The Ghost Bishop's Loyalty

Undead and holy power were polar opposites! It was extremely rare for someone with a holy profession to turn into an undead. But...

If it was the Archisus Church, anything was possible! Carbanog accepted it with incredible ease. Tae-hyun, however, felt a bit uneasy.

"Are you the Pope, Your Holiness?"

"I am."

"The church hasn't collapsed yet!"

"..."

Don't be surprised by something like that!

"I was sure it would have collapsed by now...!"

"It did collapse once, but I revived it."

"Ah. Of course. That makes sense."

Pelmarne accepted it instantly!

"I knew it must have collap—"

"Enough of that. Why are you a ghost?"

"I had no choice. Though my body was trapped here, I still had a duty to fulfill."

"?"

What kind of duty would drive a bishop to become undead?

Revenge?

A desire for a fancy title?

"It was to revive our church, which was devastated by the demon invasion."

"..."

...Sorry for doubting you!

Tae-hyun and Carbanog reflected on their cynicism at the same time. To become undead out of sheer worry for the church... How could they have misunderstood such a noble soul!

Unaware of their silent apology, Bishop Pelmarne continued.

"I am deeply sorry, Your Holiness. For tarnishing the church's name like this."

"No, it's fine. It doesn't matter."

Shut up!

"But hearing from Your Holiness that the church has been revived, I realize I no longer need to wait here for so long. I can let go of my lingering regrets and..."

"??!"

Tae-hyun and Carbanog gasped. Usually, those words...

Weren't those the classic lines an undead monster says right before they find peace and ascend to the afterlife?!

"No! No! The church still needs help! The church's current situation is absolute dog shit!"

"Oh? Is that so?" Pelmarne paused.

"Yes! We desperately need the help of a talented individual like you!"

"Your Holiness... Those are truly touching words. To think you would speak so highly of an old man like me. Surely the church must have plenty of young, capable talents!"

Actually, we don't have any.

Where would they even find such "talented individuals"?

Regardless, Tae-hyun had barely managed to stop Pelmarne from passing on the moment they met. He had too many questions for the bishop; he couldn't let him leave just yet!

"Pelmarne, I have two main things to ask you."

"Please, ask me anything. I ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠will do my absolute best to assist you."

He's so earnest it's making me anxious.

Tae-hyun suddenly felt uneasy. How could such a diligent, sincere NPC exist in the Archisus Church? Was he a spy from another denomination?

"First of all, since the church collapsed once and I had to rebuild it, we've lost almost everything. Is there anything you can tell me about our church's legacy?"

"I do not know everything, but I will help to the best of my ability."

As dozens of constructible buildings and unlockable skills flooded the screen, Tae-hyun and Carbanog's minds went completely blank.

Th-this...

Was this really a highly competent and diligent NPC of the Archisus Church?

Are we sure this isn't a demon in disguise?!

Pelmarne spoke humbly.

"I apologize that this is all the assistance I can offer."

At this point, Tae-hyun had no choice but to accept reality. This bishop was incredibly competent!

Come to think of it, anyone who reached the rank of bishop in a church had to be highly capable. It was just that the Archisus Church had been populated by nothing but absolute swindlers and lowlifes until now!

I have to take him with me, no matter what.

"Bishop Pelmarne. By the way, how did you end ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠up imprisoned in this place? Did you perhaps control demons, conspire with them, or join forces with them?"

"??? I possess no such abilities... I was imprisoned because I offered honest counsel to His Imperial Majesty. I merely advised him to open his blinded eyes and rule properly... but it seems my phrasing was a bit too harsh."

He was even upright and loyal!

For a brief moment, a thought crossed Tae-hyun's mind. Could it be that the Archisus Church was originally a pure and righteous organization, and I've just been misunderstanding it all this time?

"Then is the rumor that the Pope turned the river red also a lie?"

"Ah. That part is true. We had no choice but to do so to hold back the demons."

"..."

Damn it.

The bishop explained the situation back then. Demons were running rampant across the continent, and the church had its back against the wall. Of course, other denominations chose methods like self-sacrifice or martyrdom... but wasn't this also a form of sacrifice in its own way?

"His Holiness the Pope was a bit radical, which led to many misunderstandings, but his heart was truly pure."

"I get misunderstood like that a lot too."

In any case, thanks to this, Tae-hyun was able to grasp the state of the Ancient Empire.

Fortunately, the Archisus Church hadn't been wiped out as public enemies of the continent for running scams. Yes! The Archisus Church had fought hard in its own way! They were just... a bit too extreme in their methods!

"Pelmarne. To fight for continental peace while enduring such misunderstandings, we need talents like you. Will you help me?"

"If Your Holiness does not find this ghostly old man shameful, I will do my utmost to assist you."

!

He hadn't expected this to grant him two whole levels!

I've surpassed 190!

Level 191!

In an era where others made a massive fuss about hitting level 300, not even being level 200 was practically a meme, but Tae-hyun was thrilled. Honestly, he had thought he might never hit 200 before quitting the game.

Above all, obtaining a ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠bishop for free was a massive win. The Archisus Church finally had a bishop!

"By the way, did you not say you had two questions?"

