Ch.726Am I Worthy of Becoming King?

I wasn’t sure if he believed in my innocence or simply thought it pointless to scold me for something that had already happened. Either way, Leopold didn’t press me further about my responsibility for the public stigmata exposure show.

He probably realized that assigning blame would be futile, and it made more sense to discuss the problems that would arise because of it.

“Since you revealed your stigmata with the entire empire watching, the Church will likely bestow priesthood upon you. In other words, you’ll become the representative of the Church of Astraea.”

“…I figured as much.”

Church representative—if I could decline, I would do so with every ounce of strength I possessed.

Not only was such a position ill-suited for someone like me who lacked even a speck of faith, but just imagining the responsibilities that would come with it gave me a headache.

“Of course that’s what will happen. However, the problem is… your status is far too complicated to bestow priesthood without complications.”

If it’s too complicated to bestow priesthood, couldn’t they just not do it?

Ah, right. Of course not. I know better. How could those fanatics possibly resist someone who manifested a stigmata for the first time in eight hundred years?

“You’re an outsider who never belonged to the Church in the first place, a mixed-blood from the East rather than the West… and you’re also connected to the Church of Elpinel as a descendant of the Great’s Twelve Knights.”

“I gave up my Paladin position with the Church of Elpinel.”

I’d abandoned it when I declared the major city of Arad in the Holy State as my territory.

…Come to think of it, it’s been quite a while since I heard any news. I wonder how the city’s residents are doing. Does Lacy know? I should ask her later.

“It’s fortunate you relinquished it. If you had still maintained that position, it wouldn’t have been strange if the Church of Elpinel and the Church of Astraea had come to armed conflict.”

Is it that serious? Well, I suppose from the Church of Elpinel’s perspective, if I had kept my Paladin position, they would have lost their most important military asset right before their eyes.

Even if it was supposedly a goddess’s will, it wasn’t their goddess, so they would naturally harbor resentment.

“And that’s not all. You’re also my subject as the head of both House Median and House Landenburg. Holding both an imperial title and a church position simultaneously would be unprecedented throughout the history of both the Empire and the Holy State.”

“Unprecedented? Then what about the Prince-Electors of the Church?”

If dual positions are impossible, I recall there were two archbishops who held the Prince-Elector position until last year. Though Lacy burned one of them.

“You didn’t know? Well, I suppose you wouldn’t. The Prince-Elector position isn’t a secular title. It’s closer to a special privilege created to appease those who had amassed enough power to threaten imperial authority. You should know this.”

Leopold took a sip from the wine glass on his desk to wet his throat, then proceeded to explain the history and meaning of the Prince-Elector position.

—-

The Prince-Elector position was originally the result of a compromise between the Emperor and powerful ministers.

As the saying goes, “a tiger father doesn’t beget a dog son,” but not all descendants of capable individuals are equally capable.

The Empire’s history spans nearly 800 years, and during that time, there must have been incompetent individuals who ascended to the throne solely based on bloodline.

While incompetent emperors floundered, their subjects gradually built up their power, eventually reaching the point where they openly ignored imperial orders or even aspired to become Emperor themselves.

The Prince-Elector position was born during such a time.

It was a period when imperial authority was at its lowest. Powerful nobles coveted the imperial throne while keeping each other in check—a chaotic time when it wouldn’t have been surprising if the Empire had been torn to pieces.

“During that time, three houses united and negotiated with the Emperor of the day. They claimed they had no intention of coveting the throne and would prevent other houses from threatening imperial authority… in exchange for proper compensation for their loyalty.”

Those houses were Wien, Faelrun, and Landenburg.

They were descendants who had grown into the Empire’s most powerful figures, going against the Great’s Twelve Knights’ dying wish to not seek power. The Emperor at that time accepted their proposal and granted them the authority to intervene in imperial succession.

However, he attached the condition that they must not reveal their identity as descendants of the Great’s Twelve Knights.

That was the origin of the Prince-Elector position.

“Then what about the Church Prince-Electors?”

“That position was added later. Were incompetent emperors limited to just one? An emperor who was overwhelmed not by powerful ministers but by the Church’s influence negotiated with them following the old precedent.”

So the Emperor’s position was basically that of a pushover. Not only did they submit to their subjects, but to the Church as well.

“The Church at that time was so powerful that it allowed those who had taken holy orders to involve themselves in secular matters, so the Emperor had no choice.”

