Those who follow one of the various deities and lead a life of faith for a long period gain high [Divinity] values. Only after enduring such asceticism do they finally earn the qualification to receive blessings from the god they serve.
Estriel, who received the blessing of immortality from the Church of Circulation, is a good example.
Astoundingly, however, there are occasionally those who skip this entire process and are born with the authority or blessing of a specific god from birth.
These individuals are called ‘saints.’
The holy relic jointly owned by the various churches of the Holy Nation, the 「Bell of Revelation(S)」, rings loudly throughout the country the moment a new saint is born.
And the instant the Bell of Revelation rings, all administrative power in the Holy Nation moves with the utmost priority to secure the saint. Saints emit strong yang mana from birth, making it easy to track their whereabouts, and upon discovery, they are immediately entrusted to the appropriate church.
Thereafter, regardless of their background, they are granted a position directly below the Holy Sovereign, the nation’s supreme leader.
The woman before me is one of only four saints existing in the current generation of the Holy Nation, and among them, she possesses the highest potential.
She could truly be said to be walking the royal road.
<Flora Markroti>
[Level:59/63]
[HP:15][STR:16][AGI:12]
[MP:24][MEN:06][SEN:16]
[DIV:07]
[Traits:Adjudicator(S+), Saint · Utility(S) and 4 others]
[Skills:Church of Utility Secret Divine Magic · Extreme(S), Utilia Heart Method(A), Utilia Weapon Art(A), Caliroy Secret Blunt Weapon Art(A) and 3 others]
[Description: Age 31, Human. A priest and executor affiliated with the Church of Utility. A member of the current Continent’s Twelve Heroes, and one of the Triple Star considered the most outstanding among them.]
Divinity 7.
Among the people I’ve seen directly since possession, it’s the second highest after Iris Schnifelt, on par with our priestess Clara.
This is thanks to the owners of the 「Saint(S)」 trait being born with Divinity values around 6-7 by default.
That said, she hasn’t reached level 60 yet, which could be considered the benchmark for the Triple Star.
Considering her inherent fragility and the ambiguity typical of hybrid titles, if she fought against Kubri or Tristan at the same level now, she’d likely lose with high probability.
Still, she’s one of the top among the Continent’s Twelve Heroes. You can tell just by the fact that the comparisons are to those two, no one else.
The Sword Saint… is completely out of the question.
“Shall we begin the talks soon?”
Flora sat down with a slightly tense air.
Alexander, the court count, had been staring at the suddenly appeared celebrity with a flustered expression, but as someone hardened by the intrigue-filled royal palace, he quickly composed himself.
“Ahem, excuse me for a moment.”
Soon after, Alexander took out something.
It was none other than a magical item called 「Communication Crystal(A)」, and suddenly, a voice mixed with noise flowed out from it.
「Nice to meet you, sub-master of Blispiel and envoy of the Holy Nation. I am Isabella, the first princess of Glicia and the kingdom’s legitimate successor.」
“A communication magic crystal? Impressive.”
「As you both likely know, due to the internal circumstances of the kingdom, I couldn’t attend in person. I hope you’ll understand.」
Flora and I nodded.
The image projected beyond the crystal sphere gradually became clear, revealing a woman in her twenties who looked noble at a glance.
She was Isabella, the first in line for succession in Glicia.
The communication crystal is a national treasure-level consumable.
The fact that Isabella’s side, which isn’t particularly affluent, used such an item was proof of how seriously they regarded this meeting.
“If it’s not rude, I’d like to get straight to the point.”
「That’s what I hoped for. Then, allow me to ask one thing first, Aiden Stroke. Rumor has it that you’ve rallied the clans of Elanore and declared your intent to oppose the Caracol Clan.」
“That’s correct.”
「May I interpret this series of actions as meaning you’ll join us and eliminate my half-brother, Prince Ramon, who is receiving support from the Caracol Clan?」
“Yes. However, only if Your Highness accepts the conditions we’ve put forward.”
