Chapter 77

When I was young, I never imagined that a moment like this would come to me.

The Emperor is such a person. Someone so far removed from a commoner like me.

Even though he is ultimately just a person, the places we live are too different. I never expected to meet him like this, let alone have him call for me first, but I must not forget.

What my role is.

What the Lord intends to do through me.

The so-called “burning house” analogy can explain His will. The Lord knows how people should live righteously, but His words are not easily heard by the ears of the people of this world.

Those who groan in immediate pain and live only for today without knowing tomorrow are too busy just surviving. The Lord knows this well.

Imagine a house where flames leap out of the hearth, covering the floor and ceiling, beginning to burn everything inside. In the living room of this house, two children are so engrossed in playing with their toys that they don’t notice the house being engulfed in smoke and flames.

At this moment, their father sees the black smoke rising and shouts at the children.

He yells for his beloved children to run out of the burning house, but his cries don’t reach the children absorbed in their play. If the flames reach their feet, they will notice, but by then, it will be too late, and everything will be beyond saving.

Fortunately, this wise father knows well that people are driven by gain. He pulls out new toys and pretty dolls from his bag and shouts, “My children, my dear ones, here are wonderful toys. If you come out of the house, I will give these to you.”

Only then do the children, blinded by the toys, run out of the house. The burning house collapses, and the children, driven by desire, almost never see their father again, but moved by the means of salvation he provided, they manage to save themselves.

This burning house is the world, and the flames and smoke are the evil hearts that consume people.

Hearts that harm others. Hearts that tear each other down. Hearts full of hatred and resentment. Lust and competitiveness… However, as long as people live as people, these things inevitably coexist with them.

If we don’t light a fire in the hearth because of the danger of fire, are we to live only by reproduction from now on? Should we shiver under the covers on cold nights?

Just as fire is essential to human life, these evil thoughts are, to some extent, indispensable. They cannot be separated by will, nor can they be endured through abstinence.

One can transcend them through asceticism, but that path is not for everyone. Denying one’s humanity and walking the path of a saint is a holy act, but for ordinary people, it is no different from walking a thorny path.

Therefore, the path we must take is to keep the fire from burning ourselves and only in the hearth by adding the right amount of firewood.

However, in the world, there are many who do not understand this principle and have already let the fire grow so much that it burns their own house. The Lord sends down a shower called Divine Power to save them from danger.

To us, who are like foolish children in His eyes, He dangles the toy of Divine Power to make us follow Him.

Blinded by this toy, we follow Him, and before we know it, we successfully avoid the crisis that was right in front of us.

That is the reason and the will behind the Lord granting me Divine Power. Have I been living up to this will?

“Taking away the Observatory of Star’s Dream might not have been simply because I doubted the Lord.”

It was a warning against pride. It was a command to fulfill my role.

While accompanying the Hero Party, I helped them defeat demon kings in various places, but perhaps that was not the Lord’s will from the beginning. It may not have been against His will, but it certainly wasn’t in alignment with it.

He simply respected my will and watched over me, but He didn’t let it continue any longer.

Then He sent an angel to warn me of the cycle. Whatever it is, I need to find out quickly. Just as the Princess almost missed her father’s final moments, perhaps I don’t have much time left either.

“That priest.”

“Perhaps the Ancient God’s…”

“The one who created that droplet-like thing…”

The grand hall, fitting its size, was almost empty, with fewer than twenty people standing here and there, looking at me. The owners of these focused gazes are likely the ones who can sway the empire just by being here.

However, none of them are the master of this place. An old man, leaning slightly on the throne, wearing a dragon robe embroidered with golden dragons, quietly looked at me. Since he wanted to see not only me but also Roka, Roka was now behind me. Roka, with her head bowed, glanced around and then wrote something on my back with her finger.

– Still not as good as the sun.

I don’t know what it means, but she didn’t seem scared.

His Majesty the Emperor didn’t seem like someone who had trained in any special martial arts or honed his magical power, but the position makes the person. He is someone who has reigned above all for a lifetime.

Just looking down silently can freeze a person’s heart. But even so, even clothed in power, he remains an ordinary person.

Having faced Grimudo and the Death God, His Majesty just seemed tired to me. He didn’t look ill. His Majesty’s body seemed very healthy, so the fatigue must have come from the mental part.

“The hero who saved the royal family and the empire has arrived. Come here.”

His Majesty the Emperor opened his mouth and called us, and we had no choice but to go.

And there was no reason not to go. Only then did I see that the Princess was already kneeling there. It didn’t seem like she was being punished for a mistake, but rather following the etiquette of a subject.

“A priest only kneels before God and His representatives. You are not my subject, so you don’t need to kneel like this child.”

Having said that, His Majesty the Emperor looked at one of the people present and opened his mouth.

I know that person too. I just met him.

