What should I do?
Things are getting pretty big.
The succubus problem—honestly, I could have solved that alone, even if I had to dig into that girl’s skull a little.
But it doesn’t seem like they’re the type to just give up either.
I can’t rely on Father for this one.
I crossed my legs and glanced at these uninvited guests.
All of them had faces full of expectation and desperation, mixed with all sorts of complex, subtle emotions.
‘Hmm, if I don’t deal with this now, something else might come up.’
‘Normally, in situations like this, you reject them a few times before giving in.’
‘That’s the rule.’
“A saintess, a saintess. You really want me to become one?”
“Yes!”
‘Hmm. Should I accept it now?’
No, not yet.
If I bite into the church’s offer now, they’ll just treat me like a puppet.
That won’t do.
“Then let me set my conditions.”
“Yes, we expected as much.”
‘Yeah, if they’ve come this far, they must have expected that much. But I doubt they expected what’s coming.’
I took out a piece of paper and casually wrote down my conditions. The priest’s face aged in an instant as he read them.
‘Yeah, my conditions are ridiculous from the church’s point of view.’
“W-What? You’re asking us to accept all of this?”
I hadn’t really asked for that much.
[Olivia Rapha Ashtar shall be registered as a saintess of the church, but faith shall not be forced upon her.]
[The days Olivia Rapha Ashtar attends church shall be at her discretion.]
[The nun’s habit shall be made according to the specifications of Olivia Rapha Ashtar.]
[Saintess Olivia Rapha Ashtar shall not be subject to any orders from anyone in the church.]
In other words, I would be receiving privileges in the church, as befits an arrogant genius.
This would make it clear that I was different from an ordinary saintess.
If they refuse to accept it, then the Imperial Church will lose the strongest saintess in its history.
I deliberately attached my name to every clause.
Leaning back in my chair, I gave them a smug smile.
“Why wouldn’t you be able to accept this?”
“How could we accept such outrageous demands? Isn’t this an insult to the goddess?”
‘Hmm, do they think the church is the goddess or something?’
‘Even if your mouth is crooked, you should at least speak properly.’
‘I know that’s not the goddess they’re talking about.’
“It’s not an insult to the goddess. It’s an insult to the Imperial Church. Isn’t that right?”
What nonsense were they spouting about the goddess?
The priest gulped nervously, his face contorted in discomfort.
“Please, reconsider…”
“Fifth, the church shall pay Saintess Olivia Rapha Ashtar an annual salary of one million linos.”
“Miss Olivia!”
‘Oh? Did you just raise your voice at me? You must still be full of yourselves.’
“Sixth, any expenses related to luxuries shall be separate from the salary. And every time you whine about my conditions, I’ll add more.”
“Can you truly treat the church like this? The church has always…”
‘Has always what?’
‘Always eaten well and lived well?’
“Always what? Do you even realize which family you’re dealing with? Seventh, exempt commoners from the church tax.”
By now, the uninvited guests were no longer able to maintain their calm expressions.
They couldn’t believe how I was pushing the church into a corner.
But when I shot them a glare, they all hung their heads low.
“If you don’t like it, why don’t you become Olivia yourselves?”
In the end, the uninvited guests had to leave without gaining anything.
‘Serves them right. They should’ve negotiated better from the start.’
What do they take me for, offering the position of saintess so lightly?
***
The Imperial Church was located to the east of the capital.
It was a large structure that connected the Imperial Palace to Atlerina.
The statue of the goddess in front of the church was so enormous that it was a subject of fascination for foreign travelers visiting the empire.
When High Priest Jaiden of the Imperial Goddess Church heard that Priest Raffel had returned from trying to bring the new saintess into the church, he summoned him to a secret chamber within the church.
“Why did you return alone?”
“Your Grace, these are the conditions Olivia Rapha Ashtar has set to become the church’s saintess.”
Jaiden took the letter from Raffel and read it, laughing as he did.
