Chapter 25
Chapter 25
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 25
Chapter Title: The Pope's Shadow
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The path to the Holy Kingdom's forbidden archive. I had Pope Porcus III walk ahead, leading the way.
Watching his corpulent body sweat profusely as he trudged along, it seemed he barely moved a muscle in his daily life except to eat.
'How did a guy like this become Pope?'
I stroked my chin, observing the Pope's back. Even if the gods couldn't directly interfere in the world, this was taking it too far.
Just how much political maneuvering and powerful backing did he have for such a man to remain in his position without being ousted? The question nagged at me.
The gods, including the Chief God, could not directly influence this world. They were far from being omnipotent.
As if bound by some law of causality, they could not flaunt their power and instead chose proxies to carry out their will.
'Those proxies are the Hero and the Saint.'
I nodded, thinking of Kyle and Victoria.
'At least they seem to have chosen proper individuals for the Hero and Saint roles...'
After all, the Hero was genuinely a good-natured fellow, and the Saint, while sharp-tongued only toward me, wasn't a bad person at heart.
Lost in such thoughts, I noticed the Pope's pace gradually slowing. To an ordinary person, it would have been an imperceptible reduction in stride.
"...I can hear you scheming. Walk faster."
"Ee, eeeeeek!!"
Porcus III shrieked like a child caught doing something bad, startling violently. I frowned, showing my displeasure as I looked at him.
"Y-you will regret this... holding the Pope hostage like this...!"
The Pope now resorted to threats against me. Guys who said 'you'll pay for this later!' were never truly intimidating.
"Oh my, really? I'm so scared."
I deliberately exaggerated, giving a slight tremble. It was rather enjoyable to tease my opponent like this.
Since I had magically recorded all the statements made earlier by the Pope and the paladins, even if problems arose, more people would be on my side.
"Well then, shall I ask someone else to open the way to the forbidden archive? If I don't need you, there's no reason to keep you alive..."
"I-I'm sorry... *Gasp*, *Huff*..."
When I applied a little pressure, the Pope immediately sealed his lips, even holding his breath. His legs trembled like aspen leaves, a sight almost comical.
I wished Victoria could have seen this spectacle. She always spoke ill of the current Pope, viewing him unfavorably.
'Now I think I can guess the reason...'
Ever since he tried to strip Victoria's clothes last time, it was clear this bastard was a pervert driven by lust.
As we walked toward the forbidden archive, we encountered nuns residing here. They all averted their eyes upon seeing the Pope and fled like arrows.
The nuns' expressions held disgust, anger, and a hint of schadenfreude.
"You... don't tell me you laid hands on the nuns too?"
"T-that's impossible...! I am the Pope! How could I commit such impure acts?!"
The Pope evaded my question. His face was slick with sweat, and his smooth, bald scalp reflected the light.
Snap.
"Answer properly. I'm barely holding back the urge to kill a bastard like you right now, only because of the forbidden archive."
I immediately twisted the Pope's arms behind his back, forcing a proper answer from him. My intuition said he'd keep lying otherwise.
"Aaaaah! Y-yes! I did! I used money and power to silence them, until now...!"
"...Damn it, how the hell did this bastard become Pope?"
I covered my face with my palm and spat out a curse. A foul feeling kept rising; I had to say something.
Even if the previous Pope, Raphael, was suddenly poisoned, it was a huge leap for such trash to become Pope.
"I think so too! How on earth did you become Pope?!"
Wilhelm, perhaps sharing the same doubt, raised his voice while looking at the Pope with a curious gaze.
"It must be the old men in the Papal Court. Maybe they installed a puppet they could manipulate as they pleased..."
I stated my own speculation. Victoria always mentioned them, and there was a group that disliked me when I visited last time.
Originally, the Papal Court was structured with the Pope holding absolute power, commanding those beneath him.
"...Or they wanted to share power and money."
In this case, it was probably the opposite.
They needed someone to fill the sudden vacancy left by the previous Pope, who died without an heir.
If they installed Porcus III, the most incompetent and easy to manipulate, it made some sense.
Imagining how corrupt these people, who claimed to live by the Heavenly God's words, had become left me speechless with disbelief.
'Just endure a little more... Just a little more, and I can save Victoria...'
I cultivated patience by repeating the same words in my heart. I came here to solve Victoria's problem, so no matter how angry I was, I had to achieve the goal.
The Holy Kingdom's forbidden archive was underground, and only the Pope held the key to the door leading there.
"...H-here it is! Can I go back now?!"
"Where do you think you're sneaking off to alone? How would I know what you'd do if you left here?"
