The Emperor's Death (5)

It would still take two or three days to leave the Empire from the Imperial Capital and reach Carlos Province on the southern border.

Pope Solarian led his entourage, a force of twenty thousand Dawn Believers. After a day of travel, they reached Thousand Lakes Province, the site of a brutal battlefield between the two sides.

Travel became less convenient here. The believers had to build paths across the lakes so that the Pope could walk as though on level ground.

"I never thought Emperor Florian would die under Divine Punishment."

Behind the Pope's carriage, Cardinal Archbishop Shar sneered, then looked at Pope Solarian ahead of him with some confusion.

The Pope's carriage—or rather, all the carriages, including those of the bishops—did not have the usual enclosed structure. As servants of the gods, bearers of faith, and clergy, they needed to remain close to the people.

How could they remain close to the people? Naturally, even while seated in luxurious carriages screened by translucent gauze curtains, they would still receive the devout worship of believers from every direction. The believers could see their bishops, archbishops, cardinal archbishops, and even the Pope, as though these figures were right beside them, kind and approachable.

Therefore, the clergy in this procession were not sealed away.

Many people revered Pope Solarian, but like the Empire's nobles, they believed this was certainly no accident.

A god would not descend into the mortal world so casually, much less pay such a tremendous price merely to kill the Emperor.

There had to be something wrong with this.

The nobles suspected the Church of Dawn. As for the Church's clergy, they even suspected themselves.

"Did we do this?"

Again and again, they tried to recall why they had received no news.

But no matter what, nothing within the