12. You say you can, come up and let’s spar

Although he was a “villain” with no name even in the script, it seemed that this Archbishop, who should have had prior contact with Louis IV, was aware of Louis IV’s “delaying tactics.” Right at the beginning of the summit, he directly interrupted Louis IV’s habitual “delay strategy,” bringing up the question that had left us at a loss for words.

Moreover, his statement about regret was indeed correct; now that the summit of the nations had preliminarily begun, the decisions made in front of the rest of the continent would have far greater repercussions for Louis IV than before.

As I watched the script gradually became more dangerous, the Archbishop of the Church, seizing this opportunity, continued to press on, brazenly accusing Oquilid of unfounded crimes in the name of the Saintess.

“We, the Church, strongly oppose the cancellation of the warrant for Oquilid! This is a significant threat, and the Saintess had already ‘prophesied’ his danger long ago! Now, the Great Yng Empire actually proposes to lift the warrant and has even received support from some other nations. Do you think our Saintess’s prophecy is wrong? Or is it that those of you who wish to cancel it have some unknown reason for such thoughts?”

【The Archbishop of the Church attempts to frame Louis IV using the name of the Saintess!】

The script indicated it was indeed so! If the Queen reluctantly agreed at this moment, the matter of exonerating Oquilid would be off the table. If she insisted on refusal, she would likely be branded with the label of “not listening to the Saintess’s magnificent prophecy,” and the motives behind such a stance would come under suspicion.

What made me even more helpless was that this simple trick succeeded precisely because the Saintess herself was completely foolish! Even now, she was completely in the dark and was still speaking up for them!

“Exactly!”

With a foolish expression, the Saintess slapped the table, “Do you not believe my prophecy!? If you don’t believe in prophecies, you will suffer in the future!”

You’ve already been sold out! Saintess!

But saying that now would be useless; they wouldn’t believe it. I admit I was more concerned about the Queen at this moment.

【Queen, do you need me…】

【Huh? Could it be that Mr. Oquilid, you are now concerned about me?】

The Queen’s gaze sparkled, while Clefiel’s pierced me painfully.

【No… well, maybe just a little.】

But since the Queen could still tease me like this, I understood: she definitely didn’t need my help right now.

The Queen sat up a bit straighter; although she was secretly toying with me, her expression in front of others quickly turned to one of grievance and sorrow after the Saintess chimed in, as if the Church’s words had dealt her a tremendous blow.

“Ugh~ I never thought this way! Archbishop, could you please not slander me like this?”

This pitiful sobbing was the best weapon; she probably didn’t even realize that all of this was part of the Queen’s act, and the young Archbishop, who had been deceived, was left speechless.

“I don’t want to cancel the warrant either, but it is well known that our Great Yng Empire is a law-abiding nation. Everything must be based on evidence, and the warrant for Oquilid has reached the point where it needs to be canceled due to the lack of any evidence of his continued wrongdoing.”

The Queen spoke with a pitiful tone, delivering what sounded like a very reasonable lie, showing no signs of waving even while spouting nonsense.

To be honest, it was during moments like this that I found myself admiring Louis IV.

“And furthermore, the parliament has recently requested that I cut expenses, so… Archbishop, there’s really nothing I can do about this~ right?”

“Uh…”

If I were to press further at this moment, it would be seen as interfering in the internal affairs of the Great Yīng Empire, making it difficult for this archbishop to respond! It seems Her Majesty the Queen has been well-prepared these past few days ! Instantly, the man found himself without any excuse to exploit the identity of the Saintess!

Thus, he had no choice but to shift his focus with a sullen expression.

“Then why is it that as soon as you, the Queen of the Great Yīng Empire, made your proposal, three other nations responded!? Isn’t that a bit too coincidental? Could it be that this was all premeditated!?”

If Louis IV had used sweet words to gloss over the situation, then this archbishop seeking support from others had truly hit a brick wall.

“Huh?”

With her legs crossed on the table, Letty shot him a glance that made him sit back down, while the great Emperor of Rosia’s response was simple and straightforward: “The warrant has nothing to do with this woman. I, the Emperor, have rescinded it. So what?”

“What…”

“If you’re not satisfied, you can come to Rosia to find me later. I guarantee you’ll learn just how deep the Northern Sea is and how cold Siberia can be.”

The archbishop didn’t dare to speak, after all… the Rosia Empire holds vast territories in the north, and Ivan Letty could summon a nationwide war with just a wave of his hand. Who would dare provoke him for no reason?

As for Adéfu, although she had toned it down a bit, it was still just a bit.

“Our Prussia Kingdom also makes its own decisions, unrelated to the Great Yīng Empire.” Adéfu, arms crossed, said coldly, “We have many matters to resolve with the Austro-Hungarian tribes lately, and we don’t have the time to waste on that elusive fugitive, Oujilide.”

On the other side, Gélrom was initially dumbfounded, wanting to ask, “Aren’t both sides fine now?” Fortunately, he was preemptively silenced by Gu Erdan’s hand on his head, adding, “That’s right! We Austro-Hungarians are also too busy!”

The responses from these allies momentarily stunned the other side, but…

If the situation were truly that simple, then it would be great if the warrant could be smoothly rescinded.

My tension had never eased, for the truly dangerous script was just beginning!

【The archbishop is prepared!】

Sure enough! In the next moment, this archbishop reacted!

【The archbishop is secretly urging the Saintess!】

His mention of “regret” seemed to imply using the Saintess! Because right after, the Saintess Ikusis, having received the signal, though a bit hesitant, straightened her chest and raised her voice to say!

“But! I just had a prophecy! That Oujilide is currently within the Great Yīng Empire and is planning to do bad things! The warrant definitely cannot be rescinded! Otherwise, he’ll be free to roam!”

So… this is the trick?

Since previous persuasion had failed, they could let the Saintess “perform a live act.”

【Ikusis decides to lie!】

I was right here; this time, the Saintess’s prophecy was certainly not a prophecy but a lie. However… almost everyone on the continent knew that the church had a Saintess who could predict the future and had never failed, so her words, even if not true, became true.

In this way, not to mention Letty and the others, at the very least, the Queen would be at a loss. After all, the Great Yīng Empire places great importance on magic and the ‘Goddess’; the Saintess’s words carry significant weight, and Louis IV could hardly refuse easily.

Glancing at the Queen, her smile had indeed faded somewhat.

【The Queen…】

【Oh dear, what to do? Should I throw you under the bus?】

Even if she still wanted to toy with me, I couldn’t detect any tone of good humor from her. Indeed, this was not within the realm of expertise for Louis IV and Kfeir; their identities were such that they had to consider too much . At times like this, it requires someone who was unafraid of scalding water, and that would be me.

【Don’t make a sound later.】

【Hmm? Ah… wait! Ougilide, what do you want to do…?】

I ignored the queen’s anxiety and stepped forward. Don’t think too much; I’m just doing this for self-preservation, right? I can’t let others tarnish the name “Ougilide” so easily.

“Your Holiness, did you say Ougilide is here? And is planning to cause trouble?”

“Uh… yes!”

The saintess looked at me in surprise, but she quickly firmed up her resolve to maintain the lie.

So…

“As you can see, I am a certified legal priest of the Great Yingtian Empire. Just now, you said Ougilide is planning to cause trouble, and I say otherwise.”

“As for the prophecy, coincidentally, I know a thing or two about it as well. You say you were prophesied, and actually, I was too. You are right, so let’s compare notes.”

——

Tomorrow marks the season for monthly ticket proliferation again (hint).

I wonder if everyone is ready (hint).

I am ready (explicit), and that means new monthly ticket prizes (thunderous voice).