Chapter 193: What It Means to Pull the Holy Sword
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 193: What It Means to Pull the Holy Sword
Slap!
“…r.”
Slap!
“…Tae-yang.”
Slap!
“Mr. Tae-yang!”
“Yes?”
I had lost consciousness the moment I heard Rubenia’s final words.
When I came to, the Saintess was mercilessly slapping my cheeks.
Slap!
“Wake up!”
“I’m awake.”
“Kyaa!”
Does she have a grudge against me?
My cheeks were swollen enough to make me suspicious; she’d clearly landed quite a few hits.
The moment she heard me speak, the Saintess immediately scrambled back to create some distance. She must have been grabbing me by the collar while slapping me, as her clothes were slightly disheveled.
“It’s a bit much to act surprised after you’ve finished hitting me…”
“I… I was desperate. I didn’t know what was happening…”
Come to think of it, she did say Rubenia had possessed her the moment we entered Akabellum.
‘I guess it makes sense. She wakes up to find me unconscious with no memory of what happened. She’d be panicked.’
I understood, but I still wondered if it was necessary to slap me that hard.
I shook my head, clearing the stray thoughts. It was something I could ask about later; it wasn’t important right now.
“I met Rubenia.”
“What?!”
Her expression was one of pure, unadulterated shock. If that was acting, then there was truly no one in this world left to trust.
“How?”
“Using your body as a medium…”
I paused to choose my words carefully.
‘Most of this isn’t stuff I can just talk about.’
From the fact that I was a possessor to Chubby Ahn’s secret and the truth about Kim Min-su—none of these were topics to be brought up lightly, nor were they things I could tell just anyone.
There was only one thing I could share.
“I heard about the Holy Sword.”
Rubenia’s final words: to pull the Holy Sword. This wasn't a problem I could solve on my own.
“She told you to pull the Holy Sword?”
“Yes.”
There was definitely something to it. The moment the Holy Sword was mentioned, the Saintess’s expression turned incredibly grave.
She looked like she wanted to say something, then stopped, agonizing over it dozens of times. Only after several minutes had passed did she finally speak.
“That’s… a bit problematic.”
“Why?”
I shot back a question immediately.
‘The goddess Rubenia herself told me to pull it, so what’s the problem?’
For a Saintess to refuse what the god she worships commanded…
“That’s, well…”
After saying it was problematic, her face turned beet red, and she hung her head low. I liked that things were progressing quickly since arriving in Rubenia, but the growing number of mysteries was frustrating.
I needed to know the reason to understand her reaction. Without any information, it just looked like she was trying to hinder me.
“I shall explain that part.”
Just as an awkward silence was about to fill Akabellum, a polite voice drifted from behind us.
“The Saintess must be exhausted after the descent, so please, go inside and rest. I will take it from here.”
“…Thank you, Perkus.”
She didn’t even call him the Pope here.
Outside the Holy Kingdom, they showed mutual respect and carefully hid the hierarchy. But here in Akabellum, they spoke as they usually did, making the power dynamic perfectly clear.
‘Don’t Popes usually boss Saintesses around in novels?’
I figured Academy Pure Love Diary would be different, but I had only just realized that the Saintess was completely above the Pope. Otherwise, there was no way she would have just called him by name and left like that.
“This isn’t a conversation to be had standing up. Please, follow me.”
“Sure.”
“This is a very private VIP Room, even within Akabellum.”
Perkus led me deeper into Akabellum with a leisurely stride. The way he added that last bit showed he was trying his best to put me at ease.
In truth, the Pope was even harder to read than the Saintess.
‘I have no idea what’s going on in his head.’
He seemed calm and composed in almost any situation, yet he would fly off the handle whenever it concerned the Saintess, as if she were his own daughter.
Deciding to use this opportunity to figure him out, I followed behind Perkus.
‘It looks similar to the VIP Room.’
The space I was led into was very similar in structure to the VIP Room back at the Academy. Perhaps Cheon Hae-il had designed the interior of Akabellum to resemble the VIP Room as a courtesy.
There was a mural of praying hands on the wall, high-end leather sofas that looked expensive at a glance, and an antique table. It didn't feel like excessive luxury, but rather a natural elegance, as if the furniture simply belonged there.
“This is my only hobby.”
Even a Pope needs an outlet for his desires, doesn't he?
