113 – Appointment – 2
“Uh… The most likely suspect is dead… “
Now that the suspect is dead, the dark side cannot be revealed.
“You don’t have to worry about that. “The prime suspect still remains.”
After saying that, Glacia shouted loudly.
“It’s poison!!!”
People gathered in confusion at those words.
While people were gathered and shocked to see the body of Cardinal Urbino, there was a person who tried to escape through the back door alone. He was a middle-aged servant. The servant tried to run away, but when Glacia caught up with him, he took out his dagger and swung. However, his skills were not very good and he was overpowered by Glacia in just 2 matches.
“Is he the criminal?”
“He is probably the executioner. When I was moving the food earlier, I could feel the life on my face. “That’s why he tested for poison.”
Really, if it weren’t for Glacia, he almost died more than once. She thought that one day she would pay her a big thank you and asked her captive servant.
“Did you get poisoned? “Who instigated you?”
The moment the guy was about to spit out phlegm instead of answering my question, Glacia slammed his face into the ground. The guy was bleeding from his nose.
“It looks like you don’t have much of a desire to live.”
“Shall I kill you?”
Glacia said while pressing the back of her head.
“No. It happened in the Holy Kingdom, and if we end it on our own, the Holy Kingdom won’t like it. “Let’s leave it to the city guard first.”
We are guests here. It would be better to leave the affairs of the Holy Kingdom to the Holy Kingdom.
Soon after hearing the news, the city guards stormed into Cardinal Urbino’s mansion, each armed with their own weapons.
He came up to me, wearing expensive-looking high-quality armor, in front of the city guard and asked.
“Are you okay, Count Rochepol? “He is not injured.”
“What about you?”
“My name is Sebastian de Jirón.”
“Ah, Salome’s younger sister… “
Salome’s younger brother, the captain of the city garrison of the Holy Kingdom, and the general who leads the Holy Kingdom’s army. He is also the son of the Holy Emperor.
‘Now that I think about it, this guy is also serving as the Commissioner of Police. It really is a country where the Hiron family eats everything.’
Alexander the Great said. He bought the country with money and distributed the title he bought to his family and relatives. The title of General of the Holy Kingdom may also have been purchased with money and given to his son. Otherwise, it would be impossible to reach the rank of general at a young age like a teenager. And Sebastian said:
“Do you know my sister?”
“I had some knowledge at the academy.”
“Ah… ! You made the acquaintance of Count Rochepol at the Academy. “There was a reason why I gave up my title as the youngest cardinal and entered Arcadia Academy.”
Sebastian laughed hahahaha and I laughed along with him. A rare scene of people chatting with the criminal in front of them continued. And…
-Pow!
Sebastian kicked the criminal’s side while wearing his armor. The criminal fell limp, making a sound of deflation.
“This son of a b*tch is an assassin.”
“I am guessing something like that. “As soon as I heard the sound of poisoning, I caught him trying to run out the back door.”
“I am sure it is Sir Rochepole. We will catch you and investigate for sure. “Wake up you bastard!”
Sebastian grabbed the criminal by his hair and forced him up. Soon the soldiers dragged the criminal away, and Sebastian remained behind.
“You must be anxious to stay in the house where the assassination occurred. “Your Holiness will soon provide Count Rochepol with a new home, so please wait a little longer.”
As soon as Sebastian left, there was someone coming in with him. His dark hair matched with black matching outfits. And the name of the woman with white skin that contrasts with his…
“Salome.”
Salome de Jirón. She opened the door to her mansion and came in with her steps.
“Charles Jean Rochepol, no. Is he now the Count of Rochepol? “It’s been a while.”
It’s been a long time, even though it hasn’t even been two years yet. I saw her every day at her academy. Although our relationship with her was not very good.
“You were caught up in an assassination attempt.”
“Rather than me being caught up in it, I’m worried that Cardinal Urbino might have been caught up in an assassination attempt against me.”
“You are considerate. Do not worry. In the Holy Kingdom, conspiracies are a daily occurrence, and just as knights fight on the battlefield prepared to die, high-ranking priests also live in the Holy Kingdom always prepared to die. Poisoning is so common that there is a perception that those who get poisoned are poor clergy. “Some people even say that a priest’s true ability lies in whether or not he is good at plotting, rather than his piety or ability to use holy magic.”
Is that so? Seongguk is a scarier place than I thought.
“I guess I should be careful too. But for what reason here?”
“His Holiness gave an order. Since Cardinal Urbino has passed away, he needs someone to take on the role of usher, but other cardinals will not be willing to step forward. “You could get caught up in an assassination attempt again.”
“Then…” “
“Yes. I will be the new guide. I hope to go along well.”
Salome said that and bowed gracefully according to her etiquette. I also learned etiquette at the academy, so after a brief greeting, we boarded the carriage Salome was riding and headed to Salome’s mansion.
