The Former Empress Roughly Hides Her Abilities - Chapter 142

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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 142】

When the Princess said she needed a teacher, the Empress Dowager’s response was this:

“You know that we cannot officially appoint an educator in this situation.”

The position of educator for royalty, especially for one with high chances of becoming Emperor, was not given to just anyone.

Usually, distinguished scholars took the role, and it was customary to select two or more scholars from different schools to prevent the monarch’s ideology from leaning to one side.

However, the Empress Dowager knew how despicable her son could become. It was obvious what would happen if she officially selected an educator for the Princess.

“So I will support you unofficially.”

The Empress Dowager called Professor Frederick, known for his integrity among Academy professors, and received a recommendation for Rude, an excellent student.

Thus, Rude began visiting the Imperial Palace as the Princess’s companion and guest.

“Classes will be held twice a week, conducted through the question-and-answer method.”

Rude said this method would be efficient given their limited meeting time, and the Princess agreed.

Initially, Rude considered it a side job to cover his tuition.

However, as lessons continued and he realized the Princess was more intelligent than expected, he recently became devoted to his studies.

As her teacher in name, he couldn’t allow the disgrace of being unable to answer his student’s questions.

‘She is truly remarkable.’

Rude had recently come to almost revere the Princess.

The Princess absorbed Rude’s knowledge at an astonishing speed and asked penetrating questions about areas he hadn’t anticipated, making it impossible to treat her lightly.

And today, as Rude sat facing her, tense about what questions the Princess might ask:

“So I proposed the establishment of a National Church to His Majesty the Emperor.”

“…?”

“What do you think?”

Rude staggered under the weight of the question the Princess threw at him.

‘A, a National Church?’

The Imperial family would nationalize religion?

It would become a major topic the moment it became known to the outside world.

Rude sat frozen in bewilderment, then pulled his chair closer.

A maid brought tea, but he didn’t touch his cup. It felt like nothing would go down his throat.

“Could I hear a more detailed explanation?”

After several rounds of questions, Rude understood what the Princess wanted to say.

The Princess didn’t disagree with Rianel’s proposal to establish a National Church, but wanted to confirm whether her words when persuading the Emperor were logically sound.

‘She certainly trusts that woman.’

Being lonely, the Princess respected her new teacher Rude and confided many secrets to him.

Rude learned not only about the Princess’s narrow circle of relationships, but also that she relied considerably on Rianel.

That part felt unpleasant to him.

‘Princess Vincenheim – isn’t she the woman who made my precious book touch the floor?’

Despite his displeasure, he recalled that her words were so logical that he couldn’t refute them.

He worried whether the eloquent woman might be swaying the mentally unstable Princess with bewitching words.

But as conversations with the Princess continued, he came to realize that Rianel was also an extraordinary person.

‘How can a person think like that?’

The plan to disperse the Emperor’s power through a National Church would not only greatly help the Princess’s succession to the throne, but could also weaken the Temple so she wouldn’t be hindered when ruling the Empire in the future.

Her method of achieving desired results without being bound by any constraints – whether good and evil, existing customs, or conventional ideas – was tongue-wagging impressive.

Professor Frederick’s respectful treatment of her seemed to be not simply because she was a Duke’s daughter.

‘Could there be some significant reason I don’t know about?’

“Master?”

Lost in thought, Rude came to his senses and looked up. The Princess was waving her hand in front of his eyes with wide-open eyes.

“It was such a novel opinion that I got lost in thought for a moment.”

Admiration aside.

There was one thing that needed to be addressed here.

“Then what happens to the Saint’s treatment?”

“Uh…”

The Princess hesitated. She seemed not to have thought about that part.

The moment the Temple collapsed, it was natural that the Saint, as its appendage, would fall with it.

However, the current Saint was in the same boat as the Emperor. Even if the Temple fell, there was a sufficient possibility she could survive separately.

‘If the Emperor establishes a National Church, that woman could become the saint of the new religion.’

Her authority would be reduced compared to before, and she might be called a turncoat.

But she could continue her existing authority.

While an emperor loses everything when deposed, a saint could continue to exist as a religious leader.

This could become a major obstacle when the Princess ascended to the throne.

‘I don’t understand why such a woman is a saint in the first place.’

Of course, knowing that it was just the name of a position given by the religious order, not a name given only to morally pure people, Rude still wrinkled his nose in displeasure.

Recently in academic circles, there had been a movement to reexamine scholar Ensilen’s activities during her lifetime.

Many people were interested in the fact that she was once a renowned scholar who died tragically young, and whose reputation was covered by infamy when she became Empress.

As it was revealed one by one what effects her policies actually had, how much they helped the Empire, and what false accusations she unjustly bore.

Scholars were focusing on the fact that her life as Empress would not have been smooth.

Rude, who carried Ensilen’s writings like a talisman, was one of them.

‘Most of Professor Ensilen’s infamy was fabricated by the Emperor to hide his own mistakes, but the Saint probably contributed to some portion of it.’

Because the Saint was the Emperor’s mistress.

‘She must have schemed to take the Empress’s position.’

It was a fact that people in the Imperial Palace hushed up considering the Imperial family’s dignity, but Rude had already gathered considerable testimony from related parties while tracking his respected scholar’s activities.

‘But if a National Church is established like this, wouldn’t that woman be the only one benefiting?’

“The Emperor will likely marry the Saint to establish the foundation of the National Church.”

“Of course that would happen… but there’s no way to solve it, is there?”

Tiren also thought that wasn’t pleasant.

But they couldn’t bring down someone the Emperor was protecting.

Because the Saint was still useful to the Emperor.

They could justify establishing the National Church with the logic of ‘how dirty must the existing religious order have been for even the Saint to convert.’

