Chapter 167
Chapter 167
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 167
Chapter Title: The Heresy Report
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New Year.
When a new year arrives, most people inevitably get busy.
But Evelyn Gurgurt Howard, one of the low priests of the Holy Kingdom, was spending days just a tiny bit busier than everyone else.
Welcoming pilgrims commemorating the new year.
Meeting with the faithful who wished to repent for the sins they committed last year and move forward into the new year afresh.
Catechism lessons for parishioners turning ten this year.
And finally, celebrations for the birthdays of family members that would soon come one after another.
Among these, the birthday celebrations seemed the simplest and easiest to handle, but ironically, it was precisely those that were plunging Evelyn into the greatest hardship right now.
Celebrations didn't require anything extravagant—just writing a letter would suffice.
But the bizarre situation of having to remember the birthdays of no fewer than six people in a mere two months or so raised the difficulty of that simple, trivial task sky-high.
They were too close together temporally for casual chit-chat to fill the letters.
Yet lumping them into a single group celebration felt too perfunctory for the day a precious life had been born, and using similar phrasing across them was no different from grouping them together.
And so, for Evelyn, her family's birthdays were days of joy and torment alike.
If only a few had birthdays outside of winter, like William whose fell in autumn, she wouldn't have to agonize like this...
"Hoo..."
Evelyn let out a deep sigh, gazing at the clear blue sky with a gloomy expression.
She had roughly finished the letter celebrating her youngest sister Hayes's approaching birthday, but for the remaining five family members, she already felt at a loss as to what to write.
"Haa..."
And so Evelyn kept heaving endless sighs, wringing out letter phrases from her dry cloth of a mind like squeezing water from it.
"Haa... Maybe I should return to the Empire next year..."
But what emerged was petty whining about wanting to escape the current situation.
It was merely a fleeting thought, but Evelyn felt disgust toward herself for even entertaining such a horrible notion.
She had chosen the path of the Holy Kingdom to walk the priestly way while studying theology, yet here she was agonizing over a mere letter...
"No, I need to stop these useless thoughts..."
Evelyn slapped her cheeks hard, rose from her seat, and tightly gripped the cross resting gently against her chest.
Scolding herself to stop the unseemly behavior, she ended her break and headed into the grand cathedral.
Priests bustling about to prepare for the daily masses and sacraments.
Monks assisting them with odd jobs at their sides.
Pilgrims reverently offering prayers amid the priests and monks.
"Hm...?"
As Evelyn slowly made her way toward where she belonged, scanning the parishioners absorbed in their tasks, she spotted a nun rushing desperately toward her in the corner of her vision and halted her steps.
"Father Evelyn!"
"Sister Karen."
A loud voice, frivolous behavior.
Within the cathedral, calm and decorous conduct was basic etiquette, a fundamental reverence toward the Holy Father the faithful served. So Evelyn glared at the nun named Karen with wide eyes.
"Sister, what is it? Raising your voice so noisily and running so frivolously inside the cathedral."
"F-Father, have you heard the news?"
"News? What news are you referring to?"
"They say your brother has been reported to the Heresy Tribunal."
"...?"
Evelyn tilted her head in bewilderment at Karen's words, lightly tapped both her ears with her hands, then flashed a gentle smile.
"Sister Karen, what is it?"
As if nothing had happened, Evelyn calmly posed the question, but her mouth smiled while her eyes did not, fixing Karen with a chilling stare.
"W-Well, um, I mean... Have you heard the rumor that your brother was reported as a heretic...?"
"Huh... I keep hearing strange noises echoing in my ears."
"Father, it's not hallucinations or denial of reality—your brother really was reported as a heretic!"
"Lord have mercy..."
No matter how many times she repeated it, Karen's answer remained the same, so Evelyn pinched the bridge of her nose and swept a trembling hand over her face.
"Just which brother was reported?"
"I don't know the details—just heard it was 'a child of the Hume Earldom' and came running. But they say a Heretic Inquisitor has already departed for the Empire. Anyway, since a report was filed, they have to investigate."
"I see. Thank you for letting me know. I have urgent business to attend to, so may I take my leave?"
