Chapter 81
Chapter 81
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 81
Chapter Title: How to Survive as the Second Son of a Magical Noble Family
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In an instant, the room fell as silent as a graveyard.
"What did you say?"
"…I can't accept this. Didn't you say he hadn't even been baptized?"
Narke replied with his gentle smile unwavering.
"These are His Holiness's words. Sir Nikolaus Ernst has fulfilled all four requirements."
"You're saying His Holiness is vouching for him personally?"
"Does that mean His Holiness has baptized him now…? He clearly didn't qualify!"
The priest who had invoked every council under the sun to block the ordination raised his voice.
Narke put on a look of feigned puzzlement.
"Are you questioning His Holiness's infallibility, Father Romani?"
"…That's not what I—!"
"The Pope never errs in matters of faith and belief—that was affirmed by the Vatican Council. I'm sure you know it well, Father, since you mentioned it yourself."
Just then, the messenger bird from earlier perched on the windowsill.
Narke untied the note from its leg, read it, and smiled at the speechless priests and bishops.
"This concludes the examination meeting as recognized by the Holy See. It was a pleasure seeing you all after so long. We'll talk more later."
* * *
—"If it's about serving faithfully… what exactly do you mean?"
I asked, gazing into the empty confessional.
—"As my official advisory body, I want you to participate directly in the Church's decision-making on divine power and security matters."
The Pope's advisory body.
That meant becoming a cardinal.
I couldn't see him, but I could tell he was waiting for my answer.
—"It would be an honor, Your Holiness."
—"Excellent. In forty minutes, when midnight on the eleventh strikes, Sir Ernst will become a member of the College of Cardinals. As a pillar of the Church, fulfill your duties well."
—"I shall."
At that moment, a wand from the Holy See materialized in the air.
It was the same kind I'd seen with Narke—one that only Holy See clergy could wield.
The Pope's gentle voice came again.
—"Give it a try."
I took the wand carefully, and it settled into my hand as naturally as if it had always been mine.
When I gave it a twirl, astonishingly, it transformed into the Ascanien wand I'd been using.
—"We'll give you the proper one at the ordination ceremony. This one's functions aren't fully complete yet."
—"…I had no idea. It seemed perfect enough already."
—"You'll be surprised again at the ordination."
I heard the Pope's voice laced with amusement.
—"Your appointment as cardinal will also be announced to the world for the first time at the ordination ceremony, not now. We'll schedule it when you're ready."
—"Understood."
*…Hmm.*
Could the Pope read minds too?
I'd been hoping the announcement would be delayed as long as possible.
It was best to minimize the information about Nikolaus reaching my brother.
If I revealed my identity, he'd launch all sorts of attacks, but if he learned I'd become a cardinal, he'd likely hide his true colors and go on the defensive instead of targeting Nikolaus.
*No good.*
Better to let him attack freely in the areas where I could win. I needed to learn his patterns too.
—"Congratulations in advance on joining the Roman Curia, Cardinal Ernst. See you later."
With that, a gust of wind sucked into the confessional.
* * *
"Your Eminence, just hear me out for a moment…!"
Slam—!
Narke shoved the priest aside without hesitation and shut the door to the underground passage.
He'd been smiling the whole time, showing no attachment whatsoever to the place he'd grown up.
"A gag order has been issued regarding the cardinal appointment. They can act tough on the surface, but no one will dare speak out of turn until the ordination ceremony."
"I see."
"Oh, do you know your appointment news will be announced later?"
"Yes, I heard."
After that, Narke was in high spirits, chattering nonstop the whole way.
When we reached the portal, I asked him,
"You mentioned needing to hide your identity earlier—are you not a secret cardinal, then, Your Eminence?"
"No, I am."
"…You sure didn't act like it."
"Most secret cardinals are stationed abroad, but I've been in the Vatican the whole time, so it's hard to hide completely. Everyone's under a gag order, though… and they're keeping it pretty well so far."
"We've arrived, Your Eminence."
The guiding priest turned around in front of the sealed path.
We exchanged brief greetings with him and stood before the portal.
As I glared at the brick wall, Narke stepped back a pace with a grin.
"Need a hand?"
"No…."
Still, it was my second time, so I passed through smoothly.
We warped back to Leo's mansion, and just then, the bells on the distant clock tower began to toll.
