Villainess X Villain: They are obsessed with each other!

Chapter 213 -: 212 Executing the heretic.[4]

"Tsk." Sebastian clicked his tongue audibly.

Count Kalan had not originally belonged to his faction, however due to the enormous influence the count possessed within the empire, Sebastian had still allowed him into his inner circle. Never once had he imagined the man would betray him like this.

The nobles standing beside him were no different. Their expressions had already darkened heavily, yet none of them dared to speak.

Calling Count Kalan a traitor in front of the Saint and the Commander would only make them look suspicious as well.

In the current atmosphere, even the slightest wrong word could become a noose around their necks.

Because of that, they could only grit their teeth silently and swallow their frustration.

"Now then, Your Highness," Uriel spoke calmly, breaking the suffocating silence that had settled across the chamber. "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

His blindfolded face remained expressionless, however the pressure behind his voice slowly tightened.

"Not only did you ally yourself with people you should never have approached, you were also preparing to sell the empire itself." Uriel’s tone sharpened slightly. "Do you understand how grave of a mistake that is?"

Sebastian immediately forced his expression to relax.

The panic that had briefly surfaced inside his eyes disappeared almost instantly as he lowered his voice into one of practiced calmness.

"It is a misunderstanding...."

"Ah..." Uriel interrupted before he could even finish. The Saint tilted his head slightly, his face showing visible annoyance now.

"Not this again." The simple words immediately caused Sebastian’s chest to tighten.

"What exactly is the misunderstanding, Your Highness?" Uriel asked coldly.

"His Majesty, the Emperor, is currently bedridden, yet instead of focusing on the empire and caring for His Majesty, you have been holding private meetings with influential nobles."

His voice gradually became firmer, carrying an authority that pressed heavily against everyone present. "Is that also a misunderstanding?"

Commander Cassian’s gaze also turned colder as he stared toward Sebastian and the nobles around him as though they were already criminals awaiting judgment.

"You never lacked support in the succession battle, did you?" Uriel continued.

"According to the Church’s information, neither the second prince nor the third prince possesses any meaningful backing, and Cecil herself has no desire for the throne."

Uriel slowly raised the recording artifact slightly.

"So tell me, Your Highness..." His voice became quieter. "What exactly was the purpose of this meeting?"

Sebastian’s fingers twitched faintly.

Sweat had already begun gathering beneath his collar, though he continued maintaining his composed appearance desperately.

"You were already considered the most likely candidate to inherit the throne," Uriel continued. "Yet despite that, you still chose to ally yourself with the Thorne family."

The moment those words fell, Crypian visibly flinched on the floor.

However, almost nobody paid attention to him anymore. The focus of the chamber had completely shifted toward Sebastian.

"Why?" Uriel asked. His expression darkened slightly. "Were you competing for another empire instead?"

The surrounding nobles immediately stiffened.

Then Uriel spoke again. "Or..." His voice suddenly dropped lower, carrying clear hostility now.

"Were you attempting to ally yourself with the Thornes in hopes of opposing the Church itself?"

"What?!" Sebastian finally lost part of his composure.

His eyes widened visibly before he immediately forced out a hurried denial.

"No, Your Holiness, I would never...." His voice carried panic now despite his efforts to suppress it.

"I was merely trying to establish a trade agreement while keeping the people of the empire in mind."

He continued speaking with an expression filled with false sincerity, however inside, Sebastian’s mind had already descended into chaos.

’This blind bastard!’ The curse exploded inside his thoughts alongside growing panic.

’How did he reach that conclusion?’

Sebastian had never revealed his true intentions to anyone aside from Duke Ryane Roseblade.

The matter regarding weakening the Church’s influence had been discussed in absolute secrecy.

So how did Uriel know? Sebastian slowly drew in a breath before exhaling again, trying desperately to calm the growing sense of danger clawing at his chest.

No. He absolutely could not panic here.

If he lost control now, everything would truly end.

"Please, Your Holiness," Sebastian continued carefully, "you misunderstand my intentions. I was simply trying to...."

"Enough!" Uriel’s voice exploded across the chamber.

Several nobles visibly flinched.

