CA – Chapter 93
Chapter 93
Whether it was the witches' Dark Domain or Ophelia's werewolf domain, it was a disaster for the nobles. Fortunately, they carried defensive gear given to them by the vampires, so they were lucky enough to wait for the vampires' rescue.
With the Blood Domain supported by Delia, the vampires could move much more freely within the Dark Domain. Following orders, they scooped up the nobles trembling on the ground and tossed them out of the Dark Domain's range one by one.
Outside the domain, other vampires were waiting. When they saw a noble being thrown out, they shoved them into a carriage without regard for their status. Once a carriage was full, they signaled for it to be taken away.
For the nobles, this night was undoubtedly the most terrifying of their lives, the closest they had ever come to death.
It also made them fully understand the difference between other races and humans.
The nobles' overnight flight from Rose Manor alarmed Maggie, who was in the main city. Just as she sent people to investigate, the awakened King of Gosse somehow learned of the matter and sent the knight commander to summon her.
The sky had not yet brightened, but the royal palace was still ablaze with lights. Since waking, the King of Gosse knew he didn't have many days left and was even more reluctant to rest. He hadn't slept all night; his eyes were bloodshot, yet his spirits were unusually high.
Seeing Maggie enter, he dispensed with all useless pleasantries and asked in a hoarse voice, "Haven't you found your brother yet?"
Maggie shook her head. "He deliberately shook off his attendant knights before going to Rose Manor. I sent people in to look for him, but there's been no news." She concealed the fact that she had asked the blonde bishop to search for him.
The King of Gosse's expression was grim. He coughed violently for a moment before saying angrily, "That useless oaf who only knows how to play."
Maggie lowered her head and said nothing.
Although the prince was so useless, the King of Gosse still hadn't made up his mind to disinherit him. Instead, he forced his body to hold on, waiting for the prince to return.
Maggie had long expected this, so her expression was very calm. Just before leaving, however, a flash of mockery flickered in her downcast eyes.
By the time she left the palace and returned to her own manor, the sky was already bright. Maggie hadn't slept all night. As she stepped down from her carriage, rubbing her sore eyes, a knight ran over and whispered something in her ear. Her hand paused, and she said in surprise, "Really?"
The knight nodded. "Last night, the prince was thrown into the garden. The other party was very fast. I sent people to track them, but they couldn't keep up."
Maggie nodded, her eyes lowered in thought for a moment. Then she said in a low voice, "Take a team to the church. Follow Bishop Grace's orders and cooperate with the church to pacify the commoners."
The knight accepted the order and withdrew. Maggie stood where she was and took a deep breath. On her way back, she had already heard from the knight about some of the events at Rose Manor last night. It was just as she had predicted: if Rose Manor were allowed to continue, the fate of their Gosse Empire would be no better than the Bill Empire's, which had set fire to its own city.
To stabilize the Gosse Empire amidst this turmoil, the church's support was crucial.
Maggie might not have much faith in the church, but she chose to trust the blonde bishop.
By the time Tang Qiu returned to the church from Rose Manor, the full moon night had passed. She changed her clothes in her room while listening intently to Lucille's account of what had happened at Rose Manor the previous night.
She raised an eyebrow upon hearing that werewolves had appeared at the manor. When she then heard there were also dark elves and black witches, her expression became subtle. "...Were they fighting over something?"
Otherwise, why would they all gather at Rose Manor?
Lucille had the same suspicion last night, but getting too close to investigate would have been risky. She shook her head. "I don't know."
Tang Qiu fastened the button on her collar, then took an Elf Fruit from her Space Gem and tossed it to Lucille. She said thoughtfully, "Could the dark elves have been after this?"
The Tree of Life was now in the church's Eden. Recalling that Reese had once said the church might have some connection to Rose Manor, it wasn't hard to imagine who was supplying Rose Manor with Elf Fruits.
I just don't know what the church's purpose is in doing this.
And... who exactly is involved in this? Is there anyone in the church who could do something like this right under the Pope's nose?
Tang Qiu frowned. Her understanding of the powers within the Central Church was still incomplete. It seemed necessary to find some time to talk to Reese about this.
The moment the Elf Fruit appeared, the air in the room seemed to be purified. Lucille looked down at the greenish fruit in her hand and frowned as she answered Tang Qiu's earlier question. "...To make the elves, who rarely step outside their territory, come looking for something, it's likely only the Elf Fruit has that kind of appeal."
After all, it's the fruit through which the elves bear offspring.
The Tree of Life only bears a limited number of fruits each year. If Tang Qiu hadn't seen the Tree of Life with her own eyes in Eden, Lucille would never have guessed that the rotten fruit husks found in the ruins of Rose Manor came from Elf Fruits.
Footsteps approached the door. Tang Qiu glanced at Lucille, signaling her to be quiet. A moment later, a cleric knocked and said, "Bishop Grace, a team of knights has come to the church looking for you. They say they are under the princess's orders."
