Chapter 421: A Problem From Above (4)
[Benignore Statue’s Tears of Blood (Semi-mythic)]
[This is the tears of the Goddess Beginore, which is classified as a semi-mythic grade catalyst.]
‘It seems like I can use that.’
There was no information on how to use it, so it was impossible to make an accurate judgment about that aspect, but it did state that it could be used.
I was hoping that it would be a mythic-grade, but this was pretty acceptable as well, although I couldn’t help but think of them as petty all the same.
‘It means that, to get the mythic grade, I have to torture Benignore.’
It was a bit disappointing, but I was still lucky to have found such a thing in that place. Naturally, I wanted to collect the catalysts that were still flowing down its cheeks.
If Pope Basel and the others weren’t with me, I would’ve stuck to that statue like hot glue.
“Oh, God…”
As soon as I looked at the statue again, I heard Pope Basel’s sigh.
Even though he had already seen it multiple times, it sounded as if it was still heartbreaking to see for him. Of course, I could understand.
Pope Basel was one of the strongest believers in the Church, and he held the purest faith.
It was normal that he had been battles, but he couldn’t have reached such a high position without the will to hold on to his faith constantly.
It was certainly sorrowful to see the statue’s appearance in this manner.
Perhaps, if she had looked a little less as if she had been treated unfairly, she wouldn’t be looking sad like that.
As a whole, though, the statue of Benignore looked beautiful.
Of course, I didn’t know if the image of that Goddess matched the actual appearance of Benignore in the sky.
If there was anything unusual, she had a somewhat unjust-looking face. She was certainly beautiful, but there was resentment all over her expression.
It wasn’t unreasonable to think the Goddess looked like she was down, considering she was indeed pouring out tears of blood from her eyes.
“Sniff. Goddess…”
It wasn’t just Pope Basel. Priests belonging to levels equal or higher than the Bishop gathered in that place, sighing in such a melancholic manner.
I pretended to pray as I secretly investigated the room. I was worried that something else would happen to the statue.
‘Goddess Benignore, are we still on good terms? You’re not aiming for my back, are you?’
There was still no answer.
I tried to read the people’s faces, but I didn’t feel like they were about to do something.
They didn’t bring me here to catch me, and they didn’t get a pledge from the Goddess Benignore.
It seemed that I could also judge that they didn’t know what the cause of this abnormal phenomenon was. It was still too early to come to a conclusion, but at least it seemed okay to let go of the delusion that Benignore had indeed fallen and gone crazy.
It was a little disappointing, but it wasn’t bad, either.
“S-So, did you hear it, Honorary Cardinal? The Goddess’ voice…”
“Hmm…”
‘What should I tell them?’
I wanted to hold a lying party confidently while nodding, but I opted for the opposite response instead. However, if I told him that I had realized something, I would be able to see the Church’s reaction.
‘I also need some time to organize my thoughts…’
I had to bite my lips and shake my head to make it even more believable.
Maintaining an expression made me look like I had just lost a country was too easy for Light Kiyoung. When I opened my mouth, I felt all the gazes focused on him.
“I can’t hear it. I can’t hear… Goddess Benignore’s voice.”
“Huh…”
“A-Actually… I can partly predict why Goddess Benignore is looking like that. However, it still feels too early for me to open my mouth…”
“What do you mean?!”
‘He sure did rush to answer immediately.’
He had the face of a traveler, who had been wandering the desert for dozens of days before finally finding an oasis.
‘That’s not acting.’
I had been thinking about it for a while, but when I saw Pope Basel’s expression, which seemed to be telling me to tell him quickly, I was somewhat convinced.
Benignore had not yet fallen.
“I’m sorry, Pope Basel.”
“Tell me quickly, Honorary Cardinal.”
“… If it’s okay, would you please leave for a moment? I want to be with the Goddess alone…”
“Yes. I-I will. Absolutely! What are you all doing? Get out, quickly! Honorary Cardinal Lee Kiyoung said he is looking at the Goddess’s condition. Everyone, leave the main hall! F-For how long do you want us to be away, Honorary Cardinal?”
“It might take a little while. Please don’t worry too much and wait comfortably, Pope Basel. I will bet my all to reveal what the Goddess truly wants.”
“Please, Honor Cardinal. Thank you.”
‘I got it, so let go of my hand. It hurts…’
“If you ever need anything, just tell me, whatever it is!”
“Yeah. I will make sure to do that.”
“I’m really glad the Honorary Cardinal came. Really…”
“No, Pope Basel.”
‘I got it, so get out quickly. My head’s starting to hurt too.’
“Please, take care of it. Please!”
‘Just get out…’
It was quite a sight to see him holding both of my hands tightly and pleading repeatedly.
In the end, it took a long time before the people began to go outside.
My insurances, including Jung Hayan and Cha Hee-ra, started looking at me as if asking if I was going to be alright.
I felt a little anxious, but I still nodded to reassure them. I watched them walk out with the Pope. I was still curious how those women would spend their time separately.
However, there were more pressing matters to handle than them.
‘I should do my job.’
Though my thoughts were complicated, I still had to fulfill my duty. After taking out the alchemy kit I always carried, I set it in a position where the tears of blood were likely to fall.
