Chapter 23
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 23
Chapter Title: I Became the Black Curtain Controlling the Pope's Daughter (6)
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The current saintess election was unfolding as a head-to-head matchup between two candidates: Aselina and Loretta.
Aselina Radain, leader of the Rose Knight Order.
And Loretta, head of the Cross Nun Society, composed of female healers.
Having risen through the ranks from inquisitor to the youngest knight order leader, backed by her status as the Pope's adopted daughter, the 23-year-old Aselina Radain boasted a dazzling career.
In contrast, the 27-year-old Loretta hailed from commoner roots. She had begun her life as a nun in childhood, awakened her healing abilities in her teens, and since then participated in wars and monster subjugations as a healer for the nuns. She had steadily built her reputation through various volunteer work and church reform efforts.
Martial versus civil, warrior versus healer, flashiness versus diligence.
The two saintess candidates stood in stark contrast on every front.
And now, yet another saintess candidate had come to meet me.
"...Prepare a seat at the garden table. I'll be right there."
Of course, I couldn't just turn away a visitor who had come calling, so I would meet her...
But as I thought of Aselina, I prayed that Loretta would at least be a decent person.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Duke Bilheim. May Lord God Juten bless our encounter."
An ordinary nun.
That was my first impression upon facing Loretta.
Plain black nun's habit, brown hair braided on both sides.
Her face leaned toward pretty rather than beautiful, but with her subdued features and freckles, she gave off a comfortable rather than alluring vibe.
If Aselina was a flashy rose that captured the eye, Loretta felt like a simple magnolia in bloom.
'Even their looks are polar opposites.'
"Pleased to meet you."
After a brief exchange of greetings, the two of us sat facing each other across the table.
"First, I apologize for visiting so abruptly."
"It's fine. I happened to have some free time anyway."
Loretta placed one hand over her chest and bowed her head politely toward me.
There was an air of elegant modesty in her gesture.
...For now, first impressions were a clear win for Loretta.
Reflect on this, Aselina.
"I know it's rude, but... may I get straight to the point? Since this is an unannounced visit, I don't want to take up too much of your time, Duke Bilheim."
Among nobles, it was etiquette to start with inquiries about each other's well-being before diving into the main topic.
Loretta was asking my permission in advance to forgo that.
"Please, make yourself comfortable."
Manners were another point for Loretta.
Aselina was getting overwhelmingly outmatched from the start. Was this really okay?
"Thank you for your understanding. The reason I came to see you is to discuss this saintess selection."
Well, yeah. That figured.
It would have been more surprising if she'd come just to build pure friendship with no agenda.
"Hmm. Did you come to recruit me as well, Miss Loretta?"
"No, not at all. First... I wanted to meet you."
"Meet me?"
"Yes. The Northern Duke's succession ceremony that was the talk of the Holy Capital, and... well, it's a bit indelicate to mention, but even the incident at the banquet. You're already a famous figure in the Holy Capital, to the point that even I have heard about it."
"Hm."
Yeah.
That unwanted fame was driving the person in question—me—to the brink of madness.
"So, now that you've achieved your goal, you'll head back? Or should I sign an autograph for you?"
"Hee-hee. How cheeky. Naturally, I didn't come just to see your face."
Loretta deftly deflected my slightly rude joke with a bright smile.
Quick on her feet, too.
Loretta versus Aselina: 3-0. Perfect score.
"And to get to the point... I wanted to speak with you, the supporter of Aselina."
"...Supporter of Aselina?"
"Yes."
"Who says?"
"Well, obviously, the one sitting before me: Duke Robertus Bilheim... right?"
"What's your basis for that?"
"Um... Among people in the Holy Capital, it's already half-accepted as fact... Especially that you were involved in Duke Ferris's recent purge..."
...Indeed. So she came knowing about the Ferris Duke matter.
In that case, things were different.
I'd wondered why Aselina kept clinging to me, and suddenly she purged Ferris Duke, who had been opposing me.
It was reasonable to assume Aselina and I had joined hands to take down Ferris.
On top of that, the recent deal with Marquis Boel through Aselina's mediation.
Of course, I'd firmly silenced Marquis Boel...
But honestly, I wasn't expecting it to hold.
"..."
Her true purpose in visiting bothered me.
Beyond the surface reason.
'She's probably here to interrogate me.'
Duke Ferris and his cronies, who had been colluding with Loretta's faction.
If she knew I'd orchestrated their purge...
Her visit might even be a form of protest.
"Is that so. That's ridiculous."
Of course, I had no intention of admitting it.