However, the Princess shouldn’t directly attack her.

It could turn into a dirty power struggle if mishandled.

But using a third party’s help also risked them dying like Linda.

“Still, we could humiliate her, couldn’t we?”

Just enough to damage her reputation.

A wicked but naturally tempting whisper.

“I-if no one gets hurt, that’s fine.”

The Princess nodded with a shy smile.

Revenge done in small portions multiple times was still revenge.

‘It wouldn’t be bad.’

* * *

When Yuna failed to persuade Asil, she moved swiftly.

Even at this moment, the clock’s second hand kept moving.

‘Now there’s only one option left.’

Surviving as the saint of a new religion.

She faced the fact that she was at a dead end.

‘I’m already riding on a tiger’s back anyway.’

She could never get off.

Yuna turned and headed to the Temple.

The Temple interior was chaotic. Their power had rapidly decreased due to the religious order’s division, and the Pope was frantically handling work he used to dump on Former Cardinal Janol.

Thanks to this, no one saw Yuna enter the Relic Storage Room.

Having easily obtained the Soul Detection Stone, Yuna returned to the Imperial Palace.

“I will offer this relic to His Majesty.”

“A wise choice.”

The Emperor rolled the rough stone in his palm and smiled with satisfaction.

Yuna felt an ominous feeling at how he didn’t even glance at her and only cared about the sacred relic, but she didn’t raise any objections.

‘I need to survive.’

“You must keep your promise.”

“Of course.”

The Emperor nodded indifferently.

“I’m even turning a blind eye to you recording our conversation.”

Yuna’s face reddened, but she didn’t stop the recording.

She needed to create evidence in case the Emperor didn’t keep his promise. She could no longer trust the Emperor.

Somehow she had ended up in a loveless marriage, but it didn’t matter.

‘I need to obtain even that hollow position.’

After all, Ensilen hadn’t become Empress by receiving the Emperor’s love either. Her outstanding knowledge and abilities were simply what the Emperor needed.

‘So I can do it too.’

Yuna strengthened her resolve.

One week later.

Crowds gathered below the city walls of the Imperial Palace.

There had been an announcement that the Imperial Family would make an important declaration.

Above the city gate. In the center.

Yuna stood wearing a white tunic that was modest yet eye-catching enough for people to notice.

She looked down at the people.

Since entering the Imperial Palace, she hadn’t conducted religious activities including masses, so it had been a long time since she stood before the public.

‘But I have to pull this off.’

Only then could she avoid falling together with the Temple.

Before reading the prepared paper, Yuna took a moment to catch her breath.

To show that she was feeling bitter and troubled, she drooped her eyebrows and respectfully clasped her hands below her chest.

“There is one fact I must confess to you all.”

In this moment, she had to become a victim used by the Temple, an innocent sacrifice.

“The Temple has been hiding ugly secrets unknown to you all.”

Yuna calmly recited the facts that human experiments were taking place in the Temple, and that Sacred Flowers were flowers grown by sacrificing pure children.

At the same time, to support her words, she had prepared a large quantity of flyers containing the Temple’s secret documents.

She signaled to the maids, and they began scattering them below the city walls.

People picked up the papers that fell below the fortress.

“I recently learned of this fact, and was outraged that a religious order that should bring peace and comfort to people had committed such atrocities, so I tried to reveal the truth. Then the Temple tried to eliminate me, and I had no choice but to leave the Temple.”

To the very end, I am innocent and only the Temple is evil.

However, making such claims could invite people’s resentment.

“Though I am not without fault. I deeply regret my mistakes due to being naive about worldly matters from living purely in faith in God. Also, deeply sympathizing with Former Cardinal Janol’s words, I too wish to leave the existing religious orders and present a new path of faith—”

However, murmuring began to spread among the crowd who should have pitied and understood her.

The noise grew loud enough for Yuna on the city walls to hear.

“What, faithful and holy while having an affair?”

“Innocent? I guess the meaning of the word innocent changed while I wasn’t looking?”

‘What?’

Yuna put away her speech and snatched a flyer that a maid was holding to check it.

‘How did this happen?’

After checking the contents, the paper crumpled in her hands.

It contained information about Yuna manipulating Ensilen’s will to embezzle money from the charitable foundation.

Not only testimonies that she knew about the human experiments but silenced the victims’ protests.

It even stated the fact that she had a secret relationship with the Emperor while the Former Empress was still alive.

There wasn’t even a speck written about Yuna being unrelated to the Temple’s affairs or how faithfully she had carried out her duties as Saint!

‘It’s fabricated. Someone switched the flyers to trap me.’

But there was no way to find the culprit at this moment.

“Collect them all. Go down and retrieve them all!”

Yuna urged the maids to remedy the situation.

The maids ran around below the city walls to carry out her orders.

‘Why, why was this content written?’

Yuna sat down and covered her face with her palms.

‘This makes me look like someone who ran away alone, not someone who left the Temple to maintain faithfulness.’

While covering her burning face with paper, Yuna felt something strange.

“Where did His Majesty go?”

When I’m being humiliated like this, shouldn’t he be protecting me?

Or at the very least, shouldn’t he be getting stoned together with me?

‘We’re going to be husband and wife.’

He was with me when we climbed the city walls.

It was utterly despicable that he disappeared when the situation became unfavorable.

Yuna growled as she spoke.

“Bring His Majesty, bring His Majesty here immediately.”

At that moment, the Emperor was in the watchtower holding a blinking identification stone.

“Found you.”

A gentle arc formed on the lips of the Emperor as he spotted Rianel below the fortress, mixed among other people, intently reading a flyer.

‘My Empress.’

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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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