Gospel of Blood

Louis V’s voice was very calm. However, beneath this calm exterior was an undeniable firmness.

Charlotte knew what he was referring to: the Castell County.

This monarch, intent on strengthening central authority, would never allow Castell to fall into the hands of the Church in the future.

“Countess Castell, I know you once made a vow before the Lord. Now, as you and your family are about to become my direct vassals, I must know your stance.”

Louis V didn’t delay any further and went straight to the point.

Does her previous vow still hold?

Charlotte already had her own answer and thoughts about this matter. Yet, standing there, she was curious about the extent of Louis V’s resolve.

“Your Majesty, if my vow still holds, what would you do?”

Charlotte asked.

“I will not acknowledge the legality of that vow. You will still become my vassal, and the Castell family will still be under the protection of Valva. However, at the same time, I will not allow the Castell family to have autonomous control over the rare extraordinary resources that a direct vassal should have.

Instead, I will continue to use the contract between Borde and Castell as a substitute for the Royal Covenant between the crown and Castell, and restrict other direct vassals from trading extraordinary resources with the Castell family.”

Louis V coldly replied.

Autonomous control over rare extraordinary resources?

Charlotte’s heart was stirred.

In Myria, all resources involving extraordinary power are referred to as extraordinary resources. But only those that are rare, highly valuable, or in great demand but scarce in supply are called rare extraordinary resources.

For instance, the precious materials soul stones used by high-level mages for meditation, the main material for crafting enchanted equipment, the rare magical beast materials necessary for advanced alchemy and mana conversion, and the mithril that the Castell family itself could produce.

Yes, mithril is also a rare extraordinary resource. Although the price of mithril is much lower than materials like soul stones, dragon crystals, or star cores, its high magic conductivity and malleability make it essential for alchemy and magical arrays, always in great demand.

Moreover, its lower price is relative, as it is still much more valuable than gold.

As for the autonomous control of rare extraordinary resources, it naturally refers to the right to freely manage these resources.

The Crescent Kingdom is vast, with many regions producing rare extraordinary resources. But not every noble family has the right to freely dispose of these resources, even if they originate from their own territory.

Only the kingdom’s direct vassals have this right. This is one of the royal covenants between the crown and its direct vassals.

Under this contract, the royal family’s direct vassals can trade their extraordinary materials with other forces, and these materials are not only those produced in the direct fiefdom but also include those from the fiefs under the direct vassal’s control.

In this process, the royal family does not interfere with the direct vassals’ disposal of extraordinary materials. Even if they sell them to an enemy country, the royal family will not intervene because this is a right that the vassals themselves possess.

As part of the contract, vassals must unconditionally transfer part of the output of rare resources to the royal family. At the same time, the royal family will protect the vassals’ ownership of these rare resources. Any war claims on these resources by other vassals will not be recognized.

If any noble family starts a war, the royal family can even directly intervene, supporting the family with rare resources, condemning and sanctioning the instigating family, and ordering them to cease hostilities.

In essence, the autonomous control of rare extraordinary resources is the most prominent right of the kingdom’s direct vassals, providing significant benefits and being most supported by the kingdom’s lords.

As for why this is the most profitable right…

It’s because the Royal Covenant of the Crescent Kingdom stipulates that only the kingdom’s direct vassals have the autonomous control of rare extraordinary resources, while the vassals under the direct vassals must hand over the management of extraordinary resources to their lord.

Take the Castell family, for example. They have the rare extraordinary resource mithril. Still, without the autonomous control of extraordinary resources, the Castell family cannot freely trade mithril with other forces and can only sell it to the targets designated by the Borde family.

This contract greatly restricts many non-direct vassal noble lords’ extraordinary power while significantly enhancing the extraordinary power of the kingdom’s direct vassals.

Some direct vassals with lower titles and fewer territories even control more types of extraordinary resources than those with higher titles but non-direct vassals, thanks to this contract.

As long as Louis V refuses to recognize the Castell family’s autonomous control of extraordinary resources, even if Charlotte wants to trade extraordinary resources with other nobles, no one would dare trade with the Castell family under pressure.

This is not just royal pressure but also the pressure from all direct vassals of the Crescent Kingdom who maintain the kingdom’s extraordinary resource management system.

No direct vassal family would self-destruct for some mithril. Even if some daring ones secretly trade, they would significantly lower the transaction price.

