Chapter 1247: Chapter 1247

Jenkins stared for a long moment, unable to form a response. He was torn between praising the Church for its swift action and explaining that it was all quite unnecessary. Thɪs chapter is updated by novel⦿fire.net

"We commissioned the most famous local artist for this. She is, of course, a devout follower of the Sage. We had intended to title it *Williams in 1867*, but as you know, the Church leadership isn't ready to reveal your identity to the public just yet."

He spoke with a tinge of regret, clearly fond of the proposed title.

Before leaving the church, Jenkins inquired about the annihilation of the Snowman Legion. The Church's intelligence on the matter was still limited. They knew that a divine power had influenced the far north and that the elemental chaos there had been quelled, but they had been unable to uncover much more.

"At the very least, all the snowmen in the far north have vanished. The Church is debating whether to retire its official designation immediately or to keep it under observation for a few more years."

Mister Rossier concluded.

In any case, it was already ten o'clock at night by the time Jenkins returned to Dolores's estate. Neither Alexia nor Dolores was present. The old butler brought him a letter they had left, informing him that they had gone to the parliament to deal with some matters. Dolores, after all, was now involved in the affairs of the state.

"Still," Jenkins wondered, "that building was so badly damaged. Can they really still use it?"

The next morning, Jenkins found Dolores already at the breakfast table, engrossed in paperwork. Her father had recently begun delegating authority, and it was hard to tell whether he was intentionally pitting his children against one another to see who would survive, or genuinely trying to groom a successor.

Consequently, even with a team of skilled professionals at her disposal, some decisions fell squarely on her shoulders. While she was competent, she had never faced such a staggering workload.

Jenkins asked, holding a copy of the *Nolan Morning Post*. He had purchased it in Nolan after waking up and had a Star Spirit deliver it to him.

"Of course," Dolores replied. "It's nothing confidential."

As soon as Dolores spoke, Julia, standing behind her, picked up the document nearest to the princess's hand and passed it across the table to Jenkins.

"'A decision on repairing Parliament Square?'" he read aloud. "Do they really need to trouble you with something so minor?"

"It's considered a major municipal project. Besides, it involves that gaping hole that was drilled into the ground, which makes it the most pressing issue at the moment. It's in the heart of the city, and leaving it unattended would damage the kingdom's reputation. On top of that, the joint investigation team formed by the Orthodox Churches is currently scrutinizing my family. What Lack did violated a major taboo, so I doubt any of us will have a moment's peace for some time..."

Naturally, the joint investigation team would also be looking into Dolores. But after some maneuvering, the task fell to members of the Legacy Sage Church. They had already begun their work, assigning the Church's own Saint to personally keep a close watch on the princess.

"My tutor will help me with some of the documents related to budgets and designs, which is a tremendous help..."

Jenkins glanced over at Alexia. She was waving her index finger at a sheet of paper floating before her, and faint blue lines flickered across its surface, either performing calculations or constructing a model.

"I could also help out a bit. For instance..."

Jenkins considered what he was good at.

"I could help with the stamping."

The cat shot him a look of undisguised contempt, a moment Alexia happened to catch perfectly.

"Jenkins, doesn't the Church offer you courses on things like... politics?"

The petite woman inquired, glancing at the documents before her before turning her attention to the bacon on her plate.

"Why would the Church offer a course like that? Still, I've picked up some knowledge about politics from... other sources. Anyone interested in hearing about the feasibility of a peasant uprising? The historical process of overthrowing a corrupt dynasty? Or perhaps policies on land reform, promoting education, and increasing literacy rates?"

Jenkins idly prodded the food on his plate with his fork, dredging up memories from the recesses of his mind. When he glanced up again, he found everyone staring at him.

"My apologies. I shouldn't play with my food so rudely."

He apologized at once.

"No, it's not that," Alexia said, her brow furrowed. "Jenkins, have you been planning to overthrow the Fidektri Kingdom?"

The expression, he noted, was still quite beautiful on her.

Some people arrive in a new world wanting to build a new order, to bring dignity to all who yearn for it. Others arrive hoping to live a different life, one free from their past. And then there are those, like Jenkins, who arrive in a new world driven by a desire to gather immense power, to transcend their limits and reshape the world itself.

But even before he could realize that ambition, Jenkins felt he was already twisting the natural course of the era.

He had always assumed the knowledge crammed into his head from lectures and exams was useless, but both Alexia and Dolores saw it as "systematic, complex, dangerous, and forbidden"—esoteric wisdom of the highest order.

They were both brilliant young women, so they understood far better than most the profound implications of what Jenkins had just said so casually.

Alexia, for her part, wasn't worried that Jenkins would use these methods to revolutionize their society. She knew he wasn't a man hungry for power. But that didn't mean his knowledge was without value. On the contrary, it was exactly what she was looking for.

"So I was forced to help with the paperwork and only managed to escape an hour ago," Jenkins recounted. "Even though I don't understand any of it, they still put me to work."

That evening, Jenkins was dining with Hathaway in a private booth at a restaurant, recounting the aftermath of the morning's events.

"I might be able to spout a lot of sensible-sounding things, but it's all just theory I memorized by rote. I've never actually put any of it into practice. For them to ask for my help like that... it's just reckless."

He grumbled, viciously sawing at the steak on his plate as if it were one of those vexing documents. Hathaway listened, nodding along, but her gaze was distant, her thoughts clearly elsewhere.

They chatted as they ate. Jenkins desperately hoped Hathaway would tell him about B-11-1-0299, the *Story within a Story*, so that his true identity—not just his "Mr. Candle" persona—could receive an invitation.

But Hathaway seemed resolute, as if determined never to let "Mr. Candle" and Jenkins Williams appear in the same venue. Regardless of how much Jenkins hinted—"If you're running into trouble lately, I can help, even all the way from Ruen"—she refused to say a word about it.

Instead, she asked for the key to his house, offering to hire people to clean and tend to the yard at regular times while he was away.

That was a welcome offer, of course. It meant Jenkins wouldn't have to go out of his way to contact Papa Oliver.