Please Allow Me to Be a Righteous Thief Today (3)
It was, in truth, an utterly blasphemous thought.
The Pope felt a sudden urge to pour holy water directly into his own ears. Yet, at the same time, it sounded incredibly plausible.
He pictured her, currently sleeping in his office. If he assumed that she was an impostor pretending to be the Lord God, he could easily overcome every single obstacle currently pressing down on him.
And so, almost unconsciously, he leaned in to listen to the voice echoing in his mind.
"Are you truly... truly the Lord God? Are you indeed the one?" the Pope asked, his voice a mix of desperate longing and a sliver of doubt.
"Angelo. Do you not already know the answer? What you believe is the answer."
"..."
The Pope felt a wave of dizziness wash over him. He gripped the terrace railing so tightly it felt as though he might crush the metal.
"Then, then... what must I do?" he asked, his voice trembling.
"You must also know best what needs to be done."
"I, I..."
"It seems it is difficult to speak with you any longer. We shall meet again when the time is right."
"W-wait! Just a moment more—"
"My loyal servant, do not worry. I shall return to you soon."
With those final words, the voice echoing in his mind faded away.
However, the Pope realized that he was now spiritually connected to the entity behind the voice.
The Lord God is with me...!
As soon as that thought took root, the Pope's wrinkled face broke into a wide, blooming smile, his previous anxiety vanishing instantly.
His gaze swept toward the stairs leading back to his office.
The one occupying the bed in the center of his office... No, the entity was truly...
It was blasphemous. It was a level of disbelief so profound that he wouldn't be able to complain even if he were branded a heretic and excommunicated on the spot.
But the Pope knew exactly why he was thinking and acting this way.
If the being currently sleeping in his office bed was indeed an impostor pretending to be the Lord God, he could use this crisis as an opportunity.
"Yes," the Pope murmured softly.
At that moment, the deep-seated worries and anxieties that had plagued his heart washed away completely.
In the distant past, the impostor whom the Lord God Justia had sealed away had finally awakened after a long slumber. And now, sensing the impostor's awakening, the true Lord God had reached out through a 'voice' to guide him on what must be done.
"My Lord God..."
The Pope knelt on the floor.
He brought his hands together and offered a prayer toward the heavens.
The Dormitory of Dormancy was not the resting place of the Lord God Justia. It was merely the place where the prophesied impostor of the Lord God had been sealed.
And he would be remembered as the one who dared to drive out the impostor masquerading as the deity, restoring the true name and glory of the Lord God Justia.
"I will follow your will. And I shall... fulfill my mission."
His voice was barely a whisper, but it carried a firmer resolve than ever before as it scattered into the howling wind.
The continent is infinitely vast.
Because of this, a diverse array of terrains and climates stretched across its expanse.
The northernmost edge of the continent was gripped by a relentless, freezing cold, with extremely rugged mountainous terrain that made the survival of any living creature nearly impossible.
While the central and southern regions of the continent had nations that nominally ruled over even the most remote borderlands, the frozen wastes north of the Great Mountain Range were a literal no-man's-land.
Consequently, it was the perfect sanctuary for those wishing to escape the eyes of humanity—especially the Holy Kingdom—to dwell in peace.
Deep within those mountains lay the stronghold of the demons, who referred to themselves as 'Pandemonium.'
"As you all know, Hanar, who was on the verge of obtaining a physical vessel, was defeated recently. It seems he was completely annihilated along with his host."
Among the gathered demons of various shapes and sizes, a demon in the form of a hunchbacked old man spoke first.
At the hunchbacked old man's words, the demons in the hall collectively showed signs of discomfort.
There were barely ten of them present, but the foul energy radiating from each of them was potent enough to drive any ordinary human mad with terror just by being near them.
Despite its grand name, Pandemonium was not a massive gathering of countless demons.
The number of demons constituting Pandemonium was exactly thirteen.
However, because every single member was a high-level demon, they were an incredibly dangerous and formidable group.
For the past several centuries, these thirteen demons had sown seeds of malice and spread corrupt thoughts throughout the mortal world.
They had introduced necromancy to the elven tribes secluding themselves in the Great Forest and established cults of demon worshippers across the continent, orchestrating various minor and major chaotic events.
While the Holy Kingdom estimated that Pandemonium had been active for about two hundred years, that was merely when they had first begun to operate openly.
Pandemonium's ultimate goal was to dye the mortal world in negative emotions, using them as nourishment for the demons.
Demons were inherently self-centered creatures who rarely cooperated with others, but the demons of Pandemonium had realized that by pooling their strength, they could exert a far greater influence over mortals.
Yet, despite their power, their numbers had been reduced by two in just a few months.
It was safe to say this was the greatest crisis Pandemonium had faced since its inception.
"Around the same time, the elven believer whom Gamigin had prepared regained his senses and took his own life, completely destroying the seeds we had sown."
There was more bad news.
"And that is not all. Prokel and Balam, who went to harvest the seeds planted in the Troll Village, ended up fusing together. While they have become one, it is also true that our numbers have decreased."
And all of this was caused by a single human.
Setting aside the elven chief's suicide, they had already confirmed that the other two incidents were the work of the exact same human.
Meanwhile, at the old man's words, a man in a suit and a goat-headed fusion snorted in irritation, exhaling hot breath.
"The next time we meet him, we will win. I will toast with the blood wrung from his severed limbs."
"Pfft!"
"Heh, at this rate, you'll probably just end up following Hanar."
