At that moment, Cardinal Pablo, a lifelong rival of the Knight Commander, spoke up. "It's clear there's a spy within the Holy Knights. How else could this happen?"
The knight slammed his fist on the table and snarled, "Silence! Are you accusing our knights of treachery?"
Pablo smirked. "If not, how do you explain this? Someone must have uncovered our plans and stolen only the grain meant for the Pamir Empire, leaving no trace behind. What's next—ghost ships crewed by phantom pirates?"
Unknowingly, Pablo's sarcastic remark came closer to the truth than anyone realized. In reality, Zark, acting on Michael's orders, had orchestrated the scheme, though no one in the room was aware of it.
Pablo continued his mocking tone. "And now rumors are spreading as though someone deliberately wanted them to. Rumors that reveal our plans in excruciating detail. This reeks of Holy Knight involvement. How will you explain that?"
Though Pablo's accusations hit uncomfortably close to home, the truth remained elusive to all.
The Knight Commander bristled. "Our knights are all sons of noble families. None of them would ever stoop to such actions…"
Pablo scoffed. "Oh? Are you saying every one of them is above reproach? Even after all the purges and expulsions, I doubt that's true."
As the argument escalated, Allegro III could bear no more. "Enough! Be silent, all of you!"
His shout echoed through the room. "This is not the time to argue over how things came to this. We must focus on how to resolve it!"
Although his words blatantly favored the Holy Knights, none dared challenge him. It was an open secret that the Holy Knights served as the Pope's enforcers, cleaning up his messes.
Another cardinal cautiously spoke up. "Your Holiness, in a situation , perhaps silence is the best course. After all, time will pass, and this too shall fade. Has the Holy State not weathered worse storms in its illustrious history?"
The others nodded in agreement, as did the Pope.
This was a fitting strategy for a group that had committed countless schemes and faced no accountability. At this level of entanglement, brazen disregard was often the most effective approach.
"Very well. We'll let this pass. What can they possibly do to us?"
The Pope concluded the meeting.
Much later, Allegro III would regret this decision deeply. But for now, he remained oblivious to the storm yet to come.
The Celeste Empire's capital radiated magnificence befitting its reputation as the second-greatest empire on the continent. The imperial palace, constructed from gleaming white marble, shone brilliantly under the sun.
In the throne room, the young emperor Sigmund, who had recently ascended to the throne following his coronation, burst into laughter. His laughter was filled with mockery.
"Haha! The look on that old Pope's face must be priceless."
Lelius, the son of a grand duke and a companion to the emperor, smirked in response. "Indeed, Your Majesty. It is the price for daring to challenge the divine authority bestowed upon you by the heavens."
The emperor tilted his goblet and took a sip, his smile lingering. "Cut the formal talk, Lelius. You know how much I despise that."
Sigmund's gaze fixed on Lelius. Though his lips smiled, his eyes were cold and calculating.
"Still, Your Majesty, one must maintain the dignity of one's station," Lelius replied cautiously.
"Sigh… Fine. I suppose there's no helping it," Sigmund said, his expression softening just enough to let Lelius breathe a sigh of relief internally. If he had taken the emperor's words at face value and acted too familiarly, his current status might have been forfeit.
"Well, the Holy State wouldn't have provoked us with their military expansions and such if they hadn't overreached. But now that we've started, we must see it through to the end," Sigmund mused, idly tracing the rim of his goblet with a finger.
The Holy State's interference in the Celeste Empire's succession was not a new issue, but this time Sigmund was determined to address it decisively. Their military expansions, meant to sustain their growing forces, had destabilized the continent and revived memories of the era when the Holy State dominated. This tension had finally prompted the empire to publicly denounce them.
"So, what do you think we should do now? Elonia and Lania have requested reinforcements. We'll have to make a show of goodwill, won't we?" Sigmund asked.
"Lip and teeth depend on each other," Lelius replied.
Without the defensive buffer of the countries bordering the Pamir Empire, the savage tribes would inevitably push into the continent's central regions.
"Ah, what a nuisance. The five main tribes, in particular, are such a headache. Did you know they carry the blood of the ancient beastfolk?" Sigmund's sudden statement startled Lelius.
"Pardon? The ancient beastfolk?"
"Yes, the ones said to have been created through unions with dark gods. The five main tribes are descended from them. That's why they're so aggressive and possess certain abilities. Especially their royal lineage. They say the tribes' warriors channel spirits into their bodies during battle. Hah, spirits? It's just their beastfolk blood manifesting. One of the reasons we fight so hard to keep the Pamir Empire out of the continent is because of this. It's a secret known only to our family and the heads of other royal families," Sigmund said nonchalantly.
Hearing this revelation so casually shared, Lelius felt a chill run down his spine.
Why is he bringing this up now?
"Lelius, my idiot father might have been good for nothing, but he sure had a talent for fathering children. Even though I've killed all my brothers except for the one who fled, I have no desire to kill the daughters who hold no claim to the throne. That's left me with quite a lot of sisters. Arranging marriages for them all is giving me a headache. Since they don't share the same mother as me, I don't want to risk sending them to other royal families. So, why don't we become a real family ourselves?"
Sigmund's golden eyes glinted with madness as he looked at Lelius.
This was the unique lunacy of the Celeste Imperial Family, who had once intermarried siblings under the pretext of preserving territory and reducing dowries. Though such practices were no longer in place, their bloodthirsty, feral tendencies persisted.
But I have a fiancée…! Lelius swallowed the words rising in his throat and nodded instead.