178 – 35. Faith and Money
How did it become like this?
No matter how much I thought about it, I couldn’t come up with a clear answer. It was something I did, and something I had predicted to some extent, but I never thought it would actually happen.
That’s right.
“I never thought it would really blow up….”
It was natural for me to be taken to prison after getting off the plane transporting criminals.
Even if Archbishop Carlella calls himself my servant, there is such a thing as a seeing eye.
So, after I was put in prison, they were trying to get me out right away by finding the right number of cases.
If only it weren’t for the guy lying down in front of me right now.
‘Why is this bastard here?’
To be honest, it’s not a face I know very well. This means that he is not someone we have seen many times, either in the game Or in this reality.
But I remembered the face. He was none other than a serial killer who acted under orders from Gregory Arthur during the Skill Theft incident.
I couldn’t remember the name, but I heard that after the skill theft was solved, he was moved to Arthur’s home and tortured.
Although they are in the same Europe, France, where Arthur’s home is located, and Italy, where the Vatican Cathedral and the Holy See are located, are quite different.
But no matter how much I thought about it, it was clear that this serial killer was imprisoned in a prison opposite me.
And the serial killer── of course recognized me.
My arms and legs had been replaced with rusty prosthetic limbs and hands, but the guy who recognized me was limp and then suddenly turned around.
He looked at me and said things like, ‘Are you locked up too?’, ‘What did I do wrong?’, ‘You want to kill that f*cking silver-haired whore,’ etc., So I responded with a very common sense and justifiable response. .
If I could sum it up in one word.
──Yes, I will go out tomorrow~
When he heard that, he exploded.
It really exploded physically.
At that moment, the extremely feverish serial killer threw a small bomb hidden between his prosthetic leg and hand at me.
If it were me, I wouldn’t have been able to react, but I was able to improve my reflexes by learning the sword for a week.
I ran away to , And when I came back to reality, everything had disappeared.
That was the whole story.
‘…… It’s twisted.’
Luckily, in order to get me out easily, Archbishop Carlella put me in a prison in a deserted place with few prisoners.
And it was fortunate that the managers who were supposed to manage this prison went out to dinner at Carlella’s instigation to turn a blind eye to my leaving the prison.
Thanks to that, no one died.
‘Oh, this guy blew himself up, right?’
Correction, there is 1 death.
A serial killer killed himself by a bomb he threw.
‘But why is this guy…… ?’
Why on earth is a man in the Vatican prison who should be in Arthur’s main prison? How on earth did he hide a bomb between his prosthetic arms and legs? And more importantly, why on earth did he have a bomb?
Very…… There was a suspicious smell.
The smell of politics, propaganda, and conspiracy.
But before I could quietly explore the smell, someone came down from the sky before those who came from afar.
…… Sky?
“hehehehe, a nobleman has arrived, so everyone please wait a moment.”
An old man comes down flapping his pure white robes embroidered with gold and beckons.
Then, a small sphere emerged from his hand and grew large enough to cover the old man and the entire exploded prison.
In the distance, the paladins and priests who are blocked by the sphere are talking about something, but they are so worried that they don’t even dare to think about breaking through the sphere.
…… I knew what this sphere was.
“.”
“It’s a catching trick that this old man knows how to do.”
One of the rare occupations that can almost be called a special occupation, a great magic that can be used when ‘S proficiency reaches the maximum level.
But that was not proof that the old man in front of me was a
Space wizard.
‘An old man, wearing pure white robes, and someone who can somehow use .’
…… Although I’ve never met him in a game.
If you proceed with the Saint’s character event, you are bound to encounter it.
Scarlett Redfield, one of the strongest people in the world like the principal.
‘Pope…….’
“A humble fortune teller meets the Pope.”
“No. How can you bow down to me? I am the Pope in the world, but not as much as at this moment.”
“Then…?”
“He’s just a shabby old man.”
Because I understood what the Pope wanted to say, I straightened my back, which had been bent at 90 degrees.
‘I don’t know much about the Pope.’
Roughly speaking, I am a utilitarian who follows the greatest happiness for the greatest number, I won’t lie, and I have the ability to use various advanced skills?
So, the attitude toward the Pope was also determined.
Honesty, and search.
“I didn’t cause this explosion.”
“It looks like that. It’s the work of the burned corpse over there.”
I don’t know what it is, but I have the skill to read the truth.
“I was just in this prison and suddenly it exploded.”
“hehehehe, you can be honest in front of this old man. After all, the corpse did it, so I won’t hold you guilty.”
I also have the skill to read lies.
“What happens to me now?”
“I guess that’s something that Archbishop Carlella will take care of.”
f*ck, how did you know that?
Can you read minds? Do you have ? Driving me crazy.
“Are you here now to protect me?”
“You read that correctly. To put it more properly… It was this old man’s greed. He wanted to see the fortune teller who said he was the first to enter the Romance Academy.”
“I see. Is there anything you want to say to me?”
“It was there originally, but it’s not there anymore. I was just convinced that my beliefs were not wrong.”
“Yes?”
“Oh my, I don’t know when my impatient brothers and sisters will come over… Fortune teller, shouldn’t you run away quickly?”
That can’t be possible.
It is not a lie to say that this is the ultimate skill of . Is an absolute defense that cannot be overcome unless a wizard higher than the person who used the magic comes.
Similarly, , Which can be used when the proficiency reaches the maximum level, was a morale-level attack skill, so , Who can have the strongest spear and the strongest shield at the same time, boasted the strongest performance in .
