When I heard the Pope was arriving, I looked at Cassian nervously. "Since the capital is in this state, we agreed to refrain from holding national-level events." He was clearly referring to the downfall of the Duke of Hesman and the Duke of Babylon. I nodded, agreeing with his point.
"By the way..." Cassian said.
"Yes?" I swallowed, my intuition telling me something important was coming.
"The Pope wants you to attend a small feast in honor of his visit."
"Are there any other invitees?"
"Yes."
I stared at him, my lips parted in surprise. Cassian narrowed his eyes and continued. "The direct royal family, you, the hero swordsman Dominic, and the Master of the Magic Tower."
The combination of guests had a clear commonality. "They are all people who have helped me all this time."
"Oh, is that so?" The Empress said, nodding in resignation.
The Pope's purpose was clear: in the guise of a formal meeting, he was trying to gather all of us to gauge our strength. The person I'm dealing with now isn't just an adulterous man or woman. The Pope was the head of the Holy Kingdom, and it was impossible to accurately estimate his power. I had to confront him. And like my other Kinnoa relatives, I had to fight to avoid losing my life. My palms were slick with sweat in the tense situation.
"But you don't have to be afraid." After a moment to compose my thoughts, I straightened my shoulders. I refused to be frozen in fear. All that remained was to figure out how to deal with a Pope who had arrived ahead of schedule.
"Thank you for letting me know," I told Cassian. He looked more relaxed at my words.
"Yes. I wanted to meet and speak with the Pope before sending the invitation," he replied.
I said to him, "The Marquis of Kinnoa always repays a favor. It's a family tradition."
"Did the Kinnoa family have such a tradition?" he asked, his voice full of curiosity. The brilliant sunlight shone brightly on the table. Instead of shielding my eyes, I squinted and gave him a wide smile.
"I just decided it was."
Cassian's stiff expression softened. "I really like that tradition." We smiled at each other for a moment, and then a quiet silence settled over the table.
To break the quiet, the Empress spoke up. "Is there anything else you wanted to say?"
Anything else to say? I shook my head, puzzled. Then Cassian smiled. I thought the conversation was about to end, but he spoke to me again.
"I have another story to tell you."
"Yes?"
"You might be even more surprised by this."
I looked at Cassian and the Empress, feeling both nervous and confused, and shook my head. Is there anything more surprising than the Pope's surprise visit? He smiled quietly and continued.
"I heard from the president of the Academy that you will be a special guest lecturer."
The news wasn't surprising; the Imperial Academy was run with investment from the Imperial Palace, and Cassian had a close relationship with the president. So I simply nodded and gave a moderate reply. "Yes, that's right." My heart fluttered a bit when I thought about being an academy instructor. I took a sip of the teacup on the table.
"His Majesty the Emperor seemed to be considering accompanying the Empress to your class," Cassian added.
I had already heard about the Empress, but I didn't expect the Emperor to come too! I spat out my tea and asked him in a hurry, "Uh... His Majesty?"
"Yes."
"I thought you were going to be a little more nervous when you said that," the Empress said lightly.
I froze at their casual affirmations. No, why would the Emperor suddenly come to a regular lecture at the Imperial Academy? The Empress, who was watching me with my mouth wide open in embarrassment, smiled and put her index finger to her lips.
"You look quite surprised. I knew you would." She said it as if she had prepared a surprise event. But what she said next was even more surprising. "His Majesty is also very interested in your business. Do you know why? Can you guess?"
Of course, the Emperor was very fond of the saline root that I had given him, but I didn't expect him to be interested in the business itself. I blinked, tilting my head, and noticed the Empress's excited expression. I knew that even if I had the answer, I shouldn't give it away.
"I honestly don't know the exact reason, Your Majesty."
"This is what happened. His Majesty the Emperor interrogated Duke Hesman and spoke with a couple from the Demon Kingdom."
I've never heard that from the Marquis, I thought, quickly hiding my bewildered expression. I tried to recall my conversation with the Marquis of Padel. After Lennox was taken away, Mrs. Hayne had whispered in my ear, My wife and I helped, so of course, Meldenik will pay the price, right? I had gladly replied, Of course! to her lovely voice.