「…Conditions?」
“If victorious in the civil war, please transfer 40% of the kingdom’s administrative rights to our clan alliance. We plan to divide the shares according to victory contributions calculated via the 「Causality Calculator(S)」.”
「As expected, that’s how it comes.」
As rumored, her mind worked quite sharply; Princess Isabella seemed to have anticipated our demands to some extent.
「But 40%. Demanding nearly half the country’s share—isn’t that excessive as compensation for participating in the civil war?」
Hearing that, the corners of my mouth curled up involuntarily.
Where does this lady think she’s getting off easy.
“I’ll raise it to 50%.”
「What…!」
“If you’re not inclined, it doesn’t particularly matter if you don’t accept. Our alliance can simply join hands with a successor who offers better terms. The eldest son born to the first queen consort could claim Prince Ramon’s succession rights if something were to happen to Your Highness.”
「…!」
The custody of Mariana, the king’s illegitimate daughter older than Isabella, had already been transferred from Count Pontiroig.
With such a hidden card, there’s no need to bow down.
「Hmm…」
Isabella suddenly unfolded her fan to hide her expression. She hadn’t expected such directness and seemed greatly flustered.
“What will it be? The more tepid Your Highness is, the more our demanded conditions will inevitably rise. If you keep delaying like this, we’ll demand 60% of the administrative rights…”
「…Hold on. 50% is fine. I accept.」
Isabella replied hastily.
For her, failing to bring us in would be tantamount to offering her neck to Prince Ramon, so she had no other choice.
“I’m glad the negotiations concluded smoothly.”
Flora, who had been quietly observing the sequence of events, finally spoke.
“Then, as the representative of the Church of Utility, which manages inter-clan disputes, I will begin mediation between the Blispiel alliance and the Caracol Clan.”
This is where the main part begins.
I said without hesitation, “We will end this Glicia civil war without sacrificing innocent civilians. Therefore, we request from the Church of Utility a 100-year loan of the 「Balance of Good and Evil(S+)」.”
「…Th-The balance is the Church of Utility’s highest holy relic. But if it can reduce the sacrifice of the innocent, there’s no reason we couldn’t lend it.」
Flora stammered slightly in surprise.
The existence and functions of high-level holy relics fall under important classified information, but those with deep knowledge in archaeology or strong intelligence networks can roughly grasp the details.
“Additionally, depending on the outcome of this negotiation, our alliance will actively support the Caliroy Holy Nation. That’s a price Caracol would find hard to promise, isn’t it?”
“Hmm…”
One of the supreme hegemonic nations on the Prima Continent, the Wiblet Empire, is almost the only one in ‘Reca Chronicles’ that absolutely prohibits the establishment of church branches in major cities or the capital. Due to this background, their relations with the Holy Nation side are famously poor.
And the Altus family, the backing of Citrio and Caracol, is a prestigious noble house of the Wiblet Empire.
“Their victory in the civil war wouldn’t be a favorable outcome for the Church of Utility, or by extension, the Holy Nation.”
“………”
In short, I’m attempting to sway the Church of Utility side, which is supposed to act as the impartial judge.
It was cheating without being cheating.
Flora, who had been furrowing her brow in deep thought, finally opened her mouth.
“Are there any other demands?”
I smiled triumphantly inwardly.
That was the best response Flora, who must publicly proclaim neutrality, could give in this situation.
Now that I’ve gained an excellent backer.
I should make full use of it.
“Then, first, please induce the Caracol side into engaging in a ‘knight battle.'”
In this negotiation, Blispiel saw only gains.
The biggest achievement was tilting the scales of the Holy Nation’s mediator toward the Blispiel alliance.
What was promised in return wasn’t much trouble for Aiden either.
The reason the Wiblet Empire dislikes the existence of churches wasn’t revealed in the main story.
This means it’s highly likely tied to a MacGuffin.
Thus, the proposal he made to Flora was also a groundwork for future moves.
