Chapter 167
The ruler of the space, Cardinal Beled.
How could anyone forget her?
Her first appearance was so intense that I still remember it vividly, not missing a single word.
“Liam—!”
Louisa, sensing the crisis, cries out for Liam as her head flies off in an instant.
The protection of her body, fortified by a solid aura, proves utterly useless as it gets cleanly sliced away.
Louisa, who was Liam’s professor during his Academia days, has her head drop to the ground along with her last breath.
Blood doesn’t burst forth. The severed neck is as if blocked by a glass pane; it doesn’t spill a drop.
Liam finally registers what’s happening.
What on earth is going on?
Liam, Alicia, Emily, and several other heroes, including Arterion, were on their way back after successfully completing the extermination of Archbishop Beris, following Helion.
Even though everyone was tired, they didn’t let their guard down; who knew if other archbishops would try to take advantage of them?
But then, like a disaster appearing from thin air, she suddenly kills Louisa, who was already a strong member of their group.
Then her hand reaches for Liam too. His eyes, now accustomed to high-speed combat, lock onto her.
Her hair, black as graphite, contrasts sharply with her white pupils.
The skin brushed by her black hair is as white as fresh paint.
This extreme contrast in brightness makes her presence even more striking.
With a height surpassing that of an adult male and massive white horns on either side of her skull.
The long nails on her outstretched hands are also white, as if they absorbed all light.
Liam realizes who she is from a description he’s read in a novel.
Cardinal Beled.
She has made her appearance.
…In the end, thanks to Helion and other heroes ranked around the top 10, Liam narrowly escaped with his life. Without their help, his journey would have ended right there.
The heroes desperately fought against Beled, and the situation only concluded after she took the heads of three heroes ranked in the top 20 and six more besides.
They had won against Archbishop Beris, but those who returned to the church could not cheer.
*
“Ah, my child, we meet again.”
Beled’s voice jolts Vargan awake.
A room completely shrouded in darkness. Yet the objects that can be seen are all pure white. The floor, the ceiling, and the walls are all covered in a dark aura, while the cubes floating around are dazzlingly white.
The cubes floating around were white.
Vargan looked ahead at the staircase that rose high like a pyramid. At the top, there was a chair, and someone presumed to be female was sitting there.
Vargan could tell who she was.
“Enough. Bow your head and come to me.”
“……!”
Without a sound, hundreds of pale hands appeared, surrounding Vargan. These corpse-like hands restrained his movements.
Vargan was forced to bow his head. His body was no longer at the bottom of the stairs; he had been moved without realizing it.
“You look like this, huh?”
Right in front of Vargan.
Beled, sitting on the throne, rose and grabbed Vargan by the chin. Her cold fingertips reached him.
“Human child, Ichigo, has good eyes.”
Beled smiled like an inverted crescent moon as she gazed into Vargan’s eyes.
An overwhelming difference. It wouldn’t be strange if he trembled in fear at this moment, yet Vargan did not suppress his power.
It was a different intensity from the feral glare of a wild animal.
Before Beled, Vargan didn’t act hostile.
“Seeing that you can hide your fear, it seems you can control your emotions… I’ll grant you a bit of freedom.”
As Beled spoke, the hundreds of hands restraining Vargan vanished. She released his chin and crossed her long legs again.
Though freed from her grasp, Vargan still felt an oppressive pressure urging him to contain himself.
His heart warned him of danger.
It screamed at him to escape from this place at once.
The Bishop and the Archbishop were on another level.
The same went for the Archbishop and the Cardinal.
Even the nearby presence was enough to give him chills. Facing such a woman evoked primal fear within him.
“It’s an honor to meet you, Beled.”
Yet, Vargan endured it with sheer will.
Instead, he brazenly smiled and greeted her with the courtesy of a noble. It felt as if facial muscles would spasm, but he intended to hold on until he built up resistance.
He knew that if he backed down now, he would gain nothing, so he suppressed his instincts.
Endurance and adaptation were the fundamental ways he had lived thus far.
Seeing his fierce determination, Beled smiled softly and said, “You’re the first of your kind to survive here. Do you know why I summoned you?”
This was Beled’s domain.
A space she had created, which she could modify and annihilate at will, a space that belonged solely to her.
“If I were to hazard a guess, I believe you are intrigued by my actions in the world.”
Vargan spoke without raising his head.
It was customary to keep one’s head down until given permission to lift it, just as one would do before a king or an emperor, thus acknowledging Beled’s authority.
Beled allowed Vargan to lift his head.
He met her chilling gaze.
Beled smiled with her alien eyes.
“Right, you probably wouldn’t be unaware. You wanted to see me too.”
As she said, Vargan purposely brought up topics related to Lucien to stoke the interest she already had.
Her interest had already been piqued, and he ignited the flame further.
Vargan pretended not to notice and responded with feigned innocence.
“How could a mere human like me dare to look upon the king of Altife recklessly? My actions may have caused quite a stir, which merely crossed the eyes of Lady Beled by coincidence.”