I had been thinking of paying the noble couple from the Magic Kingdom, who had willingly helped, as much as possible. But the price they wanted was for me to be the exclusive intermediary between the Demon Kingdom and my stationery store. Wasn't that something the great nobles of the empire, including the Duke of Hesman, and the entire continent longed for? Isn't this too good for me?
The amazing news from the Empress and Cassian made me turn my stiff neck and look at them. "So, it was that easy to interact with the Demon Kingdom?"
"It's difficult for others. But you are amazing, so you got this great opportunity," Cassian said.
My cheeks turned red as I felt like I was being praised. The Empress seemed to notice my embarrassment and smiled, grabbing my shoulder. "Thanks to you, His Majesty was delighted, saying that a new era of prosperity was coming to the empire."
My face felt like it was being gilded more and more. I coughed lightly to lighten the mood. "Well, that's... a bit much. No, it's honestly amazing." I furrowed my brow playfully, thinking it might be right to just praise myself.
Then Cassian let out a low laugh. "Yes, it is great."
"...Hmm," the Empress said with a voice full of regret. "It would be nice if you became the Princess."
Hearing that, my face and Prince Cassian's face turned red at the same time. Because of the difference in status, I couldn't be the first to refuse. Noticing my discomfort, Cassian took a breath and said, "Meldenik may already have someone special."
I was relieved that he drew the line first without making me feel burdened. I looked at Cassian and tried to frown, but then stopped. But why does he have that expression? He had an unusual look on his face.
When I started to panic, the Empress spoke up. "Anyway," she said, holding my hand tightly as if to emphasize. "Come back again. I'll give you your favorite child servants."
I nodded to the Empress. "Yes, Your Majesty."
"You must come."
I gave the Empress a brief smile. "You'll see me soon anyway, in the observation class. And..." I gritted my teeth. "at the feast."
The Pope would be arriving soon. I knew how devious he was, but I didn't intend to be easily defeated. I smiled brightly at the Empress. "Still, I will come back to see you again, Your Majesty."
That night, the Pope secretly arrived at the Imperial Palace. Perhaps because they were mindful of the fates of Sheria and Luftel, it was an unusually quiet visit for a state guest. Since the Pope's visit was still unknown to the public, all attention was focused on the fate of Duke Hesman, who was imprisoned and whose limbs were shackled.
I need to see what the Pope is doing before the feast.
Of course, I had eyes and ears keeping an eye on the Pope and the wicked couple. It was Dominic! Even at this moment, Dominic, who had infiltrated the Imperial Palace, was broadcasting in real-time. Since video devices were not allowed inside the prison, Dominic used a little trick: he was sharing his vision with me. I couldn't fully understand the nature of the contract between Dominic and me, but I was glad it wasn't the kind of magic that could be monitored in the Imperial Palace.
"How is it, Mel? Can you see it well?"
"Yes!"
"I'll start broadcasting."
First, Dominic showed me Sheria and Lennox in prison. Lennox, the traitor and murderer, would die after paying the penalty for all the sins of the Hesman family. Sheria would also be stripped of her noble title. Both of them were angry and cursing.
Those two are grinding their teeth so much their gums are going to wear out, I thought. Good. They have to pay for their sins. I watched them, my arms crossed in front of my chest.
Dominic nodded vigorously as if agreeing, but his vision was shaky and a bit dizzy. "Now I'm going to check on the Pope's movements," he said.
Dominic left the prison and began to walk along the promenade of the Imperial Palace. Cassian had given a hint about the Pope's location: the castle at the end of the promenade where Dominic was walking. Strangely, as he got closer to the palace, my vision began to blur a little. I whispered to Dominic, hiding my doubts, "How are the Pope's movements?"
"Nothing... Nothing..."
But suddenly, the screen was filled with static, and the sound started cutting out.
"Some... thing... strange..." I narrowed my brows, trying to focus on what Dominic would say next. But I couldn't hear anything.
Flash!
Suddenly, my eyes went white, and my vision-sharing was abruptly blocked. I panicked for a moment, squeezed my eyes shut, and pressed my eyelids tightly with my index finger. The view I had shared with Dominic disappeared, and I could only see the inside of the empty stationery store where I was sitting.
"Dominic, can you hear me?"
But I couldn't hear anything.