Novel

Chapter 83: Kristina Rogeris

The Holy Empire Yuras had claimed Helmuth’s border province of Alcarte as its diocese[1]. As part of the concessions established by the Demon Kings, the province served as a bridge between Yuras and Helmuth.

But could the demonfolk really find salvation through faith?

In Eugene’s opinion, such a thing was absolutely impossible. In the first place, it was both foolish and useless to proselytize your faith to the demonfolk, who had already rebelled against the gods.

However, it wasn’t just the demonfolk who lived in Helmuth. Even after excluding the black wizards and their dependents, there were actually quite a lot of ordinary people living in Helmuth — namely, those who had signed a contract with the demonfolk and now worshiped the Demon Kings. They had chosen to do so not just for any absurd reason, but for a most realistic and reasonable exchange.

Helmuth was a human-friendly country.

The citizens there were guaranteed a minimum standard of living even if they didn’t do any work. Vast numbers of demonic beasts had been bound as familiars to the Demon King and performed any difficult labor in place of the country’s citizens.

And it wasn’t just demonic beasts either. There were also the undead which had been raised by high-ranking demonfolk and black wizards. These non-human monsters would do all the work in place of the humans, or at least in place of the humans who would otherwise be engaged in agriculture, so the vast land of Helmuth was usually covered with the golden color of wheat, regardless of the season.

The citizens of Helmuth did not have to pay their taxes in money. The taxes that they were made to pay each month came in the form of their easily recoverable life-force[2], and they were far from onerous. And if they wished, a citizen could even enjoy quite a luxurious life in Helmuth by mortgaging their soul. As long as they paid off the mortgage before they died, it was even possible for them to reclaim their mortgaged souls.

And if they weren’t able to reclaim their souls? Well, then the price of the luxury they had enjoyed in life would have to be repaid after they had died. In other words, they would be transformed into undead slaves upon their deaths.

However, the world was full of idiots who wanted to live in luxury and enjoy the glory that came with wealth, even it meant becoming undead slaves once they died. Helmuth had no problem accepting the immigration requests of these idiots.

Ten years, that was all that the Demon King of Incarceration asked in return from these new citizens of his country; their post-mortem period of labor would be restricted to ten years at the very most. So in return for several decades of a happy life in Helmuth, they would only have to work for ten years after their death. Although the cost of immigrating to Helmuth was quite high, it wasn’t so much that those desperate to do so were unable to afford it.

As such, the Alcarte Diocese hadn’t been established for the sake of the demonfolk; instead, its purpose was to convert the humans who had settled down in Helmuth.

Even though they had sold their souls to the damned demonfolk and their Demon Kings, as long as they possessed a firm faith, they would be able to ascend to heaven, even if it was only after they had finished their labor term….

The Alcarte Diocese peddled the ‘salvation’ desired by those idiots who had chosen to exchange the wealth and glory they had experienced in life for harsh labor after they had died.

And the one who assisted the Diocesan Bishop in charge was Auxiliary Bishop Kristina Rogeris.

She was the adopted daughter of one of Yuras’s three cardinals, and she was a candidate for continuing the lineage of saints that Anise had been a part of.

Although she couldn’t currently be called a ‘Saint,’ Kristina was the only actual candidate that Yuras had put forth to become a Saint, so within the next few years it was certain that she would officially inherit the title of Saint.

‘…Something about her…,’ Eugene narrowed his eyes as he stared into the distance.

When they arrived, Eugene and Cyan had been dropped out of the sky, but there was actually a warp gate within the Black Lion Castle. Currently Eugene, Cyan, and Ciel had all come out of the castle and were waiting together in front of the warp gate.

Eugene wasn’t the only one who had come out to greet their guests. All the knights within the Black Lion Castle were here, and even the Elders and the Patriarch, who hadn’t left the round table since the day before, were present and waiting in front of the warp gate.

Their presence was an indication of just how important this sudden visitation was. Glancing at the elders, Eugene noticed that there were signs of agitation written all over their faces, then he turned his gaze back towards the warp gate.

Eugene finished his previous thought, ‘…is familiar.’

Just a few moments prior, Auxiliary Bishop Kristina had stepped through the warp gate. Arriving with three escorts, Kristina took a look around her and then lifted her skirt slightly in a curtsey.

“Thank you for the impressive welcome,” she greeted them.

She wore a white veil that was fixed to her head with a tiara, but this didn’t pose a huge obstacle to checking her facial features. Eugene continued to squint his eyes as he stared at Kristina’s face.