Expressing thanks to Karen for the news, Evelyn plastered on the best smile she could muster right now, seeking to end the conversation quickly.
"Ah..., uh... Y-Yes, go ahead."
"Thank you."
Faced with Evelyn's menacing smile, Karen paled, stiffly nodding her rigid head with creaking motions to hastily conclude the talk.
Evelyn gave a light bow by way of greeting to such a Karen, brushed past her, then immediately dropped the smile, her face hardening rigidly as she headed straight for the office of the archbishop who oversaw the cathedral.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ Two days after the new year had dawned.
"Your Imperial Majesty, it is most regrettable, but a report has come in suspecting Howard Baron, a noble of the Empire, of heresy."
The shocking news delivered by the stuffy cleric who had visited the palace.
Of all people, the absurd nonsense that William was a 'heretic.'
His mood thoroughly soured by the ridiculous claim, the Emperor scowled at the cardinal in a slouched posture.
"Cardinal Gregory, what did you just say?"
"A report of heresy against Howard Baron has come in, so regrettably, we must investigate him."
"Ha, haha, hahahaha! Howard Baron a heretic..."
Laughter burst forth.
William was no one deserving of being labeled a heretic.
He didn't challenge the Church's actions, question its doctrines, or oppose the teachings it proclaimed.
From the Church's perspective, he might cause a bit of trouble, but was it enough to warrant cries of heresy? Asked that, a hundred out of a hundred would say no.
If the cardinal had said he came to warn against 'behavior disrupting public morals,' the Emperor would have thought, It's finally here.
That's why he was so curious.
Which lunatic had reported William?
Which madman had blown this out of proportion?
"Which lunatic filed the report?"
"For the protection of the accuser, we cannot yet reveal that."
"Even if they're slandering an innocent as a heretic? You're going to shield scum like that too?"
"That can only be determined after investigation, can it not? If you wish to rebuke us, please do so after Howard Baron's innocence is confirmed."
"......"
Speechless at the cardinal calmly spouting doctrine even under the Emperor's fierce glare, His Majesty was at a loss for words.
Parroting platitudes like parrots, utterly devoid of flexibility—these dullards.
This was why he despised clerics.
But since it was doctrine, he had no choice but to comply despite his reluctance, which only deepened his aversion.
"What if I refuse the investigation?"
"Then we would have no choice but to suspect the Emperor of the Empire of heresy as well."
"Are you certain?"
"No. How could we dare declare heresy without investigation? If he is innocent, should he not cooperate fully? When a heresy report comes in, we investigate thoroughly to ensure no rumors linger afterward. It is an ironclad rule established after countless innocents suffered false accusations."
"Tch..."
He wanted to block it if possible, but ultimately, all they sought was an investigation—there was no justification to stop it.
Unpleasant as it was that his Empire had to defer to the Church, they were seeking his permission out of deference, so he needed to show mutual respect.
"Very well. I permit the Church to investigate Howard Baron. But I have several conditions for granting this permission."
"We will hear them and decide."
"One, an imperial observer will attend the entire investigation process. Two, should Howard Baron's innocence be proven, we demand to know the identity of his accuser. Three, the one who falsely accused Howard Baron will be punished by us directly—do not touch them, Church."
"We accept the first and second so long as they do not interfere with the investigation. But the third is unacceptable. False accusations of heresy are a grave error even for the Church. Thus, we cannot delegate punishment to outsiders."
"Then how will the Church handle them?"
"We will treat them as apostates."
"......"
They'd haggle and mitigate the sentence once actually investigated, but it meant the Church was even considering excommunication.
It was a somewhat disappointing answer since he sought firm assurance of severe punishment, but pushing further would be unreasonable.
"Understood."
The Emperor nodded grudgingly, finally permitting William's investigation.
The cardinal then smiled faintly, bowing his head as he replied.
"Thank you, Your Majesty. We will commence the investigation the moment the Heretic Inquisitor arrives in four days, so please prepare your observer by then."
"So be it."
With that, the Emperor dismissively waved the cardinal away.
"Hoo..."
Watching the cardinal exit the audience chamber, the Emperor sighed deeply, stressed at starting the new year with such a headache, and gently massaged his stiffly furrowed brow with his fingers.