«Why didn't we know anything about this?!» Agnes wondered, sounding as baffled as I felt.
Unfortunately, I didn't get a chance to ask any questions myself.
"Let them in," the queen said.
As soon as the music stopped, a row of priests in neat uniforms entered and crossed the banquet hall over to our side with strides that reminded me of a sacred ritual. It seemed that a very interesting situation was about to unfold.
The middle-aged priest who seemed to represent the group politely remarked, "Reverend Ivanoch Cenak at your service, Your Majesty. As you've kindly arranged this celebration for the Divine Emissary of the holy kingdom, the Vatican would like to present you with a gift to encourage this great unity."
"A gift?"
The moment Queen Laviosa asked, the other priests handed the representative a large box, beautifully decorated with jewels. An intense curiosity rose up within me.
What could it be? What kind of a trap is hidden inside? The representative opened the box and displayed the object within.
"Huh?"
"What?"
The nobles who were close enough to see the gift gasped at what they saw. It was an understandable reaction.
«A-A skeleton? Ailette, that's a skeleton, right?»
It was the skull of a young child. At the sight of the skull, all emotions and colors were instantly drained from Queen Laviosa's face. As the air inside the banquet hall instantly turned to ice, the lead priest spoke loud and clear with a gracious voice, as if he was giving a sermon.
"This is the skull of a boy that has been sanctified. We have prepared this for you so that you may consider it as Prince Reminick's remains and atone for your sins every day."
"What is the meaning of this?" the queen asked, her voice hollow and cold.
"We're aware of how devastated you are about what happened in the past, but hatred is corrosive. May I suggest that you move beyond the tragic mistake of a small group of extremists with the heart of a royal mother and wash away your resentment with forgiveness?"
A stunned silence swept across the banquet hall, but the reverend had more to say.
"As a servant of God, I'd like to add that Prince Reminick most likely passed away at a young age because it was the will of God."
"You think what happened to my son... was the will of God?"
"Yes. God took the life of a young sinner to spare him from suffering the consequences of the original sin and to absolve him of the crimes he'd committed in his past life. Even if he lived, his pathetic life would've been filled with pain..."
I could hardly believe what I was hearing at this point.
«W-What the...!» Agnes stuttered from my necklace, equally stunned.
â¬The Critic for Balance is shocked by the blatant insult.â
â¬The Eye Overseeing All Chaos thinks there is little need for their services at this point.â
â¬The Architect of the Skyscraper of Suffering is distraught.â
The speech was made to sound sacred, but it was a brutal attack disguised as doctrine. Having faced direct hostility, Queen Laviosa could barely maintain her calm as her breaths came in sharp and heavy. I glanced around the crowd, searching for who could be behind this stunt when I noticed a figure covering a twisted smile with his wine glass.
Prince Hardale. It was evident that this was his foul scheme to provoke Queen Laviosa's wrath and revive the animosity she had for the holy kingdom. It was likely that he'd bribed at least a Grand Priest and formed a group of followers who had little understanding of worldly issues, which would make it difficult for the religious order to deny their involvement, considering how the representative was a real priest.
Crash!
Rigarez couldn't contain his anger as he flipped over a table. "Ha! How dare you utter such nonsense in our home?!"
"Please calm down, Prince Rigarez," said Queen Laviosa, patiently warning her son after regaining her composure. "Did you say your name was Reverend Ivanoch?" she asked the man, who was still holding out a box before her.
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"I understand the Vatican's point of view. I guess I've gone too easy on such matters these days."
"Pardon?"
That is when Queen Laviosa gave her stern order. "Guards, seize Reverend Ivanoch. I shall rip out his tongue and send it to the Vatican as a 'thank you' for their lovely gift."
"Y-Your Majesty?!"
"And hang all the priest's followers on crosses. We shall give them the opportunity to atone for their original sin."
"E-Eeeek!"
The followers shrieked with shock, their earlier attitude of carrying out a great duty of the Vatican wiped away in an instant. Tears rolled down their eyes as they begged for forgiveness, while the other nobles quietly avoided the situation because they remembered how the queen had acted when she purged all of her political opponents in the past.
To no one's surprise, the queen's revenge was not over.
"Come to think of it, there are many more here who must pay their respects."
Continuing loudly, as if to be sure she had my attention, she ordered, "Grab the Divine Emissary's knights and bring them to me!"
The target of her revenge ended up being the members of my knight division. Ephael, Hestio, and Ash suddenly found themselves at the center of attention.
"What? No, wait! What's going on?!" Hestio cried out.
Ash added, "We've never even heard of those people!"
"Something isn't right. An investigation is neceâ Ugh!"
The three of them were brutally dragged forward by the royal knights.
Tesilid wasn't an exception as he was forced to kneel at the foremost location, all of which I had to witness from my position directly beside Queen Laviosa.
