97. The Pope
The Pope, a human whom the Saintess believed to have died on the battlefield, now appeared before them, completely unharmed.
What was even more surprising was that he was so destitute.
The titles of “member of the Gate of the Celestial Realm,” “leader of the theocratic nation,” and “strongest human” seemed to exist only in Reina’s illusions.
The father who had abandoned his daughter, the mysterious old man living in seclusion in the village.
But Reina still cared about what Serra had said.
“Are you planning to assist us?” Liya said with a smile.
“I have no reason to help the Shadow of God.”
The Pope said, taking the gold coins. It seemed he really wanted the money.
The gold coins, which were originally a front, were now hidden in the cabinet behind him like a treasure.
“What do you want me to do?”
The Pope stroked his silver-white beard, a little guiltily.
“You just need to tell us everything you know and then fully cooperate with the actions of the God Slaying Society.”
“Is that so? Then I’d be happy to.”
The Pope nodded.
He no longer had the airs of his former self, the leader of humanity.
Everyone was confused, and they all began to doubt whether this was the real Pope.
Just then, the Pope gave Pesa a look, and the latter, understanding, went to boil water for tea.
“When you demons invaded the world, I once fought on behalf of humanity. In the end, I failed, but I didn’t die. I returned to the village where Serra and I first met… Oh, I forgot to tell you, Serra is my wife.”
“As you can see, I can basically no longer fight now.”
The Pope pulled open his collar, showing everyone the numerous scars on his skin.
“You don’t want to fight, yet you’re still concerned about the situation. I can’t believe your words.”
“Of course, I don’t want to die without knowing why.”
“Who is Pesa?” Agnes asked on behalf of the church.
“She’s a child I adopted, or rather, one of them.”
The Pope chuckled wryly.
“The reason I made her a hero is because she’s the only one who likes to take care of an old man like me.”
“I’m no longer a human hero. Even if my stance was once with humanity, what can I do now?”
“Come back to the God Slaying Society with us. The environment there is much better than here,” Liya said.
“No problem.”
The Pope chuckled.
The matter was settled.
All the Four Kings of the Realms knew about the Pope and regarded him as a threat. Even if Reina didn’t come to find him, the apostles of the dark elves and orcs would follow close behind.
Moreover, the discovered Pope had no possibility of resisting. Although it was said that the Pope was being protected, it was more like monitoring this uncontrollable variable.
Reina suddenly remembered something and said to the other four:
“Can I talk to the Pope alone?”
Reina said.
Calysia, White Miry, and Ann all stood up and left the room.
The scene was extremely awkward.
—Aren’t you going to argue and stay?!
After everyone left, only the Pope and Reina were left in the “living room.”
After confirming that no one could hear them, Reina finally spoke:
“Pope, what did you want to see me about?”
“What?”
The Pope stroked his beard, a little confused, and asked, “Didn’t the Goddess ask me to stay?”
“Someone like you, would you make a mistake at a critical moment?”
Reina smiled.
The Pope’s expression changed from dazed and confused to firm, a completely different person from the casual old man just now.
“I was indeed looking for you, Miss Goddess. No, would you prefer me to call you Bishop Lei or [Goddess of Light]?”
“As you wish, I don’t mind.”
Reina sighed.
If it were any other human, they would have been shouting “Goddess of Light” in front of Reina, even kneeling and praying.
But the Pope was different.
From the moment he saw her, the Pope had never shown any respect or worship.
Completely different from everyone else.
“I really want to say that I found you for the future of humanity, but in this situation, I don’t think there’s anything worth saving.”
“Are you really the Goddess of Light?”
The Pope suddenly asked.
For a moment, Reina didn’t know how to answer.
“What do you mean?”
“Because in my original understanding, the Goddess is already dead.”
The Pope’s voice echoed in the room. Besides the sound of the burning candles, there was only the sound of raindrops falling from the eaves.
“She was imprisoned tens of thousands of meters deep, in a 108-layer [War Lock] built with thirty percent of the Four Realms’ resources. Even the God of Light couldn’t escape. And then, they even added another layer of insurance.”
“[Demon-Forging Seal]”
“Not only that, but they also sealed the Goddess of Light’s sanity and power. But the only problem was that extracting the Goddess of Light’s power was as difficult as climbing the heavens.”
“No… rather than difficult, it was stopped by the combined efforts of me and the Dragon King.”
The Pope looked up, as if recalling something.
“[Gate of the Celestial Realm]?”
“Yes, I didn’t expect you to know so much.”
The Pope said with a smile. He took out a bottle of gray wine from the cabinet.
“If it weren’t for that plan, the Four Kings of the Realms would have had no possibility of invading the human world. For the sake of the Goddess of Light’s power, everyone paid a heavy price.”
“But you were an accomplice in killing the God of Light.”
Reina guided the conversation.
“Although I don’t know where you got that information, it’s not contradictory at all.”
“To prevent the Four Kings of the Realms from gaining too much power, to kill the God of Light, what did I do wrong?”
The Pope tilted the wine bottle, and a murky liquid fell into the cup.
He picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp, his face flushing.
“Of course, her ending was destined. The Goddess of Light was bound to die.”
“I absolutely don’t believe that the God of Light could be resurrected in just 58 years.”
Reina’s smile gradually stiffened. She felt a chill run through her entire body.
If what he said was all true, then many of the previously unknown mysteries could be explained.
The Pope didn’t seem to think that Reina was the God of Light herself, just as Reina had previously believed. If it were a few months ago, Reina would have unhesitatingly joined the Pope, seeking protection while searching for the truth.
To be honest, the current Reina didn’t want to get involved with humanity at all, but she had a child, and she had Calysia. Thinking of the pitiful expressions of the two little ones, her heart ached.
The Pope’s eyes dimmed.
“Actually, I have some difficulties of my own. My wife is a good person, and we had a very obedient daughter, but for various reasons…”
As he spoke, he clenched his fists, a hint of anger on his aged face, but more than that, helplessness.
“Bishop Lei, although I don’t know how to put it, I want you to help me kill someone.”
“Who is she?”
“The leader of the Shadow of God.”
The Pope’s eyes were firm.
“No matter what, please kill her. I can help you.”
