—Let us struggle in this dunya.
The original saint walked on the sea, he saw people envy each other, hate each other, kill each other, the original sin is like wildfire.
Archbishop Rodrik wore a black uniform with cross embroidery on the collar, and a gemstone cufflink that was different from his usual ascetic style was inlaid on the cuff. The cuffs tightly bound his wrists, and those bony hands could hold both the holy book and the Hidden Blade.
Dalton was temporarily removed from the palace by the queen because of the conflict with Heinrich a few days ago. Nominally, Dalton was sent to the royal castle at the junction of the Roland Empire and the Root Empire—the Queen would hold an engagement ceremony with Emperor Root there. In fact, everyone knew that this was a form of exile in disguise.
Another key figure in the conflict, Heinrich, was dealt with relatively lightly, only being asked to reflect for a few days.
The aristocrats who were a little restless some time ago were appeased and calmed down.
In the opinion of the nobles, after Dalton was temporarily expelled from the court, the queen should choose a new knight leader from several ancient families. No one expected that the queen would appoint a priest to serve as her temporary commander of knights—people rarely associate priests with swords.
However, in detail, as early as 400 years ago, the Pope tried his best to promote the "Holy See Army". The church believes that the clergy's formation of armed forces for the purpose of preaching is permitted by doctrine. Since then, armies affiliated to the monastery have been formed one after another, among which the Holy Orders are the most outstanding.
The Knights Templar of the Roland Empire has a long history, and its number has decreased a lot after the purges in July and August. Even so, the military force formed by the gathering of the remaining ascetic monks, supported by the religious spirit, was often able to exert a combat effectiveness not inferior to that of the noble private cavalry.
As the head of the Knights, Archbishop Rodrigues indeed has the ability to take care of the Queen's safety.
The archbishop temporarily took over the command of the knights, symbolically arranging several temple knights to serve in the palace, and the rest still retains Dalton's arrangement—just like Dalton and Heinrich, Archbishop Rodrik also knows this The truth behind the exchange.
It is not that no one has noticed that Dalton's Musketeers are still by the Queen's side, but since the Queen has assumed a moderating posture, they can hardly say anything more.
Thus, the conflict that happened in the palace a few days ago was revealed in such a tacit way.
But for those in it, things have only just begun.
"From Rubina Bay to Cassia Port, this section of the wharf is the second batch to be repaired."
Because Heinrich was asked to "reflect" for a few days, and Dalton was transferred from the palace again, the previous tit-for-tat atmosphere was lost in the imperial meeting these days, and the speed of handling things was faster than before. When Archbishop Rodri stepped into the Queen's study, she had just finished negotiating with the chancellors about the port.
Seeing the archbishop, he nodded slightly.
The others withdrew very winkingly.
When the chancellor walked out of the study and closed the door, he couldn't help but take a peek at the situation inside, only to see that Archbishop Rodrik was bowing respectfully to the queen.
"I bet," he murmured to one of his companions who had stopped to wait after he had taken a few steps, "that he would not be so devout if asked to kiss the Father's ring."
"who?"
Companion, the new head of daily affairs of the palace asked blankly.
The Chancellor rolled his eyes, too lazy to explain to the dull fool.
… … … … … … …
Archbishop Rodriguez was by no means respectful to the Holy Father, otherwise, how could he discuss the Pope's death with the Queen in a particularly disrespectful tone
"We must be grateful to the Capel family," the queen walked around the map laid out on the long table, examining every marked location on it, "if they hadn't blocked the news that the pope was seriously ill, our competition The opponent's preparation speed will definitely not be inferior to ours."
"They have enjoyed the benefits of the triple crown for too long," Archbishop Rodri pointed out sharply, "too long to be willing to hand it over."
However, this is impossible.
The current Pope—that is, poor Stephen VII, who is seriously ill—was born in the Capel family. The reason why they blocked the news can be imagined, they seem to want to control the next pope election. But this is really wishful thinking... Whether it is the Holy See or other countries, they will not allow the same family to have two consecutive popes.
Archbishop Rodrik once stayed in the Papal State for a while, and when he was only one step away from becoming a cardinal, he unexpectedly gave up the bright red cardinal robe, returned to the Roland Empire, took the cross and swore an oath, and became a member of the Knights. To this day, some people still think he is stupid:
—How can the head of the Knights of the Roland Empire be compared to the honorable cardinal
"If you had put on that red sacrificial robe, we could consider electing a Roland Pope now." Adele said briskly, with a bit of teasing.
"And then running around trying to bribe a single vote?"
