The Male Lead Is Trying To Tame Me With Money - Chapter 133

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

133.

The priests then revealed their petty nature by stopping the carriage.

“We will report all of this to His Holiness the Pope, Your Holiness!”

“How can you not know that Your Holiness the Saint’s greatest virtue is chastity!”

“His Holiness the Pope would be truly delighted to know this. No matter how much divine power Your Holiness possesses, you cannot disregard us who have spent much longer in the temple like this.”

They tried to package their shameful inability to stand by their own words…

“I really don’t understand why everyone is criticizing Wesley. As a young person, I simply want to widely share your precious teachings with others.”

Wesley replied with very innocent eyes, even tilting his head to the side.

Honestly, listening from the side, there wasn’t a single wrong thing in Wesley’s words.

If they were such righteous and good words, spreading them widely would be one of the main virtues of a priest, wouldn’t it?

The priests just grumbled at Wesley’s logical and reasonable words and switched to another carriage.

Before boarding the carriage, they had clearly said…

‘How could you take responsibility if something happened to Your Holiness by having only three people ride together?’

‘As priests, we don’t mind being a bit uncomfortable. Please show some consideration for us two as well, since we showed consideration for you yesterday.’

They had spoken so eloquently.

Anyway, thanks to those three noisy people getting off, the inside of the carriage became very comfortable.

“I’m really sorry for only showing you such behavior, Rozelita.”

I didn’t mind at all, but Wesley was rather apologetic.

“It’s not your fault.”

I had already expected them to board just to criticize Casian or me.

Every time they acted as I expected, I was just gauging how much to increase the intensity of the next tax audit…

Thanks to Wesley, I gained both satisfaction and comfort in the carriage!

I comforted Wesley with sincere feelings.

“Rather, I was puzzled that they only found fault with Prince Casian.”

“Why?”

“Of course the temple was wrong, but I was the one who eliminated the forced donation collection from salaries, wasn’t I?”

At my words, Wesley’s eyes widened as he said.

“Rozelita, you were just diligent in tax auditing.”

I was quite earnest about it, putting my soul into it.

I put all the sincerity of the 13% that had been embezzled over the years into it.

But Wesley said something completely unexpected.

“Of course, there were priests who made petty remarks about being excessively thorough as if retaliating for being branded as heretics. But the decision to abolish donation collection itself was made by Prince Casian, wasn’t it?”

“…What?”

At these words I was hearing for the first time, when I looked at Casian, he gave an awkward smile.

“It was approved by His Majesty the Emperor.”

“Ian took all the blame for that?”

“I’m already hated by the temple anyway.”

That’s exactly why you should have been more careful.

Unlike me who lived an ordinary life, wasn’t Casian Artez persecuted by the temple from birth?

“It’s okay, Rose. Rather, this is more familiar to me.”

“I’m also used to being criticized, so I don’t mind at all when they find fault with me using strange words.”

“Isn’t it a bit sad that we’re similar in this aspect?”

“Don’t say things you don’t mean.”

Being criticized by corrupt people was something to be proud of as an administrator.

It meant I was sincere about clean and honest work processing.

If I had the personality to be afraid of such criticism, I couldn’t have come to the capital.

Before even having my debutante, both our domain and Terodima Domain would have gone bankrupt, and both families would have had to live as commoners holding hands, right?

That wouldn’t have been a bad life for me in its own way.

But it wouldn’t have been for the Terodima family who loved their domain dearly, or for our parents.

Since childhood, I had been instilling various methods into our family and neighbors while receiving very harsh looks and words.

He deliberately protected me like that?

Why on earth?

“Is there something I don’t know about, Ian?”

He hid me simply because I would be criticized?

That wicked boss who had used me as a shield so well in other situations?

No matter how I thought about it, it didn’t make sense, so when I asked again, Casian made an impossibly hurt face.

“You know my feelings.”

Then he cowardly used his feelings as an excuse.

Did he think I couldn’t dig deeper if he acted like that with a pitiful face?

*

At Casian Artez’s answer that finally came out, I was naturally bewildered.

“Rose doesn’t know how disgusting those people are. The moment you get marked by the temple, thinking about what fragile Rose would suffer, I couldn’t bear it.”

I know very well.

Rather, that intention of trying to protect me is more confusing.

As soon as I took a breath to refute, Wesley came to Casian’s aid.

