Holy Kingdom – Appointment Ceremony (3)

A man’s voice echoed throughout the square.

“Everyone present here has the right to hear the truth and judge.”

The tip of his staff pointed precisely at the Pope standing on the podium.

“I hereby accuse the current Pope, Praxian.”

The shocking declaration of accusing the Pope. With those final words, the man’s speech concluded.

“[…]”

Only silence lingered in the central plaza.

The expressions of all those looking up at the sky varied greatly.

But the thoughts running through their minds were largely similar.

[Am I… dreaming right now?]

This was none other than the day of the Hero Appointment Ceremony. In this gathering of numerous diplomatic envoys and crowds, an unannounced accusation had been made right at the center.

As everyone froze in absurdity, the first to step forward was the Pope himself.

Clap. Clap. Clap.

The Pope clapped three times to draw attention.

“My apologies. It’s regrettable that such an unsightly incident occurred on this meaningful day. On behalf of the Holy Kingdom, I offer my sincere apologies.”

Without hesitation, the Pope bowed his head to the crowd. Then he immediately shouted toward the sky:

“Our uninvited guest has prepared an interesting event. But… I suspect this might be someone I know well.”

-Whoosh!

A spear shot skyward.

Seeing this, the man immediately tore a scroll from his pocket.

A blue barrier formed around him, but it shattered instantly upon contact with the spear.

“Hmm.”

The man clicked his tongue and twisted his body to evade the spear. However, he couldn’t prevent his hat from falling backward.

Blazing red hair was revealed under the sunlight.

“Just as I suspected.”

The Pope smiled contentedly, then spread his arms wide to introduce the man in the sky.

“Allow me to introduce him. This is the Magic Tower’s young genius, Ian. The direct disciple of the current Tower Lord and a strong candidate to become the next Tower Lord. He’s also currently wanted by the Holy Kingdom.”

The square began buzzing again.

“That man is the next Tower Lord?”

“If he caused a disturbance at the Grand Temple and helped a criminal escape…”

“But what does he mean by accusing His Holiness?”

“Mr. Ian, do you realize what you’re doing right now?”

The Pope raised both hands, gesturing toward the crowd.

“This place is filled with numerous citizens of the Holy Kingdom. And distinguished guests from all over the world.”

The Pope had regained his composure after the initial shock.

How desperate must he have been to attempt such a reckless act? Now that Ian had crossed the line, the current situation actually favored the Pope.

“Mr. Ian has turned everyone here into his enemy. Or did you come here to surrender?”

Ian responded calmly to the Pope’s attack.

“First, I apologize for my rudeness to everyone present.”

His demeanor was restrained, unlike his usual arrogance.

“But there is a truth everyone must know. That’s why I chose this moment.”

“The truth. Very well. But you should have made your claims through legal procedures. As Pope, I cannot tolerate this behavior.”

The Pope signaled toward Cardinal Daniel who was waiting nearby.

Noticing this, Daniel immediately issued orders.

“Everyone, prepare! We will now arrest the felon who helped a demon collaborator escape. You there – request additional troops from the Grand Temple.”

“Yes, sir!”

The paladins gathered near the podium raised hastily prepared bows, while priests began gathering holy power in their hands.

Ian floating in the air didn’t remain idle either. He raised his hand as if preparing something.

At this moment of intense tension-

“Wait.”

A clear, serene female voice resonated across the plaza.

And everyone froze in place.

It was as if time had stopped.

“…This is unexpected.”

“Ugh…”

Even Daniel and Ian stiffened under the oppressive pressure weighing down their entire bodies.

“There’s no need for violent solutions.”

From the diplomatic envoy section – specifically from the Empire’s delegation – a woman in pure white uniform stood up. As she rose, strikingly white hair cascaded down her shoulders.

“I would like to hear Mr. Ian’s story first.”

At the woman’s sudden intervention, the Pope hurriedly stepped forward.

“Lady Lavia! That man helped a demon spy escape! His actions are no different from betraying humanity! Moreover, causing such disturbance during the Hero Appointment Ceremony is blasphemy against the Goddess!”

“That’s correct. It’s certain that child is doing something insane. But…”

Lavia’s cold eyes stared directly at the Pope.

“The next Tower Lord is making ‘revelations’ about ‘His Holiness the Pope’. I became curious if there’s some truth we don’t know. Ah, of course, this is the Empire’s official position.”

