Episode 217: Did you like the donation? (3)
Looking at the two people who were giving off a somewhat friendly atmosphere, Billor clicked his tongue inwardly.
‘Tsk tsk… What on earth is going on? Why is Baron Fenris asking me for this…?’
The news of what he had done spread so quickly that it had already reached the royal family. There was even a discussion about whether or not to recognize Porisko as a saint.
But the discussion was flatly rejected by the Marquis of Branford.
― There’s no way such a greedy person could be a saint. The one who distributed food in the name of Porisco was the Fenris Merchant Corps. Find out what that bastard, Giselle, is up to.
With that one word, everything became as if nothing had happened. Everything Billor had said up until now was just what Giselle had asked him to do.
It was difficult to refuse the donation of so much food in such difficult circumstances.
Billow shook his head slightly and said.
“Then I will go back now. The royal family will soon send someone again for formal discussions.”
Forisco suddenly came to his senses and nodded with a holy smile.
“Please do so. I will be waiting.”
He deliberately covered his body with a tiny amount of divine power. The divine power that he didn’t use often because it was too difficult.
A subtle light enveloped his body. Even if you only looked at him from the outside, you would be fooled into thinking he was a saintly grandfather.
As soon as Billor left, Porisco looked around to see if anyone was listening and whispered to Giselle.
“If you just maintain public opinion, I’ll give you whatever you want. Since it hasn’t been formally discussed yet, the Archbishop will try to cover up the rumors somehow. We need to release more food and move.”
‘Once I solidify my position and gain strength, I’ll strike back somehow. Until then, move for me.’
Since they had decided to prioritize overcoming the crisis at hand, Porisco spoke without hesitation.
Even the way he spoke changed completely. It was because he thought of me as a business partner anyway.
Jiselle chuckled at Porisco’s sudden change in attitude.
“Of course I will definitely invest in you. But before that, shouldn’t you also grant me what I want? I already gave you one first.”
“Hehehe… … Right, isn’t it a fair trade to give one for one? You need a priest in Fenris?”
“Yes. Even if it’s not a parish, I will build a small temple, so please send Father Piote first.”
“Oh, that can’t be happening between us. I will send you a better and more experienced priest than a low-level priest like Piote.”
Porisco decided to spend it all while he was at it. Sending one decent priest is not a big deal.
Shouldn’t I keep my mouth shut for the time being to look good to this guy?
Jiselle shook her head and laughed at Porisco’s cheerful words.
“No. I think the original priest, Piotte, would be better. But I have another favor to ask.”
“Any other requests?”
“As you said, shouldn’t there be something that can serve as a sign between us?”
“What? What other proof do you need? I can send you any priest you want.”
“Please give me a holy relic. Please write a certificate with your own signature stating that it was given to me by the bishop. I will go and choose a suitable one myself.”
‘This, this crazy guy is really… … .’
What are relics? They are sacred and holy objects that are the relics of saints throughout history.
The reliquary is off-limits to outsiders. Unless you are a king or the Marquis of Branford, other nobles cannot even look at it.
But since I can’t get enough of looking, I’ll go and choose one myself, so give me one?
Yes, it is possible to somehow allow the bishop to do so under his authority. However, if it is discovered that the holy relics have been stolen, it will not end with excommunication.
Not only will you be vilified by the Jooana Church, but you will also be ostracized by other churches. Not only will you be socially ostracized, but your life will also be in danger.
‘That son of a bitch is really trying to tighten the leash. He’s a dirty, vicious bastard.’
The opponent is a noble supported by the royalist faction. If he has a handwritten signature, even if it is revealed that he has the relic, he can just claim that he received it as a gift. Only the one who gave it to him will be called a bastard.
Porisco, who noticed Jiselle’s intentions, said as if he was in trouble.
“The holy relic… … is something that even the archbishop cannot touch. Even for me, that’s a bit… … .”
“Then let’s pretend it never happened. I’ll go see the Archbishop.”
