Volume 6, Chapter 68 – The Future of Humanity? Yisi?

Amidst the praises of the passersby, the three of them arrived at the central temple.

Because the west side of the temple had been destroyed by Evelyn’s divine-era magic, many temporary wooden houses and tents had been set up next to the magnificent and grand central temple. Inside were the valuables salvaged from the west side of the temple and the prisoners who had been held in the underground. These things would be moved to the vast underground space of the central temple within a week, and the west side of the temple would be rebuilt within a few years.

“There are paladins everywhere.”

“They are responsible for moving the valuables from the west side of the temple to the underground. Well, although it was to eliminate the monsters that day, I still have to admit my fault for destroying the temple. Speaking of which, according to the scriptures, [Demonic Evil Annihilation] should only work on creatures of evil and dark attributes, stripping the dark element magic power from their bodies and thus causing them to self-destruct. But it also affected the temple and the other surrounding buildings. It’s a good thing you and the people living nearby were alright. Otherwise, I would have had no face to see Andrea.”

Evelyn let out a sigh of relief.

The entire ground of the west side of the temple had been blasted by Evelyn’s magic, creating a crater like that of a meteorite impact. When it was inspected afterward, not even a single piece of gravel could be found in the crater. The uneven things had been violently crushed into fine powder. If she hadn’t used [Blink] to leave in time and secretly moved the residents of the surrounding buildings, the praise Evelyn received now would surely have been much less, and she might even have been given an unpleasant name.

Yisi scratched her head, feigning embarrassment.

“I just ran a little faster. Maybe that spell called [Demonic Evil Annihilation] doesn’t work on people.”

“I hope so, but I don’t think I’ll have a chance to use it a second time.”

“Why?”

With a wry smile, Evelyn shrugged.

“The conditions for using divine-era magic are harsh. Besides having to be over level forty, one also needs to have a connection with the Goddess. You can just think of it as requiring the caster to be in a very good state to use this spell. You might not succeed even once in ten thousand tries. To be honest, I am the first human to successfully use [Demonic Evil Annihilation]. The reason why Julius suddenly changed his mind might be because of this.”

“Mmm,” continuing to walk towards the temple with Evelyn, Yisi paused for a moment before speaking. “But how do you plan to explain your divine power? If Julius finds out that your divine power has disappeared, it will surely be very troublesome.”

This time, it was Evelyn’s turn to look hesitant.

“Julius already knows… didn’t I tell you?”

“No.”

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It was also possible that she had forgotten, although she really had no impression of it at all.

“Then let me say it again now. On the day I lost my power, I told Julius that I had lost my divine power. Thinking back now, I must have been out of my mind, but at that time, I was really too anxious and wanted to understand the reason why my ability was lost. As a result, not only did Julius not make things difficult for me, but he also told me not to spread it around. In retrospect, that old fossil should have at least handed me over to the Inquisition Hall on the charge of betraying the gods.”

That’s because you still have value to him.

“Well, Julius will probably tell me the details after I become the Pope. But I have a feeling it won’t be a good answer, and I’ve prepared myself for it.”

“If you’re mentally prepared, then I’m relieved.”

“What’s with that? You sound as if you already know the ending.”

“It’s nothing.”

Finally, Yisi and Evelyn arrived in front of the central temple gate. As if they had been waiting for Evelyn for a long time, many clergy members were standing at the entrance, their faces filled with joy the moment they saw her.

“Lady Evelyn, His Holiness and the bishops are waiting for you in the main hall.”

“Mm, you may leave.”

“And this is…?”

The questioning nun’s gaze fell on Yisi.

“The hero who annihilated the monsters with me two days ago.”

“Understood.”

With Evelyn accompanying her, the nun did not have Yisi drink the holy water, but had the paladins on the steps open the temple gate and let her step onto them. What was different from a few days ago was that there were no ordinary believers near the central temple today. As if they knew that Evelyn would become the next Pope, they had all gathered around the temple.

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There was a strange sense of pressure.

Although she knew that there was no danger ahead, she couldn’t help but feel nervous. It was like an inexperienced person suddenly attending a high-society party, a kind of indescribable awkwardness. It wasn’t that Yisi was afraid of meeting Julius and the bishops, but simply because she rarely attended formal occasions, so she felt a little nervous.

On this point, even Andrea did better than her.

Noticing that something was wrong with Yisi, Evelyn tilted her head.

“What’s wrong? You look very nervous. You didn’t even show this kind of expression when you were facing the monsters.”

“…This is this, and that is that. I haven’t received etiquette education like you have, Evelyn.”

Or rather, the set of etiquette she had learned was not applicable in this world. Normally, if it were a tense situation, or if she were the superior and others were her subordinates, she wouldn’t have to pay so much attention to etiquette. It would be better to be a little more casual. But now, it was a time when others were going to give her a reward. Even if the reward had almost no practical significance to her, the feeling of nervousness would still be there.

With an interested look, the corners of Evelyn’s mouth lifted.