‘Good.’
The empty glass bottle that I used to catch the dripping blood tears felt very lovely. If I waited for an hour or two, I knew that it would eventually be filled to the brim.
“She wouldn’t be crying out of the blue for a gift… What’s wrong with her?”
No matter how I thought about it, there was no reason for her to have such problems.
‘She’s not even at war against the demon…’
“She mustn’t be confined somewhere.”
Assuming that all the achievements I’d made had become the merits of Goddess Benignore, it was only proper for her to scream out of pure bliss instead.
Perhaps those were tears of joy, not tears of sadness.
She must’ve been shedding tears of joy because she united humanity and took the continent out of a crisis. It wasn’t strange to think so.
It was only a joke, but the reason I couldn’t hear her voice might be because she was too busy having a party.
‘It’s a dereliction of duty and negligence.’
Of course, the probability of the assumptions I made being right was indeed quite low.
However, without hearing her voice and without an explanation for the blood tears, I couldn’t come up with an excuse. Since I hadn’t been able to determine the cause, I had no choice but to grasp and use the results of my will.
First, there was the excuse to calm the high ranks of the Church, including Pope Basel.
‘I think I can use the demon one more time…’
It was an old-fashioned idea, but nothing was as good as that.
I needed an oracle to quickly deal with demon minions hiding across the continent. Since the demon’s minions were damaging the continent’s vital forces, it wouldn’t be hard to believe that there was a problem in the sky.
I was about to deal with a couple of bastards besides Demon Summoner Jin Qing, anyway.
Those who were uncooperative to me…
“Because all of them are involved with the demon. It can’t be helped since it’s for the future of the continent…”
It went without saying for the State, the Magic Kingdom, and the Republic. The same went for motherfuckers who had only been looking after the war began.
Like the saying, ‘Neutrality is the best idiocy,’ they also needed to take responsibility for not choosing any side. Of course, that didn’t mean I planned to make everyone my enemy.
When wars broke out, all the things I’d done before it became meaningless, so I thought I could pick a few key people.
I chose the elder wizard of the magic kingdom, Medilive.
The wizard’s tower where that motherfucker, who talked about the balance of the world, lived was actually…
“It was the demon’s spire… we almost got in trouble. I almost got tricked by the demon.”
I also chose the high warlord of the Republic, who took the lead in causing the war.
“The Demon 72 Corps commander’s servant, the 72 Corps commander’s shelter. I can’t give him a chance.”
Even within the kingdoms where nothing had been involved, many people had to be removed from existence.
The manager of the Demon’s Canyon. The lord of General Strait, who was a demon minion contributing to polluting the sea. Many people had to be tackled, not as an individual but as a group.
Of course, it was heartbreaking for the fightable troops had to disappear, but those guys weren’t helpful, anyway.
They were also those who could stab my back anytime, and they could become threats to the world if left alone. There was a justification. There was also a reason.
It wouldn’t be bad to wipe them off all at once using that opportunity.
I agreed with myself. Personally, I thought it wasn’t a bad excuse.
Dealing with all the demonic officials spread across the continent couldn’t be completed instantaneously. I had to provide sufficient time to execute my plan.
I also had to think of other reasons to justify the cause. If it was Pope Basel, he would be able to agree with my opinion.
From then on, I organized the list of all the demonic officials in my head one by one.
‘I can just say that I got the information from Jin Qing.’
If I told the people that he had snitched out all the demonic officials, I would be able to create a plausible story.
‘It’s good. It’s good.’
There might be a problem in the sky, but there was no problem on earth.
Rather, it was working so well that it made me happy.
Feeling grateful, I placed my hand on the statue’s shoulder without thinking.
“She has a face that makes her look as if she’s been treated unjustly.”
[Please. Sniff. Please… Lord… please… ]
“What?”
[Can you hear me? Can you hear me? Lee Kiyoung, son of a bitch! Waaahhhh… ]
“What’s this?”
[Can you hear my voice?]
“I can…”
[I’m glad… I’m glad. That’s a relief. Really… I’m really relieved. Thank you. Thank you very much. Honorary Cardinal Lee Kiyoung. O-Our lovely Honorary Cardinal Lee Kiyoung! I didn’t betray you. I never thought of that. I would never do that. It’s all because of circumstances. I’ll explain everything slowly. Don’t do anything useless. Don’t do anything weird. Let’s take things leisurely, just like this. Don’t do anything useless. Never do such things!]
‘What is this…?’
As soon as I took my hand off the statue, I couldn’t hear the voice anymore.
I had no choice but to wonder why she was contacting me that way.
When I put my hand on it again, the voice started to come back.
[I like you. I’ve never thought of betraying you. I never thought of you as trash or a mean bastard… We have a good relationship. So let’s not do anything that can harm each other. It’s wrong to call me Benignore, the fallen god. I have never fallen and have never turned the continent into an enemy. Can you think that over?]
I nodded slowly, not wanting to stop the words that poured down like a waterfall.
Shortly after Benignore talked about the depraved new plan, she told me something that both confused and surprised me.
[I… I went bankrupt.]