Fake Promise!

The nephew of Count Kassel's uncle, Baron Otter Kassel, has recently become the biggest joke in the Kassel county.

Everyone is mocking his misfortune of becoming a cuckold.

Bishop Matt was previously an ordinary clergyman in the Kassel county. Otter Kassel's wife particularly liked to converse and learn from the reserved and humble but knowledgeable Priest Matt, as her husband was uncultured, brutal and cruel.

To put it simply, this is a problem that many noblewomen who grew up in monasteries might encounter. Otter's wife was one of those who harbored overly romantic fantasies about learned priests.

Nobles had at least one weekend prayer session per week, so Priest Matt was able to frequently visit Otter's castle.

As their relationship slowly deepened, their verbal communication soon turned into physical interaction, reaching the soul of both man and woman.

Of course, it also reached the depths of the womb.

Then, Otter's wife bore a child for Priest Matt.

In the Middle Ages, there were no advanced techniques for blood type or paternity testing, so naturally, Baron Otter was kept in the dark.

During that time, he was away on campaigns with Count Kassel, and a few months after returning home, he found his wife already heavily pregnant. He thought it was the result of his efforts before he left.

However, after the child was born, Bishop Matt noticed that the child increasingly resembled him and realized the child was indeed his.

Bishop Matt, not daring to delay, quickly found an excuse to transfer himself to a neighboring parish to prevent Otter from discovering the truth.

Over the past decade, Bishop Matt has gone through various hardships with an uneasy mind and has gradually risen to the position of bishop, which can be considered satisfactory.

The position of bishop has afforded him enough wealth to live a prosperous life.

But Bishop Matt has long lost his former high moral standards.

If he were to be toppled due to a scandal and forced to live like a penitent monk, eating worm-infested apples and drinking dirty river water… Bishop Matt is certain he would go mad.

So when the emissary from the Kassel family arrived with accusations, Bishop Matt, disregarding his noble status, knelt and kowtowed to the emissary.

This reaction exceeded the emissary's expectations.

After all, besides the unnecessary loss of reputation, Otter Kassel had raised the child for over ten years. Moreover, he had not fathered a second child in those ten years, suggesting he might not have any more children in the future.

Additionally, in the Middle Ages, people valued blood ties less than family bonds, so recognizing this child as Otter's heir was not entirely out of the question.

The premise was that Bishop Matt had to offer adequate compensation and be willing to relinquish his bishopric to the Kassel family.

"I am willing to pay a substantial compensation. I will also transfer my private estate on the western side of Gothingen to Baron Otter!" Bishop Matt wept bitterly, offering nearly all his property as compensation.

After a quick negotiation, Bishop Matt reached a series of exchange terms with the emissary, who soon left satisfied.

Due to the involvement of religious and personal grudges, Countess Conosa could not intervene.

Therefore, Damian specifically intercepted the Kassel emissary by the roadside.

He did not say much but curiously asked the emissary, "What's going on? Didn't Bishop Matt already tell the Countess that he absolutely has no illegitimate children and would not allow the bishopric to fall into others' hands? We spent a full 500 gold coins to smooth things over. Don't get your hopes up, the Gothingen bishopric's succession will not go to outsiders!"

The emissary was instantly furious.

He felt deceived.

If Bishop Matt was unwilling to relinquish his bishopric's succession and played both sides, deceiving the Kassel family while concealing the truth from Gothingen Castle, then the promised private estate and generous compensation were likely lies.

"You… you must pay for this!"

The emissary, enraged, hurriedly left with his men, preparing to report the matter to Count Kassel.

Meanwhile, Damian also secretly dispatched forest hunters to seize the large compensation Bishop Matt had given the emissary in the forest, nullifying all of Bishop Matt's efforts.

At this point, what initially was a dispute over an illegitimate child had been escalated by Damian into a territorial conflict.

The most valuable asset of Bishop Matt was his right of appointment, and bishops were not easily replaced.

Thus, this was a golden egg-laying hen that could live for decades, and neither Count Kassel nor Count Gothingen would let go easily.

The best way was to let both sides fight.

That was precisely what Damian wanted.

…

The emissary hurried back to Kassel Castle.

Unlike the noble von Nosnberg family, the Kassels were native aristocrats, with a local surname and accent.

This allowed the Kassel family to mobilize more kin knights.

The current head of the family was the middle-aged nobleman Tepler Kassel.

After the emissary told him, "Bishop Matt offered us extremely favorable terms and is willing to give up everything to atone,"

Count Tepler laughed heartily, patting his sullen nephew Otter.

Life sometimes requires seeing the bright side.

As long as there's compensation, everything is negotiable.

But the emissary continued, "Although the terms are favorable, one issue remains unresolved."

"What issue?" Count Tepler frowned.

The emissary, enraged, gritted his teeth, "Neither Bishop Matt, nor Countess Conosa, nor her chancellor Damian, seem prepared to fulfill these terms."

"The promise is fake!"