It's the Pope!

"It's the Pope!"

"For real? His Holiness is here?"

"Over there!"

"Did he come because of the plague?"

"Has to be. This is no ordinary crisis."

The players in the rear went on chatting as if nothing were amiss, but the situation was grave enough to be called the worst.

The plague was racing through the Holy Empire's lines, and if much more time passed, the plague monsters would begin threatening the lives of the empire's own people. The players were no longer fighting undead. They had to face powerful plague monsters instead, and those monsters—comrades only a short while ago—were far more troublesome opponents than the undead had ever been.

Pope Leje.

He was the Papacy's absolute authority, a man whose influence in the Holy Empire exceeded even the emperor's, and at the same time the player who could fairly be called the Continent's foremost wielder of holy power.

The Pope was an elf. An exceptionally handsome elf, at that.

Elves were beautiful as a rule, but the Pope was so striking that a face to topple nations would not have been wasted on him. As the hidden good deeds he had quietly carried out came to light one after another, he won the praise of all, and the Papacy's image soared with him until it could rise no higher.

That same Pope had now shown himself on the battlefield in person.

A great number ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠of the Papacy's high officials had come with him, and the Holy Empire's players were moved that he had made the journey himself.

"This is the fourth time I've seen him in the flesh, and somehow he looks more dignified and magnificent every single time."

"You're sure that isn't just the halo effect?"

"Oh, please. You don't know what you're talking about. Be honest—is there anyone in the Papacy better-looking than His Holiness?"

"There isn't."

"It's a little disappointing he's short for an elf, but that might be part of the charm."

The Pope gazed out over the battlefield without a word, then let out a heavy sigh.

"Worse than I thought…"

"Isn't it?"

At the Cardinal's words, the Pope nodded.

"The Root of Darkness… This is Masare's doing."

"I know. Where is she?"

"You mean to deal with Masare first?"

"It is the only way to end the plague."

"Leave that to me."

Pope Leje shook his head at the Cardinal's offer.

"I want it done for certain."

"Then I'll go with you. That's all right, isn't it?"

"I have no objection."

"The rest of the faithful will treat the other players, or hold the line against the undead."

His face set, the Pope moved at once.

Masare looked as though she had lost the will to fight, but Yujun had no mercy to spare. He drove his sword into the back of her head as she tried to flee.

In that instant her body turned to smoke. She had let his devastating blow pass straight through her by becoming smoke, and that alone was enough to show she was no easy opponent. Yujun had swung to ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠kill, without the slightest thought of holding back or measuring his strength. That she had reacted to it at all was impressive.

But this was no turn-based game. One missed attack hardly meant her odds of survival had improved.

Yujun followed the smoke as it was. Given the sheer gap in their specs, shaking him off was all but impossible for her.

She'd be useful to keep around, though.

Masare, the Root of Darkness, certainly possessed a great many clever, unusual abilities he had never even considered.

Too good a talent to simply kill—no, too fine a calamity. That isn't right either.

Either way, if he sealed her, she was bound to prove useful later in one form or another.

What happens if I seal her while she's still smoke?

He could never stand not knowing. He had left one slot in the Absolute Sealing Orb empty for moments exactly like this.

Balrog had handed over his experience points and departed in vain. He hadn't seemed particularly dissatisfied—though Yujun had killed him before he could complain.

Yujun immediately took out the sealing orb and stirred it through the smoke. The smoke was sucked into the Absolute Sealing Orb with absurd ease.

He stopped dead at the hollow ending and found he had nothing to say.

Does the system count this as a subjugation, too?

Well, he had ambushed Masare from behind while she fled in disgrace. From her perspective she had been utterly defenseless, so it was hardly strange that the seal had taken.

Yujun tucked the orb into his inventory and immediately surveyed the area, meaning to check the state of the plague monsters.

Nothing had changed. If anything, their numbers were only growing as time passed.

Sealing her alone doesn't mean a thing.

Just as he had expected. He took out the Absolute Sealing Orb and released her.

"Hhk—! Hah!"

Masare appeared in her original form, no longer smoke.

"Wh-what? Back there…"

Her whole body trembled as she spoke, shaken with terror.

"The plague. You can get rid of it, can't you?"

"Huh?"

"Get rid of it."

"No! Who does a worm like you think he's ordering around!"

"Didn't you want to live? Or would you rather get hit again?"

Yujun raised his sword for her to see. The keen blade, gleaming faintly, looked razor-sharp even in the dark.

"And there's magic, too."

He called up the four-attribute magic that had planted fear in her. The spells looked ready to burst at any moment, yet his Control held them perfectly still.

"…I just have to get rid of the plague? Then you'll let me live? A-and you'll get rid of that magic, too?"

"Obviously. I don't bullshit."

"Calling the plague back isn't hard for me."

With that, Masare closed her eyes and flung both arms high.

