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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Vine
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Before the trial, I made all the necessary preparations.
With a sitting Archbishop, more powerful than any high-priced lawyer, and a Duke on my side, it’s a done deal.
With this much backing, I could get away with manslaughter.
But I’m still putting on an act.
Pretending to be unprepared for the trial.
“Antonio, we’ll keep the current staff employed, as we don’t know when customers might come. I’ll pay their wages as promised.”
“Yes, young master.”
“And the coffee is delicious, but how about serving fruit juice instead? Like lemonade.”
Antonio couldn’t answer properly.
He looked at me with a hint of pity.
“Young master, are you sure? Auxiliary Bishop Christian accused you with such absurd charges…”
Since Christian indicted me and the cafe in the ecclesiastical court, we’ve lost almost all our customers.
With a Church trial looming, it’s extremely difficult for me, seemingly without backing, to survive.
Being associated with me could tarnish a noble’s reputation.
“It’s alright. Deus knows I’m innocent, so there’s no need to worry. The Church will surely clear my name.”
Despite my words, I don’t trust the Toscana Empire, nor the Church of Deus.
Given my isekai reincarnation, God might exist, but Church officials are producing illegitimate children outside of proper marriage.
They even operate a system to launder the status of these illegitimate children, making them nobles.
And they’re trying to ruin me, an innocent man, with a Church trial.
How can I trust the Church?
“If you say so, young master, I’ll accept it. But please remember that we are always praying for you.”
Having been reincarnated, I won’t deny God’s existence, but what good will come from believing in Deus?
Still, their genuine concern warms my heart.
“This is a rosary bought with the staff’s pooled wages. Father Bio, who frequented our cafe, blessed it. We bought it hoping your innocence will be proven.”
A silver rosary, something nobles wouldn’t wear.
But if a priest blessed it, it must be quite valuable.
Did the entire staff pool a week’s worth of wages?
It’s been 20 years since my reincarnation, but I feel a lump in my throat.
All the staff looked at me with encouragement.
That my innocence will surely be revealed, that a good noble like me couldn’t possibly lack faith, and so on.
So, I can never tell them.
That the Archbishop, the Duke, and I have already orchestrated a not-guilty verdict.
And the reason I’m putting on this tiresome act…
Someone kicked the door open, and people rushed in.
“Is Fabio de’ Medici, owner of Cafe Medici, here?”
“I am.”
“By order of Auxiliary Bishop Christian de Toulon, you are under arrest for spreading obscene customs among young people, an act against the faith! Resist, and you’ll be charged with defying the authority of the Church and handed over to the Inquisition!”
Generally, even the second son of a noble wouldn’t be arrested in public.
That’s the rule of noble society.
But Christian, bearing a grudge against me, is breaking even this taboo.
It looks like I’ll be dragged away in ropes, bound like a criminal, for all to see.
“Arrest him!”
The priests quickly tied me up with ropes.
I feel like a traitor tied up in a historical drama.
“Take him away!”
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I was immediately dragged to the Inquisition.
There, Auxiliary Bishop Christian and Baron Valiano, who filed the complaint, awaited.
Other clergymen, acting as associate judges, and Church officials glared at me.
That bastard of an Auxiliary Bishop, desperate to frame me, seems to have filled the court with his own people.
The priest who dragged me here sneered.
“Hey, Master Medici.”
“What is it?”
“Let’s end this amicably. Confess your sins in court, and we’ll spare you the death penalty. We’ll let you off with house arrest or something. This is mercy directly from the Auxiliary Bishop.”
He’s dying to kill me, but he’s afraid of the repercussions of executing the second son of the Medici family for such a trivial matter, isn’t he?
What a joke. These fools will have their heads bashed in by the Archbishop, who will conveniently arrive just in time for the verdict.
“Deus is on the side of the righteous. My righteousness will be revealed in court.”
“You seem to have read the Bible, even though you didn’t attend the academy.”
I’ve read it countless times in the past 20 years since my reincarnation, thinking it might be useful someday.
Because even a rudimentary knowledge of the Bible earns one the reputation of being cultured.
“If you don’t confess your sins, the Auxiliary Bishop might sentence you to be burned at the stake. Think carefully.”
Even Galileo Galilei’s trial went down like this.
If the Church brands you as a dissident, you’re interrogated in the ecclesiastical court.
After the interrogation, you’re given a chance to repent. If you repent, your sentence is significantly reduced.
Galileo was originally sentenced to be burned at the stake, but his sentence was commuted to life imprisonment (with limited freedom of movement).
Christian, the presiding judge and Auxiliary Bishop, immediately declared the trial open to the public.
As expected in an empire where even court hearings are entertainment, nobles of all ages gathered.
[The Trendsetter of Firenze, a Heretic?]
That would be the headline in Korean terms, so it’s no wonder they’re all here.
This is why I came here.
In a world where fame is power, to earn the title of a courageous man who stands by his convictions even in the face of death at a Church trial.
“Let the trial begin. Defendant Fabio de’ Medici, do you admit to all the charges against you?”
“I do not admit to a single one.”
The nobles who were unaware of the situation looked at me with intrigue.
“Very well. Then, Plaintiff Baron Valiano, please state the charges against him.”
Valiano stood up and began listing the charges one by one.
“The defendant, Fabio, established an obscene establishment called Cafe Medici, corrupting the morals of Firenze, the capital of the empire!”
In the 21st century, corrupting public morals, unless it involves rape or sexual crimes, is a misdemeanor.
But in this era, it can be a death sentence.
It’s practically equivalent to murder.
“This is the evidence I’ve heard and witnessed. And respected Auxiliary Bishop, marriage is a sacred union between a man and a woman chosen by their parents. How can noble men and women shamelessly gather at a cafe, converse, and engage in the obscene act of falling in love?”
The younger generation reacted coldly to his words.
“What is that old geezer talking about? Falling in love at a ball is fine, but falling in love at a cafe isn’t?”
On the other hand, a few old fogeys seemed to agree.
“Marriage is naturally based on the family’s interests. These young people these days are so frivolous, tsk tsk. In my time, such things were unthinkable.”
I can’t say anything to these old geezers right now, but…
You all confine the noble ladies you married through political arrangements to your homes and only flaunt your virility with courtesans and maids.
Isn’t that abnormal?
Deus taught that man and woman should become one flesh.
These people, pretending to be devout believers.
But Christian, the Auxiliary Bishop and judge, made the sign of the cross upon hearing those words.
“Oh Lord, such an outrageous thing… These are truly the end times.”
No, it’s your head that’s outrageous.
What kind of mind immediately jumps to sexual relations just because a man and a woman are talking?
He looks about 50 years old.
Still got some vigor left in him, I see?
“But I will do what I must.”
The Auxiliary Bishop slammed his staff on the ground.
“Besides Baron Christian, 15 others have given similar testimonies. While I can’t bring them all to the stand, they have all sworn to Deus and submitted written testimonies.”
The content of the testimonies is predictable.
It’ll be a bunch of nonsense when pieced together logically.
But the witnesses are likely of high social standing.
In a society where status equals credibility, protesting against them is useless.
But what’s he going to do?
The Archbishop of Firenze will arrive soon and resolve everything.
So, all I need to do is put on a good show in this predetermined battle.
Pretending to be composed in the face of death.
“Deus, please acknowledge my innocence.”
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