A few days must have passed. I was slowly preparing to send a very polite letter to the Amur Territory. The Lord of Amur had indeed crossed the line, but the current situation in his territory was a complete mess. In this situation, if I started a war and took the lord's head, there would be no way to restore the territory.
Without a head, no business could proceed. And if that happened, it would mean I had taken over the Amur Territory in a territory war, making it highly likely that the Peta Territory would have to deal with Amur's refugees. The Archdeity Church would also surely issue a strong reprimand for behavior unbecoming of a high priest.
I'd already taken the Grand Duke's head, so there was no need to be any more cruel. I was more annoyed that my own workload was increasing. It was true they tried to pull a dirty trick from the Amur Territory, but one of the ringleaders was dead anyway, and hadn't I killed his father, too?
So I planned to demand a formal letter of apology, a donation of a modest atonement gift to the Archdeity Church, and that they refrain from sending donation request letters, as I would handle support myself. As for killing him, I could just find some fault and do it later, after the territory restoration was complete. As I was drafting the document, Robin knocked on the door.
"What is it?"
These days, it felt like my heart pounded along with Robin's knocks. It was because every piece of news he brought was accompanied by some fucking awful experience. This time, however, it seemed a little different. Robin was scratching his head, looking extremely troubled.
"What is it, Robin?"
"Ah, well... the Lord of the Amur Territory is here."
"Did he bring an army?"
"No. He came alone. He's kneeling in front of our mansion right now."
Ah, I knew what this was about. He must have seen me beat the shit out of Grand Duke Rubicon in the duel arena and came to apologize first, fearing he'd suffer the same fate. It was what you could call an excellent and shrewd judgment. Being a high priest, I couldn't very well insult someone who came to apologize. And I really, really didn't like that kind of shrewd judgment.
Why apologize first? Wasn't he supposed to come after I sent him a document with my demands for an apology? Doesn't this make the Lord of Amur look better? On top of that, it made it awkward to list my demands. Because the bastard had already knelt first. If I wasn't a high priest, I would have just ignored it and stated my conditions, but I am a cleric.
A fucking cleric whose message is forgiveness and leniency. If someone repents for their sins, you have to accept it. That was the logic I'd used to forgive Eve and Aira until now.
In that sense, an apology is a form of violence. If not done at the moment I desire, it only brings an irreversible feeling of being fucking screwed over. I couldn't forgive something like this. There had to be a set order for sin and punishment. I couldn't forgive the Lord of Amur for trying to get a free pass on his apology by using my position.
Even if the Lord of Amur had genuinely reflected on his actions, I had no intention of believing him. People don't change. Moreover, no human could ever graciously forgive the man who had his acquaintance and aide chopped into pieces.
I decided to scrap my plan of just accepting an apology and ending things amicably. If he was going to pull a dirty trick on our relationship of trust, then I had no choice but to pull one right back. I said to Robin.
"Bring Aira up from the first floor."
Aira came running at my call, panting. With a flushed face, she looked at me with an expectant gaze, as it had been a while since I'd called for her. I said.
"Aira. If you do as I say, I'll make sure you can't sleep tonight."
"Yes, yes!"
Aira nodded her head excitedly, like a Border Collie that had spotted a Frisbee. I gave Aira her instructions and went down to the first floor. As soon as I appeared at the foyer, the Lord of Amur slammed his head on the ground and shouted.
"I am sorry! High Priest Lusius! My desire to save the residents of the Amur Territory blinded me! I have committed a grave discourtesy! I beg you to forgive me for trying to intimidate the high priest's wife with the logic that she wasn't human!"
But this bastard was so arrogant during the trial, and now he's suddenly using formal speech.
People's gazes were fixed on the Lord of Amur. He was trembling. I could understand his position. He was probably doing his best, in his own way. In-game, the Amur Territory was a place you just passed through. It had a headache with monsters, but its lord was decent enough.
His attempt to embezzle our territory's budget was likely just him racking his brain to actually feed his people. But just because he had that motive didn't mean I had to forgive him. Thanks to him, Eve was almost turned into fried fish, and our territory's budget was almost blown.
The Lord of Amur came to apologize first because he didn't know what would happen if he didn't. The Lord of Amur had insulted my wife, simultaneously insulted my authority by putting Eve forth as a representative, and dragged Grand Duke Rubicon into it, making things fucking complicated.
If I didn't completely shatter him now, I didn't know what kind of shit he might pull later, leaving a bad lingering feeling. My initial plan to forgive the Lord of Amur with just a single letter was wrong from the start. I steeled my weakening mind and gave him a smile. The Lord of Amur glanced up, checking my complexion. His rat-like mustache drooped.
