Surviving As The 5Th Prince Of Hellman Kingdom [EN]: Chapter 163

163

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Lawrence Firenze was a priest who followed Yulia, the God of Judgment.

Belonging to the Brissen Alliance and from the royal family of the Firenze Kingdom, he was a rising star within the Yulia Order.

A solid background.

A handsome appearance.

Exceptional divine power and medical knowledge.

After completing his duties as an Inquisitor in the Pantheon and returning to the Yulia Order, he was on track to become an archbishop, a cardinal, and eventually even aim for the papacy.

That was until he made a significant mistake as the chief Inquisitor in the small kingdom of Lionel.

Beortio Lyon.

A witch suspected of possessing the Necronomicon [a fictional grimoire associated with forbidden knowledge] and having a contract with a demon. She was supposed to be taken to the Pantheon, but she died during the hearing.

‘Evan Lionel….’

Lawrence bit his lip tightly.

He was convinced that Evan was behind Beortio’s demise. And it wasn’t just his opinion.

Most of the Inquisitors present felt the same way.

But so what?

Someone had to take responsibility. That’s what superiors are for. Lawrence was the highest-ranking Inquisitor present at the time.

As a result, his path to success turned into a thorny road.

He could already foresee that upon returning to the Yulia Order at the end of the year after his time as an Inquisitor in the Pantheon, he would be given a position as a bishop.

There was one chance for a reversal.

Evan shattered the mental domain of an 8-star knight with absurd force at the Crown Prince’s inauguration. The Hamel Empire accused him of being a contractor with a demon and reported him to the Pantheon.

Lawrence was the one who investigated the truth.

If he could uncover the fact that Evan was involved with a demon, his thorny path to success would be cleared again.

He actually sensed traces of mana during the investigation process, and a deep smile spread across his face.

However.

Evan immediately announced that he was the user of [Barisada].

[Barisada], forged from the body of an anti-demon, was one of the monstrosities that the Pantheon had decided not to touch for various political reasons.

If Evan used [Barisada], it was only natural that mana would be felt in him and the Emerald Palace where he lived.

Lawrence, who was entangled with Evan in many ways through a bad relationship.

He was now visiting the Lionel Kingdom for the third time.

It was because of a being named Danarr, who claimed to be the God of Time and Destiny.

‘Time and Destiny? Nonsense.’

Lawrence chuckled on the deck of the airship heading to the Lionel Kingdom.

There must have been exaggeration.

The royal family of the Lionel Kingdom must have been manipulating public opinion with the appearance of a god who stepped forward for the people of a small country.

‘Just like Evan Lionel framed Beortio as a witch.’

Lawrence frowned, recalling the events of four years ago. Then, he shook his head, brushing away the unpleasant memories of the past.

‘It must be an insignificant god.’

When the lid is opened, it will surely be a being who has just gained divinity. Surely, it would be a being that would not even be recognized as a low-ranking god in the Pantheon.

Like Etrim of the Arya Kingdom.

***

Leon Palace, office.

I was busy dealing with the backlog of work after returning from the Western Expedition.

Knock, knock.

“Your Majesty, I have brought the report sent by the Ministry of Finance and Economy.”

“Come in.”

After signing the documents I was looking at, I raised my head. Alfonso and an assistant attendant entered, carrying a stack of documents.

Alfonso glanced at the attendant.

The attendant discreetly placed the stack of documents on the corner of the desk, bowed, and left the office.

“What’s going on?”

“The Pantheon has dispatched an investigator.”

“Who is it?”

“It’s Lawrence Firenze.”

Again, that guy? Is he in charge of the Lionel Kingdom? Whenever there’s something to do with the Pantheon, he comes.

I personally feel sorry.

He would have been on the fast track if it weren’t for me.

He seems to have a strong desire for power, but he’s not a bad person. He wouldn’t frame an innocent person as a heretic and get rid of them.

‘Will it not harm the kingdom?’

It wasn’t like I was insisting that a non-existent god existed. The God of Time and Destiny, Danarr, is real. His divine beast, Harry, is also being raised in the royal palace.

I turned my head slightly towards the window.

Harry, basking in the warm sunlight and dozing off, was visible.

“That guy has suddenly grown a lot.”

Alfonso seemed to have followed my gaze to look at Harry.

As he said.

Harry grew rapidly as Mikael and G-Dragon promoted Danarr’s name by subduing demonic beasts in the West.

I became convinced that faith in Danarr was related to Harry’s growth.

Still, he’s a cute little bird.

Not very weak, though.

“His claws and teeth have become quite sharp. He understands what I say, so it’s good to be careful.”

I took my eyes off Harry and looked at Alfonso.

“So, did Lawrence go straight to the West?”

“I think so. He plans to investigate the scene and listen to the testimonies of witnesses. There are so many priests from other orders who witnessed the scene, so wouldn’t they acknowledge the existence of Lord Danarr?”

“They have no choice but to acknowledge it. It doesn’t make sense to claim that a real god doesn’t exist.”

Hmm….

Still, it would be better if a plausible report was sent to the Pantheon.

There’s no reason why a bad relationship should always remain a bad relationship. It seemed like a good idea to end the bad relationship with Priest Lawrence and promote each other’s development this time.