Archbishop Rodri asked.
"Then let others do the work," the queen replied bluntly, "I don't have that much money to fill the fat stomachs of those bishops."
Archbishop Rodri couldn't help but have a look of disgust on his face—yes, it's really appropriate to describe the group of cardinals and teaching assistants in the Holy See as "fat belly and fat intestines".
The sale and purchase of clergy is almost an open and long-standing secret today. A bishop's hat can be sold for tens of thousands of gold coins, and a cardinal's hat is even more valuable. Since it took so much money to buy that hat, the buyer must get it back from other places—and What better time to pay back than a pope election
No, not anymore.
Someone once did calculations and came to the conclusion that during each Pope election, the amount of gold coins used for bribery was large enough to launch two large-scale Eastern Expeditions—this was only on the surface, and did not include those with land deeds. and winery mortgaged property.
"When Dalton escorts Cardinal Luvis back to the Papal State, we should help others." The queen held a thin whip woven with gold and silver threads, and pointed at the Kingdom of Yager on the map and Free Commercial City, "The Holy Father is going to die, how can the believers not mourn for him?"
Archbishop Rodri couldn't help showing a smile.
A queen and an archbishop, the conversation between the two in the study is no different from that of a pagan possessed by the devil, and it is enough to make ordinary believers tremble and outraged.
They had no respect for the "king of men" who wore the triple crown, and lamented with gusto his death.
But it must be said that the Pope's serious illness is really timely and helpful to Roland today.
The two port regulations of the Roland Empire had just been promulgated. These two port regulations were like two thunderbolts thrown out, which shocked the expressions of other countries. While the queen was discussing wharf repairs with the ministers, many countries and commercial cities were hastily discussing what measures to take against the two new regulations of the Roland Empire.
The death of the pope and the election of a new pope will serve as a more startling cloud of thunder than this.
Let the new pope empty their pockets and drain their energies.
Now, for Roland, there is nothing more important than delaying the outbreak of a frontal dispute.
... ... ...
Time, time, time against the clock.
For Cardinal Lewis, nothing is more important than time. He did not hesitate to pretend to be a businessman, and chose the secret port of the Roland Empire to land in order to get to the Holy City as soon as possible. It would be great if we could arrive before the news of the Pope's death was announced.
Of course, he also knew that this was just the best idea, but the reality was that he had to face a group of Capel family assassins waiting on the road.
But Cardinal Luvis did not expect that he would encounter the first wave of interception so quickly, and the identity of the person who intercepted him was also not expected.
Not long after leaving Fengyan Port, their carriage was stopped on the avenue leading to the border between the Roland Empire and the Pope from Fengyan Port. The fence is across the middle of the road, and the opponent has come prepared and has been waiting for a long time.
"We can hand over all our property, and I hope you will not make it difficult."
Cardinal Luvis' face was so ugly that he was forced to get off the carriage.
A group of heavily armed cavalry slowly came out of the darkness and approached. Each cavalryman is equipped with a well-crafted musket, and a spare gun is inserted in the saddle. Each of their faces looked extraordinarily indifferent and cold under the torch. These cavalrymen are the last people you want to meet on the battlefield, because such a person is not afraid of life and death, but also tight-lipped.
Cardinal Luvis had a vague headache.
They don't look like the Pope's assassins, so who are they ordering
He still had a last hope, hoping that these people would not know his identity—he had a faint feeling that he was probably falling into a bigger vortex.
"Hello, Cardinal Luvis." Against expectations, the man who led the cavalry stepped out of the crowd and revealed his identity in one go. The adult leaned slightly on the horseback, and his tone sounded polite, "We are ordered to escort you to the holy city."
"Escort me?" Cardinal Luvis seemed to have heard a joke, "Who are you?"
When his identity was revealed, the cardinal stopped pretending and stood up straight, confronting the visitor.
The visitor straightened up, and the light from the torch allowed Cardinal Luvis to see him clearly.
In the dark night, a black-haired officer looked down on their group—even though he didn't wear any shoulder straps to reveal his identity, his demeanor showed the cruelty and determination of those fighting on the battlefield. Unlike other fully armed cavalry, he wore a black hunting suit with exquisite embroidery on the collar and cuffs.
His gaze is like a falcon, and when he looks at people, he always has a sharp sense of examining his prey.
The guards of Cardinal Luvis tensed their muscles subconsciously, and then pressed their hands on their weapons.
For a moment, the black-haired officer looked back lazily, with a cold smile on his lips:
"Robert Dalton, Her Majesty's Knight."