The Former Empress Roughly Hides Her Abilities - Chapter 120

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Team. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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【Chapter 120】

State Minister Kallen was someone who could approach the temple raid with more sincerity than anyone else.

‘His resentment toward the temple runs truly deep.’

The starting point of all these problems occurred when Lisa, who had been a saint candidate, returned to secular life.

People knew that she had voluntarily withdrawn from sainthood candidacy to marry Duke Vincenheim, and didn’t pay much attention to it.

The temple was originally a place where nobles frequently went to pray. It was common for wealthy nobles and young, beautiful priests to fall for each other and return to secular life.

So the temple would pretend to restrain priests while letting them go, but Lisa was an exception.

She was someone who had approached the truth.

‘Because of those damn sacred flowers.’

If you were to pick the temple’s biggest sources of income, one would be donations, and the other would be sacred flower sales.

Most people bought those bizarre flowers that supposedly granted wishes, even while not believing in god.

Everyone faces overwhelming moments at some point, and in such times, people want to place their hopes on superstitious totems with a “just in case” mentality.

‘But sacred flowers only grow when fertilized with the corpses of priests or children who possess divine power.’

No one would purchase the flowers knowing such a disgusting secret.

“I cannot become a saint.”

Lisa decided to leave the temple as soon as she learned the truth.

But knowing she couldn’t simply leave the temple, she sought out Kallen.

“I’ll be honest. I came because I need a shield to protect me.”

“You’re refreshingly honest. Why me? From a saint candidate’s perspective, there couldn’t be anyone more immoral than me. Didn’t I tell you I’m a non-believer?”

“That’s exactly why. I thought if it were you, you’d just brush off whatever I said about the temple.”

The rebellious young man, tired of living a stuffy life according to his father’s will, accepted that proposal.

It was a decision made without ever dreaming he would come to truly love this woman.

“Saint candidate Lisa cannot become a saint. She is my fiancée.”

When he declared he would take her from the temple, the twisted faces of the cardinals and priests…

No matter how many times he recalled it, it was a thrilling scene that made every hair on his body stand on end.

‘I loved you for this blasphemy.’

Lisa possessed the dignity worthy of a duke’s love.

She never wavered before any obstacle, not even before his parents.

“Bringing some nobody from who knows where to be the lady of the house! Kallen, you’ve truly gone mad! And you too. What face do you have to show while trying to become the lady of a great house? How shameless.”

“It’s unfortunate that I don’t know who my mother is, but it’s not my fault, so why should I feel shame?”

“How dare this impudent thing talk back! So vulgar and rude.”

“I don’t think there’s a causal relationship between vulgarity and rudeness. Even noble people commit discourtesies, don’t they?”

“What, what did you say?”

“I know that the bodies of nobles and commoners are not fundamentally different. All humans are born in a pure state, and their behavior differs only according to their environment and education. So we can be said to be equal beings before God.”

“So you’re saying you and we are the same beings? Where did you learn such sophistry…”

The former duchess’s eyes widened on behalf of the speechless former duke, but.

“Please forgive me even if you’re angry, madam. God has given us the precious teaching to love our neighbors as ourselves.”

She too ended up clutching her neck just like her husband.

After that, they never faced their daughter-in-law until they died. She wasn’t someone they could win against with words.

“Hahaha!”

Kallen saw his parents clutching their necks for the first time. It was such a delightful scene that he wanted to record it and replay it over and over if he could.

However, the joy didn’t last long.

The temple tried to kill Lisa, and he had to give his all to protect her.

Becoming a duchess meant becoming a noble. Unlike when she was a saint candidate, contact became difficult, and the secret she harbored could leak to the outside.

The temple opposed Lisa’s marriage.

“Saint candidate Lisa is a promising saint candidate. We cannot permit her return to secular life.”

“You’ll have to permit it. My child is growing in her womb.”

It was a major scandal that could shake noble society and damage their reputation. But it was the only way to get Lisa out, so they had a child first.

But the temple didn’t give up on Lisa. She fled from pursuers while carrying a child.

During the escape, labor pains came and she hastily gave birth, then left the child behind and moved on.

“I left the child with a midwife in the village.”

They had to flee urgently, so there was no choice.

After the situation stabilized, they belatedly searched for the midwife but only received news that she had already died.

They couldn’t find out where the child had been sent.

“I saw a future where the temple would harm that child.”

Lisa gave up, saying that her search for her daughter would bring harm to the child.

“She’s alive, that child. She grew up well without her mother and is living healthily…”

In the end, she died repeating only these words.

‘To know the child’s identity but never tell me in the end. What a heartless person.’

Only then did Kallen realize that Lisa had discovered their daughter’s identity but hidden it from him, but he felt no sense of betrayal.

‘Lisa must have suffered suppressing her desire to meet the child too.’

Kallen felt deep sadness and anger, thinking the temple was the culprit behind Lisa’s early death.

An unidentifiable poison was detected in her corpse.

‘There’s no definitive evidence that the temple was behind it, but it’s suspicious.’

Since it was still just suspicion, he couldn’t tell anyone.

Instead, Kallen replaced the head chef several times and personally inspected the menu, paying attention to food.

It was an action taken to protect his son and daughter somehow.

He had no idea that his son would be brainwashed by a single cup of tea he drank outside and cause trouble.

Anyway.

‘It’s better to bear the secret of the sacred flowers alone.’

Since handling the truth required considerable responsibility, Kallen kept his mouth firmly shut.

In this situation, the opportunity to raid the temple had finally arrived.

Although Rianel had pressured the temple several times before.

‘A father can’t fall behind his child.’

