An atmosphere of consternation had descended upon the court chamber. The assembled guildmasters glanced at each other uncertainly; while they’d come here prepared to deal with political turmoil, evidently they’d only expected the Royal Sentinels to be their main adversary. The Church normally didn’t concern themselves with adventurer affairs; they were too busy dealing with the myriad of dark creatures, eldritch horrors, and other assorted forces of darkness out there. Had the Church formed a secret pact with the Royal Sentinels? Was the balance of power finally upset after centuries of the status quo? No, that wasn’t it. Judging by the confused but pleased looks on the two Royal Sentinels’ faces, they were just as caught off guard by the Cardinal’s interjection as the adventurers. The Church was acting on their own. For the first time since the trial began, a flicker of fear crossed Liliya’s face. From behind the Cardinal, she shot Levi a questioning glance. Levi didn’t need telepathy to know what she was thinking.Do you have a way to defend against [Truth Imposition]?Levi smiled back. Liliya began to relax, only to tense back up again as Levi gave a minute shrug of the shoulders. Not a clue.Cardinal Dominic Winchester was one of the three Cardinals of the Holy Church, the second-highest rank of the clergy that answered only to the Pope himself. In terms of the command hierarchy, he ranked above even the six High Priestesses. He was old, in his sixties, perhaps even seventies. His magic was sure to have matured to a potent, formidable level. “If there are no further objections,” Cardinal Winchester (...)