TDATD⋆♱✮

XLV

☆ ★ ✮ ★𖡼𖤣𖥧𖡼𓋼𖤣𖥧𓋼𓍊☆ ★ ✮ ★
ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 45

Guided by the priests, all the nobles began to return to their places. Judith headed to the side of the pillar with Derrick and her brother.

The outdoor baptistery is divided into an inner and outer part based on a pattern drawn on the floor.

The inside, where the consecration ceremony took place, was adorned with a silver altar, with a cross standing upright in the middle, and long candlesticks placed with regular interval spaces in between.

And on the outside, from the stairs, where you walk down to exit the inside of the baptistery, were dozens of pillars and comfortable chairs between them. The outside was a space where nobles waited for the consecration ceremony.

Judith, who sat in one of the seats in the row of chairs, watched the Emperor’s consecration ceremony.

The High Priest put the translucent holy water, that was brought by the priest, on Killiton’s forehead, chin, and both of his earlobes. Then, he placed his hands above Killiton’s head. As the High Priest began muttering something, a white energy, similar to the color of sunlight, poured out from his palms.

Derrick said that everything in the temple was of little use to the devil, but because of the tension, Judith’s mouth went dry. What if Killiton is possessed by Hannibal and the divine power will have some kind of influence on him..? She wishes it were that way. If that were the case, at the least, the Hannibal candidate, which has been a headache for so long, with be sorted out.

Contrary to her earnest wish, Killiton’s consecration ceremony ended very peacefully. A swarm of bright light seeped from the High Priest’s palms and sucked in as if being absorbed into something.

“Sincerely, I hope that God’s grace will continue to remain with His Majesty the Emperor and the entire Tyrher Empire.”

When the Emperor got up from his kneeling position, the Paladins that were covering him, struck down the spears they were holding two times. The ground shook with a pounding sound. Next, the choir sang a hymn to the Emperor using a delicate voice. Beyond the temple barrier, the commoner cheered, ‘Long live His Majesty the Emperor!’ It was a peaceful and intimate atmosphere befitting for a holy celebration.

Killiton’s red hair gently swayed in the gentle breeze. He looked around with a cheerful expression for the first time in a while. At the same time, I could feel the nobles sitting nearby taking a deep breath.

The first objective of the consecration ceremony is always fixed on the Emperor. And then, it was within the Emperor’s authority to choose who would receive the blessing in the second ceremony. It wasn’t hard to know that the person he would point out was in fact someone in this empire who owned the absolute trust of the Emperor.

At every consecration ceremony that is only held once a year, Killiton always singled out Derrick Vaisil. Judith somewhat expected that it would probably be like that today, too.

“Now, is it my turn to choose?”

With the help of a priest, Killiton, who had a red cloak wrapped around his shoulder, resembled the image of the only emperor of this empire, no matter what anyone said.

“Duchess Vaisil.”

Eventually, his lips, which give a sense of a dangerous reptile, moved and pointed at someone. Judith fully expected the Duke of Vaisil, but her eyes widened at the word ‘Duchess’ that followed.

In an instant, all eyes were on her.

She took all the needless gaze from others like arrows trying to attack her. For a very short period, Judith felt her skin sting as if arrowheads flew to her from all directions. Cold sweat formed on her back. From the seat next to her, she felt Derrick’s eyes on her, but her body froze and she couldn’t meet his eyes.