The World I Was Supporting Was Real

Chapter 23

Episode 23. Appointment of the Holy Knight (4)

The capital city of Igogodon.

There were two buildings that anyone who visited once could never forget.

One was the Igogodon Cathedral.

The building, once touted as “the most beautiful cathedral in the world,” boasted the tallest spire in the capital and housed a diverse collection of murals, masterpieces, relics, and statues. However, after a recent event deemed an act of God, the spire had vanished, and the interior had been completely emptied and was now being refilled, making it a rather chaotic place.

And the other place was the Imperial Palace.

The residence of those with the most noble blood in the continent.

Built by utilizing an entire hill without any excavation, this palace was breathtakingly beautiful, yet its moats were meticulously dug, making it easily defensible as a small fortress if necessary.

In the heart of this Imperial Palace lay the Audience Chamber, where one could meet the Emperor.

On the red carpet, Linea knelt, bowing her head to the apex of power at the very top of the Empire.

“Mother, I’ve returned.”

“Come in, Linea.”

Seated on the imperial throne was Linea’s mother, the 18th monarch of the Ainsberk Empire—Empress Irene von Ainsberk.

Her golden hair, shimmering brighter than sunlit dust, was elegantly braided up, with one side falling gracefully over her shoulder. Her deep sapphire eyes, the color of a vast ocean, served as a powerful testament to the imperial lineage.

Her incredibly youthful complexion for her age was striking, but… the most significant feature was her chest.

Her breasts. A violently large pair of breasts!

Just looking at them felt like the very word “breasts” was crushing her, threatening to suffocate her with their sheer enormity!

While her adopted daughter, the Second Princess Linea, possessed a considerable bust, it was incomparable to Irene’s.

An overwhelming, voluptuous bosom, the kind only a mature woman could possess, threatened to burst forth from her elegant dress.

Her age was 36, a woman who learned to distrust before she learned to love.

The reason the age difference between her and 21-year-old Linea wasn’t that significant was because all the imperial children, including Linea, were her niece’s children.

They were the adopted children of the deceased former Emperor.

Irene ascended the throne at the young age of 22 following the untimely death of her much older sister, Aysha von Ainsberk, the previous Empress.

Upon donning the imperial crown, she was immediately thrust into the ugly spectacle of a power struggle.

Her siblings were not pillars of support but rivals vying for the throne. The numerous nobles who followed them were her enemies.

Despite this, she firmly stood her ground and successfully weathered the storm.

When necessary, she willingly stained her hands with blood. To survive.

And now.

At least outwardly, there was no longer anyone who dared to harbor even a hint of rebellion towards her.

Somehow, she had children before having a husband—but it didn’t matter.

It was better to adopt her sister’s children than to create direct descendants and complicate the succession.

She had no intention of finding a husband now. Men had never held a place in her sphere of interest.

It wasn’t that she lacked interest in romance… but her heart quickened when her plans succeeded, not in the presence of a man.

Irene extended her pale hand forward and spoke.

“Did you meet the saintess?”

“Yes. As expected, I was appointed as a holy knight, but…”

“Did something happen?”

What followed was a story about a plate of holy knights.

At the mention of three people gathering for one plate, Eirene slightly furrowed her brows and tilted her head.

Her golden side hair swayed gently.

“You mean they appointed three holy knights?”

“Yes.”

Eirene’s white hand brushed her pink lips.

“This is clearly a decision of a cunning snake.”

Linnea easily guessed who Eirene was talking about.

The Pope. A man trying to rapidly expand the church’s influence and regain authority – Agnus III.

“But mother, the decision to select ‘a plate of holy knights’ this time was said to be God’s will-”

“Linnea. Surely you don’t really believe in that absurd talk about God’s will, do you?”

“……”

Saying nothing meant affirmation.

Linnea didn’t particularly believe in the existence of God either.

“Turning us into enemies is troublesome. But they don’t want to give us any power worth checking… So, they just selected all three. You and Ophelia are excellent knights, so the risk of selecting an unknown knight can be sufficiently Moreover, by appointing three holy knights, they can also create the impression that ‘the saintess who appeared this time is special.’ The remaining task is to revise that damn rule… Well, that can be solved by―”

―tearing out the book that claims to be ‘God’s word.’

