King
Chapter 1240 - 1240 211 The Five Ultra Chiefs_3

1240: Chapter 211: The Five Ultra Chiefs_3 1240: Chapter 211: The Five Ultra Chiefs_3 Hudson’s words also represented the thoughts of most of the secular nobility in the Kingdom.

It was fine to support the establishment of a new church, but the cost of garnering allies must be borne by the New Church; the secular nobility were not prepared to pay the bill.

A mere trifle of benefits would clearly not suffice.

To gain support from various countries, it was necessary to give up a portion of the core management power of the Clergy.

Once a compromise was made in this aspect, the establishment of a church by the Alpha Clan alone would turn into a joint establishment of a church by five clans—with everyone being a shareholder of this New Church.

Without a doubt, the addition of four decision-making shareholders would certainly weaken the interests represented by Archbishop Tyron and his native religious faction.

“Marshal Hudson, if four countries get involved, then who will have the final say in the end?

If we cannot control the management rights of the New Church, what’s the point in our establishing this New Church?

After all, with the Alien Coalition in between, flying the flag of the Frank Church does not impact our interests.

In such a case, we could also sell our Staff of Glory for a good price and pull the Kingdom out of its financial deficit!” Prime Minister Duke Newfoundland said in question.

As a member of The Royal Family, his priority was to consider the interests of The Royal Family.

According to the plan, after the establishment of the New Church, Archbishop Tyron of The Royal Family will assume the role of Pope.

In the future, The Royal Family would centralize both religious and secular power, thereby establishing The Royal Family’s supreme status within the Kingdom.

“Chancellor, although the Divine Artifact is immensely powerful, for the Kingdom, it only adds a deterrent.

For this, we might even have to oppose the Clergy.

If the Frank people offer a high enough price, selling them the Staff of Glory is not out of the question.

By doing this, we wouldn’t just be free from the Clergy’s hostility but also resolve the financial issues of the Kingdom.”

Duke Hiro said with a chuckle.

Knowing full well that the Chancellor’s words were sarcastic, and yet so openly confronting him, this was more than a simple disagreement in political views, but rather a struggle between the Major Nobles and the royal authority.

Everyone could overlook the fact that the Staff of Glory was kept secret.

However, The Royal Family’s intent to monopolize divine authority was utterly unacceptable to all parties.

Otherwise, in the future, if there was a conflict of interest with The Royal Family, would they not be directly branded as heretics?

It seemed as though Duke Hiro was suggesting selling the Staff of Glory, but in reality, it was the common thought among many Major Nobles.

No matter how good a Divine Artifact was, it wasn’t for their own control.

Rather than leaving it in the hands of The Royal Family to threaten their own safety, it was better to trade it for benefits.

“Duke is right, what the Kingdom lacks right now is not an illusory Clergy; the key is to resolve the financial problems as soon as possible.

The Orc Empire is now severely damaged, which is the best opportunity for the Kingdom to destroy this arch-enemy.

As long as the financial crisis is lifted, we can prepare to campaign to the east.

Just one Divine Artifact, if it must be sacrificed, so be it.

As long as our strength is strong enough, even without the Inherited Artifacts, we can still establish a New Church!”

The words of Duke Zuell completely ignited this storm.

Both the south and the north Major Nobles expressing their stance simultaneously was akin to representing the common thoughts of the southern and northern nobility.

Caesar IV, after surveying his subjects, witnessed trouble in the firm gazes of the various lords.

Initially, he thought that Hudson’s proposal was already tricky enough, but he did not expect the domestic Major Nobles to be even less merciful towards The Royal Family.

It seemed as though the Staff of Glory, to be handed over to the Kingdom by Hudson, involved no contribution from The Royal Family, but in reality, The Royal Family had already paid numerous hidden prices.

The rise of the Major Nobles was never smooth sailing, and the Koslow Family’s smooth rise had the protection and escort from someone.

Sometimes, opposition does not necessarily mean an open conflict; the usual practice is the suppression in the dark.

