Surviving as a Cult Leader in Another World (Going up)

"Butler Fred, where is Archbishop Archibald?"
"Well, His Eminence is very busy right now, so-"
"Archbishop Archibald. I know you're in this room. I'm coming in."
I entered the Archbishop's office located within the mansion.
Archbishop Archibald was calmly organizing documents, not even glancing at me.
He spoke, his lips barely moving,
"That was quite a defense. No one would have imagined that someone could postpone the trial right then and there. You managed to speak boldly in front of Coram Deo, that bull-headed man."
"If I could do it, you certainly could have as well. But you didn't. Why?"
"Hyde, I think you overestimate me."
"I thought I did. Isn't she your daughter? Why did you abandon her? A parent should never abandon their child, under any circumstances!"
Archbishop Archibald looked at me at my words.
His eyes were still sharp, like a bird of prey.
"Yes, that's what you're angry about. A parent should never abandon their child, under any circumstances-. Hyde, is that something you want to say to me? Or to your parents?"
"…."
"You said you were an orphan. There has never been a world that catered to orphans, in any era. Your life must have been very difficult and harsh. Like a baby stripped naked in the cold winter."
Archbishop Archibald rose from his seat.
He turned his back to me and looked out the window at the setting sun. His tall figure cast a long shadow, and when it covered my face, he added,
"I was an orphan too. All I had was a name. But I had a family too. Just like you have Psyche. Let me ask you something."
The Archbishop turned around and met my eyes.
He was about the same height as me, but I felt strangely looked down upon.
"Hyde, if someone were to take that precious Psyche away from you, could you forgive them?"
"I should forgive them. Just as the Lord forgave mankind."
"Yes, a righteous priest should say that. I used to say that too. But Hyde, humans aren't as upright as you think. You're different from me after all."
"I think so too."
In the past few days, Archbishop Archibald and I had never agreed on anything. This man and I were different.
We were like oil and water, unable to mix.
Archbishop Archibald plopped down on his chair and said,
"Now you have to worry about your own life too. If you fail to bring Lust to the stand, your life and the fate of Agarphe will be in danger."
"Don't worry. I'm confident I can do it."
"Do you think that elusive man, Lust, will appear in court? No, the man I saw was a stubborn survivalist. It's impossible. But Hyde, you've done enough. Even if I were your age, I wouldn't be able to do that much."
"Will Lust really take the stand?"
"The public trial is in two days-."
"We must also be wary of the heretics' movements-."
The newspaper was filled with stories about the public trial.
The soldiers of Durgien began to arm themselves, wary of potential heretical movements, and the knights checked the sharpness of their swords with solemn expressions.
It was as if they were preparing for war.
"Will Lust really show up?"
"He'll be caught as soon as he appears. Why would he show up if he's not crazy?"
"Let's just watch Lady Milione and that wooden plaque monk get hanged together."
Wait, why am I being hanged?
What did I do wrong?
Apparently, if I failed to keep my promise, I could be sentenced to death for perjury and deception.
Because I mobilized the troops, armed the knights, and messed with the schedules of busy people like Archbishop Coram Deo and Sir Parmas.
It was a big deal that the trial was postponed based on the words of a mere wooden plaque monk like me.
Actually, it was probably because of the defendant, Lady Milione Archibald's status, rather than my own greatness.
"There are only two days left."
I informed Lady Milione Archibald, who was imprisoned, about the time. I also gave her a newspaper, but she just huddled in a corner.
It reminded me of the cat we all raised together at the orphanage. It was a cat that lived in the orphanage's yard and was very friendly towards people.
But it started to get sick after eating something bad, and at some point, it just curled up in a corner like that.
"Not long after, we found it dead in the storage room. They say cats hide themselves before they die because they don't want people to see them dying."
"So, why are you telling me that story now?"
"Because Lady Milione looks exactly like that right now. Of course, unlike the cat, you won't die."
"Will that man Lust really take the stand? So I can live? You can summon Lust?"
Well-.
I don't know that either.
Honestly, it was almost impossible for Lust to take the stand. With the knights on high alert, would I really walk into that kind of situation?
"Lust probably won't show up."
"Then, are you saying you lied, Hyde?"
No.
Technically, it wasn't a lie.
Well, I couldn't explain it, so I decided to just brush it off.
"But thanks to my defense, you have four days, don't you? I'll do everything I can to overturn your death sentence in the remaining time."
As I spoke confidently,
Milione raised her head.
She was imprisoned, so she couldn't even bathe, and her appearance was unkempt, but her beauty still shone through.
Of course, she wasn't as beautiful as my one true love, Psyche.
"Hyde, why are you going this far?"
"What do you mean?"
"Wouldn't it be good for you if I died and Archbishop Archibald fell? You're a person of Agarphe. Are you trying to mock me?"
"No. I'm a priest before I'm a person of Agarphe. My dream is to become the most outstanding clergyman. If an innocent person like you were to die like this, how could I speak of my dreams with pride?"
"What if I'm not innocent? What if I'm a murderer? What if I strangle you the moment I'm released?"
Milione stood up and approached the bars. Her eyes, seen up close, seemed to be burning with something. She looked angry.
"Can you say you'll defend and protect me even if I'm a villain who deserves the death penalty? Tell me."
In fact, Milione wasn't as innocent as she claimed. Perhaps she really deserved the death penalty.
But everyone was like that.
Everyone was a sinner.
Sinners destined for hell from the moment they were born.
"Milione, even if you're a sinner who deserves to be thrown into hell, you can be forgiven. If you're really worried, you can just touch the 'Holy Grail'. It's a divine artifact that grants human wishes, isn't it?"