Since there was a big difference between the satisfaction from watching and from taking direct action, Kallen resolved to thoroughly ransack the temple.

Rianel had organized detailed routes of how the temple delivered bribes to nobles, plus legal provisions that would apply if bribery charges didn’t stick.

That alone made the temple a den of crime, but more hidden truths remained.

“A place that taught that life and death are God’s domain and must be accepted as they are, manipulating market prices using paintings by already deceased artists. The world is this corrupt.”

Kallen twisted his lips.

Capital gains tax isn’t imposed on living artists’ paintings regardless of price, but when an artist dies, tax exemption only applies under limited conditions.

‘The moment a painting’s price exceeds 6,000 gold, it becomes subject to taxation.’

So the temple manipulated the situation to make it seem like the artist was still alive, even submitting related documents to the Tax Bureau.

“This constitutes forgery of private documents.”

They sold paintings by setting up a proxy as if the deceased artist were alive, and forged and ‘used’ the necessary documents.

“The crime of exercising forged private documents would also apply.”

It was natural for charges to accumulate.

Since both carried sentences of imprisonment or fines, the temple tried to deny it.

“We didn’t do it! Delivering bribes in the first place is absurd—”

“But here’s a receipt that received internal budget approval. How do you explain this?”

With clear evidence presented, they couldn’t even make excuses.

Sometimes bribes were delivered in cash, but the more common method was handing over expensive items. That way was harder to track.

Kallen dug deep into transactions between the temple and nobles, and new records emerged.

‘They used their heads to avoid getting caught. But with large sums leaving the temple, records couldn’t be completely absent.’

“That was something Cardinal Oven did on his own!”

The temple leadership, judging complete denial difficult, tried to shift responsibility to an individual.

Cardinal Oven had delivered bribes while visiting noble houses in the form of home visits, so many people had seen his face.

Saint Yuna also testified.

“I too witnessed the cardinal delivering expensive items to noble ladies several times.”

Though her position had diminished due to recent events, the title of saint still had symbolic meaning, so her testimony was accepted as credible.

Oven, who was about to lose his position instantly, glared at Yuna with bulging eyes.

“Have you already forgotten who placed you in the position of Saint? I am your most powerful patron. Surely you know that it was because of me that you were able to maintain your position as Saint.”

“Of course I hold gratitude in my heart.”

Yuna smiled, but there was no warmth in that smile.

“But Cardinal, you also didn’t take my hand when I reached out to you.”

When I was struggling, crushed under people’s criticism. You only repeated the obvious words to be cautious, pretending not to know the pain she was experiencing.

What he tried to protect was the Temple, not Yuna.

“You also touched the charitable foundation’s funds, Cardinal.”

Yuna knew the real reason he didn’t step forward.

“The truth is, it was more convenient for you to hide behind me too.”

Not wanting to bear and take responsibility for the truth, you used me as a shield and hid behind it.

“The reality is no different from before.”

Everyone sacrificing one person to seek their own benefit is the same.

However.

“Now it’s just your turn, Cardinal.”

Oben collapsed into his seat, strength drained from him.

Callen, who had to pick up even the tail the Temple had cut off, said.

“Then please move to the investigation room for additional testimony.”

“No, not yet. Please let me see His Holiness the Pope. His Holiness surely has another solution, so…!”

However, no one listened to his words.

The clergy turned their gazes away as if by agreement, and only Callen and the knights he brought, and the believers who made this situation into a spectacle, were looking at him.

Ahhh.

Oben sighed deeply from where he sat.

The sea of betrayal he had fallen into was wide and deep.

* * *

Duke Vincenheim investigated the Temple and examined the internal documents a bit more.

It wasn’t for official business, but out of personal curiosity.

‘Come to think of it, Lisa’s records would remain here.’

He discovered Lisa’s time that he hadn’t known about, and was briefly immersed in longing while reading through it.

‘Why did Rianel come to the mansion after seeing these records?’

Callen, who was carefully turning the old documents so they wouldn’t tear, encountered one question.

“Didn’t that child investigate the National Academy recently?”

The words he muttered unconsciously became a clue.

Callen found the traces his wife had left at the Academy. Once he had direction, getting the information he wanted was quick.

The moment the scattered data connected like dots to draw out one truth.

“…”

Callen couldn’t continue speaking for a long time.

He didn’t know how to accept the fact that his daughter was Empress Ensilen.

At first, doubt came first.

‘Is this really true?’

Once he accepted the facts, questions followed.

‘Why didn’t that child tell us this fact?’

Rianel only said their daughter had died, but never opened her mouth about who that child was, which puzzled him.

‘It wouldn’t be because she still holds the Emperor in her heart.’

Then a memory suddenly came to mind.

‘I heard she had a long conversation with my son before leaving.’

That day. Callen was deeply immersed in the sadness that his daughter, whom he couldn’t find, had passed away in a place where he wasn’t present, and wasn’t in his right mind, but Rupert wasn’t.

He heard that because Rupert was rational, he had conversations with Rianel and even saw her off as she returned to Duke Novantium’s estate.

Callen, who had been keenly feeling recently that the longer he hesitated, the more delayed the resolution would be, immediately called his son.

“Did you know?”

“Excuse me? I don’t understand what you’re referring to.”

Rupert tilted his head, unable to understand.

“The fact that Empress Ensilen was your sister.”

Rupert, who knew exactly one more thing than the Duke, was shocked by the suddenly revealed truth.

“Wait, so that person knew everything and left without saying anything?”

‘That sister is really crazy?!’

It took considerable time for Rupert to voice his inner shock.

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