Anise Slywood, Eugene caught the appearance of this comrade from three hundred years ago within Kristina’s features. Although he couldn’t tell if these similarities continued to their personalities, Kristina’s face so resembled Anise’s that he couldn’t help but wonder if she was somehow descended from Anise.

“…We weren’t aware that you would truly be coming in person,” Doynes stepped forward and spoke to her.

“After receiving a call that necessitated my presence, of course I would choose to answer it,” Kristina explained with a soft smile as she bowed her head.

Eugene noticed the short wand that Kristina had hanging from her waist. The shining golden wand had a cross — the symbol of the God of Light — attached to its end, and from just a quick glance, Eugene could tell that it was far from an ordinary weapon.

“…A call that necessitated your presence, you say.” Doynes repeated her words. “You mean that there is a reason for you to have come in person?”

“Of course there is. However, since it is not something that should be discussed out here, please lead the way inside,” Kristina requested.

Soon enough, following Doynes’s lead, the elders and Gilead turned around and headed back inside. Accompanied by her paladins, Kristina trailed after the elders, but for some reason she suddenly stopped walking and turned her head toward Eugene and the others.

Eugene and Kristina’s gazes collided in mid-air. Kristina stared at Eugene for a few moments, before showing a faint smile. Her eyes also seemed to curve into smiles as she did so. Even in this, she resembled Anise. Eugene stood there blankly for a few moments, unable to take his eyes off of Kristina.

“…Have you two met before?”

As Kristina walked away, Ciel poked her elbow into Eugene’s side and questioned him in a low voice.

“Nope,” Eugene replied.

“Then why did she look so happy to see you?”

“How should I know?”

“She might have been smiling at me instead,” Cyan muttered in a low voice. Then, in a pointless gesture that only confirmed the obvious, he lifted an arm, sniffed his own armpit, and, with an anxious expression on his face, whispered, “Do I really smell that bad?”

Eugene confirmed it, “Yep, it kinda smells like dogshit that’s been left out in the rain.”

“Then could she have turned to look at me because she caught the smell…?” Cyan trailed off in dread.

“If that was the case, then why would she have been smiling?” Eugene pointed out.Fôllôw 𝒏ew stories at n𝒐/v(e)lb/in(.)com

Cyan muttered despondently, “She might have been smiling to keep herself from frowning at such an important time.”

Eugene didn’t feel the need to reply.

That evening, after Cyan had left to find a bed to pass out in, Eugene was finishing up his dinner alone.

“Young master.” A servant approached Eugene as he was sipping some tea to refresh his mouth. “A guest has come looking for you.”

“A guest? Who? Is it Lord Genos?” Eugen asked with a curious tilt of his head as he set down his teacup.

He couldn’t think of any other guests who would come looking for him at a time like this — apart from Genos, that was.

However the servant shook his head, with a stiff expression on his face. He replied, “No, sir. It is Auxiliary Bishop Kristina.”

“…What?” Eugene asked in surprise as he rose from his seat, recalling the Saint candidate who had looked at him with a smile in her eyes.

“Pleased to meet you, I am Kristina Rogeris,” Kristina introduced herself, having already entered the hall leading into his quarters.

After taking in the slight smile that she wore on her face, Eugene bowed his head slightly and greeted her, “I am Eugene Lionheart. May I ask, why the sudden visit?”

Kristina hadn’t brought any of her escorts into his quarters with her and was completely undefended. However, Eugene sensed presences making themselves blatantly known from outside his quarters. These were the Paladins of Yuras. Unlike regular knights, these paladins were able to control both mana and divine power at the same time.

‘Since they were deemed strong enough to escort a Saint candidate, I’m sure that they must be quite skilled,’ Eugene estimated.

Under ordinary circumstances, he might have been interested in seeing how strong the paladins really were, but for now he could only set that aside. Eugene first had to deal with Kristina, who was openly staring at him.

Although he had already sensed this when he had caught sight of her from afar, Kristina’s face truly resembled that of Anise’s.

Eugene suspected, ‘She might really be Anise’s descendant.’

As far as the world was aware, Anise hadn’t left behind any descendants. Although this was partially due to the fact that Anise had been labeled a Saint, the Anise that Eugene was familiar with was never the type to unconditionally follow the church’s doctrines. She had even drunk alcohol while calling it holy water, so it was entirely possible that she might have secretly had a descendant without anyone knowing about it.