‘Hey!’
They don’t understand each other. They threaten to kill me if I don’t hold their hand, and they threaten to kill me if I don’t give them what they ask for.
I’ve never seen a kid like this in my life. There’s no one like the devil’s kid.
If Hubert, the Red Flame’s top lord, had seen Porisco’s appearance, he would have laughed out loud, holding his stomach, saying, “You’ve been fooled too.”
Porisco bit his lip, sweating profusely.
“If you steal the holy relic, you’ll get caught in the end. Are you asking me to do something that will lead to my death anyway?”
“Aren’t there many holy relics? I will take just one small and inconspicuous one as a token of our relationship.”
“Ugh… … .”
It was true, so Porisco couldn’t deny it.
The sacristy has a long history and contains many sacred relics.
Among them, there were quite a few that were just taking up space without any use. If you didn’t look for the records, you wouldn’t even know they existed.
“Okay, but instead you should take something really small and useless that won’t be noticeable.”
“Don’t worry about anything.”
Jiselle, who was snickering, followed Porisco, who was giving off a displeased expression.
The vault was secretly hidden in the innermost part of the temple.
The temple knights guarding in front bowed their heads more deeply than usual to greet Porisco as he approached.
As rumors spread that Porisko was a saint, they could not treat him with contempt or indifference as they used to.
‘Oh, look at these guys’ eyes. They should have been better like this even before.’
Porisco smiled, slightly relieved at the awe-inspiring gaze of the Temple Knights. As his influence grew, the Archbishop’s position would diminish.
As Porisco was leading Giselle into the vault, the temple knight cautiously blocked their way and said.
“Your Majesty, outsiders are not allowed to enter the vault. Any outsiders wishing to enter must obtain permission from the Archbishop… .”
“Oh my! Who dares to block my path now!”
At Porisco’s shout, the temple knights flinched and took a step back.
“Doesn’t this person know that he is performing a ‘revelation’ with me right now? Is the Archbishop higher than Lady Juana? Do you really want to receive divine punishment and fall into the fires of hell?”
When the words ‘goddess’ and ‘revelation’ come out, there is nothing the temple knights can do to stop it. The word ‘divine punishment’ also comes out.
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As believers in the same god, there was no reason to stop him.
“Oh, I understand. Please take your time and look around.”
“Well, let’s go, Baron Fenris.”
Jiselle also looked impressed as she followed Porisco, who was walking unsteadily with an arrogant expression.
‘This kid… … is more shameless than I thought.’
He is so outspoken that it is embarrassing to even hang out with him, who has incited this situation. If a guy like this were to take power, he would truly become an evil lord.
Despite the difficulty of getting in, the relic storage was not much different from the treasure vaults of any other territory. Treasures related to the sect were sorted and piled up by grade.
Of course, not all of the relics of the Church of Juana are here. The Church of Juana exists not only in the Church of the Nation but also in several kingdoms.
This place only stores treasures related to the Kingdom of Rutania.
Jiselle nodded, looking around briefly.
‘Still, since it’s a kingdom with a long history, there are quite a few. I guess I should look for them now.’
Porisco closed the door to the vault tightly and spoke urgently.
“Choose quickly. Never use a 1st-grade relic. You’ll be caught right away. Choose a 3rd-grade relic.”
“Hmm, just wait a minute.”
Jiselle looked around busily, then pointed to a robe hanging in the central glass case in the storage room.
“What is that?”
“That’s a robe used by Saint Martheus 300 years ago, and it’s designated as a first-class sacred relic… … That’s not allowed! It’s definitely a no-no! It’s just displayed so openly like that!”
“Oh, yes.”
Jiselle, who had been laughing, quickly walked to a corner.
A long glass display case that covered one entire wall contained a variety of items.
It is not necessarily the case that sacred objects have special abilities. Rather, most objects are treated as sacred objects because of their religious significance or historical value.
