Unbeknownst to Me, I am Secretly Dating the Emperor - Chapter 149

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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Chapter 149
“Revenge?”
Ibeta’s eyes widened in surprise.
I explained to her how I’d uncovered the Temple’s involvement in the Illegal Slave Trade.
Of course, I glossed over the part where Ed had mistakenly closed the border due to a misunderstanding.
Learning that the Temple had extended its reach into Illegal Slave Trade, Ibeta grew indignant.
She used the harshest language she knew, but the words were so mild that laughter escaped despite the gravity of the situation.
Even Bes, who never mocked others with his eloquence, snorted with amusement.
Meanwhile, Ibeta herself seemed satisfied, breathing heavily with a flush of vindication.
I poured her another cup of tea, which had grown lukewarm by then.
“You’ll collapse if you keep that up.”
Only after giving Ibeta time to compose herself did our conversation resume.
“Ed—or rather, His Majesty—anticipates that the Temple will attempt a Denial.”
I phrased it as a guess, but it was almost certain.
The Minos Religion held the greatest influence across the entire Continent, and its power within the Empire was supreme.
If it became known that such an organization had kidnapped paupers across the Empire and sold them into slavery, the Temple would suffer irreparable damage and would desperately reject any such accusation by any means necessary.
“We’re making efforts to secure concrete evidence, but it seems difficult to find. Apparently, the Temple went through multiple intermediaries to conceal who the actual parties to the transactions were. If that’s the case, there’s a high likelihood they’ll escape with only minor punishment.”
Even in a period of heightened imperial authority, there were many obstacles to pressuring the Temple with only indirect evidence.
Clear, undeniable evidence was necessary for legal punishment to be carried out.
‘The Temple knows that too.’
“If they get through this unscathed, they’ll simply try again through more covert means next time.”
They would hardly abandon a method through which they discretely secured funds.
Ibeta’s hand trembled faintly with rage as she gripped the teacup.
Had the High Priest stood before her, she might well have hurled the cup directly at him—such was the intensity of her anger.
Ibeta was too kind-hearted to harbor hatred and enmity toward anyone, yet even she found the Temple’s wickedness unforgivable.
“You asked if I wanted to take revenge. Why did you ask that?”
Ibeta pressed the question urgently.
Her eyes held the expectation that I possessed some method.
There were risks involved, but I did have a plan in mind. I selected the proposal that would afford Ibeta the greatest safety.
“If Ibeta doesn’t wish to proceed, you don’t have to. I’m simply presenting you with the options available.”
Worried that she might make an emotional decision, I laid out my preamble at length.
“I know you’ll respect my opinion most of all. You always do.”
Ibeta smiled faintly.
The trust that had quietly accumulated felt gratifying.
I explained the plan I’d devised.
“The priests of the Peram Temple left many traces when they handed over the Orphanage children. Thanks to those traces, we were able to locate the children.”
Bes, who had helped in finding the Orphanage children, nodded in agreement.
“It was sloppy work. Made it easy for us, though.”
From the funds received at the Employment Agency, the priest’s Loan Ledger brought from the Peram Temple contained detailed records of which children were handed over to which locations, how much was paid, and how the debts were settled.
‘Beyond that, the bribery list contained the names of numerous high-ranking priests from the Temple.’
“The moment the Temple attempts to claim they never engaged in Illegal Slave Trade, we’ll release this information publicly.”
The timing of releasing this information was critical.
The Peram priests were already Excommunicated for their abuse of the Orphanage children, particularly Ibeta.
It was a card already played once.
Moreover, the Empire’s citizens had grown somewhat inured to the Temple’s corruption.
One had to account for the possibility that even significant incidents might be brushed aside as ancient history.
The Temple’s narrative of “the transgression of a few priests” was still remarkably effective.
The suspicion that the Temple had been implicated in Illegal Slave Trade and the bare fact that the Peram priests had sold Orphanage children to the Employment Agency for payment would not easily generate sufficient public outcry.
The first was grave enough to provoke the people’s anger, but lacked sufficient evidence; the second was common in an Empire whose economy had collapsed during the war.