The portal would be fully sealed by now.
Narke spoke using divine power.
—"This turned out well for Bavaria too. His Majesty the King will be thrilled~"
—"If we can hold off on the announcement a bit longer, sure."
—"You can tell your friends and the royals now. And that crowd would wait a year if needed."
—"True. Thanks. I feel a lot more secure now."
—"No problem. Haha, is this about on par with Leo's gift? Elias was going on about Leo like that."
He must've used the same phrasing with Narke.
It was true that this priesthood gave me a safety net.
—"Yeah."
—"Glad to hear it. I'm happy you have one more safety net."
—"…"
I let out a hollow laugh and opened the door to the lower floor.
—"Cut the ability already."
—"Hahaha, got it."
Back in the room, we found Elias and Leo.
Elias, who had been half-reclining in a chair, sat up with a smirk.
"Oh, we just got here too. Luca finally became an honorary priest, huh~?"
Seeing Elias walking without crutches felt strangely emotional.
I shook my head as I eyed his gaze, which seemed a bit higher than usual.
"Nope."
"Hmm?"
"What?"
Elias and Leo reacted at the same time.
"No way you didn't make it? Impossible! What… wanna grab something tasty before heading back to school?"
His talk of grabbing something tasty sounded just like any kid his age, making me chuckle.
"What're we eating?"
"How about Château Latour? Perfect with lamb."
"Hey!"
Leo barked as alcohol came up.
It was legal age-wise, but students didn't drink often anyway.
"You drink at banquets too."
"That's banquets. You gotta be in class in seven hours—gonna show up drunk?"
I watched their debate over whether it was a problem or not, then spoke up.
"Kids."
"Yeah?"
"Sorry for not saying sooner, but no need to go drinking."
"Why?"
"I got ordained as a sub-deacon-level cardinal."
Elias froze mid-motion. Leo's face quickly turned to shock.
"…What?"
Elias gaped so wide it was comical, let out a silent scream, then clapped loudly.
"…Now we definitely need to drink!"
"…!"
"Haha, priests can't get drunk~"
Narke held Elias back as Leo visibly struggled not to explode.
"…Congratulations, Lucas. Guess I have to call you Your Eminence in public now."
Leo ignored Elias and smiled at me.
"Thanks. But not yet. It's secret until the ordination."
"Separate ceremony? Makes sense, time was tight."
"Ah, we should've spread this around~ You did what Adrian Ascanien couldn't in twenty-four years!"
Elias shook his head, clapping, then asked,
"Right, can you make it to school tomorrow?"
"Gotta. Ditching right after the news would draw suspicion."
Just this week left before break anyway.
I'd stay at school over winter break, so proper treatment could wait.
"Good. His Majesty mentioned you to us anyway."
What about?
As I gave him a look, Elias grinned and continued.
"You're rebranding as Lucas Ascanien, right? That."
* * *
After hashing out various plans, we finally made it back to the dorms at two in the morning.
The bed I'd lain in just last night felt as foreign as if a month had passed.
*Actually been over four days without lying down.*
Eighteen real-world hours equaled four days and twelve hours in Pleroma.
I burrowed into the thick comforter and closed my eyes. No time to dawdle. Needed deep sleep starting tonight to recover fast.
How much time passed like that.
*…*
Rustle—
I threw off the covers and sat up.
*Can't sleep.*
From Asman to the cardinal appointment, too much had happened in too short a time for sleep to come easy.
And…
Naturally, not everyone who came back from this ordeal had survived.
Genda Asman hadn't sent his captives upward, but others had.
*Only four hours… I thought coming back from the Vatican had let me forget a bit.*
Misjudged.
My activities so far had mostly prevented future issues or involved only me as victim.
This time, I'd stopped it early, but regions where plans had been in motion for a month or two had racked up massive casualties.
Not my fault or anything, but it weighed on me.
Unless the Emperor and Imperial Chancellor were replaced, these problems wouldn't change.
*For now, drop the unsolvable thoughts. Need at least two hours' sleep.*
Couldn't change anything without stamina.
To clear my head, fresh air seemed best—I headed to the roof.
"Lucas!"
Pie was already there on my shoulder—who knew when he'd arrived.
"Not sleeping?"
"Nope! Narke said to come up."
"Narke's not sleeping either?"