For instance: when you want to buy grain, the market suddenly has a grain shortage; when you want to buy cloth, the market’s cloth suddenly runs out…

Or for example: at a crucial trading point, caravans suddenly disappear and no longer visit.

…

In an era where resources were monopolized, targeting a clan of Emerging Nobility was all too easy.

To break the impasse, the best option was to secure the support of a Major Noble in advance, making it clear to everyone that the blockade was meaningless.

In a sense, the rapid development of the Koslow Family was also heavily backed by The Royal Family.

The only problem was that Hudson’s rise was too swift, and his soaring prestige had firmly planted the Koslow Family within the Major Noble circle, somewhat beyond control.

“Enough!”

“The Staff of Glory coming into the hands of the Kingdom is a generous gift from the Lord of the Dawn, not to be used as a bargaining chip with others.

Today, we are here to discuss how to gain the support of four countries, not to listen to your bad ideas.

As a devout believer, I will not allow anyone to insult my faith!

Countless followers of the Lord of the Dawn in our country are watching us!

I don’t want to hear such blasphemy against the Divine Spirit ever again!”

Caesar IV rebuked sternly.

If benefits can’t be discussed, then let’s talk about faith.

In this theocratic world, aside from those fanatical Arcanists, no Noble would dare blaspheme openly.

“Your Majesty, if we want the support of four countries to establish a new Clergy, the best option is actually to make them one of us.

Divide the diocese into five parts right away, and announce five Great Shepherds, letting each country handle its religious affairs on its own.

The representatives from the four countries’ Sanctuaries have not left yet, we might as well just lay it all out and invite the four of them to serve as the Great Shepherds of their respective country’s diocese.

If other countries join later on, we can continue to appoint more Great Shepherds to avoid further power struggles.”

Hudson said, resolutely.

Some sides must be taken, but given his special identity, he could neither fully support The Royal Family nor directly side with the Noble’s Camp.

In desperation, he had no choice but to play a dirty trick.

According to Hudson’s plan, The Royal Family could get religious authority but not completely.

Once all five Great Shepherds are set, there will be someone to do all the work, so what’s the need for a Pope?

A Clergy without a Pope and one with a Pope differs not just in name, but in entirely different political status.

On the Continent of Aslante, the Pope is a unique entity, holding supreme authority.

If he accuses you of blasphemy, then it’s blasphemy.

In comparison, the Ultra Chief is far less significant, essentially just an Archbishop with greater power.

If one talks nonsense too much, everyone could just swing their fists at them.

The power to decide life and death with a single word is an authority exclusive to the Pope.

If looks could kill, Archbishop Tyron would have already torn Hudson to pieces.

They were still good friends just yesterday, and today he’s cutting off his path to being Pope; it’s utterly unfilial.

“Your Marshal, the representatives from the four countries’ Sanctuaries are not Clergy, how can they serve as…”

Before Archbishop Tyron could finish, Hudson forcefully interrupted: “Your Grace, the Bishop, since we are establishing a new Church, we can’t be as traditional as before.

We are all believers of the Lord of the Dawn, who stipulated that only Clergy can take on religious duties?

These are all barriers to progress, mere deceitful practices left by the decayed Church to fool the world, it might be better to scrap them entirely.

The great Lord of the Dawn is inclusive, all believers have the right to serve the Divine Spirit, no one should strip that away!”

During his speech, Hudson looked at Archbishop Tyron with a hint of apology in his eyes.

He had no choice; he had to disappoint his friend this time.

The news of the Divine Artifact had already been leaked.

The King was now determined to keep the Staff of Glory, even throwing around the accusation of blasphemy for it.

The position of the Noble Consortium was also very clear, firmly against The Royal Family controlling the Church.

If the dispute continued, the situation might well spiral out of control.

To resolve this conflict, Hudson had to make a move.

As the price of mediating the dispute, Archbishop Tyron’s dream of being Pope was directly shattered.

With the structure of five Great Shepherds established, where five countries’ dioceses are on equal footing, even holding a Divine Artifact would only put one half a step higher.

To aspire to become a Pope, it’s as if the other four Great Shepherds were dead!