Chapter 190: Pope Antonius
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 190: Pope Antonius
Antonius Ortega.
The Pope of the Order of Balance.
The former Pope, that is.
He had grown weary of his long life as a clergyman, laid down his papal duties, and voluntarily retired. He then set off on a pilgrimage to reflect on his inner self, wandering all across the continent.
That was his backstory.
If you progressed through Elize’s story, you would eventually encounter Antonius upon his return to the Holy Kingdom. I had figured I’d run into him someday if I just waited, but Elize brought him here first.
From the looks of it, Elize had no idea who Antonius really was. So why did she bring him to me?
I decided to play dumb and ask.
“Sister? What brings you here so late at night? And who might this gentleman be?”
“He’s an old man I found wandering the streets. It seemed he had nowhere else to go, so I brought him with me.”
“The Holy Kingdom is overflowing with shelters, so why my inn of all places…?”
Elize smiled sweetly.
“They were all full.”
I got it.
That was the smile she wore when she was up to no good.
I knew from plenty of experience.
She had undoubtedly brought this old man here just to mess with me.
“Heh heh, I wonder if a shabby old man like myself is worthy of staying in such a fine room…”
“Of course, Grandpa. This man here is the kindest person in the world. I’m sure he’ll allow it, so please don’t feel burdened.”
“Heh heh heh, what a fine young man. Well then, if you’ll pardon my impudence…”
I hadn’t said a single word, yet they were running the whole show themselves. As if he’d received permission from some imaginary version of me, Antonius took a seat.
“Ho ho ho, you’re drinking some fine wine. I’ll help myself.”
Well, would you look at that.
This crafty old snake was pouring and drinking my wine as he pleased. Anyone watching would think this was his own living room.
“Let’s see now. My pack…”
“What is this son of a bitch doing?”
Did he just call me a son of a bitch?
“I’m certainly a kind person, but that doesn’t extend to men, especially not grandfathers. You look like you’ll be meeting God soon, so ask him then. Tell him you want to be reborn as a cute girl. Then I’ll consider raising you.”
“You’re not right in the head, are you? Tsk, tsk. You pitiful whelp.”
Despite his words, he made no move to get up. It seemed he was dead set on leeching off this “pitiful whelp.”
“I’ll leave the old gentleman in your care. It’s getting late, so I must be going.”
Having dumped the massive burden that was the Pope on me, Elize excused herself. Before she left, she shot me a look, the corners of her mouth twisted up as if to say, serves you right.
“Are you really not leaving? Do I have to call the guards to make you go?”
“Go ahead and try, you brat. Once they find out you’ve enslaved a nun, you won’t get away unscathed either.”
So he’d figured it out.
Honestly, whether it was Yuhwa or this guy, I hated dealing with the elderly of this world.
They weren’t people; they were monsters. I was currently face-to-face with a monster in the shape of an old man.
But I couldn’t let him get the better of me.
“Wouldn’t it be just as troublesome for Your Holiness if your identity were revealed?”
“You knew who I was and still treated me like some homeless old man? You clearly don’t value your life. With a flick of my finger, killing you would be child’s play, you brat.”
Antonius grumbled like any other old man you might see on the street.
“So you’re the one. The one they call the Slave Reaper. And that child must be the slave.”
“That’s right. I purchased her for the hefty sum of three thousand gold coins.”
“I don’t know what you were thinking, buying that child and making her a nun, but I’ll give you a clear warning. She is a pitiful child. Set her free.”
Antonius stared at me intently.
The atmosphere shifted in an instant.
The wine in my glass trembled.
Goosebumps erupted all over my skin.
This must be that aura that monstrous humans were said to emit.
But of course, I couldn’t back down here.
“Set her free? Do you know how much I invested to buy her? Is Your Holiness going to reimburse me?”
“If your life is worth less than three thousand gold coins, then you don’t have to free her.”
“Haha, I’m no slave. How could I compare my life to money?”
“In that case…”
“Is it because Elize is a sacrificial lamb of the Church?”
At that, Antonius’s eyes flew open.
“How do you know that?”
“I have my ways.”
I offered a gentle smile.
Elize’s true identity was a secret no one should know.
Antonius probably hadn’t known about her existence either. He must have sensed the vampiric energy from her when he saw her in person and figured it out.
Revealing that I knew was certainly a huge risk. I was already a suspicious character; this would likely brand me as something even more sinister.
The standard play for someone who knew everything would be to never reveal their information and operate from behind the scenes.
But at the same time, the return was just as certain.
If I, a man with no martial power whatsoever, was to survive in this world full of monsters, I had to be a damn good talker. And to do that, I needed the power to control the conversation.
An aggressive conversational style would seize the initiative.
“If I free Elize, what do you think will happen next? Do you think she’ll live a happy, carefree life?”
Antonius remained silent, as if waiting for me to continue.
“She’ll end up preying on people to survive, just as she always has. She’s not ready to break out of her shell and face the outside world yet.”
“And you intend to help her with that preparation?”
“That is my role as her master.”