For one thing, I'd never ordered Aselina to purge Duke Ferris,
and even if I had, there was no reason to cower and confess preemptively when she hadn't even brought it up.
"Me, a supporter of Miss Aselina? Is that the nonsense going around?"
"Is it really?"
"Yes. I have no relation to her whatsoever. She's the one unilaterally bothering me."
"Then what about Duke Ferris...?"
"Has nothing to do with me. Ask Aselina herself."
Deny it for now.
No evidence, and what could she do if it wasn't me?
"Oh my..."
I wondered what reaction she'd have to my stonewalling...
"...I see."
"You believe me?"
An unexpected response.
She was letting it go this easily?
"Understood. It was my mistake to assume otherwise."
Then she suddenly stood from her seat.
"My apologies for the intrusion. I'm sorry to have bothered you with something pointless."
"...You're just leaving?"
What the hell?
"Yes. I came thinking you were in a cooperative relationship with Miss Aselina... but it was my misunderstanding. I can't very well take more of your time under false pretenses."
Loretta bowed her head politely.
"I hope we have the chance to meet again someday, Duke Bilheim."
With a gentle smile my way, she gracefully crossed the garden and left my lodgings.
"...What was that really about?"
Left alone in the garden, I muttered to myself.
...Maybe I'd misread the situation.
She might have just come for a casual chat and some probing.
She hadn't outright said she'd come 'knowing about Ferris Duke'; she'd merely floated that 'people are saying' bit.
Perhaps Ferris Duke's collusion with her faction was his subordinates' independent action, and Loretta herself was unaware of Ferris making contact with her people.
Meeting her in person, she didn't strike me as someone involved in dirty political schemes.
In fact, I rather liked her.
Unlike some people, she was well-versed in etiquette and easy to talk to.
Had it been her side approaching me instead of Aselina's, I might have seriously considered cooperating with her.
"Anyway, if it's nothing serious, that's fine by me. Time to head back for that whiskey..."
Loretta crossed the nobles' lodgings with a serene expression.
To those who occasionally recognized her, she offered warm smiles and brief greetings.
"..."
But the moment she left the lodging area and entered an empty temple, her demeanor shifted.
Her gentle smile vanished in an instant, replaced by cold impassivity.
"...I didn't expect him to play it like this."
Robertus's initial guess had been spot on.
Her visit was indeed connected to Duke Ferris's recent purge.
Of course, she had no intention of antagonizing Robertus.
No point in making more enemies.
She had simply planned to subtly signal that she knew the full story, thereby restraining him with a light warning.
-Me, a supporter of Miss Aselina? Is that the nonsense going around?
But Robertus's response to her cautious overture had caught her off guard.
He hadn't just denied involvement in the purge; he'd flatly declared no connection to Aselina at all.
She couldn't openly admit her own ties to Ferris Duke, so she'd phrased it circuitously as 'I've heard rumors,' but he hadn't budged.
She'd planned to corner him with circumstantial evidence if he denied involvement in the purge,
but by rejecting the premise entirely, he'd left her speechless.
Of course, it wasn't because his claim was reasonable.
"There's a limit to shamelessness...!"
Loretta's lips twisted.
It was plain as day that something existed between Aselina and Robertus.
Yet he'd bluntly denied that obvious fact to her face.
The implication of his words was crystal clear.
-I have no intention of talking with you.
"I thought it was too easy for him to grant me a meeting... As expected, he meant to toy with me from the start."
-Don't underestimate that child too much.
Loretta recalled the Pope's advice about Robertus.
Until then, she'd dismissed rumors of him as a 'black viper' or whatever floating around the Holy Land as exaggerations, not taking them seriously.
"Helmina."
"Yes."
Suddenly, an incongruous voice answered from the shadows behind a temple pillar.
The same voice that had been reporting something to Aselina in her bedroom.
"Put surveillance on Duke Bilheim as well."
Loretta thought that meant one more person to consider seriously, revising her assessment of Robertus accordingly.
"You're back already? What about Lady Loretta?"
"Eh, it turned out to be nothing much. Pour me another drink."
"And you didn't forget the whiskey in all that."
Eline grumbled as she poured fresh whiskey into my glass, adding ice and handing it over.
"Heh."
Feeling the cool touch on my fingers gripping the glass, I brought the whiskey to my lips once more.
Now, at last, I could savor this fine drink slowly—
Bang! Bang!
-My lord!
...Not even a single glass in peace.
Hearing the servant's urgent pounding on the door—blatant this time—I instinctively knew something else had gone wrong and had no choice but to set the whiskey down again.
"What is it?"
-Urgent news from the territory!