Chapter 107
Chapter 107
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 107
Chapter Title: The Will to Live
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“What the hell?!”
Roca cried out in shock, and Cardinal Omen’s eyes went wide.
“What the...”
Beside him, barely holding back a curse, Thomas and Robert’s pupils shook.
Honestly, I was flustered too. All eyes turned as the Doje reached for his trouser hem.
And then yanked them down. Without a hint of hesitation.
With utterly shameless resolve, he even pulled down his underwear. It was a speed and determination I couldn’t believe even seeing it. It felt like witnessing the boldness of a ruler who governed a nation.
I wondered if I should cover Roca’s eyes, but it wasn’t necessary.
“What are you doing?!”
Roca covered her own eyes with both hands, her face flushing red. His... member was standing at full attention.
I had no idea why he’d suddenly stripped from the waist down, but the Aldehir priests nearby screamed and averted their gazes. There were several priestesses among them.
“Ahem. Everyone see? I have nothing to hide from you all.”
“Your Excellency. Have you lost your mind? Was exhibitionism always your kink? Has the Republic fallen so far that you’re finally unleashing all those repressed desires you held back for the sake of social dignity?”
“Hey, you perverted old man. Even if the Republic is crumbling, what kind of disgraceful...”
Robert and Cardinal Omen looked ready to unleash a torrent of abuse if only there weren’t witnesses.
But their words were cut short by a single phrase.
“You all seem to have forgotten. I’m a eunuch.”
“A eunuch?! Now that you mention it...”
“It’s no secret. Pretty much everyone in the Republic knows I’m a eunuch. Long ago, the Citadel royal family castrated me and severed my line. I lost my manhood, and a long time has passed since then.”
Cardinal Omen fell silent, his face as if recalling something.
“Later, when I became the Republic’s Doje, I consulted the Triad Faith and your own order. I asked if there was any way to restore what was cut off.”
“You all gave the same canned response. If you’d come right after it happened, maybe, but it’s too late now. The wound has healed, so divine power can’t regenerate what was severed.”
“But when I came right after it was cut off, I couldn’t even enter the temple gates. Even the lowliest priests spat curses and kicked me out. Back then, I wasn’t the Republic’s Doje—I was just a rogue labeled a traitor.”
The Doje grabbed his member with one hand and pointed at the spring with the other.
“Patients drink that water for its miraculous properties, so I took a sip too. And a miracle found me. See? My manhood is back. Suddenly, I want to live.”
“And...?”
Robert muttered. The Doje nodded.
“The human heart is a wondrous thing. Just moments ago, I was resigned to death. But this one little thing returns, and the will to live surges up. I started wanting to live long enough to see my children. But that doesn’t mean I’ll survive alone.”
“The promise stands. If the Republic falls, I fall with it. If the Republic lives, so do I. Robert. In honor of my manhood’s revival, save me too. Let’s not give up.”
Robert couldn’t hold the Doje’s gaze and nodded.
“Fine, fine. Just pull up your pants first. I get you want to show off your new acquisition, but please...”
“Then it’s decided.”
The Doje pulled up his trousers and turned to me.
“If I’m dying anyway, I’ll take the path with even a sliver of hope for survival. I’ll muster the Republic’s remaining forces to support you, Priest.”
“Really?”
“Before, with Thomas’s help, I used earth magic to enter the volcano directly. I trusted too much in a master’s power. Doing it again would just repeat the mistake. I have nothing left to lose now, so this time, I’ll use bait to lure the Phoenix.”
Somehow, his voice lacked strength. And rightly so.
His last remaining hope was a miracle from the gods. In a situation where human power was useless and he had to beg the heavens, it must chafe at his pride.
“What about your side?”
After shaking my hand, the Doje asked Cardinal Omen.
The cardinal sighed in reply.
“We’re already this deep in. What choice do we have? We’ll join you.”
“You mean it?”
“I’ll prepare the Artabus. But let me be clear: if the plan fails, we’ll abandon you and flee immediately. We owe you much and will honor that, but we haven’t sold our souls to the Citadel Republic.”
