Chapter 92: A Race For Dominion

King Aldrius pushed himself back up to his feet and stared at the ground.

He didn’t say anything for a long while.

A few steps away, Prince Adonis was patting the Count’s head, and all Vesta could do was bark and slobber. He leaned into the hand like it was the best thing in the world.

That alone was confirmation enough.

The count was gone.

There was nothing left in there to bring back.

’Where do I go from here? What do I even do?’

The Church had done this. He was sure of it. They’d done it and they were standing there with those clean, gentle faces, playing dumb, trying to make a fool of him. And he couldn’t touch them. He wanted to punish these bastards so badly his teeth hurt, but he couldn’t.

As far as he thought and knew, that was the truth.

’They’re pests. They have no place in this kingdom. They’re just monsters pretending to be saints!’

He was so furious that he didn’t notice his own hands shaking like an epileptic.

Adonis noticed, though. The young prince smiled at the old king and asked, "Are you alright, Father?"

Aldrius didn’t answer.

"...I see." Adonis smiled collectedly.

That silence was an admission of the King’s defeat.

’...How amusing.’

There were moments when an opportunity landed in your lap so perfectly it felt like it had been meant to happen.

This was one of them.

Everyone would assume the Church did this to Vesta.

The peerage would be afraid. The commoners who worshipped Melcius would be afraid too. Rumors would spread, because bad rumors always did, and there was nothing the Church could do to stop them. Denying it would only make them look more dictatorial to their own followers.

’Perfect. It’s almost perfect.’

He took his hand off Vesta.

The count flopped onto the ground and rolled onto his back like a dog waiting for a belly rub. He was a naked, middle-aged man with his legs in the air and his penis hanging out.

It was deeply unsettling, especially to the noblewomen who shuddered and looked away.

Adonis took another chug of wine.

’The Church looks like the big bad guy now. Not completely, but it’s a very good start.’

When the day finally came and he brought the Church down, the peerage that feared it would fear him instead, and they’d have to admit his talents were above even Second Prince Cassius’s. The commoners who worshipped Saint Melcius would see him as a hero too.

The man, the savior, who preserved the history of the Church by toppling the Pope.

That was his vision.

’Absolutely perfect, you see.’

His eyes drifted toward Queen Esmarie and he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

’Speaking of queens... Lucelia is vital to my plans, but the issue is getting to her. These days she’s been tied up with Leander since he lost his sanity, and if I’m was being honest, I have zero sympathy to offer her.’

The smile on his face couldn’t die.

’I don’t fancy the idea of torturing a grieving mother to get what I want... rather, need. But if the time comes, and she doesn’t comply, I’ll be forced to.’

He looked down at his palm and formed a tight fist.

"I’ll do anything. I’ll sacrifice everything. As long as it keeps me alive in this world..."

He mumbled it so quietly that nobody heard.

He had to become king soon.

Because this was a race that went beyond princes and even beyond the throne itself. This was a race for dominion, and the one at the end of the line would stand supreme over both the church and the peerage!

’Hm?’

He felt a gaze on him. The fifth prince looked up and found Godfrey watching him, but the first prince averted his eyes the moment they met, and turned to leave with his mother.

He didn’t make it.

Godfrey’s entire body froze, because a gentle face had appeared right in front of him.

"Have we met, my friend?"

Pope Verdigris asked it softly.

He was a kind man, everyone said so. Even so, many always felt like there was an ugly beast crouching underneath that harmless smile, just waiting.

Adonis narrowed his eyes.

’This man... is the reason Godfrey dies.’

That much he knew. What he still couldn’t understand was how, or why. From everything he could see, the Church had far more to gain from keeping the first prince alive...

He was about to say something when First Queen Esmarie jumped in.

"Your Holiness!"

She greeted the Pope with a bright, excited voice.

"I’ve been wanting to see you, and thank you and the Church for being such a blessing in my son’s life. I’m sure my Godfrey won’t even be in the running for king if it weren’t for you people!"

Godfrey flashed her an irritable look.

"M-, Mother, please don’t say things like that. How do you expect me to feel?"

"But it’s true! You’re very easy to overlook, dear. That’s why you’re such a rising sensation now!"

"..."

Godfrey’s eye twitched.

Pope Verdigris saved the moment by resting a hand on his shoulder.

"You needn’t bother about that, young man. It’s clear people have fully recognized your greatness now. But even before that, I could tell."

Godfrey blinked. "...You could?"

"It’s simple." The Pope nodded. "You were chosen by our shining God. Why else would a mortal who had fallen rise in the face of such impossible odds? Does that not sound like the work of the White Saint’s blessing?"

