Side: King Otfried of the Kingdom of Kurudia
Our nation has a history of 423 years.
Throughout this long history, heroes and saints have been summoned to this world many times, but in our country, such summoning has never been carried out.
This is because our first king was a hero summoned from another world. Due to the laws established by this first king, our country is prohibited from summoning heroes.
Thus, our nation does not summon from other worlds, and when the country faces danger, the royal family, descendants of the first king, takes the lead in responding, avoiding the threat of extinction many times.
The blood of a hero grants great power to their descendants. Generally, children born from such bloodlines are at least B-rank or higher.
I too am A-rank and boast a level of 300. Although I have been busy with political affairs recently and have neglected my training due to poor health, I am prepared to take to the battlefield if the situation demands it.
Fortunately, my children also have ranks of B or higher. My fourth daughter, Princess Eris, and seventh son, Prince Reinhardt, are both S-rank and have a promising future.
Other noble families with royal blood, such as the ducal houses and other high-ranking noble families, also have many individuals with considerable ranks.
However, those with bloodlines from heroes or saints, individuals summoned from other worlds, seem to despise those who have fallen into corruption.
Even within the bloodline of the first king, descendants who have fallen or become evil have low ranks across the board.
Our royal family also experienced a fall with the fifth king, and the ranks of his descendants have since declined.
The sixth king, born before the fifth king’s fall, was fine, but no children of his descendants have been born above D-rank.
Recognizing the gravity of this situation, the royal family stripped the direct line of succession and adopted a successor from a collateral branch, elevating the seventh king.
I am the twenty-ninth king, but due to several cases of royal corruption, we have welcomed successors from collateral branches in the past.
Currently, the royal family has its bloodline from the 23rd generation, who adopted from the Bayerlein family, a ducal house. The 27th generation princess married into the Bayerlein family, and the royal family maintains a good relationship with them to this day.
It was more than ten years ago that the daughter of the Bayerlein Duke, Hermina, was kidnapped. At that time, the Bayerlein Duke searched desperately for her, but she was never found.
I heard only a little over a year ago that Hermina had been found.
She had become the concubine of Marquis Lightstar. She had lost her memory during the kidnapping and had become a slave in the Marquis’s house.
Lightstar, how could he do such a thing so shamelessly?
Typically, nobles who have had their children kidnapped hide the matter. A daughter who has been tainted in such a way would lose her marriage prospects. Even if she hadn’t been tainted, society would still view it that way.
However, the Bayerlein Duke, desperate to have his daughter return alive, spread her portrait far and wide.
Yet, Lightstar turned her into a slave. The Bayerlein Duke had a justifiable reason to attack the Lightstar family.
Lightstar will likely claim ignorance, but such an excuse will not be accepted.
What a foolish thing Lightstar did. I had a difficult time controlling the Bayerlein Duke at that time.
I also had to deal with the temple several times. Lightstar, it seems, sent assassins to kill Thomas.
Though Lightstar’s self-destruction is fine, civil war is out of the question. If the ducal and marquis families, along with the temple, start a civil war, it would be a great disaster for the kingdom.
Hermina, now revealed to have a son from Lightstar, is said to be the apostle of God.
In all the long history of our nation, an apostle has never appeared.
What exactly is an apostle? When I inquired with the headquarters of the temple, I was told that there had been only one recorded apostle in the past.
The temple’s history spans over two thousand years, and they possess many records of events unknown to our nation.
According to the temple, an apostle is the one who drives away the darkness of this world and leads the people.
How is that different from a hero or a saint?
A hero is one who takes up arms and fights evil, a saint is one who helps others with compassion, and an apostle is one who guides the people.
Lightstar has fallen. I hear that his foolish son’s rank has already decreased.
Lightstar keeps this hidden, but such things cannot be concealed.
However, why is Thomas rank S? If he is from Lightstar’s bloodline, he should not be above rank D.
Could this be the work of the apostle…?
We must monitor Thomas, the apostle.
If he becomes a threat to our country, we must eliminate him, even if he is of the Bayerlein bloodline.
But if he is truly a being meant to guide the people, we should support him.
Coincidentally, Prince Reinhardt is the same age as Thomas. Perhaps I will have him investigate Thomas’s character.
“Reinhardt, approach Thomas and find out about his character.”
“Investigate his character…?”
“Yes. If Thomas makes any moves that could bring chaos to our nation, we must eliminate him.”
“…Understood. I will keep an eye on Thomas.”
“I hope I am overthinking this. But we must prepare for the worst.”
“Yes.”
The current pope is a person of good character, but there are many scoundrels among the priests. The temple is not united.
Those who wish to use Thomas will undoubtedly appear.
Even if Thomas is currently an innocent boy, it is entirely possible that he will be corrupted by the scoundrels.
I would like to believe that the Bayerlein Duke is watching over him. His dislike of priests is well-known.
“I hope the apostle truly is someone who can guide the people…”
