The Saint’s Manual for Redemption - Chapter 76

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

Chapter 76
“The Religious Order’s Saint, Ciela Nomendis. I appreciate your gracious welcome despite this sudden visit.”
As I extended my hand, the Grand Duke Croen accepted it without the slightest falter in his composure. He merely performed the gesture of a kiss to the back of my hand with perfect propriety before withdrawing.
His lips never actually touched my skin, yet that single courtesy was enough to tell me this man was the type who wouldn’t leave a single opening for criticism in a social setting.
No matter how many times I encountered nobility’s greeting customs, I never quite adapted to them. Shortly after Valente received his title, he’d clumsily attempted to follow this protocol and ended up actually kissing the back of my hand—a blunder that sent me into fits of laughter for quite some time. I could still vividly picture him, his face set with grim determination as he seized my hand, trying to master the refined etiquette that only nobles bothered with.
A man who would choose a treatise on war over one on etiquette without hesitation, yet here he was, grinding his jaw as he struggled through delicate aristocratic courtesy—the image remained crystal clear.
I shook my head slightly to dispel the memory of my former lover’s warm greeting and turned my attention to the Grand Duke Croen before me.
The profile I’d gathered through Lord Arden and Count Lebon flashed through my mind.
The Current Emperor’s youngest brother. His mother’s family line wasn’t particularly prominent, so he posed no threat to the Current Emperor’s succession despite that emperor’s robust maternal connections. He’d survived this long without being purged by his elder half-brother—a direct descendant of the former imperial line, now a collateral branch of the current one.
A man carrying rather inconvenient political baggage: the Former Emperor had stripped him of his original lands and granted them to his youngest son before his death, appointing him Grand Duke of this new domain.
Regardless of those circumstances, he ranked third in the line of succession.
While he posed no real check against the Current Emperor, he was certainly a piece to be wary of for the First Prince and Second Prince, whose positions as heir remained unconfirmed.
As I observed the Grand Duke Croen—so entirely different from my expectations—intuition struck me.
A premonition that, like this Grand Duke who deviated so far from my predictions, my own plans would unfold in ways I had never imagined.
The Grand Duke Croen spoke first.
“But tell me, Your Holiness, what brings you all the way here?”
He smiled gently.
“And with such a unilateral notification, no less. Even if the Religious Order’s standing is considerable, hah.”
His smile remained, but his words carried an undeniable edge.
It seemed the Archbishop had sent a rather rudely peremptory letter using my name.
Before we’d even begun a serious conversation, it appeared I’d already been marked with his disfavor.
Of course, I hadn’t actually confirmed what language the Archbishop had used in that letter. But judging solely from Croen’s reaction, I could easily guess his tone.
Our successors, who dreamed of achieving the humiliation of Canossa in a Caritas Church version, would hardly have groveled before a cadet branch of the imperial house.
Watching them push the First Prince while apparently now dreaming of Church-State Unity rather than merely shadowing governance, I had to be careful.
With the Archbishop’s watchful eye present in this room, I couldn’t afford to expose my true hand. If I revealed the real reason for my visit—the Contractual Betrothal arrangement—now, everything would unravel. First, I had to present the Temple’s official justification for sending me.
I opened my mouth with utmost solemnity.
“A crisis has come upon your domain.”
The Grand Duke Croen blinked for a moment, then spoke with gentle curiosity.
“Then increasing donations to the Temple would resolve it?”
The drowsy curve of his eyes couldn’t quite conceal the contempt behind them.
This man—he was treating me as a charlatan trying to drum up fear to extort more donations.
Fair enough. If our Religious Order had squeezed people dry in the past, then this dispatch might well look like another scheme for extraction. Especially given the tone in which the Archbishop had written his letter.
That was the Church’s fault, at least—forgivable enough.
“Do you happen to know anything about the history of your domain?”
The Grand Duke Croen answered without hesitation.
