The slightly younger Cardinal invited Fia and the others to take their seats, while the Inquisitor waved repeatedly at the nuns and paladins behind Fia, signaling them to leave.
It wasn’t that the Cardinal and Inquisitor lacked caution, but rather that if Fia really wanted to do something, even with paladins present, the outcome wouldn’t change.
To go further, if Fia truly had any ill intent, she wouldn’t have helped the church drive away the Moon Dragon last night—that’s how the church saw it.
Soon, both sides were seated.
“We know we’ve done some excessive things, but the ones who started the war two years ago weren’t me or the Inquisitor, but other people higher up in the church.
I’m sure Syllevar knows as well that our Yuna Church has always been split into two factions regarding elves: the war hawks, and the peace faction that the Inquisitor and I belong to.
The Inquisitor and I hope to sit down and have a proper talk with the two princesses.
If possible, it would be best for both sides to agree to a ceasefire and live in peace.”
As he spoke, the Cardinal kept glancing at the Inquisitor beside him, making it clear he was just the messenger.
A Cardinal was definitely a high-ranking figure in the church, so for him to act as a mouthpiece, the Inquisitor’s status was obvious.
Without showing any of her inner thoughts, Fia, sitting on one side of the long table, responded with a reserved smile befitting a princess.
“Before we get to business, I have to apologize to you, Cardinal, and to you, Inquisitor.
Yesterday, my companion was overly concerned for my safety and acted impulsively, damaging the Unsinkable Moon… There’s no need for compensation, right? If that darkling girl had used the Unsinkable Moon, who knows how many people would have died.
Human life is priceless—no matter how valuable an artifact is, it can’t compare.”
The Cardinal’s face clearly stiffened, but he quickly composed himself and gave a wry smile.
“The Unsinkable Moon is the national treasure of our Milcandis Holy Nation.
We must first report to His Holiness the Pope before we can give you an answer, Your Highness.
But please rest assured, the Inquisitor and I will do our best to explain to His Holiness how important you, Princess Dofilia, were in this battle, and strive to give Syllevar a satisfactory answer.”
Tch.
Fia clicked her tongue.
“Do our best,” huh? They were obviously just shirking responsibility, stalling for time.
But Fia never thought from the start that a Cardinal and an Inquisitor could decide the fate of the Unsinkable Moon.
If they could, with their status and their peace-faction stance, the two-year war between the Holy Nation and the Elven Kingdom would never have happened.
Of course, just because they didn’t have all the say didn’t mean Fia had to be all smiles.
She wasn’t here alone—she represented the Elven Kingdom behind her, and all the elven soldiers who’d lost their lives and families to the war.
After a brief silence, Anastasia, sitting beside Fia as her aide, picked up the conversation.
Compared to Fia, Anastasia’s demeanor and tone were much more severe.
Everything was going according to their prearranged plan.
“I’m sure the two of you from the Holy Nation know that, although Her Highness is the crown princess, because this was all so sudden, she hasn’t received the authority from His Majesty to decide the course of the war.
So, in the negotiations to come, we can only try to win approval from His Majesty—we can’t give a final answer.”
“O-of course, that’s not a problem.” The Cardinal clasped his hands together on the table.
“The Inquisitor and I hope the elves can agree to a ceasefire at the front lines.
As a gesture of good faith, we’re willing to pull our troops back first.”
“And?” Anastasia asked, as if it was only natural.
“I hope you’re clear about your position.
You’re the ones asking us, not the other way around.
Just pulling back your lines isn’t enough to make up for our losses.
Syllevar can drag this war out for ten years, even a hundred.
Now that you’ve lost your national treasure and the Crown Princess can drive off the Moon Dragon, do you really think you’re still on equal footing with us?”
“The only reason Aurora City hasn’t been wiped off the World Tree Continent is because Her Highness is merciful enough to give you a chance.
I hope you two show the proper attitude—don’t treat this as a negotiation.
We’re just here to hear your terms for peace.
Don’t try anything funny, unless you want another ‘Judgment of the Gods’ like last night.
I doubt flesh and blood is tougher than the Unsinkable Moon.”
As Anastasia spoke, Claire, who was hugging her left arm with her right, stepped forward from behind Fia with a smile.
Even though Claire looked gentle and feminine from any angle, to the Cardinal and Inquisitor, she was like a demon.
Even if they hadn’t seen Claire unleash the terrifying “Judgment of the Gods,” the curse on her was enough to make both men’s hearts skip a beat.
Not to mention, everything Anastasia said was true.
The Milcandis Holy Nation was never as strong as the Elven Kingdom.
The only reason they dared attack was because they knew the elves had to station heavy troops in the south every winter to deal with the undead from the Netherworld.
