"That is not what I am saying. I am just worried that you are confusing your feelings. I respect you as the Saintess, but you are also a young person with little life experience. Please allow this old man to look after you a little more."
The Cardinal was in a bad situation. He had already been rejected by the Saintess once in front of everyone, and his reputation was going down fast.
At such a time, it was critical for him to try and gain her support back.
But Seraphina looked detached, and her eyes told him that she was not willing to compromise. There was just no way to convince her.
"Wait! Does that mean the ones at fault are the temple?"
"Talk about a 180-degree turn. He was blaming the Grand Master all this time, only for the Saintess to name him as the culprit."
"I wonder how he will try to wiggle out of it."
People were looking at the Cardinal as if he were their prey. Their eyes were sharp, and the Cardinal knew he could not hide anymore.
’I need an excuse! Any kind of excuse-’
"Saintess, I am aware that you don’t have fond memories of the temple, but please don’t let that form a bias. I will take responsibility and clear out the temple personally to ensure it is safe for you. So please, give your servant another chance-"
"Cardinal, aren’t you acting too desperate? Most people would have been too ashamed to even lift their heads after what happened, but you are still trying to pressure the Saintess. Are you...trying to do something to her?"
Kael drove the final nail into the coffin that was the Cardinal’s reputation. If he still had the nerve to pressure Seraphina after this, then his reputation would be completely ruined.
Sigh
"It saddens me to see that you are not willing to believe me. Very well, you may leave for now. But please, give the temple and me another chance. I promise we can do better."
Cardinal Flux gave up, but Kael had no patience for his games anymore. He felt like he had played along long enough.
"Unfortunately, I don’t think I would like to bring Saintess Seraphina to the temple again. At least, not as long as someone like you is in charge."
"What does that even mean? Are you accusing me of something?"
Cardinal Flux asked, and Kael nodded. He decided to take this risk because he could feel how close Iris was with the evidence. She would be at his side within a few minutes, so Kael could afford to take this risk.
"Well, I just recently found some ’important’ documents that made me distrust you. Can you think of a few that might be the culprit?"
Kael asked, and the Cardinal immediately became defensive.
"Once again, I have no idea what you mean. If you are accusing me, I hope you are ready with the evidence to prove it."
Cardinal Flux asked, and Kael nodded.
"Of course I have evidence. Just give it a few seconds, and it will be here."
He promised, causing the Cardinal to scoff. He clearly did not believe that Kael had any evidence worth presenting, and Kael snapped his fingers to open the door for Iris to enter.
As soon as the door opened, a few butterflies entered the room, which surprised even Kael. He could sense strong magic on these butterflies, but he did not recognize it.
The butterflies fluttered and stopped in front of Cardinal Flux.
"You arrogant fool! You have served your purpose. Our partnership is over since you failed to uphold your side of the contract. From here on, I will not help you control the Saintess."
The butterfly fluttered and spoke at the same time. Its voice sounded like a child’s, likely to prevent people from identifying the real speaker.
"Since we are cutting ties, I have sent all the evidence over to expose your crimes. Also, you used magic beyond what your body was capable of handling, and your divine powers got corrupted as a result. I am no longer willing to put myself in danger because of you."
The butterfly continued, and no one moved or spoke, not wanting to miss the evidence of the Cardinal’s sins.
"If you all don’t believe me, then find the copies of the letters in the Cardinal’s office, inside a hidden compartment in his desk. It can only be opened by his divine power, but I am sure you will find a way to open it. Inside are magic-imbued letters that cannot be destroyed."
"And if you all are still not convinced after that, then just question the Cardinal under oath. Now, I would like to wash my hands of this fool who got himself corrupted."
The butterfly stopped fluttering, and even the last trace of magic bled out of its body. Now it was nothing more than a simple letter that the Cardinal reached for and grabbed.
"Kael, that magic-"
Leon started, and Kael nodded.
"I know. It’s too faint. I don’t even think I can track it down with the resources I have."
Someone had taken a lot of precautions before reaching out to expose the truth. And the Cardinal had been a useful pawn, despite what happened.
For their partner to cut them off...things must be truly dire.
"None of this is true! T-This is a conspiracy against me. Do you all truly believe that I am that kind of person? Because I am not. You all must believe me and-"
The Cardinal instantly defended himself while looking around, but no one was looking at him.
In fact, everyone looked away from him to hide their expressions and began to whisper. But it was still loud enough to reach the Cardinal.
"I always knew something was seriously wrong with him. I mean, he just gave off that vibe."
"I know what you mean. He felt so ’off,’ but I never complained because he was the Cardinal. But now..."
"What else is he hiding from us? I’m almost afraid to ask at this point. But we should know, just to be sure, right?"
People once again turned against the Cardinal, but this time, he was not able to keep his cool.
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