Chapter 74

“What right do you think you have?”

“Uh… I thought the Bishop Two was the quiet type, sir? Ack, you’re glaring— cute enough to give me a heart attack, yes, no backtalk, understood! Very well!”

Alexa spoke as if she’d been waiting for this moment, without the slightest hint of fluster.

“Pope candidates have the right to petition the Central Committee directly if a serious personal issue arises, do they not? Our candidate merely exercised that right.”

I could’ve applauded her on the spot.

Good. Perfect.

I looked at my ever-faithful spokesperson with satisfaction, recalling an earlier conversation with her.

“…But, Candidate, how exactly did you know about this clause? It’s printed so tiny here.”

“I memorized it.”

“Oh… Sometimes, you really don’t seem like a three-year-old, you know that?”

Her eyes sharpened, suddenly cool and cutting. Alexa’s whole face changed when she wasn’t smiling.

‘I remember how she caught me off guard with that.’

When I’d told her, ‘Actually, I’m twenty—God just gave me extra years,’ she’d thought it was a joke and laughed it off.

Back in the present, with my help, Alexa easily overpowered the arguments of the other bishops who’d started piling on.

‘A pope candidate who’s just survived a near-death incident wants to exercise her rightful authority—what are you going to do about it?’

What’s a bishop going to do—break the Church’s own rules?

“…This is the sort of matter you ought to have addressed directly, Candidate Nemesia.”

I could feel Bishop Two Leriel’s gaze on me, but I only burrowed deeper into Daddy’s arms as if I knew nothing.

‘Yup, Nemesia’s three, so Nemesia doesn’t know much about stuff like this~.’

Today’s concept: the power behind the throne.

“It’s the end times indeed, when a mere knight dares to answer back to a bishop’s words at every turn…”

Having lost the logical battle, an elderly, stiff-necked bishop now resorted to showing his displeasure.

Bishop Two followed with,

“…Sir, you make a fair point, but this was decided within the Inner Court. Even a young candidate such as yourself knows what the Court is, yes?”

Of course I did—the presiding judges of the three Courts within the Order. But so what?

You people didn’t punish Usher properly, did you?

“Yes, and that’s exactly the problem. Why did this not go to the Grand Tribunal? We’re talking about a matter of great importance here.”

Alexa glanced at me, then drove the nail in.

“The precious pope candidate was attacked by a holy knight, and her guardian—the one safeguard she had—was branded a berserker and subjected to a grueling interrogation. Do you truly call that proper punishment?”

“That is correct, under proper procedures—”

“…You didn’t even ask Nemesia what happened, though?”

My sudden interjection snapped Bishop Two’s mouth shut just as he was about to wrap things up.

“…Candidate?”

Alexa’s eyes widened in surprise. She clearly hadn’t expected me to butt in now.

‘I figured it’d come to this.’

I’d hoped Alexa could wrap it all up herself, but seeing Bishop Two try to casually smooth things over—no chance.

‘Ugh, I’d been holding back because stepping in now will just make things tougher later.’

Seems the Bishop Two is immune to indirect pressure.

‘This much is enough. I can see the seed of change.’

It’ll be a bit of a hassle for me to step forward now, but…

If it’s for Daddy—if I can make it clear to everyone here that messing with us means things will turn out like this—then no one will dare touch us again.

I can live as the Church’s darling from now on.

“I got better, but I was really hurt. And nobody even came to say sorry.”

“Ahem, that’s because it would be inappropriate to have the perpetrator face the candidate again—”

“Nemesia was hurt, so why do other people get to decide the punishment? Isn’t the opinion of the one who was hurt important?”

As my little voice brought up the incident again, Bishop One—who’d been bored and uninvolved until now—suddenly looked intrigued.

The two older bishops looked rattled.

“Punishment should hurt just as much as the harm done. But Alexa said the punishment wasn’t painful at all. And the people who hurt Daddy weren’t punished at all.”

And the Bishop Two…

“Or maybe… the people who hurt Nemesia and the ones who hurt Daddy are on the same side as the people who decided the punishment?”

He alone fell silent, eyelids lifting just a fraction for the briefest moment.

‘Whoa, that was actually a little scary.’

