Chapter 20

Ariadne stood calmly but spoke loudly enough for everyone in the hall to hear, as she replied to the Inquisitor.

"His Eminence, our father, the Cardinal, was never collaborating with the excommunicated Alejandro."

She took a step forward and looked straight at the Inquisitor.

"His Eminence was deeply concerned about the heresy of the Apostle of Asereto. Therefore, he prepared for a public debate!"

'Prepared, you say?'

The Inquisitor snorted.

"Prepared, you say? If that's the case, you should have either appeared as the debater yourself or sent another priest with the appropriate qualifications, not a young girl. What are you doing, Cardinal de Mare? Is this a child's play?"

The Inquisitor had been continuously questioning her qualifications. He leaned his upper body towards Cardinal de Mare, turning his back to Ariadne, and spoke. Ariadne decided to counterattack.

"His Eminence did this out of respect for the Holy See!"

Ariadne's voice rose.

"The Apostle of Asereto was a guest of Pope Ludovico, sent to San Carlo by His Holiness himself. If His Eminence were to personally engage in a religious debate with such a guest, how would it reflect on Pope Ludovico!"

She stepped forward, undaunted, and pointed at the Inquisitor.

"Furthermore!"

Her finger flew to the nose of the Inquisitor, who was not looking at her.

"The content of the Apostle of Asereto's sermon was not discussed at all today. Any ordained priest would know that the content of a sermon is sacred, and pre-censoring it, even if the censor were Pope Ludovico himself, would be utterly inappropriate! The people of San Carlo simply believed that the Apostle of Asereto, or rather, Priest Alejandro, would give a more general sermon out of respect for Pope Ludovico, who invited him, and the people of San Carlo, and Cardinal de Mare."

Ariadne glanced at the Apostle of Asereto, who was forced to kneel by the Inquisitor's priests.

"You should have discussed it first or restrained yourself! It was the Apostle of Asereto who disrespected the people of San Carlo and Cardinal de Mare!"

With her quick wit, she shifted the blame for the heretical sermon that echoed through the Basilica of San Ercolino from Cardinal de Mare to the Apostle of Asereto. In truth, anyone could have predicted that the Apostle of Asereto would deliver such a sermon once he was on the podium. He was a man who would stop at nothing to spread his message. Strictly speaking, the primary responsibility lay with Pope Ludovico, who deliberately invited the Apostle of Asereto to San Carlo to preach at the Mass. If additional blame were to be assigned, it would be to Cardinal de Mare, who did nothing despite knowing what would happen.

The Inquisitor seemed slightly burdened by Ariadne's subtle reference to Pope Ludovico, but she had no intention of stopping there.

"Moreover, His Eminence had been conducting theological studies out of concern for the heresy of the Apostle of Asereto. The theological grounds for the public debate were all prepared. The only reason he did not officially set a date for the debate was to avoid disrespecting the Council of Treveri and Pope Ludovico! Isn't that right, Father?"

Cardinal de Mare was completely flustered. He usually detested being called "Father" in public by his children, except for Isabella, but this was not the time to nitpick over such trivial matters. Even if Ariadne had called him "puppy" instead of "Father," he would have had no grounds to complain. He grabbed the lifeline thrown down from heaven.

"Yes, yes, that's right! Inquisitor, I have always taken the heresy of the Asereto school very seriously. What could Pope Ludovico have been thinking, sending the Apostle of Asereto to San Carlo to preach at the Basilica of San Ercolino!"

"Pope Ludovico's keen eye must have been momentarily clouded by the wickedness of Priest Alejandro. Heresy always appears in the guise of sanctity, does it not?"

Ariadne smoothly accepted Cardinal de Mare's line. The mother-daughter duo's teamwork was flawless.

"Unable to publicly sanction the matter out of respect for Pope Ludovico, I could no longer bear the blasphemy of the sermon on the podium and had to intervene!"

The Inquisitor, who had arrived late, was unaware that Ariadne had engaged in a theological debate with the Apostle of Asereto during the Mass.

"Such a thing... happened?"

The Inquisitor, who had been addressing only Cardinal de Mare, finally turned to Ariadne, his tone more polite than before.

- "Right! The young lady interrupted the Apostle of Asereto's sermon."

- "She saved the dignity of San Carlo!"

- "How embarrassing it would have been to listen to the heretic's sermon until the Inquisitor arrived!"

- "She was brave. Impressive."

- "Her level of theology was also impressive."

- "Like father, like daughter."

The murmurs of the crowd in the corridor gave Ariadne even more confidence. Cardinal de Mare seized the opportunity that had fallen from the sky. He quickly pushed the Inquisitor to the side of the stage.

"Inquisitor! I... or rather, the Diocese of San Carlo, have fulfilled our duty to the faith! Do not speak further on this matter until you receive a papal decree!"

"But Cardinal de Mare..."

