Chapter 282
Chapter 282
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 282
Chapter Title: Countless Secrets (3)
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The Pope led Demian deeper into the Holy Palace.
“In his later years, the Founding Pope attained a great enlightenment.”
As they walked down the corridor, the Pope said to Demian.
“I don’t know the details, but it wasn’t just any ordinary enlightenment. Through it, he split his own soul and left a fragment behind for the main temple.”
Demian felt curiosity at the Pope’s explanation.
Not only splitting his soul, but maintaining it for so long?
Even in his previous life, he had never seen a knight with such an ability.
Not even the Empire’s Greatest Sword or the Blue Dragon, who were grandmasters.
Perhaps the Salvation Legion truly was a group that had transcended grandmasters.
“The soul fragment left by the Founding Pope remains in the main temple, offering advice and teachings without reservation to those who come seeking him. Thanks to that, many Holy Knights have overcome their walls with his help.”
“Amazing.”
Demian said sincerely.
From a black mage’s perspective, what the Founding Pope left behind was very similar to a thoughtform.
But thoughtforms were created right before death. In contrast, the Pope had divided his soul while still alive and left it behind.
Moreover, thoughtforms were tainted by the fear of death, so rationality couldn’t be expected.
Yet the Founding Pope’s thoughtform possessed such clear reason that it could teach others. That was truly remarkable.
“Why has it been kept secret until now? If it’s a fragment of the Founding Pope… isn’t it essentially the Founding Pope himself?”
Demian harbored one question.
In his previous life, when he had occupied the Holy Palace under Dorgo’s orders, Demian hadn’t seen the Founding Pope’s thoughtform. Dorgo hadn’t found it either.
“Because each time it meets someone, the fragment’s power weakens. So the main temple keeps it sealed most of the time and only awakens it when absolutely necessary.”
A thoughtform with clear reason couldn’t last forever.
Not even one created by the Founding Pope.
‘Perhaps it completely vanished before the War of Ruin began. That’s why Dorgo couldn’t find it.’
As he listened to the Pope’s explanation, the two reached the end of the corridor.
“Please wait a moment.”
The Pope approached the door at the end of the corridor.
He held up the rosary around his neck, and the lock opened.
“Only one person can enter from here.”
The Pope stepped aside, and Demian approached the door.
The fact that he was about to meet a legendary hero made Demian’s heart race slightly.
His opponent might be a being who had transcended grandmaster level.
He might even receive tremendous advice.
“I’ll be back.”
Demian entered.
At that moment, Demian’s vision went black.
When the darkness lifted, what appeared before Demian’s eyes was a battlefield.
On a vast plain, bipedal lizards and humans were fighting each other.
The battle was one-sided. The lizards overwhelmingly dominated the humans.
The lizards were larger in size and equipped with far superior gear.
-Don’t retreat! We must hold this place no matter what!
-We can’t be pushed back any further!
Despite being at a disadvantage, the humans hadn’t lost their spirit. They charged even more fiercely.
-Hold the line! The hero will bring us victory!
A man who seemed to be the commander shouted. The lizards let out bizarre cries as if it were absurd.
At that moment, a black shadow swept across the battlefield.
The gruesome sight startled both sides, halting the fighting.
Both humans and lizards looked up at the sky. Then they all saw it.
A black-winged dragon wildly flailing in the sky.
The cause was a human hanging onto the dragon’s torso.
The human male wasn’t just large; he was incredibly muscular.
The human male clung to the dragon’s back, swinging a mace wildly.
Each time the human brought the mace down, scales shattered and muscles burst. The dragon let out agonized roars.
He slowly crawled toward the dragon’s head.
Finally reaching the nape, the man locked his legs around the dragon’s neck to secure himself. Then he raised the mace high.
Dazzling light enveloped the mace. Its size grew dozens of times larger.
The man swung the enormous mace with all his might. The dragon’s head exploded like a ripe watermelon.
The headless body plummeted immediately. The dragon’s corpse skidded across the ground before stopping.
Silence fell over the battlefield for a moment. Soon, the humans raised their weapons and cheered.
-Waaah! We won! We really won!
-Long live Bartoleo! Long live the Salvation Legion!
The humans cheered in unison. In contrast, panic was evident on the lizards’ faces.
-What are you all doing? Drive out those lizard bastards now!
-You beast scum! Your master is dead—why are you still standing around instead of fleeing?!
The humans pressed the lizards. The lizards were slaughtered helplessly.
Demian watched the scene silently. Then a voice came from beside him.
“Brother, what do you think? A truly great sight, isn’t it?”
Demian turned his head. There stood an enormously large man.
He was over half a head taller than Demian. And his entire body was pure muscle.
What was astonishing was that such a massive frame was covered by just a single priestly robe.
As Demian examined the man, he quickly realized his identity.
The Founding Pope, Bartoleo.
The warrior who had just split the dragon’s skull was standing before him.
“I greet Your Holiness the Founding Pope.”
Demian bowed his head and said. Bartoleo gave a wry smile.
“Please don’t call me that. I’m just a part left behind by the original—I’m not the real one.”
“Then what should I call you?”
“Simply ‘Fragment’ will do.”
The Fragment turned his gaze back to the battlefield.
“This is a reenactment of a past battle. Thanks to the victory in this war, humanity was able to fully claim the southern continent.”
“I’ve heard it often. That the Founding Pope crushed an evil dragon’s head with a single mace.”
“Hahaha! Everyone who visits me brings up that story.”
The Fragment laughed heartily and looked at Demian.
“I’ve welcomed many guests so far, but you’re the first of your kind.”
“I’m not a Holy Knight, but I was granted permission to enter.”
“That’s not what I meant.”
The Fragment stroked his chin with a thick arm and asked.
