Chapter 21
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 21
Chapter Title: Became the Black Curtain Controlling the Pope's Daughter (4)
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The raid on Ferris Duke happened two days after Aselina and Robertus had their secret meeting at the temple, right around sunset.
The accommodations assigned to nobles of duke rank or higher were essentially luxurious small mansions surrounded by modest gardens.
Dozens of such residences clustered in the residential district on the western side of the holy site.
Four incongruous shadows slipped through the entrance.
Leading them was Aselina.
On the right shoulder of her silver armor gleamed a vivid red rose emblem.
The two men and one woman following behind were former heretic inquisitors who had retired from the front lines.
Though each now held different positions within the church, they had gathered here at the call of their former superior, Aselina.
Of course, since this wasn't official business, they all wore deep hoods pulled low and masks covering their faces.
-This is... You suddenly summon us, and it turns out you want to use us in your personal political squabble...
"It's time to repay old debts, Pelton. Have you forgotten how many times I saved your life from the blades of heretics?"
-Y-Yes, yes. I understand. ...The target is Ferris Duke, right?
"You all handle the guards. I'll deal with the duke myself."
A short, clear plan.
They moved out immediately.
"Halt! This is Ferris Duke's residence... Wh-what?"
The soldiers surrounding the lodging aimed their spears at Aselina's group, but they ignored them and pressed forward.
Pfshk.
"Urk...!"
The takedown was swift.
Her subordinates neatly jabbed anesthetic needles from their wristbands into the necks of the charging soldiers, putting them to sleep.
"How dare you...!"
Next appeared a burly middle-aged warrior in heavy armor.
His sword was cloaked in blue aura.
"...Lady Aselina? What in the world is this?!"
Aselina didn't respond to the knight who belatedly recognized her. Instead, she drew her sword.
"Sorry. I'll just knock you out lightly."
"You—"
Aselina closed the distance to the knight's nose in an instant.
The knight thrust his aura-wreathed sword late, but the flat of Aselina's blade struck his face first.
Bam!
A purely physical blow, unenhanced by mana or holy power.
Yet its force was enough to send the knight flying with a thunderous boom.
Aselina continued forward, effortlessly subduing the remaining guards, until she finally kicked open the door to Ferris's lodging and came face-to-face with him.
"Alots Ferris."
Aselina's voice was icy as she uttered the duke's name.
"Wh-what is the meaning of this?! Forcing your way into my residence with violence! Don't you know that the lodgings assigned to nobles during the assembly are treated as sovereign territory?"
"I know full well, Ferris Duke. I know exactly how dangerous my actions are right now. And yet, knowing that, here I am with my sword pointed at you."
Her stern demeanor showed no trace of her usual arrogant smile.
"-Which means you can infer that I must have solid grounds for this."
"...!"
"I'll give you one last chance. Confess the crimes you've committed against me."
Ferris stared at the sharp tip of her blade aimed at him and realized her visit had a clear purpose.
"...I have no idea what you're talking about, Lady Aselina. Wouldn't you be so kind as to present your evidence first?"
But he quickly regained his composure.
No matter how cornered he was, he was still Ferris Duke.
A seasoned politician who had closed countless deals and negotiations.
'As expected, he won't go down easily.'
Aselina looked down at him, sensing her plan was already hitting a wall.
Catching heretics wasn't that hard.
If you had suspicions, just arrest them first.
Then, with enough time for 'conversation' and 'persuasion,' they'd 'voluntarily' spill the evidence.
But the man before her was a noble. The highest rank, a duke.
Such 'physical persuasion' wasn't allowed.
And Aselina had only Robertus's advice and her suspicions—no real proof.
That's why she'd burst in so dramatically—a calculated show.
Overwhelm the guards, corner the flustered Ferris, and force a confession.
But...
'No choice but to take the long way around.'
She seriously considered using her inquisitor connections to pin some fabricated charge on him, detain him, and buy time for evidence.
It was then, as she pondered this desperate measure—
"Answer me, Aselina! What crime are you accusing me of, and where did you hear such nonsense?!"
"-Robertus Bilheim. A name you know very well, I'm sure."
When Ferris turned the tables and pressed her, Aselina casually dropped his name.
Perhaps mentioning him would unsettle Ferris a bit—she held a faint hope.
"...!"
Seeing Ferris's face drain to a pallid gray in an instant, Aselina knew her gambit had hit the mark.
No, it was more than that.
As if he'd heard a death sentence, Ferris began to tremble.
"Ah, ahh..."
"Again... again... Robertus."
Hearing the name once more shattered Ferris's mind completely.
"?"
"Yes... so that's how it was... This whole thing was that man's scheme..."
"???"
"I was nothing but bait, stumbling right into the trap he set...!"
Aselina watched in bewilderment, brow furrowed, as Ferris muttered madly to himself as if she weren't there.
He paid her no mind.
He'd finally pieced it all together.
Robertus Bilheim had targeted him from the start.
How else to explain this situation where everything was closing in on him at once?
"Yes, after finishing his investigation into the saintess selection dynamics, he plotted how to insert himself into the game."
An ordinary man would have been content cozying up to one candidate or her nobles and joining a faction.
But Robertus aimed higher.
The leadership of the faction closest to both candidates.
His goal: oust himself from the faction, take the seat, and manipulate the saintess candidate.
A fitting ambition for a black viper.
