Saintess - Chapter 45 - VIII.

Chapter 45

Translator: Yonnee

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VIII.

There was a malicious rumor circulating throughout the empire.

It’s said that Count Raon Toulouse had been bewitched by the obscene saintess. He’d gone completely mad, they say.

Everyone knew that the benevolent count shared bread and food to those in need, leaving nothing for himself, yet he had completely disappeared.

He was the kind of man who lived an ascetic life, knowing not a single woman from the day he was born. And yet… the crude sounds of a man and a woman sharing the same bed could be heard from his room, day and night.

He was the kind of man who valued simplicity over luxury, yet various merchants from all over the land, bringing with them arrays of rare items, kept going in and out of his manor dozens of times a day.

He was the kind of man who kept only a handful of servants to attend to him, yet they increased day by day.

Early in the morning, musicians would come to the manor to play their melodies for Saintess Agnes.

As soon as those musicians would finish, a troupe would come in and perform a spectacular puppet show for her.

Each and every person there was determined to please the obscene saintess.

At some point, children on the streets began to chortle and sing.

In the beginning, the adults scolded those children, saying that it might reach Count Toulouse’s ears. Yet later, they started singing as well.

Raon Toulouse, blinded by the obscene saintess.

Raon Toulouse, lost his heart to the obscene saintess.

Raon Toulouse, sold his soul to the obscene saintess.

Traitor, traitor, dirty traitor.

The affection that Raon Toulouse had once given to everyone in the world had now become reserved for only one person alone.

Agnes.

* * *

“C-Count Toulouse. His Holiness the Pope has come to visit.”

Standing in front of the count’s office, Clovis nervously shifted his weight from one foot to the other.

No matter how many times he knocked, the count showed no signs of opening the door.

Instead, only a series of strange sounds could be heard from inside.

The lilting, coquettish moans like a kitten’s mewls.

The heavy breathing of a man.

Even the clattering noise of the desk.

It had already been an hour since Pope Andreas had arrived at the count’s residence.

Though there was no prior schedule for this meeting, nor any advance notice for that matter, this was the pope. He was the highest authority of the church, yet he was being made to wait for this long.

“Ahem! Count…!”

Clovis cleared his throat once more and called out to the count loudly. A few moments later, the door finally burst open.

Wearing only a robe atop his nakedness, Raon was quite clearly irritated to have been interrupted.

When the brightness through the half-open door streamed out, Clovis hurriedly averted his eyes when he barely caught a glimpse of the woman’s pale, naked body.

“Where is the Pope?”

“H-He’s waiting at the drawing room.”

Raon clicked his tongue.

No longer was there any semblance of reverence and respect for the pope in Raon’s demeanor.

Only, blatant annoyance.

“C-Count. Are you going to meet His Holiness like that?”

As Raon immediately headed towards the drawing room as he was, Clovis was flabbergasted.

At the very least, he thought that the count would greet the pope after first changing into a proper attire.

“Is there a problem?”

“N-Not at all.”

As though he truly thought that there was nothing wrong about his appearance, Raon sauntered off to the drawing room.

With the front of his robe open from the waist up, Raon’s solid chest muscles were exposed. But even so, it didn’t look like he had any intention of fixing even that.

At long last Raon entered the drawing room, but upon seeing the young man, Pope Andreas’s face became deathly pale.

As if it wasn’t enough that he’d been kept waiting for more than an hour, Raon was even going as far as to greet the pope in such a state of undress. He never imagined that he’d be treated in such a way.

However, he quickly schooled his features and greeted the young man with his characteristic front of kindness.

“It’s been a while since we last met, Count Toulouse.”

“Why are you here.”

“It is upsetting to hear you talk so scathingly, Count.”

Sipping upon his lukewarm tea, which had gotten colder because he’s been waiting for a long time now, the pope answered.

“At some point, I heard that the Saintess isn’t having her check-ups.”

“I wonder if there’s even a meaning to those examinations.”

“What makes you say that?”

A long time had already passed since the saintess had been captured.

But as the drought still showed no signs of letting up, the people’s resentment grew more and more intense by the day. And worse, there were also strange rumors circulating all throughout.

It was the savage rumor that Count Raon Toulouse sold his soul to the saintess.

Still, Pope Andreas paid no attention to that rumor.

It was absolute nonsense.

But now… as he was faced with this man in front of him…

The pope had to ask.

Was this man truly the Count Toulouse he knew?

He was a completely different man.

“If you haven’t guessed, I was balls-deep into that woman just until I needed to step out of my office. Both her upper and lower mouths are fed with my seed each and every day, so isn’t it only a matter of time that she becomes pregnant?”

“C-Count Toulouse…”

“Why do you look so scandalized? Isn’t this what you had personally ordered me to do, Your Holiness?”

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