Civil Servant in a Romance Fantasy - Chapter 899



899 – Let’s live first – 3

After Tanian’s wedding, I visited the Holy Land again after about a year.

They say that faithful believers aim to visit the Holy Land at least once in their lives, but I, who am not particularly faithful, wonder how many times I visit. I wonder if this is the weight of a living blessed person and saint (true).

But how can I complain, since this weight has saved me from the clutches of the Emperor? For the time being, I will have to bow down three times a day in the direction of the Pope.

“Welcome, brother. It’s so good to see you again.”

As I fell onto the teleportation magic circle, expressing my gratitude to the Pope in my heart, I was greeted by the same middle-aged priest I had seen last year.

Anyone who sees him can’t help but feel a sense of likability for his innocent impression and gentle smile. However, the cross around his neck and the red clothes prove that this innocent man is by no means an easygoing person.

Cardinal Willem, the Holy See’s Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, is personally welcoming the guests, as was the case last year.

“I am also honored to see you again, Your Majesty. I thought it would be a while since Brother Tanian’s wedding that I would see you again, but it is truly the Lord’s guidance.”

“Yes. If it weren’t for the Lord’s guidance, we would never have met again.”

When I attributed our meeting to Enen, Cardinal Willem burst into laughter and made the sign of the cross.

‘huh?’

But something is strange. When I saw him last year, he looked a bit tired, perhaps from all the work he was doing, but this year he looks even more haggard than last year.

Of course, he can’t just sit around and do nothing, as he’s in charge of the Holy See’s diplomacy. But even considering that, the Cardinal’s face was thick with fatigue. The Holy See has been busy with diplomacy recently…

‘Oh, really.’

It was only later that Cardinal Willem realized the cause of his overwork.

The transcontinental treaty organization that the Minister of Foreign Affairs is passionately promoting. The Imperial Foreign Ministry and the foreign ministries of each country have already given it the tentative name of the Ausen System, or the Metternich System, after the title of the Minister of Foreign Affairs.

It’s called the Metternich system, so it’s a bit unsettling, but in any case, it’s a large-scale project that encompasses all the countries on the continent. Naturally, Cardinal Willem must be going crazy.

“It would be right for me to come see you, Your Highness, but I feel very embarrassed that Your Highness, who is so busy, is coming to see me in person.”

Cardinal Willem’s smile began to turn bitter at my small consolation.

I’m sorry. It’s not my fault, but it’s for the peace and common prosperity of the continent─but for those who are involved in the conflict in real time, it’s a cause and it’s not a big deal. It’s fortunate that you don’t blame the Minister of Foreign Affairs for doing something unnecessary.

“Please don’t say such things. It is the right and duty of a servant to welcome distinguished guests. Wouldn’t it be unacceptable to welcome a guest in the servant’s room?”

It was a friendly reply, but there was no objection to the words, ‘Your Majesty, you are busy.’

It seems he couldn’t deny that he was busy.

“by the way.”

Cardinal Willem, who had been laughing so sadly, lowered his gaze slightly. To be exact, towards my legs.

“You have an unexpected companion. No, rather than a companion, should I say a companion dog?”

– Woof!

Titi, who had been sitting silently next to me, sat up.

This visit to the Holy See is Titi’s first overseas trip in his life. At the same time, Cardinal Willem is the first foreigner Titi met on his first overseas trip. In a way, he can be said to be a monumental figure who will remain in Titi’s life for a long time.

Maybe that’s why. Before I knew it, Titi was swinging her tail fiercely and approaching Cardinal Willem.

“This is really cute. He’s a very affectionate child.”

It was a sudden attempt at contact, but priests are usually kind and gentle people. They are the kind of people who need to calmly and gently console someone who speaks rudely to them.

A priest is such an extreme job, but a dog that approaches you with kindness rather than malice? You can always smile and pet it. Rather, you can recover your mentality that has become tangled from being busy with people and work through the dog.

“Hmm?”

– Huh?

However, Cardinal Willem’s hand, which was trying to pat Titi’s head, suddenly stopped, and Titi, who was waiting for the touch, tilted her head.

“It’s strange. How can this little child have divine powers?”

“Ah, Brother Tanian gave us blessings when he came to the empire.”

“aha.”

The hand that had stopped moved again.

“Now that I think about it, Brother Tanian visited your mansion once. It seems you received a blessing then.”

“Yes. In a way, it was a blessing that showed this child a new world, so I brought him here to show him how much he has grown.”

“Indeed! This is truly a consideration deeper than the ocean!”

Cardinal Willem’s complexion brightened, just a little.

Isn’t it a giant rice cake that has been blessed by the next saint? If we interpret it a bit too harshly, it could be said to be a holy water or divine water that contains the spirit of a god, so it is the perfect animal to shake off the fatigue and depression of a priest.