They are beasts that devour the Bible.

Eirene said this with a self-mocking smile.

“It’s funny how they are trying to regain their former glory now that the saintess has appeared. Whether they are religious people or nobles with political ambitions… It’s truly laughable. Linnea. You studied history, so you know, right? What happened “Just a few hundred years ago.”

“Yes, mother.”

Eirene and Linnea revisited the history of the past.

―Once upon a time, the power of religion was so strong that even the emperor had to kneel before the Pope.

In those days, the Bible was the law. No, it was an era when the Bible was prioritized over the law.

Women of the imperial family, including the emperor, were required to expose a certain part of their chest.

This must have been a very humiliating thing for the imperial family, which pursued secular values.

The authority of the Bible was immutable, and the emperor’s position felt like that of a mere tax collector.

Can you believe that?

But no matter how powerful, even the might that could bring down the birds from the sky has its end.

At that time, Pope Magnitipus II was an extremely greedy man, and he created a blasphemous logic that directly contradicted God’s will, saying, ‘As long as you can pay the offering, the size of the divine power pouch is not a significant issue in becoming a nun’―

He committed the greatest and most heinous sin of the church, which is still considered a tremendous disgrace in the religious world and is regarded as an extreme blasphemy―

“Of course, do you know this, Linnea?”

“Yes, Mother.”

“Good. ――Selling cotton breast pads.”

“……It’s selling cotton tofu, Mother.”

“Isn’t it the same thing?”

After the horrific incident of selling ‘cotton tofu’, a qualification that allowed one to become a nun without a divine power pouch, which is an unspeakable event in the current religious world.

The absolute status of the church, which had been infinitely reduced in power due to the rapid decrease in divine power caused by the lack of pouches, quickly collapsed―

As a result, the current situation is that ‘although it is the state religion, it cannot exercise absolute authority over the emperor, and the imperial family cannot unilaterally control the religious world’ has emerged.

It could be said that a kind of balance was finally achieved.

In such a situation, after 200 years, a saint finally reappeared.

Naturally, it would not be strange for the church to make efforts to somehow elevate its status on the continent by actively utilizing the saint’s miracles.

The emperor could not just sit back and watch it like a fire show.

“Although I have agreed to become a ‘Holy Knight’, wouldn’t it be better to study the Bible from now on to avoid any trouble?”

“The Bible is ultimately written by humans. Well, it wouldn’t hurt to read it since you have become a Holy Knight… but for now, stay as inconspicuous as possible, Linnea. I will take care of everything. Do you Do you understand?”

“What do you mean by ‘take care of everything’…?”

At that moment.

Eirene tilted her head slightly and looked down at Linnea.

The gaze of an absolute being. This was clearly the gaze of a superior looking at a subordinate.

“Soon, you will be the only Holy Knight left.”

“……!!”

Linnea was startled and her eyes widened, but Eirene continued speaking as if nothing had happened.

“Of course, I don’t intend to stain my hands with blood. That would be a foolish act of turning the church into an enemy. But, there are various means and methods that can be employed without dirtying my hands.”

“It wouldn’t be good to provoke the nobles and earn their hatred, so it would be necessary to prepare meticulously to deal with the Transrente family… Yes. It would be best to deal with the nameless knights first.”

Eirene said this while covering her mouth with her pale hand and laughed softly.

Her appearance was so beautiful that it was hard to believe she was a woman plotting schemes.

“Mother. Even so, I don’t think it’s a good idea to do anything to the knights designated as Holy Knights…”

“Have you already become friends with them?”

“No, it’s just that if there is something that must be done in this world—”

“Likewise, isn’t there something you shouldn’t do?”

“You’re still young, Linea. It’s not about what you shouldn’t do. It’s about what you shouldn’t get caught doing.”

“……!”

While Linea was shocked and speechless, Eirene remained very calm.

In fact, since the saintess had appeared, they were just being cautious – what would the emperor have to be cautious about?

“Don’t worry. If they are truly appointed as holy knights by the word of God, wouldn’t God intervene in the schemes of mere human creatures?”

Saying so, she laughed again, “Hehe.”