Looking around, there were no escort guards for the Lord of Amur, just a single clean-looking carriage parked in front of the mansion. The coachman was on top of the carriage, looking anxiously at the Lord of Amur.
"Please rise, Lord of Amur."
"Yes, yes, High Priest."
The Lord of Amur shot up, startled, like a new recruit who had just finished military drill training. I took his hand and said.
"A lord shouldn't be seen in such a disheveled appearance. Let's go to a room and have some tea first."
"......Yes, yes. I understand."
First, I had to stop the Lord of Amur from continuing to apologize here. The more I dragged out this situation, the more advantageous it became for him. So I didn't mention forgiveness and just led him inside.
The Lord of Amur told the coachman outside to wait and then entered the mansion.
The Lord of Amur was guided to the reception room on the first floor. He sat with a clearly uncomfortable look on his face. I called for Aira.
"Aira!"
"Yes, My Lord!"
Aira came down and, upon seeing the Lord of Amur, flinched as if she was momentarily scared. Ever since she was beaten senseless during the March of Atonement, Aira had become a bit afraid of men who weren't from this mansion.
"I have something to do for a moment. For now, please attend to this man."
"Ye-Yes... I understand."
Aira nodded and clutched the hem of her skirt. Of course, by 'attendant,' I didn't mean for her to offer her body to the Lord of Amur. I left Aira in the care of the Lord of Amur and excused myself.
And then, in the room right next door, I leisurely leaned back and fiddled with the Holy Sword. The blade was so sharp that even I could get cut if I handled it wrong. The only fortunate thing was that the poison from "An Honorable Contest" didn't work on me. I can't tell you how surprised I was when I touched the blade once and
- An Honorable Contest does not apply to the owner.
a message popped up. After that, I found a large box in the mansion and locked the sword in it when I wasn't using it. I made sure to strictly warn Eve, Sieri, and Aira to never open it.
The poison wouldn't activate unless I said the word 'contest' anyway, but the blade was still fucking sharp and dangerous.
As I was killing time fiddling with the blade, the scream I had been waiting for finally rang out.
"Kyaaaaaaah! Kyaaaaaaah! Don't! Please don't do this!"
As if on cue, I gently set down the Holy Sword, ran to the next room, and kicked the door open. There, I saw the exact scene I had expected. Aira's top was torn, revealing her underwear, and she was sitting on the floor, shedding tears.
The Lord of Amur stood up with a bewildered expression, reaching his hand toward Aira. As soon as Aira saw me, she rushed over and threw herself into my chest.
"My Lord... I was so scared... Heuk, heu-heuk...."
Hearing the screams, everyone from the knights to the servants rushed to the room. The Lord of Amur, with a pale face, shook his head and said.
"N-No! It's a misunderstanding! A misunderstanding!"
"What kind of misunderstanding? Please explain, Lord of Amur."
"Th-That woman tore her own clothes! She tore her clothes herself and started screaming!"
"And you expect me to believe that?"
Aira stopped crying, looked up at me, and smirked. It was an angle the Lord of Amur couldn't see. I had also made a small slit in Aira's clothes to make them easier to tear. I stroked Aira's head and said.
"Lord of Amur. How could you think of molesting a devout woman of the Archdeity Church in the middle of my mansion? Did you misunderstand my order to attend to you as permission to commit lewd conduct, like serving at night?"
The Lord of Amur looked like he was about to die from frustration. I had to forcibly pinch my own thigh to keep from laughing. The lord's face turned bright red as he began to make excuses.
"No! That woman! That woman! She framed me! You damn rag! What kind of grudge do you have against me to do something like this!"
The Lord of Amur, exploding in the middle of his excuses, shouted while pointing his finger at Aira. I shielded Aira and said.
"How can the one who molested her act like the pot calling the kettle black towards this woman? You came to my mansion to apologize, yet you dare to insult my authority again? To belittle a parishioner of the Archdeity Church in front of me, I can't believe you've apologized, nor that you've repented."
"Good heavens! High Priest! No! I really did not do such a thing!"
As if she couldn't lose to his words, Aira burst into tears and started wailing.
"My Lord! You'll believe me, right? Heuk... heuk... That Lord of Amur... he told me to quickly... sh-show him my breasts..."
"How could you do such a disgraceful act? Lord of Amur. I am aware you have a wife."
"Please believe me! High Priest! That maid is slandering me! Why won't you believe me! Oh, good heavens!"
The lord began to pound his chest and argue, as if he would die from the injustice.
"The evidence is right here, yet you're still trying to evade responsibility. I am greatly disappointed, Lord of Amur."
"Where is the evidence!"
"The victim's tears are the evidence!"
That line. I've always wanted to say it.