The Saint’s calm demeanor had completely vanished once again, replaced by anger and disappointment. Inside his mind however, Uriel almost wanted to laugh.

This was far easier than expected. Sebastian was already crumbling on his own. Uriel slowly turned his head.

"Sir Cassian."

"Yes, Your Holiness." Commander Cassian immediately lowered his head obediently.

His expression almost looked fanatical as he waited for the Saint’s next words.

Uriel spoke slowly, making sure every single person inside the chamber heard him clearly.

"I, Uriel, the Third Saint in the history of the Holy Empire..."

Sebastian’s pupils shrank violently. A sudden chill ran down his spine.

No...

"...Hereby declare Sebastian Evander, first prince of the Holy Empire and son of Baek Donaven Evander..."

Sebastian finally lost the last traces of calmness on his face.

"Your Holiness, wait...."

"...unworthy of inheriting the throne." Uriel finished speaking.

For a few moments, the entire chamber fell completely silent as the nobles stared at him in utter disbelief.

None of them had expected things to escalate this far. The Saint had personally declared the first prince unworthy of inheriting the throne.

That was no simple accusation. Inside the Holy Empire, the words of the Saint carried terrifying weight.

The people worshipped the Church fanatically, and the Saint himself was viewed almost as a divine figure.

If Uriel refused to acknowledge Sebastian as the next emperor, then the prince’s path toward the throne had essentially been severed completely.

And Sebastian himself understood that better than anyone. The prince’s face lost its remaining color as he immediately dropped onto one knee.

"Please, Your Holiness," Sebastian said hurriedly, his voice no longer as steady as before. "Do not punish me so severely. Everything I did was for the future of the empire."

For the first time since the meeting began, genuine desperation had begun leaking into his voice.

The surrounding nobles looked toward him with shaken expressions, yet none of them stepped forward to help.

No one wanted to stand against the Church at this moment.

Before Sebastian could continue speaking, Commander Cassian suddenly stepped forward.

"Back away." His cold voice echoed sharply across the hall. "It would tarnish the Saint’s honor if you touched him."

Sebastian’s expression stiffened instantly.

Right now, even kneeling too closely before Uriel was being treated as disrespectful.

Inside his mind however, Uriel almost felt entertained.

’Right, right... keep going, Sir Cassian.’

Naturally, he could not say those words aloud, but he truly had not expected everything to proceed this smoothly.

After all, he had not done much. He had only arranged a simple scheme to corner Crypian Thorne while placing a spy near Sebastian beforehand.

Count Kalan. A rather strange devotee.

Originally, the count himself had not even been religious. His father had been a devoted believer of the Church, but Kalan had always remained indifferent toward faith. If anything, he had been closer to what people would call an atheist.

That only changed during the Saint Trial.

The moment he witnessed Uriel calmly gouge out his own eyes before the entire empire in order to prove his devotion to the Goddess, something inside Count Kalan completely broke.

From that day onward, he became fanatically loyal to the Saint himself.

Not merely to the Church, only Uriel.

And because of that, Uriel had placed him beside Sebastian long ago, simply waiting for an opportunity.

The Church could not directly interfere in royal succession without proper reason.

There were laws preventing such actions unless the royal family had clearly fallen into corruption or acted against the empire itself.

Because of that, Uriel needed justification.

A reason strong enough to invoke the authority granted to the Saint.

And Sebastian had willingly handed him one.

When Uriel originally came here to deal with Crypian, and find a way to associate the prince with Crypian and use it as an excuse to deem him unworthy, Count Kalan had secretly informed him about the discussion regarding TCL and the alliance with the Thornes.

The moment Uriel learned of it, he immediately understood how useful the situation could become.

The first prince had practically walked himself into a trap without even realizing it.

Sebastian had been too desperate to secure support for the succession.....and the matter regarding his future plans to weaken the influence of the Church!

In his impatience, he failed to notice how dangerous it was to involve the Thornes while the Saint himself was present within the Church!

After that, the rest became simple.

Uriel merely pushed the situation slightly.

And now the first prince was already kneeling before him in desperation.

Though...

Uriel’s thoughts shifted slightly as his blindfolded gaze slowly moved toward Crypian, who was still being restrained by the paladins.

At this point, should he let Crypian go?