Archbishop Liang shuddered. To admit my words here would make the Emperor ‘equal’ to God. As the Emperor extended the friendly gesture, it was difficult to challenge him.
The problem was that His Majesty dared to be equal to God.
But this subtle use of words and establishment of relationships was far too philosophical and complex to be discussed here and now.
It was a topic that need formal discussion.
‘If I can buy time, the Emperor can take care of the rest.’
This was the Emperor’s ultimate purpose in the first place. For the people to think of him as the equivalent to the temple. He already prepared for the coming.
The Emperor was smiling at me, looking pleased. But my dad, sitting next to him, looked worried. He was afraid that I might be harmed.
Fortunately, the quick-witted Professor Munich stepped forward.
“Saint, please proceed with the ceremony, so that we can send the ‘His Majesty’s Gift’ to the Gods.”
Asta glared at Professor Munich, then lifted the lid of the box.
“Very well. We’ll offer the Temple’s tribute to Prache first.”
Asta took the offering from the box.
They were tiny kernels of corn. As we watched the corn pile up on the altar, we were stumped again.
‘She brought corn too?’
It was the same as the Emperor’s, the kernels were small and less mature.
Asta noticed our confusion and smiled coldly.
Archbishop Liang turned to Asta and said, “Alas! Isn’t the grain being offered to God meagre? Is the Lady going to offer it just like this?”
“The Gods consider even the humblest offerings precious. However, if I add my sincerity and dedication to these small things, they will become more valuable. Enough to share with the people.”
“To share with the people?”
“Yes. I will use my power to grow a large group of corn, offer the best of it to God, and share the rest with the people. God is actually more concerned with what the people eat than with the tribute offered.”
The Emperor’s mood, which had been cheerful a moment before, sank to a low ebb.
This was the same ‘gift’ the Emperor had prepared. Just the magic got replaced with holy power.
Our plan would be nothing but an imitation of Asta.
‘There must have been a leak of information somewhere.’
I’m sure the Emperor was thinking the same. Gritted his teeth, he kept looking at the alter.
‘The temple had the upper hand and people on His Majesty’s side were in despair.’
The public, on the other hand, were full of hope. It was a rare occasion for a Saint to demonstrate her power.
Sensing the atmosphere, Asta said, “It seems like everyone has high expectations for me. I am just following the words of the Gods. Please pay attention to what His Majesty and the Academy magicians have prepared as well. They must have worked hard, I’m curious to see what they will show you.”
Asta showed a plastic smile, and imbued the corn with holy power.
A holy, yet somehow unnatural, blue glow enveloped the corn. Then the tiny kernels began to swell.
People exclaimed in awe.
“Look at that! As soon as the Saint put the holy power into it, it grew!”
“So that’s the power of the Saint I’ve only heard about!”
“No matter how much magic they teach at the academy, it’s nothing compared to the power of the Gods.”
The corners of Asta’s mouth curled up as she listened to the people’s astonishment. She was already celebrating her victory.
Just then-
Boom!
The corn, enveloped by the blue hue, exploded.
The shattered corn splattered messily on Asta’s smiling face.
“Wh-What happened to the Saint?”
“Look! The corns are rotten!”
At those words, everyone’s eyes immediately turned to the blackened corn. All the corn that Asta had infused with her holy power was hideously rotten and withered. The crumbles looked so cursed.
Asta and Archbishop Liang turned to stone in contemplation.
Seizing the opportunity, Professor Munich asked in a loud voice, “What just happened? All the grain you infused with divine power has rotted away. Saint, are you sure you can use divine power properly?”
“O-Of course, my power is fine.”
Amid the embarrassing situation, Asta lost her temper.
Professor Munich sarcastically asked Asta, “Then why did all the grain offered to the God go rotten? If there’s no issue with your magic, it means there’s an issue with the person offering the sacrifice.”
“What are you trying…!”
“Seems like God is upset with the Saint. The anger made Him reject the offering directly.”
“…….”
“Didn’t you say God bestows the Saint with oracles? Was this also a kind of oracle?”