I thought Leopold was the only one who had been saddled with such burdens, but it seems there were others who had even more difficult reigns.

Of course, unlike Leopold, who struggles despite his impeccable abilities and character because the world has gone mad, most of those emperors brought their troubles upon themselves through their own incompetence.

Anyway, according to Leopold’s additional explanation, there was criticism even back then that it was unbecoming of clergy.

“That’s why the Church at that time suppressed opposition with sophistry. They claimed that the Prince-Elector position wasn’t about becoming a powerful minister under the Emperor, but about gaining voting rights to select the most capable and suitable person for the sake of humanity’s well-being.”

“Isn’t that sophistry?”

“Yes, it is.”

Leopold nodded.

“But for them, that sophistry was enough. Backed by the influence of the Churches of Elpinel and Saulite, the Prince-Elector position came to signify a privileged status separate from the Emperor’s governing authority.”

I understood what he meant.

“So to summarize… one can hold both the Prince-Elector position and the Holy Maiden position simultaneously, but cannot hold both a baronial title and the Holy Maiden position. Is that right?”

“That’s correct. A Holy Maiden must obey only the celestial gods, so becoming the Emperor’s subject and obeying his orders would be considered blasphemous.”

…Isn’t that a good thing?

In short, as long as I insist on maintaining my baronial title, I won’t have to bear the burden of becoming a Holy Maiden.

“Then I’ll just say I can’t become a Holy Maiden—”

“That’s how it has been until now.”

Leopold cut me off firmly and shook his head.

With a face that said he understood what I was thinking but that it was futile to even try, so I should give up early.

“Would the Church of Astraea willingly give up the first Maiden of Order born in eight hundred years? Especially one with military might worthy of being considered among the strongest of the era, combined with towering achievements and fame.”

…Right. Of course they wouldn’t. Even judging as objectively as possible, I was currently someone who should be recruited by any means necessary.

Moreover, judging by the behavior of the Goddess Astraea, who caused such a major incident with just one prayer, I couldn’t even begin to imagine what she might attempt if I persistently refused the Holy Maiden position.

Perhaps she would personally deliver a revelation in front of everyone in the empire. Just like when she left me a direct message at the grand cathedral in Arad.

You might think she wouldn’t go that far, but if such a thing actually happened…

It wouldn’t just be a matter of becoming a Holy Maiden; it could turn into a catastrophe where I end up at the very top of all the churches.

As far as I know, there hasn’t been a single instance of gods directly speaking or sending messages since Carlos the Great.

If that happened, I wouldn’t just be an ordinary Holy Maiden; I would become a legendary Holy Maiden who manifested divine miracles on this earth.

‘Praise be to you, Haschal, the earthly representative of Goddess Astraea, the most venerable Grand Holy Maiden, the embodiment of divine oracle!’

‘Oh, Lady Haschal. Oh…!’

‘Please bestow your blessing upon us…!’

For a moment, a vision flashed through my mind of millions of people kneeling before me in neat holy maiden attire, offering praise and prayer.

…Ugh.

It was such a creepy imagination that my one remaining arm was covered in goosebumps.

—-

“The Church of Astraea will not give you up. No matter what happens, no matter what reasons are given. As they have done before, they will suppress all opposition with the justification of divine will and force the position of Holy Maiden upon you.”

Watching me swallow dry saliva at the creepy imagination, Leopold continued in a low tone.

“Rather than giving you up, they would sooner break the unwritten rule that holy orders and titles cannot be held simultaneously… or choose to make you someone who doesn’t need to be loyal to me.”

“Someone who doesn’t need to be loyal?”

I didn’t understand what he meant.

Leopold sighed and explained.

“The Median territory, the Landenburg territory, the small territory granted by Faelrun… Arad in the Holy State. And the territory you’ll be granted for your contributions in this war. Do you realize that all these lands combined exceed even the territory of the Duchy of Faelrun?”

…Is this an explanation? It seemed quite irrelevant as an answer to my question.

“…I didn’t know it was that much.”

I didn’t even know until now that they were planning to add more territory as a reward for this war.

“The Church of Astraea would know. And they would think, ‘If she has territory exceeding that of the Duchy of Faelrun, isn’t that already at the level of a small kingdom?’ Do you understand what I mean?”

Ah.

I understood.

I finally understood what Leopold was trying to say.

“They will make you a queen. Not a subject of the Emperor, but a queen of a proud independent kingdom. Now, do you realize what you’ve done?”

…I had nothing to say.