My dear witch, please turn evil according to the script!

Chapter 283 Pretending to be a Master, the Vatican's Strangeness

really.

Upon hearing Suren's words, Roland knew that his guess was correct.

Without saying much, he led Iluvia and the other person to the third floor of the inn.

"Oh my, it's been so long! How have you been? I saw your engagement in the newspaper. It looks like I'll be able to attend the wedding soon, Your Highness Iluvia. You'll probably let me be your bridesmaid, won't you?"

Suren led the way briskly, turning back to ask the two of them a question.

Iluvia turned her head away somewhat embarrassedly, but the blush on her face unsurprisingly revealed her current mood.

Roland simply smiled in response, then asked in return, "And you, how have things been lately?"

"It went fairly smoothly. After leaving Riskan, I went to report on the maritime mission. After reporting, I carefully preserved my grandfather's belongings. I rested for two days and then received your message. Then I was selected as a member of the mission and started traveling again."

"Sigh... There are teleportation arrays available, but those old fogies refuse to use them to save money."

"If only the Vatican were as wealthy as the Society."

"Unfortunately, His Holiness the Pope rejected the idea of ​​a cardinal to sell indulgences for profit."

"Otherwise, the Vatican's financial situation would definitely be much better!"

Hearing Suren's complaints, Roland was somewhat surprised: "Is the Vatican's finances really that tight?"

"Yes, although they have great power and high income, if you spread it out, the funds will be very tight. After all, you can't make much money by selling holy water and scriptures."

"The same applies to priests attending weddings or blessing ceremonies; their fees shouldn't be too high."

"Although we can generally maintain a balance between income and expenditure and even have some surplus, it is certainly not considered extravagant."

"After all, the Vatican has not learned so many inventions and patents that it can sell and apply to the market and ordinary people."

Suren sighed and began to complain about how her salary had recently been reduced again.

Listening to Suren's complaints, Roland thought that his mentor's repayment plan was finally settled.

Given the current state of the Vatican, it seems that if I generously donate money and plead my case, and get the teacher to apologize, I could really get away with the damage to the sacred object.

Of course, this is just Roland's guess; we still need to find out the specifics.

After all, it seems that a big shot who has the final say has arrived this time.

During their conversation, they arrived at the third floor, and Suren led the two to a room in the hotel.

"Please come in, both of you. The teacher is waiting inside."

Suren stood at the door, bowed slightly, opened the door for the two of them, and gestured for them to come in.

He stood at the doorway, showing no intention of going in.

Roland and Iluvia exchanged a glance, then walked into the room together.

They soon realized the strangeness of the room.

Although it was a high-class hotel on the border, its decoration and interior could not compare to those of Riskan and the royal capital. However, in order to accommodate the visiting delegation, Legion Commander Elson still went to great lengths, urgently allocating a batch of luxurious furniture from various places.

But at this moment, all the furniture disappeared, as if it had been moved away.

The room now contained only a table, a few chairs, and a plain wooden bed that had clearly been replaced.

The blanket on top is the most common cheap cotton quilt.

Moreover, you can easily see the signs of use on it; it looks like it's been used for many years.

A kind-looking old man with white hair and beard stood by the window, gazing up at the night sky where the moon was approaching. His hands were behind his back, and his coarse white robe fluttered in the wind, giving him the air of a reclusive master, a lonely and sage.

Roland stood at the door, looking at the old man cosplaying Feng Qingyang in front of the window, and had a vague sense of foreboding.

Although the Vatican personnel he had encountered so far had been relatively normal, Roland had a premonition that he was about to encounter a strange person.

"You two have finally arrived. Please have a seat."

The old man turned to look at the two of them, then personally pulled out a chair, displaying the enthusiastic manner of a restaurant owner soliciting customers.

Iluvia's expression began to become unnatural, and she looked at Roland, unsure of what to do.

I want to get some answers from the other person.

After all, Suren had said that this was her teacher.

To be qualified to be the teacher of a Grand Inquisitor with a promising future and terrifying talent, the other party's status must be quite high.

Even if they are not saints of the Vatican, they are at least at the level of cardinals.

For such important figures, one must be mindful of etiquette, as this almost represents direct contact between the high-ranking officials of the Empire and the Papacy; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call it a direct exchange between the two powers.

Unfortunately, Iluvia didn't get any answers from Roland.

Roland sat down in the chair and invited me to sit down too!

Damn it! Doesn't this guy even realize what's going on?!
Really!
Despite her inner complaints, Iluvia accepted Roland's invitation and sat down in another chair that the old man had pulled out.

At this moment, Iluvia also began to speculate about the Papacy's intentions.

After all, the Holy See had notified the Empire in advance of this mission's visit.

The members of the mission were also notified.