In essence, just this condition alone allows Louis V to restrict the development of the Castell family’s extraordinary power and even directly affect the development of the northern alchemy industry.

“Not only that…”

Louis V paused, his expression becoming increasingly indifferent, and his gaze toward Charlotte turning cold.

“I will permit all noble families with claims in the north to assert their claims over the Castell title, even allowing them to use war means.”

“As a lord, I will not directly intervene in these claims of rights wars, nor will I mediate in this process.”

“And if one day Castell does change hands, the royal family will not stand by and let the north fall into the hands of the Church. Even if it means war, I will prevent this outcome.”

“To sum it up, from the end of the Star-Moon War, the number of actual power dukes and ecclesiastical lands in the kingdom can only decrease, never increase.”

Louis V’s expression was serious, and his voice was authoritative.

Hearing his words, Charlotte was somewhat surprised.

It wasn’t Louis V’s attitude that surprised her but his frankness.

This was frankness, a stark threat.

But equally, with threats came enticements.

Louis V was speaking of the possibilities if Charlotte continued to uphold her vow.

“Then, Your Majesty, what if I renounce my vow before the Lord and no longer acknowledge its validity?”

Charlotte asked again.

Louis V looked at her deeply, his authoritative voice becoming gentle once more:

“If that is the case, I warmly welcome the Castell family to become my direct vassal. You and your family will be fully protected by the Valva family and enjoy the same contract as other kingdom lords.”

“The Castell family will have the right to autonomously manage the mithril mines in Castell and freely participate in extraordinary trade among the kingdom’s vassals. Part of the rare extraordinary resources controlled by the royal family will also be available to the Castell family on a regular basis, just like other direct vassal families.”

“Moreover, the Castell family will have the right to enter the kingdom’s cabinet and military. The core library of the kingdom’s highest academy will also be open to the Castell family, just like other noble vassals.”

“In addition, any territorial claims the Castell family has outside the kingdom will be supported, and the kingdom will assist in reclaiming them, granting them to the Castell family.”

Louis V’s voice was calm as he listed the benefits of Charlotte renouncing her vow.

Charlotte was quite tempted after hearing this.

The right to autonomous control over extraordinary resources was essential unless Charlotte intended to burn bridges with the royal family and leave the Crescent Kingdom. Otherwise, she absolutely had to secure it.

The access to the core library of the kingdom’s top academy was also very attractive. While Nice was already a walking magical encyclopedia, extraordinary power encompassed more than just magic. There were things Charlotte might not need personally, but if she wanted to develop her territory, relevant knowledge was indispensable.

Moreover, such libraries often contained rich historical records that could help Charlotte understand the past, especially the history of bloodbornes.

As for helping the Castell family reclaim their claims…

Charlotte could roughly guess what Louis V was referring to.

The Castell County had territorial disputes with the Roman Duchy. Though the area wasn’t large, only 5,000 square kilometers, it still accounted for 4.2% of the current Castell territory.

This was a historical remnant of the Star-Moon War.

It was clear that Louis V had not given up on the legal claim over the Roman Duchy and still had intentions to reclaim the land.

But this matter didn’t concern Charlotte as much.

“Countess Castell, these are the terms from the royal family. So, what is your answer?”

Louis V looked at Charlotte again, his voice as calm as ever.

Charlotte also looked up at the aging monarch.

Meeting his scrutinizing gaze, she smiled slightly and said,

“Your Majesty, did you know that the first place I visited after settling in Lutecia was the Lutecia Cathedral?”

Louis V showed no surprise and said,

“I know about that visit. You stayed in Lutecia Cathedral for nearly three hours, spending two and a half hours meeting with Archbishop Lorraine, Grand Inquisitor Champagne, and Cardinal Mazarin.”

“For the remaining half an hour, you prayed devoutly in the cathedral, even invoking the holy light of the God Statue, causing quite a stir in the cathedral.”

“When you left, almost all the mid-to-high-ranking clergy in Lutecia Cathedral were present to see you off.”

“Oh, and before the prayer, you donated a whole chest of gold tana to the church, not one more or less, just 200,000, all minted in the sixth edition of the kingdom’s gold tana from 1437 to 1441 of the Holy Calendar.”

As he spoke, Louis V glanced at Charlotte with a peculiar smile.