"Do you have the authority? To link a faithful diocese with heresy without the Pope's permission is out of the question. Now, quickly escort the prisoner. Let's wrap this up and return to our posts."

The Inquisitor, unable to further question Cardinal de Mare, led the Apostle of Asereto away, bound with ropes. It would take at least three weeks for the Inquisitor to report to Pope Ludovico and receive further instructions. Until then, they were safe.

In the chaotic Basilica, Ariadne finally exhaled the breath she had been holding. Her palms were drenched in sweat, and her face was flushed with tension and excitement. The murmuring crowd, as they left the Basilica, glanced at Ariadne. The 50,000 people in the vast Basilica, all dressed in plain black dresses, were focused on Ariadne. At that moment, no one remembered the beautiful Isabella.

* * *

In the carriage on the way home, Ariadne reflected on the events of the day. Her family had already fled to the Cardinal's residence when the commotion began, and Cardinal de Mare was busy dealing with the aftermath. Ariadne was riding alone in the Cardinal's luxurious silver carriage. Cardinal de Mare, who had been anxious about being held responsible, would now escape unscathed. Ariadne, as the Cardinal's blood, had publicly interrupted the heretical sermon, leaving no grounds to accuse the Cardinal of lacking faith.

In her previous life, everyone in San Carlo had listened to the heretical sermon of the Apostle of Asereto without resistance, leading to his excommunication. However, even then, Pope Ludovico had not been able to impose any real penalties on Cardinal de Mare and had concluded the matter.

'Instead, I was engaged to Cesare de Como.'

Ariadne smiled bitterly. A person's entire life, thrown into the abyss for such a reason. At the time, Pope Ludovico had intended to demote Cardinal de Mare to a bishop for failing to manage the diocese and exposing San Carlo to the risk of heresy, and to hand over the diocese to a newly appointed cardinal. Cardinal de Mare, facing the end, had begged Leo III on his knees. Leo III had enjoyed the rare sight of the cardinal groveling at his feet.

Favors are not given without a price. Leo III had pressured Pope Ludovico to form an alliance between his illegitimate son, Cesare, and Cardinal de Mare's family. Cardinal de Mare's maneuver to push Ariadne, rather than Isabella, into the engagement was either the work of a con artist or a genius.

'Now that I think about it, Cesare must have been furious.'

Choosing a wife from among his sisters would have been a significant matter for Cesare, but to his father, Leo III, it was not a big deal. Leo III had only wanted to strengthen Cesare de Como's position in the Etruscan Kingdom by giving him a cardinal as a father-in-law. This engagement, formed through a deal between fathers, was something she wanted to avoid in this life.

'By eliminating the cause of the engagement, I should be able to get through this unscathed.'

* * *

"Hehehe! That young lady is no ordinary girl!"

On the top balcony of the right side of the floor, King Leo III of Etruria clapped and laughed heartily.

"Who would have thought it would be handled like this! It's like watching a well-scripted play! I would believe that Pope Ludovico and the girl had planned this in advance. How did she time it so perfectly?"

The secretary smiled and chimed in.

"Isn't it said that reality can be more dramatic than fiction?"

"Hehehe. I should give a reward to this devout girl. What would be appropriate?"

Leo III pondered for a moment and quickly made a decision.

"50 ducats (approximately 50 million won) and a box of jewelry. It would be fitting to award her the Order of Chivalry for practically saving the country from foreign influence, but I can't do that without considering the Pope's reaction!"

The king then turned to the queen, Margherita, who was seated beside him.

"Would you like to choose what goes into the jewelry box, Your Majesty?"

It was rare for the king to speak directly to the queen, and Margherita, feeling pleased, readily agreed.

"Of course."

Elated by the successful outcome, Leo III offered a few words of praise to Prince Alfonso and then stood up with Margherita and Alfonso to head to their own carriage. They always moved separately.

Once in the carriage, Leo III revealed his true intentions to the secretary.

"Having the queen personally choose the contents of the jewelry box will be a gesture of reconciliation to the Cardinal's wife. I heard there was an incident between them recently."

The king stroked his beard, satisfied with his own clever idea.

"If I had asked the queen to console the Cardinal's wife, she would have refused. She's a stubborn woman."

The secretary, who had been watching carefully, cautiously interjected.

"Your Majesty, the daughter of Cardinal de Mare who will receive the award is the second daughter, not Lady Lucrezia, but a child from another mistress. Will awarding the prize to this young lady really appease the Cardinal's wife?"

Embarrassed by the criticism, Leo III responded irritably.

"Actually, the most important thing is not the Cardinal's wife. I just need the Cardinal to recognize my goodwill."

"You are absolutely right, Your Majesty. You are wise."

"Ah! That's it!"

The king clapped his hands.

"There's a jewel that Cardinal de Mare once coveted. Do you remember the 'Heart of the Deep Blue Sea'?"

"How could I forget such a treasure? But surely... you don't mean to award the 'Heart of the Deep Blue Sea' to the young lady...?"