"He opened the banquet hall doors with that intent from the beginning. When I approached first, how delighted he must have been inside! Like prey walking right into his jaws!"
No need to deploy the scheme he'd prepared to topple Ferris.
All Robertus had to do was publicly shatter Ferris's schemes in front of everyone.
Then watch with glee as Ferris's standing plummeted.
And the moment Ferris was backed to the cliff's edge with nowhere to retreat, he approached Aselina.
And handed her the tool.
Ferris's sole weakness—the final weapon to strike him.
-The information that Ferris was colluding with Loretta's side.
...Of course, this was all Ferris's delusion.
The truth was just coincidences piling up.
But Ferris's overactive brain had swiftly woven limited info into a plausible tale,
overlaid with his image of Robertus, completing the madness.
"Heh... hahaha... I was just dancing in the palm of his hand... hee hee...!"
Ferris, utterly unhinged, and Aselina staring down at him in utter confusion.
For a long while, only dazed laughter echoed through his lodging.
"...And that's how it went!"
Aselina spent ages recounting the whole affair in exhaustive detail, then struck a triumphant pose with hands on hips, as if she'd completed some grand mission.
"..."
Was the throbbing in my temples from a hangover, or this insane reality?
"...So, what happened next?"
"Easy after that! As a condition for letting him go, he completely withdrew from the Holy Capital Assembly, left the holy site, and handed over a list of traitors moving under his orders! Naturally, I booted them all out too!"
"The biggest question is, can you actually punish him for his actions? Sure, supporting both saintess candidates disrupts the selection and warrants punishment, but..."
"You mean there's no evidence besides Ferris Duke's confession, so a formal trial would take forever."
"Right... Ah. Duel trial."
"Exactly! As expected of Lord Robertus!"
Duel trial.
A medieval method to settle evidence-lacking cases via combat between parties.
Based on 'God will guide the hand of the righteous.'
Obviously, such barbarism was banned from the 1200s in the real world.
But this was the Radain Holy Kingdom, a theocracy built on divine will.
Thus, duel trials were legal here.
And the simple-minded northerners, who preferred brawling over laws and courts, still enthusiastically used them.
"No matter if it's the duke himself or some proxy he hires, none could beat me in a duel. For him, slipping away quietly before another public humiliation was the best option."
Fair enough.
Who could beat a monster that smacks swordmasters with the flat of her blade?
"Good. Congrats. Campaign's going well."
I turned to flee, but—
Grab.
Aselina skipped the handshake this time and clamped my hands in hers without asking.
"...This incident made me realize it again."
"Realize what?"
"Lord Robertus's greatness."
"..."
"I still don't know the exact details, but... this was all your plan, right? Ferris Duke kept mumbling that during the interrogation."
"......"
"That cunning political instinct of yours... I don't have it. So please, use that talent for me? No, wait. That's not enough."
"What else?"
"Please be my master, Lord Robertus. Guide me as I strive for saintess."
"Guide you."
"Yes. Until now, I've revered only one person as worthy: my mother, Mercadie Radain. But now there's another."
"Me?"
"Yes!"
"..."
"Huh, Lord Robertus? Where are you going?"
"......"
"Lord Robertus! Why won't you say anything?!"
"My lord. Aselina has come calling again today, after yesterday."
"Tell her to scram."
"...I'll say you're busy and send her away."
I sat at the large desk in my lodging, reading letters.
Aselina was one thing, but this was the real problem.
The sender was Henriotte, managing the northern territories as regent in my stead.
I apologize for delivering troubling news amid your preparations for the Holy Capital Assembly.
The territory's food situation has become precarious.
The maximum stockpile before winter was barely enough to last, but several storehouses suffered frost damage, leading to an irrecoverable shortage no matter what we do.
A difficult request, but please negotiate with other nobles at the assembly for additional food supplies...
"Haa..."
Food. Critical.
The most basic of necessities.
Henriotte himself sending such an urgent letter meant the northern territories' food crisis was dire.
This morning, upon receiving it, I'd ordered my subordinates to secure food from lords with surpluses—trade or aid, whatever.
Just now, they'd all reported back empty-handed.
We had little to offer from the north in exchange.
The most feasible was dispatching northern troops as mercenaries, but
with no wars or territorial disputes, no one needed them.
Naturally, no suckers for one-sided aid.
I'd even gone door-to-door myself...
-Wh-what is it, Bilheim Duke? W-we've done nothing wrong to you!
The nobles' wariness toward me was maxed out; I couldn't even get a proper word in.
"...Haa."
No options?
Requesting from the pope's side... doubtful. His actual influence seemed limited.
Just look at how he had to summon me unwillingly.
A way to get free food without compensation...
If not... the people will starve...
"..."
Suddenly, the red-eyed blonde knight's face flashed in my mind.
"No. Can't. Absolutely not."
Why not? She'd solve it effortlessly.
"Deeper involvement is bad. People will really think I'm backing her."
Who cares that much? Just one simple request.
"...Simple request?"
Yeah! You already did her a favor with Ferris. This is just claiming fair recompense!
"...Of course, draw a clear line? Make it crystal: no intent to join the saintess selection."
You get it! Plus, emphasize utmost secrecy—no leaks.
"..."
Hey, if you don't care if the people starve, fine to drop it.
"...Eline."
"Yes?"
"Is Aselina still outside?"