Ch.399The World Is Not So Easy to Handle

The idea of narrowing down suspects by eliminating female cardinals became meaningless due to the Holy State’s macho hiring practices.

Even more surprising, there wasn’t a single overweight cardinal.

“Fattening one’s body is evidence of gluttony and represents luxury unbefitting a priest’s duties. Moreover, the gods do not welcome such individuals, often granting them swifter deaths compared to those living healthy, wholesome religious lives. It’s something to be avoided in many ways.”

This was an irrefutable point.

While the archbishop stationed in the Empire could become as pig-like as he wanted without concern for appearances, cardinals had to set an example as leaders of their respective orders, so they apparently avoided gaining weight at all costs.

In the end, my attempt to narrow down the suspects in advance had failed.

I thought this would be easy to handle, but it’s not working out that way.

My fate truly involves nothing easy.

—-

“We’ll be entering the country as a kind of delegation. Officially, it will be to secure the continuation of the Empire’s archdiocese and to have Lord Median’s bloodline recognized by the church.”

“My bloodline? Wasn’t that already officially recognized?”

It had been several months since Leopold publicly announced my bloodline to counter Isabella’s propaganda campaign. There wasn’t a single person in the Empire who didn’t know I was a descendant of the Great’s Twelve Knights.

People were simply divided between bloodline purists who considered this extremely important and realists who dismissed descendants as merely descendants, different from the Twelve Knights themselves.

Come to think of it, I’ve made good use of my ancestor’s name.

I gained the trust of common people who revered the legend of the Twelve Knights, solidified my cooperative relationship with the Church of Elpinel—in other words, with Lacy—and secured succession rights to the Prince-Elector position without much controversy, half thanks to that bloodline.

“That’s true within the Empire. But the Holy State hasn’t officially confirmed it. The Twelve Knights were not only founding contributors to the Empire but also saints of our church, so church recognition is absolutely necessary. If you receive recognition during this visit, you might even be granted one of their holy relics.”

A holy relic of the Twelve Knights.

More specifically, an artifact left by the knight who wielded Durandal. That does sound interesting.

“Hmm… that sounds good. It might help with this matter too. If I’m officially recognized as a successor to the Twelve Knights, couldn’t I use my authority to interrogate the cardinals and their subordinates, or pressure them to recognize the archdiocese?”

“Absolutely not. An honorary position is just that—honorary. Unless the Twelve Knights themselves descended to earth again, the world isn’t so accommodating that it would accept orders from a distant successor eight hundred years later.”

It seems impossible to coast by on reputation alone.

Especially when Lacy is warning me not to underestimate the world.

“…Then, what about that Archbishop of Trier? He’s already admitted his connection to Isabella, so couldn’t we use that as justification to search for witch-related individuals within the Holy State—”

Lacy shook her head while pouring more holy water into her teacup.

…This won’t work either? I thought it was a reasonable justification.

“That… wouldn’t be particularly advantageous. It might even be a mistake. Since he belonged to the Church of Elpinel and the Empire’s diocese, they could counter-attack by claiming they should be the ones investigating the Church of Elpinel and the Empire’s diocese. Given that the Church of Elpinel’s position has weakened due to the losses at Einfeld and the Archbishop of Trier issue… we might end up handing over the initiative to them.”

So pushing the Trier matter would only disadvantage us.

“This is frustrating… I’m tempted to just raid the cardinal meeting, tie them all up, and interrogate them.”

“If you wish to follow in Feyrus’s footsteps, I won’t stop you.”

Right. Such an act would make mortal enemies of all the church orders.

Without knowing who the culprit is, we’d have to interrogate every cardinal, whether through brainwashing or torture… how would we deal with the aftermath?

Should we turn ten cardinals into invalids just to catch one villain?

Even I would want to crucify someone who did that before going after the actual villain.

Unless I have the power to face the entire Holy State… no, even with such power, it shouldn’t be done.

If one doesn’t plan to live alone in the wilderness, not everything can be resolved through force alone.

