Chapter 61
“Master Eric! Are you all right?”
“You weren’t harmed or anything inside, were you?”
After a long conversation with Eustia, Eric exited through the back gate, guided by a holy knight who had been waiting in the corridor. He found his companions anxiously waiting for him and offered a calm smile.
“I’m fine. I just had a brief talk with someone, that’s all.”
If he hadn’t kept pinching his thigh to stay alert, things could’ve gone wrong—but in the end, the conversation went well, and he’d gained something from it.
No, rather than just “something,” it was an unexpected opportunity.
Even in the game, this was a place he rarely got to visit—a territory so unfamiliar that even a veteran player like him, one of the “rotten veterans” of Protect Humanity, knew little about it.
But now, he had managed to gain the cooperation of none other than Eustia, one of the few within the Holy See who held real information.
“…Lord Eric.”
“Ah. Lady Malefica.”
A little later, on the way to the lodging prepared for them until the trial, Malefica carefully spoke up.
“There’s no need to worry. What you’re afraid of didn’t happen.”
Malefica, who had called to him but couldn’t quite continue, lowered her gaze toward the Holy See. Eric, noticing her glance, guessed what she was thinking.
Well, an ordinary priest might not know—but Malefica, who was personally favored by Isabella, would certainly be aware of Eustia’s true nature.
“So it was that vulgar wom— I mean, that lady who called for you, wasn’t it?”
“Vulgar woman,” huh.
Her unusually harsh tone made Eric let out an awkward smile.
The rumors circulating within the church about Eustia—
and the way she used her Charm to expand her influence—
made Malefica’s comment not entirely wrong.
Still, since he had just promised to support Eustia in the coming Saint selection in exchange for her information and help, it wasn’t exactly pleasant to hear.
‘If I’m going to make Eustia the next Saint, I’ll have to deal with those rumors first. In the game, when she became Saint, gossip like that didn’t exist.’
It was impossible to completely silence rumors that were already widespread.
But bad rumors could be buried under better ones.
He didn’t yet know what kind of story could overshadow one claiming a Saint candidate was committing lewd acts—but if he used all the meta-knowledge he’d gained from clearing Protect Humanity multiple times, it wouldn’t be impossible.
‘If I couldn’t even handle something like this, I wouldn’t have dared to compete for the Grand Duke’s succession in this body in the first place.’
No matter how hard it was, it couldn’t be worse than vying for the title of next Grand Duke while stuck in the body of a so-called useless delinquent.
As Eric steadied his thoughts, he recalled his earlier conversation with Eustia.
“The one who brought Cardinal Gregorius to trial is probably Cardinal Benefatio. The two have been at odds since they were apprentice priests.”
“So you’re saying His Holiness the Pope isn’t involved?”
“The Pope? Oh no, no. Everyone in the central clergy knows how fond he is of the northern Cardinals—especially Gregorius. But still…”
“Still?”
“Hm… No, never mind. It’s just a hunch for now. Let me look into it and tell you more later.”
The name that came from Eustia’s mouth—the one responsible for summoning Gregorius to trial—was Cardinal Benefatio, known as the “Great Hawk of the South.”
Eric knew of him well.
In the game, Gregorius was already long dead, and only appeared in northern church portraits.
Benefatio, however, appeared frequently in the latter half of the story, when the battles against demon lords began in earnest.
‘He always talked about donations, but he didn’t seem like the rigid type.’
When Gregorius had first been summoned for trial at the fortress, Benefatio was actually the first person who came to mind.
Even in the game, it was well-known that the southern and northern Cardinals were lifelong rivals.
‘So is it really Benefatio’s doing?’
The motive was clear—perhaps too clear, and that was suspicious.
If it were just church politics, that would be one thing.
But this incident might be tied to the Anti-Goddess Alliance—or even the demon lords beyond the border.
And yet, the person who would take the most blame if anything went wrong had openly initiated the event himself?
“Then, do you happen to know why Cardinal Benefatio called for the Holy Trial?”
“The reason? I heard it might be related to some sacred relic that Cardinal Gregorius lost while serving in his old diocese.”
There were too many suspicious parts to jump to conclusions.