That said, it wasn’t like he could suddenly ask Kristina, who was still just a stranger, about her ancestry.

So for now, Eugene just asked, “…Is there something that you need from me?”

Although Eugene had been treating her politely, out of consideration for the fact that they were still strangers, it seemed that Kristina had no intention of following suit.

“Please pardon me,” Kristina spologized as she reached out her hand and grabbed Eugene by the wrist.

‘What is she trying to do?’

Eugene couldn’t help but feel slightly flustered. Although Eugene had predicted Kristina’s movements in advance, he couldn’t figure out the reason behind her actions.

Soon, a tingling electric current began flowing from where she was gripping his wrist. Eugene’s brows furrowed at this, but he didn’t try to pull himself free of Kristina’s hands. Kristina was still looking up at Eugene with a wide smile on her face.

“…Are you done?” Eugene asked, after a few moments had passed.

The tingling sensation spreading from his wrist had stopped. Yet, even so, Kristina was still holding on to it.

After fiddling with Eugene’s wrist, she boldly ran her eyes up Eugene’s forearm.

“Is there a reason why you just did that?” Eugene demanded.

“Your forearm seems quite strong,” Kristina commented.

Eugene raised an eyebrow, “I’m hoping that you’re not just touching me because you wanted to feel me up.”

“I heard that you personally faced the Demon King of Incarceration,” Kristina finally explained before letting go of Eugene’s wrist with a nod. “Having come face-to-face with a Demon King, there was a risk that your mind and soul may have been tainted with his Demonic Power.”

“And so, was my mind and soul tainted by the Demon King?” Eugene asked, confident of the answer.

“Not at all,” Kristina said. “They’re both completely clean without a trace of contamination.”

Eugene snorted. Back then, The Demon King of Incarceration had descended upon the site using the Death Knight’s body as his vessel. Although he might not have been so certain of this had the Demon King of Incarceration decided to come out in person, there was no way that Eugene’s soul was so weak that it would be tainted after facing just that.

Eugene got back to the main point, “So did you come here just because you were worried about me?”

“Though that was part of it, I was also curious about you,” Kristina admitted.

Eugene smirked, “It seems that rumors of my exploits have even spread to the Holy Empire.”

“Rumors are rumors, but I have also received a revelation,” Kristina said, as she looked up into Eugene’s face.

“…A revelation?” Eugene asked, uncertainly.

“Yes.”

“What kind of revelation?”

“I’m afraid that it would be difficult for me to reveal that to you Sir Eugene, as you have not yet converted to our faith.”

“If you can’t even tell me what it says, why tease me by making me aware that it exists?” Eugene complained.

“I just wanted to make you aware that God had given his blessing to our meeting,” Katrina declared piously.

God? Eugene’s face twisted into a deep scowl. He should have known. If there was any being capable of delivering a revelation to this Saint in front of him, it had to be the God of Light, who all of Yuras worshiped.

However, Eugene definitely couldn’t just accept these words at face value. Even someone like Anise had never once received a divine revelation. Thus, to a certain extent, Anise’s participation in Vermouth’s journey was done at the will of the Holy Empire, not at the will of their God.

“…Have you finished your business with me?” Eugene eventually inquired.

“Not at all,” Kristina said, shaking her head. She reached out her hand once more to grab Eugene by the wrist, “The meeting held at the round table is finally over. Since the Elders of the Council have decided to open the door to the tomb, let us visit the tomb together.”

“…Will you also be entering the tomb, Auxiliary Bishop Kristina?” Eugene asked in surprise.

“Yes, that is why I came here in person,” Kristina explained.

Eugene voiced his suspicions, “Is this also because of the revelation?”

“Yes,” Kristina replied with a smile.

Eugene definitely couldn’t tell what Kristina’s true intentions were, and once again, this fact reminded him of Anise.

Since Kristina was the one who had taken liberties with him first, Eugene decided that there was no need to be so polite with her.

“…Would it be alright for me to ask you a question?” Eugene spoke up as Kristina led him down the hallway. “Auxiliary Bishop Katrina, I have heard that you are currently the only candidate for the position of the Saint. Is that because you have inherited the legacy of the ‘Saint’ through your bloodline?”

“Your question sure is quite sudden,” Katrina responded.

Ignoring her evasiveness, Eugene continued, “I have been studying magic for the past two years in Akron. Auxiliary Bishop Kristina may not be aware of this, but within Lady Sienna’s Hall, there is a place where she left behind the images of her comrades from three hundred years ago.”

