Only God

Attempting to recall that slap, the Great Shepherd of Danschel felt a wave of dizziness and throbbing in his head.

What a transgression it had been...

The Great Shepherd understood young priests were not always steady, many of them were impassioned, and thus often committed foolish acts on impulse, such as he himself, who had openly contradicted the Emperor years ago, leaving the Emperor at a loss for words, but who could have imagined that a young priest would slap the Emperor?

Constantine VI, the supreme ruler of the Empire who had reigned for thirty years, had he ever suffered such humiliation?

That young priest of unknown origin, dared to slap him in the full view of the public.

The slight pain on his cheek stimulated Constantine VI's nerves, exacerbating the humiliation, which felt even more unbearable than while he was still at the meeting.

It was more distressing to him than death itself.

The Emperor glanced around with his eyes, suppressing the anger and shame in his heart, and feigned calmness,

"Punish him for his crime, and also punish those who cheered him on."

The nerves of the Great Shepherd of Danschel immediately tensed.

There was no problem punishing the young priest, but the key lay in punishing those who cheered him on.

Due to the forcefully passed proposal to elevate the status of the Shepherds of Danschel, the priests of the Great Council showed great displeasure towards the Emperor. Hence, it was foreseeable that an untold number of priests would cheer for the young priest.

Was the Emperor going to punish so many people? To throw thousands of priests into the dungeons at once?

Imprisoning thousands of priests would undoubtedly lead to a terrible religious incident, and the young priest would become a glorious Martyr overnight. As the Great Shepherd of Danschel, he would be reviled for eternity, his soul doomed to plunge into the depths of Hell to endure eternal punishment.

"Your Majesty, you are wise, this must not be done.

Among those priests, not only are there bishops of the Empire but also clergy from foreign lands. If you persist in this, you will offend God and bring severe turbulence to the Empire.

The Empire can no longer withstand much more turbulence."

The words of the Great Shepherd seemed to have had an effect, and Constantine VI finally calmed down. He coldly glanced at the Grand Steward, gesturing him to be silent, then pushed away the Maid beside him.

The Great Shepherd was right; the Empire could no longer withstand much more turbulence.

Since hundreds of years ago, when the co-ruling Emperor Anos disappeared, the Royal Family of the Danschel Empire ended its lineage, and the Emperor, out of sorrow, languished until his death. Then began the thirty-year split of the Empire over succession struggles.

Thirty years of division, neither long nor short, merely half a generation's time span, yet the impact of the split was so profound that the Empire had yet to recover.

During those thirty years, the vast Empire was divided into seven large and small factions, and twelve Emperors ascended the throne in succession. As soon one Emperor fell, another would take the stage, with the longest reign lasting merely ten years.

The sanctity of the Emperor had been nearly destroyed in the turmoil. The great families vying for the throne either declined or were reduced to dust. The Empire diminished as its borders continued to shrink, maintaining a façade of power.

There was no doubt, the Empire was in decline.

It was precisely because of the Empire's decline that Constantine VI was so eager to push forward the agenda of elevating the Great Shepherd's status.

Faced with such a significant historical event, historians of future generations summed it up this way: when the Empire was strong, Emperors favored a Church distanced from politics, with scattered religious authority. Hence, for a long time, Shepherds held equal status. But as the Empire waned, Emperors favored a Church involved in politics, with centralized religious authority, which became the foundation for the Papacy.

Constantine VI pondered for a moment, then finally spoke slowly,

"Whoever openly cheers for that priest, whoever has the loudest voice, cast him into prison for a month. Pay attention to their diet and personal safety, and if necessary, releasing them early is also permissible.

But as for that priest, first gouge out his eyes, pull out his tongue, and toss him into the Royal Monastery. After the Great Council is over, let him end his own life then. May God forgive his soul."

In front of his trusted followers, Constantine VI coldheartedly made his decision.

Upon hearing this, the Grand Steward continued,

"Your Majesty, I will exert myself to the utmost for you.

Please wait a moment, Your Majesty, I will present a decree to you, may you manifest your mercy and magnanimity on the decree."

Constantine VI nodded in satisfaction.

The decision just made was an oral edict; since it was oral, it would naturally not appear in writing.

In the written edict, Constantine VI forgave the priest's sins to showcase the king's benevolence to the clergy at the Great Council.

By doing so, even if the priests discovered that the young priest had been mistreated, Constantine VI could claim ignorance and place the blame on his subordinates, thereby maintaining his image as a wise and compassionate ruler.

The Great Shepherd of Danschel had no objections to the Emperor's handling of the situation, so when the Emperor looked his way, the Great Shepherd said nothing and nodded in agreement.

"Right, what's his name?"

It was only then that the Emperor asked for the man's name.

The Great Shepherd of Danschel tried hard to remember,

"It seems his name is… Eden, that heretic who claimed the prophecy of the Savior..."

Eden…

This name could be used for a man or a woman.

............

Veldor had gone to great lengths to find out that the person who had slapped the Emperor was named Eden.

"Eden… paradise, brilliance, joy…"

Veldor muttered the meanings of this baptismal name.

The young priest named Eden had now been pressed into a prison, where his situation was more likely dire than hopeful, Veldor dared not imagine what tortures awaited him.

"God, this is truly a race against time!"

Veldor exclaimed and hurriedly sought out more people in the know to understand the situation better.

According to the accounts, the priest named Eden neither came from a poor nor a wealthy background, he was an orphan taken in by the monastery, studying theology from a young age under the deputy abbot, and due to his intelligence and a natural gift for the Ancient Language, he was exempted from the usual process and made an official member of the clergy, becoming a priest at the age of twenty-three.

Such a rate of promotion was as fast as the wind blown by the God of Cold Wind, Grauman.

Yet this man with boundless prospects had struck the Emperor a slap to the face, not only causing great disaster but also severing his once limitless future.

"Why are you in such a hurry to learn about someone who has seen the Prophet?"

A priest inquired.

"I... I want to do something for him, perhaps, God has manifested in my heart."

Veldor gave a vague explanation.

In fact, he couldn't put his finger on the reason himself, but he felt an intense compulsion to save this young priest.

"God has manifested in your heart? That's no small matter..."

The priest became serious.

Seeing his demeanor, Veldor immediately realized something—he hadn't treated that statement as an empty excuse.

Yes, he had seen the Prophet…

Therefore, when he said, "God has manifested in my heart," the clergy took it seriously.

Realizing this, Veldor became excited:

"This is God's arrangement, it must be God's arrangement…

I have to save him, I have to save him, the Lord has already prepared me!"

The priest pondered for a moment, then lowered his voice and moved closer to Veldor's ear to say:

"I heard that Pastor Bade of Lorondo has sympathy for Priest Eden. You might meet with him, he could possibly offer you some assistance."

Hearing this, Veldor nodded repeatedly and without hesitation, immediately took action.