The Villainess Lives Twice - 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

 

Before dawn the next day, the entire situation was turned upside down.

 

First, the Royal Guards appeared in full battle gear. Some joined with the Evron Knights to surround the temple, while others seized key points throughout the capital.

 

Martial law was declared and all traffic in the capital was controlled. Entry and exit were completely prohibited.

 

The central army lit fires everywhere to show they were ready to move at any moment.

 

The Emperor’s army made no attempt to hide what was happening.

 

The words “attempted murder of royalty” and “treason” spread throughout the capital in an instant.

 

Before the sun reached the center of the southern sky, there was no one in the capital who didn’t know about it.

 

“Attempted murder of royalty? Did someone try to kill Lawrence or something?”

 

“Didn’t you see today’s extra edition? The Duchess Evron nearly had a miscarriage.”

 

“Oh my.”

 

“Apparently Archbishop Akim made her kneel on the cold stone floor for hours, telling her to repent for her mother’s sins.”

 

“A pregnant woman?”

 

“That’s right. The Evron Duchy was against the pregnant Duchess going to the Grand Cathedral from the beginning.”

 

“That makes sense. She’s pregnant. And Prince Evron is the only heir in the Evron Duchy, isn’t he?”

 

“Still, even an estranged mother is still a mother, so she went to the Grand Cathedral to cooperate, saying she’d take responsibility for Marquess Rosan and the Rosan Estate, but then she was detained.”

 

“Hey, do you believe that? No matter what, she’s the Duchess Evron. What could be more meaningless than noble worries?”

 

“And fair Archbishop Akim wouldn’t have done such a thing.”

 

“Well, you never know. My nephew went to the Grand Cathedral yesterday, and apparently there was almost a big fight when the Archbishop blocked the Evron Knights from visiting the Duchess.”

 

Such stories were whispered about.

 

“But when did Duke Evron return?”

 

“Yesterday, they say.”

 

“Then is the war in the North over?”

 

“I don’t know. I haven’t heard such talk. But something must have been resolved for him to return, right?”

 

“He might have come because of news about Marquess Rosan’s wife. Have you forgotten what happened when he married the Duchess?”

 

Last year’s events were brought up again. The story of Cedric’s involvement in Baron Itz’s human trafficking was also discussed.

 

“Will Duke Evron be involved this time too?”

 

“Can we trust Prince Evron? He handled things fairly last time, but this time his wife and child are involved. Just look at how he’s brought up treason charges.”

 

“It is treason since they nearly killed royalty.”

 

“Surely he won’t just let Milaire go? Thinking of the Duchess Evron, he can’t be too harsh, right? No matter how bad their relationship, she’s still his mother-in-law.”

 

“Hey, surely Duke Evron wouldn’t just let her go because of that?”

 

“There’s such a thing as human nature, you know.”

 

“Anyway, let’s wait and see. There will be some answer. If it’s Duke Evron, he’ll give us an answer about how to handle this.”

 

People’s opinions were all divided.

 

In fact, the content of the extra editions that all newspapers frantically printed that dawn bore the touch of Hailey and Freil.

 

Hailey had practically written the article herself. Yet she felt somewhat absurd about it.

 

Freil said.

 

“It’s not wrong though. It’s true that Her Highness went to cooperate despite her retainers’ advice that she didn’t need to, that they made her stay in a monk’s cell, and that they made a pregnant woman kneel and repent in a cold prayer room, isn’t it? You said Hailey even slept on the floor.”

 

“But saying there was a risk of miscarriage is a lie.”

 

“It’s not completely a lie. It’s more surprising that the baby is safe when someone as frail as Her Highness collapsed like that.”

 

“That’s true too. But anyone who knows Her Highness well would be astounded.”

 

Hailey let out a deep sigh.

 

“At least Her Majesty the Empress will be dumbfounded.”

 

“We only wrote facts, and didn’t write about things like her mindset.”

 

Freil laughed it off.

 

Publicly revealing the situation like this was probably not something Artizea would want.

 

However, the incident had already grown too large. The central army had entered a state of alert, and even the Royal Guards had stepped in to monitor the capital without any gaps.

 

So it was better to widely publicize why such an incident had occurred and at least secure a clear justification.

 

“It’s better to overheat things. We need to bring the atmosphere to our side all at once.”

 

“It wasn’t planned, but I know it’s a good opportunity.”

 

“We need to remove Archbishop Akim now and cut off Duke Loigar’s hands and feet.”

 

Freil said firmly.

 

“Her Highness would have done the same even if she were awake.”

 

Hailey couldn’t deny those words.

 

Father Colton first appeared publicly on the forest path near the Grand Cathedral where the Evron Knights were blocking access.

 

So it appeared as if he had arrived at the Grand Cathedral immediately upon returning from the Western Regions. His entry into the Evron Ducal Residence was kept thoroughly secret.

 

At the Grand Cathedral, all the bishops of the capital had gathered and were holding repeated meetings. Father Colton went straight to that bishops’ meeting.

 

“This old man decided years ago to remove the embroidered vestments he once wore and become feet that tread the earth instead of glorious hands. However, I have formed no small connection with Her Highness the Duchess Evron, and I spent quite a long time with her maid, so I have come to say a word.”

 

He made eye contact with each of the bishops attending the meeting and spoke thus.

 

“It is good for the temple’s authority to rise. It is also good to make people fear the temple’s taboos. Making an example of one to warn a hundred is an effective punishment, and it is true that Marquess Rosan’s wife is like a symbol of this corrupt age.”

