Chapter 400: Bloodline Event Unlocked

"I’m glad the trial ended without incident."

"It’s all thanks to the two of you. I never imagined anyone would try to use a dispute in my domain to legalize witch hunts. Thankfully, the Bishopric of Lanseh seems favorably disposed toward me."

The day after the special trial ended, I arranged a meeting with Andreas and Francisco to discuss what lay ahead. It seemed Francisco also had business with me before heading back.

"The bishop supports your rightful rule, my lord."

"That’s much appreciated. To be honest, I was worried about how the bishopric might react."

The Bishopric of Lanseh was a territory within the Rosenheim sphere, but unlike in France, the right of investiture lay with the pope. Simply put, it was seen as someone else’s land sitting inside my own domain.

"The bishop has sent you a letter, my lord."

The letter Francisco respectfully presented was embellished with gold leaf, absurdly luxurious for something sent by a clergyman. Hmm, I hear they rake in enormous sums in offerings and tithes. Are they swimming in money?

Anyway, I read the letter.

Hmm, written in Latin, as expected.

An upstart brat would have panicked, unable to read a word, but I know Latin, and French and Hungarian besides. Thanks to the System, of course. A language pack costs 5,000 points.

The contents, however, were anything but ordinary. I’d assumed it was a simple personal letter, but it recommended Francisco as Rosenheim’s court priest. Well, a bishopric could certainly make that kind of recommendation.

It wasn’t a bad idea, either.

Francisco’s disposition was devout (good), so he passed muster for now. Still, the court priest would be the religious figure closest to our family, and it would cause problems if the two of us didn’t see eye to eye on matters of doctrine.

"Father Francisco, what do you think of the special trial?"

"I don’t reject the special trial itself. However, since some clergymen, like Father Nikolaus, seek to abuse it for worldly gain, I believe it would be better if it were abolished altogether."

"You’ve heard that the Roman Curia is discussing witch hunts?"

"Yes. I’ve heard the outrageous rumors that the cardinals are egging His Holiness on."

The two priests crossed themselves and prayed.

As men of faith, they must have been worried about what was to come. This special trial alone had shown just how cruel people can become. If witch hunts were fully sanctioned, horrific atrocities would follow.

The good news was that, judging from the letter, the Bishopric of Lanseh was favorably inclined toward me. And Francisco, who would become court priest, was at the very least firmly opposed to indiscriminate witch hunts.

"As the bishop recommends, I will formally appoint you as court priest. We’ll hold the official proceedings in Rosenheim. But what will become of the priest who currently serves the Rosenheim church?"

"He will return to the Bishopric of Lanseh."

Personnel authority over all the village churches in Rosenheim lay with the Bishopric of Lanseh. In Andreas’s case, though, it seemed some sort of arrangement had been reached between Breisburg and Lanseh.

His heart lightened, Francisco gathered the monks and headed back for the time being. Once the crowd of clergy in black cassocks had filed out, the Feuzen church finally regained its usual quiet.

I spotted Maria, who had been hiding from the commotion, poking her head out. When I waved, she happily waved back. Aachen, who was painting the altarpiece, would be able to work in peace now as well.

The moment I stepped out of the church, a message popped up.

[You have achieved the Streit family trait ’Harmony’]

[Harmony Trait - The people of territories ruled by the Streit family shift their acceptance of outsiders from Hostile to Neutral. However, they remain exclusionary toward other religions (Judaism, Islam)]

[Reward - 100,000 points. 1,000 gold coins. 1,000 Family Prestige]

Huh? Where had this come from? Something completely unexpected had happened. Oscar and Ted eyed me curiously as I stopped dead in the church entrance. Right, this wasn’t the place to think it over. Better to head to my office.

Back in my office, I sat down and calmly went over the messages. There was a handy message recall feature, so I could review anything I’d missed. First off, what was this "trait" business?

[This is an exclusive family trait. Unlike quests, traits are not generated; they are created when specific conditions are met. The condition for the Harmony trait was mending the division among your people]

Hmm, so it was like a hidden quest. That meant that every time I solved one of Rosenheim’s problems, there was a chance of acquiring another trait, provided the conditions were met. Well, this had me motivated for the first time in a while.

The shift in acceptance to Neutral was especially welcome. You only had to look at how the Feuzen residents had shunned the Boeven migrants to see how serious the problem was. As for other religions, well, nothing to be done about that.

The special trial had grown out of regional selfishness in the end, so even Neutral instead of Hostile greatly improved the odds of resolving most such disputes. It seemed I could start actively recruiting migrants now.

And the reward alone was enough to drop my jaw.

A hundred thousand points? A thousand gold coins? A thousand prestige?

During the civil war, Feuzen had nearly burned to ashes. I fought the Count of Basel in Euz, and in Baschurten I ignored every objection, hauled up the cannons, and blew the gates apart. After grueling negotiations with those southern bastards, I cut across into the east. There I fought a pitched battle against the great army Louis led, then laid siege to Radensdorf and barely made it through the gates before securing the city. And was that the end of it? Those damned Bavarians invaded too, and I nearly wet myself holding them off with my life on the line.

All the wealth and points I had earned through that living hell, and a single trait matched the whole lot in one stroke. All that suffering, even leaving my pregnant Hilda behind, suddenly felt hollow.

But hey, so what? A reward is a reward!

Oh, God! You’ve handed me a winning lottery ticket!

Family Prestige 4,450 (Recognition 89%, Governance 89%)

On top of that, with Family Prestige soaring this high, governing should get a whole lot easier. Yeah, after all that suffering, a reward like this was a jackpot. And so the first thing that came to mind was the Child of the Wolf bloodline.

[Unlock the Child of the Wolf bloodline event?]

[100,000 points will be used]

[Child of the Wolf bloodline event unlocked]

[Bloodline events appear in stages from birth until adulthood]

So I wouldn’t get to see it right away, huh. Anyway, that seemed to wrap up the bloodline. I’d been wondering where to scrounge up the remaining 15,000 points, but this settled the matter cleanly, and I still had 85,000 points left over.

I would invest all of it in developing the domain. On my way to pour myself a glass of wine, I happened to run into Hilda in the hallway. She studied me for a moment, then broke into a smile.

"Wolf, did something good happen? You look like you’re in a wonderful mood."

"Of course! Seeing you always puts me in a wonderful mood. Come here!"

"Eeek! Master! What do you think you’re doing? The madam is carrying the young master!"

Overjoyed, I had swept Hilda up and spun her around and around. Hilda was at a stage where even a falling leaf called for caution, so Priscilla and Viola, who were always at her side, were horrified and stopped me at once.

Oh dear. My mistake. Hilda said she was fine, but Priscilla’s eyes were shooting lasers. Still, a pregnant wife and pregnant handmaids. Is this really all right?