“Hoh, I didn’t expect that the composed Yisi would have something she’s not good at. I always thought you were the lord of some territory.”

“Couldn’t I be a princess?”

“There’s no princess who can fight like you.”

“A lord wouldn’t leave their own territory, right?”

“That’s true. Anyway, seeing that you also have something you’re not good at, I’m relieved. It’s like, ‘this one isn’t so unapproachable after all’.”

“That’s definitely a misconception…”

Yisi considered herself to be a rather easy-going type.

Glancing at Yisi with great interest, Evelyn straightened her platinum-gold priestess’s dress and her waist-length silver pigtails, switched the Staff of Divine Retribution from her left hand to her right, and stepped onto the long flight of stairs made of white marble.

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Yisi, who did the same, followed her.

After stepping onto the platform, her vision suddenly went dark. With the excellent vision of a vampire in the dark, Yisi did not experience temporary blindness like a human would—the main hall with its semicircular, high dome was as magnificent as before. The floor was as spotless as a mirror, and the statue of the goddess standing at the end of it seemed to be examining her believers. A solemn, inviolable sense of sanctity filled the air. In such an environment, even if a needle were to drop, it would surely produce an echo—even though the main hall was no longer as empty as before, but was filled with people.

First was a circular council table that occupied a huge area. Sitting in the position directly facing the main gate was Julius, in his white priest’s robe. And at the other positions of the round table were a total of seven cardinals, in red robes with crosses on their chests. Immediately behind the cardinals were rows of serious-looking priests. These priests all held the title of high-ranking priest and could at least use Tier 2 light element magic.

Finally, standing against the wall were paladins in armor with red emblems carved on them. Similarly, they were not ordinary paladins, but hunters, a tier higher than the Inquisition Knights and Templar Knights. The name ‘hunter’ sounded as if it were a role that acted in the shadows, but in fact, all hunters were promoted from paladins and belonged to the highest level of paladins.

At least five hundred people were gathered in the main hall.

Although she had seen everything inside from the Omniscient Map before entering the room, data and seeing it with her own eyes were two different things. Yisi couldn’t help but feel a sense of tension all over.

If Julius were to praise her in front of so many people, it would be a rather grand thanks.

Julius, who was sitting under the statue of the goddess, broke the silence.

“You’re late, Evelyn.”

The emotionless voice echoed in the main hall, creating an indescribable sense of pressure. Yisi couldn’t help but feel embarrassed that she had made more than five hundred people wait for so long—it must be said that Yisi did not hate the church. What she hated was the stubborn Julius.

Compared to Yisi, Evelyn seemed very calm.

“You’re the one who asked me to go, Julius. You can’t blame me for being late. When I went to call for my hero, the hero was still sleeping in bed.”

Hey, hey, although it was indeed my problem for sleeping in, don’t expose me in front of so many people. No, even if you do, at least make up a better excuse, like I was fighting a dragon, or had just repelled a monster tide.

But to Yisi’s surprise, no one in the temple cast a dissatisfied or disgusted look at her because of Evelyn’s words. On the contrary, their eyes were filled with wry smiles and helplessness. Especially the older ones, after seeing her, even showed the kindness unique to the elderly.

Did she make a good first impression on them?

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“I didn’t expect the hero who helped Lady Evelyn to be so young. The future of humanity will be brighter and brighter.”

A cardinal answered the question in Yisi’s heart.

So it was because of her strength that they were happy.

The cardinal’s words ignited a powder keg, and a slight murmur arose in the main hall.

“She looks much younger than Lady Evelyn. Is she not yet an adult?”

“To have a strength greater than Lady Evelyn’s without yet coming of age… in time, she will surely become a true hero of humanity. I remember that before Alvier VI came of age, he was not even level 30. According to the hunters’ description, this girl, without a weapon and without using magic, can beat a demon to the point where it can’t fight back with just her physical strength. It was precisely because she held off the demon that Lady Evelyn was able to use the divine-era magic.”

“And she’s a friend of Lady Evelyn’s.”

“Maybe she can become a talent for the church.”

“If we have such a talent, as long as we nurture her well, she will surely become a powerhouse no less than Alvier VI. At that time, the unification plan formulated by His Holiness Julius will also be just around the corner. She may be the most suitable person to assist Lady Evelyn, the child of God.”

“Comparable to Alvier VI? Doesn’t that mean there’s a chance to snatch the Tower of Alexia from the hands of the Blood Clan?”

“The reason His Holiness convened the Divine Revelation Council, besides discussing the newly appeared demons, was also to inform us of the existence of this hero, right? She’s at least level 40, and may even have reached level 50. The church has only had three level 50 people so far, and that includes His Holiness.”

“Shh, keep your voice down. This is a holy sanctuary. The Goddess may be watching.”

Not paying any mind to the quiet discussions of the clergy, Julius said nothing. It wasn’t until the voices of his subordinates had quieted down on their own, and Evelyn had pulled Yisi to sit at the round table, that he slowly opened his mouth.

“Let’s begin the first agenda item.”

The entire hall fell silent in an instant.