“That’s right, Rozelita. This time I agree with Prince Casian’s words.”

That kind and innocent dragon enthusiast Wesley taking Casian’s side!

How did I raise him…!

Anyway, with the two men on the same side, it seemed distant for me to learn Casian’s truth.

I can’t help it.

Though I really can’t believe it, I have no choice but to believe those words are true.

At my attitude, Casian looked a bit sad, and Wesley looked understanding.

Since when did those two get along so well…?

Somehow life’s regrets washed over me, making me look back on the past when I helped them earnestly.

I had no choice but to console myself by thinking I was a more generous person than them.

Because there was something else that concerned me more.

“Are you really okay, Wesley?”

“About what?”

“Your relationship with the priests seems more strained than last time.”

At my question, Wesley pressed his lips together for a moment, then exchanged another incomprehensible look with Casian.

“I don’t understand why Rozelita worries like that but doesn’t believe our words.”

“I decided to believe you, really. I truly believe you.”

Even at my sincere words emphasized three times, Wesley sighed softly and shrugged his shoulders.

“It’s always like this, you don’t need to worry about it.”

Really, really?

When I sent a questioning look because my worry wouldn’t subside, Wesley made a sulky face.

“I’d like to show Rozelita’s current expression to you who used to interrogate us.”

Even Casian responded to Wesley’s words.

“I deeply regret agreeing with Your Holiness.”

“Likewise.”

Thus, the two men crushed my sincere concern while empathizing with each other.

It seemed I would have to write another letter to my past self.

*

From then on, until we arrived at the abandoned mine a few days later, the priests acted like troublesome customers.

“Riedern has been land untouched by the gods’ blessings, and since we’ve taken such difficult steps to this land, shouldn’t Riedern’s administrator show more sincerity?”

“Honestly, far from welcoming Your Holiness the Saint and us, just making us go here and there is tiring.”

“Just relieving struggling believers is precious time! To have to spend time trying to save corrupt land, no matter how broad Your Holiness’s heart is and how His Holiness the Pope permitted it, it’s endlessly sad.”

Every time this happened, Wesley Morel cringed and was ashamed of them.

Nevertheless, he refuted with proper arguments like a true clergyman, showing a different caliber from the priests.

“Isn’t this also a path to spread the gods’ traces more widely? You brothers were the ones who said we must endure hardships on such journeys.”

Of course, the priests only kept their mouths shut during those moments.

That confrontation looked extremely strange to me.

‘Wesley says I don’t need to worry about it, but…’

No matter how I look at it, it seems like they’re deliberately creating an adversarial structure.

Everything Wesley said was sound doctrine based on scripture.

But it was peculiar how the direction of his words kept favoring our side.

Like someone creating their own justification.

So every time they had conversations, I really wanted to activate the recording sphere, but.

“They’ll definitely make a fuss about heresy and whatnot.”

Casian stopped me when I lamented, so I gave up.

It was true, after all.

Wesley also nodded with an embarrassed expression.

Unable to resolve my uneasy feelings, we arrived near the abandoned mine.

Since it was in a somewhat deep location, we had to get off the carriage and walk, but strangely, no complaints came from the priests.

“Casian, they seem unusually well-behaved.”

“Indeed.”

They acted like patient and devout clergy.

That wasn’t all.

“…And this place originally had almost no foot traffic, but we saw people several times on the way here.”

“It seems like there are more the closer we get.”

What we requested was an inspection, not assistance in developing it as a tourist destination…?

The priests even disturbingly took the lead, acting like they were our guides and servants.

“Your Grace, we shall lead the way. Since the path is uneven, we should go ahead and clear the stones.”

“This seems like a small way we can repay the Riedern officials who permitted us to investigate this place.”

“Since you’ve made the great decision to embrace Riedern, which had kept its doors tightly shut, into the gods’ embrace.”

We never said anything like that.

After constantly denying and doing whatever until now, what’s with this Jekyll and Hyde act…?

To so blatantly reveal that this is a trap.

“…Rose, you look very excited right now.”

At Casian’s words, I hurriedly composed my expression.

Since our stay in Riedern had been prolonged and peaceful for a while, adrenaline surged at this long-awaited scheming.

And quite fittingly to my expectations.

“Have you arrived, Your Grace?”

The Elder Priest appeared to greet us, commanding even the investigation team, contrary to what Wesley had said.

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