‘As expected, this girl is quite arrogant. Could it be because she’s a noble? Perhaps one could say it’s to be expected.’
However, Jaiden’s hand trembled as he read the additional clauses at the bottom.
“What a brazen girl.”
‘Is she declaring war on the church?’
‘Or is she so young and reckless that she believes becoming a saintess means standing above the church?’
More than that, the real problem was that Raffel was far too incompetent.
‘Looking at him, it seems like if this fool had just done a better job, Olivia would have already accepted the position.’
Jaiden could feel the heat rising in his throat but managed to calm himself with a deep sigh.
‘Patience. It’s not the first time the people under me have been fools.’
“What should we do?”
‘No, I can’t stand it.’
‘Just looking at his idiotic face makes me realize how low the church’s standards have fallen.’
“Come here.”
“Yes?”
Smack!
Jaiden slapped Raffel across the face with all his strength.
He had intended to control his anger, but hitting him so hard felt strangely satisfying.
‘This really is Raffel’s fault.’
“You fool! By running your mouth and fumbling with the negotiations, you’ve increased the number of burdensome conditions!”
“I… I was only…”
“Silence! Even among the high-ranking clergy, there are nobles. They, too, act as they please. So what’s the big deal about one saintess?”
Olivia was a noble—the eldest daughter of the Ashtar family, the most prestigious house in the empire.
‘We could have negotiated up to the fourth clause.’
No, even accepting it as is would be fine.
If we catered to Olivia’s whims just a little, the Ashtar family would become a powerful patron for the church.
Why couldn’t they accept a few conditions from that girl?
“I… I’m sorry.”
Raffel lowered his head.
‘If this fool is so incompetent, what about the others?’
“From the fifth condition onward, accepting them would mean throwing away the church’s pride.”
“The fifth condition: an annual salary of one million linos. The sixth: additional funds for luxuries, separate from the salary. And exempting commoners from church taxes. By the sixth condition, it was clear that Olivia intended to use the church as her personal wallet.”
“And the seventh was practically an attempt to interfere with the internal affairs of the church.”
Jaiden’s plan to use Olivia as a puppet for the church had fallen apart.
It would be a shame to let her slip through their fingers.
“At first, I didn’t believe the words of the professor at the Atlerina Theology Academy, but they were right. There were indeed significant traces of divine power in that classroom.”
“And the students confirmed it was hers.”
“Yes, they did.”
Mary, who had been assigned as the professor, was a highly respected member of the clergy.
For someone like her to acknowledge Olivia’s potential multiple times, sending people to confirm it, was a clear sign.
Olivia had the qualities of an exceptional saintess.
‘We can’t let her get away.’
“What do you think will happen if the Holy Theocracy catches wind of her?”
“That…”
“When you’re within the Empire, I can make you the Empire’s saintess, but if the Pope of the Holy Theocracy gets involved, things will be different!”
The priest looked flustered at the high priest’s words.
“Surely she wouldn’t go to the Theocracy?”
“Because of the saintess who is currently with the Hero, the Theocracy is already deeply concerned. If a woman with greater divine power than Saintess Syria were to appear in the Empire, what do you think the Theocracy would do?”
“Ah.”
The Holy Theocracy—though its kingdom was considered the church’s main base, long ago during the Warring States period, the Pope left the kingdom, which was constantly under invasion, and established the Theocracy in the eastern part of the continent.
Ruled solely by the church, the Theocracy declared the goddess’s church as its state religion, with the Pope as its leader.
The entire population were followers of the goddess, and the Theocracy was recognized as a neutral state with no allies or enemies.
Its military comprised holy knights, along with priests and nuns forming the church’s army.
Although it lacked in military and national power, the mere presence of the Pope, who worshiped the goddess, gave the Theocracy undeniable legitimacy.
While its current headquarters were in the eastern part of the continent, the kingdom, with its many remaining followers, was still referred to as the main base of the church.
Naturally, the Theocracy also selected saintesses.
