Belladonna blinked without answering.

She looked into the deep golden eyes directed at her.

Unlike her own, they were unwavering, dignified eyes with a firm gaze that seemed to hold not a hint of fear.

Ah…

Was it because he was right in front of her? As their eyes met, she felt the confusion in her mind slowly settling down.

Escalion, still holding her cheek, opened his mouth.

“Bella, being apart from your husband so often seems to have made you forget, but you’re my wife.”

“…”

“Were you trying to do something on your own with this again? Don’t be ridiculous. It seems the Pope has been saying unnecessary things to you again, but I won’t fall for the same trick.”

“Th-this…”

What is this!

She tried to say something, but immediately a ridiculous voice came out.

It wasn’t easy to speak with her face held by him.

This is too much for my dignity…! Belladonna shook her head vigorously to try to remove his hand, but it wasn’t easy.

“P-please…”

“It’s cute and looks good, so why?”

Escalion said nonchalantly.

Belladonna looked at the man in front of her as if she couldn’t understand him at all.

She couldn’t believe how bold he was, playing such a silly prank even in this situation.

Should I be relieved that he’s not anxious or terribly afraid instead…?

“Now you’re back to your original face.”

Escalion, looking down at the bewildered Belladonna, pulled up the corners of his mouth.

My face…? Belladonna then realized that he had played this prank to loosen her mood, which had stiffened with tension.

“Bella, didn’t you say you’d never hide anything from me again?”

Soon, he changed his expression and asked with a serious face.

Belladonna, still held by him, nodded instead of answering.

“Then tell me what the Pope babbled to you. And why you looked like death warmed over.”

“If… if you’d let go…”

“Ah.”

Escalion raised both eyebrows as if regretful and removed his hand that had been holding her.

Belladonna, now back to her original face, let out a small sigh and opened her mouth.

“…The Pope is threatening me using Scarlet as a hostage.”

“What does he want?”

“For me to divorce you, receive alimony, and return to Astanya to continue life as a saint.”

“If it’s money he needs, I can give as much as he wants, but I can’t agree to the second condition.”

Escalion said, fiddling with his chin.

He raised one eyebrow and looked down at Belladonna with darkly shining golden eyes.

“I can’t understand why the Pope is so obsessed with someone else’s wife.”

The reason for the Pope’s obsession with the Saint…

“It’s likely because of the symbolism. He may not need the Saint’s holy power right now, but the Saint holds great significance for the believers. To maintain this level of scale and investment for the Papal State in the future, they need someone like the Saint.”

“If that’s the case, shouldn’t they have treated her better? So she wouldn’t want to leave in the first place.”

He said in a tone of incomprehension.

That’s right… Belladonna nodded and opened her mouth.

“Still, I don’t think it’s a good choice to show you to the Pope right away. As you might have guessed from the contents of these documents in my hand, he’s not in his right mind. One wrong move and Scarlet could be seriously hurt.”

“I agree with that. Then what do you think we should do?”

At his question, Belladonna furrowed her brow.

With this incomplete evidence, what can be done…

Besides these indirect proofs that Saint Belladonna had created, there must surely be evidence of the Pope’s actions inside the Papal State itself.

Then where could it be? Among the numerous rooms and warehouses of the Papal State, where he might hide such traces…

“The Pope didn’t do all this alone, did he?”

“Probably not. It’s more likely he used his underlings rather than moving directly.”

Who within the Papal State would he trust enough to entrust this task to?

‘…Of course, it’s Cardinal Nicholas.’

Belladonna recalled the image of Pope Provence and Cardinal Nicholas always together.

The Pope kept the Cardinal close, relying on him and using him like a limb, but when others weren’t looking, he treated him with more disdain than anyone else.

Belladonna couldn’t forget how Cardinal Nicholas would sometimes blush with humiliation.

“Excuse me, but what time is it now?”

“Now it’s…”

Escalion turned his head to look at the clock attached to the Papal State building.

Following his gaze to check the time, Belladonna suddenly grabbed his wrist.

“Escalion, I have a favor to ask! From now on, please go back to the entrance of the Papal State and stop Cardinal Nicholas from entering. No, take him far away! You can even kidnap him like the Pope kidnapped me!”

“What?”

At the sudden request, Escalion immediately frowned.

“Why Cardinal Nicholas all of a sudden? Is he coming to torment you?”

“No.”

Belladonna shook her head and said in a calm voice.

“I’m about to sow a small seed of doubt between the Pope and Cardinal Nicholas. A seed that will eventually grow large enough to strangle the Pope’s neck.”

