Watching Furni fall right back asleep after speaking, Karl could only lower his head and continue reading the letter in his hand.
How on earth did this dragon manage to ask about the Hero Summoning one second and fall back asleep the next?
Karl didn't know, nor did he want to.
He only wanted to finish processing the documents in his hand as quickly as possible.
But just then, a sister's voice came from outside the door.
“Bishop Karl.”
“His Highness the Second Prince asked me to inform you that he is waiting for you in the reception room.”
Hearing that someone else had come to see him, Karl's hand paused slightly.
Then, he closed his eyes in sheer exhaustion.
Over the past month, he had lost count of how many people had come looking for him.
Nobles, merchants, priests...
And there were also those who had somehow caught wind of the situation and wanted to use the changes in the Holy See to test the waters.
Karl felt that his old bones would eventually be shaken to pieces by these tedious fellows.
“Go on, go on,” Furni said, waving her hand with her eyes closed as she lay on the sofa.
“Ah... woo...”
She even let out a yawn.
She looked completely indifferent.
Seeing this, a vein instantly throbbed on Karl's forehead.
“You're coming with me!”
In the next second, Karl grabbed the back of Furni's bishop robes and dragged her off the sofa.
“Eh? Wait!”
“Nooo!”
Dragged along the floor, the dragon woke up instantly.
She clawed desperately at the floor, trying to stop herself from being dragged away.
“No!”
“I'll die like this!”
“Karl!”
“I am the guardian dragon!”
“A guardian dragon shouldn't be treated like this!”
Karl looked at her blankly.
“Then stand up like a guardian dragon.”
Furni: “...”
She fell silent for a moment.
Then, she went back to lying flat on the floor.
“No.”
“I am currently a guardian dragon in need of rest.”
Karl: “...”
Looking at this completely useless dragon, Karl finally reached his limit.
He let go of Furni's bishop robes.
Just as Furni thought she had escaped a disaster, Karl grabbed her arm in the next second.
And then—
—he executed a textbook shoulder throw.
“Waaah! Ugh...”
Tossed over his shoulder, Furni lay sprawled on the floor, looking like a blue salted fish that had lost all its dreams.
The sisters nearby watched this scene, their expressions turning rather complicated.
Under the peculiar gazes of the sisters, Karl grabbed Furni's bishop robes once more.
Then, with a blank face, he dragged her toward the reception room.
Dragging along the floor, Furni spoke in a weak voice.
“Karl, I will remember today.”
Karl did not look back.
“You had better remember your work first.”
Furni: “...”
How cruel.
This damned old man was simply too cruel.
Inside the reception room—
“Your Highness the Second Prince, it has been a long time.”
After pushing the door open, Karl immediately bowed slightly to the prince dressed in splendid attire.
Seeing Karl bow, the young man sitting in the reception room stood up in a bit of a panic.
“Hello, Bishop Karl.”
As he spoke, he seemed to want to bow back to Karl.
But just as he bent his waist, a hand grabbed his collar from behind.
“Your Highness Kainster, I have told you that as a prince, you must maintain your dignity at times like this.”
A calm yet stern voice rang out from behind him.
The hand firmly held Kainster back, preventing him from actually bowing to Karl.
Karl looked up.
Standing behind Kainster was a red-haired woman.
Her posture was perfectly upright, and her gaze was sharp.
Her attire was simple yet neat.
When Furni saw that familiar red figure, her body instantly froze.
Then, she turned around in a very natural manner, preparing to slip away.
But in the next second, the red-haired woman's voice rang out.
“Furni! Where do you think you are going now?”
“I really need to discipline you properly!”
Hearing someone call her name, Furni immediately stood up straight.
The entire dragon stiffened like a wooden plank.
“I-I wasn't planning on going anywhere!”
“Lady Zona!”
She answered exceptionally quickly, her voice even sounding much clearer than usual.
The red-haired woman named Zona looked at Furni, her brow instantly furrowing.
“Look at you right now. Your clothes are a mess, and your dark circles are so heavy.”
“Just what kind of bishop have you been playing at?”
“And your hair.”
“Did you fail to brush it properly again?!”