Glancing at the sky outside, Tang Qiu was quite satisfied with Maggie's speed. A smile touched her lips as she called out towards the door, "Bring them to the reception room."
The cleric outside acknowledged the order but didn't leave. Tang Qiu asked, puzzled, "Is there something else?"
The cleric hesitated for a moment before saying, "There are many carriages parked in the square in front of the church. Judging by the crests on them, they all seem to belong to nobles."
Because they were just parked there and hadn't made any further moves, the cleric had hesitated on whether to report it to Tang Qiu.
These trivial matters should have been reported to the priests for handling. However, since the new bishop took office, anyone with a bit of sense could see that the relationship between the new bishop and the church's several priests was not harmonious.
Many noble carriages were parked in the square. Tang Qiu and Lucille exchanged a look, and a thought occurred to her. She said with some amusement, "It couldn't be the nobles who fled Rose Manor last night, could it?"
Did they come running to the church because they were scared out of their wits?
It was just as Tang Qiu thought. These nobles were indeed terrified. After escaping the vicinity of Rose Manor, they had rushed to the church without a second thought.
It had to be said, at certain times, the church's prestige was still deeply ingrained in people's hearts.
The team of knights sent by Maggie was already at the church, but Tang Qiu had no time to arrange for them to build up prestige alongside the church's personnel. Pacifying these nobles was already consuming half of the church's manpower.
No one is immune to the fear of death, and the nobles were even more so. At first, they had placed too much trust in the vampires' abilities. After leaving Rose Manor, the nobles were still shaken and repeatedly demanded that the clerics use healing spells on them, fearing they had been afflicted by some dark witchcraft.
The nobles who indulged themselves at Rose Manor were a group focused on pleasure. They held no real power in their families, so they weren't particularly concerned about the King of Gosse's life or death.
Even the death of the King of Gosse couldn't extinguish their newfound enthusiasm for the church.
Because of these nobles, Tang Qiu's plans were forcibly delayed for more than ten days. By the time Karen returned, escorting the carriage from the Bill Church, she still hadn't had a chance to use the team of knights Maggie had sent her.
The letter Tang Qiu had Karen deliver to the Bill Church had only asked Monica for Jennifer, but unexpectedly, Monica had generously given her a dozen clerics.
Besides Jennifer, there were several other familiar faces—people she had spent time with and could trust.
It had to be said, Monica understood Tang Qiu's situation very well. The people she sent helped solve many of her problems.
The carriage entered through the church's back gate, and Tang Qiu went out to greet them personally. Karen's eyes lit up when she saw Tang Qiu. She dismounted from her horse and said proudly, "Mission accomplished."
The carriage door opened, and Jennifer stepped out. She glanced up at Karen, a fleeting look of disdain in her eyes, then walked over to Tang Qiu, curtsied slightly, and said with a deadpan expression, "Long time no see, Bishop Grace."
Tang Qiu offered a faint smile. She gestured for Karen to arrange accommodations for the other clerics, then led Jennifer back to her own quarters, chatting as they walked. "Did Priest Monica have a message for me?"
She keenly noticed that Jennifer's expression grew solemn at the mention of Monica. Tang Qiu frowned and asked, "Did something happen at the Bill Church?"
Jennifer sighed and said in a low voice, "Archbishop Reese is at the Bill Church."
"She seems to want to transfer Priest Monica to the Central Church, but Priest Monica is unwilling. Before I left, the two of them were still arguing."
To be precise, Priest Monica was the one unilaterally losing her temper.
"A transfer to the Central Church?" Tang Qiu was taken aback, somewhat surprised. "Did Archbishop Reese give a reason?"
Transferring Monica to the Central Church offered no benefit to Reese. Tang Qiu had long since discovered that Monica was Reese's greatest weakness.
Although Reese was always trying to hide it, if Monica were exposed to more people's view, it would sooner or later become impossible to conceal.
Jennifer shook her head. "Archbishop Reese didn't say anything." It was precisely because she said nothing that Priest Monica was so agitated.
Reese must have had her reasons for suddenly deciding to transfer Monica to the Central Church. Since Tang Qiu couldn't figure it out, she set the matter aside. She led Jennifer to the room prepared for her and briefly explained the current situation in the Gosse Church.
After listening intently, Jennifer frowned and said, "I feel like you're in a worse spot than Bishop Ralph." She knew the blonde bishop's personality, so she spoke to her more casually.
Tang Qiu just chuckled at her words and said softly, "That's why I had someone bring you over from the Bill Church."
"...How can I help you?"
"It's simple." Tang Qiu looked at the attentively listening Jennifer and said, "The same things you did at the Bill Church."
Monica was someone who wholeheartedly considered the church's best interests; everything she did was for the church's prestige.
At the Bill Church, the priests would periodically take clerics to various cities in the Bill Empire to perform Light Baptisms for the commoners, all to further solidify the church's position.
This tactic would surely be even more effective in the Gosse Empire now. After all, many commoners were still in a state of panic because of the vampires and black witches. The church's comfort at this time would be twice as effective with half the effort.
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