Chapter 65
Chapter 65
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 65
Chapter Title: The Holy Kingdom's Opening (2)
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We had successfully subdued all the archbishops within the Holy Kingdom and their factions.
Excluding those dispatched outside the Holy Kingdom, of course.
Now, there was no one left in the Holy Kingdom who opposed the Saintess's will.
They say success makes it a revolution, failure makes it rebellion?
The Saintess stood on the brink of success.
She just needed one more step: convincing the public.
The problem was that it wouldn't be easy.
The Saintess's aide asked with a worried expression.
"Even Your Holiness's words won't suffice?"
"No. Even if the Holy Kingdom is filled with the faithful, there are those who won't trust me."
Above all, she had used force this time.
Even with perfectly justifiable reasons, she could still face backlash.
In such a situation, her title of Saintess alone wouldn't cut it.
"No helping it, then. We'll issue a public statement a week from now."
"What about the unrest that might arise in the meantime?"
"Overlook it unless it gets out of hand. And I'll be stepping away for a while starting now."
"...Understood. If you'll excuse me."
The aide bowed politely and left.
The Saintess leaned back in her chair for a moment.
"Haa, what am I going to do...!"
Hepiriya covered her face with both hands and let out a silent scream.
She had resolved herself and done it, yet now regret was creeping in!
Of course, it was more a sense of overwhelming uncertainty than true regret, but either way, she was in deep trouble.
"Ugh, I thought I was prepared for this."
Her earlier resolve rang hollow as she stamped her feet in frustration.
After a long while, she finally calmed down and lowered her hands from her face.
"Whew, alright. I steeled myself for this. No choice but to see it through."
She reaffirmed her determination once more.
It was probably the umpteenth time, but she decided not to dwell on that.
She rose from her seat and summoned her shadows.
"I have tasks for you all starting now."
She issued orders to each of the thirteen shadows.
They were to raid and search the archbishops' offices and homes.
"Bring back anything at all, no matter how small. Take as many people as you need."
"Yes!"
They all responded energetically and prepared to depart for their missions.
The Saintess grabbed one of them.
"Take me with you too. We need to personally uncover what Archbishop Teringja has been hiding."
"Understood."
And so, all fourteen headed to the archbishops' offices and mansions.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ A group burst into Archbishop Teringja's mansion.
The servants inside were startled, but they ignored them and got to work.
They rounded up everyone in the mansion and restrained them in the central hall.
The others scoured the place like ferrets, gathering documents and materials.
Amid it all was Saintess Hepiriya.
She had come here for two main reasons.
One was to collect irrefutable evidence of the archbishops' misdeeds.
They had already gathered plenty through prior covert operations, but it wasn't airtight yet.
"The other is... maybe something about my sister."
The previous Saintess, Luciana.
She had vanished without a trace.
Hepiriya had investigated tirelessly but found nothing.
She couldn't shake the feeling that the archbishops were at the center of it.
"She has to be out there somewhere."
Documents, or at least some trace of her.
Hepiriya focused more on the latter than the former as she began her search.
It might seem backward, but the outcome would be the same.
As she rummaged through the room with that thought, something caught her eye.
"Hm? What's this?"
A single sheet of paper was tucked between books on the shelf.
She pulled it out and unfolded it, tilting her head in puzzlement.
"Dungeon records. Doesn't look explored. Just the location and surrounding area noted."
It was a dungeon she'd never heard of.
She didn't know every dungeon in the Holy Kingdom, but she figured she knew quite a few.
"And I've never even heard of this one."
It was fairly close by, with two or three other dungeons nearby.
It was odd not to know about it.
"They deliberately hid it, maybe?"
That made sense to her.
Otherwise, it didn't add up.
She pocketed the document and continued searching the room.
She even double-checked spots the shadows had already inspected.
"Ah, there's a hidden compartment here."
The desk drawer had a secret space.
Opening the drawer and pressing the bottom produced a click, revealing it.
Inside was a single book—a ledger.
Incredibly, it detailed siphoning Holy Kingdom funds, along with illegal drugs and transactions.
"My goodness. They were so cunning."
She took the ledger and poked around a bit more before leaving the room.
Outside, a shadow waiting by the door bowed.
"All done."
