Ch.59Heresy (2)

“Since you’re so adamant, I have no choice.”

“I apologize.”

As expected, Armand strongly refused to baptize the child of Chloe and me.

Of course, even though I anticipated this, it’s still unpleasant. Couldn’t he just close his eyes and do it? What harm would it do?

In this world, receiving baptism allows even an illegitimate child to be formally integrated into society. Naturally, as the child of me, a duke, they could live comfortably enough without it, but having it is still better than not.

“No need to apologize. It would be a lie to say I’m not disappointed, but on the other hand, it’s good to see you staying true to your faith.”

“…Yes, I understand.”

Armand’s face literally sours upon hearing my words, which carry the implicit message to stay out of politics.

He can’t openly defy me when I’m using my child as justification, and according to doctrine, it’s obviously nonsensical for clergy to meddle in politics, so he has no choice.

From what I know, he’s been desperately trying to gain power by using church territories and clergy within the Duchy of Burgundy. Must be quite disappointing to see it all come to nothing, huh?

“Well then, you may go… Ah, right. I heard you’ve been frequenting the underground prison lately…?”

I was about to dismiss Armand, thinking we were done, but then I detained him again, sensing time might be running short. The excuse was something I came up with on the spot, but it turned out surprisingly good.

“Ah… I’ve been trying to understand what happened to Miss Jeanne.”

“Hmm… is that so?”

Miss Jeanne, huh? I’m pretty sure until just a few days ago, he was furiously insisting she was a witch who needed to be executed.

There’s definitely something about Jeanne.

Whether it’s simply charisma that draws people in or some kind of mind-controlling magic, I’m not sure.

“To be honest, I somewhat sympathize with Miss Jeanne’s views.”

“There are indeed many who don’t deserve to be in the clergy.”

“Exactly. When I came to Dijon and inherited the Burgundy diocese, my feelings were truly dismal. While I wanted to exclude those who are unqualified, they too were sanctioned by the Holy See. I found there wasn’t much I could do.”

Is that so?

I thought all those letters he was exchanging with churches within Burgundy were meant to consolidate church power and build political influence, but was he actually trying to find his own solution all along?

He keeps sticking his head into politics which is quite irritating, but he seems to be a genuinely devout clergyman.

“Miss Jeanne was enraged by the exploitation of these unqualified individuals. While I sympathize with her cause… she went too far.”

“Yes, she crossed the line.”

Claiming to be a saint was going way too far. Well, just inciting rebellion alone would guarantee a death sentence.

I have no intention of killing her, so it’s fine, but if someone else were sitting in my place, she would have been not just beheaded but burned alive.

“The sai—”

“She shouldn’t have rebelled. By doing so, her noble intentions were reduced to a mere riot. Now that she’s a traitor, execution is all that awaits Miss Jeanne.”

“…Is that so? I suppose you’re right.”

However, Armand’s response is completely different from what I expected.

Armand is taking issue with Jeanne’s rebellion, not her claim of being a saint.

…Huh.

Jeanne, you’re more formidable than I thought.

To earn sympathy from an old bishop who’s seen it all, despite claiming to be a saint.

………

“We’re leaving tonight. Are you ready?”

“Ugh…! Y-yes…!”

“…You know, you keep dry heaving whenever you see me. Are you doing this on purpose?”

A few days later, when preparations for the extraction were complete, Chloe visits to check on Jeanne’s condition and becomes greatly offended as Jeanne continues to dry heave at the sight of her.

“I-it’s not on purpose…”

“What then, are you saying I smell?”

“Y-yes… the smell… ugh…!”

“…”

Chloe had just thrown out the question casually, but when Jeanne insists there’s a smell, she feels both dumbfounded and somewhat angry.

This girl dry heaves and complains about my smell every time she sees me, yet she’s perfectly fine around the guards who barely wash themselves?

“You… it seems like you’re picking fights because my brother is being somewhat nice to you…”

“I-it’s not a fight… there really is a smell— huh?!”

Jeanne, who was trying to explain in detail after instinctively sensing Chloe’s genuine anger, suddenly notices something that shouldn’t be in Chloe’s womb.

Seeing Jeanne sharply inhale and tremble, Chloe tilts her head in confusion and sighs slightly. What nonsense is she going to spout now?

“What is it now?”

“T-that… the Saint’s child…”

“…You.”

Chloe, who had been sighing in anticipation of more nonsense, freezes her expression upon hearing words that shouldn’t have come from Jeanne’s mouth.

How could this woman, confined to prison, know about my pregnancy? Did some loose-lipped guards tell her?

“Who told you— never mind. I’ll have to deal with the guards.”

There’s no way this woman could specifically identify the father correctly anyway. It’s probably best to replace all the guards entirely.

