Ivana walked behind Caesar, half a body away from the young emperor. They were followed by Bill Newton and Albert Maher, with five knights of the Imperial Guard walking on their perimeter. They were silent, stepping on the cold stones, through the long corridors. On the walls of the corridor, oil lamps are inserted at intervals of more than ten meters, and the illumination range of the oil lamps is very limited, making the corridor look dark and terrifying.

Ivana touched Caesar's shoulder, and the young emperor shivered slightly. My child, what are you afraid of? We are not shivering, poor orphans and widows. She patted Caesar's back lightly, and the weak emperor subconsciously straightened his back.

The promenade bypasses a few bends, and the quiet garden is presented to everyone, with a few deciduous needles, a few low shrubs, and a few stone benches, which make this place look exceptionally cold, and it is naturally incomparable with the royal garden, but fortunately, through the architectural layout, the noise outside is isolated. Ivana noticed that there were several Templars in the Garden of Tranquility, sitting or standing, and when they saw the Emperor and his party, the Church Knights looked at them coldly and did not salute.

With her head held high, she puffed out her chest and looked coldly at the Templars. She knew that it wouldn't be long before the Templars would die for her. She stepped haughtily into the chapel and sneered contemptuously at the nearest Templar.

The chapel has three floors, the floor and walls are made of a staggering number of stones, and on each floor there are prayer seats, which are fanned out like terraces, facing the center of the chapel. To the north of the chapel, in the direction of the seats, marble statues of the Seven Gods stand tall.

The archbishop, dressed in brown robes, stood beneath the statue of Thor, and as one of the few people in the country who did not have to make a great salute to the emperor and the queen mother, the archbishop bowed slightly to Caesar and Ivana as a sign of etiquette.

"Archbishop, you seem to be fat, and you seem to be in good spirits lately. Ivana said with a pleasantry. She scrutinized the archbishop's face, its wrinkled old face flushed.

"Thanks to the blessing of the seven gods, I think it must be the goddess of youth who favors me, and I feel a lot stiffer lately. The archbishop replied with a smile.

The daily surge in the number of believers and the fanatical church armament refreshed the old man's spirits. Ivana looked up and swept over the statues, and she recognized the statue of the goddess of youth, with mountains of limestone carved underneath her statue, and the goddess stretched out her arms and danced.

"Lord Bill has brought a message that the Queen Mother and His Majesty the Emperor have come together to discuss important matters with me?" the archbishop's eyes were full of doubt.

She carefully considered her words, and said word by word: "Tonight is really not peaceful, the archbishop must not be able to sleep, right?"

"I understand, the Queen Mother and His Majesty the Emperor must have come here to pray for the protection of the seven gods. The archbishop nodded, turned around, and looked at the statue of the seven gods, "May you pray with me: may the god of light give us courage, may the goddess of wisdom purify our souls, may the goddess of love bless our beloved, may the god of war crush our enemies, may the goddess of youth grant us well-being, may the goddess of harvest protect our children, may the god of thunder bless us in invincibility!"

Admiral Mach squirmed his lips, his face blushing, and he took a step forward, his chain mail clattering against the hard marble floor. Ivana stopped him with her eyes. She listened patiently to the archbishop's long prayer and said, "Did the archbishop ever think that we could do more than pray?"

The archbishop turned around, put on a puzzled look, and sighed: "Please tell Her Majesty the Queen Mother clearly, I really can't think of what the cathedral can do other than provide meager help to those poor people and pray for the blessing of the seven gods?"

"The enemies in the outer city are like wolves and tigers, and there are only 2,000 people in the garrison of the capital. Ivana glanced at General Mach, "They need more aid, more manpower." ”

The archbishop nodded, and he asked, "When will our reinforcements arrive?" Thunder Fort is the imperial capital, and I believe that the lords from all over the world must be rushing to the rescue. Let's pray to the seven gods......"

"your prayers! The Knights Templar and Templar should fight like men. As I came, I saw them wandering around the Garden of Tranquility like little women!" exclaimed Admiral Mach, unable to bear the archbishop's confusion any longer.

