"Isn't the job of the chamberlain to make sure there is nothing dangerous in the emperor's bedchamber, to straighten the bedding and the sheets, and to adjust the lighting and fragrance for the emperor to sleep well? Why should his main job be prayer?"
"Uh, that's…"
"Is there any problem with the work of tidying up the bedchamber and helping the emperor sleep compared to before? If he is a priest, he should not know such things properly."
The emperor could not come up with a clear answer.
In fact, Carlyle was right.
The newly changed chamberlain did bless the emperor when he went to bed and when he woke up in the morning and offered prayers for him, but he was clumsy when it came to the emperor's sleep itself.
However, the emperor, who had not paid much attention to such things in the first place, did not think of changing the chamberlain, even if it meant making a fuss with Beatrice.
"There is something else strange. I heard that you have designated the Day of Martyrs as a national holiday…"
"Yes. That was my decision, so don't argue about it."
"If it is my father's will, how can I dare to say anything? But… is it really my father's will?"
The emperor flinched at Carlyle's words, as he had been tempted to designate the Day of Martyrs as a national holiday because he had been told that he would be given a mural.
Carlyle, roughly guessing the emperor's feelings, pretended not to know and spoke as if he was worried.
"As you know, my father, among the martyrs of Elahaism, there are those who killed religious leaders of several countries bordering our empire. There were also those who claimed that other religions were heresies."
"T, that's right."
"However, if we designate the Day of Martyrs as a national holiday for our empire, it means that we are turning other countries that do not believe in Elahaism into enemies. I wonder how you plan to solve that problem, my father."
The emperor was speechless.
It was a problem he had never thought of.
In the past, the officials who assisted him in governing the country would have pointed it out, but now most of the officials around him were priests or former priests.
There was no way they would oppose designating the Day of Martyrs as a national holiday.
"That's, that's…"
"To be honest, I even thought that someone was sticking to my father's side and clouding my father's judgment. But if it's all my father's decision, then, what…"
As he said this, he added as if he was reluctant to speak.
"In fact, I heard that quite a few temples are embezzling donations. The Holy See seems to know everything and is turning a blind eye."
"Really?"
"Elahaism has become corrupt in many places over time. I also think that they are gradually becoming more and more power-hungry. So I was a little worried and just made some useless noise."
The Emperor nodded with a serious face.
Even though he pretended otherwise, he must have been shocked inside.
'He must have tried to designate the Day of Martyrs as a national holiday without thinking. He didn't even know what kind of deal was going on.'
How will the Emperor react now that he realizes this?
After that, Carlyle glanced at his father, who seemed to be absent-minded and unable to focus on the conversation, and clicked his tongue inwardly.
'That High Priest who just pretends to go along with everything, and my father who enjoys it all…'
He didn't feel sorry or pity for his father.
It is natural that people will try to take advantage of the power when you hold the most power. That's just the way the world is.
In the end, the worst human being was the foolish Emperor who couldn't handle the power he had. He even kicked out everyone who could advise him, so it was a pity.
'The only luck my father has left is that he has me as his son.'
How lucky it is to have a capable son. He must be dying without worrying about the Empire. It's just a bit dangerous that he might die of a stroke because of his son.
Carlyle finished his cup of tea and thought about what to do next.
'Well, I've poked my father enough, now it's time to deal with the cunning High Priest?'
It was finally time to drag the Empress's hidden intentions out onto the battlefield.
***
Whoosh.
Something like black smoke swirled around Gabriel and instantly turned the flowers in the vase to ash.
Gabriel clenched his jaw as he watched the gray ash, which had been flowers just a moment ago, fall to the floor like snowflakes.
'Carlyle Evaristo…!'
He had disliked this human from the moment they first met.
That arrogant attitude, daring to rule over the servants of God just because he was accidentally born as the son of the Emperor.
'I respected the imperial family, but he seems to be crawling up endlessly.'
