A couple of months ago, at the moment the Holy See collapsed due to the terror attack by Carolus and his companions.
At that time, thousands of people were present in and around the Holy See building.
Cleaners, guards, knights, priests, nuns, chefs, and so on.
It was enough to form a small town in terms of population.
But that wasn’t all.
On this particular day, not only were the regular residents present, but there were also many guests who had traveled from afar—a rare occurrence.
“Is this the place where the bodies are being gathered?”
“Yes, Your Holiness. For now, we’ve sorted the identified remains by rank.”
“…Devastating. It’s rare to even find remains that have kept their original form.”
Those gathered were none other than the cardinals from churches and cathedrals across the Holy Kingdom.
Due to the theocratic nature of the state, bishops also acted as regional governors, wielding both religious and administrative power.
These were the influential figures of the Holy Kingdom—people who were normally preoccupied with exploiting their dioceses and extorting taxes from the populace.
But for this one occasion, they had to put that aside.
They were obligated to attend the central state council of the Holy Kingdom, an annual gathering.
The council was a critical meeting to discuss diocesan reorganization, administrative measures, and new laws.
Except for a few absentees like the cardinal of the Amas Cathedral, most had already arrived at the Holy See several days prior to the event.
But tragedy struck the day before the council was scheduled to begin.
“And among these remains, you’ve only managed to find two individuals ranked bishop or higher?”
“My apologies. Most of them were too deep inside…”
“Incompetent fools. Didn’t you employ thousands of workers and even mobilize nearby residents? And yet, the search isn’t complete?”
As if the disaster wasn’t tragic enough, the problem also lay in the location where the guests were staying.
For security and safety reasons, the cardinals were all accommodated in VIP rooms located on the middle floors.
This area was situated at the heart of what had once been a fortress and later heavily expanded with additional structures above it.
In short, it was a place surrounded by mountains of concrete and stone debris on all sides—above and below.
Could anyone have survived being caught in an explosion there?
Of course not.
Even retrieving the bodies was an incredibly challenging task.
This was an era without heavy machinery like cranes, so how could they possibly recover tiny fragments of bones and flesh buried under tens of thousands of tons of rubble?
This kind of task would be difficult even in the 21st century.
Unless a government of an advanced nation fully mobilized all its resources, it would be nearly impossible.
“Incompetence has its limits! To put someone like that in charge—what a disgrace.”
“…I am deeply sorry.”
“I don’t need apologies! What I need is results!”
Given the current circumstances, where so much time has passed that the bodies have started to decompose, it would be reasonable to give up on both finding survivors and retrieving the remains.
Unfortunately, the rulers of the Holy Kingdom were not in a position to do so.
“Damn it… for such a disaster to happen at a time like this…”
The 32nd Holy Pontiff of the Goddess Church, Giulio Cesare, gritted his teeth.
He had survived the disaster with only minor injuries, thanks to being on the top floor of the Holy See during the incident (as the Holy Kingdom believed).
It was deemed a miracle.
When he first escaped death, he thought it was divine intervention. Yet, he now faced a complete and utter crisis.
‘If I’d had just one more year—no, even six months—I could have bled the kingdom dry!’
A few months ago, as the leader of the Holy Kingdom, he had instructed covert operations targeting the kingdom.
Specifically, it was to assist King Carl VII’s asylum plans.
The objective was straightforward.
Seize the monarch and use him to undermine the legitimacy of the kingdom’s coup government.
Label them as rebels who ousted the king, greedy and faithless usurpers.
From the perspective of the coup government, which had only just barely suppressed internal resistance and established its foundation, creating an external enemy would be the last thing they wanted.
With that burden and the moral justification, he believed they could pressure the coup government to extract privileges, such as monetary compensation or the authority to appoint bishops.
And honestly, the likelihood of success was quite high.
History was filled with examples of such underhanded tactics working.
He had expected this time to be no different.
But now…
‘With the cardinals dead and local governance paralyzed, the central administration must take over. Yet now even the central administration is at a standstill.’
The domestic crisis had thrown all his plans into chaos.
The Holy Kingdom, after all, had neither a systematic bureaucracy nor a proper system for selecting capable officials.
Due to the nature of the state, which was fused with religion, the training of high-ranking priests was almost entirely conducted through an apprenticeship system.
When the high-ranking personnel, such as cardinals, were suddenly wiped out, the central government had no choice but to take over their roles until successors could be trained.
If the Holy See had survived, it might have been possible to manage the situation somehow.
But with the building and its entire staff wiped out, along with all the experienced administrators and administrative documents?
There was no solution.
Far from engaging in diplomatic efforts, they were now at a loss as to how to even keep the country running.
“If only we still had the Saintess on our side…”
The Holy Pontiff sighed. He couldn’t remember a time when the Saintess’s presence had felt so crucial.