As most people think, there are only a handful of relics in the entire world that ‘exert incredible powers through divine power’.
But there is only one here.
There was a ‘real’ holy relic hidden that no one knew about.
‘Found it.’
Jiselle smiled as she spotted a small ring rolling around in the corner of the glass display case. It was a plain ring with a single white gem set into it.
A sacred relic that holds great powers that no one knows about now.
‘The protection of the goddess Juana.’
Although he had obtained the autograph certificate while also exploiting Porisco’s weakness, Jiselle’s real goal was this ring.
‘I thought you’d keep it like this.’
It is a ring that does not react at all even if you inject it with divine power or mana. That is why, since ancient times, it has been treated as a worthless ring and stored like this.
But the real power of this ring was to absorb the priest’s divine power in times of crisis, providing a powerful protective shield.
In short, as long as divine power permits, it becomes an ‘automatic defense’ without the need for consciousness.
It was by chance that this ability was discovered in a previous life. It was discovered by a priest who was fleeing with relics to escape the tribulation and had an accident.
‘If you throw it among monsters, it will just sit there all alone. There was no provocation like that.’
People often used the priest as bait because of that. But unfortunately, the priest, who was somewhat lacking in divine power, was not rescued in time and died in vain.
‘It would be very useful for Fiote.’
Others could learn the art of mana cultivation from Jiselle, teach her techniques, and raise her level.
However, Piote must raise his own level. Even in his previous life, no one was able to reveal the structure of divine power.
‘Then all you have to do is dress them up in nice gear.’
Originally, I had no plans to acquire this right away. A civil war will break out someday, and I can just raid these low-level relics that have yet to be discovered.
But seeing that Fiote’s divine power was increasing quickly, I thought it would be better to get it quickly.
It was for Piote’s safety, but it also had other uses.
‘You should put it at the forefront during times of trouble. It’ll really be reassuring.’
I had no intention of leaving someone who could be a powerful defensive totem to just provide rear support.
The defensive power of the ring is incomparably stronger than simply protecting with divine power. If the divine power is sufficient, it can withstand even a dragon stepping on it.
You will gain the survival skills to the point where you can tell even cockroaches to go away.
If you give them a ring and throw it into the middle of the enemy lines, it will be a proper wide-area provocation. Just thinking about it is thrilling.
‘Well, when I have time, I should teach him some combat skills. He’s perfect as the vanguard of the assault team. He fights and heals. Huh, is there such a thing as a paladin? This is what a real paladin is.’
It was Giselle who nonchalantly thought of things that would make Piote terrified if he heard them.
As Giselle was staring at the relics in the corner for a while, Porisko approached her and asked.
“Have you chosen? Anything here should be fine. They’re all third-grade relics.”
“That ring is small and unobtrusive, so it would be just right. What is that?”
“Where? Oh, was there something like that? What was that?”
Porisco brought out the book containing the sacred relics, flipped through it a few times, then clicked his tongue and said.
“It’s a holy relic left behind by a nun a long time ago. I don’t think anyone would know that such a thing exists, so you chose it very well.”
Porisco felt secretly fortunate.
‘That’s less of a burden. I don’t know why something like that is designated as a sacred object, but… … It looks like it was just put there because it was old.’
No one would be interested in such a ring. They didn’t even know they had one, so unless they checked it against the list, they wouldn’t be caught.
And since the temple was built, the relics in the reliquary had never been inspected one by one.
Even if they investigated, it was a small and insignificant object, so they could have just assumed it was lost a long time ago.
If only the little thing in front of me would just shut its mouth, nothing would happen.
As Porisco nodded willingly, Jiselle smiled with satisfaction.
‘It would be much better to find the real owner for such a valuable item rather than letting it roll around in the corner of a warehouse.’
Even if you get caught smuggling it out later, it doesn’t matter. No one knows the real value of this ring, so just make a fake and return it.
“Okay, I’ll take that. I’ll take it.”
The two carefully opened the glass case and took out the ring.