The old man's name was not on the list of personnel received by the Empire. The official representative of the delegation was Suren.

Iluvia didn't even realize that there were unknown high-ranking members in the delegation until she arrived at the inn and Suren spoke up.

This is not a good sign.

However, when Iluvia looked at Roland, he still had a calm and composed demeanor, and she even seemed a little surprised to see an acquaintance.

Wait... an acquaintance?
Roland then noticed Iluvia's gaze and introduced her with a smile: "This is Cardinal Clark, have you forgotten, Iluvia? Didn't you see her at the Tripartite Talks in Riskan?"

"Although His Excellency the Cardinal only participated in the meeting via projector, his appearance did not change; he simply changed his clothes."

Reminded by Roland, Iluvia realized that the old man did look somewhat familiar.

But you can't blame her for that.

After all, although it was called a tripartite meeting, the actual main participants were only Roland, Suren, and Cellina.

The others, especially her, were just there to make up the numbers.

Iluvia, who had a very clear sense of self, didn't listen to a word of what was being said at the time.

Aside from stealing glances at Roland's profile, he would just drift off into a daze.

She didn't even remember all the people who attended the meeting.

It was only because that old man from the Vatican kept asking Roland about her love life and personal life that she found it somewhat annoying; otherwise, she really wouldn't have any impression of him at all.

Of course, despite her rich inner thoughts, Iluvia maintained the dignified and proper demeanor of a well-bred young lady on the surface.

Years of studying court etiquette have finally paid off.

With a standard smile, Iluvia greeted the old man softly, "Greetings, Cardinal. It is an honor to meet you."

Cardinal Clark stroked his beard and replied, "It is an honor to meet the Princess and the Grand Duke of the Empire."

"Compared to an old and frail man like me, humanity needs young talents like you much more."

Roland smiled and then went straight to the point: "You came here without telling me your itinerary, surely you weren't just saying these nice things?"

"If you have something to say, just say it."

"You're asking about the reliability of the information, aren't you?"

Clark laughed heartily upon hearing this: "You're being too direct. Although the Vatican has this intention, I personally do not."

"Neither Suren nor her subordinates have fully reported the matter of the Demon King. Within the Holy See, I am the only high-ranking member who knows that you carry the remnant soul of the Demon King."

"Therefore, I believe your intelligence."

"After all, the Blood Demon Lord's loyalty to the Demon King himself is recorded and known even to the human side."

As the saying goes, the one who understands you best is always your enemy.

"Humans may know more about the internal power dynamics of the demon race than you think, Grand Duke Roland."

"Even though the Demon King War ended three hundred years ago, the Church has never relaxed its vigilance against the demons."

"But unfortunately... either someone is neglecting their duties, or the methods of the demons have begun to exceed our imagination."

"In short, considering the information and request from Princess Andreip of the Kingdom of Platia, even if they were unaware of the Demon King's existence, most of the high-ranking officials of the Holy See tend to believe your information."

"The mission's purpose this time, besides specifically to ascertain the accuracy of intelligence, is to discuss specific cooperation matters."

"To avoid unnecessary trouble, I volunteered to join this mission. According to the plan, I shouldn't have met you; my existence must be kept secret."

At this point, Cardinal Clark smiled, stroked his beard, and said, "So, now you know why I'm meeting you at this time, right?"

Roland smiled and said, "Since you've put it that way, I guess I have no choice but to guess."

"Are you saying that there are problems within the Vatican and you want to seek some external help?"

Cardinal Clark paused for a moment, then shook his head helplessly: "You, although there are some differences, are actually quite similar."

"I suppose you are aware of the Vatican's recent actions."

“We have been shrinking our external forces, and many city chapters have withdrawn the regional archbishops and powerful priests who were originally stationed there.”

“Something strange has appeared in the Papal City, something you should be familiar with… To put it simply, it’s the so-called corruption by evil gods, which has appeared in the Papal City, a place protected by the gods.”

"It was clear that only some anomalies occurred, which were quickly and properly handled without causing any unnecessary impact."

"But this is clearly not a good sign."

"I'm sure you know the old saying: when you find one cockroach in your house, there are actually already a bunch of cockroaches in the house."

"So, I would like to ask you what your opinion is on this matter, and if you have any suggestions."

"After all, at this stage, neither the Vatican nor the Society has any other means to deal with this kind of pollution but to block it or exile it."

"But you can actually eliminate the impact."

Cardinal Clark's gaze turned serious. He sighed and looked at Roland: "Having experienced so much, you should know the dangers lurking in this world. You should also be well aware of what this anomaly means."

"That is why the Holy See has reduced its strength and recalled some of the powerful figures that were originally scattered throughout the continent back to the Holy See City."

(End of this chapter)