Nothing good ever comes from priests opening their eyes like that!

Bishop Two asked quietly,
“I see. Then, Candidate Nemesia, what punishment would you like to see given?”

I already had something in mind.

I was just about to raise my hand and speak when—

“I’ll answer on behalf of my ward. Will you allow that?”

A low, deep voice spoke above my head. This time, I was the one caught off guard.

Huh? Daddy?

“The candidate is not yet familiar with the Church’s punishment system, nor what is appropriate in such cases. I ask that you let me, as a fellow holy knight, speak instead.”

“Heh, amusing. Go ahead, you lowborn.”

Bishop Two granted the request, and Daddy ignored the insult completely.

“Labor reformation sentence. Send him near the Land of Darkness and have him deal with ten paranormal phenomena there.”

I blinked.

Wait, that’s even better than what I’d planned.

The Land of Darkness, where S-rank aberrations run rampant…

And they’re going to send a fanatic there for labor reform?

‘Oh, that’s going to be a team-kill masterpiece.’

Daddy probably didn’t know the details, but sending a fanatic to hunt monsters? Brilliant.

“Hold on now, didn’t you say Sir Usher Tatum was simply misunderstood? Isn’t that punishment a bit excessive for a misunderstanding?”

Ugh, from the way this guy keeps taking Usher’s side, he’s probably one of his backers.

“Misunderstanding or not, attacking a pope candidate is a grave offense that must be dealt with severely.”

From the safety of Daddy’s arms, I could tell.

‘…He’s shaking.’

[“Daddy” is under extreme stress! He’s trembling!]

[Let’s restore his composure with a kiss!]

[Give him a kiss!]

‘Forget the kiss, do it outside! Outside!’

Even a rotten bishop might notice the sign over my head, and that would be bad.

“…Have you perhaps overlooked the fact that my candidate has a real chance of becoming Pope?”

In other words—one of these candidates will be pope. Are you really okay with brushing off an attack on a future pope?

Can you handle the consequences?

No matter the world, “responsibility” was always the most dangerous word to the powerful.

For the first time, Bishop Two’s expression hardened.

“Ha ha ha! Well now. Lowborn, you’ve got more interesting things to say than I expected.”

Only Bishop One Nathaniel seemed amused.

“Bishop, there are far too many creatures of the Evil God in the outside world.”

“And?”

“Even without pushing him to the extremes my unit once faced at the frontlines, it will suffice. For a capable holy knight like Sir Usher Tatum, it will be a chance to wash away the disgrace of his crime.”

Ah, so he’s basically saying—You had no problem working the Azure Knights to death, so why is it suddenly a waste to send Usher out there?

‘Daddy… for someone who’s shaking, you sure talk well.’

I seized the moment.

“Give the same punishment to the people who hurt Daddy too!”

“Very well.”

I froze. I’d expected him to drag it out or deflect, but Bishop Two agreed without hesitation.

“Hold on, Bishop Leriel! You’re agreeing to Sir Sacrum’s request?”

The elderly bishop who’d been quietly defending Usher until now leapt to his feet.

“The Azure Knights were apostates who hid and revered corrupted holy knights to the end, while Sir Tatum is a truly noble holy knight! Anyone can make a mistake!”

Wow. Defending the perpetrator right in front of the victim—bold move.

He seemed about to continue, but shut his mouth under Bishop Two’s stare.

“No. I accept Candidate Nemesia’s request.”

“Well, well. What wind blows to make the stonewall Leriel Bishop so agreeable?”

Bishop One mocked him but didn’t oppose.

“Even my pupil Betty testified to having witnessed a horrific scene.”

I glanced at Betty.

Like Leriel, she sat with eyes closed.

Meanwhile, Flora’s eyes sparkled with excitement.

…That’s how you watch a show properly.

“We were already conducting a quiet investigation, but with a direct request like this, there’s no reason to delay.”

Leriel’s expression as he looked at me was anything but ordinary. Not that I was surprised—I’d seen the flicker of interest in his face when I’d first stepped in.

‘So he’s decided to keep an eye on me from now on.’

Guess predicting who will become pope is just as important to the bishops as it is to anyone else.
 

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Translator: Japchae