The Transmigration Survival Guide Volume 3 Chapter 40
A knight came in with a letter: âAh, Your Excellency, Mr. Lin. I am very sorry for disturbing you two.it is just that Her Majesty has an invitation I must immediately deliver to you.â
The pope froze for a second then took the letter and examined it. It was in a very pretty envelope with refined skills. The envelope gave off the resplendent aura of a noble. Queen Sisi had her unique double âsâ initials on the heat stamp.
While it looked as though it was a trap disguised as a celebration, the pope didnât comment. He opened the envelope and read the letter: âHer Majestyâs invitation? Tonight? Understood. I will be there.â
The pope looked at me with a strange look and smiled: âMr. Lin, you are Her Majestyâs esteemed guest. Did you receive an invitation?â
I froze for a moment. I suddenly realised I made a tragic mistake I.
I forgot to tell Queen Sisi to invite me. If the pope found out I didnât receive an invitation, heâd immediately realise planned to lure him away. I already came up with the best plan. Only to overlook the simplest part!!
âOh, it appears that she has invited you.â
Before I could come up with an appropriate response, the pope muttered a part on the letter. Curious, I took a look. He handed me the invitation with a smile. I was surprised to see the name written on the invitation; my name was also written on there.
âBeautiful, Your Majesty!!â I said to myself.
The Queen wasnât an idiot. She, in fact, was very astute. She had a complete grasp of my plan. She easily figured it out and covered my mistake. I like working with smart people. If Her Majesty and I joined hands, we could definitely resolve any problems.
Relieved, I quietly laughed: âLetâs put aside our business for now, then. Iâll see you at Her Majestyâs place again tonight. I dare not be late. It is Her Majesty weâre seeing, after all.â
I assumed the pope didnât expect the invite. He nodded: âIndeed. I would not dare be late, either. See you then.â
I played ignorant. I guess it was a fluke. Nevertheless, thanks to Queen Sisi being sharp, we avoided exposing the plan.
I felt somewhat confused when I stepped out of the chapel and looked up at the hot sun. I observed the people going back and forth on the street. I hadnât make the switch after coming out from the dark chapel to seeing the bright sun and happy crowds. I took a couple of steps with a hazy mind. When I reached the street I looked around to figure out where I was.
Fortunately, I figured out the popeâs thinking. How shall I put it? He didnât appear to be a diabolic individual. He was a very earnest and loyal individual. As opposed to saying he was trying to pull a stunt, itâd be better to say smug Queen Sisi, who just ended the tumultuous war, planned to eliminate all those who could challenge her on a political level. The chapel hadnât done anything that crossed the line; they just need money. Meanwhile, the Queen latched onto the chapelâs need for money to turn it into a reason for her to destroy them. That was the entire gist of their feud.
The Queen could, by all means, give the pope a sum of money for him to treat his daughter but she didnât. Instead, she decided to kick the downed man. Queen Sisiâs approach was simple. She wanted one thing: she wanted the pope to die. Despite that, the pope didnât do anything that crossed the line. I believe what the pope said. He didnât plan to hurt the Queen. In fact, he was ready to die.
The one thing the pope couldnât abandon was his daughter. From his perspective, his death would inevitably lead to the death of his daughter. He wasnât trying to save himself; he merely tried to extend his daughterâs life.
The reason the pope asked to meet me was probably purely to plead me to take care of his daughter if he fails. If their plan succeeded, his daughter would be safe. Put another way, the situation would demand Queen Sisi to spare them. If I succeeded, the chapel would become an execution ground.
The pope was the victim. As opposed to calling me a guard stopping an assassination that might cause a revolt, I was merely a tyrantâs helper. I might not be able to protect his family, let alone him. If Queen Sisi wanted him dead, he was bound to die.
I couldnât oppose Queen Sisi. She wasnât wrong per se, but her actions were that of a tyrantâ. I, however, was nobody. If I senselessly opposed her, sheâd easily squash me. While she was a tyrant, the one positive aspect was that she was a rational tyrant. She didnât mindlessly kill people, but if she wanted to kill someone, there was no escaping death.
âWhere am I right now?â I wondered. I turned around and peered in the direction I lodged before heading over.
There was nothing else to do for the meantime, so I needed to visit Ascilia. I planned to see her at noon. I planned to think of a way to take Ascilia away at night. I couldnât destroy the popeâs entire family. It would be very meaningful if Ascilia lived.
I rubbed my sore calf while sitting in the carriage. I tried to connect the dots: âWhat do I need to ensure Ascilia lives? Additionally, what can I get from the chapel? I can protect Ascilia, but Iâm not obligated to. Sheâs my bargaining chip. What should I get from the chapel? Whatâs in the chapelâs literature room?
What exactly does the chapel want? If they donât intend to harm the Queen, they wouldnât possibly assassinate her. I knew the chapel wouldnât do something so foolish. What will they do, then? The chapel wants the chapel to recognise her mistake and serve her humble pie. They want to crush her arrogance. What would have to be done to humble her, then?â
I made sense of a lot of information, but the pieces didnât connect. âThe chapel took in the adventurers who fought in the war against the demon race. The chapel might have weapons; the chapel wonât kill the Queen, but will crush her pride. What exactly does the chapel want to do? What connects those four dots? What in the world is it?â
The carriage suddenly came to a halt. From the other side of the window, the elder coach remarked, âYou did not bring your daughter with you today,â
I dawdled for a moment then responded, âAh, yes. My wife has arrived. The two of them are going out to play today.â
âI see. Thus is the fate of men. After all, we have to work to feed our families. Without the cute missy next to you, I cannot help but feel something missing.â
The carriage began to move again, taking me closer to my goal. Apparently, the carriage almost hit someone passing by. I looked over and found myself surprised.
It was a succubus prostitute. She kept looking around, scanning every carriage, though I didnât know what for. It wasnât time for a succubus prostitute to be out.
I wondered, âWhat in the world is she doing? I have enough to think about already. Itâs none of my business. Wait⌠Did the coach just say that thereâs something missing without Leah by my side? Wait⌠WaitâŚâ
My brain went into overdrive: âWhatâs missingâŚ? Whatâs missing from the chapelâs planâŚ?â
I froze stiff. A sickening cold sensation gripped my left foot. A chill ran up my spine.
My brain continued firing on all cylinders: âIf Iâm correct, if this crazy idea of mine is correct⌠then⌠then⌠I know what the chapel wants to do now!! Those bloody madmen!â
Its chances of success were next to zero, because they were missing the key to the entire plan!! I, however, brought the key to the imperial capital!
âTurn back!!! Hurry! Turn back!!â I went wild, hammering the carriage and shouting to the coach.
The coach froze for a moment. After the coach came to an abrupt halt, he began to turn it around. I poked my head out from the window and belted, âHurry back!! Hurry back!! I need to go back to the inn Iâm staying at!! Hurry!!â