina let out what seemed to be a sigh of relief.

“Do you know something about the Imperial Palace’s secret teleport station?”

“Of course. Maintaining it is one of the main duties of the Grand Mages.”

“…Is that so?”

Come to think of it, Regina is a Grand Mage too.

I keep forgetting that.

“There’s a round building a little distance from the main palace that looks like a warehouse. While disguised as a storage facility, it’s actually a secret teleport station connecting the palace to the entire empire.”

“Is there a way to get there from here?”

“It’s not difficult. You can use Glesius Academy’s secret teleport station.”

…? There’s a secret teleport station here too?

“That’s the first I’ve heard of it.”

“Of course. It’s a location that has been passed down only to academy principals for generations. The reason why academy principals have always been mages is precisely to manage this.”

I inadvertently learned a secret about the academy principal position that I never would have imagined.

“Can you guide me to the teleport station right now?”

“Alright. But have lunch before you go.”

“I will.”

Hmm. Regina’s lunch definitely takes priority over going to the Imperial Palace.

◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈◇◈

Surprisingly, Glesius Academy’s secret teleport station was the Tower of Documents itself.

After lunch, I dressed properly, and Regina explained about the teleport station before sending me directly to the Imperial Palace’s secret teleport station.

When the teleport station activated, I instantly arrived at the secret teleport station located in the Imperial Palace.

“Count Severio. I am the Captain of the Imperial Knights. I’ve been ordered by His Majesty to escort you. This way.”

As soon as I exited the teleport station, the Captain of the Imperial Knights was waiting to guide me.

Following his lead, we soon arrived at the Emperor’s office.

“Your Majesty, I have brought Count Severio.”

“Let him in.”

As the heavy, dignified voice sounded from inside the office, the doors slowly began to open.

I entered through the opening doors and soon found myself before the Emperor.

“Ah! Welcome, Count Severio. You look much healthier than before.”

“It’s all thanks to Your Majesty’s grace.”

“Hohoho! This fellow has improved! Your flattery skills have grown in our time apart. Please, sit down. I have many questions for you.”

Following the Emperor’s invitation, I sat on a sofa prepared at one side of the office.

As I took my seat, the Emperor sat on the sofa opposite mine.

Naturally, I was positioned facing His Majesty.

“So, how did it feel to die and come back to life?”

“Who would feel good about losing their life? However, when I came back, I felt fortunate. After all, I still have things to accomplish in this world.”

“Hehehe. So, who did you meet when you died? Your family? Or perhaps your ancestors?”

The Emperor seemed curious about whom I had met in the afterlife.

If he’s that curious… it would be my duty as his subject to answer.

“I met the Great Goddess Epitrina.”

“Oh, is that so? You met the Great Goddess… Wait, what?”

The Emperor seemed disappointed by my answer at first, but after processing what I’d said, he was startled.

“Is, is that true? Did you really meet the Great Goddess?”

“Yes. It’s the absolute truth without any falsehood.”

“Well, well… In all my years, I’ve never met anyone who claimed to have met the Great Goddess…”

The Emperor seemed extremely surprised that I had met Epitrina.

“Why are you so surprised?”

“For a mere mortal to meet the Great Goddess is astonishing in itself. Even the High Archbishop only hears her voice; no one has ever met her directly.”

So, I’m the first person in the world to have directly met the Great Goddess.

“Who else knows about this?”

“For now, only I know…”

“Hmm. That’s fortunate.”

“What do you mean?”

The Emperor kept saying things I couldn’t understand.

“Do you know the selection criteria for saints and apostles of each religious order?”

“Not really…”

I’m not a theology student, how would I know that?

“I thought as much. Listen carefully. There are several criteria for selecting saints and apostles, but there’s one that’s absolutely essential.”

“What is it?”

“One must either face a divine messenger or hear the voice of a god. Even ability users sometimes become candidates for sainthood because of this condition. However, the most important position is that of an apostle. An apostle is someone sent directly by a god to carry out their will on earth. Naturally, to become an apostle…”

I could guess what the Emperor was about to say.

“One must directly face a god. Only then can one become an apostle. While anyone with strong divine power can become a pope, apostles are different. The position of apostle can only be attained by someone who has directly faced a god.”

“What does that have to do with me?”

“Everything. Quite significantly. The moment you become an apostle, you cease to be a noble. This is because all apostles belong to the god who appointed them, and from that moment on, they are no longer bound by social status.”

I was shocked by this revelation.

It meant that the moment I became an apostle, I would no longer be a noble.

“The fortunate thing is that only you and I know about your meeting with the Great Goddess. Personally, I don’t want to lose you… so I hope you’ll keep this fact hidden.”

“I feel the same way.”

The Emperor and I exchanged glances and nodded in agreement.