Chapter : 157

“This is the place, Your Excellency.”

The place the attendant led me to was not inside the Holy See, but a quiet estate outside it.

It looked as if it had once been used as a fortress; the towering walls like ramparts and the battlements thrusting up here and there were very impressive.

Even along the passageways we passed through, heavily armed men stood guard with strict vigilance. Judging by the quality of their armor and armaments, each and every one of them looked like a knight.

‘The security is insanely tight. What kind of secret proposal are they trying to make? Or is the internal conflict that severe?’

At a level of alertness like escorting a commander’s tent on a battlefield, I clicked my tongue.

‘This is bad.’

If the tension was this high, there was no choice but to doubt Cardinal Adriano’s control over the Holy See, since he was the counterpart to the agreement.

If he lost the struggle and was ousted from power, would a whole mess of troublesome things not happen in every way?

They might suddenly declare everything we had agreed on so far completely invalid, or they might even stand on the opposite side against me.

‘Well, I did diligently grease up the Holy See people in the meantime, so it will not swing to that extreme….’

Still, it was true that it left a bad taste in my mouth. While I was thinking that, I was able to arrive at a room as I followed the attendant.

“Ah, it has been a long time. Margrave of Bellua.”

Right inside the room where Cardinal Adriano was.

As the greeting suggested, Cardinal Andrea, whom I was meeting again after a long time, looked far more exhausted than before.

“It seems you have a lot of work?”

“When you sit in a seat, there are jackals who constantly drool while eyeing that seat, you see. Have you not gone through it several times yourself as well, Margrave?”

“Well, that is true. Your Eminence.”

I nodded and replied like that.

Craving power was simply human nature, so it was nothing new.

The power struggle with my stepmother Juana in the past, the clashes with my feudal vassals, even the rebellion of the cities under my rule. All of it was common, people fighting to seize their own interests.

Still, it was a bit ironic that the Holy See, which had grown its power while proclaiming it spread God’s gospel, fell into greed like secular monarchs like this.

“By the way, why did you call for me? Recently, you seem to have become strangely close with the King of the Elang Kingdom…. Did you call me because of that? And unofficially, in such a rugged place like this, at that.”

At my words, Cardinal Adriano gave a small snort of laughter and rubbed his eyelids.

“Joining hands with the King of the Elang Kingdom is temporary. Once this matter ends, we will return to a poor relationship like before.”

“People always say things like that, Cardinal Adriano.”

“My, did it sound like an excuse? It is the truth.”

As he said that, Cardinal Adriano rose from his seat.

“You just said you have experienced it too, Margrave. The jackals. I only joined hands for a time in order to drive off the jackals threatening the inside of the Holy See.”

“You mean the Crusader Knight Order?”

“That is right. Those fellows are eating away at the inside of the Holy See. From the King of the Elang Kingdom’s perspective as well, the Holy Knight Order fellows are a burdensome presence. It is like having an outside power inside the kingdom….”

“So your interests aligned temporarily?”

“Exactly.”

As he spoke, Cardinal Adriano looked at me and grinned.

“If we are going to fight anyway, our agreement was to deal with the obstacles first. By the way, it seems you heard from Bishop Marco? He is more capable than I expected.”

“Why would that surprise you? He only has many friends because he likes alcohol and money.”

“Ho ho, it seems you do not intend to hide it anymore?”

At Cardinal Adriano’s banter, I shrugged.

“What is there to hide? So then why did you call me? Your Eminence. Did you call me just to deliver this one-sided notice…?”

I asked in a rather sharp state. What Cardinal Adriano was saying was no different from telling me to let my enemy grow while he fought an internal power struggle.

He could have reached out his hand to me instead.

If he had, we could have pressured the Crusader Knight Order in a slightly different way.

But choosing a merely easier method and, in a way, breaking an alliance that could go together in the long run?

Hm, that did not seem like a very good choice.

“It seems you are misunderstanding something, Margrave.”

Cardinal Adriano laughed heartily and walked closer to me.

“I know. You think I am blinded by the power struggle and making a shortsighted judgment.”

“C, ahem. That is a misunderstanding.”

It seemed my cynical feelings had shown on my face.

“But that truly is a misunderstanding. Because there is not the slightest bit of my private desire in this matter.”

“?”

“Do you understand why I told you to meet here? In a fortress-like place where the security is this strict and the only people are knights.”

“???”

At Cardinal Adriano’s continued words, I was flustered.

Was it not because the power struggle had grown fierce, and we met here because of escort concerns? If so, did that mean there was another reason?

“That is right. In truth, I called you today because I wanted to introduce you. Today’s invitation was not something I called for, and this decision as well was not chosen for my personal greed. It is solely to set right the wavering Holy See. I will gladly compensate you for the damage and losses that result from it.”

If he could speak this boldly, then something really was going on.

All this time, I had thought Cardinal Adriano was the real one who moved the Holy See, but that was not it?

Then, at a thought that brushed past my mind, I opened my eyes wide in shock.