Belladonna knocked on the office door with a tense face.

“Come in.”

After a moment, the Pope’s voice was heard from inside. His voice wore a mask of great kindness and generosity.

Entering the office, she could see the afternoon’s sparkling sunlight coming through the large window that immediately caught visitors’ attention.

Sitting at the desk placed under the window, his appearance at first glance seemed to be that of a pure clergyman abundantly blessed by God’s love.

‘In reality, it’s the complete opposite…’

Knowing his true nature, Belladonna moved forward feeling a subtle nausea.

Without raising his head from the scripture he was looking at while seated, he opened his mouth.

“I said I’d give you a day, but you’ve returned earlier than expected. How did it go?”

“The conversation ended early. As you said, I brought the divorce papers and restraining order. Both have his signature, and only need mine.”

At Belladonna’s answer, Pope Provence let out a snicker.

“Did Lord Diete hand over the papers so easily? With his fiery temper, he must have thrown a fit, but I didn’t hear any commotion.”

“How could he with his sister’s life at stake? He was very resistant, but agreed for everyone’s sake.”

Belladonna said in as calm a voice as possible, placing the divorce papers and restraining order signed by Escalion on the Pope’s desk.

His gaze, still not lifting his head, could be seen lingering on the papers.

“The alimony?”

Before long, his mouth opened.

As expected, it was about money again.

Escalion has no fault in this marriage, what alimony…

Belladonna slightly furrowed her brow so he wouldn’t notice, then opened her mouth.

“He promised to send the amount written at the bottom of the divorce papers monthly. The signature also guarantees that right.”

Satisfied with the amount, the Pope’s mouth corners turned up after shifting his gaze to check the numbers.

Watching this, Belladonna opened her mouth.

“Now release Scarlet.”

“Scarlet? Hmm…”

Pretending to hesitate uncharacteristically, he said.

“What if you two are in cahoots trying to deceive me?”

At his calm and brazen voice, Belladonna let out a sigh with a pale face.

He had intended this from the start.

Securing all the legal rights, but not releasing anything he held.

“Please keep your promise.”

“Promise? Belladonna, is that something you should say to me?”

Laughing as if deflating, the Pope asked back.

“You who speak out of both sides of your mouth, is that something you should say?”

“…”

“Don’t worry. Unlike you, I don’t speak with a forked tongue. I’ll have water and food sent to the room of that Scarlet woman or whatever her name is today. That should be enough to keep her alive for now.”

Isn’t speaking with a forked tongue his specialty, not mine? Glaring at his brazen face, Belladonna clenched her fists tightly.

“Then please at least let me see her face. I need to know if Scarlet is really safe.”

At her words, Provence opened his mouth as if considering.

She needed to drive the point home here. Belladonna quickly opened her mouth to add:

“If you don’t let me confirm, I can’t sign the papers. How could I do that without believing anything?”

“Well, alright. You weren’t completely stupid to begin with, so you might want to check that much. I’ll show you tomorrow morning.”

“No, show me right now.”

When Belladonna said firmly, Provence immediately frowned and closed his eyes.

That action also meant that he was starting to get annoyed.

He usually contorted his expression like this before resorting to violence without giving a chance to defend.

Recalling that, Belladonna’s body trembled slightly.

But she couldn’t stop here. She gathered a bit more courage and opened her mouth.

“If I can just know that Scarlet is safe, I can sign right away. What are you hesitating about now?”

“Alright, Belladonna…”

Eventually, the Pope who had closed his eyes spoke.

He stood up from his chair and picked up a thick cloth that was on the table, holding it out to her.

“Cover your eyes. I’ll take you to where that woman is being held.”

Belladonna obediently took the thick cloth that Pope Provence held out. After looking down at it for a moment, she opened her mouth.

“Oh, right. I found something on my way here. Would you like to check it?”

At these abrupt words that didn’t fit the situation, Provence turned his head with a dubious expression.

“What shallow trick is this now? If you’re trying to buy time, it will only be disadvantageous to you.”

“Of course not. The content is quite shocking, so I thought Father should definitely see it.”

Provence shook his head as if annoyed.

“Stop this nonsense and just cover your eyes properly. It seems you want to distract my attention and find out where that woman is…”

Belladonna didn’t listen to the end of his words and held out the paper she was carrying.

Discovering the crumpled paper, a look of puzzlement appeared on Provence’s face.

“What is this?”

“Rather than me explaining, I think it would be better for you to read it yourself.”