Professor Munich, who was still very upset about what had happened earlier, took the opportunity to lash out at Asta.
“That can’t be true! God loves me! There is no one on the continent who is more loved by God than I am.”
“Then how do you explain what has happened?”
“This is a.. conspiracy! A conspiracy against me and the temple!”
Asta shouted, her mind was in a mess because of the dire situation.
I narrowed my pink eyes.
‘Asta was smart as a protagonist! She quickly claimed the situation as a conspiracy’
‘But you were the one who tried to sabotage the Emperor first, Asta!’
I was reminded of an encounter with the Marquis of Fork a few hours ago when I followed Asta out.
***
“Let’s go back to the event site. I’ll escort you”, Fork held out his hand.
‘But why was the Marquis of Fork here? I followed Asta, but he had no separate business outside the venue.’
Was he following Asta too? If not…?
Suddenly Marquis Fork grabbed my hand while I was still pondering the question.
I startled and tried to pull my hand away.
“Let’s get going, the adults are worried”, he urged.
However, the grip of the hand that held me was surprisingly powerful.
“I-It hurts, let go!”
“D-Did I hurt you?”
Marquis Fork let me go with an apologetic face. I took advantage of the opportunity and scurried away like a squirrel.
“Princess!”
I ducked into the overgrown grass by the warehouse.
‘He won’t find me here. It’s a good thing I’m small… eek!’
I inadvertently leaned against the warehouse shed, and it tilted.
There was a hidden opening.
In a blink, I found myself inside the warehouse.
“Ugh, what just happened?”
A crackling translucent window appeared in front of me.
[ Urgent #^%& ] [ Hide! ]
The word ‘hide’ flashed red and disappeared.
Instinctively sensing a threat, I scrambled for cover behind a stack of grain.
In a matter of seconds, someone appeared where I was.
“I thought I heard something just now.”
A woman murmured with a chilly voice.
It was Asta Appel.
Just then, a squeaking mouse was seen.
“What was that? A rat?”
Relieved, Asta went back to her work. She took out a bottle with black liquid from her pocket and sprinkled it evenly over the corn. The corn emitted a cracking sound and released smoke.
‘What is she doing to the Emperor’s corn?’
Finished with his task, Asta strode out of the warehouse at a brisk pace.
I rushed over to the corn.
“Huh?”
The corn looked fine.
‘But I saw her spraying it with a strange and suspicious liquid.’
I picked up the corn and examined it, then cast a spell to make it grow.
‘I have to show it to the people later anyway, so let’s test it first.’
White smoke rose from the corn as it touched the mana. Soon enough, its pristine surface crumbled to dust. All that remained was a blackened, rotten kernel.
‘Just casting a spell ruined the corn.’
If I hadn’t known better, it would have been a disaster.
‘Asta knows everything and did this on purpose!’
It was evident that Asta knew all about the Emperor’s plan to apply magic on the corn. She was trying to sabotage that plan.
I looked around and spotted a box that caught my eye.
It was labelled ‘Tribute of the Temple’. I lifted the lid and saw that it contained the same small sized corn that the Emperor had sent.
‘I understand Asta’s intentions now. She planned to grow the corn just like the Emperor, intending to make a comparison between the Emperor’s and the temple’s.’
I couldn’t let that happen.
I switched the Emperor’s corn with the Temple’s.
***
That’s how it happened.
Asta sprinkled the potion on the Emperor’s corn, causing it to rot from the inside. Although the surface appeared intact, applying spells would reveal the decaying insides.
If we had cast a growth spell on that corn, it would have been a complete disaster for the Emperor.
However, I switched the corn between the Emperor’s batch and the temple’s batch.
Thanks to that, it was Asta who faced disgrace.
When she used her power, the rotten part of the corn was exposed.
‘The mechanisms might be different, but maybe holy power works similarly to mana. That’s why the weakened corn easily broke apart.’
Asta, who had no idea I was in the warehouse, chewed her lower lip until it burst.