The archbishop looked at General Mach, with a calm expression on the surface, but a hint of ridicule in his eyes. He smiled and said, "My lord, they are armed with the Church of the Holy Spirit, not mercenaries or imperial soldiers. The armed forces of the Church fought only for the faith. ”

Ivana heard the subtext of the archbishop, and she gritted her teeth and emphasized: "I clearly remember that it was I who agreed on behalf of the royal family that the church was rearmed, and the church was obliged to repay the royal family. ”

"Her Majesty the Queen Mother has come to me and asked the Church to put on trial Sebastian and others, who have committed the most heinous crimes, on the condition that the Church can be re-armed. The archbishop nodded, and his tone was emphasized, "The Goddess of Wisdom teaches us that we must uphold justice and fairness, and I have done it, and I have a clear conscience, so please understand, we owe each other nothing." ”

As a result, the Church Judgment gathered more believers for you, raised more church arms, and I killed my beloved.

"Think about it, Archbishop, if the royal family agrees that you will rearm the Church, and in turn disarm them. Bill Newton chimed in, patting his purple silk robes, "Emperor Nicklaus can do it, and so can Emperor Caesar." ”

"Lord Bill, are you planning to speak in place of the royal family?" the archbishop glanced coldly at the intelligence director, "I'm confused, is it you sitting on the Thunder Throne?"

"You!" Bill choked and rolled his eyes.

He knew in his heart that this was another opportunity to blackmail the royal family. The corners of Ivana's mouth twitched, she narrowed her eyes, and said, "I also remember very well that another reason you persuaded me to rearm the Church was when you said, 'Our Knights Templar and Templar Order are enough to resist an army of 10,000 men, until reinforcements from other provinces come soon. ’”

"It turns out that I was right, the rebels are really coming. The archbishop smirked, waved his right hand, and said, "However, for the armed forces of the Church to be involved in the resistance to the rebels, I must have enough reason to convince them." I'm also very embarrassed. ”

"What are you embarrassed about?" asked Admiral Maher, angrily, "the church forces listen to your orders. ”

"They fought for their faith. The archbishop looked at Caesar, "I am not anyone's vassal, and I am not their lord. If I say, pick up the sword and fight for His Majesty the Emperor, they will only laugh off their big teeth and not even touch the sword. Unless ......"

He was finally willing to say the conditions. "Unless what?" General Mach asked eagerly, "just say it bluntly, if you want to send out the Church Army, what conditions do you want? Gold, Reichsmark, fiefdom, what do you want?"

"The vulgar things you are looking for are exactly what I regard as dung. The archbishop glared at Admiral Mach, "Please be respectful, I am the spokesman of the Seven Gods, don't talk to me in that tone of negotiation with bandits and robbers." ”

"Please make it clear, Archbishop. Bill pointed out the window, "The enemy can't wait to come in." ”

"Unless His Majesty the Emperor takes an oath to become an authorized person of the Seven Gods. When the archbishop said this, there was a victor in his eyes, "In other words, after the escape of Thunder Castle, the canonization ceremony will be held, and I will canonize Emperor Caesar." ”

"What!" Ivana was shocked and almost fainted. This means that the supremacy of the Church over the royal family means that sooner or later, the Emperor will become the puppet of the archbishop.

"Arrest him...... Punished for treason!" Ivana shuddered and stretched out her hand, and the knight of the royal guard drew his short sword and surrounded the archbishopric.

Suddenly, in the fan-shaped seats of the chapel, there was a crowd of black oppressors, all of them in coarse cloth and short clothes, holding daggers, short swords, and iron rods, occupying the two floors of the chapel, and more than a dozen more doors poured in.

He had a plan. Ivana was blinded, and those who outnumbered the Church, the Templars, and the Templars had no chance of winning the battle.

"You are taking advantage of the fire to rob and take advantage of the danger of others. Bill's tone softened much as he said that, "The Seven Gods told you you could do this?"

"I'm thinking about His Majesty the Emperor. The archbishop did not panic in the face of the short sword, his eyes stayed on Emperor Caesar, and asked, "Your Majesty, can you tell me what Emperor Caesar is wearing on his head?"

"The crown, the symbol of the supreme ruler of the empire. Ivana lifted her chin and replied haughtily, deliberately pronouncing "the supreme ruler of the empire" louder.