Lavia turned to face the diplomatic envoys from various nations.

“Does anyone have a different opinion?”

Lavia’s slight smile was breathtakingly beautiful enough to steal men’s breath away.

But those gathered here knew about the hidden blade behind that beauty. The Empire’s Sword Saint. White Lotus of the Battlefield. With numerous titles, she was one of the strongest beings of this era.

Before her, the diplomatic envoys could only exchange glances, unable to speak up.

“Since not just the Empire but all nations share this opinion, does Your Holiness wish to reconsider?”

“…Please wait a moment.”

The Pope gritted his teeth.

He hadn’t expected Lavia – known only as a righteous and loyal knight – to make such a political move. He couldn’t guess what thoughts lay behind that expressionless face.

The Pope called a nearby priest closer.

“How did Ian infiltrate the ceremony? We definitely set up the Great Magic Barrier.”

“Well… We speculate that special scrolls created by the Magic Tower couldn’t be blocked.”

“Sigh… I see. You may go.”

The Pope let out a deep sigh. Now that things had come to this, he had to somehow manage the situation.

“…Very well.”

Ultimately, the Pope chose to retreat one step.

“We’ll hear what he has to say. However, regardless of the content, we’ll arrest him immediately afterward.”

“Thank you. I apologize for my earlier rudeness toward His Holiness the Pope.”

After a slight bow, Lavia returned to her seat. She rested her chin on her hand and gazed at Ian in the sky.

“Then, next Tower Lord – Ian, was it? Say what you want to say. But if it’s meaningless drivel… be prepared.”

“…Thank you, Lavia-nim.”

Ian bowed his head toward Lavia in gratitude.

Though he had a prepared plan, Lavia’s intervention had indeed made things easier.

As the situation stabilized thanks to Lavia’s intervention, all eyes focused on Ian again.

“First, I wish to speak about priests and potions. As you know, potion prices are currently rising exponentially. While they claim it’s due to supply issues and temporary phenomena…”

When Ian lightly flicked his fingers, statistics and numbers appeared in the air.

“This is intentional manipulation. They refused the Magic Tower’s cooperation and monopolized potion distribution. You can also see they’re recalling priests dispatched to various nations back to the Holy Kingdom. But this isn’t all.”

Several enlarged documents soon floated in the air.

“The Holy Kingdom – specifically the Pope – has also gained financial benefits under the pretext of negotiations with various nations. The Pope intended to elevate the Holy Kingdom above even the Empire by exploiting the coming war.”

As Ian finished speaking, the square began buzzing again.

“Is what we’re seeing real?”

“Potion prices did rise, but because of this…?”

“Wait! The evidence could be fabricated!”

“That’s right. His Holiness would never do such things.”

“However. The Pope’s deeds don’t end here. Please look this way.”

When Ian gestured, a magically created spotlight illuminated a woman on the podium.

“Huh…?”

It was Saint Veronica.

Veronica, who had been quietly observing, flinched at the sudden attention but greeted the crowd.

“Ah, hello. I am Saint Veronica.”

“Of course, everyone here knows Veronica-nim, hero of the Great War. But… the current Saint is being manipulated by someone.”

Ian’s following voice was low and resolute.

“That’s correct. The Pope has brainwashed and is exploiting Veronica-nim.”

“[…]”

The murmuring ceased as the entire plaza froze.

“…Huh.”

Even Lavia, who had shown almost no change in expression, furrowed her brow.

Brainwashing the Saint? The hero who defeated the Demon King. The very idea of brainwashing such a person was shocking.

“Hahaha!”

After a brief silence, the Pope threw back his head and laughed loudly.

“Now you’re just spouting nonsense? Who would believe such ridiculous lies?”

“Right. Now it seems he’s just saying whatever comes to mind.”

“If that’s true, it means His Holiness sides with demons. Make some sense.”

“He just seems to be spouting nonsense.”

Faced with unbelievable claims, the citizens reacted coldly. Ian’s assertions were too absurd.

“Citizens. This incident has clarified everything. Mr. Ian is clearly colluding with demons to plunge the Holy Kingdom into chaos. Now I strongly suspect even the Magic Tower is cooperating with demons.”

At that moment, a woman burst forward from the crowd.

-Thud.

“You might not have evidence, but we have a witness.”

Jade, who had been frozen like the Saint in this rapidly changing situation, felt his breath catch.

“…Rena?”

Because it was the person he’d been searching for all this time.