Within just a few days of arriving in the capital, Carlyle had overturned everything Gabriel had accomplished.
His popularity in social circles soared again, and the evaluation of Perbaze also improved.
The Elahe Order sent a letter to Gabriel questioning his intentions, and the Emperor postponed the designation of the Martyr's Day as a national holiday.
All of that was Carlyle's doing.
Even more, Carlyle criticized religion, or more precisely, Gabriel Knox, wherever he went.
'This is why God bestowed upon me black magic, to build a nation of God against such a human.'
This was true proof that he was the sword of God. It was clear that becoming the youngest High Priest was also to gain access to the secret library where the grimoire was kept.
No matter how much Carlyle was born with the blessing of Aguiles, he couldn't surpass him, who was under the protection of Libato.
He reached into the cage with his hand overflowing with black energy.
"Lara."
The dove, who was preening itself, blinked its innocent eyes at the sound of its name being called and nuzzled its beak against Gabriel's finger.
However, Gabriel didn't even smile at that cute gesture and chanted a low incantation. The black energy swirling around his hand momentarily engulfed the bird.
Screech!
The small dove screeched briefly under the terrible force engulfing its whole body and then slumped weakly, falling from the perch to the floor.
A little bit of blood trickled out from the dove's beak.
'Just a little more practice and I'll be able to use the power freely.'
Gabriel, feeling satisfied, tried to flick the bird's corpse away, but the feather that stuck to his hand felt so dirty that he quickly washed his hand with holy water.
It seemed like the bird's corpse was already emitting a putrid smell. It couldn't be true since it had just died, but Gabriel gagged as if he was smelling a hallucination.
'I need to get rid of that quickly.'
However, he didn't want to touch the rotting dead bird with his own hand.
He soon called the servant working at the temple.
"You called… Gasp! Why, why are you crying, High Priest?"
The seventeen-year-old servant boy was startled by Gabriel's tearful appearance and asked even though he knew it was rude.
Gabriel, without wiping his tears, looked at him and spoke in a sad voice.
"Lara… It seems she ate something bad somewhere. When I came back to the room, she was like this…"
Only then did the boy notice the small lump on the cage floor.
"Oh dear! You must be heartbroken. You loved her so much…"
"Sigh… Life and death are determined by God, so maybe it's against God's will to grieve like this… But I can't bury Lara in the ground myself…"
"Your heart must be aching. I will bury her with care and pray for her. Please leave it to me!"
The boy opened the cage door and carefully picked up the dead bird.
"Don't be too sad. This one must have been happy as your messenger, High Priest."
"Thank you for your comfort. I trust you with Lara."
Gabriel watched the kind-hearted boy leave with the bird's body, his face filled with sadness. As the door closed, his expression completely changed.
'Now that I think of it, didn't that servant say he had no family? That means there's no one to mourn him when he dies…'
He mulled over this thought with a cold face, when someone came to see him.
"High Priest, I have news of His Highness Carlyle."
"Come in, brother."
He was a priest who had become Gabriel's puppet. Now, most of the priests of the Golden Bough Brotherhood are corrupted by Gabriel's black magic and follow his orders more than the scriptures, but they themselves are completely unaware of their strange condition.
"What has His Highness Carlyle been saying?"
"He has been saying that the Elaha Order is invading the imperial court and even taking over the positions of the nobles."
"How have the nobles reacted?"
"It seems many of them agree and are alarmed. Some even excitedly say they will stop supporting the temple."
"Those filthy pigs!"
This was a rather harsh word for Gabriel to say. He was that furious.
"This country has fallen! They dare to try to blackmail God with such a few coins, when the offerings they make are a token of their gratitude for his grace!"
"You are right, High Priest! But they are only chasing after immediate benefits, and His Highness Carlyle is using their vulgarity to hinder the establishment of the Holy Empire. This is dangerous!"
Gabriel nodded slowly, agreeing with the priest.
"Indeed. It seems His Highness Carlyle needs to be taught humility before God."