Of course, Titi’s presence is of no practical help, since Titi does not handle Cardinal Willem’s business for him.

Still, I believe that just recovering a little bit of my mental state, which was like Cookdas, will be helpful enough.

We were guided to the Pope’s office by Cardinal Willem.

I would like to meet Tanian first, who I am close to, but the person who invited me to the country is the Pope. The highest person in the country is the Pope. In that case, as a guest, it would be right to meet the Pope first and act accordingly.

“It’s been a while, brother. How have you been?”

‘ah.’

I entered the office without thinking and my body froze.

The current Pope is older than his age, but thanks to divine powers that are no different from God’s blessing, he possesses a vitality that is not befitting his age. This is a common phenomenon among priests. Like a knight or a magician.

However, the Pope’s appearance that came into my eyes was far from the expressions of God’s blessing and energy that did not match his age.

‘Did you spend a lot of time alone?’

It was last year. It was only last year that I last saw the Pope, and he seemed to have aged about ten years in the meantime.

Even his appearance of having aged by about 10 years is average for his age, considering the Pope’s age. Still, it would be a lie to say that it is not worrisome as a person to see someone who was extremely healthy until last year grow so old.

“Fortunately, thanks to Enen’s care, I was able to have a safe time.”

After responding appropriately to the Pope’s words, he quietly kept his mouth shut.

It’s a difficult situation. How do you package the words, ‘I’m fine, but you seem to have lost your mind’? How do you say to an old man who you can easily return to Enen’s side at any time, ‘Is he in good health?’

I don’t know. If I do it wrong, it seems like it could be considered blasphemy and an attack on the elderly.

“That’s fortunate. If even this old man’s share is safe, there is nothing I can be happier about.”

‘no.’

I didn’t mean to say that I wanted to hear self-deprecating jokes from the person involved. This is a difficult situation to deal with.

“Haha, you don’t have to think like that. It’s true that I’ve been busy lately and am tired, but I’m sorry, I’m a servant of the Lord, so I’ll recover quickly. I’m confident that when I retire, I’ll be younger than anyone else.”

“Is that so? Indeed, the Lord has blessed you.”

I nodded reflexively at the Pope’s words. If I could get through this difficult situation, I was confident that I could accept anything─

“Besides, the Lord has given this old servant more strength than usual, perhaps because He is raising up a living saint. If it were not for Your mercy, I would have died long ago.”

And then my heart sank at the sight of the Pope bursting into laughter.

Don’t even joke about that. It’ll sound like you almost died because of me.

“Oh, first of all, please take a seat. How rude of you to keep someone who came from far away standing. How rude of you to be this rude.”

“How rude. Your Majesty welcomed me so kindly that I didn’t even think about sitting down.”

“Thank you for your kind words. Your mercy is greater than that of this old man.”

It was such an embarrassing compliment that I couldn’t give a proper answer. Is there anyone on this continent more merciful than the Pope?

“No. Now, you are not a blessed person but a saint, right?”

However, I couldn’t keep silent about the words that followed.

“Your Majesty, a saint? Am I not yet blessed?”

Apparently the Pope said that he would discuss my canonization while I was still alive, which means the debate over my canonization is not over.

Even if it is certain that he will become an adult while alive, if he has not been canonized, it is right to call him blessed. Just as everyone knows that the crown prince will be the next emperor, if he does not ascend to the throne, he is still just a crown prince.

“That was the case until last week.”

Despite my logically perfect rebuttal, the Pope continued speaking calmly.

“Although canonization and beatification are within the jurisdiction of the Pope, it is not something that even the Pope can decide arbitrarily. Thanks to this, I spent several months talking with several cardinals and seeking advice from theologians. As a result, my brother’s canonization was finally confirmed.”

They said that my canonization was confirmed before I entered the country.

It is said that from the day the emperor’s eyes rolled back, my title evolved from blessed to saint.

‘That kid dares to speak to a living adult.’

Emperor, you arrogant b*stard. Even if it was your daughter’s problem, you would kill a living saint. It was truly an impious and heretical act.

…

‘Do I have to leave the country when I become an adult?’

From noble mtl dot com

The denial of reality ended quickly. The reality before my eyes was too heavy to ignore.

It was a certainty that I would become an adult. There was no reason to feel burdened by the idea of ​​becoming a saint.

But I didn’t know that the city council would be here today, or tomorrow, anyway. I just came here with a light heart because I had something to discuss.

“Your Majesty, you said you had something to discuss with me. May I ask what issue you wish to discuss?”

“Of course. This is a matter on which I must hear your opinion, brother.”

Suddenly, the Pope’s expression became serious.

“For the canonization ceremony, would you rather wear white or red?”

ah.

ah…