<Chapter 98>

“A thing, you say?”

“Just a moment.”

I opened my handbag and pulled out a small statue.

‘Honestly, I was planning to secretly place this in the imperial palace to sanctify it.’

I never expected to end up using it like this.

“This statue here is quite special. It allows prayers to reach God even without a priest.”

“Prayers without a priest? Is that even possible?”

“With this statue, it is. This is the only item I took from the Great Temple.”

Just as the Emperor, his eyes filled with curiosity, reached out for the statue, I pulled it back into my arms with a regretful expression.

“This is something incredibly rare, only obtainable because I’m a Saintess candidate. You can’t find it anywhere else… It’s truly, truly special…”

“Give me that statue! I’ll pay you a million gold!”

Huh?

“But this is my only personal possession… my entire fortune…”

“Ten million gold!”

“May you receive your blessing back soon, Your Majesty.”

Phew. Once I get home, I should buy the Holy Knights something nice to eat.

‘It was just a piece of wood I picked up from the forest and carved, so it didn’t even cost me anything.’

Total jackpot.

“Wait a moment. But this statue… it looks a little odd…”

“Sorry? What do you mean by odd?”

You’re not trying to haggle over the price, are you, dear… customer?

“This statue… doesn’t it resemble a woman?”

“What? What do you mea—”

Wait. The way he said that, as if it’s a problem that the statue looks like a woman…

…Wait, wait.

‘Don’t tell me… When they burned the scriptures 300 years ago, did they destroy all the statues too? And then change the Goddess into a God to erase Her existence completely?’

The reason the old, broken statues still remained in the North was that no priests or Holy Knights had been dispatched there.

‘But Viscount Khodchen never mentioned this!’

Then again, that old man didn’t seem like the type to care about something like that.

Before the Emperor’s suspicion could deepen, I let out a long, exaggerated sigh.

“Oh dear… Losing your blessing must have affected your eyesight…”

“W-what did you just say?”

“Look carefully. What do you see?”

I asked, filling my gaze with sympathy. The Emperor hesitated, then examined the statue again before nodding slowly.

“Ahem. Must’ve misjudged it because of the worn-down details. Whoever carved this wasn’t particularly skilled.”

“Your Majesty, you mustn’t entertain such thoughts while praying.”

“Of course not! Do you think I lack that much discernment?”

Yes, you do.

“But are you truly saying that with this statue alone, one can pray without a priest? How can that be confirmed?”

“There’s a very simple way to confirm it. Before praying, offer a donation.”

“A donation?”

“Yes. Place an offering before the statue. If Your Majesty prays sincerely, God will accept it.”

“God will personally take the offering… I see, then that would be undeniable proof that my prayers reached Him.”

Is he starting to think that regaining his blessing is just a matter of time?

Looking much more composed now, the Emperor gazed at me with a solemn expression.

“You have been of great help. When I reclaim my blessing, I will make sure to reward you.”

“As I said before, simply being able to assist Your Majesty is an honor. However…”

“However? Is there something troubling you?”

“Yes. Just a little, tiny thing….”

“Speak freely! What is it?”

Feigning hesitation, I pretended to struggle with my words, deliberately drawing out the suspense before finally speaking:

“So, Your Majesty lost your blessing because you removed the holy relic from the treasury, correct? And the reason you did so was because of His Holiness, the Pope…”

“…That is true.”

The Emperor’s expression shifted slightly, as if he hadn’t considered that detail until now.

Casually, as if talking to myself, I murmured under my breath.

“I wonder… Did His Holiness really not foresee this outcome? He surely didn’t know, right? There’s no way he would’ve let Your Majesty lose your blessing on purpose…”

“……”

The Emperor fell silent. His face, now stiff, looked as though he had been struck by an unpleasant realization.

‘Wow, this is actually working.’

I debated whether to drive a bigger wedge between them but decided against it. There’s a reason people say stirring up trouble unnecessarily is unwise.

‘A small crack is enough for now.’

An opportunity to turn that crack into a full-blown rift will surely come later.

Satisfied with today’s progress, I turned to leave.

“Then, Your Majesty, I shall take my leave…”

“You hear the voice of God and have even been possessed by Him… yet you still insist you are not the Saintess.”

The Emperor’s sharp gaze locked onto me.

“If you are so adamant about denying it… does that mean the real Saintess has already appeared in the Great Temple?”

