The Pope Who Returned After Having Three Children (Chapter 3: First Viewer Hired)
“It seems my message hasn’t quite landed with you all yet.”
I took a deep breath, calming myself, and spoke in a gentle, measured tone.
I’d gotten far too worked up there for a moment. That wasn’t like me at all.
Best not to snap and shout in these cases. Nothing gets solved that way anyway.
What I needed to do right now was something else entirely.
I needed to explain in detail why I had lost my temper so badly.
After carefully choosing my words, I finally opened my mouth.
“I am not weak! I was a very, very, extremely powerful saintess!”
I even clenched my fists, pouring every ounce of sincerity into the words. The injustice and bewilderment showed clearly in my voice.
That should have reached my viewers, right? I thought to myself as I scrolled the chat window, but all I got back were mocking, scornful replies.
No one was offering comfort. It was as if they hadn’t taken my words seriously to begin with.
How was this even possible? Over ten thousand people were watching, and not a single one was on my side. They were all hyenas hunting for prey.
[HiredYou: I really feel bad for you]
Wait, actually… there was one. HiredYou.
Just as I thought…
I had believed in her from the very beginning. I had briefly doubted after a few of the other viewers piled on the slander, but she was fundamentally good-hearted.
Her gentle heart that soothed troubled souls stirred something deep within me, and I decided to reverse my decision once more.
“The only person who truly understands my heart is you, HiredYou. Thank you so much. As I said at the start, I will later bestow upon you the title of priest.”
I declared it solemnly. The initial backlash came rushing back in at once, but I decided to ignore it.
After all, the authority to appoint a priest rested with the Pope and the Archbishops. I would respect the opinions of ordinary people and regular viewers, but there was no need to follow every single one.
Still, I felt uneasy about completely disregarding them, so I gave them the chance to voice their objections.
“From this moment, I will accept objections regarding my decision. According to the regulations, only bishops or high-ranking holy knights may speak. Everyone else, please remain silent.”
I faced the camera directly, lifted my head proudly, and straightened my back. The proper posture of the Pope’s authority.
And I stayed silent for a moment. But no matter how long I waited, not a single legitimate objection came through.
Gargalbi-nim has sponsored 1,000 won.
A few viewers occasionally chimed in with voice donations, but I didn’t accept anything improper.
“No one is opposing me. Then I will pass the motion to appoint HiredYou as priest.”
I finished the discussion with reverence and, according to procedure, lightly sprinkled holy power toward the heavens. It was a ritual that carried the meaning of pledging to uphold the results of the meeting before the goddess.
“HiredYou, congratulations. Though you have made a grave mistake here, we will overlook past wrongs without holding anyone responsible.”
As I prepared to show even more mercy, the viewer who was to become the very first saint and first priest wrote something.
[HiredYou: I’m really happy! I’ll soon be a proper member of the clergy too]
Somehow, though, the chat felt a little off.
It was stiff and unnatural, with awkward phrasing.
People who spoke that way online were extremely rare. I could tell something was strange even after spending twenty years in another world.
I felt uneasy and decided to check HiredYou’s chat history again. Now it was clear that not everything was off, but a few messages stood out.
“……”
I sat for a moment in thought, then suddenly stood up and opened the bedroom door.
“Liam!”
It seemed Liam had probably gone to scold HiredYou for using only nice words. That was the most reasonable guess.
Honestly, there was no evidence.
But every problem that had arisen around me, I had to first suspect Liam was not the cause. In most cases, that was the correct answer.
“Why did you call?”
Our weird husband was sitting on the sofa, gently watching Rohan. It didn’t seem he was the culprit this time either.
Who else could it be, then? As I was still wondering in confusion, Liam approached me.
“Clitia, have you found someone you want me to deal with? I’ll find them and bring them to you.”
“…No.”
I grabbed Liam’s arm as he was about to fly away. If I left him like that, trouble would surely follow.
Thinking about it, I had planned to introduce Liam on today’s broadcast. It would be perfect timing if I brought him in now.
“Liam, please take Rohan and look after him for Seoyun. As I mentioned earlier, please join the broadcast for just a moment.”
“Got it.”
I returned to the living room first. Before sitting at the computer, I checked the chat again. Even though I was gone, they were chatting among themselves.
The topic of conversation was ‘Saintess Clitia’.
From the way they were chatting, it was clear she really was weak in the game.
I had thought the green wiki editor had just made up a random line, but that wasn’t the case. The problem was the game developer.
I need to go there.
Since it was a Korean developer, it would be convenient to visit. I’d have to pay them a visit later.
“You’re still talking about that?”
As I planned my schedule, I muttered while sitting in the chair.
At the same time I checked the viewer count, and it had already reached nearly ten thousand. The perfect time to officially reveal my identity.
“Everyone probably already knows, but I’ll introduce myself officially. I am Clitia Elluke, a character from the setting of Apolis Tales. And in the sequel, I appear as an extremely weak saintess.”
It was time to lay out the truth without hiding anything. I smiled bitterly and continued.
“To tell you the truth… I have indeed been called the ‘weakest saintess’ in the past.”
With an honest confession, the viewers responded with enthusiasm.
They were already dying to tease me, and now I had added fuel to the fire. Over ten thousand viewers were laughing uproariously.
