Gospel of Blood

Wait a minute…

Does Eleanor have faith in her?

Charlotte was stunned for a moment, resisting the urge to immediately delve into the consciousness faith network to verify if this was true.

Come to think of it, she hadn’t paid much attention to her followers’ affairs recently.

It couldn’t be helped, the prayers of her followers were just too noisy.

Ever since establishing the faith network, allowing her to connect with her followers, Charlotte had profoundly understood what it meant to be troubled.

She had fewer than a thousand followers, yet her mind felt like a bustling marketplace. People prayed in the morning, at noon, in the evening… Even in the dead of night, there were intermittent prayers. It was maddening.

Thus, Charlotte had long since blocked most prayers.

Even though her mental strength was now quite robust, her soul’s core power still wasn’t at the level where she could process numerous prayers like a computer.

Charlotte believed other Gods must have corresponding solutions, probably some “tools” that could handle most prayers on their behalf.

Otherwise, even Gods might be driven mad by these endless voices.

She had tried searching Albrecht’s memories for relevant information, but unfortunately… Albrecht was merely a Legendary. He knew how to ascend to Godhood but had no knowledge of how to be a God.

Charlotte herself was a novice, driving without a license, so she could only keep the faith network in a semi-active state, not actively receiving prayers from followers other than a few vassals.

Only in her spare time would she delve into consciousness, connect to the faith network, and selectively respond to particularly intense prayers.

Thinking about it now, she had been busy with other things lately and hadn’t responded to her followers for quite some time.

Although it seemed a bit irresponsible, if Eleanor had truly come to believe in her…

Ahem, she might really be unaware.

…

After giving Count Gaston a few more instructions, Charlotte sent him away.

The central meeting had yet to convene. His conspicuous visit was bound to attract attention. In this political upheaval in the Crescent Kingdom, Charlotte intended to fish in troubled waters, not to be noticed.

As for Gaston, his ambitions were still too great. Despite being bound by a blood contract and having an unconditional loyalty mental suggestion implanted, he still harbored personal thoughts and greed.

It’s not that he’s wrong. From the Gaston family’s perspective, his demands were understandable.

But Charlotte wasn’t satisfied.

She had used 『Mental Domination』 to dismantle the resistance consciousness of Gaston Count and his son. In theory, their mindset post-blood contract should prioritize Charlotte.

However, it seemed that although bound by a contract, its effects were limited.

This made Charlotte hesitate about her original plan.

In her scheme, Count Gaston was a crucial pawn she intended to use to covertly control Borde, with plans to leverage his claim on the Gaston Duchy for more power.

But if this pawn couldn’t meet her expectations, many things would need to be reconsidered.

It could be considered Charlotte’s insecurity.

Unlike Albrecht’s “voluntary” blood contract, Count Gaston and his son were subjected to punitive mind control.

Initially, Charlotte only intended to use them until the war ended, then release them and alter their memories, leaving them to fend for themselves in Borde.

Charlotte had always been sensitive about directly using mind control.

She knew her self-control was limited and was prone to developing dependency. Once accustomed to mind control, she might rely on this shortcut often in the future.

And a shortcut is a shortcut because it has pitfalls.

Not to mention that any magic, strictly speaking, could be undone. Even if it wasn’t, this forced mental manipulation could gradually lead one to lose themselves in their power.

Charlotte was very wary of losing herself.

Therefore, she initially never intended to keep the two under control perpetually.

However, Count Gaston proved himself competent in the war, performing unexpectedly well in various tasks Charlotte assigned him, leading to his appointment as Borde’s regent minister.

Unknowingly, Charlotte’s plans for Count Gaston shifted from dismissing him after use to seeing if he could become a genuine follower.

A genuine follower is different from someone under 『Mental Domination』.

Once someone becomes a true follower, even without the soul-deep 『Mental Domination』, they would still remain loyal.

To achieve this, during the Borde-Castell war, Charlotte often kept them close, offering various privileges and support.

But reality showed Charlotte was too optimistic.

Through her recent interaction with him, she sensed the mark she left on his soul, easily realizing his loyalty was still dependent on mental magic and the blood contract.

Once the pact was broken, they would likely part ways immediately, and he might even react with anger and rebellion once the mental magic wore off.

This was a risk, a not entirely improbable one, which was why Charlotte sought genuine loyalty.

Despite her various favors post-contract, there was no effect.

It’s not that Count Gaston was inherently hard to recruit.

Charlotte saw it as a drawback of 『Mental Domination』.

Unlike forcibly binding Nice or coercing Yurst into becoming a blood servant, Charlotte’s previous followers had never had their minds manipulated.

An unmanipulated mind is pure, a blank canvas, easier to cultivate genuine feelings and loyalty through sincerity. Even if they initially were at odds.

But mind control was different.

Though it could shortcut to loyalty, it also sowed a seed of distrust from the start.

After all, if there was trust, why resort to “mind control”?

『Mental Domination』 was a magic for forced loyalty but also a shackle.

It was like a stain on white paper, where subsequent efforts were always undermined by the 『Mental Domination』.

Feelings are mutual, genuine loyalty cannot coexist with “distrust.”

Even with mental suggestions for loyalty, the privileges given seem more like rightful compensations.

Count Gaston, unlike her other followers, was a ruthless and ambitious noble.

His loyalty to the Third Prince was never heartfelt, just mutual exploitation.

Charlotte could also dismiss these concerns.

She could use him purely as a tool, just not placing him in critical positions.

But she had higher hopes before.

It now seemed she might have been overestimating.

“It was my greed. I intended to find a tool but expected too much.”

Charlotte shook her head.

She decided not to hold higher expectations for Count Gaston.

She would still treat him well and use him appropriately, as he was her blood thrall.

Even ambitious tools, used correctly, could be highly effective.

That’s the art of leadership.

But for now, she set aside thoughts about Count Gaston. She needed to see Eleanor’s situation.

Returning to her study, Charlotte dismissed everyone and then immersed her consciousness to connect to the faith network.

She had interacted with Eleanor before, intentionally remembering her aura. If Eleanor had become her follower, she should be able to find her in the network.

The faith network unfolded, with specks of light shimmering, numbering over a thousand—all Charlotte’s followers.

After some searching, she indeed found a new light in the corner.

It was a rather bright light, showing strong faith among the thousand followers, and its aura was familiar to Charlotte. It was indeed Eleanor’s aura.

“She really believes in me? And… quite fervently?”

Charlotte was bewildered.

She was certain she hadn’t preached Eleanor.

No, to be precise, she never expected Eleanor to become her follower.

So what was this fervent faith?

Surprised, puzzled, and curious, Charlotte decided to “see” for herself.

Using her blood divine power, Charlotte connected to Eleanor’s faith light.

The next moment, she projected her consciousness over.