"Divine Emissary." Her heavy yet quiet voice flowed into my ears. I only moved my eyes to look at her, and she used her most gentle voice so far to ask, "Now, what will you do? Things will get complicated if the holy kingdom doesn't prove its innocence."
Oh... I get it. It was clear now what this coldly shrewd woman was thinking.
She knows Hardale is behind this, but decided to act like she fell for it so that she could use this to pressure me. Everything was going the way Queen Laviosa wanted, and it was her turn to threaten me now.
"I understand this is a difficult situation, but there's nothing for you to worry about since proving one's innocence only applies to an enemy, not an ally."
"Oh. An ally, I see."
"Yes. This can be settled easily if you join us," she explained. "So give me an answer now. If not, I will beat him until he dies in front of you."
I subconsciously gasped, which only sharpened the queen's tongue more.
"Feel free to heal him using your divine power, for I shall tie him up and beat him again the moment his bloody flesh is restored. Healing, followed by a beating. Then healing, followed by another beating. We shall repeat this process over and over again together," the queen said with a small, sinister smile. "In this way, your healing will no longer be healing. How long do you think the master of the holy sword would be able to endure this torture? I'm quite keen to witness the moment he begs you to let him dieâ"
"I think that's enough, Mother," I muttered, cutting her off because I didn't want to listen anymore.
Queen Laviosa didn't point out my rude interruption but instead glanced at me with sparkling eyes. "'Mother?'" she repeated.
That is when I felt a powerful stare coming from the front, for Tesilid kneeling on the stairs below the podium was looking up at me with shockingly fragile eyes.
â¬The Cliché Gourmet is shuddering at Queen Laviosa's intentional misunderstanding.â
â¬The Scale that Judges Souls enjoys the main lead's desperate gaze.â
Although the gods were amused, I found this whole situation deeply unpleasant, so I decided to wrap it up as quickly as possible.
"I should have given the Prayer of Blessing first, but the mood has taken an unfortunate turn because I missed my timing."
"Divine Emissary?" The queen seemed confused by my unaffected tone, but I ignored her and looked around the banquet hall.
"Now, everyone. I will pray for the royal family's well-being. Please focus." I didn't put my hands together, nor did I close my eyes, as would be the usual stance for such a ceremony. Instead, I stood up from the chair and shouted confidently, "As the prophet of God, I'd like to request a maternity test from the royal family of Vinchester!"
"What?"
The banquet all erupted with murmurs and gasps at my shocking statement.
"A-A maternity test?"
"What do you mean by that, Your Eminence?"
Confused gazes and questions showered me from all directions, so I decided to elaborate.
"I will explain. I would like to request a maternity test between Queen Laviosa and Sir Tesilid Argente."
â¬The Cliché Gourmet is thrilled by the secret of his birth!â
"What kind of trick is this?" growled Rigarez as he glared at me balefully from across the hall.
Many others besides Rigarez were throwing cautious looks in my direction, Queen Laviosa being one of them.
"I only have two sons, Divine Emissary."
"I'm aware."
"Are you spinning some wild tale to avoid this situation? Sadly for you, I have an artifact that can prove you wrong very easily."
"How is that sad? I suggested the test because I'm aware of the existence of this artifact, Mother," I said with a beaming smile, which made Queen Laviosa gasp with surprise.
After a moment, she snapped, "You will need to take responsibility for this when it turns out to be a waste of time."
Her threat was sharper than icicles, but I wasn't frightened at all.
"Allie, I don't understandâ"
"Don't worry, Tez. Just trust me."
I gave Tesilid an encouraging smile as he looked at me with evident confusion at this ridiculous situation, during which time the servants brought the artifact Queen Laviosa had mentioned. Made of marble and seated upon a cushion of velvet, the item served to protect the kingdom from any potential imposters masquerading as heirs and so that no cuckoos would hatch inside the royal family's nest.
Murmurs filled the hall at the sight of the object. "Does the queen plan to perform the test in front of everyone?"
"How will she manage the embarrassment if she's proven wrong?"
"But considering how confident she looks..."
"Be quiet, all of you!" barked the queen.
The banquet hall fell silent when all the nobles shut their mouths as they waited for the chief of attendants to carry out the maternity test. He was even more reverential than the grand bishop during a ritual as he uttered, "The redder the artifact turns upon contact with a drop of blood, the closer the blood relation. Now, then... If you will, Your Majesty and Sir Tesilid."
He swiftly nicked the queen and Tesilid's index fingers, allowing the blood to fall onto the artifact. The moment two round drops of blood landed, gasps filled the hall once more.
The marble that seconds before had been as white as a moonstone had turned a vibrant red, a result that undeniably proved that the two were directly related.