Furni stood in place like a child being scolded by a teacher.
“I-I did brush it.”
Zona looked at her messy blue hair.
“You call this brushed?”
Furni: “...”
“The wind blew it messy.”
“Where is there wind inside the Holy See's office?”
Furni fell silent.
Watching Furni get scolded by Zona to the point where she didn't dare utter a single word, Karl's mood actually improved quite a bit.
So this dragon actually had someone she feared.
Today was truly a day worth recording.
As Karl thought this, he looked toward the Second Prince.
Kainster, the second son of the old Emperor.
But compared to this Second Prince, the old Emperor clearly favored the First Prince at the border.
Thus, the First Prince possessed massive military power, while this Second Prince had received nothing but an aide and some funds.
The old Emperor had told him to manage businesses on his own.
To put it nicely, it was to cultivate his ability to handle domestic affairs and the economy.
To put it bluntly, he was simply never placed at the core of the royal succession.
Karl sat down in one of the seats in the reception room.
He glanced at Furni, who was currently being ordered by Zona to pour tea.
Holding the teapot, Furni looked as though she might wither away at any second.
Seeing this, Karl suddenly felt that coming here today had made his mood exceptionally pleasant.
“Heh heh.”
“Your Highness the Second Prince, is there something you wished to discuss with me?”
Kainster sat opposite him.
Hearing Karl speak, he seemed to grow even more nervous.
He picked up the tea in front of him and took a sudden, large gulp.
“Cough!”
Because he drank too quickly, he nearly choked.
Zona sighed softly behind him.
“Your Highness, please remain calm.”
Kainster nodded.
Then, he took several deep breaths.
After a moment, as if he had made up his mind, he looked at Karl.
“Bishop Karl.”
“I saw you helping those who couldn't afford food in the slums.”
As he spoke, his body was still trembling slightly.
Yet his eyes looked directly at Karl.
Karl picked up his teacup and took a calm sip.
“Oh? And so?”
“Is there something Your Highness wishes to convey?”
His tone sounded very calm.
Yet the look in his eyes as he regarded Kainster carried a clear sense of scrutiny.
Not all nobles looked favorably upon the matters in the slums.
In fact, quite a few believed that the Holy See's actions were a waste of resources.
They preferred that the Holy See allocate food, medicine, and personnel to maintain the order of faith in the noble district, rather than care for those worthless slums-dwellers.
If this Second Prince had also come to question him regarding this matter...
...then Karl would not mind letting him know the Holy See's current stance in a more direct manner, especially now that the Saintess was absent.
“No, no, that is not it.”
Sensing the slight hostility creeping into Karl's tone, Kainster quickly waved his hands.
“You misunderstand.”
“I did not mean that.”
He spoke in a rush, nearly knocking over the teacup in front of him.
Zona reached out to steady the cup.
Kainster's face flushed red instantly.
Yet he still continued:
“I... I think your actions are wonderful.”
“So, I came this time to see if I could offer some help.”
As he spoke, Kainster immediately retrieved gold coins from his spatial gem.
The gold coins piled up on the table, making a crisp clinking sound.
Watching the growing pile of gold coins before him, the look in Karl's eyes gradually shifted.
“What is the meaning of this?”
“I do not quite understand.”
He had originally assumed that his actions of helping the commoners had drawn this prince's displeasure.
But now, it seemed that was not the case at all.
Meeting Karl's gaze, Kainster instantly grew even more nervous.
“I do not mean anything else.”
“It is just that leaving this money with me serves no purpose other than letting it sit.”
“If it can be used to buy food, or medicine, or to make sure those children do not go hungry...”
His voice softened slightly here.
“...then that would be much better.”
Karl did not speak immediately.
He merely looked at Kainster.
The Second Prince's hands were still trembling slightly.
He was clearly unaccustomed to such situations.
Yet when he spoke those words just now, his eyes did not waver.
At least at that moment, he did not seem to be acting.
Karl set down his teacup.
“Your Highness the Second Prince.”
His voice was slightly lower than before.
“Are you...”
“...aiming to contend for the throne?”
Karl suddenly looked at Kainster opposite him with utmost seriousness.
Rate on N.U.