If the Pope, with all his legitimacy, made a serious attempt to take Olivia before we did, we wouldn’t have a way to stop him.
“Do you understand the mistake you’ve made?”
“B-But would that vain, decadent woman really go to the Theocracy? Isn’t the Theocracy far stricter than we are?”
“Hmmm, you have a point. But how did a woman like her possess such divine power in the first place?”
“That’s what I’d like to know as well.”
Unlike Olivia, who dismissed divine power and the goddess’s abilities as mere branches of magic, the Imperial Church, though corrupt, regarded the goddess’s power as sacred.
That’s why they couldn’t just leave someone like Olivia, who emitted vast amounts of divine power, alone.
If they could secure Olivia, the Imperial Church would gain legitimacy on par with the kingdom and the Theocracy.
And if Olivia couldn’t be brought in, they would have to use her younger sister.
Lily had a considerable amount of divine power herself.
“If Olivia can’t be used, we’ll have to make do with a substitute. What about that girl Lily? If she gives up the Crown Prince, we could make her a saintess.”
“It seems she wants both—a fiancé and the position of saintess.”
‘What a greedy woman.’
“Her greed will make her easy prey for demons. Well, we have no choice. Accept all of Olivia’s conditions, except for the seventh one—stall on that with some excuse about military expenses.”
“Are you sure about that?”
“With the Ashtar family’s support, one million linos is nothing. Besides, the donations from other noble families are already substantial. And how much extravagance can a girl her age really indulge in?”
There were no women among the nobility who would indulge in extravagance to the point of bankrupting their family.
Especially Olivia, who had lived under the Ashtar family’s wealth.
It’s unlikely she had any real desire for extravagance.
“That’s true. I understand.”
“If you let her add any more nonsense conditions, I’ll turn you into a male prostitute and throw you into the brothels!”
“Y-Yes, Your Grace!”
After being severely scolded, Raffel received the high priest’s orders and headed back to Atlerina.
***
A secret meeting was taking place near the outer gates of the capital.
The participants were a pink-haired girl with pigtails, Lily, and a seductive woman with purple hair, horns, and a heart-shaped tail—the succubus.
The succubus sneered at Lily’s scowl the moment they met.
“You’re so pathetic, Lily!”
“Ugh, do you think I did this on purpose?”
“Then why did you mess with Olivia in the first place?”
Lily hadn’t even used the power the succubus had given her to seduce a man.
Instead, she wasted it on bewitching women to attack her older sister.
‘Just how insecure is she about her sister Olivia?’
Dealing with human women was always such a bother.
Or perhaps it was foolish to expect anything different from Lily.
“I hate that my sister is always more successful!”
“You say that, after you’ve already taken so much from Olivia?”
“Whose side are you on?”
“You’re the one being stupid. Instead of seducing men like I told you to, you go around stabbing women in the back.”
The succubus shook her head.
To be honest, she was tempted to end their contract right then and there.
At this point, it felt like she was just indulging in Lily’s games.
“I’ve lived in the sewers my whole life. If you’re going to help me, then work with me properly!”
Lily wanted to maintain her purity for the man she would eventually offer it to, but she couldn’t break her contract with the succubus either.
And on top of that, she wanted to get rid of her sister and claim the Crown Prince for herself.
The succubus listed all of Lily’s desires, glaring at her.
‘What a vile human. She can’t even seduce a man with her looks. She should be satisfied with being the daughter of a rich family after having suffered through childhood and getting lucky with her father’s bloodline.’
‘She really is hopeless.’
The succubus had been unlucky enough to get stuck in a contract with this woman.
If she continued like this, she might be discovered by the Empire because of Lily’s foolishness.
“If my sister has it, then I should have it too!”
‘Why are you even telling me this? Do you think I’m your friend or something?’
But as she thought about it, anger welled up inside the succubus.
‘Wait, why am I getting angry?’
She had given Lily the power to seduce people, yet she hadn’t gotten anything in return.
‘Why did I even help her all this time?’