“Unfortunately, I am the first generation here.”
We’d only exchanged three exchanges so far, yet the feeling came instantly.
This man would absolutely refuse to cooperate voluntarily.
“Even if you are the first Grand Duke Croen, there must have been a family living here for generations before you took control—isn’t that right?”
When I explained things so patiently, the Grand Duke finally nodded, as if understanding my meaning.
“Yes, there was.”
“Did they not tell you anything when you received the domain?”
The Grand Duke, crossing his legs, began tapping his chin with a finger wrapped in Leather Gloves. Apparently uncles and nephews shared identical habits.
“They mentioned that it snows heavily year-round and the scenery is quite beautiful. I’ve experienced the beauty myself, though it only lasted about three days before growing tedious.”
“Nothing else?”
“Hmm, that the surrounding domains also survive by mining, I suppose?”
“And?”
“They said the castle’s heating was inadequate. It is indeed cold. Your Holiness will presumably need to endure the night shivering—can you bear such a night? The Northern Region’s cold is quite fierce. Wouldn’t it be better for you to return to the warm and comfortable Temple Domain even now?”
The mockery flowed out quite naturally. I ignored it and pressed forward.
“What else?”
“Why are you so curious? Or perhaps you’re testing me?”
At last, the Grand Duke Croen’s patience had worn thin.
He was still smiling, but his smile no longer appeared entirely gentle.
“Whatever you’re trying to discover, you shouldn’t probe like this. You must pay a fair price for the information.”
Now he was extorting me in return?
It seemed necessary to correct the Grand Duke’s misunderstanding.
I regarded him for a moment, then declared with the utmost gravity.
“It appears you’ve been the victim of Real Estate Fraud.”
In that instant, the Grand Duke Croen’s expression cracked for the first time.
“Real Estate Fraud, you say?”
It was such a far cry from what he’d expected that Duke Croen forgot to lower his voice, his tone shifting to bewilderment.
“Surely you’re not claiming this land was fraudulent property? We were well aware of its barrenness before the purchase.”
“That’s not what I mean. If you have eyes, you’d naturally see the land is barren. Planting a few patches of green grass in a territory where snow falls all year round won’t make this place look fertile, will it?”
My answer came with such confidence that Duke Croen seemed to have lost for words.
Honestly, I understood his position. It was natural for him to assume the territory chosen by the Former Emperor himself couldn’t possibly be fraudulent property.
But I knew what this land originally was. More precisely, I carried memories from five hundred years ago.
“Beneath this territory sleeps the Archdemon Raum.”
At those words, the air in the reception room grew heavy in an instant.
Calianna’s eyes widened, and Johan also straightened his posture.
The Archdemon Raum.
One of the most dangerous beings in the history of the Religious Order. And the one I’d personally risked my life to strike down, yet ultimately failed to defeat in the raid.
Since the name of the territory had changed, neither Calianna nor Johan would have known of Raum’s existence lurking beneath this land unless the Archbishop had given them some hint.
“Isn’t that merely a legend?”
At Duke Croen’s question, his brow furrowed, I narrowed my own brow deeply in response.
“Are you now dismissing the Chronicles of Sierra, the life account of the Third Saint, as mere legend? In the Third Saint’s own Chronicles of Sierra, part three, the circumstances of Raum’s awakening five hundred years ago in this very territory are recorded in great detail, along with the battle waged against Raum as it finally forced its way above ground. If you’ll permit me, let me begin with what happened when Raum first awakened—”
Whether out of fear of being accused of blasphemy, or perhaps moved by my detailed explanation that stretched over an hour, Duke Croen eventually accepted that this was genuine history.
“So what Your Highness is saying is…….”
Duke Croen finally opened his mouth slowly, having grasped the situation at last.
“The territory I received is actually a time bomb?”
I nodded with satisfaction.
“Now we’re having a proper conversation.”
And I smiled and began to applaud.
“Congratulations, Duke Croen. You are now the owner of land where a calamity sleeps—one that could awaken at any moment.”
Duke Croen’s expression began to decay.

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