The Emperor Has Returned - Chapter 73

Chapter 73 Beloved has appeared(3)

Helmut’s eyes widened. Eve quickly shut her lips, the moment she met Helmut’s eyes.
The muscles near Helmut’s lips strained.
She was dangerous. Just as he’d expected.
Her words just now confirmed that these occurrences will continue to happen.
If he chose to let things be, she may involuntarily create an opposing faction. As Eve already showed an extraordinary side from the beginning, things would only get worse for him.
Including what happened with the White crow knights, Helmut considered the fact that recently, more and more of his choices were leading the church to an unfavourable position.
‘No, let’s think things over again…..’
Helmut considered whether he was wrongfully blaming every recent misfortune on the saintress.
It wasn’t strange to see his power show signs of crack as it had been 40 years since he’d held his position.
There were many instances in the past where his authority was questioned.
Maybe this incident regarding the saintress was………an opportunity.
‘If I can actually bring the saintress on my side that is.’
The Pope had a monopoly over the emperor’s grace, and he distributed as he saw fit.
However, there was a limit to how much one single person could take grace.
Due to this, Helmut had to keep the church in his palm. If he couldn’t get people on his side, it was proof that his influence was failing him.
In particular, this saintress was a figurehead that he needed as not only did she signify authority, but she also helped bring in the public’s approval and respect.
Though there had been some incidents lately, if he kept the saintress in check by keeping her in the dark, he would be able to handle further problems down the line.
Helmut who was looking down at Eve, held his hand near her head.
“Eek……”
Eve nervously flinched. Helmut let out a warning in a low voice.
“Stay still.”
The Pope governed all grace, miracles and authority in the empire.
He even had the power to bring back a dead person and kill thousands in an instant.
Taking control over a person was but a simple task for him. But having even with all that power, Helmut still felt powerless in front of Vares Valte, which frustrated him.
“Remove the walls around your mind…….and accept me.”
Helmut placed his hand on Eve’s head.
A shivering sensation was felt from the bottom of his palm.
He needed to make her absolutely submissive that she wouldn’t be able to escape from his grasp ever again. That she’d never even think to betray him.
Helmut activated a miracle that could control the mind of another.
“For what I’m now about to say, is the emperor’s will.”
Mana flowing out from Helmut’s hand, smeared into Eve’s head without any resistance.
It was a dangerous miracle that he’d just performed as it altered memories and worst case scenario, it erased all memories. But as this wasn’t the first time Helmut performed this, he was quite sure that he would succeed.
“………Your highness?”
Surprisingly, there was no reaction from Eve.
Helmut’s mouth gaped open as he stared down at Eve. He could feel no control over Eve’s mind.
The mana he sent into Eve’s mind had flowed out like pouring water into a cup full of holes.
“What….how……..”
Flabbergasted, Helmut again performed his miracle without hesitation but found that it didn’t work.
Still sitting down with a scared expression on her face, Helmut felt as if Eve was secretly mocking him by looking dumbfounded.
‘How could this be!’
“Your highness, is something wrong…?”
“Shut your mouth!”
Uncontrollably, Helmut struck out at Eve’s cheek. Eve fell to the ground with a quiet whimper.
Upon doing so, Helmut felt anger and fear both rising inside him.
He just found himself another problem after being reminded recently that he was surrounded by useless people not doing their job properly. The source of great power, the emperor’s grace was not working against Eve.
“Yo…ur, your highne…… Kyaaaakk!”
“You bitch. I don’t need another useless idiot.”
Helmut held up Eve by her hair and swung his fist. Eve who instinctively covered her face was left with bruises on her arm and shoulder.
Helmut couldn’t think of anything else but to kill Eve. Her existence was dangerous enough to topple what he’d founded. What he’d built up for decades.
She was an opponent that spoke the emperor’s word and was immune to the emperor’s grace.
He didn’t have time to think about the consequences of killing her.
“St, stop……!”
“This seat belongs to me! You think I’d lose it to someone like you!”
Helmut grabbed Eve’s slender neck and started to tighten.
Grimacing, Eve tried to push Helmut away but he stood firm.
While it seemed that ‘grace’ didn’t work on her, she could perfectly feel physical pain.
Eve squirmed desperately to free herself, and upon falling onto the ground she grabbed the nearest thing and swung at Helmut.
Kkang! With a clanging sound Helmut was sent flying back.
Helmut looked at Eve with a dumbfounded expression. In Eve’s hand was the ashtray that he’d used to fill the room in aroma.
With a mix of pain and fear on her face, Eve stumbled back then ran out the door.
“Huh.”
Helmut sighed as he blankly stared at Eve’s backside as she ran off.
Feeling a hot substance on his face, a smear of blood and ash came off upon wiping his face with his hand. It was the first time he’d been hit by someone after becoming the Pope.
After a while, Helmut came to comprehend what he’d tried to do. He had tried to kill a popular saintress that was becoming their favourite by the day.
Though he held control over the church, it would have been a blemish that may have followed him till his death.
‘I’m on the brink here.’
The several incidents and his restless mind was inching him closer to the edge of the cliff.
Helmut had a hunch that it would be all over if he didn’t get his act together from now on.
He loudly called for the priest that was standing by outside the door.
“……….Round up the black priests.”
The priest did not ask anything even after seeing the state of the room, and the saintress escaping with wounds everywhere.
Helmut sat on his sofa and decided to think one step at a time.
First he’d kill the brat that was creating a scene in the south. He would also kill the disloyal white crow knights and what’s left of the Hugin knights.
Then he would kill the saintress that dared to defy his wishes.
While enjoyably going through his plan, Helmut once again could smell the scent of blood coming from his face. He reached out for the ashtray.