In that instant every plague monster froze. A black, murky energy seeped out of them and began flowing into her, and the players who had been fighting them stared in bewilderment.

About two minutes passed. Masare lowered her arms and smiled.

"Done."

"Pretty quick on the recall, for someone who went around spreading plague."

"All I did was use my power and take it back."

"So your power grows the farther the plague spreads?"

"No. If I'm going to bother going around doing things, I'd rather do something productive."

‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠

"Figures."

Yujun held the Absolute Sealing Orb out toward her. Masare swung an arm once, as if to resist, then backed away.

"…What are you doing?"

"Get back in."

"You said you'd spare me."

"I'm not killing you."

"I'd rather die than go back in there."

"Then die."

Yujun charged, sword raised. As if she had been waiting for it, Masare spewed out a haze of smoke—an aura that rotted everything it touched. The timing was so perfect that he flinched and fell back, and she used the opening to flee at speed.

He froze the aura of decay with Freezing magic and chased after her. She reached the forest in an instant, but he caught her with nothing but flight magic, without a single teleport.

"Why are you so fast!"

"Koreans are just kind of quick."

His sword, carrying Painful Strike, stabbed her in the back. This time it landed before she could turn to smoke, and Masare foamed at the mouth and convulsed.

Painful Strike seems to work especially well on her.

It wasn't his imagination. Now that it was the second time, he was sure.

Masare was subdued. She was stronger than every being he had faced until now, and yet she went down far too helplessly—not once, but twice. Yujun put her into the sealing orb. The Absolute Sealing Orb shuddered once, then went still.

It was a shame he wouldn't receive the reward for killing her, but the Root of Darkness wasn't an undead that granted Peace Contribution anyway. He could always kill her later, once she was no longer useful, and pick up an achievement or two.

If I find plague somewhere else, I can just order her to recall it.

When it came to plague and negative energy, wasn't Masare an expert? If he could bind her with a soul contract the way he had Yenil, it would be no different from gaining one more reliable companion.

Just then, two players were approaching him. Coming all this way in pursuit meant they were likely enemies, but Yujun was not particularly on his guard. He could feel holy power from them. Holy power was an energy with similarities to Touch of Healing, and so it was relatively easy to sense—not that there was much his Agility couldn't handle in any case.

"Who are you?"

He knew they were players of the Papacy, but not exactly who. So he asked, and Pope Leje answered with a slightly taken-aback look.

"I am the Pope."

"The Demon God Worshipper Cult… well, obviously not."

"The Raidan Papacy."

"So I gathered. What brings you here?"

"Where has the Root of Darkness gone? I came to deal with her. After you gave chase, her presence vanished completely."

"I killed her."

"…You killed her? Masare is an immortal being."

What. She really doesn't die?

Yujun was startled, but he didn't let it show.

"You think I'd have fought her without knowing how to kill her?"

"How did you do it?"

"Telling you wouldn't mean much. It has to do with my abilities."

On the Continent, casually asking another player about their abilities was poor manners, unless the two of you were quite close. Yujun made use of that.

"For someone who claims to have killed her, remnants of the energy belonging to the Root of Darkness are still lingering in the air."

"Your Holiness. Have you ever killed Masare? You haven't."

"Shin Yujun. Your tone toward His Holiness—"

The Cardinal was just about to launch into a stern lecture when the Pope raised a hand and stopped him.

"Enough. If the Root of Darkness is dead, I can rest easier. When I heard the rumors about you, I thought they were greatly exaggerated, but it was the opposite. The rumors were selling you short. To think you took down that headache of a Masare alone…"

"She was famous, then?"

"Famous, yes. More people didn't know of her than did, but every believer of the Papacy knew her, and she was famous in more ways than one. Her deeds were no different from a demon's, yet she was so strong that no one could lay a hand on her."

"And yet the two of you just came to catch her, didn't you?"

"We came prepared to stake our lives, in our own way. I may not match Masare's power, but holy power and the energy she wields are natural opposites. I judged that we could take her, and so we came."

"Well, it's all settled, so go on ahead. I'll check the items I got as achievement rewards and then head out."

"…"

The Pope regarded him with suspicious eyes, but nodded as if there were nothing else to be done.

The Cardinal, meanwhile, had been glaring at him with a sharp gaze for some time—the look of a man who would come demanding answers about this someday.

I'm basically the hero who saved your country. You shouldn't glare at me like that.

Of course, he didn't actually care all that much about the Holy Empire's safety, or its peace. Peace Contribution mattered more.

Plenty of undead still remained on the battlefield. But with Masare and the Bone Dragon—the Holy Empire's greatest threats—gone, the players were gradually seizing the advantage, thanks in no small part to Yujun having already taken down the lich lords.

He ought to head straight back ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠and sweep up the rest of the undead, but he didn't. There was something he needed to check first.

The synchronization rate had reached 120 percent.