episode_0043

Maybe it was because he thought there was no way to escape anymore.

Either that or my will is broken.

The cardinal confessed surprisingly easily.

All that happened five years ago put the cardinal in prison.

In particular, the Pope, who knew the truth about the Sun Clan, showed anger that had never been shown before.

The sight of other high-ranking priests struggling to stop the Pope was truly spectacular.

Personally, I was a little taken aback because I thought the cardinal would struggle until proper evidence came out.

In any case, thanks to giving up so easily, the cardinal was destined to rot in prison for the rest of his life.

Honestly, it was a pity that I couldn’t kill it.

If I wanted to, I would have killed him right away, but since the justification for killing a high-ranking priest was insufficient, I had no choice but to be satisfied with rotting in prison.

After the situation was roughly resolved, the Pope called me.

I responded and found myself in front of the door of the place where the Pope was currently located.

smart.

“Please come in.”

As I opened the door and entered, I saw the Pope smiling benevolently as always.

I slightly bowed my head and said hello.

“Long time no see.”

“It hasn’t been that long to say it’s been a long time, but… the hero may feel that way.”

The Pope laughed and took a sip of tea.

It made me wonder if it was the same person who was running rampant just a few days ago.

“Why did you call me?”

“Are you okay, hero?”

He was momentarily shocked by the Pope’s words, but immediately maintained his composure and asked back.

“What are you talking about?”

“You don’t have to hide it from me. I already know.”

“…her.”

That meant that he knew about my relationship with Master, who died five years ago and was a member of the Sun Clan, and Arina, who attacked the inner center of the church this time.

I thought he was hiding it well, but I wonder how he knew.

I laughed out loud.

“How did you know?”

“I found out the exact truth after researching. Considering the actions the hero showed before and the times he went to Fate City six years ago while hiding his identity, I can infer to some extent.”

It just meant that I knew most of what I was doing.

Does the sky have eyes?

The Pope’s information power was completely incomprehensible.

“I understand that, but you didn’t just call me to ask if you were okay.”

“Hehe. The hero thinks I am too cold-hearted. The reason I called the hero is not for any purpose, but simply to ask if he is okay. The sorrow of losing his family is so great that it is immeasurable. Since you have experienced this not once, but twice, of course, as the Pope, I cannot help but be worried.”

After saying that, I sip the tea again.

I couldn’t help but think for a moment.

I’ve already thought about it countless times and made a promise from the tombstone.

When we leave this tomb, let’s just think about moving forward.

Although we cannot forget it right now, like when we heard the news of Master’s death, as Master said, let us keep it in our hearts and only think about moving forward for the sake of those who remain.

I have engraved in my mind countless times that I will do it this time, as I have done it so far.

But that didn’t mean it was okay.

It was a year later that I was able to completely bury my teacher’s death in my heart.

However, the shock was twice as great when I realized that it was only one demon that created Arina’s death and the current situation.

As it is not something that can be simply buried in a day or two.

It wasn’t okay now.

however.

“Whether it’s okay or not, what I have to do doesn’t change.”

We must catch the demon who created this current situation.

That’s all I have for now.

Perhaps it could be said that it was a form of revenge and that it went against the words of the teacher who told them not to have any regrets about their dead.

This wasn’t just some form of revenge.

‘If it’s the guy who set this up.’

It was clear that he was more dangerous than I imagined.

He was also a guy who was clear about what was going to happen in the future.

So I had to catch it no matter what.

Looking at me like that, the Pope smiled mysteriously.

“I guess my eyes weren’t wrong after all.”

It was a word whose meaning I could not understand.

“Now that I think about it, a guest has arrived.”

“Huh? Suddenly what?”

Just as I was showing my surprise at the pope’s words that came out of nowhere.

Someone opened the door and came in.

When I opened the door and saw the face of the person who came in, I couldn’t say anything.

“…”

“…”

This is because the identity of the person who came in was Mule.

I looked at the Pope wondering what the hell was going on.

The Pope just smiles kindly.

He didn’t respond to my gaze.

“I’ll be out for a while, so you two can talk.”

So saying, the Pope went out.

There was only silence in the space where the two of them were alone.

That moment when you wonder what to do with the awkward atmosphere.

Mule came over and sat across from me.

Then he opened his mouth.

“I thought he wasn’t an ordinary guy. I never thought he would be a hero.”

“Oh, yes.”

Not Kael.

As the warrior Kariel, I couldn’t think of what to say when I met Mule.

It feels like my mind has been stained with pure white drawing paper.

Fortunately, Mule seemed to have noticed my expression and spoke to me.

“A rotten bastard. A so-called hero goes around hiding his identity and doing such things?”

“Because he was a hero, he did it while hiding his identity.”

“Is that true too?”

Mule smiled and took something out of his pocket.

What Mule took out was the paper that Arina had given Mule as a gift.

It was paper folded in a shape similar to modern school paper.

Mul, who was looking at it vaguely as if recalling memories of that time, asked me in a tearful voice.

The hands that were clenched into fists were shaking and it seemed like he was suppressing his tears.

“…Did you have a good time Arina?”

“I had a good time. The tombstone is next to Master’s.”