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

They all either get backstabbed, poisoned by those who hold grudges against them, or hunted down as enemies of the entire world.

That’s the nature of power.

Great power gives its owner a sense of omnipotence.

It enables things that would be impossible without it, allows one to force submission from those with different opinions, and lets one take and enjoy whatever they desire from others.

But such pleasure is ultimately a trap—a trap that leads its power-drunk owner to ruin.

Those with the restraint to use power only in appropriate situations might prosper with it, but those who overestimate their power and crush others according to their desires rarely die natural deaths.

History proves this truth.

Just look at how few of those called tyrants died peacefully.

The end of those who ran wild with their power has always been downfall and ruin.

“…I know. I was just saying.”

“I’m relieved. Since the Karma of Murder you bear has grown heavier than before, I worried you might be losing your righteous mind under its influence.”

Lacy sighed with relief.

The Karma of Murder has grown heavier… that’s certainly true.

Among the knights I killed on missions, many were simply my enemies without having committed any evil deeds. Sometimes my Karma even increased after killing bandits, which made me wonder about the judgment criteria.

Perhaps it was their first attempt at banditry, or something similar.

If it was their first attempt at banditry when they met me, then they hadn’t committed any crimes before that, making them essentially innocent.

“I don’t see any signs of that happening. Is it actually possible for someone to suddenly go mad because their Karma of Murder strengthens? To me, it seems like the cause and effect are reversed.”

In my opinion, people don’t go mad because their Karma of Murder strengthens; rather, they’re already madmen, which is why they accumulate such levels of Karma.

[Are you trying to disparage me by calling me a madwoman?]

Having grasped my meaning, Hersella sharply retorted in my mind, thinking I was criticizing her.

‘Well… honestly, I can’t say you’re not…’

Put your hand on your chest—which is as big as a child’s head—and think carefully about whether you’re mad or not.

If you have any conscience, you shouldn’t deny that you’re half-mad, right?

Of course, I couldn’t say that outright.

It would be troublesome to antagonize this woman, and at this point, I didn’t particularly want to either.

Even negative feelings can become attachment—perhaps talking with her every day had somehow created a bond.

Lately, I found myself reluctant to despise and antagonize her as I used to.

So I could only deflect with a joke.

‘Let’s be honest. Isn’t it true? The incarnation of the Celestial Wolf with ghostly powers, our Heavenly Demon who has sealed a black flame dragon in her left arm.’

[What…! N-no, that’s, that’s different! Such things aren’t the ravings of a madwoman, but rather… well, you know. Yes, expressions of confidence! Understand? Besides, you yourself go around with grandiose titles like the Crimson Empress, Knight of Radiance, Winter Assassin, or even Daffodil Princess—titles just as extravagant as mine!]

As expected, Hersella erupted.

Though I could only hear her voice in my head, if I could see her face, it would probably be tomato-red.

‘Well, I never claimed those titles myself.’

They were all given to me by others.

There’s no way I would call myself by such cringe-inducing names—

[…Ha, that’s right…! ‘God’s Punishment!’ Didn’t you proclaim yourself as God’s Punishment? I remember it clearly. You used that expression in that village of rapists!]

‘Ah…’

I was speechless.

Right, there was one time. A time when I proclaimed a title as grandiose as Heavenly Demon.

[After proclaiming yourself ‘God’s Punishment’ with your own mouth, you dare mock me? There are limits to such hypocrisy. God’s Punishment… what a ridiculous self-proclamation. Isn’t it? Calling yourself God’s Punishment when you don’t even worship any god. Whose god’s punishment were you supposed to be? I’m dying of curiosity.]

Interpreting my silence as an admission of defeat, Hersella repeatedly chanted the words “God’s Punishment” in a sing-song voice with triumphant tones.

Unable to find a rebuttal, I could only remain silent and endure her mockery.

…What was I thinking when I said something like that?

Was it because it coincided with the “Day of Wrath,” when my irritation and annoyance exceeded their limits?