The fused demon radiated anger and vowed revenge, but the other demons were too busy snickering and mocking him.
"Silence, all of you! We are not here to mock their failures."
But the amusement was short-lived. At the hunchbacked old man's commanding voice, the hall quickly fell silent.
"There is one more piece of news."
Every demon in the room leaned in to listen.
Of course, rather than anticipating good news, their reactions were more along the lines of waiting to see what other disaster had struck.
"The Lord God of the Holy Kingdom has awakened from her long slumber."
At the old man's words, the entire assembly gasped in shock.
The Lord God of the Holy Kingdom, the Goddess of Justice, Justia.
Was she not the mighty deity who had once raised an army of mortals to defeat the previous Demon King before falling into a deep sleep?
"That dreadful entity has already awakened?"
"I thought it was far too early."
The authority wielded by the Goddess of Justice was the absolute antithesis of demonic energy. Even the holy water brewed by the priests of the Holy Kingdom was enough to inflict severe damage on ordinary low-level devils.
"Hanar's death can be dismissed as a weakling being weeded out, but that cursed god waking up is no minor matter."
"Indeed. We need a plan."
The old man did not lose his temper this time. He simply waited in silence for the demons to quiet down on their own.
After several minutes of noisy chatter, the hall finally fell silent again, and the old man spoke.
"However, there is also good news."
"What is it?"
"Speak quickly."
"I have planted a mental demon in the leader of the Holy Kingdom. I made him doubt what is right in front of his eyes and rely on what cannot be seen."
At the old man's explanation, the gathered demons let out collective gasps of admiration.
"How did you manage that?" one demon asked, unable to contain his curiosity.
"The current leader of the Holy Kingdom has been blinded by greed and a lust for power since birth. Yet, at the same time, he possesses an exceptional talent for gathering allies and defeating his enemies among mortals."
The current Pope of the Holy Kingdom wanted to protect his position and the current system more than anyone else.
"But with the Lord God's awakening, his plans were on the verge of falling apart. While it is not his fault, humans always require a scapegoat to take responsibility for chaos and unrest."
Demons were inherently fascinated by mortals.
Because of this, Pandemonium had long known that the Central Church of the Holy Kingdom had intentionally omitted parts of their scriptures.
Erasing those parts was not the current Pope's doing. However, he had risen to the position where he would have to take responsibility for the blasphemy of forging the scriptures.
"If the Lord God has awakened, does that not mean her other half, who should be imprisoned somewhere, has also awakened?"
A skeletal demon, who had remained silent until now, pointed this out.
The old man nodded in agreement.
"I exploited exactly that."
"I see."
A Pope consumed by the desire to secure his position.
They had shown such a Pope a path that made it seem as though he could easily overcome his current difficulties.
"He now believes that the god who just woke up is an impostor, and that the true Lord God is speaking to him in the form of a 'voice'."
The demons burst into laughter.
Even the fusion of Prokel and Balam let out a snicker.
"Pfft, he's a clever one, which is why he overthought it and fell right into the trap."
"Hahaha!"
"However."
The laughter died down instantly as the old man spoke again.
"We do not know where the other half is. If the two awakened goddesses unite as prophesied, they will become a perfect being transcending perfection."
The crowd murmured anxiously.
"We cannot let that happen."
"We must stop it at all costs."
"But, as it happens, we have already found traces of what we believe to be the other half's trail."
The demons of Pandemonium quickly realized what 'traces' the old man was referring to.
The human who had suddenly appeared in the world and kept interfering with Pandemonium's plans.
"Indeed, Yohan, was it? He wielded an authority far stronger than any ordinary holy knight," the fusion of Prokel and Balam testified.
The others, including the old man, nodded in unison.
"Yohan. That human must be the proxy of the other half."
The plan worked perfectly.
No, calling it perfect was an understatement; it was almost to an excessive degree.
"The Lord God has awakened!"
"The living god is with us!"
The entire city of Holy Capital Justia had already transformed into a massive festival ground.
On one side, ecstatic believers were shouting at the top of their lungs, while on the other, groups of people were offering collective prayers.
It was no exaggeration to call it a crucible of madness—or rather, fanaticism.
"I didn't expect the effect to be this absolute."
"To be honest, I'm quite surprised too."
The Grand Plaza, which connected to the Papal Palace in a straight avenue, was usually a peaceful resting place where the residents of the Holy Capital spent their leisure time.
Walking lightly along the paths, sitting on mats on the grass to eat snacks.
But today was different.
The entire Grand Plaza was packed to the brim with believers who had flocked from all directions.
Yohan and Annie watched this unfold from a nearby building, sharing their honest thoughts.
"Checking the Grand Cathedral first was the right move. Thanks to that, the instigation worked even better."
"Well, we could have had our identities exposed if we weren't careful."
In truth, all Yohan had done was wander around the bustling streets of the Holy Capital, spreading rumors.
Of course, he hadn't just blindly spread rumors that 'the Lord God Justia has awakened from her long slumber.'
Before spreading the rumors, he and Annie had visited the Grand Cathedral of the Papal Palace and confirmed that access was restricted under the pretext of renovations.
Then, he suggested the awakening of the Lord God Justia as the reason for the sudden closure of the Grand Cathedral.
At that point, Yohan had been prepared to be treated as a blasphemous liar by angry citizens.
However, there was no need for such a gamble.
In fact, the board was already set in Yohan's favor.
The residents of the Holy Capital had already been highly suspicious of why the Grand Cathedral had suddenly been closed overnight.