Archbishop Liang shuddered. To admit my words here would make the Emperor ‘equal’ to God. As the Emperor extended the friendly gesture, it was difficult to challenge him.
The problem was that His Majesty dared to be equal to God.
But this subtle use of words and establishment of relationships was far too philosophical and complex to be discussed here and now.
It was a topic that need formal discussion.
‘If I can buy time, the Emperor can take care of the rest.’
This was the Emperor’s ultimate purpose in the first place. For the people to think of him as the equivalent to the temple. He already prepared for the coming.
The Emperor was smiling at me, looking pleased. But my dad, sitting next to him, looked worried. He was afraid that I might be harmed.
Fortunately, the quick-witted Professor Munich stepped forward.
“Saint, please proceed with the ceremony, so that we can send the ‘His Majesty’s Gift’ to the Gods.”
Asta glared at Professor Munich, then lifted the lid of the box.
“Very well. We’ll offer the Temple’s tribute to Prache first.”
Asta took the offering from the box.
They were tiny kernels of corn. As we watched the corn pile up on the altar, we were stumped again.
‘She brought corn too?’
It was the same as the Emperor’s, the kernels were small and less mature.
Asta noticed our confusion and smiled coldly.
Archbishop Liang turned to Asta and said, “Alas! Isn’t the grain being offered to God meagre? Is the Lady going to offer it just like this?”
“The Gods consider even the humblest offerings precious. However, if I add my sincerity and dedication to these small things, they will become more valuable. Enough to share with the people.”
“To share with the people?”
“Yes. I will use my power to grow a large group of corn, offer the best of it to God, and share the rest with the people. God is actually more concerned with what the people eat than with the tribute offered.”
The Emperor’s mood, which had been cheerful a moment before, sank to a low ebb.
This was the same ‘gift’ the Emperor had prepared. Just the magic got replaced with holy power.
Our plan would be nothing but an imitation of Asta.
‘There must have been a leak of information somewhere.’
I’m sure the Emperor was thinking the same. Gritted his teeth, he kept looking at the alter.
‘The temple had the upper hand and people on His Majesty’s side were in despair.’
The public, on the other hand, were full of hope. It was a rare occasion for a Saint to demonstrate her power.
Sensing the atmosphere, Asta said, “It seems like everyone has high expectations for me. I am just following the words of the Gods. Please pay attention to what His Majesty and the Academy magicians have prepared as well. They must have worked hard, I’m curious to see what they will show you.”
Asta showed a plastic smile, and imbued the corn with holy power.
A holy, yet somehow unnatural, blue glow enveloped the corn. Then the tiny kernels began to swell.
People exclaimed in awe.
“Look at that! As soon as the Saint put the holy power into it, it grew!”
“So that’s the power of the Saint I’ve only heard about!”
“No matter how much magic they teach at the academy, it’s nothing compared to the power of the Gods.”
The corners of Asta’s mouth curled up as she listened to the people’s astonishment. She was already celebrating her victory.
Just then-
Boom!
The corn, enveloped by the blue hue, exploded.
The shattered corn splattered messily on Asta’s smiling face.
“Wh-What happened to the Saint?”
“Look! The corns are rotten!”
At those words, everyone’s eyes immediately turned to the blackened corn. All the corn that Asta had infused with her holy power was hideously rotten and withered. The crumbles looked so cursed.
Asta and Archbishop Liang turned to stone in contemplation.
Seizing the opportunity, Professor Munich asked in a loud voice, “What just happened? All the grain you infused with divine power has rotted away. Saint, are you sure you can use divine power properly?”
“O-Of course, my power is fine.”
Amid the embarrassing situation, Asta lost her temper.
Professor Munich sarcastically asked Asta, “Then why did all the grain offered to the God go rotten? If there’s no issue with your magic, it means there’s an issue with the person offering the sacrifice.”
“What are you trying…!”
“Seems like God is upset with the Saint. The anger made Him reject the offering directly.”
“…….”
“Didn’t you say God bestows the Saint with oracles? Was this also a kind of oracle?”