"Ah, right. I heard the Imperial Prince of the Empire is also imprisoned here. Do you know where he is?"

"Please follow me. I shall guide you."

My thoughts exactly, Carbanog!

He was a true member of the Archisus Church!

"Thank you, Kim Tae-hyun. I won't forget this favor."

"Don't mention it. Everyone makes mistakes in life."

Tae-hyun warmly accepted Alcott's apology.

"To make such a blunder as a ranker, you should be ashamed!"

"...You're the last person who should be saying that, you bastard!" Alcott snapped.

Of all people, Cain was lecturing him?!

Of course, the ones who should be most concerned right now were neither Alcott nor Cain.

Tremble, tremble, tremble—

The moment they had finished planning their escape and were about to shout, "Hey! Let's run!", Tae-hyun had instantly caught and killed one of them! The remaining two had no choice but to misunderstand.

If he didn't read our whispers...

...Did this bastard snitch to Kim Tae-hyun?!

Excluding the dead guy, only two of them remained. If it wasn't himself, the only one who could have snitched to Kim Tae-hyun was... the guy standing right next to him!

"..."

"..."

"Why did these guys suddenly go quiet?"

"You can just ignore them, hehe. They've always been like that..."

The guild members quickly threw the three—no, two—under the bus. They wanted to trample on these useless fools to climb the ranks!

Alcott looked around, and after confirming Cain wasn't listening, he spoke quietly to Tae-hyun.

"Seriously, thank you. I won't forget that you sacrificed one of them to save me."

Sacrificing another player to save him!

Honestly, Alcott was deeply moved. He hadn't expected Tae-hyun to go this far for him, especially since he wasn't even Cain.

I only did it because they didn't matter to me anyway...?

Tae-hyun wondered why Alcott was acting like this. He hadn't cared whether those three captured rogues lived or died, so he had just used them as disposable pawns, but Alcott was looking at him with strangely sparkling eyes. He didn't use to be like this!

Bishop Pelmarne nodded in approval from the side.

"Vir... virtue?"

That was a word Tae-hyun had never heard associated with himself in his entire life! Usually, he subdued people through sheer violence...

"No, Tae-hyun, you really do have virtue."

"Lee Da-bi, why are you joining in too?"

"I'm being completely serious..."

If Cain or Alcott had said it, Tae-hyun would have snapped, "What kind of sinister scheme are you plotting?" but since it was Lee Da-bi, he couldn't dismiss it so easily.

"...If you say so, I guess."

"It's true."

"No, I believe you."

"You don't look like you believe me at all...?"

"Honestly, Da-bi. Praising me for something I don't have just feels awkward. It's like telling Cain, 'You're handsome.' How do you think he'd react?"

"Wouldn't he jump around in joy?"

"...Bad example."

"But Tae-hyun, you really do have virtue. Of course, back in Pan-On 1, you destroyed dozens of guilds, forced rankers to quit the game in 1v1 duels, and made hundreds of enemies..."

"Could you maybe not be so specific?"

It was getting embarrassing!

"But look behind you. All these people gathered here because of you."

"...Thanks, Da-bi. I'm actually a bit touched."

Tae-hyun felt a warm sensation at Da-bi's sincere words. Indeed, unlike in Pan-On 1 when he only hung out with Choi Sang-yun, in Pan-On 2, he was surrounded by so many precious companions.

If someone had gone back to the past and told him, "You'll eventually start an esports team, look after your teammates, and play the game together," his past self would have definitely said, "Are you insane?!"

"On that note, do you want to go to a charity event with me?"

"N-no. Can't I just make a donation instead?"

After the jerseys signed by Tae-hyun sold out in record time, he had been flooded with calls from various organizations. They politely asked if he could spare some time to attend their charity events, saying his presence would be a massive help.

If it were any other broadcast, he would have declined out of sheer laziness, but a charity event was different. Tae-hyun genuinely wanted to help if possible.

The problem was that the organizers had requested a two-person team!

Going as an entire team was fine, but going with Tae-hyun alone...

It'll be broadcasted on TV...

She felt a sudden wave of self-consciousness and embarrassment. She worried she might bring him down or get criticized. Tae-hyun had so many passionate fans!

"Sang-yun and Su-hyeok already turned me down."

"So that leaves Cain, but honestly, it's a bit..."

"Embarrassing? Humiliating? Shameful?"

"Those all mean the same thing. Besides, he needs to spend that time practicing. Yesterday, I caught him playing mobile games during his break and confiscated his phone."

"Ah! Tae-hyun! Look, there's a cell over there!"

"Lee Da-bi, don't change the subject."

She was getting remarkably good at dodging questions. He wondered who she had learned that from!

"Your Holiness. That solitary cell over there is where the Imperial Prince is imprisoned."

"I see."

Would it be bad if his hand slipped and he threw a bomb in there? It felt like putting the Prince out of his misery would be the cleaner option...

"But why did you ask about the Prince's cell, Your Holiness?"

"Oh, well, you see... I was debating whether to rescue him or not..."

"????"

"?"

The bishop tilted his head in confusion. Tae-hyun tilted his head as well. Why was Pelmarne reacting like that?

"But he passed away a long time ago?"

"..."

Ah...!