My Daddy Hides His Power - Chapter 97

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Father hides his strength
Chapter 97
* * *
Father returned late from business preparations, his face gaunt, and pulled me into his arms as he climbed onto the bed.
“Oof. Princess.”
“Yeah!”
“Want to visit Joseph tomorrow?”
“Huh?”
Joseph—and me, together?
Startled, I studied Father’s face.
Wasn’t this the same man who’d been trying to keep his daughter from paying any attention to his business—or rather, what he called business and I called rebellion?
“What? Our princess liked Joseph well enough.”
“Well, yes, I suppose I did.”
If we were meeting Joseph, we’d certainly be discussing business, yet Father wanted to take me along.
Wondering if there was some intention behind it, I studied his expression carefully, but I couldn’t quite tell.
‘Still, it’s not a bad thing for me, is it?’
If I could just listen in on the conversation between Father and Joseph.
Who knew?
Maybe I’d find a way to help.
“Yes! I want to go!”
“Good, our princess! How about we catch a glimpse of the sea while we’re at it?”
“The sea?”
* * *
The sea!
The two of them had chosen the Southern Coastal Territory as their meeting place, clearly intent on keeping their contact completely hidden.
Famous as a tourist destination, the beach was crowded with people there to enjoy swimming.
“Ah, Father! I can’t—my feet don’t touch!”
“Ha ha! That’s fine, that’s fine. Father’s here.”
Sunlight poured down, dazzling across the water.
Disguised as always, James Brown stayed pressed close beside me as I bobbed along on the Yellow Duck Tube.
“Our princess, if we go much farther that way there are sharks! They’ll eat the princess!”
“No, stop! Don’t!”
Father chuckled and pushed me deeper into the water.
Though the depth only came up to about his chest.
“Wheee!”
This was fun! I hooked my arms over the tube and kicked my short legs furiously.
“Oh? There’s Joseph!”
After bobbing around for a while, I spotted Joseph waving from the sandy beach.
In his short-sleeved Hawaiian shirt, Joseph looked like any other tourist out for a seaside vacation.
“Come on, let’s go!”
Father pushed me toward the shore.
The moment my feet touched ground, I ran toward Joseph with the tube still attached to my belly.
“Mister!”
“Lilis!”
Joseph caught me up into his arms as I came running toward him.
“My goodness, how you’ve grown!”
“Wheee!”
Joseph pinched my cheek with a delighted smile.
“It’s been a while!”
“I trust you’ve been well.”
Father and Joseph had apparently grown quite close in the time I hadn’t seen them together.
“You’ve brought the lower territories under your sway quite impressively. I was surprised.”
“Don’t even mention it. I haven’t slept because of that lately.”
All right, here comes the business talk.
‘So he’s been wooing the provincial lords, then.’
Cradled in Joseph’s arms, I gazed out at the sea while straining my ears to listen.
“Now we need to begin turning our attention toward the temples.”
“The temples, I see.”
Just as expected from Joseph. Yes, the temples had to come into play eventually.
“As you know, so long as the New Faith maintains its dominance, the Emperor’s position will remain secure. It will take considerable time, but we must build up the power of the Orthodox Faith. When the final moment comes, we must place an Orthodox Faith figure in the position of High Priest.”
Enoch listened silently and nodded.
“The Orthodox Faith’s situation is dire at present. Whether it can even survive is unclear. Won’t you lend your support, Duke?”
“How, exactly?”
“For now, simply ensure the Believers have food in their bellies. They’re starving to death.”
“We’ll do that. There’s no need to act in secret, is there? If the Orthodox Faith’s finances improve through some mysterious source, people will certainly find it suspicious.”
“Precisely. Since donations from nobility to temples are unremarkable, you need only provide financial support openly under the guise of a donation.”
Joseph added with a smile.
“Everyone knows your nature, Duke, so there’s nothing suspicious about you aiding the Orthodox Faith. But to avoid appearing to favor only them, you should support both sides.”
I found myself impressed by the way Enoch and Joseph discussed these complex matters so effortlessly.
‘This is incredible. I’m watching a real conversation between a protagonist and his strategist unfold in real time.’
If I hadn’t been a child who kept secrets, I’d never have understood such a conversation.
“Good.”
Enoch suddenly broke into a grin.
Then he spoke.
“So what you’re saying is, I should visit the Orthodox Faith temple where all those good people gather and offer them aid? And eventually, we should position things so a High Priest can emerge from the Orthodox Faith temple, yes?”
……?
What was this? Why had he suddenly become a walking explanation?
“Since there’s the Seraph Temple, which is Orthodox Faith, on Jedo, we should go there! But if we only help the Seraph Temple, it’ll look suspicious, so we should donate the same amount to the Pavil Temple where all those wicked people gather!”
Joseph blinked.
“Ah. Yes, well. Quite so.”
He seemed puzzled that Enoch was spelling out everything he’d already explained in simple terms.
But I understood.
‘Wait… is he explaining this so *I* can understand?’
It was obvious. He’d become an explanation machine, simplifying everything so I could follow along!
‘But why on earth?’