"Uh-uh. Has stuff to think about. Been playing with me till now~"
"I see."
I sat in the rooftop chair and closed my eyes.
Feeling my hair whip in the wind…
Whoosh—
*Clears the mind, alright.*
Hard to even breathe, so yeah.
Pie shivered and burrowed into my robe pocket.
"C-C-C-Cold!"
"Yeah."
Heading back down, I spotted someone coming from the opposite hall.
Narke.
"Lucas, insomnia?"
"Yeah, looks like you too."
"Pretty much. Heading to Leo's training grounds now—wanna come?"
I nodded, and we warped to Leo's training grounds.
"…Huh? What the?"
Leo, sitting in the training grounds with Elias, stared at our sudden appearance in disbelief.
"Haha, came to hang out with you guys~"
"How'd you know we were here?"
"His ability lasts a day or two."
Leo grudgingly nodded at my words.
"But Narke's one thing—why aren't you sleeping? You need to recover."
"Not that I didn't sleep, couldn't. And… aren't you two the same?"
I sat down in front of them.
Elias, grinning as the group grew, answered.
"Yeah. You too, Luca…? Because of Asman?"
Didn't want to dwell on it, but it was partly true.
"…That, and."
"And?"
"Too many stories in today's papers."
"Hmm, yeah, I get it. Me too. What the hell's the court doing? That's what keeps running through my head."
Same thought.
Even Leo didn't react this time.
He always reined Elias in for his friend's sake, but he'd clearly shared the sentiment all along.
Elias's eyes darkened.
"The new Pleroma I met there had already sent everyone up. No survivors. They said all the blood was drained in a single day."
"……"
"Heard what people are saying about us? 'Heroes of the century,' all that nonsense."
Elias let out a light laugh and shrugged.
"That embarrassing title just means this society can't even do the basics. The court exists to prevent things like this. And yet…"
I'd known from the novel that Elias got deadly serious when he did, but seeing it without a single curse word felt fresh.
Leo gazed at him with a troubled expression.
Elias exhaled slowly, his face turning serene.
"…Never mind. No need to dwell. Only one way left now."
"What?"
"We've gotta… smash Uncle's head in."
"What the hell?!"
"Hahaha! Count me in, Elias."
"Aren't you a foreigner? Since when do you live here?"
"Hearts united is enough~"
Knowing how this played out, I couldn't laugh alone. It would become reality.
*And from this point, the Emperor won't stay quiet either.*
After Haigengji, he'd just been biding time to eliminate Elias.
Sure, it built support for Elias and anti-emperor sentiment along the way, but the Emperor wasn't stupid. Early on, he'd played the doting uncle perfectly.
And I, riding with Elias, would become a target too.
But no problem. The protagonist always navigated it.
Just fend off the dangers that deviated from the novel.
Elias's giggles faded as he grew serious.
"For real. I'm gonna knock that crown off his head."
"……"
"Don't you think they felt the same? Right before dying—'What the hell is my lord, my country doing?' They must've."
We all stared at Elias in silence.
His voice gained strength.
"I'm not gonna let that happen. Not on my watch."
"……"
"I can do better. Unlike Uncle, I'll keep trying till I die."
"…Elias, you won't know till you're actually there. Not saying you'll end up like His late Majesty Friedrich, but you can't be sure without experiencing it."
"Ah, all that studying made you a smartass, huh~"
Leo narrowed his eyes at Elias.
"If I can't do good governance, I'll climb up there just to put someone better in my place."
"……."
Elias grinned and slapped Leo's back.
"Like you, Leo. Ah, if only you were Hohenzollern. I'd love to make Bavaria the Empire's leader~"
"Don't even joke. Unless you want an execution."
Leo glared and cut him off.
Wondered why he was getting heavy, then figured it was more nonsense.
Watching Elias smirk, I said quietly,
"I'm not worried. You'll do great."
Elias's eyes widened, then he beamed.
"Ah, only Luca cheers me on right away~ Take notes, Leo!"
"Notes on what? Someone's gotta stop you!"
"Hahaha, true."
Elias leaned back almost flat and looked at me.
"Oh, right. Actually, I was gonna call you tomorrow morning—perfect timing."
"Hm, yeah. What's up?"
Elias clamped his mouth shut, shrugged, and said,
"The Emperor wants to see you, Luca.