“I see. That’s it.”

Saying that, he got up.

I looked at the mule and asked.

“…Aren’t you going to ask any more questions?”

“There is no need to ask more. The reason I came is to see you, Kael, but also to ask you about sending Arina off in a good manner.”

As if there were no more regrets, Mule turned and headed toward the door.

But I know.

That Mule is just suppressing and enduring.

I’m so sad that it wouldn’t be surprising if I burst into tears right now.

Nevertheless, there is only one reason why he perseveres.

‘You probably don’t want to look weak.’

This is to show the departed Master and Arina that he is doing well.

Even though they may be watching themselves, it is for those who do not have to worry about being there.

It was truly down-to-earth behavior.

“I’ll see you later.”

“Don’t die anywhere, you rotten bastard.”

After saying tearful words, Mule walked out the door.

I stared at the door Mule came out of for a long time.

***

It was some time after Mule left that the Pope returned again.

I asked, looking at the Pope as usual.

“You did something like that and you live in peace.”

“I’m not sure what you’re talking about.”

“That’s it.”

Mule’s appearance was quite disconcerting, but in the end it wasn’t that bad.

Anyway, I was planning on revealing my identity later.

There was no problem as it was simply pulled.

Although it’s quite annoying.

I kept my mouth shut for a moment and then suddenly remembered what happened last time.

The holy sword radiated light, and not only was the unusable divine power used, but the amount increased to an incomparable amount compared to before.

I asked, wondering if the Pope might know.

“Now that you think about it, I have something to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“…Did you see the light that spread last time?”

“Of course I saw it.”

I released the divine power that I had suppressed.

Pure white light filled the current space.

A smile spread across the Pope’s face as he looked at it.

“You have regained your divine power.”

“Yes. However, after emitting the light of the Holy Sword, not only did the divine power return, but it also increased dozens of times compared to the original divine power. I told you because I thought you might know about this.”

In response to my question, the Pope swallowed silently as if he was thinking for a moment.

It was about 5 minutes later that he opened his mouth again.

“I think it may have been an awakening.”

“Awakening?”

“yes.”

Awakening.

What you experience when you become a kind of hero.

This is what happens when you earn the qualifications of a true warrior.

‘Arien undergoes a proper awakening in the latter half of the game.’

Arien is in a slightly special situation among heroes.

I experienced it when I was able to properly wield the power of the holy sword.

‘Of course I didn’t experience it.’

Of course.

Because he’s not a real hero.

But you experienced that awakening?

‘What the hell is going on?’

However, the situation is too suitable to say that it is not an awakening.

The holy sword radiated light, the sacred power returned, and the amount increased to an unbelievable amount.

‘Furthermore.’

The most crucial thing is that the light shines on the symbol of a warrior.

The Pope smiled slightly and spoke to me.

“You seem very embarrassed.”

“yes…”

“Since you have already experienced an awakening, you will naturally be surprised by another awakening.”

I was surprised because I didn’t experience it twice, but because I experienced an awakening that I shouldn’t have experienced in the first place.

The Pope knew me as a warrior, so it was normal for him to think that way.

I roughly nodded and agreed.

“I have no idea what the reason for the awakening is.”

“I think it’s because of what happened three years ago. I lost my luster back then, so I think I was reawakened again this time.”

“hmm…”

The Pope knows me as a warrior, so he thinks so.

Since I originally knew that I was not a hero, I couldn’t help but question it even more.

As I was sobbing in worry, the Pope opened his mouth.

“It looks like you need some time to think. I’ll make room for you.”

With that said, the Pope left.

It was just a question and there was no need for me to leave, but I knew that he was considerate of me, so I just felt grateful and continued to think.

However, thinking about it for a long time did not provide an answer.

‘Let’s find out later.’

The moment I woke up with the intention of taking care of other matters first since there was no answer.

Tiriring!

The crystal ball rang.

I thought it was Lena, but I paused for a moment when I realized that the crystal ball that rang was a crystal ball exclusively for the emperor.

‘Why is this guy contacting me?’

If it were anyone else, I would have expected it.

Since he is the emperor, I don’t know the intention of the contact.

However, I couldn’t ignore the emperor’s communication, so I accepted it.

[Warrior.]

“Yes, Your Majesty. How have you been?”

[Goodbye. I’m sure they told me to contact them occasionally, but looking at the hero who doesn’t contact me, I guess I can’t do so even if I wanted to.]

“…”

[It’s just farming.]

If I made more jokes like this, I was at risk of having a heart attack, not even lying.

“..So why did you contact me?”

[It’s a bit awkward to use it as a communication port. Could you come to the imperial palace right away?]

Anyway, there is nothing to do.

I nodded and said to the emperor.

“I’ll be right there.”

[Thank you. I will tell you more details when I come to the palace.]

So we lost contact.

I was lost in thought for a moment.

‘…I feel very anxious.’

I was extremely anxious.

I don’t know why he called me, but I was confident that he didn’t call me for something good.

‘ha…’

I was quite anxious, but what can I do?

If the emperor, the sky of the empire, criticizes me, I should criticize him.

With weak steps, I headed to the imperial palace in the heart of the empire.