No matter how much we imitate it with , At least the principal must come to overcome the Of the Pope, the strongest person in the world.
In the end, it is a kind of congratulatory decree.
But that was because I understood that the Pope was considerate in his own way.
I immediately lowered my head.
“Thank you for your consideration.”
“Nothing much to say, I just wanted to see a young man who did what this old man couldn’t do brilliantly.”
With those words, the Pope smiled and waved his hand. Knowing that it was the last time, I swallowed the questions that were rising to my throat and hurriedly ran.
‘…… What can I do that the Pope couldn’t do?’
What is that?…… Admission?
Uh.
No way?
*
It was just recently that I, who had been thinking about the Pope’s job for a while, met with Archbishop Carlella and came to a place that seemed secret at first glance.
The bomb shelter built in the basement of an ordinary-looking house was old, but was protected by all kinds of artifacts and magic.
“This is a place created as a shelter in case of emergency. Nowadays, it is used for secret meetings.”
“Well, our meeting is secret.”
This is true just by looking at the faces gathered here.
A heretic fortune teller who hid his identity but was arrested on charges of terrorism.
A saint who seeks to overthrow the church.
Even the archbishop prostrated himself under the title of great fortune to become a cardinal.
“Where is Aileen?”
“As for the female student you mentioned, I first had her stay with Sister Cloel Martina. She provided luxurious rooms as a reward, so there should be no problem hiding one person.”
“Thank you, Cardinal Carlella.”
“Uhm, uhm!”
I was thinking about Eileen as I looked at Carlella, who was clearing her throat as if the Cardinal was already there.
‘I brought you here, but why did you decide to come?’
Of course, Eileen’s identity is a saint, but until she reveals it, she is just a student at the academy. To put it bluntly, she is not helpful in this position.
Aileen seems to know him and is quietly staying with Chloe…… First of all, the task in front of you comes first.
As I looked at him quietly, the saint took a deep breath and took out a letter from his arms and placed it on the table.
“This is…”
“I know your lies…? Isn’t this the Pope’s signature?”
“Preparation to climb the Tower of Proof.”
“………!!”
It was not I who was shocked by the saint’s words, but Archbishop Carlella.
I was ordered by Liu to help me and the saint for the position of cardinal, but…… The scale of the story told by the saint was so far beyond my imagination that I felt like my brain was paralyzed for a moment.
“Stand, stand, saint. Excuse me…”
“Please speak, Sister Carlella.”
For a moment, the position of a saint who could simply call the archbishop ‘sister’ seemed incredible.
Archbishop Carlella was talking gibberish and was facing the saint.
“You’re going to climb the Tower of Proof…? Are you serious…?”
“I’m serious. And since Sister Carlella heard what we just said, she’s in the same boat as us.”
“Tower of Proof…Rumors that you are losing your power…Oppositionists…Oh, my God. God, no way…!!”
As if he did not become archbishop simply because he was kind and faithful, Archbishop Carlella deduced everything as soon as he heard the keyword, tower of proof.
He deliberately pretended to have lost his power and spread rumors that the saint’s opponents were trying to induce him to ascend to the Tower of Proof.
But in the end, that is just a guess. In reality, the rumor may be true.
At the look in Carleya’s eyes that required assurance, the saint made a
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Voice while showing an expression of unwillingness.
Whaaah!!
White wings spread out, a halo suddenly shining inside the bunker.
Carleya, who had been staring endlessly at the light that seemed to have grown stronger rather than losing its strength, soon lowered her head.
“Thank you for God’s grace….”
“Thank you likewise.”
The expression on Carlella’s face, after showing his sincerity for a moment…… It was laughter.
A smile just before betting all your money on a gamble that is sure to win.
“To climb the Tower of Proof… You need the signatures of both the Pope and a cardinal. Fortunately, you have already received the Pope’s signature.”
“…That’s right.”
“Then there are three cardinals left…”
Carleya took the lead in the conversation instead of the saint who seemed uncomfortable.
Signatures of the three cardinals.
Carleya muttered those words several times for a moment and then sighed.
“It won’t be easy….”
“Is that so?”
“That’s right, Namgoong Min. There’s no problem with Cardinal Skoll, who is currently supporting the saint… But the neutral McLaren and the opposing Cassandra are the problem. They are both in many ways….”
One of them was squirming in neutral mode because he was taking bribes.
The other person looked like he wasn’t going to listen to anything he said.
“But why were the cardinals divided into three?”
“This is the Pope’s intention. If cardinals get along well with each other, they will become corrupt, so I heard that it is his intention to place those who are not on good terms with each other and compete with each other.”
“Hmm…”
“It’s a bit clouded now because of McLaren, but I heard it was different when he just became a cardinal…”
Anyway, the point is that it will be a very difficult process to obtain the signatures of all three cardinals.
The saint nodded with a firm expression as if he agreed with Carlella’s words.
‘More than that, why did this kid look like this earlier?’
I can’t say it out loud, so even if I give a quick glance, I only get a dark look, so I can’t help but sigh.
With the saint who had a dark expression on his face the whole time, and Carlella who was talking about the means available to him.
I opened my mouth.
“One day.”
“………?”
“Yes?”
“Give me one day.”
“…Comrade sinner.”
“Huh, Namgoong Min? I guess it’s because you don’t know much, but the political situation between the cardinals in the Vatican is much more complicated than you think, so if you thought it was easy──”
*
“──This is what happens?”
“Didn’t I tell you it was just one day?”
Squall, McLaren, Cassandra.
I smiled as I lined up the signatures of the three cardinals.