Chession was dressed in an ordinary uniform. Like the Duke of Ortega, he will have to explain the reason if he comes and goes with the holy relics in two.
"Archbishop, those two are not witches. Please treat these two Innocent people humanely."
Duke Ortega, who came with Chession, also joined in.
"That's right. Where are the witches in the world? It was already concluded five years ago that the witch hunt was a hoax, right? I don't want misinformation to cause chaos in the empire."
When Duke Ortega learned that his daughter had summoned a demon, he was as desperate as Chession. It was because Chession was half-threatening. As a nobleman of the four major Dukes representing the empire, he asked him to support his words. Otherwise, he will tell the noble society about his daughter's atrocities.
Duke Ortega agreed. Chession's threats were scary, and he had to say that there were no witches in the world to protect his daughter. If it is known that witches exist in the world, people will naturally start believing in the existence of demons.
The archbishop groaned and calmed them down.
"I also judge that you two are not witches. I think it would be better to give a detailed explanation in the conference hall."
The archbishop waved to the priests behind him and continued.
"Let everyone be called to the conference hall."
In this way, all the nobles gathered in front of the hall moved into the hall.
And then there was a mess. Before the archbishop could speak, the nobles were fighting each other.
"Oh, is it the work of a real witch? I can't believe it."
"The witch's work is certain! There are dozens of witnesses who said they saw the Young Lady suddenly spread her wings and ascend to the sky! Moreover, the corpses came back to life and ate the living... If it weren't for the witch's work, how would you explain these things?"
Count Sien, who was usually famous for his gentle personality, raised his voice as much as he does now.
"No, where are witches in the world? If you are claiming that there are witches simply to sell out other families, you should be more cautious. It won't just end with the fall of a family, but the empire will be thrown into chaos! The terrible witch hunt will begin again."
Chession let out a deep sigh and rested on his forehead. It seemed that it would be a difficult fight.
Huh, the archbishop sighed and slammed the table, making the surroundings quiet.
"Be quiet! Don't forget that this is the hall of the Great Temple! Stop fighting childishly, and everyone will be like an aristocrat."
Finally, the surroundings became quiet. Only then was the archbishop able to express his views.
"First of all, I decided that neither of them was a witch. I tried to make them drink holy water and cut their hand with a silver dagger, but neither of them showed any reaction."
Chession was secretly relieved. Fortunately, Mori seemed to hold up well.
Count Sien hung back on the back of his chair as if he had relaxed. Duke Ortega, who was next to him, had a similar reaction.
The archbishop continued.
"And I concluded that the earthquake that occurred in the Duke of Ortega and all the anomalies that occurred in the Count of Sien were due to black magic."
Black magic. At that, the hall buzzed for a moment.
"The image of the witch that the witnesses saw that day must have been an illusion caused by black magic. The corpses were revived as monsters, and various natural disasters must have been due to black magic."
At that moment, a nobleman asked a question. It was one of the nobles who insisted that Isolene was a witch.
"Can you really explain all these phenomena with black magic?"
"It's possible. The divergence in the statements of the two witches can be explained by the manipulation of memories caused by black magic."
The scene, which had been a small hum, began to become noisier. Black magic. Anyone who touches such a thing is unconditionally sentenced to death.
"Count Yurien, you have been slandering Count Sien for a long time, but aren't you using black magic?"
"What are you talking about! I've never been interested in such horrible things! Viscount Thierin, aren't you like that? You hate Grand Duke Ethel."
"Why am I doing that? Don't talk nonsense!"
"Be quiet! Everyone, be quiet! If you want to speak from now on, raise your hand and get permission! Otherwise, I will expel you from the Great Temple!"
It was only after the archbishop shouted again that the scene fell silent. He softened his voice and continued what he was saying.
"This situation must be the work of the remnants of the southern barbarians. It is clear that the southern barbarians, who lost their chieftain to His Highness Prince Severian, sought to wreak havoc on the empire and create divisions among the nobles to take revenge. To create a situation where you are fighting back and forth like this."
The nobles who had been fighting with force just now looked at each other and bowed their heads in disbelief.
"Their purpose may include reviving the witch hunt. To cause chaos in the empire. The two of them were only sacrificed for that purpose. The fact that the southern barbarians use black magic was announced by Prince Severian himself at the Victory Meeting, so everyone will have no objection."
There was silence. Most of the nobles agreed with the archbishop's argument and began to grasp the seriousness of the situation.
At that time, a stubborn nobleman raised his hand to ask a question.
"Tell me, Count Yurien."
"I know that all black magic leaves its mark. Before you're sure it's black magic, why not call in the Imperial Wizards to check for traces of black magic? If the two young ladies who were accused of being witches were really subjected to memory manipulation by black magic, the traces of black magic would be clearly visible."
"I was thinking about it too. I just sent a letter to the Imperial Palace, and the wizards will be coming soon."
At that moment, Chession's relaxed body gained strength again.
'What if no traces of black magic are found?'
Should he say that the trace has disappeared because too much time has passed? Or do they say that the southern barbarians honed their skills to hide the traces of black magic?
'Wait. Maybe Mori can create something similar to traces of black magic?'
First of all, the first thing to do is to tell Mori about the situation. So that Mori can cope appropriately.
Chession quietly raised his hand.
"Archduke Ethel. Tell me."
"Can I meet the two of you in person? These are my maids who may have been caught up in something wrong. I want to see and talk to them in person."
"Hmm... The interrogation is over, and the charges are almost cleared, so there should be no problem. I'll let you meet after the meeting."
The meeting lasted for a while. The nobles no longer fought. They focused on 'how to deal' with the remnants of the southern barbarians and went to the meeting seriously.
***
'Oh, I want to eat goat meat.'
Gremory was sullen from the lunch in front of her. Cream soup and sandwiches.
He wouldn't dare to ask them to serve raw meat at the temple.
'I've skipped breakfast, so if I don't eat by lunch, it'll be suspicious.'
Gremory slowly picked up the sandwich. Then she carefully examined the content.
Fresh lettuce and tomatoes, as well as cooked chicken and an unknown sauce.
"...Woowook."
Just imagining passing these things down her throat made her nauseous. If the chicken were raw, she would have tried eating it.
The junior priest who had brought the food asked anxiously.
"Why are you doing that? Are you feeling sick?"
"Are you comfortable in this situation?"
"No, it's not. Strangely, you're comfortable..."
"Don't give me this, just one apple. That's fine."
"Yes."
The junior priest left the room with soup and sandwiches. Gremory was relieved that she also had human food to eat.
"When will I be able to get out of here? Even now, Etna may be installing it somewhere. I'm worried about Chession."
Will Chession be safe? Maybe he was attacked by Marvas or Etna. She managed to solve the situation in front of her somehow, but she was frustrated and went crazy because she didn't know what was going on outside.
"If he hadn't had a relic restraint around his neck, I would have been able to connect my vision with the black beasts and scout outside."
She missed Chesion. She wanted to hear at least some news from him. If he could hear just one word saying that he was okay and that he was safe, she could pass over a cooked chicken sandwich.
While Gremory was having a headache thinking about this and that, someone came into the room.
Did the junior priest come back with an apology?
Gremory looked towards the door. And she witnessed it. Chession coming in with an apple...
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