"Good work. Leave a few behind to comb through it more thoroughly."
"Understood. We'll do that."
Afterward, all the mansion's servants were restrained and transported away.
Their testimonies were needed for the investigation.
Hepiriya returned to her papal office with the shadows.
There, she sifted through the gathered materials, compiling evidence.
"Your Holiness... I can hardly believe it. Why on earth would the archbishops do this?"
The aide asked in a trembling voice while reviewing the documents.
The Saintess set down what she was reading and looked at him.
"Beats me. I'm wondering the same. What could they possibly lack to stoop to this?"
"Haa. Well, at least this proves our legitimacy."
The aide sighed in relief and continued sorting.
But the Saintess couldn't relax, gazing out the window instead.
Was this truly enough?
Could it really bring them down?
Her head said yes, but her heart was gripped by anxiety.
Where was this unease coming from?
Unconsciously gripping the paper too hard, she crumpled it slightly.
"...Looks like we need to move faster."
"Pardon?"
"Have the trustworthy ones continue the work. I have somewhere to go."
The aide gave her a puzzled look, but her mind was made up.
She stood and called one of the shadows.
"Guide me to the underground prison."
"Understood. This way."
The archbishops were imprisoned in the Holy Kingdom's underground dungeon.
It was originally for heinous criminals—a relic of the past.
Not in use now, but after much debate, they'd decided to repurpose it.
The Saintess traversed the dim corridor upon arrival.
Moss grew on the floors and ceilings, and a musty smell lingered.
It felt ominous, but it was just unclean.
She stopped before one cell.
"Archbishop Teringja."
"...Saintess. What brings you? Didn't expect a visit so soon."
He had been sitting in meditation in the cell's center; now he opened his eyes and regarded her.
Hepiriya glared at him.
"I have questions."
"Heh, think I'll answer?"
"That's fine. We have time."
For now, she could afford patience.
"First question: why? Why commit such atrocities?"
The interrogation began ahead of schedule.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ With the Saintess's rebellion nearly complete and everyone captured...
One man had slipped through her net and escaped.
"Damn it! That wretched witch! How dare she treat us like this?! Doesn't she know what she's enjoyed all this time, or who made it possible?!"
The man spat every curse he could think of—ungrateful wench, witch, you name it.
If a foreigner heard, they'd be shocked that a Holy Kingdom citizen was badmouthing her.
Especially the Saintess; he might get reported just for that.
"Hoo, calm down. First things first—gotta get out."
The man steadied his breathing.
Step one: escape the capital. Only one left now.
Notify the archbishops outside about the Holy Kingdom's situation.
He caught his breath and steeled his resolve.
Soon, he set off swiftly toward the border.
Fortunately, he hadn't been caught yet.
He passed the border checkpoint, ragged breaths from tension easing.
"Hold up."
"...Something wrong?"
Had he been made?
Hiding his anxiety, he eyed the guard.
The guard paused before pointing at his horse.
"One horse for the whole trip? You're heading to the Empire—might give out midway."
"Ah, it'll be fine. Planning to rest it plenty along the way."
"If you say so."
Luckily, just nosiness.
The guard nodded him through.
The man thanked him and spurred his horse past the post.
"Whew, gave me a scare. Then again, news wouldn't have spread here yet."
The Saintess's rebellion had been too sudden.
No warning whatsoever; it'd take time for word to spread.
With that, he rode hard.
Galloping mountain paths and plains, pushing the pace.
He even broke rules by infusing the horse's stamina with holy power.
"The Goddess is omniscient and omnipotent, but holy power isn't."
He'd learned that young; a mistake could kill the horse.
Thankfully, no mishaps—he reached the archbishop in the Empire unscathed.
"Your Grace!"
"Hm? You... What's happened?"
The man's arrival immediately spelled trouble.
He rushed to the archbishop with a frantic expression and delivered the news.
"The Saintess has gone mad!"
"What...?!"
The archbishop recoiled in shock.
The Saintess had rebelled and crushed their entire faction!
He clutched his neck and bellowed.
"W-We return to the Holy Kingdom at once!"
"Yes, sir!"
The archbishops in the Empire flew into chaos.
They scrambled to stop the deranged Saintess.
Packing haphazardly, they hurried back to the Holy Kingdom.