As long as they could strike quickly while the elves’ western front was weak, and take the elven capital within three months, they could win with fewer troops and force the elven king to yield.
War isn’t won by good weapons or strong soldiers alone—strategy, intelligence, morale, and even luck are all key.
But now, they’d lost their gamble.
After two years of stalemate, the Holy Nation saw no end in sight.
No one knew how much longer the war would last.
Maybe, when the apocalypse prophesied by the Goddess of Life finally came, the Holy Nation would still be stuck fighting the elves at the border.
That was an outcome they couldn’t accept.
Anastasia’s words made the Cardinal take a deep breath.
Realizing Fia wasn’t easy to deal with, he laced his fingers together, his expression shifting from a relaxed smile to a serious, stern look.
“In that case, let’s be frank.
The reason we started the war wasn’t because the higher-ups wanted more power, or to use war to ease internal strife.
It was because the Goddess gave us an oracle—the apocalypse is coming soon.”
As his words fell, everyone in the room raised their eyebrows slightly.
Anastasia pressed on, expressionless.
“The apocalypse?”
“That’s right.
The apocalypse’s power is enough to tear the continent apart, reverse day and night.
Rivers will turn muddy, wells will dry up, nothing will grow in the fields, animals will die one after another, monsters will run rampant, and the land will be covered in lava and death.
The prophecy of the apocalypse was originally just a single sentence, but His Holiness has been burning his own life to beg the Goddess for more details, which is why we know so much now.”
“The only people who’d believe that are you fanatics.”
“You believe in the Elven God too!” The Cardinal’s tone grew agitated.
For those who don’t live in a theocracy, it’s hard to understand the mindset of true believers.
Likewise, for the devout, it’s hard to imagine how others live without faith.
Anastasia frowned.
“But we don’t treat the words of our god as a cure-all like you do.
Only a madman would attack a stronger country over an unverifiable prophecy.
In the end, what good does attacking us elves do for you? Do you really think conquering the Elven Kingdom will let everyone escape this so-called apocalypse?”
“If we don’t unite all forces before the end comes, no one will survive!”
“And you couldn’t try a gentler way to form an alliance?”
“Who knows when the apocalypse will come? Maybe ten years, maybe the next second.
Would you elves really sit down and talk unity with us?”
“Isn’t the real obstacle to unity your Holy Nation? Ridiculous.
If you want to use some unverifiable ‘oracle’ to convince us, then see you on the battlefield.”
The Cardinal clenched his fists and stood up, his face flushed with emotion.
“Chaos and the darklings, who could never stand together, have already joined forces.
The Withered Wasteland has seen tenth-tier magic, and this is only the fifth year since the oracle was given.
These are all signs of the coming apocalypse! If you refuse to believe, we’ll lose our greatest hope.
Don’t be shortsighted and doom your entire race!”
Seeing the argument was about to devolve into pointless bickering, Fia, who had been silent until now, finally spoke up.
Her voice was still youthful, but it had a calming power.
“Can we sit down and talk, Cardinal? As for the oracle you mentioned, we’ll have to return to the Elven Kingdom and ask the Elven God before we can say anything.
The god we worship isn’t the Goddess of Life, so I hope you can understand.”
“Hoo…” Fia’s words gradually calmed the Cardinal.
Once he sat back down, Fia continued.
“Setting aside the oracle, we have to give an account to the soldiers who died in this war, and to their families.
And that can’t be something the Elven Kingdom pays for alone, or we’ll have trouble keeping the country stable, let alone dealing with any future apocalypse.
So, Cardinal, Inquisitor, what do you have to say about that?”
Backing up Fia’s words, Liti, who was a bit shorter and sat to Fia’s left, unrolled a parchment on the table.
On it was written the war reparations the Elven Kingdom required.
Because time was tight that morning, even with Fia’s brain, it took a lot of effort to come up with this answer—mainly because of a lack of details.
For example, a cow might cost seven gold coins in the north, but only five in the milder south.
That kind of difference gave the newly arrived Fia a headache, so she could only estimate based on Anastasia’s descriptions.
Also, since Anastasia didn’t know the exact casualties at the front, all expenses had to be calculated on the high side.
Fia didn’t object—winners get to ask for everything.
As for whether the Holy Nation would agree, Fia never thought these two had the authority to decide on reparations anyway, so this was really just a heads-up.
Negotiations rarely succeed in one go; it takes many rounds to find the other side’s bottom line.
The Holy Nation would definitely send envoys to talk to her father, the Elven King, and it was best to leave the details to them.
For now, her job was to intimidate the Holy Nation and get some concrete results—some compensation—so that when she returned home, she’d have more confidence facing the Elven King.
The Cardinal and Inquisitor first looked at the final number on the parchment, then looked up at Fia.
When they saw Fia and her group smiling, their faces instantly turned ashen.