 

“….”

 

“But let us not turn away. We all know why this matter has grown so large. Archbishop Akim’s greed went too far.”

 

“Then how do you think this matter should be ended, Father?”

 

“Let us do what we should do. Hold a heresy trial, excommunicate, and warn the faithful. Spread the right teachings and prevent wrong deeds.”

 

Father Colton spoke strongly.

 

“Wouldn’t that be enough? It is good to go among the people and be with them for righteous causes. That is what a priest should do.”

 

“Father Colton.”

 

“But plotting conspiracies or creating schemes to incite crowds is not a priest’s duty. We must not sell God’s name to gain greater rewards.”

 

“….”

 

“Why did the temple abandon the secular world? God’s authority and glory are always there, whether the temple is high or low, whether people believe or not. The temple’s desire to be revered by others is the temple’s greed, not God’s will.”

 

Father Colton made the sign of the cross.

 

“God personally looks down upon the world and carries out His will. Sometimes He sends down His hand, and sometimes He sends down His word, so the temple need only help that hand and word, preserve the teachings, and spread them widely.”

 

The bishops agreed with Father Colton’s words.

 

In reality, not everyone agreed with Father Colton’s words themselves.

 

However, through the letter Bishop Nicos had received, they understood the situation well.

 

Artizea had collapsed while pregnant, and Cedric had witnessed the scene directly. And the Royal Guards’ movements were also ominous.

 

They could easily be implicated in treason charges. The entire temple wouldn’t become treasonous, but one or two people could easily be dragged into it.

 

That was what the Emperor would want.

 

The Archbishop and Bishop Nicos, who had been moderates from the beginning, already wanted reconciliation from the moment Cedric intervened.

 

Moreover, even the bishops who had supported Archbishop Akim knew it was time to withdraw.

 

The temple must not covet secular power. What better justification could there be right now?

 

By putting all the blame on Archbishop Akim and saying that Father Colton had returned to change the temple’s policy, they could naturally withdraw from this matter without major loss of face.

 

It was believed that Father Colton could also calm the protesters’ backlash to some extent.

 

Even within the temple, there were many ordinary monks and lower-ranking priests who were angry and opposed to the actions of the Royal Guards and Evron Knights.

 

However, when Father Colton returned to take charge of the heresy inquisition instead, the situation quickly calmed down.

 

Of course, there was opposition. Father Colton was involved in Artizea’s grain relief project. There were questions about whether he could conduct a fair inquisition.

 

Amelie visited the Grand Cathedral early the next morning as a mediator.

 

“Neither the Imperial Palace nor the Evron Duchy intends to deny that Marquess Rosan’s wife committed heretical acts.”

 

“Then what do you intend to do? Are you saying that surrounding the Grand Cathedral like this and threatening with force is completely unrelated to Marquess Rosan’s wife?”

 

Bishop Nicos asked back. Amelie spoke slowly.

 

“From the beginning, heretical acts and human trafficking, attempted murder are separate crimes. What the temple should investigate and judge is the heretical acts, while human trafficking and attempted murder should originally be punished by national law.”

 

“That’s true.”

 

“The part where the protesters demand strong punishment is strictly speaking more about human trafficking than heresy. Archbishop Akim used clever rhetoric to make it seem like even that should be punished by the temple.”

 

Words like curses or magic are provocative. Moreover, the idea that the Emperor’s concubine tried to make human sacrifices to curse his wife stirred public sentiment.

 

However, strictly speaking, not many people truly believed that things like curses were real crimes.

 

Such things were considered foolish superstitions.

 

“The heresy part will be left to the temple’s heresy trial as originally planned. However, the human trafficking and attempted murder will be referred to a formal trial according to national law.”

 

“Yes. That is a proper statement.”

 

To the relieved Bishop Nicos, Amelie added firmly.

 

“And that is a separate matter from the Duchess of Evron and her unborn heir being put in danger at the temple.”

 

“….”

 

“Furthermore, we intend to hold Archbishop Akim accountable for arbitrarily interpreting and violating national law. This is the will of Prince Evron.”

 

The temple, which had been in uproar all day, was finally calmed by this.

 

It made clear that Cedric was not intending to attack the entire temple.

 

Moreover, the message Amelie conveyed did not greatly differ from what Father Colton had argued in the bishops’ council.

 

Most importantly, there were several priests who had seen Artizea being carried out unconscious in Cedric’s arms.

 

Many had sensed that something was going wrong.

 

The one who responded most quickly to this situation was none other than Duke Loigar.

 

“Archbishop Akim is finished now.”

 

Duke Loigar had stayed up all night with several of his confidants, including Countess Camellia.

 

News that the Emperor had issued an imperial decree ordering Cedric to punish the treason had arrived before dawn that day.

 

That imperial decree was tantamount to granting virtually unlimited authority. The moment the word treason appeared, neither sanctuary nor national law nor anything else could have any influence.

 

Duke Loigar felt regret.

 

He had never even considered that Artizea might be pregnant.

 

It wasn’t that he doubted their marital relationship or had other reasons.

 

It was because Artizea had acted far too carelessly for a duchess carrying her first heir.

 

From the forced march down from the North to the Empress’s Birthday Celebration, hadn’t there been too many things that were too strenuous for a woman in early pregnancy?

 

If he had been Cedric, he would never have allowed such things.

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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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