“By the way, is there any special report about what I asked you to do last time?”

“Pardon? What….”

My eyes narrowed.

This was because I had told Alfonso to secretly observe Marie after achieving the accomplishment of ‘Child Chosen by God.’

“Ah! Are you talking about Marie?”

Alfonso seemed to remember it only then.

“I had so many things you asked me to do that it didn’t come to mind right away.”

“Besides me telling you to keep a close eye on Marie, what else did I ask you to do?”

“For example… you asked me to prepare snacks for that kid every day, clean that kid’s armor every day, and play with that kid every day. And that’s all in the early morning when everyone is asleep.”

It seemed quite difficult, judging by the fact that he only listed things related to G-Dragon.

I slightly avoided his gaze.

“Just bear with it a little longer. It’ll be over soon when that kid can appear in front of the general public. Tell me about the report on Marie.”

“There is no special report yet. All I know is that she is an ordinary girl who especially likes chocolate cookies from Perijur Bakery.”

She’s not an ordinary child.

There’s definitely something there. Why else would she be a child chosen by God?

I recalled Schuitz’s report, who examines Marie periodically.

‘Did he say her divine power disappeared?’

Divine power.

It is a congenital power that those who basically have the ability to communicate with gods possess from birth.

Ah, of course, there are cases where divine power is awakened postnatally, but let’s leave that out because it’s a special case.

What’s interesting is that the nature of divine power changes after those who possess divine power decide on the god they will serve.

In the case of priests of Ragni, the God of Fire, they can use divine power to implement destructive divine magic such as the fire magic of the Magic Tower.

It’s like a second job change.

That’s why priests go crazy when they discover children with divine power. Because they are the future leaders of the order.

Back to the point.

Such divine power disappears?

It’s really unheard of.

It’s not gone….

‘She might be hiding it.’

First, I had to confirm whether my guess was correct. I felt like it might be too late if I just waited.

***

Lionel Kingdom.

The Barona branch of the Pantheon.

Reco swallowed hard and looked at the man in front of him.

Lawrence Firenze.

The Inquisitor was looking at him with sharp eyes.

“So, are you saying that the apostle of that god clearly mentioned that he was the apostle of Danarr, the God of Time and Destiny?”

“Yes. I heard it clearly.”

“Is that so?”

Scribble, scribble.

Lawrence picked up a pen and wrote something on the paper. Reco, feeling unnecessarily nervous, added.

“The other priests who were at the scene at the time also heard it clearly.”

After playing with the pen for a while, he raised his eyes again and looked at Reco.

“I know. I have already seen the statements written by the priests of various orders.”

“Then why did you call me directly….”

“Everyone commonly said that the energy of the divine beast that appeared with the apostle of God was a bit strange. But only Priest Reco is convinced that the being is a divine beast. Perhaps… did you find it?”

Lawrence’s gaze turned to Reco’s chest.

There was no symbol that should be there if he served a god.

Lawrence did not understand the feelings of priests like Reco who wandered in search of a god. He had become a priest of the Yulia Order so naturally that he couldn’t even remember it.

Reco nodded slightly and opened his mouth.

“That’s right. I knew it the moment I heard his name.”

“You have ended your long wandering. Congratulations.”

After asking a few more questions, Lawrence nodded and put down the document he was writing.

“Thank you for your cooperation. You can go back now.”

“Thank you.”

Reco got up from his seat with a relieved expression.

After Reco left.

Lawrence read Reco’s statement once more. And he took out a file and started searching.

‘It was around here… Ah, here it is.’

He took out the document with Reco’s personal details.

Even after looking at it again, there were no special features.

A priest with great potential but unable to find a god. It was that kind of person who appeared every now and then. The reason was usually one.

Because that god is not registered in the Pantheon.

Not all beings who have gained divinity are registered in the Pantheon. If that were the case, even minor gods like Etrim of the Arya Kingdom, who receive human sacrifices, would have to be registered in the Pantheon.

Of course, there are cases where minor gods are registered in the Pantheon, like Aurelis of the Hamel Empire.

That’s usually the case with the local gods of the great powers.

‘I thought it would be just a local god….’

I naturally found out while investigating.

That the god Danarr really claimed to control time and destiny. The priests of the great orders, such as the Earth Mother, the Water Goddess, and the God of War, who were at the scene when the red moon rose, also testified to that.

‘This is not something I can do on my own.’

It was not a matter for an individual chief Inquisitor to judge.

It was something for the higher-ups of the Pantheon to discuss.

I could write the report negatively about the god Danarr.

For example, by maliciously exaggerating the strange feeling of the divine beast or the statements of priests who did not feel any special divine power from the apostle of God.

‘I have a dinner with the King of Lionel today, right?’

It was unusual.

Evan, who didn’t even show his face when I came last time, offered me a meal.

It was certain that it would be an uncomfortable seat because we had been entangled in a bad relationship, but he did not refuse.

Faith enriches the spirit, but unfortunately, it does not fatten the body.

‘What is he going to talk about?’

Lawrence knew very well that all the people Evan had reached out to had secured a position.

He couldn’t help but feel a little excited.