“What an amusing statement… I’ve heard you can perform various tricks as a Familiar, yet you’re unarmed. Surely you could have been permitted such freedom.”
“What meaning would it have to stand before a great being clad in armor and wielding a sword? Rather than hide a candle behind my palm in the face of a tempest, I deemed it wiser to disarm and show respect.”
“Oh my, how clever you are with your words. Do you think I would fall for such sweet talk?”
Vargan shook his head and replied.
“I’m not so foolish as to think I could charm Lady Beled simply by wearing perfume and dressing up.”
Beled already knew about Vargan’s unique artifact, the Life Elixir, and that he could use the Riding Magic.
Vargan chose not to adopt a fighting stance in front of Beled because, comparing his own power to hers, it would be meaningless, and he emphasized it was simply out of respect.
Even though he was alert throughout his entire being, Beled found Vargan’s snake-like demeanor intriguing.
She had seen this side of him when they had visited Zagan’s place and the Terrarium, but she never expected he could maintain such composure in front of her.
Still smiling, Beled spoke.
“I wanted to see you in person. I was curious just how far a brat without manners would go to be noticed.”
However, he was more than she expected. Not like a person who stubbornly clings to pride while being ignorant of the world’s dangers, but someone who could adapt their demeanor based on the situation.
Beled commented this with an intent to flatter, and Vargan calmly expressed his gratitude, adding.
“…However, I believe it’s not that simple.”
Vargan’s tone subtly changed, and Beled noticed it.
Their eyes exchanged silent communication until Vargan finally spoke.
“If it’s not too presumptuous, may I point something out instead?”
Beled felt a slight discomfort as if he was trying to teach her, yet she decided to hear him out.
Once granted permission, Vargan resumed his polite tone.
“During the end of the First Semester, there were the Archbishop Zagan and the Bishops who followed her. Archbishop Ami and his group at Dortmund. Lucien from the Academia, along with Bishop Caliculea and the Formist forces lurking within the Theater.”
There was a central point connecting them.
On the surface, only the twins, Ami and Zagan, seemed to share a commonality, but that wasn’t the whole truth.
It was information that only bishops of the Goddess Church would know.
“Is it not because of the connections I’ve stirred among these forces that you are feeling intrigued positively towards me?”
Throughout his story, Vargan had deliberately avoided the forces of the Goddess Church.
Had he recklessly trampled upon the Goddess Church with knowledge of the plot, he would have met his end long ago.
If he had been rampaging through the Goddess Church without a single thought, he would have met his end long ago.
In other words, he moved with precise calculation, which is why Beled took an interest in Vargan.
Vargan smirked wickedly.
Beled remained silent, only listening to what he had to say next. Although she showed some displeasure by slightly furrowing her brow, it seemed unlikely she would suddenly decide to kill him.
Vargan revealed the connection between them.
“It’s safe to say that all of this comes from another Cardinal faction opposing you within the Goddess Church… for now, that’s all I’ll say.”
As is often the case with groups.
On the surface, they may appear tightly knit, but the reality is often otherwise.
The monotheistic Goddess Church is no exception.
The Goddess Church’s power is divided among Cardinals, and the faction that Vargan has dealt considerable damage to so far belongs to the opposite Cardinal, the largest force within the Church.
In other words, from Beled’s perspective, a suddenly appearing human is gradually gnawing away at a faction that is a thorn in her side.
Thanks to that, two opposing faction archbishops have even met their demise, so it’s no wonder she’s paying attention.
Even Lucien’s betrayal was shared like a prophecy, and she handed over a magnifying glass for closer observation.
With an eagle eye, Beled began to scrutinize Vargan as if observing an ant, even going so far as to lend a hand to the little intruder.
“I sincerely thank you for helping me command the Formists within the Academia. Thanks to you, their power is much more useful and convenient now.”
When mentioning Lucien, Vargan added such a remark.
– I intend to collapse the Academia.
Therefore, this aligns with the will of the Goddess.
Furthermore, if you can dispose of those who are no longer useful, I will grant you benefits in the next transaction.
Upon hearing his words, Beled pondered.
Although what he was doing was clearly beneficial to her, the question of whether she could trust what Vargan was doing was a different matter altogether.
Moreover, even if the remaining Formists in the Academia were those rejected by the Formists, they belonged to a different faction, so interfering recklessly could lead to troublesome situations.
Vargan’s actions felt as incomprehensible as reading every page of the “Scripture.”
‘What the heck is he doing…?’
In her contemplation, Beled weighed her options.
Should she use this enigmatic figure named Vargan or not?
Ultimately, she finished her calculations, envisioning the results that Vargan could generate.
Beled gazed at the man with an arrogant smile. What kind of human could behave so audaciously before her?
She had many questions she wanted to ask, but she chose carefully, first inquiring about the most important matter.
It was a key question that struck at the heart of the matter.
‘Child, what ultimate benefit will you bring me?’
To this, Vargan replied.
Without a hint of hesitation.
“I will make you the Pope.”
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