Ch.9292. Promise

A New Hero.

Honestly, I had seen signs of this coming. It was thanks to the bishop of the Imperial Diocese who mentioned it before melting down the Hero’s bronze statue.

I still remember the mysterious expression the bishop showed me then. It was like he was confessing something shameful.

At the time, I just nodded vaguely and left the Imperial Capital. I didn’t make any particular comment about it.

‘Come to think of it, it wasn’t that long ago.’

But I couldn’t remember what emotions I had felt when I first heard the bishop’s words. Only that I had shrugged it off.

“Lord Wellesley.”

“…”

“Count Wellesley?”

The old priest’s eyes were staring at me intently.

“Ah, yes. Did you come to share this information with the Imperial Family?”

“That’s right. I couldn’t deliver news of this magnitude through communication magic. Following precedent, we should arrange a meeting between His Holiness the Pope and His Majesty the Emperor… Though that would be difficult given the current situation.”

He wanted to maintain at least a minimum level of formality.

In reality, the summoning of a Hero was an event that could shake not just two countries, but the entire continent.

Even after the mess Gwon Heejin made, the symbolic significance of the Hero hadn’t disappeared. Only our feelings about it had changed.

“His Majesty will be troubled. There are two major issues to deal with now.”

“Indeed.”

The fall of the allied nations, and the imminent summoning of a new Hero.

Even Enrique, whom I was escorting as a prisoner, seemed to fade into insignificance. The public execution of someone who sold out his Master—even a Master who had been his close friend—to the Tetrad would normally be quite significant on its own.

Of course, this diminished presence wouldn’t save Enrique’s life. The execution grounds had already been prepared for him in the Imperial Capital.

‘Speaking of which, a Hero, huh.’

I still remembered the Imperial Capital right before Gwon Heejin was summoned.

It was actually a good memory. There was a festive atmosphere everywhere.

Plays and operas featuring the exploits of the previous Hero, banquets with surviving members of the previous Hero’s party as honored guests.

And festivals centered around the commercial district.

Back then, the Imperial Family generously provided gold to sponsor the festivities. Collateral imperial family members, dukes, and marquises all competed to contribute gold or goods.

‘It was fun. Quite fun.’

It’s hard to imagine now, but around that time, I even competed with Selin and Alan for the honor of escorting the imperial family members heading to the Papal State to welcome the Hero. I wanted to see the Hero’s summoning with my own eyes.

For the people of the Empire, the Hero was a figure of special significance.

“I see you have complicated feelings about this too.”

“Fundamentally, I consider it good news. Unless the Goddess is trying to get us all killed, she won’t send someone like Gwon Heejin again. Regardless of the Hero’s personal character, they’re valuable as a military asset.”

“…Yes. At least they won’t be like Gwon Heejin. Even if they were that evil, we wouldn’t turn a blind eye to their misconduct.”

The old priest made a disgusted face and began muttering to himself as if making a personal vow.

We must thoroughly supervise the Hero to keep them from going astray, we shouldn’t give the Hero too much discretion, if we explain in detail what Gwon Heejin did, the new Hero might learn something from it. It was almost like a mantra.

‘Was he always this talkative?’

I could understand his concern. Especially considering what the Papal State was going through because of the disaster Gwon Heejin caused.

As I was thinking about offering some words of encouragement, a question suddenly occurred to me.

“By the way, Your Eminence. Did you really wait for me at the signpost just to tell me this? I don’t see why you would need to do that.”

“Hmm?”

“You didn’t need to wait for me in the cold. We could have just met in the Imperial Capital.”

The old priest hesitated for a moment. Then he finally spoke again.

“Ah, how absent-minded of me. Actually, I waited because there was something I wanted to promise you before the audience.”

“…?”

“You won’t have to become the knight in the Hero’s party. If there’s any sign of that happening, we’ll prevent it.”

“I’m not sure I understand.”

“After thinking about how to repay you for your achievements, this seemed like the best option. I also got the agreement of the cardinals on my way to the Imperial Capital.”

I stared at the old priest who had offered me this unsolicited kindness.

At first glance, it didn’t seem much like a reward. After all, most knights across the continent, especially young ones, generally aspire to join the Hero’s party.

But for me, it was a much more appealing offer than receiving a chest of gold coins.

There was a real possibility that I might be appointed to the Hero’s party if I did nothing.

The new Hero, whoever they might be, would likely operate under close supervision from both the Empire and the Papal State.

And I was the most likely candidate to be that supervisor. For some reason, whenever something troublesome happens, it tends to become my responsibility. If it happened, I would probably manage the Hero in the form of a companion.

Just imagining it was horrifying.