“But the reason I was called the weakest saintess was only at the beginning. Later, I really became strong. I became the center of the hero party.”
I tried desperately to explain, but it had no meaning. The chat had already settled into calling me the weakest.
More precisely, ‘weakest ajumma’.
…Where did everything go wrong?
It wasn’t like this on the first broadcast. The chat was relatively cautious, and no one was teasing me.
But today, with more people watching, the atmosphere had changed noticeably.
Cheeky viewers full of mischief. I, who had only dealt with gentle and mild saints, found it hard to control.
Anyway, having a friendly image wasn’t a bad thing. I wanted to become a close-to-the-people friendly Pope rather than a strict and solemn one.
“Hello?”
At that moment, Liam entered and waved at the viewers. While checking the monitor, I adjusted the position so he would look at the webcam.
When Liam greeted them, the chat that had been approaching thirty thousand became chaotic. They had recognized a famous person that had been making headlines in Korea recently.
The overall reactions were surprisingly positive. Despite his wild behavior that had been close to vandalism, he was being welcomed.
Perhaps a lack of depth had even added to the appeal. Or maybe it was simply his good looks.
“Do these people have similar aesthetics to ours?”
Liam, who had been reading the chat with me, smiled and draped an arm around my shoulders.
“You know who I am? I’m Clitia’s husband. If you type dirty things in the chat, I’ll come find you personally, so behave.”
The sudden warning made the viewers laugh or pretend to be scared. They probably thought it was a joke. Our weird husband never lied.
To avoid everyone leaving once they learned the truth, we just stayed quiet. In the meantime, Liam engaged in lively conversation with the viewers.
“Why did you intrude on the live broadcast? It pissed me off. Anyone who touches my woman doesn’t get to stay.”
It was more like a threat than communication… but oddly enough, they all seemed to find it amusing. To me, it was incomprehensible.
havant-nim has sponsored 10,000 won.
While Liam was giving the viewers a stern warning, viewer Haban asked a question via donation. It was the exact correct answer.
“Correct. Liam is a hero. He probably appears on the green wiki too.”
I scrolled up a little and checked the explanation right above my name.
“Hero Liam – The decisive hero from the hero party that appears in the Time Training Grounds. Basically, the highest specs, and when he’s alone he uses wide-area techniques that make him difficult to defeat if you don’t learn the strategy.”
“Techniques used: Heavenly Aura, Giant Aura, Fireball Rain, Blizzard, Kaiel – the top air elemental summon, Solar Overdrive, Hell of Heat, Mana Scatter, Sword of Harmony…”
“…That’s way over the top.”
“Oh, it’s almost accurate.”
Liam and I spoke almost simultaneously. Completely opposite statements.
“What exactly is accurate?”
“It’s pretty similar, right?”
Looking at Liam’s satisfied smile, my blood pressure rose again for no reason.
“It’s nothing like it! I haven’t even used ‘Solar Overdrive’!”
“But you did use it.”
“Anyway, it’s incorrect. I’ll fix that too.”
“Clitia, you’re just jealous because I come out stronger?”
“……”
Staring at my face made the weird husband slowly back away.
“I’m going to see the kids.”
Liam hurriedly left the living room. He was really quick on the uptake.
Laela-nim has sponsored 1,000 won.
“Please be quiet.”
I muttered softly and shook my head. Then I glanced at the chat of a special management target.
I had only looked because I wondered if she had said something that could help. And she had.
“HiredYou: Honestly, I think the Pope should have come out stronger.”
Perhaps receiving the goddess’s blessing, she knew exactly what I wanted. It was exactly to my liking.
“HiredYou, I will also make you a bishop candidate later.”
Undeniably, HiredYou was the most promising priest candidate I could hope for in the future.
***
“Honestly, I think the Pope should have come out stronger.” said, please.
Junsuk, HiredYou, sweated profusely as he typed the chat message. It was the same repetition he had been doing since earlier.
…What kind of blessing is this?
Right after his first donation to the Pope’s broadcast, Junsuk had been enveloped in a light from the sky.
Since that day, his eyesight had improved several times over, and his mind had become dramatically clear. It was an incredible blessing that left no choice but to trust.
But one problem had come along with it.
“You’re doing well. Keep it up like this. The goddess is very pleased.”
Now, a miniature angel no bigger than a thumb was flapping its wings around Junsuk.
A mini angel that looked different from the angel who had appeared on the last broadcast. According to his own claim, his position was ‘guide’, but all it did was guide the chat content.
More accurately, it had started interfering with the chat after the sudden outburst where the Pope called him ajumma.
“Ah, the goddess says if you reveal it, you’ll die. Be careful.”
“Yes…”
Junsuk finally understood his situation clearly.
It seemed the chat avatar of the goddess had become him because of the blessing he had received earlier.
“Now we will receive the next question.”
Soon the Pope’s voice flowed from the broadcast. The mini angel rejoiced and clung to Junsuk’s head.
“Why is the Pope so beautiful?” Please ask.
Junsuk obediently repeated the angel’s words and let out a smile.
Anyway, I got hired…
It really was a blessing that allowed me to be hired, just as I had asked the Pope.
But it was slightly twisted.