The look in Antonius’s eyes was one of utter disbelief. After all, Elize was a child who hadn’t even been saved by God himself.
“If not that, then you must have a proper solution in mind, which is why you told me to free her, correct? Surely you wouldn’t just tell me to release her without any plan at all, would you?”
“Ahem…”
Just as I thought.
Well, I could understand. From Antonius’s perspective, it must look like some villain bought Elize to treat her cruelly.
But he didn’t need to worry. I was confident that there was no one in this world who cared more for her than I did.
“Therefore, you don’t need to worry about Elize. You may leave.”
“Hmm…”
Antonius let out a low hum, seeming to weigh something in his mind, before finally nodding. With no viable alternative, he had no choice but to accept it.
“It seems you’ve organized your thoughts. Would you mind leaving now?”
“…”
“What are you doing? Aren’t you leaving?”
At my prodding, Antonius lifted his heavy rear from the seat. I thought he was finally on his way out, but instead, he lay down on the bed and rested his head on the pillow.
“I must be getting old… It’s hard to stay up this late.”
Antonius replied shamelessly, pulling the blanket over himself.
Oh, really?
So that’s how you want to play it?
I opened the window.
“Excuse me, guards passing by? I’m the guy who enslaved a former nun, and His Holiness Antonius is in my room—.”
SLAM!
The window slammed shut as if hit by a gale.
Antonius had his hand stretched out in this direction.
“What do you think you’re doing? If the window breaks, is Your Holiness going to pay for it?”
“You insolent little punk! Have you nothing better to do than sell out a powerless old man?”
“Didn’t you act like you didn’t care if you were found out? What’s wrong? Getting nervous? Sweating bullets?”
“Hahahaha. Sweating bullets? I was mistaken. You’re not just some crazy bastard. You’re a complete and utter psycho.”
“Thank you for the compliment. To survive in this crazy world, you have to be just as crazy.”
You all are the ones who made me this way.
“So, what will it be? Will you leave on your own two feet, or will you be dragged out by countless clergymen?”
Of course, he wouldn’t be dragged out but would receive the utmost respect, so my words were a bit misleading. But from Antonius’s perspective, it would amount to the same thing.
Antonius clicked his tongue repeatedly, glaring at me with displeasure.
“Let’s do this. Just once. When you are in need of help, I will aid you.”
“Are you sure you can handle the consequences of that promise?”
“On one condition: the favor must not be something that disrupts order. What do you say?”
It was an incredibly generous offer.
Even though he was retired, his help would be immense.
To think he would use the Pope’s authority just to secure a place to stay.
‘Well, his real goal is probably to keep an eye on me.’
Elize’s existence was a great stain on the Holy Kingdom.
For Antonius, she must be a painful memory.
There was no way he could just ignore her.
“If Your Holiness is willing to concede that much, it would be rude of me to refuse. I accept.”
“Heh heh. It’s far too late to be talking about manners, you brat.”
*
The incident of the nun-candidate experiment was known only to a handful of high-ranking clergy.
Blinded by excessive faith, they made the misguided judgment to create a being of perfect balance, abandoning their humanity and creating pitiful children in the process.
The reason Antonius had stepped down from his position as Archbishop was due to the guilt and sense of responsibility he felt for failing to protect them as a leader of the Church.
The higher he climbed, the more distant he became from the common people. He had reached a position where he could grasp the stars, yet he could no longer see the ground beneath his feet.
And so, Antonius set out on a journey.
He traveled the continent to reflect once more on the true meaning of order and balance, all while searching for the children who had become victims of the experiment.
Then one day, in Harlem, Antonius heard a rumor about a nun being sold as a slave. What fearless fool would dare to buy and sell a nun, who was under God’s protection?
Antonius rushed to Harlem but was a step too late. Of all people, the one they called the Slave Reaper had bought the nun.
The irony was that the Saint was with him.
He learned they were heading toward Kassilon and returned to the Holy Kingdom.
The Holy Kingdom, which he had returned to after several years, seemed unchanged on the surface, but beneath it all, it was in a precarious state, as if its balance could shatter at any moment.
It was purely by chance that Antonius found Elize.
A pitiful child, scarred irreversibly by misguided faith. Perhaps he should consider it a blessing that she was at least still alive.
At the same time, he realized something.
This child was the nun who had been sold in Harlem.
She was in the clutches of the evil man known as the Slave Reaper.
Antonius tried to get Elize away, but it wasn’t as easy as he’d thought. The Slave Reaper was a man even he couldn’t get a read on.
A mere human, he had received the blessing of the World Tree, the guardian of the elves, and was protected by several other mysterious beings.
He didn’t dare make a rash move.
So, for now, he would watch from the side.
If the man tried anything funny, it wouldn’t be too late to act then.
That had been his plan.
“Alright, old man. Hold this sign. And give me a thumbs-up.”
- The Master’s Cult, endorsed by a former high priest of the Order of Balance! Like if you want to join.
This crazy bastard was using the (former) Pope to promote his heretical cult.