Godfrey was speechless.

The Pope had more to say still...

"There will come a time when you may have to save this world. I hope you make the right choice when it does. In the life of every man, there are moments he must not avoid, if there is to be any hope for a new world. Saint Melcius understood that very well and laid down his life, you see."

He smiled angelically.

"I hope to see you at the Procession of Saints."

Godfrey was smiling, almost too dazed to answer.

"I—"

"YES! HE’LL BE THERE!"

Esmarie leaped into his face and shouted it, then turned to stare at the Pope in utter amazement.

Adonis kept his eyes on the old man.

Pope Verdigris looked back at him with cool, half-lidded eyes that looked thoughtless. They weren’t thoughtless like Count Vesta’s, though. Vesta’s eyes were empty because there was nothing left behind them.

This man’s eyes were empty because everything was beneath him, that was how the prince saw it.

He didn’t even realize he was clutching his chest.

But he wasn’t the only one the Pope had gotten to.

When Adonis turned his head, he saw King Aldrius staring across the courtyard at Godfrey and Esmarie. They wouldn’t stop smiling at a man he considered his greatest enemy.

And the king was seething.

’Look at them. Look at them smiling.’

’He’s talking to my son like he owns him. My son. And Esmarie’s lapping it up, because she doesn’t see it, she never sees it, does she? The Church has been in her ear this whole time. In his ear. Godfrey, my own boy, the one who looks at me so politely. What if it’s all an act? What if he’s been waiting? He’s a top prince now, a Holy Knight, and the people love him, and the Church loves him even more. How long until he decides he doesn’t need a father on the throne? How long until he wants it for himself?’

’And then what? He’d crown himself and kneel to that old fossil and declare the Church the superior power. And I’d be nothing. A footnote. Maybe a cup of tea would do it. Maybe a knife. Maybe they’ve already picked a servant. That’s it isn’t it... it’s the one pouring my wine.’

’Why is he touching him? Why does the Pope keep touching my family?’

’...Is the Pope sleeping with my wife?’

’Of course he is. Look at her face. Look at how she looks at him. She’s never looked at me as that competent.’

’Why am I always like this? Why am I so weak? Why am I always so weak in front of other men? Darius took Lucelia. Now this one’s taken Esmarie. I’m the king. I’m the KING. How can my own wife love her son more than me? Doesn’t she have an obligation to serve me?! Doesn’t she?!’

’I have to fix this. I have to fix myself. Why can’t I fix myself? Why can’t I do anything right? Why does everything I touch slip out of my hands, why does everyone look at me like they’re waiting for me to die...’

His thoughts had gone mad.

Adonis looked at the insanity in the old man’s eyes and said nothing.

There was nothing and everything to say right now.

But some things were better left alone.

...If you considered mercy an option.

Before taking his leave, Adonis stopped beside the king but didn’t bother to look at him.

"If it were me... I wouldn’t let my wife be so utterly fascinated by another man. But then again, it’s true. Father has always had a thing for being overshadowed by more capable men."

Adonis tilted his head.

"First Mother Lucelia is charmed by Fangfather Darius. And now Mother Esmarie is taken by a fossil like the Pope. The Church really has taken everything from you, hasn’t it? The trust of the people. Your wives. Your sons. And even one of your most trusted nobles has been made a dog by them..."

He smiled.

"Imagine if Old Hershant was siding with the Church."

The old grand chamberlain only narrowed his eyes at the smug-faced prince and his arrogant comment.

Adonis chuckled.

"Well! I really must be going."

He waved over his shoulder without looking back and strolled out of the courtyard.

Behind him, Lady Euphemia watched him go.

"...Hm?"

She tilted her head, and her pale cheeks went warm again. She touched her face gently, as if she didn’t recognize it.

’My face is hot again... why is that?’

...

Meanwhile, in the hostel of the convent.

Prussia stood naked in front of the mirror, staring at her chest with bright red cheeks.

’...Is it just me?’

She held the heavy bags of meat in her hands, one in each palm, and weighed them carefully.

"Th-, They did..."

They had gotten bigger.

Her face went even redder.

This was the most unusual thing to ever happen to her.

"My breasts have..."

Then she looked over her shoulder at her old dress hanging on the chair, the one she’d planned to wear.

’How am I supposed to wear something nice at tonight’s festival if I can’t even get a right fit...?’

The deflowered lady knight crossed her arms over bare chest and let out a very worried sigh.

"...Am I getting fat?"