‘It would be several times harder than what I’m doing now.’

Though my current duties are difficult, I’ve gained a lot in return for my efforts.

Becoming a count with my own territory at this age, becoming an influential figure in the Imperial Capital—these were special privileges. And the 75 billion I spent on futures transactions was still mine. Once the harvest season began, I could gradually receive the physical goods and convert them to cash.

But if I were assigned to closely manage the Hero, it would be harder to work with discretion. I couldn’t treat the Hero like a subordinate.

The Papal State said they would prevent me from taking on that thankless role. It might seem like a small thing, but it was an attractive offer.

“If the new Hero shows signs of going out of control, we might ask for your advice…”

“But I won’t need to be their babysitter directly.”

“That’s right.”

“I won’t refuse. …That said, ambitious knights would be quite disappointed if they heard this conversation.”

The old priest thought for a moment before saying, “I don’t think that’s necessarily true.”

One might question how a man who had been a priest his whole life could know the minds of knights, but in reality, being a knight in the Hero’s party was no longer as attractive a position as it once was. Everyone had witnessed what happened to Millia Neize and her family.

‘I’m avoiding a Hero who hasn’t even been summoned yet.’

In any case, the Hero’s summoning was newsworthy. The knights following behind me were already murmuring about it.

Even Enrique, confined in his cage as he was being transported, was looking around curiously. He tried to ask something of the coachman driving the prisoner transport, only to be casually dismissed.

The summoning of a new Hero was interesting enough to make even a man awaiting execution perk up.

“By the way, when exactly is the Hero coming?”

“I can’t say for certain. Normally, the Saintess would receive a revelation and let us know. Based on precedent, it will definitely be within a fortnight. Heh heh.”

The old priest, who had naturally joined our procession, laughed awkwardly.

Judging by the expressions of the old priest Edin and the cardinals, they hadn’t come just to do me a favor.

With the Pope’s position vacant, these people were the main force and leadership of the Papal State. They clearly had other intentions, and honestly, I could guess what they were.

Still, I decided not to point it out. We needed to cooperate in the future, so there was no need to be unnecessarily harsh.

“Shall we go, Your Eminence?”

I headed toward the Imperial Capital with them, riding side by side.

***

Old Priest Edin watched Erick’s reaction and gave a bitter smile.

‘He seems to have figured it out.’

Indeed, it must have seemed strange to see high-ranking clergy standing idly at a signpost.

In reality, they hadn’t come all this way just to see Erick Wellesley’s face.

They had come to resolve a question.

The question of whether, just maybe, Erick had been chosen by the Goddess.

More precisely, they thought he might have become the Holy Son.

The concept of a Holy Son had always existed in the Papal State. Occasionally, clergy with great holy virtue would be posthumously elevated to Holy Son status.

But the Holy Son they were thinking of wasn’t simply a virtuous saint, but someone who could replace the Saintess.

– “There has never been a Holy Son before. But it’s also unprecedented for the Goddess to withdraw her blessing from the Hero, or for signs of a Hero’s summoning to appear without a Saintess. It wouldn’t be strange if Lord Wellesley, who is returning to the Imperial Capital, had been given the role of Holy Son.”

– “Surely the Goddess wouldn’t go that far…?”

– “Don’t trust the Goddess. Anything could happen. Young priests in the Imperial and Northern dioceses have seriously suggested that Lord Wellesley might become a temporary wielder of the holy sword.”

This was the question raised by Bishop Rowan, who was also a member of the Hero pursuit team, right after the signs appeared.

If the Goddess was watching us, she would certainly be aware of Erick Wellesley’s existence. It might be unfortunate for Wellesley, but she might have given him some role to play.

It was a plausible question in the current situation. It was also why the Papal State leadership had contacted Erick before reaching the Imperial Capital.

However, they couldn’t sense any holy power from Erick when they met him. It meant the Goddess hadn’t given him a grave responsibility.

Given the Goddess’s past actions, they couldn’t let their guard down completely, but that was the situation for now.

‘It’s for the best anyway.’

Having no one who could reach the Goddess was concerning, but it was better than placing too much responsibility on one person.

He sincerely intended to keep his promise to lighten Erick’s burden. For the impoverished Papal State, this was the only way they could look after a wealthy man like Erick.

“…By the way, you seem to bring back a lot of gold whenever you go on campaign.”

“This time I won’t keep it for myself but will have it incorporated into the imperial budget. Still, I’ll request that some portion be allocated to the Papal State with proper justification. We’ll desperately need the help of the clergy in managing the allied nations in the future.”

It wouldn’t be right to turn his back on someone who said such considerate things.