Salome spoke to her from inside her carriage.
“You said earlier that Cardinal Urbino was involved in an assassination attempt against the Count of Rochepol. Does that mean that the Count of Rochepol’s food was also poisoned?”
“Yes. “When I realized that my food was poisoned, I tried to inform Cardinal Urbino, but Cardinal Urbino was already dying after drinking the poisoned wine.”
“Well, you don’t usually think of being poisoned in your own home. “Even Cardinal Urbino was caught off guard.”
“Yes. “I just pray that the deceased may rest in peace.”
In the meantime, the scenery of the castle seen through the carriage window was peaceful. It’s hard to believe that this place is a place with all kinds of hidden conspiracies.
“The Cardinal of Bergamo is also amazing. “He bribed someone else’s servant and openly assassinated him. If he did something like this, even the clergy would criticize him.”
“Cardinal of Bergamo?”
I know at least who the Cardinal of Bergamo is. He is a rival of Emperor Alexander IV and is a completely opposite type of priest with integrity. According to the original history, he was the next successful person after Alexander and developed culture and art through honest politics. But why does the Cardinal of Bergamo’s name suddenly appear?
“Oh, didn’t you know? The culprit of this assassination is Cardinal Bergamo. The Cardinal of Bergamo is a cardinal from a holy country, without any help from foreign powers… “
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“I know who he is. But Bergamo is the culprit? “Why are you so sure?”
“There is a saying in the Holy Kingdom. It is said that 70% of the assassinations that occur in the Holy Kingdom are the work of the Hiron family. But since we didn’t do it, all that’s left is Bergamo, right?”
“You say he’s a priest with integrity? “You have integrity, but you assassinate?”
Then Salome laughed out loud.
“Count Rochepol, you are more naive than I thought. Bergamo’s integrity means that it lives by the principles of the priests, which everyone else breaks. She must not hug women. She should give up her life for honor, should not be extravagant, etc. Those who adhere to rigid principles that no one follows are called priests with integrity. But even such a person has no choice but to become accustomed to intrigue in order to survive in the Holy Kingdom. Assassinating political opponents, receiving support from powerful countries and guaranteeing their interests, or attracting priests from the same faction. This isn’t even on the axis of corruption. Although Bergamo has a relatively clean clergy, that doesn’t mean it’s free from grime. “Because such a person cannot survive in the Holy Kingdom.”
“… “
Bergamo appears in the game as a character full of religious beliefs, so I thought he was a clean character, but it seems that wasn’t the case.
“So, why is Bergamo trying to kill me?”
“There was this agenda at a meeting of high-level cardinals not long ago. Should she join hands with Princess Leonia, or should she excommunicate Princess Leonia and bring in her foreign powers to come and stop them somehow?”
At that moment, I took a deep breath. This is a state secret, so is it okay to tell me this?
For a moment she doubted whether Salome was lying, but she decided to listen.
“So, what was the result of the meeting?”
“I don’t know the result. “I got kicked out midway.”
“Why?”
“Because it was a meeting of high-ranking cardinals. “I secretly participated because I begged His Holiness, but it wasn’t my place to begin with.”
Then why did you bring this up in the first place? That’s not helpful.
“Oh, don’t misunderstand. “I got everything I needed.”
“If you saved it… ?”
“First of all, Cardinal Bergamo is a stubborn mainstay. He insists that he must stop Princess Leonia.”
“Ah… !”
Only then did all the puzzles start to fit together in my head. If the Cardinal of Bergamo is a mainstay, there is definitely a reason to kill me.
“Did you notice? Cardinal Bergamo believes that the autonomy of the Taspilia Peninsula must be maintained. If the Taspilia Peninsula falls under Leonia, the fate of the Holy Kingdom will also depend on Leonia’s single word. If that happens, the overwhelming religious status that even the emperor could not easily touch will disappear.”
“To protect the status of the Holy Kingdom, they want to expel Her Highness the Princess, and in order to expel Her Highness… “
“Princess Leonia must kill the princess’s treacherous man who has been keeping her so dear. Then, a war will break out under the pretext of revenge, and the anti-war faction’s position will disappear. “It is that kind of calculation.”
Indeed. Are you saying there was something like that behind the scenes? Of course, I don’t believe it 100% as much as Salome’s personal opinion, but it was a fairly convincing story. In the story, Alexander was on the side that joined hands with foreign enemies, and Bergamo was on the side that did its best to drive out foreign enemies.
“So, I would like to suggest one thing.”
Salome moved in her seat and sat next to me. She whispered in my ear in her small voice.
“Don’t you want to be the Duke of Rochepol, not the Count of Rochepol?”
Salome’s proposal that followed was quite sweet.