These words caused Kristina’s steps to falter for a few moments. As her eyes narrowed into a thin smile, she turned around to look at Eugene.

In response to her silent smile, Eugene justgrinned and said, “This of course include my ancestor, the Great Vermouth, as well as the Brave Molon, the Stupid… Hamel, and the Faithful Anise. I was able to see all of their appearances.”

“How fortunate for you,” Katrina said drily.

Eugene got to the point, “There, I happened to get a good look at Lady Anise’s face. I’m not sure how you’ll take this, but you just so happen to greatly resemble Lady Anise, Auxiliary Bishop Katrina.”

“Although that comes as quite a surprise, I am grateful for your words,” Kristina said as she let go of Eugene’s hand and bowed her head deeply. “For you to have seen a resemblance to the Lady Saintess from long ago in this servant, I, who have yet to graduate from being a mere candidate…. Perhaps this too may be due to a miracle from God.”

“Can a mere facial resemblance really be called a miracle?” Eugene questioned doubtfully.

Instead of answering Eugene’s question, Kristina continued, “Perhaps Lady Anise may even be my ancestor. If that is the case, that would be quite amazing.”

“Though I’ve heard that Lady Anise didn’t leave behind any descendants,” Eugene pointed out.

“Though that may be what the world believes, beneath the title of a Saint even Lady Anise was still only human, so she may have desired descendants,” Kristina argued. “How much do you know about me, Sir Eugene?”

“…I’m aware that you are Cardinal Rogeris’s adopted daughter,” Eugene replied.

“Yes. I was abandoned as an infant by my birth parents. My parents, whose very names are lost to me, placed me in a basket and discarded me at the door of a monastery, in the hopes that the priests of the God of Light would take me in,” Kristina reached out once more and caught Eugene’s wrist in her hand.

“Because of that, I know nothing about my bloodline or about my ancestors. However, since Sir Eugene claims that he can see a resemblance to the Faithful Anise in my features, then I really do suspect that she might be my ancestor,” said Kristiana with a giggle. “If that really is the case, then it would be truly fortuitous and amazing, but it would also be slightly distressing. From what Sir Eugene has said, if I really am the descendant of Anise… wouldn’t that mean that one of parents was still unable to care for their own child despite also being a descendant of Anise?”

Eugene wasn’t sure what to say to this, so he just shrugged his shoulders. He didn’t miss the reaction that Kristina had shown when she had first heard him say that she resembled Anise. Kristina hadn’t seemed overly flustered.

As if she had heard it many times before.

Once he had given it some thought, Eugene realized that there was no way that Anise’s appearance would have gone unrecorded by the Holy Empire. Just like what Eugene had felt upon seeing Kristina, the priests of the Holy Empire must have also sensed a resemblance to Anise’s appearance in Kristina.

How many children were left abandoned in front of a monastery each year? For an abandoned child like her to have caught the eye of a Cardinal, there must have been some kind of reason behind it.

Eugene decided not to continue asking questions about her relationship to Anise. Perhaps that snake-like woman really had started a family without anyone knowing about it, even as she went around as a Saint. Maybe she had even started a family while wandering around on her pilgrimage.

That was all up to Anise. But what was clear was that it couldn’t be the least bit pleasant to keep bothering Kristina, who might not even be Anise’s descendant, about it.

“…The night air sure is cold,” Eugene muttered as he pulled out a thick robe from within the Cloak of Darkness and handed it to Kristina.

No matter how cold the night air was, it wasn’t like Kristina was incapable of making her own preparations to handle the cold. Eugene was also well aware of this, but the offer was still meaningful as the act communicated his good will to her.

“Thank you very much,” Kristina said with a faint smile as she took the robe and wrapped it around her body. She didn’t feel the need to turn down Eugene’s good will.

“Are we heading to the tower with the round table?” Eugene finally asked.

“Nope,” Kristina replied.

As the closed door to his quarters swung open, the paladins waiting outside his quarters bowed to Kristina. Then they raised their bowed heads and eyed Eugene, but that was all that they did. The paladins did not move to follow Eugene and Christina as they left.

Kristina revealed once they were in private, “We will be heading to the back of the castle.”

Then she pulled up the hood of her cloak and led the way forward.

1. A diocese is a territory with several churches, under the jurisdiction of a bishop. ☜

2. The readers may recall that this is the same substance that the succubus den on Bolero Road extracted from their clients. ☜