Perkus chuckled as he spoke. I must have been too obvious about scanning the furniture and gauging the prices.
“No, it’s not that. I’m just interested in this kind of thing myself.”
“Is that so? Now that I think about it, I heard you live alone.”
“Yes, so I ended up looking. How much does something like this cost?”
“About the same as the size of my greed.”
Just how expensive was it that he wouldn't even give a straight answer?
‘Then again, this is the first time I’ve seen a Pope so honest about his desires.’
Usually, people like him would hide things in a vault or collect jewels. But here, he had luxury furniture and a carpet made from an actual tiger skin spread across the floor. Even a layman like me could feel just how lavish this small space was.
“What clergyman is without desire? They say power makes the man. I, too, once only aimed for everyone to live happily together.”
But becoming hideous was unavoidable. Still, if you leave it alone, it rots, so I have no choice but to cut it out like this.
I nodded at Perkus’s words.
“I can relate.”
“Haha, hearing that from the representative of Victory makes the burden on my heart feel a bit lighter. What would you like to drink? Coffee? Black tea? Juice?”
“I’ll have juice.”
“You have good taste. I’ll bring you some Holy Orange Juice, the pride of Rubenia.”
Please wait a moment. Oh, and for the record, there’s no actual divine power in it.
With those words, Perkus left the VIP Room.
‘He’s not sending a subordinate?’
That was unexpected. Since he talked about openly expressing his desires, I assumed he’d have someone wait on him.
‘I’m being treated a bit too well.’
Even if he knew I’d met Rubenia, I started to doubt if a mere cadet deserved this level of hospitality. It felt more realistic to expect this to be a trap where the ceiling would suddenly collapse and I’d be ambushed.
The way he kept dragging out the preamble was also suspicious. Just how important was the thing he wanted to say?
‘The Saintess gets flustered the moment the Holy Sword is mentioned… and the Pope appears as if on cue…’
Was this a flow intentionally created by Rubenia? She said things were possible because it was Akabellum, and I didn't think that was limited to just her descent. She could likely orchestrate at least this much causality. She was a goddess, after all; it would be ridiculous if she couldn't.
‘And her saying Chubby Ahn isn’t as easy an opponent as I thought…’
Tsk, things are getting more and more cryptic.
As I spent time lost in thought, Perkus returned with a tray full of juice and cookies.
“Did you wait long? My apologies. I saw some cookies were being baked and begged for a few.”
“These are Holy Choco Cookies made from cacao grown in Rubenia. These also have no divine power, of course.”
Perkus laughed as he spoke, and I smiled back and thanked him.
However…
‘I can’t keep doing this forever.’
With Kim Min-su also in Rubenia, I couldn't afford to waste any more time. So, I cut straight to the point.
“Your Holiness, I’m sorry to be blunt, but it’s about time we…”
“Right, of course. Haha, I suppose I was a bit nervous about how to say this. I’ve dragged out the introduction for too long.”
Perkus continued, telling me not to worry.
“Seeing as you mentioned the Holy Sword, you must have met Lady Rubenia.”
“Yes.”
“Very few people know of the Holy Sword’s existence. The Saintess, myself, Baelson… and a few high-ranking officials.”
But the fact that an outsider knows of it is proof enough that you met the Goddess.
He took a sip of juice to moisten his throat.
“In truth, anyone can challenge the trial to pull the Holy Sword. You don’t need to meet Lady Rubenia, nor do you need to be a Hero.”
He used words that were clearly conscious of both me and Kim Min-su. Wait, anyone can challenge it?
‘No, that makes sense.’
I corrected my thought. Usually, in these kinds of stories, only a 'chosen one' can pull the sword. Perkus knew that, which is why he said anyone can challenge it. There’s a big difference between trying and succeeding.
“However, we have forbidden even the attempt. Why do you think that is?”
I’m listening because I don’t know.
When I looked at him with that expression, Perkus gave a kind smile and provided the answer.
“Because the Holy Sword is linked to the Saintess.”
“What?”
A faint trace of bloodlust flickered in the corners of Perkus’s smiling eyes. It was as if he was asking if I could handle the Saintess—a resolve to face even death to protect her. He had packed that resolve into a tiny, sharp edge of killing intent.
“To pull the Holy Sword is to possess the Saintess.”
Can you handle that?
The Pope’s low voice filled the VIP Room.