“Could it be…?”

“Yes. That is right. His Holiness the Pope. His Holiness the Pope has invited you, Margrave. Let us go together. Though his body is uncomfortable, his mind is whole, and he is waiting.”

—

It was an utterly unexpected proposal.

And it was a startling story.

To think that everything that had been moving was the Pope’s choice, not Cardinal Adriano’s unilateral decision.

‘Wasn’t the Pope on the verge of dying any day now?’

When I used to play [Pangea Universalise], the Pope always died before long, so this situation felt very unfamiliar.

“This is the place.”

The place Cardinal Adriano led me to was a room thick with the smell of medicine.

A space so frugal it was hard to believe the Pope stayed here. There, lying on a bed, was an old man with skin and bones—he was the Pope.

And at the same time.

‘What an overwhelming presence.’

The mystical energy filling the room made it hard for me to breathe.

He clearly looked gaunt, like only bones remained, but every time he wheezed out a breath, powerful and sacred-looking mystery surged and swelled.

I realized why miracles were received so fervently in the Holy See.

In a state like a corpse, the sight of the Pope showing such a presence would make anyone who saw it without understanding feel as if he were a proxy of God.

“His Holiness the Pope. His Holiness’s first disciple has come to see you.”

Cardinal Adriano approached the bed, knelt, and whispered.

It was an attitude of the utmost devotion.

How unexpected.

To think he had this side to him.

That pious figure was the image of a true cleric. It stood in stark contrast to the crafty, sinister cardinal he usually was, and the one he showed to the outside world.

While I was thinking that.

[Is this the Margrave of Bellua.]

In an instant, a single voice struck my mind like a blow.

“?!”

The body was dying, but the mind was still alive. To think that meaning was this!

“Yes, Your Holiness the Pope.”

[Oh, it is very nice to meet you. Margrave of Bellua. I offer you my apologies that I can only receive you in this state.]

“Ah, no. Your Holiness the Pope.”

I answered like that while hiding my shock as much as I could.

[I have heard many stories about the recent changes in the Bellua region. Some Holy See scholars warned that your actions broke order, but I decided to watch.]

Damn. Had it not truly been a razor-thin situation? If the Holy See had moved in the opposite direction, there was a high chance I would not have seen a good outcome.

[And at last, when I saw you overcome the crisis and spread God’s name widely through miracles, I felt relieved that this judgment was right.]

“A miracle, you say. Compared to what Your Holiness the Pope is showing, it is a trifling skill, and a phenomenon born of people’s misunderstanding.”

I said that while breaking into a cold sweat.

Before the Pope’s presence, which displayed mystery close to a true miracle, I did not dare speak carelessly.

Of course, that demeanor of mine seemed to please the Pope greatly.

[Uh-huh-huh-huh.]

The Pope laughed heartily.

He laughed so joyfully that his gaunt body on the bed shook.

[I have long heard of your humility. That too must be a true gospel bestowed by God….]

“Yes, Your Holiness the Pope.”

As he did, Cardinal Adriano drew the sign of the cross and praised God. Truly, the two of them were playing the drum and janggu together.

[By the way…. You seem to be wondering why I called you. I should give you the answer to that.]

After a brief time passed, the Pope steadied his breathing and continued.

[The Crusader Knight Order has lost its true purpose. They have fallen into moneylending and no longer carry out the duties of monks. They are even colluding with secular monarchs and making claims that are close to heresy.]

A faint anger seeped out of the Pope’s voice as he spoke.

He looked as if he was deeply wary of the corruption of the Crusader Knight Order.

[When one begins, it slowly starts to stain. That is why Cardinal Adriano, unlike what you expected, has been running until now as part of driving them out.]

“Mm, I see.”

To think there had been inner workings I did not know.

It certainly made me realize that this world used [Pangea Universalise] as its background, but it was a slightly twisted timeline.

“Then do you want me to stay silent in order to punish the Crusader Knight Order? Your Holiness the Pope.”

[Yes.]

“But if that happens, I will have to deal with a strengthened king. If that happens, I will not be able to rein in the king’s unilateral drive.”

I said that in a sulky voice.

No matter how lofty its meaning, in the end, it was still an internal matter of the Holy See. It did not help me at all. Of course, the Pope seemed to take my worldly thoughts somewhat differently.

[Yes, if that happens, your power to restrain the secular monarch will diminish. I understand.]

Somehow, it felt like he was mistaking me for someone who moved more as the Holy See’s standard-bearer.

Well, that misunderstanding was not bad for me.

[So if you help with this matter, I will have a gift prepared especially for you.]

“A gift, you say?”

[Yes, the territory the Emperor seized from beneath the Holy See. I will recover that county and support you so that you may take it. What do you say?]

“?!”

-DING-DING!

[You have received a secret proposal from the Holy See. The Apennine Peninsula was originally the Holy See’s domain, but it lost the battle against the Great Emperor and had its southern region taken by the Emperor. If you help with this matter, the Holy See will gladly support you in taking that territory.]

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