If they had been able to keep her within their control, she could have calmed the citizens, who were shaken by the collapse of the Holy See, and possibly even minimized the number of casualties from the disaster.
But that was no longer possible. The reason was simple.
“That wretched girl.”
The Saintess had already left the country.
The Pontiff only realized this after obtaining and reviewing a public notice distributed by the kingdom.
To his astonishment, she had fled to Ulranor without his knowledge and was now living a life of luxury there.
The Pontiff had his suspicions.
The Saintess, who had always been defiant toward him, must have been planning her escape, taking the first opportunity that presented itself.
How she ended up in the kingdom was unclear, but what was certain was that she had completely slipped out of their control.
And she didn’t just run away.
As soon as she successfully sought asylum, she appeared publicly and began denouncing the Holy Kingdom in every possible way.
She even went as far as to declare the Holy Kingdom a heretical state—a drastic and extreme measure.
“She’s running wild like a mad horse finally let loose.”
Thanks to the Saintess, who had no sense of gratitude (not that they had ever done anything to warrant it), the Holy Kingdom’s reputation was on the verge of being completely destroyed.
Even nations that had previously been friendly were now sending protest letters, asking what was going on.
The Pontiff was furious, but there was nothing he could do.
The secretaries who would draft a reply and the cardinals responsible for foreign affairs were buried under the rubble.
What could he possibly do in such a situation?
“For now, the best course of action is to accelerate the recovery efforts.”
With a sigh, the Pontiff reprimanded the official in charge of managing the situation.
“Order the nearby provinces to send 30,000 laborers immediately. One way or another, the recovery must begin before summer.”
“Understood!”
“I’m giving you full authority, so get it done no matter what. If you fail… you’d best be prepared for the consequences.”
The priority was to confirm the deaths of key personnel and recover the critical documents and administrative records buried inside the ruins.
If they could retrieve even some of those documents, they could establish a foundation to rebuild the Holy Kingdom.
And perhaps… they might also be able to retrieve him buried deep within—or rather, it.
Clinging to this faint hope, the Pontiff forced himself to remain optimistic.
…Completely unaware that most of the documents he was so desperate to find were already being sifted through and exploited by the Kingdom of Ulranor.
Effective propaganda always creates ripple effects.
Be it excessive public reactions, a sudden division in public opinion, or the persecution of forces deemed enemies of the state.
Sometimes, the influence even extends beyond borders, eliciting responses from neighboring nations.
For instance, like what was happening now.
“Haha, it’s been a while, General. Almost a year, hasn’t it?”
“Not quite that long, but yes, it’s been a while, General Leclerc.”
It had been about two and a half months since they started spreading their propaganda.
Though they still hadn’t received the awaited letter or protest from the Holy Kingdom, someone else had come knocking instead—none other than a guest from the Federated Empire.
“What brings you here?”
“His Majesty has a few things he desires, and I’ve been dispatched as a special envoy to get some answers.”
The visitor was General Leclerc, whom they had previously encountered on the Western Front.
General Leclerc, a close confidant of Emperor Louis XVI, had arrived as the delegation’s ambassador.
“Something you want? Of course. Let’s hear it, and I’ll do my best to cooperate within reason.”
“Thank you. First…”
Leclerc, fluent in both the kingdom’s language and the imperial tongue, made translation unnecessary.
Seated across from each other in my office, we began our discussion, just the two of us, accompanied by a suitable wine and some light snacks.
“The end date for the armistice agreement is approaching, isn’t it? It was supposed to lead to a peace treaty by then, but I’d like to confirm if that agreement is still valid.”
A peace treaty…
Now that he mentioned it, I had completely forgotten about it, what with all the chaos happening internally.
Was this brought up because they were worried we might break the agreement and reignite the war?
Thankfully for them, that wouldn’t happen.
We didn’t have the budget for such a thing.
After a decade of total war that left the treasury in ruins, we’re barely managing to refill it by squeezing the nobles dry.
Starting a war again?
Not a chance.
“Of course, the agreement remains valid. That includes our offer to cede the Helgoland County as well.”
“Well, that’s a relief to hear.”
“We’ll begin negotiations as soon as we’ve wrapped up our business with the Holy Kingdom, so there’s no need to worry.”
“The Holy Kingdom? Ah, now that you mention it, His Majesty did instruct me to discuss that issue as well.”
Leclerc nodded and leaned forward in his seat.
“The Saintess has been quite active in your kingdom recently, hasn’t she? Our empire can’t just sit idly by regarding this matter either,” he said, pausing for a moment to gather his thoughts.
Then, smacking his lips slightly, he posed his question to me.
“The Holy Kingdom—how about we divide and rule it together?”