Chapter Five: Tongue-Tied
I came to a sudden halt.
“Why… is she here?”
Looking up, my gaze shifted back and forth across Victoria before finally resting on Margaret’s pale, serene face.
“We’re here to bid farewell to the warriors. To those innocent people who died in this disaster… right?”
As I stopped, naturally, Her Majesty the Queen, who was holding my hand, stopped too. And when she paused, everyone else was stuck too. The people who had stood up from their folding chairs were now looking confused, and the clerics carrying the coffins behind them were frozen in place, exchanging puzzled glances.
“What’s going on? This is…”
“Why aren’t we moving…”
The crowd began to murmur.
In front of me, Margaret, clad in a pure white nun’s outfit, remained unfazed as she looked directly at me and nodded gently.
“Yes.”
“Good.”
I nodded back and reiterated my previous question, “So why is she here?”
This time I put a little more emphasis on it.
My helmet tilted slightly with the motion of my head, and I raised a hand to adjust it.
“You know she shouldn’t be here.”
Though I didn’t really believe that.
The so-called funeral ceremony was just a way for the living to soothe themselves. Most of those coffins probably didn’t even contain bodies; just like Tanis, their flesh had long turned to ash in the inferno of the cellar, turning to dust that could never be found again.
That pitch-black coffin representing Teresa was no exception. She was already shattered to pieces; if she had a soul, I must have consumed it along with the monsters she embodied—leaving nothing behind. So prayers and ceremonies were pointless.
d*ath is d*ath; once it’s gone, there’s nothing left.
I understood those facts…
But just like my impatience to participate in the ceremony. At this moment, I was angry that Teresa should receive such honorable treatment even in d*ath.
I was very angry.
Despite having figured out why Teresa was here in those few seconds, it couldn’t quell the growing blaze of fury in my heart; it was more like adding fuel to the fire, pushing my emotions to the brink of bursting out of my throat.
I struggled to suppress it.
“Silvya.”
Victoria seemed to want to say something to me.
But being Her Majesty the Queen, she undoubtedly knew the details, so I didn’t want to hear her speak.
“Margaret.” I stared intently at the beautiful face of the Saint through the narrow gap in my helmet, “Is this how the Church operates?”
Margaret remained silent for a moment, her face tense, before she finally sighed.
“Miss Silvya, please share your thoughts.”
“I won’t bid farewell for her.”
I spoke my mind plainly to her.
I understood the Church’s intentions. After all, Teresa had more prestige among the common people than the Saint herself; hiding her story so that her d*ath seemed ‘justifiable and in line with public sentiment’ would prevent upheaval in the populace and save the Church from unnecessary trouble—a good thing for everyone involved.
But I just couldn’t get over my own feelings. Such things… filled me with a deep-seated disgust that made it impossible for me to ignore it, unlike Victoria.
So maybe I was being willful.
“I hate this. Margaret, if you—”
“How dare you call the Saint by her name!”
A sharp female voice suddenly pierced the air, interrupting whatever I was about to say.
I frowned and adjusted my helmet, glancing sideways—to see a beautiful woman draped in a black robe striding over, aided by a portly middle-aged man, coming to stand beside Margaret.
I recognized her as Victoria’s mother alongside her uncle.
“Who are you, to show such disrespect to the Saint! Do you want the Deity to rain down divine punishment on us again? I don’t know what bias you hold against Sister Teresa, but you need to realize what you’re saying!”
Victoria’s mother furiously pointed at me, seemingly trying to attract everyone’s attention as her agitation grew.
“This is a sacred church, a solemn funeral ceremony! Sister Teresa was a great hero; she sacrificed her life for the people of the Royal City! How dare you not want us to bid her farewell! Who do you think you are, to disdain our hero and openly provoke the authority of the Holy Church? You’re really something!”
Her emotions ran high, and by the end, her voice trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes. The sudden situation left me a bit stunned, then I heard the people around me begin to whisper.
“Her Majesty the Empress…”
“What’s going on… Why is there such a commotion…”
“It seems someone doesn’t want us to bid farewell to Sister Teresa…”
“That little knight over there…”
“Why? Who is he, how dare he…”
“Shh! Keep it down… he’s standing next to Her Majesty the Queen…”
Right now, I was draped in a plain black cloak meant for the funeral, not the Pope Knight’s ceremonial mantle. Plus, I had come in on a whim and the farewell segment hadn’t even started, so most people didn’t know who I was. Hearing the Empress’ outraged accusations, while they hadn’t taken any drastic actions yet, their gazes towards me had turned distinctly hostile.
This sparked my frustration; my bl**d was boiling, and I was barely holding back the impulse to punch her, I lowered my voice and retorted, “You really don’t know who I am?”
“I don’t care who you are! You’re blaspheming—”
Before she could finish, Victoria immediately interrupted.
“Mother, what kind of play are you putting on now?”
The Empress narrowed her eyes at her: “Victoria, did you bring this guest?”
“Ha.”
A scornful laugh escaped from inside Victoria’s helmet.
She ignored her mother entirely and turned to Margaret, speaking calmly, “Saint, I think we should take Miss Silvya’s opinions into account, don’t you think?”
When she pronounced my name, her cool voice raised slightly, making sure those nearby heard it clearly.
“Ah… so that’s…”
“Miss Silvya, the hero who saved the Royal City…”
“Why is she wearing men’s armor…?”
“Did she really say we shouldn’t bid farewell to Sister Teresa…?”
“Is there some misunderstanding here…?”
Their tone shifted in an instant.
Meanwhile, Margaret nodded gently, ready to respond, but the Empress suddenly grabbed her hand.
“Saint, I know that Silvya is also a Pope Knight and the hero who saved the Royal City, but that does not give her the excuse to act recklessly! I’ve seen how hard Sister Teresa worked in the Royal City for all those years… Just push open the doors of the church and see how many people are praying for her right now. If you really…”
“I know what to do.”
Margaret’s eyebrows knitted together, her expression stern.
“Your Majesty, please let go. Such an action is very disrespectful… Just as you said, this is a solemn ceremony.”
“But—”
“Mother…”
Victoria let out a slight sigh.
She leaned in closer to the Empress, lowering her voice significantly: “Let the royal family maintain some dignity, will you?”
The Empress’s eyes widened in shock.
“What!”
Her trembling finger pointed at Victoria, her perturbed eyes open wide, filled with disbelief.
“Victoria, how can you say Sister Teresa is a demon! You’re inviting divine punishment upon yourself!”
