Ch.140Panic, confusion.

# Chapter 140: Panic, Chaos.

Right after hearing an overwhelming rebuttal about why my conversation with the Pope wasn’t going well.

[Time Pause]

Bewildered, I unconsciously activated the time pause again.

‘Does this mean the opposing opinion is valid? If so, what approach should I take…?’

Though dumbfounded, I naturally accepted the feedback and after another month of contemplation, I devised a new approach of my own.

[Time Pause Release]

“How about this? I think…”

“Your Excellency! That is not a good idea!!”

‘Damn it.’

This time, the other side presented fierce opposition along with overwhelming evidence.

————————————

And after repeating this nonsense two more times…

When I absentmindedly opened my status window.

[Name: Arto Virtorius Seveli]

[Age: 36]

[Gender: Male]

[Race: Sevelian]

[Position: Minister of the Holy Seveli Empire’s Executive Department]

[Current Status: Hypertension, Hyperlipidemia, Diabetes, Nervousness, Hair Loss, Gastritis, Mental Panic]

‘…Huh?’

I only realized I was in a state of panic after what felt like four months had passed.

‘How is this even possible? I know I lose my mind when I panic, but… this doesn’t make sense.’

Faced with this absurd situation, I fell even deeper into panic.

-Ding♪

[Event: Negative Trait Evolution]

[Arto Virtorius Seveli’s negative trait ‘Mental Panic’ has evolved into ‘Severe Anxiety Disorder’ after persisting for half a year.]

[If the trait is not recognized, dissonance will occur in the character’s cognitive abilities.]

[!!!WARNING!!! Panic-related traits cannot be removed while in Time Pause state!]

As soon as I saw this ridiculous event message, I felt something snap in my head, followed by all sorts of bizarre delusions.

But at that moment.

[system: error code: ###########]

For the first time since my possession, an unfamiliar status window… no, a message appeared blocking my vision.

Of course, despite this, I was already in a ‘Severe Anxiety Disorder’ state and experiencing all kinds of strange seizures in my mind while time was paused…

[system code: error delete]

[system code: error delete]

[system code: error delete]

[system code: error delete…

[System anomaly confirmed, critical error detected for player]

[Probability of player resolving this error independently: 0%]

[Forced error deletion processing by system administrator]

[…]

‘What the hell.’

Along with a massive amount of error messages I’d never seen before.

When this mysterious message appeared, I couldn’t hide my inner bewilderment.

‘System administrator? There was such a thing?’

But that bewilderment soon disappeared.

[Forced error code deletion confirmed]

-Ding♬

[Event: Negative Trait Removed!]

[The ‘Severe Anxiety Disorder’ trait has been removed from Arto Virtorius Seveli.]

[You will no longer fall into a state of mental panic.]

[System error removal confirmed]

[Report submission initiated for the error]

[Error handling program activated during player’s system update]

With the naturally appearing status window and event message, I could feel it disappearing instantly like snow melting.

And because of that, I felt…

‘…Well, that’s something.’

It was like the refreshing sensation of finding and drinking a bottle of cola from a working refrigerator after wandering in the middle of the desert for days without water.

And thanks to that, I also realized how pathetic I’d been acting for the past 4 months, no, half a year (or not).

‘Mental illness is truly terrifying.’

Moreover, I discovered an unexpected problem with the time pause feature.

‘But is this right? I don’t think I’ve ever experienced anything like this before while using it.’

But when I scrolled up the UI status window and saw the word ‘update’.

I realized that this ‘status window’ I was using was actually being updated like a real game.

And I also learned that these updates were being implemented as stealth patches without any notifications.

Thanks to that, the issue became irrelevant as soon as I discovered it…

‘Knowing about it is meaningless anyway. It’s better not to worry about it anymore.’

So I decided not to think about this issue any further.

‘These bastards…’

I focused my thoughts back on the choices that had been messing with my mental state.

[Event: The Pope’s Desperate Struggle]

[The Pope, who had joined hands with Zeltech Capital to aim for the Emperor’s position…]

[When his running mate, Zeltech Capital, collapsed pathetically, the Pope barricaded himself in the fortified Vatican headquarters with his close associates.]

[However, even in this situation, he seems to be mobilizing all available forces to carry out his usurpation plan by force if necessary.]