Professor Munich, who was still very upset about what had happened earlier, took the opportunity to lash out at Asta.
“That can’t be true! God loves me! There is no one on the continent who is more loved by God than I am.”
“Then how do you explain what has happened?”
“This is a.. conspiracy! A conspiracy against me and the temple!”
Asta shouted, her mind was in a mess because of the dire situation.
I narrowed my pink eyes.
‘Asta was smart as a protagonist! She quickly claimed the situation as a conspiracy’
‘But you were the one who tried to sabotage the Emperor first, Asta!’
I was reminded of an encounter with the Marquis of Fork a few hours ago when I followed Asta out.
***
“Let’s go back to the event site. I’ll escort you”, Fork held out his hand.
‘But why was the Marquis of Fork here? I followed Asta, but he had no separate business outside the venue.’
Was he following Asta too? If not…?
Suddenly Marquis Fork grabbed my hand while I was still pondering the question.
I startled and tried to pull my hand away.
“Let’s get going, the adults are worried”, he urged.
However, the grip of the hand that held me was surprisingly powerful.
“I-It hurts, let go!”
“D-Did I hurt you?”
Marquis Fork let me go with an apologetic face. I took advantage of the opportunity and scurried away like a squirrel.
“Princess!”
I ducked into the overgrown grass by the warehouse.
‘He won’t find me here. It’s a good thing I’m small… eek!’
I inadvertently leaned against the warehouse shed, and it tilted.
There was a hidden opening.
In a blink, I found myself inside the warehouse.
“Ugh, what just happened?”
A crackling translucent window appeared in front of me.
[ Urgent #^%& ] [ Hide! ]
The word ‘hide’ flashed red and disappeared.
Instinctively sensing a threat, I scrambled for cover behind a stack of grain.
In a matter of seconds, someone appeared where I was.
“I thought I heard something just now.”
A woman murmured with a chilly voice.
It was Asta Appel.
Just then, a squeaking mouse was seen.
“What was that? A rat?”
Relieved, Asta went back to her work. She took out a bottle with black liquid from her pocket and sprinkled it evenly over the corn. The corn emitted a cracking sound and released smoke.
‘What is she doing to the Emperor’s corn?’
Finished with his task, Asta strode out of the warehouse at a brisk pace.
I rushed over to the corn.
“Huh?”
The corn looked fine.
‘But I saw her spraying it with a strange and suspicious liquid.’
I picked up the corn and examined it, then cast a spell to make it grow.
‘I have to show it to the people later anyway, so let’s test it first.’
White smoke rose from the corn as it touched the mana. Soon enough, its pristine surface crumbled to dust. All that remained was a blackened, rotten kernel.
‘Just casting a spell ruined the corn.’
If I hadn’t known better, it would have been a disaster.
‘Asta knows everything and did this on purpose!’
It was evident that Asta knew all about the Emperor’s plan to apply magic on the corn. She was trying to sabotage that plan.
I looked around and spotted a box that caught my eye.
It was labelled ‘Tribute of the Temple’. I lifted the lid and saw that it contained the same small sized corn that the Emperor had sent.
‘I understand Asta’s intentions now. She planned to grow the corn just like the Emperor, intending to make a comparison between the Emperor’s and the temple’s.’
I couldn’t let that happen.
I switched the Emperor’s corn with the Temple’s.
***
That’s how it happened.
Asta sprinkled the potion on the Emperor’s corn, causing it to rot from the inside. Although the surface appeared intact, applying spells would reveal the decaying insides.
If we had cast a growth spell on that corn, it would have been a complete disaster for the Emperor.
However, I switched the corn between the Emperor’s batch and the temple’s batch.
Thanks to that, it was Asta who faced disgrace.
When she used her power, the rotten part of the corn was exposed.
‘The mechanisms might be different, but maybe holy power works similarly to mana. That’s why the weakened corn easily broke apart.’
Asta, who had no idea I was in the warehouse, chewed her lower lip until it burst.
