Reckoning is always brutal, but Roland shows no sympathy for those unlucky ones howling on the pyres.
Struggles are always cruel, and struggles of faith even more so.
If Christine were to fail, the cruelty she would face is something Roland doesn't even want to imagine.
This grand reckoning is not without its victors, as all the Cardinals were collectively put on the stake, leaving nine vacancies, and when the Bishops of the major dioceses heard such joyous news, some even wept with joy.
There was no future for them as long as the old guard was around.
It was indeed the Holy Father's wise and valiant decision to take down this group of scheming traitors.
The biggest winner, of course, was not them, but Christine herself.
Among the believers, she gained a prestige second only to the Goddess.