“By the way, out of the 200,000 gold tana you donated, 100,000 were eventually replaced with the fifth edition of gold tana minted in 1418 by the church officials in charge of the funds.”

Charlotte: …

My goodness, is Louis V a spy? How does he know so much?

As for Louis V mentioning that her donation was swapped by the church officials, that was just trying to stir up trouble.

In 1418 of the Holy Calendar, the Star-Moon War was in full swing, and at that time, both the Crescent Kingdom and the Starfall Kingdom were in financial straits, minting insufficiently pure gold tana.

That was the fifth edition of the gold tana after the unified currency of Myria, which contained copper and nickel, making each gold tana only worth about 80% of its actual value, a scandal in the currency issuance of the two kingdoms.

Less than thirty years later, the Holy Court introduced the sixth edition of gold tana, requiring all countries to mint new coins because of this issue.

Charlotte clicked her tongue, thinking that the Holy Court was indeed becoming more corrupt. For cleric to dare commit fraud under the eyes of Legendaries, their guts were truly extraordinary.

However, given the nature of those Legendaries, they probably didn’t care about such trivial matters as donations.

After all, for Legendaries, gold and silver were just numbers, only the extraordinary resource mattered to them.

Although Louis V’s intent was clear, Charlotte had to admit that her already subtle impression of the Holy Court had become even more nuanced.

For those who didn’t know, it might seem like she had donated half a box of substandard gold tana!

Sighing lightly, Charlotte said,

“Your Majesty, your intelligence is very detailed.”

“I am, after all, the Master of the Crescent. Nothing in Lutecia escapes my eyes.”

Louis V replied indifferently.

Nothing escapes his eyes…

Charlotte’s mind stirred, lost in thought.

Louis V looked at her again with interest and asked.

“So, Countess Castell, what are you trying to say by mentioning that visit to the cathedral?”

Charlotte put aside her thoughts and said calmly.

“On that day, the Legendary clerics of the church invited me to become a Saintess of the Holy Court in the Crescent Diocese.”

Silence…

As Charlotte’s words fell, the entire reception room fell into a deep silence.

It wasn’t just ordinary quietness, it felt as if the whole world had momentarily frozen and become oppressive.

Charlotte could feel Louis V’s gaze becoming sharp in an instant. Although the Legendary pressure wasn’t outwardly visible, his entire aura had changed dramatically.

Meeting Louis V’s oppressive gaze, Charlotte smiled slightly and said,

“However, I declined.”

Almost instantly, Louis V’s rising aura dissipated, and time resumed its normal flow, sweeping away the oppressive atmosphere.

His gaze returned to calm, and his dignified voice softened, with a hint of appreciation.

“A wise choice.”

After speaking, he took another sip of non-bubbly wine and then asked, with a probing look.

“So, Countess Castell, can I take it that you intend to tell me that you have abandoned your previous oath to the Lord?”

Charlotte sighed slightly, showing a nostalgic expression, and said with a hint of sorrow.

“I respect the Lord, which is why I once made an oath before Him.”

“However, the facts have proven that respecting the Lord and respecting the Church are two different things.”

“I can dedicate everything to the Lord, but the Church… forgive me for saying this, but after all that has happened in the past two years, I am already disappointed with the Church as it stands today.”

“I will remain unmarried and dedicate my life to the Lord, but I will no longer uphold the previous oath regarding Castell territory.”

Hearing Charlotte’s words, Louis V finally showed relief. He smiled slightly and nodded at Charlotte with satisfaction.

“Then… Countess Castell, as the King of the Crescent, I welcome you to become my vassal.”

“Of course, becoming your vassal is also an honor for the Castell family.”

Charlotte replied.

Seeing Charlotte’s respectful attitude, Louis V was even more satisfied.

“Countess Castell, since you have made your choice, the royal family will respond accordingly, giving the Castell family the status and position it deserves.”

“However, merely telling me this is not enough. I need you to publicly renounce your previous oath. Only then can our contract formally take effect.”

“So, Your Majesty, how would you like me to make this public declaration?”

Charlotte asked calmly.

“At the enfeoffment ceremony, I need you to publicly renounce the previous oath at the Castell family’s enfeoffment ceremony. I will hold the enfeoffment ceremony for the Castell family in the Crescent Palace in three days, officially announcing the Castell family as my vassal.”

Louis V said.

Charlotte thought for a moment and then nodded slightly.

“As you wish.”