Not long after, the room was filled with the scent of aroma.
*****
Juan slowly opened his eyes.
White steam was loosely glimmering around him. He felt good soaking his body in warm water.
As he breathed out, a moaning sound from a slender woman came out his mouth. Juan lifted his hand.
Water droplets flowed down a smooth white hand that was void of any wounds.
‘Seems like she was in the middle of bathing.’
He’d once again spiritually transferred onto Eve’s mind. Although this was the fourth time trying to get his own body, he still couldn’t get past the saintress.
The more he transferred, he noticed that it was getting easier to make natural movements. Like he’d always done so, Juan was just about to cut the connection before his eyes drifted to the mirror that was next to the tub.
Though a bit thin, she had clearly been selected to gain the public’s support. The saintress had a beautiful face and a figure rarely seen in previous saintresses. But having said all this, her current look from head to toe was far from ideal.
‘Her wounds……’
On her smooth skin were wounds here and there. As if she had been sobbing, her eyes were coloured deep red.
There weren’t any major wounds but there were several bruises on the side of her body and shoulder.
The worst looking one was located on her neck.
‘Looks like she was strangled. But, not an assasination attempt…..’
Traces of strangling and beating was evident. Juan wondered what could have led to the saintress being beaten up like this.
Juan guessed that it had been because of what he relayed from the saintress’s mouth.
‘Pope.’
Juan made an eerie smile upon recalling that greedy bastard’s face.
In all honesty, Juan didn’t really care for the saintess. More or less, she was nothing but another being that was living off his name.
But he wouldn’t allow her to be beaten up just for relaying his words.
‘I’ll need to take measures here.’
Juan slowly turned his body. On his first transfer, Eve’s body didn’t respond well to his commands.
Back then, all he could move was her feet and talk. Now he could do much more..
He wiped himself down with a towel and put on some clothes. Upon looking into a mirror, Juan noticed that the clothing wasn’t put on properly but Juan didn’t care.
He was going to use the opportunity to see the extent he could freely move the connected being.
After walking out of the bathroom, Juan noticed a silhouette sitting down on a chair in the middle of the dark room.
A male that was wearing priest clothing in black. On first glance, Juan thought to himself that the man looked more like a crook than a priest.
He wasn’t here to assassinate. He guessed that he was here to threaten Eve.
“What.”
“Saintress. I had been waiti…….. Um, I’ll give you time to tidy up your clothing.”
The black priest who had been relaxedly sitting by, turned his head upon seeing the saintress.
Because the saintress’s attire was vastly different from normal clothing, Juan didn’t know how to properly wear it.
Rather than wearing, Juan had more like tossed on some overalls in consideration for Eve.
“If you have something to say, then speak. Don’t waste my time.”
It took a burden on Juan’s body to continue the connection with Eve.
Although he could fully recover with a day’s rest, it wasn’t particularly an experience Juan wanted to go through.
The black priest cleared his throat as he stood up from the chair.
“Saintress, your behaviour and way of speaking is unacceptable. I had heard that you’re gentle and honest.”
“If you want to talk about etiquette, I’m not sure it’s proper for a man to enter a lady’s room without permission.”
“……You’re talking as if I’m a bastard. Saintress, I’m only here to deliver the Pope’s message. He’d appreciate it if you would think of today’s incident as just a light warning.”
“Warning?”
The black priest walked up to Juan. Standing an arms reach away, the black priest who was two heads taller than the saintress, gave off an intimidating sensation.
Currently, it was deep into the night. Furthermore, the woman had just come out of the bath, defenceless. It would only be natural if the saintress found herself in fear.
But unexpectedly, the black priest couldn’t find any emotion coming from the saintress.
‘………What?’
He had conducted countless interrogations on traitors and heretics. Even had experience torturing and executing a few.
Therefore, with this experience, the black priest was able to easily terrorise people and sense their fear.
But, he could not feel an ounce of fear from this saintress. Nothing but annoyance, disgust and irritation.
Emotions that he’d never expected to find in such a situation.
“So what’s the warning about? I’m busy.”
“……….I wasn’t planning to do anything directly for today..…..but you leave me with no choice.”
Planting fear into people without physically hurting them was but a simple task. Or, maybe he needed to humiliate her.
The black priest caught sight of the curves on her slim white figure beneath her thin robe. Maybe he could give her a bit of everything tonight. The black priest reached towards the saintress’s slender neck.
At that precise moment, the saintress’s hand entangled with the black priest’s hand.
The black priest who didn’t notice her hand till the last moment, tilted his head.
Before he even had time to feel the smooth sensation of her hand, he screamed out upon feeling a shattering pain on his fingers.
“Keeuuu ahhh!”
The black priest went to his knees while screaming, but his fingers couldn’t escape the entanglement with the saintress’s hand.
His fingers had been bent right back and his white bone was visible. Everytime the saintress moved his fingers, his broken bones made a cracking sound.
“Consider visiting midday next time. Oh and you’ll need my permission to enter of course.”
“Keuk, yes, of course! Pl, please……!”
Juan let go of the black priest’s fingers. Free from the torture, the black priest quickly bolted towards the door, wanting to leave as soon as possible.
But Juan called out to him.
“Hey.”
“Eeek, ye….yes?”
“You can conduct healing magic right? Why don’t you heal me before you leave.”
Juan showed him his broken hand. As Juan had used a female’s slender hand to shatter the fingers of a grown man, it was only natural that it wasn’t left intact.
But even so, there wasn’t an ounce of pain that was evident on the saintress’s face.
‘Who, are you…..’
The black priest needed to reevaluate his perception of the saintress. While enduring the aching pain in his hand, the black priest healed the saintress’s fingers back into shape.