I stiffened in that moment, swallowed hard, and darted a glance at Enoch.
His face was full of innocent, childlike warmth.
From his expression alone, I couldn’t guess his intention.
“Fortunately, Divine Messages have ceased appearing for quite some time. Neither the New Faith nor the Orthodox Faith has received divine favor. Even God withholds His hand from both.”
Joseph began speaking again, this time with a rather wicked smile.
And then—
“Ah! You mean those Revelations where God appears in dreams? In the old days, a Believer who received a Divine Message would become the High Priest!”
“Ah, yes….”
There it was again—the explanation!
“That’s right. God says nothing now.”
—Enoch’s atmosphere suddenly turned sharp as he cast his gaze toward the distant sea.
“Therefore.”
His voice carried weight.
“What I believe is justice itself.”
I swallowed hard as I looked at my handsome father’s face.
Thankfully, in the end, his protagonist aura radiated unmistakably….
* * *
Without delay, a few days later, Enoch brought me to the Seraph Temple.
As I descended from the carriage, my mouth fell open at the sight of the temple’s state.
‘Wow.’
The building was so decrepit it looked ready to collapse at any moment.
Beneath makeshift shelters of tattered cloth, people lay groaning—the dying, crowded together in sickness.
‘I mean, I expected something like this, but….’
I’d known that this temple cared for sick Commoners.
Yet I hadn’t imagined the situation would be quite this grim.
“…….”
The hand holding mine tightened, and when I glanced up at Enoch, his expression had grown thoughtful.
Just then.
“Oh!”
A boy carrying a large basin, hurrying back and forth, spotted us and came rushing over.
‘Wait! That’s Zadkiel the High Priest!’
Pink hair with a beautiful sheen, silver eyes.
The moment I saw this boy, beautiful as a spring flower, I recognized him immediately.
Zadkiel the High Priest.
#Sacrifice #Selflessness #The Avatar of Angels
―and other keywords marking him as the kindest character in the novel .
“My word, could you be Duke Rubinstein? What brings you to this place?”
Zadkiel asked in surprise, having recognized our carriage seal.
“Pleased to meet you. I’ve come hoping to see the High Priest of Seraph Temple. Is it possible to meet now?”
“Ah, the High Priest is….”
Zadkiel’s face darkened momentarily as he trailed off, then broke into an angelic smile.
“I shall show you the way. Please, come this direction.”
Zadkiel led Father and me deeper into the crumbling building as he spoke.
“I am Priest Zadkiel. Had you sent word ahead, I might have prepared something to offer you honored guests, and I apologize for the meager reception.”
“A temple is a place for prayer, not entertainment. I didn’t come here to be received, so think nothing of it.”
“Ah!”
At Father’s warm reply, Zadkiel laughed shyly.
“This way, please.”
The room Zadkiel led us to held only an old bed, sitting bare and alone.
Upon it lay a skeletal middle-aged woman, still as a corpse.
“Mother, you’re awake?”
Mother?
“Are you the High Priest Lamisa of Seraph Temple? I am Enoch Rubinstein.”
As Zadkiel quickly brought a chair to the bedside, Father introduced himself while taking a seat.
“Please, do sit here too!”
“Hehe, thank you.”
With an angelic smile, Zadkiel fetched a chair for me as well.
“Ah, *cough*. Rubinstein… Your Grace? What could possibly bring you here….”
“Mother, Mother! Wait just a moment. Let me help you sit up.”
Busy, so busy—Zadkiel, who had just brought our chairs, rushed to help High Priest Lamisa rise.
“And would you say you and Priest Zadkiel are mother and son?”
“Ah! No, Your Holiness is… well, like a mother to me.”
At Father’s question, Zadkiel grinned widely and answered.
“I was abandoned at the temple door when I was a child. The High Priest took me in, fed me, clothed me, and raised me. She isn’t merely like a mother to me—she is my mother.”
“I see.”
Zadkiel’s eyes shone with tenderness as he gazed at the High Priest.
Yet sadly, the shadow of death hung over her visibly sickened face.
“You appear to be quite unwell.”
“*Cough*, *cough*. Yes… I fear I am receiving someone of your standing most improperly…. *Cough*. Please forgive my rudeness.”
“Think nothing of it.”
At Father’s gracious reply, the High Priest managed a smile despite her cracked lips.
‘What am I to do….’
The sickness etched so deeply into her face made me regret having asked her to sit up.
Father and Zadkiel alike fell silent, overwhelmed by pity as they looked upon her.
‘Where does it hurt, I wonder.’
There was no way to know for certain.
This world was medically primitive—even common internal injuries were difficult to diagnose properly.
‘Though I could still heal her, if I chose to.’
A wave of guilt washed over me, and I hung my head.
This was within my power to do.
But a grave illness would demand a great deal of my life force.
There were so many people suffering as the High Priest suffered, and I could not help them all.
It was inevitable, then….
Yet the pain of turning away from someone I could actually save weighed heavily on my heart.
‘Let me just check what it would cost.’
With that thought, I glanced down at Oscar’s Bracelet.
10 sec
…Wait? Ten seconds?

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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