Volume 6, Chapter 29 – The Power of a God and the Fallen

Contrary to her expectation that the temple soldiers would stop her and Mary, the paladins along the way treated them just like any other passing believer, as if the Pope had truly not given them any orders. The strange scene made Yisi suspicious, but not being stopped was a good thing in any case. It saved a lot of trouble. Yisi led Mary all the way out of the temple.

The snow-padded streets were still bright. Anxious believers offered their prayers to the gods on the streets. What was different from when they arrived was that the people who had been gathered together, pointing at the Tower of Ymir, were gone. In their place were a few scattered paladins on patrol. The paladins must have dispersed them. Bad rumors would create chaos, and controlling the direction of public opinion was a very necessary action for any organization.

The two had only taken a few steps when Evelyn, who was following closely behind them, called out to stop them.

“Hey, wait.”

Although Yisi had long known that Evelyn was following behind, she had not turned back. Right now, it was best to get as far away from the church as possible. The church practiced human supremacism, and all other races would be burned as heretics. Half-elves were no exception. But now that Evelyn had called out to her on the street, if she didn’t react, it would only seem strange. Yisi turned around.

“Is there something you need, Lady Evelyn?”

“Tsk,” as if annoyed by Yisi’s deliberate use of honorifics, Evelyn clicked her tongue forcefully. “We still have things to finish talking about.”

It was probably about the magic medicine. Yisi sighed internally in annoyance. Evelyn was as clingy as chewing gum. Although, in terms of results, seeing the Pope today was not a good thing, from the starting point, Evelyn had helped her, fulfilling Mary’s wish to see the Pope.

Quite helplessly, Yisi made a gesture of invitation.

“Let’s talk as we walk. Although I don’t think the street is a suitable place to talk.”

“No one will want to eavesdrop on me, at least not near the central temple.”

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Evelyn pouted and gestured for Yisi to look at both sides of the street. Just as Evelyn had said, whether it was residents or paladins, as soon as they noticed Evelyn looking at them, they immediately withdrew their gazes with a worried and fearful expression. Even if their movements were very stiff, they had to pretend to be doing something else, as if Evelyn were a plague.

Yisi raised an eyebrow.

“I’ve been curious since the day before yesterday. What did you do to them? Back at the city gate, as soon as the guards heard me say I had met Shalu, they looked at me with pity, as if I had met a demon. If you hadn’t done something to leave them with psychological trauma, they wouldn’t be like this, would they?”

“Hmph~ Hmm?” Her tone only rose, as if she were very proud. Evelyn revealed a mischievous smile. “I just dressed up as a maid on their first day of office, chatted with them for a while, and then happened to meet them again during the grand procession the next day.”

“Happened to…”

It was clearly intentional.

Without needing to be told, Yisi could imagine the expressions on those soldiers’ faces after they learned Evelyn’s true identity. It was as awkward as arranging to meet an online lover in real life, only to find out that the other person was your own daughter or mother, and it would only be more serious. As a member of the church’s knights, not using honorifics for Evelyn, the next Pope, even if they didn’t know her identity, was a very serious offense. They might have even been whipped for it.

As if she had discovered Yisi’s inner thoughts, Evelyn shrugged nonchalantly.

“I told you, staying in the church all the time is a very boring thing, so I have to find some interesting activities—although I’ve unknowingly been given the title ‘Witch Shalu’ by the people nearby.”

“Adding ‘Little’ would be cuter.” Little Witch Shalu. It sounded like the style of a magical girl. “You don’t seem dissatisfied with this nickname.”

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“They only dare to say it in private. And even if I were dissatisfied, I can’t shut their mouths. In the end, this is the result of my own making.”

Surprisingly optimistic.

The cold wind blowing in her face made Evelyn tighten her collar. Her priestess’s habit was gorgeous, but its warmth was questionable.

“Huu, it’s so cold. You’ve derailed the topic. How dare you bring a half-elf before Julius? Are you insane? If Julius hadn’t been mentally off today, you definitely wouldn’t have been able to walk out of the temple.”

“How did you find out Mary is a half-elf? Weren’t her ears covered by her hair the whole time?”

As she spoke, Yisi observed Mary. No matter from which angle she looked, Mary’s long chestnut hair covered her ears tightly.

At this, Evelyn frowned and let out a long sigh.

“…Let me ask just in case. You haven’t put any strange accessories on Mary, have you? The kind that glows when it encounters magic.”

“No.”

Although she had thought about making trigger-type magical items, she had not yet put it into action.

Her expression turning serious, Evelyn said word by word.

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“When you and Mary were praying, the statue emitted a golden light. This is something that has never happened before.”

“Couldn’t it be some trick Julius played?”

“You and Mary are just ordinary believers. Playing tricks on the statue would be of no benefit to Julius. Besides, that old fossil’s faith in the Goddess surpasses anyone else’s. Ten of me wouldn’t even be equal to one Julius. He would not allow anyone to tamper with the statue of the Goddess.”

If that were the case, it was very strange that Julius had agreed to see her and Mary at this critical juncture.

Yisi did not say it out loud. Evelyn continued to add.

“After the statue emitted the light, a gust of wind blew in the room for a moment. It was at that moment that the old fossil and I saw Mary’s half-elf symbol. Although I can’t explain what the golden light means, that old fossil looked greatly shocked. He might know something.” After speaking, Evelyn fiddled with her silver pigtails with a very confident gesture, her tone full of teasing. “Maybe Mary, like me, is a child of God chosen by the Goddess.”

When she said the words ‘child of God’, there was a clear look of pride in Evelyn’s eyes. It was not something she was faking; Evelyn was truly proud of her identity. Chosen by a god, she possessed the ability to eliminate people’s negative emotions. Anyone she touched would become calm and full of goodwill. It was precisely because of this that Evelyn became the church’s next Pope. Who was more qualified to be the Pope of the church than a child of God? No believer would say anything against it.

Looking at the proud expression on Evelyn’s face, Yisi asked tentatively.

“Does Evelyn believe in the ‘child of God’ saying?”

“Whether I believe it or not, a miracle has indeed happened to me. From the moment I was born, the power of the Goddess has been by my side. Don’t be fooled by my appearance; I have actually always believed that the Goddess truly exists. Otherwise, there would be no explanation for this magical power.”

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If she said what she was about to say next, it would probably make Evelyn angry, but Yisi still said it hesitantly and cautiously.

“…Is there no possibility of being a Fallen?”

For a moment, Yisi felt a chill from Evelyn, but it quickly disappeared. Evelyn clicked her tongue and crossed her arms over her well-developed chest.

“To dare to call the power of a god the filthy power of a Fallen. If it were anyone else standing here, I would have had the paladins arrest you by now. No, it’s more likely your head would be on the ground. Whether active or passive, as long as a Fallen uses their ability, the dark red markings on their body will start to grow from their back and spread to their whole body. And Yisi has already seen my back. During the purification yesterday, there was nothing on my body that looked like a Fallen. If there were, those nuns would have reacted sooner than you.”

“Well, I was just saying. After all, this kind of unknown ability can easily make one think of the Fallen.”

Is Evelyn, despite being so open-minded, also prejudiced against the Fallen? As the successor to the next Pope, yet she doesn’t know that the Fallen are just falsely accused. Did Julius not let those around him tell her, or did she know but continue to slander them? The reason is worth pondering.

Yisi said casually.

“But I still want to remind you that there are good Fallen and bad Fallen, just like there are humble people and arrogant people among humans—”

“I will not acknowledge the Fallen.”

Before Yisi could finish, Evelyn interrupted her, her voice filled with undisguisable anger.