The Holy Grail.
If you touch it, you can be reborn as a new person.
However, Lady Milione Archibald's face crumpled like paper.
"I thought you were going to say something profound. Don't you know that the 'Holy Grail' you're talking about is broken?"
"The Holy Grail is broken?"
What is she talking about?
Why is my Holy Grail broken?
I had never been this flustered in the past few days.
Milione muttered, "Ah-, was this a secret?" and spat, Thud-.
"What's the point of secrets when I'm going to die soon anyway? The Holy Grail that was enshrined in the royal palace's treasury is shattered. That's why the old man went to the royal capital recently."
Is that true?
Five years ago, when I was struggling through this time, there was no such story.
The Holy Grail is broken?
Why?
That meant I couldn't use the Holy Grail chance again. My plan to touch the Holy Grail again if things went wrong seemed to be going up in smoke.
It was quite shocking in many ways.
Two days passed by in a blur.
"There are even more people than last time, aren't there?"
"It seems like there are well over three thousand."
"Will they even be able to hear anything like this?"
The crowd was enormous.
I remembered visiting a newly built department store for its opening, and the crowd then was just as large and noisy as it was now.
"The Judge is entering."
Archbishop Coram Deo, Sir Parmas, and the jury members began to enter the podium that had been set up once again.
They all looked very authoritative and imposing, overwhelming the crowd.
"Then, I'll say a prayer and begin the trial."
True to his reputation for being impatient, Coram Deo started the trial without any formalities.
He looked at the defendants, who were bound like prisoners, and said to me,
"Wooden plaque monk Hyde, where is the defendant Lust that you promised to bring?"
"Your Eminence, how much do you know about possession and demonic influence? I intend to summon the spirit of Lust into my body right now."
"You're going to possess a living person with another person's spirit? Is that even possible?"
"If you refer to the newly written novel "The Non-Virgin", the fifth line of the second paragraph describes the ritual performed when the non-virgin Cathy makes a pact with the devil."
"Are you talking about smearing your own blood on a prepared mask and reciting a special prayer?"
Coram Deo, how do you know that?
He must have read my flawed work, "The Non-Virgin".
That will make things faster.
"That devil's name is Lust…! I am a pure priest, but to bring him to this defendant's stand, I will make a special sacrifice of myself…!"
I took out the plain mask I had prepared and cut my palm with a sharp dagger. It hurt. I smeared the blood from my palm onto the mask, completing the cross, and Lust's mask was complete.
"What's about to happen should not be imitated carelessly. Lust, be careful, everyone, because we don't know what he might do if he takes over my body! Here we go!"
I put on the newly made mask.
And at the same time, I trembled like a rat struck by lightning.
"Ugh, ugh, ugh!"
Tremble, tremble-
Only Lady Milione reacted to this situation.
"Lust! Lust is trying to come out! Lust is taking over Hyde's body! Lust!"
That's right.
Lust was possessing another person's body right now.
I flopped around on the floor like a shrimp being grilled alive, and finally stood up.
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarg-!!!"
It's always good to start with a light scream.
Thanks to my lung capacity, honed from holding my breath for 5-10 minutes every day since my orphanage days, I could make the loudest noise for the longest time.
The crowd of 3,000 fell silent in an instant.
I stood before them and shouted,
"Greetings, you disgusting trash of Florence! You imbeciles who do nothing but eat and shit! It's a pleasure!"
"H-His voice has changed?"
"Is it someone else?"
The people who had been silent began to murmur.
My acting skills, honed over the years, allowed me to flawlessly portray a split personality, as if another person truly existed within me. It had never been seen through before.
Archbishop Coram Deo, his eyes still filled with suspicion, asked me,
"Are you Lust? A person taking over another person's body. Do you think that's possible? Hyde, are you the one acting behind that mask?"
"Hahahaha! I am Lust, the ruler of the air! Greedy Archbishop Coram Deo, do you really not recognize me? I was there with you on the day you defiled your half-sister-!!!"
"What? W-What are you talking about! What nonsense! D-Defiled?!"
Archbishop Coram Deo, who had maintained a stern demeanor as a judge, was visibly flustered. He couldn't help but be surprised, as I had revealed a secret that only he knew.
As the surroundings buzzed with commotion, I quickly added,
"Coram Deo! Can't you still hear the cries of your sister, Merga? After raping your 17-year-old sister, what did you do? You strangled her because you were afraid your sins would be exposed!"
People tend to panic when their deepest, darkest secrets are revealed.
Even I would be flustered for about a second if Psyche suddenly came to me and said, "You're Lust, aren't you? I know everything."
If even I would react like that, could a pervert like Coram Deo possibly overcome this situation?
"S-Sophistry! Don't listen to this! Don't believe him! Lust, he's a deceiver with a cunning tongue! This is obviously a lie! How dare you make such accusations without any evidence!!!"
"The evidence is in the Woodenbelt family's villa here in Florence. Dig up the sunflower garden! You'll find Merga's body there. And the bronze plaque cross she was clutching in her hand. He was a bronze plaque priest back then."
I said this while looking at Parmas.
When Sir Parmas asked, "Your Eminence Coram Deo, is this true?", Coram Deo started sweating profusely, not knowing what to do.
That's when it happened.
A man sitting in the audience stood up.
It was Archbishop Archibald.
"Coram Deo, didn't you say your sister was kidnapped and disappeared by the Walpurgis witches 30 years ago? To clear your name of these false accusations, we'll dig up the sunflower field. Someone go-!"
If they dig it up, they'll find a body.
I spread my arms wide and asked Coram Deo,
"I am omniscient and omnipotent. Do you believe me now, Coram Deo?"