“Look, Archbishop. This child searched the continent to find the Ancient God’s priest to save me. Then, breaking through a long journey, he came to me and offered a golden fruit. I haven’t felt this light in my body in a long time. This child is so filial that the Ancient God was moved and even cured my leprosy. Do you still think my daughter Ardein is under divine punishment?”

I learned once again today that words depend on how you say them.

Glancing at the Princess, she had an expression as if her conscience was pricked by a needle. With her head bowed, only I beside her could see it.

By the way, the golden droplet. It seems His Majesty has taken the Firefly Meringue.

As with all things in the world, destroying is faster than creating. Wounds on the skin can heal but leave scars, and poison can be detoxified, but the damage done to the body until then cannot be completely repaired. Especially with chronic poison or heavy metals, it’s even more so.

However, the efficacy of the Firefly Meringue, which is almost like recreating the body, ignores all such limitations once in a lifetime. The fact that His Majesty looks healthier means that the reason he was dying wasn’t simply due to lifespan.

“Your Majesty. Since the Ancient God’s will is at work in this matter, our Three God Faith has no further objections. However, once Your Majesty and the priest’s audience is over, may we of the Nemi Church have a brief conversation with the priest?”

“As long as you do not force an audience upon my benefactor, it is fine.”

Archbishop Armata looked at the man who answered with angry eyes. He was wearing the Nemi Church’s holy robes, holding a bottle of wine, sipping it even in the presence of the Emperor. Everyone saw the red liquid, likely wine, pass into his mouth.

“Halonen. Does wine still pass your throat in such a place?”

“What is wine? It comes from grains and fruits. What is the difference between me praising this wine and praising the earth that nurtures it?”

Archbishop Halonen of the Nemi Church’s Grantea diocese. I think I heard about him from Yurinel.

And the name of another archbishop residing in the capital is probably…

“Arice. My friend and I think this way, but what about you? We are three heads, so we should decide by majority.”

Yes, Arice. Archbishop Arice of the Elysia Church.

Just by looking at her, she seems like a stubborn woman who wouldn’t compromise, her crystal-like eyes sparkling as she looked at the two archbishops, then shifted her gaze to the Princess.

“Just reporting the birth of the Death God is a great merit. Our Elysia Church will not oppose Ardein’s return to the position of Princess.”

“Archbishop Arice. This child has always been my daughter.”

“We have never thought so.”

“Then it’s decided.”

Just as the atmosphere was turning cold, Archbishop Halonen, who had been drinking, spoke up at the perfect moment.

“Your Majesty. Our Three God Faith welcomes the return of Princess Ardein and believes without doubt that she has been forgiven by the three goddesses. We have already sent a letter to the Church Country regarding the revocation of her excommunication, so within three days at the latest, the three popes will agree, and we dare to predict that our opinion will be accepted.”

“This child is so filial, would I give her a high position?”

Someone flinched. It’s someone I know.

Actually, I just met him. The Third Prince couldn’t hide his bewildered expression.

The elderly man next to him seemed to glance at me for a moment, then turned his head away when he realized our eyes met. I’ve never seen him before. But somehow, he resembles His Majesty.

“I oppose… Ugh! Ugh!”

“Can we really interfere in Your Majesty’s affairs? Do as Your Majesty wishes.”

A hand made of stone and soil blocked Archbishop Armata’s mouth as he tried to shout.

Archbishop Halonen, who smiled as if nothing had happened, glanced at the Third Prince, who was looking at him pitifully, took a sip of wine, and continued.

“Your Majesty. The merit of reviving you is truly immense. Who could deny such a merit? But may I humbly ask how high a position this is?”

“You need not worry about what you are concerned about.”

Leaning on his chin, His Majesty spoke.

“I will issue an imperial decree. Ardein von Illumina is appointed as the Grand Judge of the Empire’s Supreme Court. Additionally, she is appointed as the Circuit Judge.”

What does this mean? I’m not well-versed in imperial politics, nor am I interested, so I don’t know.

But seeing the eyes of the big shots here widen, it seems like no ordinary position.

But His Majesty didn’t stop there.

“I will bestow a sacred duty. Ardein von Illumina is appointed as the Captain of the Imperial Guard.”

“Your Majesty, that is…”

“She has already become a Master. If I don’t give this much respect to a Master, what Master in the world would come under the empire?”

The Prince’s expression twisted. He didn’t even try to hide it.

The old man next to him, startled, placed a hand on his shoulder, and he regained his composure, but everyone had already noticed the turmoil within. Perhaps His Majesty knew too.

“And I appoint her as the Inspector of the Imperial Direct Inspection Bureau, with the authority to oversee all military forces of the empire.”

“Forgive my impertinence, but is the fourth position the Crown Prince’s?”

Archbishop Arice muttered with a sour expression.

His Majesty the Emperor shook his head and laughed.

“That is all.”

Was it just my imagination that his eyes seemed to draw a slight arc?

“There are no more positions to give. Only an object remains. Now, bring it in. Finally, someone qualified to handle this object has appeared in the royal family.”