[If this continues, there is a high possibility of a massive political scandal that will shake the entire Empire!]

[Option 1: Talk with the Pope to calm the current situation (random chance of additional events, linked event progression)]

[Option 2: The Pope has clearly crossed the line, eliminate him (random chance of additional events, linked event progression)]

‘Yes, this.’

It seemed that discussing things with our smart friends wasn’t possible because of this system or whatever it was.

I could exchange opinions with Riel, but…

Riel was originally a humanoid version of a tutorial bot, a part of the system in the original game.

Unlike other aides and Alina, Riel couldn’t be considered as fully belonging to this world…

Thinking about it, even while I was panicking and conversing with others, Riel seemed to give me some subtle looks.

It’s hard to explain, but that’s the feeling I got.

So after carefully reading the event message floating before me again.

‘…Alright, option 2 is definitely the right choice.’

Determined not to be swayed by this damn system anymore, I firmly chose option 2 from the event message.

[Option 2: The Pope has clearly crossed the line, eliminate him (random chance of additional events, linked event progression)]<Selected>

But right after selecting the option.

[Random Event: Hidden Traitors!]

[The identities of spies dispatched from the Vatican within the Diplomatic Executive Department have been confirmed.]

[These individuals were secretly dispatched to interfere with your operations against the Vatican and disrupt the formation of opinions within your department.]

[It seems possible to attempt additional operations against the Vatican through these individuals.]

[Traitors: Herman Beltior Inquisitor (Secretary Hermanios), Renshar’o Priest (Secretary Vinakibro)]

A “random” event I hadn’t seen in a long time.

And it was a groundless event bluntly telling me who the traitors were, appearing right before my eyes.

‘What the hell.’

———————————–

Meanwhile, just before Arto released the time pause after his third question.

Among the aides in front of Arto, the newly appointed Secretary Hermanios.

Or more precisely, Herman Beltior, who had infiltrated the Diplomatic Executive Department as a direct Vatican inquisitor.

In less than five minutes, he was experiencing what it truly meant to have one’s blood run cold.

‘Not a single mistake, but this is truly astonishing.’

It was no wonder, as Herman was witnessing Arto’s infamous “ultra-fast Q&A” for the first time in his life.

And he had to respond to it in real-time himself.

‘How can an ordinary person come up with methods that should take a month of contemplation in just a few seconds!’

And it wasn’t just once.

‘They say once or twice might be luck, but three times is inevitable…!’

How could a person think so quickly?

It wasn’t like Arto had undergone any modifications to his head like the despised intelligences or other heretics or materialistic fallen ones in this place.

‘Even if he’s a heretic, I’ve never heard that the Minister received body modifications, so he shouldn’t have an additional computer embedded in his head.’

Therefore, Herman became increasingly suspicious…

“Then how about this approach regarding the Vatican…”

‘This is insane.’

Seeing another massive plan flowing from the Minister’s mouth while he was briefly lost in thought.

By now, he felt not just hostility but even reverence.

‘So this is why His Holiness’s advisor said Minister Arto must be eliminated…!’

Of course, since he couldn’t do anything right now in this place.

“Your Excellency, no matter what, wouldn’t that be a bit difficult? For us…”

Together with Priest Renshar’o, who was also opposing Arto’s opinion from the other side, he would have to do his best to stop the evil plans of this wicked heretic.

Of course, he was reassured they wouldn’t be discovered since they had leaked information through other secretaries they had recruited in advance, making sure the Minister and other aides wouldn’t notice.

But barely five seconds after Priest Renshar’o finished speaking.

“…Secretary Hermanios, and Secretary Vinakibro.”

Unlike before, when Arto addressed them directly, Herman was puzzled.

‘Why is this heretic suddenly doing this?’

Despite his confusion, Herman, along with Renshar’o, immediately bowed their heads as they had been trained to do and responded to Arto.

“Yes, Minister.”

“Please tell us anything.”

But since he couldn’t understand why they were being singled out, Herman’s mind was filled with questions…

But right after answering.

“No, Herman Beltior the Inquisitor and Priest Renshar’o, was it? Why are Vatican direct subordinates here?”

“…Pardon?”

With Arto’s expressionless face that had seen through their identities, Herman felt his vision permanently disappearing.