Chapter 686

The emperor walks through the hallway of the central palace after finishing all important tasks, leaving Charlotte to handle the remaining affairs. Scarlet walks alongside him as usual. The emperor has five wives, all of whom are empresses with equal status. Each empress has her own influence, with Charlotte having the most significant impact on national affairs. However, the other empresses also hold considerable power, such as Ailee, who controls the demon forces, and Louise, who rules over the powerful Kernstatt. The empire is too densely populated to attempt restoration and expansion, so the focus is on reducing the size of the capital and relocating people. Olivia Lanchet, who transformed the Odae Church into a new organization and became the owner of the empire, holds immense power. Harriet de Saint-Fután, the most powerful magician in history, is also present. The emperor heads to the Spring Palace for an evening reception where everyone will gather. The palace, where Charlotte lived as a princess, is still blooming with flowers. However, Charlotte has moved to the Autumn Palace, where the institutions dealing with national affairs are concentrated. In the courtyard of the Spring Palace, there were two people: Olivia, with her long platinum hair tied up, and Adriana, her escort knight, standing by her side. Olivia greeted the emperor warmly, and even answered his questions respectfully. Charlotte commented on how Olivia had changed since her marriage, becoming much milder and kinder. However, when Harriet arrived, Olivia's expression hardened, and she exchanged some heated words with her. Harriet eventually went inside the palace, claiming to be tired, but it was clear that Olivia was being considerate of her limited time. Despite her changed demeanor, Olivia still had a lot of work to do for the country's reconstruction, and her responsibilities were even greater than the emperor's in some ways. Moreover, she had to undertake a mission, the resistance of which was clearly intense, which meant that she had to endure tremendous risks and still lead a dangerous and busy life. "How are things these days?" asked the emperor, to which Olivia sighed and replied, "It's always the same. We still have a long way to go." As a religion, the territory of the Holy Empire was not limited to the empire's territory alone. All the temples, monasteries, and shrines of the world's holy denominations should be considered as territory. The areas and people to be governed are scattered throughout the continent. The concept of a god is not real, and it takes a very long time to convince people of that one word, and most people do not accept it. It is as difficult to reverse common sense. "But these days, there are demon priests, so it's a little easier than before," Olivia said. Demons are the gods of demons. If the gods really reject demons, there should be no one among the demons who can use the divine power of the gods. However, these days, there are demon priests, and there is a tendency for people to think differently when they see demons who can use the divine power of the gods. "From the beginning, it may not be right to just believe that I have Tiamat, but the absolute number may be important." "That's right. Numbers are really important," the emperor agreed. Olivia finished talking to some extent, and the emperor turned his gaze to his escort knight, Adriana, the guardian knight of the Holy Empress. Due to the designation of the Holy Empress, Adriana became a knight who protects the king like Scarlet. Adriana refused, saying she did not have the ability, but Olivia almost forced Adriana to sit in that position. And as the position makes a person, Adriana, who was originally a powerful holy knight, had become a fitting presence as a guardian knight of the Holy Empress after a long time. "Did you wear a dress today for a change?" "Because there was an order to wear appropriate attire..." Adriana, with a trembling expression, was wearing a more glamorous dress than the Holy Empress Olivia. It was clear that Olivia deliberately put her in that dress. Olivia laughed, covering her mouth as she watched Adriana. "Now that the law that priests and holy knights in Tuwan cannot marry has been abolished, there's no need to hide your charm, is there?" "...," Adriana just fidgeted uncomfortably with the hem of her dress. The Holy Empire itself is not that wide in territory. However, the actual place to be governed is all the land where people live who believe in that religion. The Holy Denomination is a long-established religion, and that religion is inevitably present wherever there are people who believe in it. Therefore, the Holy Empire is not only a country but also an information agency of the current empire that collects information from all over the continent. It was not originally created to be that way, but it was an inevitable phenomenon that it had to be that way. Therefore, in all the temples and shrines scattered throughout the continent, they can learn about everything happening on the continent. "How about the autonomous regions? Since there was no separate talk, it seems to be okay for now." Therefore, there are temples of the denominations that are not officially under the rule of the Demon Empire's governing body. The scale is naturally very small, but they cannot be non-existent. There are still those who believe in the gods even in places where the faith of the Dragon Knights is dominant. The Holy Knight Commander, Rowen, did not suffer any punishment. After the war, she returned to where she belonged. Where the existence of the sound should be. The work has changed from heresy interrogation to information collection. She is in charge of the Empire's intelligence agency. Detecting threats to the Empire by compiling information scattered throughout the continent. Monitoring autonomous regions is her main role. Therefore, everyone fears Louise, the Empress, thinking that they fear the terrifying Emperor Reinhardt. In reality, Louise von Schwarzkopf is a master of swordsmanship and a great warrior herself. If someone fears her, there is a reason for it. Of course, those who know the situation find it ridiculous. King Heinrich von Schwarzkopf of Kernstatt rushes into the palace as if he is trying to escape. After the Empire's declaration, Olivia became estranged from Reinhardt and Heinrich. When they meet in public, they avoid each other as if they have seen something they shouldn't have. Sometimes, Louise stays in the palace for a few months, and during that time, Reinhardt is always anxious. He is even anxious when Louise is not by his side. He wants to do well for her, but it's ambiguous whether it looks like he's trying to do well for his wife. The Emperor apologizes for his behavior towards Louise and explains that he wants to be a good son to his mother-in-law. The way he describes his behavior towards Louise is strange. The Emperor's gifts to other Empresses may be forgotten, but he always gives gifts and asks after Louise. The Emperor is not the only one who respects her. Olivia and Charlotte also do, as well as another Empress who rushes into the palace when she hears that Louise has arrived. "I say the exact same thing as the Emperor. I send gifts and greetings for every birthday and season. Sigh... Louise didn't have high expectations for this marriage, as it was a necessary one. In fact, she thought there might be rough times ahead, due to the lack of foundation or the short duration of her relationship with the Emperor. She even considered the possibility of being ignored or treated with low status. But this marriage turned out to be a very unexpected and bizarre experience."