Joan Borgia in the mirror still retains her original noble posture and heroic temperament as a knight, but her facial features appear more delicate and dignified, no longer angular; The skin is fair, the body shape has also changed, the limbs and body have become slender, and some prominent body features are full of feminine charm.

If Richard hadn't seen it with his own eyes, I'm afraid it would have been difficult to connect the two men.

Qiong'an, who had returned to her original appearance, swept her eyes over the ice mirror and responded coldly.

"What does that mean?"

"I just...... It's just a bit of a surprise. ”

The black-robed wizard smiled.

"The youngest cardinal in history, considered the most popular candidate for the next saint and even the pontifia, and the key is that Joan Borgia, who is also admired by the young ladies of the Holy League, is actually a woman...... If this group of people, and the men who are envious and jealous of you, know the truth, I don't know what kind of mood they will have? ”

The female knight was stunned for a moment, as if she had not expected such an answer, and she sighed softly.

"Aren't you kidding when you say that's the key?"

After getting the answer of shaking her head in denial, her expression looked even more incredible.

“…… Mr. Rasputin, are you really a wizard? Why do you care about such boring things? The people who spread gossip are just a bunch of ignorant and shallow guys. ”

"The 'ignorant people' in your mouth occupy the vast majority of this world."

"The wisdom of a wizard is worth the mind of 10,000 fools and the body of a knight, and the value of 10,000 villagers can be exerted...... I don't think we need to waste our tongues on this, Mr. Raspuchin, and ask for the answer we want. ”

Richard had no intention of arguing with her about this conceptual divergence. And in the Mayan world, perhaps what Joan said was correct. Otherwise, in the future of mankind, the class solidification will not be as serious as the real name lady describes......

On the other hand, he does have the answer that must be known.

Borgia ...... Your Excellency, how many people know that you are a woman in this world? ”

"My father, my sister, and the people who used to cast spells on me to hide my identity."

“…… Wait, isn't it clear to the Pope himself? ”

Richard frowned.

He didn't think that the spell in her body—a "miracle" level of protection, according to Joan herself, could hide the gaze of a saint.

Even if the Pope can't find out Joan's gender in the first place, he should know that "he" is covered by some kind of spell; And until the spell has been unbroken and the identity has not been confirmed, will the Pope allow an unidentified figure to join the College of Cardinals?

"My father is the Pope."

Joan's tone was calm and unwavering.

However, to Richard's ears, there was clearly another fierce emotion hidden under that cold tone, like a volcano buried under an iceberg.

Richard was really surprised this time.

- This girl is still the second generation! And as far as the power of the Holy See in Middle-earth is concerned, it is still the top second generation in the whole world!

But judging from the other party's slightly gloomy expression, it is clear that her relationship with her father is not friendly.

This is not surprising, once in a high position, the originally simple parent-child relationship, even if the parties are unwilling, will still become complicated unconsciously; If the father is cold and the child is rebellious, it is not impossible to develop into a situation of "father and son filial piety......

But that doesn't fully explain Richard's doubts.

There are also the other two saints in the Holy See, who are all living in seclusion in different countries and regions, and it is normal for Qiong'an not to see each other; Only the Pope, as a bishop, must come into contact with him.

So, the real key is St. Leo IV's attitude towards Joan Borgia.

Why did he hide the identity of his children?

It is true that the Holy See forbade the marriage of clergy, but in this era of peace, the Holy See, which has a glorious history of thousands of years and a colossal power, is no longer the group of ascetics who sincerely seek the Tao and spread truth and goodness during the War of God.

The monks who pursued a simple and hard life still existed, but the priests kept mistresses outside; or hooking up with the ladies and ladies of aristocratic families, and the extravagant, indulgent and indulgent things have long been a common practice.

And this is often more extreme in the Pope himself, as a religious leader: the successive papacies, either ascetics who have no children and no daughters all their lives, or their lovers have raised a lot of gossip about themselves and are known to everyone in the Holy See.

Of course, no matter what, the ancestral rules still have to be followed, so the Pope himself will not have a wife and concubine.

However, it is precisely because of the power of the world and the extravagance of the high society of the Holy League that the Pope will not have any scruples in raising his children......

"The status of an illegitimate son or illegitimate daughter of a high-ranking member of the Holy See should not be taboo, right? Although I don't know much about your history, there are many people who have similar identities and can hold high positions in this land. ”

The gaze under the silver-white mask still did not leave the beautiful face of the female knight.

"Indeed." Joan bowed slightly, "It's better to say, since I am the child of Leo IV, I was originally the object of everyone's pursuit." Unless ......"

Her voice was low.

"—unless the Pope himself deliberately ignores this."

"Why did he do that?"

"My hair."

She pointed to her hair color.

"Mr. Rasputin just said that he thinks my hair is beautiful, this is the first time I have heard such words, I am very happy, thank you for the compliment......"

The corners of Qiong'an's mouth curled slightly, and quickly calmed down, leaving only a fleeting smile.

"But, no matter what anyone else thought of, at least my father never thought of me—just because I didn't inherit the physical characteristics of the 'second family,' he abandoned me as a young man, threw me into the house of a small country nobleman, and then set a ban on me growing up to go to the kingdom or the center of power of the Holy See."

"That's it?"

"Yes, that's it." Blonde with blue eyes', it symbolizes the pure bloodline of the second largest family in Esperia. My sister was lucky enough to inherit her father's physical features, while I didn't ......"

"That's why I had to change my gender and even my appearance."

"If I had always been a woman, I would not have been able to appear in his field of vision for the rest of my life if I had not inherited the blood of Borgia; But if it was a son, even if he knew the truth, my father would have to pinch his nose and admit it. Because, he really needs a male descendant who can handle the family affairs for himself. ”