I widened my eyes.

“Oh, and one more thing. The day after the wedding, I had Bishop Roam spread rumors in the capital that the real Saintess had appeared.”

“What? Why did you do that?”

“To divert the Emperor’s attention away from you. If he hears that the real Saintess is in the capital, he might shift his focus elsewhere…”

Temenos, nice shot!

“T-that’s… Ah!”

I gasped, then quickly covered my mouth with both hands as if I had slipped up.

The Emperor let out a short laugh.

“Hah! So it was true after all!”

I deliberately made my voice sound awkward and flustered.

“N-no! That’s not it! The Saintess has already awakened? If that were true, why would His Holiness keep it a secret?”

“He must be scheming something! Just as he plotted to steal the holy relic and strip me of my blessing!”

“But Your Majesty, how could His Holiness possibly…”

“Enough! Duchess, you are no longer part of the Great Temple, yet you stand before me defending the Pope?”

“I’m not defending him! I simply…”

“I don’t want to hear it!”

The Emperor waved his hand, cutting me off. I lowered my head, feigning a troubled expression.

“You are dismissed. Everything you have seen and heard here today… must never be spoken of to anyone outside.”

“Of course, Your Majesty. I will continue to pray that you may regain your blessing as soon as possible.”

Spreading my skirts, I curtsied deeply. Above my head, the Emperor gave his final order:

“Tell the Crown Prince to come in when you leave.”

If you’re going to use me as a messenger, at least pay me for my services.

Internally grumbling, I replied obediently:

“Yes, Your Majesty. I will do so.”

At last, I had successfully escaped.

*  *  *

“Inosensia!”

The moment I stepped out of the audience chamber, Temenos rushed toward me.

His face, partially hidden by his mask, was filled with anxiety.

As soon as I saw his expression, all the tension left my body, and my legs nearly gave out.

“Are you all right?”

“Of course I’m not. I just had the ‘honor’ of a private audience with the Emperor. How could I not be nervous?”

Taking a deep breath, I turned to the Crown Prince, who stood behind Temenos.

“Your Highness. His Majesty has summoned you.”

“Me? Did he say to come in immediately?”

“Yes. His Majesty said he would reward me with ten million gold. I believe that’s what he wishes to discuss with you.”

“His Majesty… promised you that? I see.”

Though he looked doubtful, the Crown Prince stepped inside.

As soon as he disappeared, I clung to Temenos’ arm.

“Ugh, I’m exhausted…”

“What exactly happened in there?”

Temenos steadied me, his voice laced with concern.

Seeing his gaze quickly scan me from head to toe, I waved a hand to reassure him.

“I’ll explain everything at home. Let’s move first.”

“Understood.”

After all, we were still in the Imperial Palace. Who knew who might be listening?

‘It feels like I just survived a storm.’

Still, I handled it well. I mentally replayed my conversation with the Emperor to check for mistakes.

‘It’s okay. I did great.’

Seeing how aged he looked, it’s clear the Emperor can no longer make public appearances. On top of that, he now has to pray to God ten times a day, meaning he won’t have the time or energy to focus on anything else.

‘Naturally, he’ll stop paying attention to Fiona and Blondie, too.’

This is just my guess, but I have a feeling he called the Crown Prince in to hand over the responsibilities of the throne.

‘That would actually work out well for me, but…’

In the novel—at least up to chapter 70, which was as far as I had read—the Crown Prince had only appeared once.

Because of that, there was only one thing I knew about him. But that one thing was incredibly important.

‘The Crown Prince despised the Grand Temple.’

In other words, if I played my cards right, I might be able to form an alliance with him.

“What are you thinking about so intently?”

“The Crown Prince.”

Ha, but seriously, what a shame.

Why didn’t I read the novel all the way to the end? If I had, I would’ve known so much more useful information by now.

‘God, any chance you could send me the full file, even now?’

Of course, no notification window popped up.

Not that I expected one in the first place, but I still pouted in disappointment.

‘If You were going to send me an oracle, You might as well have included the entire novel. What’s the point of just giving me the top-rated comment?’

Sure, it had been helpful, but… huh?

“Wait, where did he go? What are you doing over there?”

Snapping out of my thoughts, I suddenly realized I was standing alone. Flustered, I glanced around, only to spot Temenos standing frozen some distance away.
 

<To be continued>

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