“Why has someone who has no need to learn from me come here?”
* * *
Demian felt puzzled at those words.
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly as I said. I see no deficiencies in you. I don’t know your true capabilities, but at least my eyes can’t detect any. Meaning I don’t have the skill to teach you.”
The Fragment looked Demian up and down as he continued.
“Your body is evenly developed, your mana control is outstanding beyond words, and your skill… I haven’t tested it, but my instincts tell me. You undoubtedly possess tremendous power.”
Receiving high praise from a hero of the past was pleasing, but it also left Demian dissatisfied.
He had come here wanting to gain something.
“Sorry, but I can’t impart teachings to you. If I gave advice carelessly, it might ruin you instead… Hm?”
Suddenly, the Fragment’s gaze stopped. Bartoleo stared at Demian’s wrist and asked.
“…Who exactly are you? How did you receive Erebos’s choice? This is something no one is chosen by.”
Bartoleo said in shock. Demian was equally surprised.
There was no information about Erebos anywhere in this world. Even the Church only knew it was dangerous, with no idea what it was.
Yet the Fragment knew about Erebos specifically.
“You know about Erebos?”
“No, I don’t.”
But the Fragment immediately denied it. Demian pressed him.
“Please don’t hide it—tell me.”
“No, I’m not hiding anything. I really don’t know.”
“Then how did you recognize it?”
“Because the original body knows.”
It felt like exchanging Zen koans.
As Demian’s expression hardened, Bartoleo hurriedly explained.
“The original body created me to advise later Holy Knights. Thus, I have no memories beyond combat techniques.”
In the end, the Fragment was just a fragment. Demian couldn’t help but feel great disappointment.
“Still, if I examine it closely, something might come to mind. Would you mind showing me Erebos?”
Demian manifested Erebos and handed it over. The Fragment inspected it closely.
“It’s different from the Erebos I know.”
“What do you mean?”
“My memories are fragmentary, so it’s hard to explain in detail. But while the appearance matches what I know, the power contained within is entirely different.”
The Fragment stroked Erebos’s blade. Then he froze.
“…You’ve already met my original body.”
At those words, Demian recalled a past memory.
When he first visited the Church’s main temple, Demian had encountered a mummy embedded with a fragment of Erebos in a hidden place within the temple.
The Fragment was likely referring to that.
“Are you resentful?”
“I have no such emotions. I’m just a fragment, after all.”
The Fragment returned Erebos to Demian.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help. You should head back now.”
At the Fragment’s words, Demian fell into thought.
It was too regrettable to leave empty-handed.
Suddenly, Demian recalled the sight of Bartoleo smashing the evil dragon’s head.
Even to Demian’s eyes, it had been an extraordinary strike. Far beyond Demian’s current level.
Demian drew Dawn from his subsace. The Fragment looked flustered at the action.
“What are you doing?”
“You said you clearly remember combat techniques.”
Demian could absorb and replicate the techniques and realms of anyone he fought once.
However, there was no guarantee he could replicate the realm of a powerhouse like Bartoleo. But it was worth trying.
“I’ll learn on my own, so let’s have a bout.”
Demian said, resting Dawn on his shoulder. At the sight, the Fragment burst into laughter.
“You’re truly the first guest like this.”
Fighting spirit rose in the Fragment’s eyes. As he gathered holy power to form a mace, he said.
“Let’s do it.”
* * *
It took a full day for the fight to conclude.
After the battle ended, Demian stayed at the Holy Church’s main temple to review the fight.
‘Saying there’s nothing to learn… What a blatant lie.’
Through the battle with the Fragment, Demian had gained much.
While absorbing what he learned from the fight, Demian frequented the temple’s library, devouring secret manuals.
He acquired diverse knowledge and filled in his deficiencies. For a while, Demian focused solely on training.
Ten days passed like that.
Demian prepared for travel and left the main temple. But there was one more person beside him.
“Agnes, are you really okay with this?”
Demian asked Agnes with a worried face.
Two days ago, the Pope’s order had come down to dispatch Agnes to the Apple Kingdom. So she was traveling with Demian.
Going from the main temple to a provincial post was no different from demotion. Demian couldn’t help but worry.
“It’s fine. This must all be the will of the great one.”
Agnes said calmly. Demian clicked his tongue regretfully.
In truth, Agnes felt no regret at all. It wasn’t a demotion.
-Agnes, Demian Haksen is a talent absolutely necessary for our main temple.
A few days earlier, the Pope had summoned Agnes and said.
-But there are too many places that want Demian. We can’t just sit idly by.
-So I’m dispatching you to the Apple Kingdom. More precisely, near Haksen territory.
-Maintain a close relationship with Demian Haksen there.
It was a terribly insignificant mission for a promising Holy Knight.
But Agnes gratefully accepted the Pope’s order.
Because it was what she had hoped for.
-Agnes, and this is just between us… If you form an intimate relationship with Demian Haksen, I will appoint you as a secular Holy Knight.
Holy Knights affiliated with the main temple could not marry freely.
But secular Holy Knights had freedom in marriage.
In other words, what the Pope meant was for Agnes and Demian Haksen to…
Thud.
Agnes failed to see the tree right in front of her and smashed her face into it.
Agnes quickly pulled her face away from the tree. She tried to act like nothing happened.
“Uh… Does it hurt? That sounded loud.”
“It’s nothing.”
Agnes said, hurriedly fixing her hair.
And so, the two headed to the Apple Kingdom.
The journey went smoothly. They arrived at the Apple Kingdom sooner than expected.
And upon reaching the Apple Kingdom’s border, the two witnessed it.
The border fortress, crumbling and burning.
-Kyahahaha!
Atop the burning fortress, a monster with bat wings laughed loudly.