Meanwhile, in the heart of the territory ruled by Princess Isabella’s maternal family, in a mansion located there, two figures were facing each other.
“…Alexander.”
“I have no face to show, Your Highness.”
“Sigh… I can’t blame only you. I too, in one corner of my mind, took lightly the second son of a principality pushed out of the succession.”
Isabella’s side suffered a setback in the negotiations.
However, compared to a few weeks ago when there was no hope at all, the situation was much better. At least they avoided having their nose cut off while wide awake by that idiot Ramon.
Until now, there were no forces around Elanore with the capacity to oppose Caracol, and from Isabella’s position, she couldn’t bring in external powers even if she wanted to.
That problem was resolved in one fell swoop.
Of course, they paid a painful price.
‘Still, 50% of administrative rights is far better than the puppet states dominated by the Four Great Clans.’
The ambiguous figure of 50%, and the urgency that Blispiel’s demands would increase if more time was wasted, swayed her mind.
‘Moreover, if shares are divided according to civil war victory contributions, no one will take all 50%. It also creates room for internal conflicts within the alliance.’
With Isabella’s exceptional political acumen, she could sufficiently reclaim administrative rights through post-war maneuvers.
If there’s one thing bothering her…
“Alexander, what was your impression of that man named Aiden?”
“…Throughout the negotiations, he showed no emotional fluctuations at all. Yet his decisiveness and momentum were impressive. Seeing him skillfully coax Sir Flora, the mediator from the Church of Utility, gave me chills.”
“………”
Isabella sank into contemplation.
What Aiden demanded as compensation for participating was 50% of the kingdom’s administrative rights.
It might seem large at first glance, but if he had pushed one step further, he could have obtained even more.
Several methods come to mind right away.
For example… undermining the authority of Isabella and the Glicia royals, gathering support from the kingdom’s citizens, and through that, gaining recognition for proxy rule over the Glicia Kingdom.
‘The fact that he didn’t resort to such means… means there’s a reason he shouldn’t undermine the royals’ authority?’
Something lightning-like flashed through Isabella’s sharp mind.
Immediately after, her face turned pale.
‘No way…’
Proxy rule is ultimately just proxy rule. If there’s a way to seize legitimacy as well, complete effective control of the clan becomes possible.
For instance, like what the Caracol Clan is trying to do now, by installing a puppet king with no governing ability.
“…I hope it’s just my speculation, but Aiden surely has some other scheme or insurance. Move as discreetly as possible and intensify investigations into the Blispiel Clan House and the Stroke Principality.”
“Understood.”
Time flew by like an arrow.
The Blispiel alliance gathered in Praga, the second city of the Glicia Kingdom, while the Caracol Clan side assembled in Athenas, the capital where Prince Ramon was staying.
Finally, the morning of the civil war dawned.
The Church of Utility, mediator of the clan war, ritually proposed a many-vs-many duel called a ‘knight battle’ to both forces, and Citrio, master of the Caracol Clan, let out a sneer.
“Hmph! It seems the enemy’s strategists racked their brains a bit. The calculation that even if they’re outnumbered, they won’t lose in a clash of elites?”
In fact, to a third party, it appeared that way.
However, by custom, the strong representatives symbolizing both forces do not participate in the ritual knight battle. Ebel and Citrio joining a many-vs-many duel would be a great dishonor.
In other words, the outcome of the knight battle is determined by the solidity of the executive lineup excluding the top power.
In truth, even excluding Adelio, among Caracol’s executives are a few quasi-Twelve-level powerhouses not revealed externally. So, the chances of the opponent winning are virtually nil.
On top of that, Citrio had secretly recruited a high priest-level cleric recently excommunicated from the Church of Life.
Meaning that even if someone is severely injured in the duel, no significant loss of power would occur.
Having finished his calculations, Citrio opened his mouth with an ostensibly bold attitude.
“Hah! Crushing their momentum completely before their reinforcements arrive isn’t bad either. Convey that we accept the duel.”
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