Civil Servant in a Romance Fantasy - Chapter 922



922 – Your Future – 3

In addition to the Archdiocese of Ausen, there are ten other archdioceses in the Empire.

The Archdioceses of Servet, Wolken, Hablem, Cene, and Boyar, established in each duchy. The Archdioceses of Tiraf, Groten, Latia, Prunian, and Galan, established in each royal territory. Ten in total.

In fact, the Archdiocese of Prunian and the Archdiocese of Galan should be under different archdioceses both historically and geographically, but it feels like they were established as a service by the Dawn Order, which is friendly to the Empire. The number of archdioceses within a country is a sign of the country’s population, religious faith, and the level of friendship with the order, etc.

Thus, excluding the Archdiocese of Ausen, there are ten archdioceses within the Empire, and naturally, there are ten archbishops.

“I see the holy one.”

“Nice to meet you, Your Majesty. It is an honor to meet you.”

This also means that at least 10 cardinals will attend the ‘Living Saints’ Nativity Celebration’ to be held at the Cathedral of St.

Even the current Archbishop of Ausen is Cardinal Pedro, the de facto number two in the church and the one who became a scapegoat after the retirement of the previous Pope. The younger cardinals among the archbishops gathered from all over the empire do not dare to stand next to Cardinal Pedro because of the difference in their age.

When the young archbishops were ordained, Cardinal Pedro was already a cardinal. In military terms, it’s like a situation where a person who was a general when he was commissioned is still a general. Who would say to such a senior, “Since we are in the same position, can we treat him comfortably?” He’s not crazy.

“Although I am a servant who has thrown away worldly attachments in order to serve the Lord, I cannot help but feel attached to the Empire and its believers as I have lived there. But for a living saint to emerge from this Empire? How wonderful it is.”

“I don’t know what to do with myself after hearing your words.”

Archbishop Prunian, who was also a witness, made the sign of the cross, so I made the sign of the cross in return.

He is one of the ‘cardinals with a big difference in time’ that Archbishop Prunian just thought of. Fortunately, he is a person with normal values ​​and character, and he is also a person who ran like a dog as soon as he heard that a senior was leading the service.

Of course, this does not mean that the other archbishops came leisurely. The archbishops who had already been scattered throughout the empire like dragon balls had long since gathered together voluntarily.

“How happy I am to see all those who are devoted to the faith of the Empire in one place. Even His Eminence Cardinal Pedro, as Archbishop of Ausen, is presiding over the service. How many people could be more honored than I?”

“Haha, that’s true. It never happened before and it never will happen again.”

Archbishop Prunian laughed at my words,

“I would like to pray with you since I have met the holy man, but I have not yet met His Eminence Cardinal Pedro. If it is not too much trouble, may I say hello to you?”

“Of course. Have a nice trip.”

I glanced around and naturally stepped back.

I understand. There were more than a few people behind Archbishop Prunian who were looking at him with burning eyes. In public, they were fellow archbishops, and in private, they were seniors who were pressuring him to step down quickly. What kind of brave man could resist?

It’s a pity to think that way. Because of the youngest’s karma, I have to run ahead of everyone else and get out of the way before everyone else. What a sad life.

‘Anyway, his career is that of a gangster.’

No matter how much you promote based on ability, eventually, when only capable people gather, age and experience are taken into account. I became a minister in my 20s, but when I actually became a minister, there were a lot of people older than me. Even the young emperor was older than me.

When I think of Archbishop Prunian as someone who has chosen the path of a priest, I feel a strange sense of kinship. If I ever have the chance to go to Prunian, I will definitely say hello to him.

The lineup that came to the Cathedral of St. Parona in person to brighten up the event was splendid not only in the religious world but also in the secular world.

Because the archbishops from all over the empire came, the dukes and marquises from all over the country came as if the empire could not be defeated. Especially in the case of the north, all the great lords came to the capital.

It’s a lineup that makes you laugh, but I tried to understand it. A high-ranking noble of the empire becomes a living adult and receives the blessings of the church, but the nobles of the empire are indifferent? It’s perfect for rumors of discord between the empire and Count Tylglehen to spread.

“Today, I must call you Saint Karl, not Count.”

However, even though my head understood that I had reached the emperor, my heart did not.

If you were going to do it, why didn’t you just send a representative? Since the Pope didn’t attend, it wouldn’t be strange if the Emperor didn’t attend either. The fact that all the imperial dukes attended was enough to build up a justification.

“I am sorry to say this, Your Majesty. Although my soul may be used by the Lord in Heaven, my body on earth serves Your Majesty. Please call me Count at your convenience.”

First, I suppressed my bitterness and spoke politely.

It is true that I am Saint Charles, but it is a separate matter whether the Emperor calls me Saint Charles at official functions.