‘People sold their own children too, after all.’
But if these two revelations emerged in sequence, the situation could change.
The Peram Temple incident would serve to supplement the insufficient evidence in the Illegal Slave Trade case.
Even moving public opinion from “Surely the Temple didn’t do such a thing?” to “But they already did this at the Orphanage, didn’t they?” would be sufficient.
‘If Ibeta’s influence is added to this, the effect would be even greater.’
“We’ll publish interviews with the people rescued from the Orphanage in newspapers. After that, Ibeta—who witnessed human trafficking occur at the Peram Temple over a decade—will release a statement condemning the Temple’s Illegal Slave Trade based on her experience.”
Ibeta was merely a witness to what happened at the Peram Temple and bore no direct connection to this Illegal Slave Trade.
‘An appeal to inappropriate authority’—logically fallacious, perhaps, but it didn’t matter.
Most of the Empire’s citizens would be fixated solely on the combination of a “Saint’s condemnation” and “Illegal Slave Trade.”
‘I’m leveraging Ibeta’s name and story to drive the narrative, and it’s not ideal, but it’s the best approach I can think of right now.’
I glanced at Ibeta’s expression.
She had already resolved to expose her own unfortunate past to reveal the evil deeds of the Peram Temple priests.
Strictly speaking, what she’d be doing this time wasn’t fundamentally different from what she’d done before.
But the crucial difference lay in this: if Ibeta explicitly took a stance of confrontation with the Temple this time, then Ibeta and the Temple would become officially adversarial.
Until now, the Temple had refrained from interfering significantly, attempting instead to win her over, but this would become an opportunity for overt attack.
I finished my explanation up to this point and waited for Ibeta’s decision.
Bes, who had been listening silently beside me, nudged Ibeta with his elbow.
“A Saint outranks the High Priest, doesn’t she? What’s there to worry about?”
Bes had a point.
Though all actual authority rested with the High Priest, a Saint was a direct vessel of God’s will.
Though merely a matter of rank, the Saint was technically the highest position in the Minos Religion.
“That’s true, but…….”
Something seemed to weigh on Ibeta’s mind as she fell into contemplation.
“I do want to take revenge on the Temple. I’m fine with my childhood being discussed or releasing an official statement. But…….”
Ibeta spoke heavily, as though with effort.
“I don’t want it to appear that I’ve become subordinate to the Imperial House.”
It was a difficult thing to say, and Ibeta spoke with her eyes tightly shut.
As if she’d already committed to the words, she hastily added a disclaimer.
“I know you didn’t propose this with such intentions. But in others’ eyes, it will look as though I’m standing with the Imperial House to attack the Temple. That’s not to say I’ve forgotten the grace the Imperial House has shown me. But I don’t want to be anyone’s puppet. I want to be here because I choose to be.”
Ibeta, who had lived her life in turmoil, had grown considerably stronger.
She had developed conviction and agency, and she understood precisely how to act in her own best interest.
“It’s a sound concern.”
I spoke carefully, hoping Ibeta wouldn’t be hurt.
“But to achieve that, Ibeta would have to step fully into the spotlight. The risks she’d shoulder would increase significantly.”
“I’m prepared for that. I can’t spend my whole life being protected just because people don’t know me.”
Ibeta’s pale blue eyes burned with resolve.
“The time you’ve given me so far is already more than enough to be grateful for. And even after I step forward, you’ll protect me.”
I watched Ibeta’s growth with satisfaction and made a new proposal.
It was a method I’d set aside as secondary due to the heightened risks.
“Beyond the Saint’s condemnation, there’s a more effective approach. Would you like to hear it?”
Ibeta nodded, her eyes bright with expectation.
“Summon the High Priest and other senior clergy to appear publicly for rebuke. As the head of the Minos Religion.”
If the Temple ignored Ibeta’s words as a Saint, the Temple’s own authority would be diminished.
But if they acknowledged the Saint’s authority to show her proper respect……
‘They’d be admitting they stand beneath her.’
I smiled crookedly, amused by the prospect.
‘This should be interesting.’
Which trap the High Priest would choose.

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