Holy Night: My Husband is Definitely a Paladin - Chapter 65
Translated by Elphie
Even though she made up her mind, Irene had to spend a few more days inside the room.
It took a few more days for her body to fully recover. While she could get up and walk around, if she walked for too long, her legs would lose strength and give out. This was probably due to the fact that she had done more purifying than she should have done at once.
Another reason was that interest in Irene had exploded within the fortress. Although the fortress was able to keep outside scholars at bay, it was unable to prevent visits from other purifiers within the fortress.
In the end, Irene was forced to stay in her room, using the excuse that she wasn’t feeling well.
‘It’s not so bad, though.’
Reyna and Cynthia took turns visiting her, and sometimes they came together.
Just like now.
“This is how many people told me they wanted to participate when I confirmed that we were forming a new circle!”
Reyna couldn’t contain her excitement as she presented a list. The paper contained even more names than Irene had anticipated, totaling around twenty people. Some of them were even 3rd or 4th grade purifiers.
‘Princess Cecilia must have earned a lot of resentment from them.’
When she thought about it, it did make sense. Princess Cecilia was currently twenty-five years old. Ever since her awakening as a purifier at the age of twenty, she had come to the fortress every year when the dungeons appeared.
As a 1st-grade purifier with overwhelmingly powerful abilities, she stood out not only among the fortress residents but also among purifiers and knights. Now that she had gathered people and created a community, she practically ruled the fortress like a queen.
Even the Alliance of Kingdoms, who were not willing to lose a single penny, would bend to Cecilia’s demands.
As time went on, her influence grew stronger, and those who initially voiced their opinions gradually found themselves unable to speak out. Naturally, the princess took more and more valuable things from the people below her, using them to solidify her status.
‘Are these the people she’s been steadily robbing these past five years?’
Irene thought as she looked at the names on the list.
“But I don’t know what the first thing we should do after we organize a meeting,” said Reyna.
Irene shared Reyna’s uncertainty. Most of her knowledge was limited to dungeons and magical beasts, with little understanding of how the Princess’s influence operated.
“Perhaps I can advise you on that,” said Cynthia, raising her hand coyly. “I think we should try to follow what Princess Cecilia did.”
At that, Irene snapped her fingers. “Ah, come to think of it, you were here when the Princess first entered the fortress, weren’t you, Cynthia?”
“Yes. So I do remember how she acted at first.”
Cynthia took a pen and piece of paper and started jotting down some notes.
“First of all, she sent letters to the higher ranking people, sending them expensive gifts and inviting them to meetings. Some people would just accept them and ignore them, but she would write them off right away. I think she decided they weren’t going to be useful to her in the future.”
Cynthia continued, “And she held a few banquets, allowing people to get to know each other, building camaraderie among the knights as well. Frankly, it wasn’t anything extraordinary. It’s just a basic way of building friendships, even outside the fortress.”
She then pressed the pen firmly on the paper, emphasizing the importance.
[Dungeon Raids]
“This is the most crucial part. The princess organized a raid, heading to an intermediate dungeon with her knights and efficiently dealt with the monsters. Then, she distributed all the rewards to those who participated.”
“Hmm.”
In other words, she made it clear, in front of everyone, the benefits people would get for allying with her in the future.
Promises backed by immediate rewards are naturally more appealing than mere verbal commitments.
“We have Sir Michael in our midst, so the raids themselves shouldn’t be difficult…But the distributions of rewards might be an issue.”
Cynthia’s expression darkened as she had already heard from Irene about how Michael was sharing rewards.
“Irene, could you ask Sir Michael if he could allocate dungeon rewards to people outside the Temple, even if it’s just a few times?”
“Well, for now, we can go once a week for the dungeon I designate. However, it might be challenging for the higher-level dungeons.”
To provide rewards significant enough to attract everyone, it would likely involve higher-level dungeons, and Michael didn’t seem inclined to grant such substantial rewards.
“Still, it wouldn’t hurt to talk to him about it? Since he has agreed to join the group.”
“Well, that’s true, but… I haven’t seen Sir Michael for several days now.”
Irene tried to remember the last time she’d seen him. He’d come to her room the evening she’d been reclassified as a Grade 8 purifier.