No, of course, theoretically, it would be right to call him Saint Karl even if he wasn’t the Emperor, but that’s not a name an Emperor should call him… Just call him Count…

“The soul is in heaven, but the body is on earth. What a wonderful saying. I’ll keep that in mind.”

The emperor didn’t seem to have any intention of arguing over titles, as he just smiled and nodded at my request, which wasn’t really a request.

I just wanted to tease.

“Time! Hello!”

“Welcome, Your Majesty. I am so touched that you have come all this way for me.”

The complicated feelings melted away thanks to the Crown Princess in the arms of the Empress.

It is embarrassing to say that we are far away within the same system, but the Cathedral of St. Parona is farther away than our mansion. In any case, far is far.

“No! It’s not that far! And I came today because it’s a good day!”

“Haha, this is even more touching.”

The corners of her mouth went up uncontrollably. Unlike any other yellow-haired girl, our crown princess had pure white hair like silver─

“In modern times. What is the Holy Sword?”

‘ah.’

It was so white that it was transformed into something yellowish next to it.

It is regrettable. How could Heaven have bestowed the Crown Princess as the Emperor’s child? Was the Emperor’s character at rock bottom a plan to neutralize it with the Crown Princess?

“That is, Your Majesty. The Holy Sword…”

Anyway, I started to sweat coldly at the surprise question from the Crown Princess.

How do I explain the concept of adulthood? How simple and short can I make it for a six-year-old to understand?

“You can think of the Holy Sword as something like a crown princess.”

“Huh? Me?”

While he was struggling in this forced silence, the Emperor spoke first.

“Our crown princess. What is her name?”

“When it’s Charlotte!”

“Yes. She is Charlotte, and also the Crown Princess. She has another name that is separate from her godfather’s name. That is Saint Karl.”

“That’s right!”

The crown princess nodded brightly at the emperor’s words.

Fortunately, the Emperor has made the role of the biological father clear, which is rare. He has dealt with the difficult question appropriately.

“So, our Crown Princess, from now on, you can call me Saint Karl instead of Godfather. Do you understand?”

‘This kid.’

But the excitement was short-lived.

This kid. Why did he act like a father? It turns out it was just an extension of his role as emperor.

***

Cardinal Pedro Otbaja, now known as Archbishop of Ausen and not the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith.

As a monarch of a country, I felt a complex emotion that was difficult to express in words when I saw a being lesser known than the Pope worshipping at the Cathedral of St. Paul.

‘The religious order is also changing.’

Just as the Empire changed with the abdication of His Majesty, the Order also changed. The great tree that led the council and rang the bell five times has stepped down, and the second-in-command of the Order has moved from the center to the provinces.

‘Should I like this or hate it?’

I listened to the archbishop’s sermon with one ear and let it go out the other, gathering my thoughts.

First of all, it is encouraging that Cardinal Lisiuko, former Archbishop of Ausen, has become the new Pope, Baltsack, 38 years old. Cardinal Lisiuko is a perfect person in every way: ability, character, flexibility, and closeness to the Empire.

Even his age is relatively young compared to other cardinals, so he can remain in office as a pro-imperial pope for a long time. It is beneficial to the empire, not detrimental.

‘Cardinal Pedro is a bit too much.’

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However, if there is light, there is shadow. It is a bit regrettable to treat Cardinal Pedro as a shadow, but the appointment of Cardinal Pedro as Archbishop of Ausen was an event that included no small amount of burden.

If it were His Majesty, he would be able to fight with the former Pope without losing. This means that unless someone with the same level of ability as His Majesty, there would be no one who could gain something from the former Pope. That is why he was secretly happy about the former Pope’s retirement while he was still alive, although he was sad about it.

‘Cardinal Pedro is on par with the previous popes.’

And if Cardinal Pedro is in Ausen, the person on the Catholic side who I have to deal with is Cardinal Pedro.

It’s really a headache. Cardinal Pedro’s position and seniority are so overwhelming that if you make a proper deal, you can gain a lot of things, but the difficulty of the deal will definitely increase. You gain a lot, but you also lose a lot.

It’s really a shame. To be honest, I could have dealt with Cardinal Lisiuko at my level. It’s even worse since Cardinal Lisiuko was also quite friendly to the Empire.

‘But that doesn’t mean I can have a direct conversation with the Pope.’

To ignore the Archbishop of Ausen and communicate with the Pope is an impertinence that even Cardinal Pedro, who is burning his last flame in his old age, would not be able to say anything about if he were to burn down the entire empire.

‘I can’t help it.’

I sighed inwardly and looked at the Count sitting next to me.

I will have to rely on the Count’s help a lot until I become familiar with Cardinal Pedro.

Or maybe we can just pray that Cardinal Pedro’s retirement comes soon.