Chapter 297

"A heretic? A heretic of all things!"

At first, Christoph had thought the worst he might face was excommunication. Excommunication, while devastating, wasn't immediately fatal. Sure, it gave his rivals a golden opportunity to attack him under the guise of purging an outcast from the Goddess's grace, but at least he would live.

Being declared a heretic, however, was an entirely different matter.

"Is the church truly going to come after me to kill me? Personally?" Christoph's mind spiraled into panic. A heretic was seen as no different from a demon worshipper or a cultist—a target that had to be eliminated without fail. Worse yet, his own knights and loyal followers would likely turn on him the moment the declaration spread.