Once this is over—

“A-also… what are you thinking… stop it… stop killing…!”

“…?”

Hearing Jeanne’s terrified voice, Chloe instinctively realizes she’s missing something significant.

Come to think of it, this woman has previously blurted out information she shouldn’t know as if it were obvious. And her eyes when looking at me have always contained both hatred and fear.

Hmm… hmmm…

“Can you tell what I’m thinking?”

Even as she speaks, Chloe inwardly scoffs.

Reading someone’s mind? That’s impossible. Even magic can’t do that.

“I… I don’t know exactly what you’re thinking… it’s more like a feeling…”

“A feeling? Heh, don’t be abstract. Tell me specifically.”

See, typical frauds don’t give specific details and remain vague like this—

“I can’t—”

“I mean… um… how many you’ve killed, who you’ve killed, things like that?”

“…What?”

Hearing Jeanne’s words, Chloe suddenly feels her heart sink.

…She knows how many I’ve killed?

What nonsense is this? Even my brother hasn’t noticed, let alone anyone else. How dare she make such claims without evidence?

“…What are you talking about? Do you have evidence? This is absurd—”

“The smell.”

“What?”

“I can tell by the smell. The disgusting stench of corpses coming from you is unbearable.”

“…”

Chloe, who had been trying to laugh it off, falls silent upon seeing Jeanne’s solemn voice and eyes filled with disgust.

The underground prison, which had been filled with voices until just now, is now left with only the hollow sound of the wind.

………

“Hmm… Chloe is quite late.”

The sun will set soon, yet she still hasn’t returned from the underground prison.

She was just supposed to check on Jeanne’s health condition and come back.

Maybe I should send more people just in case. I’d like to go myself, but the Canaan Church’s watchers would all recognize my face as the Duke, which would be too risky.

“Who’s out there—”

“It’s me, brother.”

“Ah, finally you’re back.”

Claude was about to order a servant or attendant outside to find Chloe when he sees her returning just in time.

“You’re quite late?”

“Mmm… that girl Jeanne, she’s quite an interesting one, hehe.”

“Is that so? How was her health?”

“She was brimming with energy! I think we can proceed with the operation tonight as planned.”

If that’s Chloe’s assessment, it must be right. We should proceed as planned.

My strategy is to extract Jeanne from the underground prison, send her to the border region with the Empire to create a heretical group, and use that as justification to intervene more deeply in the Empire’s religious conflicts.

Thanks to the Pope’s request to eradicate the Empire’s heretics, the Emperor can’t say anything even if we intervene directly, but with this method, we can’t get too deeply involved, and the benefits would be limited.

If we’re going to intervene anyway, it’s better to secure as many definite gains as possible.

“Thank you. Let’s go eat dinner now.”

“Yes, brother!”

………

“You damned old man!!!!!”

“Y-Your Majesty… please calm yourself…”

“Do I look like I can calm down? Huh!?”

The Emperor’s voice, filled with rage, echoes through the splendid room.

Of course, it’s only splendid on the surface; a closer look reveals not a single proper piece of furniture or item. Most are either worn out or hastily decorated to appear presentable.

Crash—!!

Unable to contain his anger, the Emperor finally throws the glass he’s holding onto the floor.

Seeing this, the attendants, as if accustomed to it, begin cleaning up the glass fragments with cleaning tools.

“Your Majesty…”

“Why… why on earth!? Why would he say such a thing!? Huh? Does that old man truly wish to see an empire that has lasted over a thousand years fall during my reign? I could have done it myself! No matter how difficult, I should have done it with my own power!”

The attendants hear the Emperor’s words but offer no response, only looking around cautiously as if apologetic.

The Emperor’s words were not demanding an answer but were closer to a cry of despair uttered in lamentation.

“Haaa… Kuk, Chancellor.”

After raging for quite some time, the Emperor finally seems to resign himself, dropping his head and asking his nearby chancellor about the current situation.

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“How many rulers have agreed to the old man’s words so far?”

The old man’s words refer to the Pope’s request to various rulers to eliminate the heretics in the Empire.

“The Duchy of Burgundy declined, citing urgent internal matters… but intelligence suggests that the Kingdom of Caroling beyond it, the Kingdom of Polabia to the east, and the Duchy of Lombardy to the south have all responded affirmatively.”

In truth, it hardly qualifies as intelligence.

Except for the Duke of Burgundy, all the rulers who heard those words reportedly nodded in agreement before their ministers, deeply moved by the noble mission of eliminating heretics.

When rumors spread without needing backdoor channels, can it really be called intelligence?

“Hahaha… enemies on all sides, and enemies within as well.”

Confirming the intervention of various countries, the Emperor becomes even more despondent.

The Emperor, who might have enjoyed great glory centuries ago, is now merely struggling desperately to maintain the Empire.