“If it fails, at least you must live.”
The Doje nodded, and we immediately began formulating the plan.
“The dwarf race, ancient master craftsmen, could cultivate metals infused with the power of nature. They’re extinct now, so we don’t know how, but one such ore was passed to the Citadel royal family.”
“You plan to use it as bait to lure the Phoenix.”
“Exactly. Sunstone, infused with the sun’s power, was so rare even dwarves rarely made it. It should tempt the immortal firebird that craves flame and solar might.”
If it meant saving the Republic, he seemed ready to give up anything. The Doje handed over such treasures without hesitation. But thinking about it, if the Republic survived, such treasures meant nothing.
A person had to live first for treasures to have any meaning.
“We’ll use the Artabus to lure it into the air and fight aerially. It’s not built for combat, but tools depend on the user.”
“Isn’t that for your Pope to decide?”
“Who knows? Who cares about the Pope?”
The cardinal grumbled, but the rough plan took shape. With no time to waste, we prepared to depart at once.
Even the Doje would board the Artabus.
“If the plan fails, I’ll just plummet to my death there.”
It had to succeed.
“Oh, one thing I’m curious about. It’s a sensitive question—may I ask?”
“Nothing’s sensitive now. I’ve bared everything down to my pants.”
“I heard you gave Grimudo a World Tree fruit. Do you know why he wanted it?”
“I don’t know why you’re curious, Priest, but this isn’t the first time. Many have asked, and my answer’s always the same: I didn’t know then, and I don’t now.”
He scowled as he spoke.
“I truly don’t. If it were some spirit medicine of immense power, the elves wouldn’t have sold it to humans. They knew we couldn’t use the World Tree’s fruit even if we had it, so they sold it off.”
“No worry it’d make a demon king stronger by eating it.”
“The World Tree itself isn’t an ordinary tree—it’s something closer to a law of nature. The fruit looks like fruit, but you can’t eat it, or even split it.”
The former Citadel king—Pannel’s father—once thought it had effects and swallowed one whole, the Doje said.
“He was a brilliant grand mage, so he somehow gulped down that massive fruit. What do you think happened? It came out the bottom undigested. Rumor has it his anus tore from the strain.”
“Who’d swallow a fruit even a grand mage couldn’t digest? It ended up worthless—too precious to discard, useless to keep—so it rolled around in storage until it reached me.”
So it had already passed through someone’s gut and out the other end. No matter how thoroughly washed, I wouldn’t touch it.
That explained why no one ate it afterward. Did Grimudo take it to eat? But could it even strengthen him?
“Oh, you’ve arrived. Come in, Your Holiness the Pope.”
As I was about to ask more about the World Tree fruit, he suddenly looked one way, waved, and greeted.
His Holiness the Pope? I whipped my head around too. An intellectual-looking old man in glasses stood before Roca with a stern expression.
“Child. Are you interested in the sky by any chance?”
Roca looked puzzled. Her tail even curled into a question mark.
I vaguely recalled hearing Aldehir followers were a bit eccentric, and it seemed credible enough.
“Not really...”
“Then how about believing in the heavens for once? Our order has great benefits, you know.”
Surprisingly, Roca didn’t snap back and just fidgeted awkwardly. She was good at heart deep down. Cold to malice, but weak to kindness.
Like ice melting in warm sunlight, she couldn’t stay frosty toward those who showed her goodwill.
“You old coot! Stop trying to poach kids and help with launch prep! We’re short on time, and this is just great.”
“Like star candy? It’s a specialty of our faith. Here, try one.”
Roca, who didn’t like sweets anyway, took the candy and pocketed it without eating. As the cardinal yelled at the old man, he clicked his tongue and continued.
“Kid. That so-called cardinal can’t even read his superior’s mind. No wonder I had to come myself, with his zero tact. Anyway, child. Ignore that foul-tempered fool. I have one thing to ask your intentions on.”
Amid the bustle, eyes turned that way. People watched the Pope, wondering what he’d say. He slowly spoke.
“Would you ever want to become the Saintess of the Aldehir Faith?”
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