"No, it's the fate of the Empire, it's the fate of millions of people up and down the Empire. The archbishop shook his head, "Their lives are in the hands of one man." On the top of the head of His Majesty the Emperor Caesar, carries the weight of life. ”

Ivana pondered the archbishop's words, and it was not unreasonable.

"They knelt before His Majesty the Emperor and deserved His Majesty's protection. The archbishop asked, "May I ask what His Majesty the Emperor is doing? He is not on the front line, but here he is forcing an old man to use an army that does not belong to him to suppress the rebellion that has arisen because of him." What will the world say?"

"You are sophistry!" Ivana lost her dignity and became exhausted, and General Mach made the same request: to invite His Majesty the Emperor to come and supervise the battle. And yet I rejected him, of course I should, Caesar, my darling is only 12 years old.

Bill smiled, and he pointed his finger and said: "The church is admired by the people, and the royal family is loved by the people, for the sake of the people, shouldn't the church and the royal family unite to defend against the enemy? ”

"Very well, Lord Bill, I'm about to give you a history lesson on this. The archbishop sighed, "The first emperor finally unified the empire after passing through the misty forest with the help of the god of thunder, and since then, he has converted to the seven gods, and even the crown has the characteristics of the god of thunder incarnated as a deer. From the very beginning, the royal family and the church were close, and even the great knight Buck Browning did not forget to build a church after the capture of Yuhua City to spread the belief in the Seven Gods. ”

"I know that. Bill shrugged.

Later, when the tyrant Emperor Judit Rudolph caused chaos in the empire, Emperor Peter pleaded with the Church to form an armed force to help the royal family suppress the rebellion, and thousands of believers died for the royal family. The archbishop sighed deeply and frowned, "However, Emperor Nicklaus in turn suppressed the Church, forcing it to disarm and surrender. ”

By the end of the reign of Emperor Peter, the ecclesiastical armament had become beyond the control of the royal family. Ivana felt a chill run down her spine. The old man reminded me that I was repeating the mistakes of Emperor Peter. At this time, there were several loud noises outside the window, and Ivana hurriedly hugged Caesar, and the young emperor's eyes were wide with tears and his eyes were full of fear. Caesar just cried. No, no, Emperor Peter must have been very helpless, so he turned to the church for help, just like me and Caesar now.

"What do you want to illustrate?" General Mach turned his wrist, his dagger whirring, "The struggle between the church and the royal family has been going on for a long time?"

"My lord, your vision is too short-sighted, I can simply play the harp to the cow. The corners of the archbishop's mouth rose and he mocked General Mach, his eyes did not leave Ivana and Caesar, "In the long history of empires, empires are only strong when the church and the royal family are close." Needless to say, the first emperor, Emperor Peter and the Church together ushered in another prosperous era. ”

"Rhetoric!" said Admiral Mach to Caesar, "don't listen to him, Your Majesty, he is a sanctimonious hypocrite!"

"Your short sword pierces me, and I will never blink. The archbishop sneered, "The royal family killed the spokesman of the Seven Gods because the church refused to participate in the struggle for power. Soon the news will spread throughout the country, and you think the angry Christians and Templars will let you go?"

"Stop, you stupid ass!" Ivana stopped Admiral Mach.

"Please answer me, Your Majesty the Queen Mother and Your Majesty the Emperor, are you willing to accept my suggestion?" asked the archbishop, "it doesn't matter if you don't agree, put away your sword, and I'll treat you as if you never came." After all, the rebels are aiming for the Throne of Thunder, and when Castle Thunder is bleeding, the populace will ask why they can't be protected by the Emperor. Think about it, perhaps, it is more appropriate for His Majesty the Emperor to go to the front at this moment? After all, the weight of the crown is not light. ”

Silence is like poison, tormenting Ivana's heart all the time. She couldn't leave, she knew that leaving meant failure, it meant death. She knew that if she agreed, Caesar would be subject to the archbishop, but if she didn't, it would be death as well. What should I do?—she bit her lip tightly, her back soaked with cold sweat from nervousness.

Suddenly, she felt movement in her right arm, and Caesar, who was holding her, stepped forward.

(End of chapter)