I grabbed the Pope by the collar as he offered me the key. My strong grip lifted his feet slightly off the ground, making them flutter.
"And originally, you need to be here so we can find what's in the forbidden archive quickly. If only past Popes could enter, you'd know better than ordinary people, right?"
"N-no! I haven't set a single foot inside the forbidden archive..."
Porcus III waved his hands in denial. Anyone could see he was acting strangely, like someone with something to hide.
"Really? Aren't humans usually obsessed with forbidden things? If it were me, I'd have gone in out of curiosity."
I gently set the Pope down and began to suspect him.
There was no way a guy like him would just pass by the forbidden archive filled with records of past Saints and the Holy Kingdom's secrets.
Knowledge was power. Even if it was forbidden knowledge or pointed toward a wrongful path, it could still be useful.
But he claims he never entered? Then there must be a reason he 'couldn't' enter.
My instincts as a mage screamed.
"...You're hiding something in the forbidden archive, aren't you?"
The reason such a substandard guy became Pope must be lurking in the underground forbidden archive.
I smiled a sinister smile at the Pope with near-certainty in my voice. He trembled slightly, revealing his fear.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ The passage to the forbidden archive was dark and damp, like passing through an animal's intestines, consisting of endless stairs.
From the middle onward, all candles were extinguished, making it impossible to see even an inch ahead.
"...Light."
Fwoosh! A white sphere of light rose from my fingertips after the incantation, brightly illuminating the surroundings.
I couldn't understand why they neglected maintenance to this extent. Spiderwebs hung everywhere, and the scurrying sounds of fleeing mice echoed.
"Do you even manage the forbidden archive?"
I asked the Pope walking at the very front. The responsibility for this place lay entirely with Porcus.
Shake shake.
The Pope shook his head sideways, expressing that he did not. His calm demeanor, offering no excuses or lies, felt odd.
"You're up to something, aren't you? Are you raising monsters inside the forbidden archive? Do you think leading us here will get us all eaten?"
Creak, creak.
Upon my words, Pope Porcus's legs moved irregularly. Clearly, I had hit a nerve.
"T-that's impossible. There's nothing inside the forbidden archive in the first place. You're misunderstanding. Only information about past Saints..."
"Even so, there should be golems guarding this place or traps, right? Don't you think it's strange for such an important place to have nothing?"
Thwack!
I kicked the Pope's shin hard as I spoke. It was confusing what was true and what was false in his story; I couldn't trust where to draw the line.
"Aaaaah! Stop hitting me! Do you think you'll get away with this later?!"
"Of course. I'm the mage of the Hero's party."
The Pope whimpered again. Perhaps because he was fleshy, hitting him felt oddly satisfying.
Around the time I thought, 'So this is why Victoria verbally abuses me─' I began to see a swirling flow of magical power ahead.
'That's... a quantity of magical power rivaling a dragon's, but why is it so dark and tainted with impurities...'
For a moment, I doubted my eyes. Upon realizing its identity, I immediately cast defensive magic on Wilhelm and myself.
"Sacred Barrier...!"
A shield unfurled with wings of light. It barely blocked the shadow approaching head-on.
"Morere. Sanguinem funde, viscera evome, et in dolore contorqueare." ⟨ Language of the Dead ⟩
Upon contact with the shadow, the language of the dead surfaced in my mind.
Merely hearing it was enough to corrode the souls of living beings and lead them to death—an impure sentence.
"...The Pope's backer is a Lich? Isn't this going too far?"
I couldn't help but let out a hollow laugh at the opponent before me.
The identity of the being possessing such dense, murky, and negative magical power—something I'd never imagine could be hiding in the Holy Kingdom—was a mage clad in a golden robe, its body reduced to mere bones, teeth clacking.
It was a Lich.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ — Victoria (Inner Thoughts) Son of a bitch, that's what he was hiding? 'He-Heavenly God...! Please, maintain your dignity...!'
⭐ Divine Communication — Heavenly God Lumina Do I look like I'm in the mood to stay calm? On top of deceiving my eyes, he laid hands on nuns and conspired with a Lich behind the scenes! At that moment, Victoria, who had secretly entered the forbidden archive with them, was desperately trying to stop the Heavenly God from cursing.
⭐ Divine Command — Heavenly God Lumina Kill him! In the name of the Heavenly God, I command you, Victoria! A bastard colluding with monsters deserves to die! Heavenly God Lumina, unlike her usual self, issued a revelation to Victoria in a voice filled with rage, ordering Porcus III's death.