Perhaps their rivalry truly ran deep enough to justify the risk,
or perhaps Benefatio had already prepared everything perfectly so no backlash could reach him.
“…Hey! What’s with that look? You asked me to tell you everything I knew, and that’s what I’m doing!”
“No, it’s nothing. I just didn’t think you were all that interested in church politics, Tia.”
“Ugh, again! Don’t call me that, it’s creepy!”
For now, the only thing he could do was find evidence to prove Gregorius’ innocence at the Holy Trial.
If Eustia had known what Benefatio’s true goal was, things would’ve been easier—but she didn’t seem to have gathered any information, likely because she saw no personal benefit in this particular case.
“Anyway! Since our great hero doesn’t seem to like that guy, I’ll look into it myself. We’ve got a few days before the trial starts anyway.”
“So make sure you keep your promise, Hero!”
Her teasing voice still echoed in his ears as Eric smiled faintly and looked toward the Holy See outside the window.
With Eustia’s abilities, she’d likely deliver useful intel soon.
Even the holy knight who had nearly dragged him into her room earlier looked ready to hand over his heart and soul to the “fallen daughter of the Goddess.”
“Please don’t worry too much, my lord. It’ll surely work out.”
“Yeah! You were falsely accused! The Grand Duke won’t just sit by! And I’ll try to find a way through the Mage Tower too!”
“If we report to Lady Isabella, she’ll help somehow. After all, your achievements in the old diocese…”
Perhaps seeing his absentminded look as a sign of despair, the three nearby companions tried to reassure him.
“Huh? No, no. There’s no need for that.”
Startled, Eric shook his head quickly.
To ask the Grand Duke or Isabella for help—
the sentiment was kind, but unnecessary.
Because—
“I won’t be on trial.”
“…Pardon?”
Gregorius was the only one who’d been summoned to stand trial.
“B-but… you were called too, back at the fortress!”
The three blinked in confusion.
Since Eric’s name had been mentioned after Gregorius’, they naturally assumed he’d also been summoned.
And now he said otherwise?
“Then why call you all the way here?”
“Exactly! They wouldn’t summon the hero who stopped the plague at the border for no reason!”
Scratching his head with an awkward smile, Eric replied,
“Well, I was the one who was invited, actually. I told you before, didn’t I? She said she just wanted to meet the new hero who never shows his face.”
Remembering Eustia’s innocent smile as she said that, Eric pressed his aching forehead.
Of course, there didn’t need to be a special reason for the summon—the church could always request an audience with its hero.
Still, the fact that the holy knights had been so forceful probably meant some of them were under Eustia’s Charm and overreacted out of zeal.
That was simply how Charm worked.
“…Still, that’s not a bad idea.”
“Huh?”
“What is?”
He might’ve been tricked into coming,
but looking at it another way, it wasn’t such a bad situation.
He might’ve been dragged to the capital without explanation, but at least now he had a chance to earn significant merit.
‘Gregorius’s position looks worse than I thought. After all that trouble I went through to win him over in the north… if he’s ousted now, that was for nothing.’
He had already accepted a risky favor from Gregorius in the northern diocese.
But if he could now rescue the man when he was in danger of disgrace—
And since he’d already formed an alliance with Eustia to support each other’s goals—
this alone would make the trip to the capital worth it.
“Sir Leona.”
“Yes, my lord.”
Thinking about how best to help Gregorius, Eric recalled something his companions had mentioned earlier.
“Didn’t you say before that Allen—no, my brother—was coming to the capital?”
“You mean Lord Allen?”
“Oh! Right! He did say he was heading here!”
At least until Eustia gathered more intel about the trial, Eric couldn’t move rashly.
Even if he wasn’t officially on trial, word had already spread that he and Gregorius were connected.
“Find out where he is.”
But Allen was different.
Unlike Eric, the “useless delinquent” despised by all, Allen was a true hero—celebrated across the empire, beloved by the people, and all but confirmed as the next Grand Duke.
If he threw his support behind Gregorius—
“After all, how could my dear brother refuse to meet his cute little sibling who came all the way to the capital?”
This trial—
he could definitely overturn it.
