Aria, who was the Duchess of the Holycross Duchy, and her main husband Nad Kevlon, could not understand what Synthia was saying. It wasn't that Synthia had complicated things... but there were only two points they couldn't grasp.
The first point was that if they joined hands with Westirifer, there would be a considerable increase in the Holygrill family's divine blessing of Keria.
The second point was that Synthia had been told by the quasi-divine spirit Elyxia that her future husband was the ruler of the Westirifer Duchy.
Besides these two things, Synthia had also told them that Spirit Elyxia had suggested not to go against Westirifer... because if they did, the entire Holycross Duchy and the Holygrill ducal family would be completely destroyed.
Hearing this from Synthia, Aria also felt reassured that her decision to promise Mitalda that the Holycross Duchy would help in every possible way in the war against Westirifer, Morthveil, and Pope Rotveil had been absolutely correct.
But the most shocking thing was when Synthia told her that Spirit Elyxia had instructed her to merge with Westirifer. This meant that the Holycross Duchy would have to surrender all its rights and authority to the Westirifer Duchy.
Aria couldn't see from any angle how the Westirifer Duchy was even comparable to the Holycross Duchy.
The Holycross Duchy was one of the oldest duchies in the entire Human Empire. Even before the kingdom was formed, the ducal family of Holycross—the Holygrill family—had already existed. In fact, the Holygrill family could be considered descendants of the first human Valkyrie, Keria.
The Holycross Duchy had everything— a powerful army, an insurmountable treasury, and vast arable and fertile lands.
But what did the Westirifer Duchy have?
This duchy had only been formed about four months ago. Previously, it was known as the Asher Duchy.
It only became the Westirifer Duchy after Lucifer arrived, eradicated the entire Asher family, and took control. This new duchy did not fall under the jurisdiction of the Lustbound Heaven Kingdom. After destroying the Asher Duchy, the Velmora family had established their foothold there and created an independent duchy called Westirifer, completely free from the kingdom.
Even when it was still the Asher Duchy, its military power had never been impressive—only around 60,000 soldiers in total, which was nowhere near the standard of a proper duchy. The only thing that matched a duchy's status was the Asher family's treasury, which was so vast that even the kingdom's treasury looked insignificant in comparison.
But when Lucifer came to the Asher Duchy and wiped out the entire Asher family, he also killed nearly 50,000 of their soldiers in the process. After that, the duchy's name was changed from Asher to Westirifer.
So, apart from an excessively overflowing treasury, Westirifer had almost nothing else.
And yet, Synthia was saying that the quasi-divine spirit Elyxia had instructed them to surrender before Westirifer.
This was something neither Aria nor Nad could digest. Whether they could accept it or not, Synthia had already given her verdict: the Holycross Duchy would surrender to Westirifer.
No one in the entire Holycross Duchy could defy Synthia's word.
Although the position of Oracle Master came below that of the Duchess, Synthia's authority was far greater than the Duchess's. The army of Holycross might not listen to the Duchess, but once the Oracle Master said something, it would happen without fail. After all, she was called the divine messenger for a reason.
The second thing that shocked Aria was when Synthia revealed that Spirit Elyxia had told her that her life partner—her future husband—was the ruler of Westirifer.
This was no ordinary matter. If Synthia had said anything else, it would have been much easier to believe.
Since the Holygrill family was founded, the core and foundation of the family had always been the Oracle Master alone.
Becoming an Oracle Master was not easy. One had to completely overcome all personal desires and remain pure forever. This meant they could never marry, never engage in physical relations, and never become a mother. It was the ultimate sacrifice.
And this generation's Oracle Master, Synthia Holygrill—Aria's aunt—had fulfilled this sacrifice perfectly. Even at nearly 140 years old, she had remained single and pure.
But now, the same Synthia Holygrill, the Oracle Master of the Holycross Duchy, was saying that the quasi-divine spirit Elyxia had told her she had a future husband, and that husband was the ruler of Westirifer. Moreover, by staying in his presence, Synthia would never again have to sacrifice her desires in order to summon spirits.
It was a kind of eternal freedom for her.
So when Synthia told all this to Aria and Nad, both of them were left stunned and speechless. They couldn't even argue with her because Synthia had no reason to lie to them. She herself didn't even know yet who the ruler of Westirifer was. If Aria and Nad hadn't asked her to perform an oracle reading the previous night, Synthia wouldn't have told them any of this.
Until Synthia finished speaking, both Nad and Aria remained completely silent and listened to her attentively.
After she was done, Nad asked Synthia, "Aunt, are you absolutely sure that the quasi-divine spirit Elyxia wasn't playing some kind of joke with you?"
"Was she really a holy spirit and not some demonic entity?"
Hearing Nad's question, Synthia looked at him and said, "Nad… you know that before summoning the quasi-divine spirit Elyxia, I had already summoned more than a hundred spirits from the lesser and nature categories. Whenever I asked them about Westirifer, they all told me that to learn about that particular duchy, I would need to summon either the divine spirit Lady Merlina or the quasi-divine spirit Lady Elyxia.
Lady Elyxia had no reason to lie to me… You know, Nad, in the hierarchy, her position is third.
First is the almighty Goddess.
Then comes the divine spirit Lady Merlina.
And after her is the quasi-divine spirit—Elyxia.
Nad, you shouldn't even think that Spirit Elyxia would ever joke with me or lie to me."
After saying this, Synthia turned to Aria and continued, "Aria… or rather, I should say, Duchess… I, the Oracle Master of the Holygrill family, order you to send my message to the Westirifer Duchy as soon as possible. From today onward, the Holycross Duchy, along with the Holygrill family, surrenders before Westirifer and wishes to become part of their ducal family. And if anyone tries to interfere with this noble cause, they will become the enemy of the Holygrill family, the Holycross Duchy, and the Goddess of Life and Fertility. And the only fate enemies have is death."
As soon as Synthia began announcing her decree, both Aria and Nad Kevlon immediately knelt before her and listened to every word.
Neither of them could understand how, in just one night, their duchy had surrendered to Westirifer—even though Westirifer had never even demanded it. They had only asked for cooperation.
But what was done was done. Synthia, the Oracle Master, had issued her decree, and neither Aria nor Nad had the power to change it.
Aria might have been the supreme Duchess of the Holycross Duchy, but when it came to the Holygrill family, all power rested with the Oracle Master. In a way, even as just the Oracle Master, Synthia was far more powerful than Aria.
Seeing Synthia walk toward the Goddess's idol, Aria said to Nad, "Honey, I never thought the final outcome would be this… Anyway, it's time for court. You handle the court today because I need to talk to Lady Mitalda about a few things."
Saying this, Aria exited the Oracle Hall with Nad and started heading toward the guesthouse. On the other side, Nad nodded at Aria's words and began walking toward the ducal courtroom.
Because from today onward, the future of both the Holygrill family and the Holycross Duchy lay entirely in Westirifer's hands.
Now, all that remained was to see what would unfold in the future.