Ch.38The Betrayer of the Altar (2)

# Pope

In Blasphemia’s report, it was described as a position that “theoretically exists.” A being who is revered as the supreme authority when all religious orders unite.

I considered it exaggerated information from Blasphemia’s side to extract more funding from the Ten Towers.

A political show—overstating the danger so they could demand more budget to deal with that “powerful threat.”

When Charisia and I were engaged in guerrilla warfare with Blasphemia, we hacked into their branch databases several times.

But there wasn’t a single piece of concrete information about the religious coalition ruled by the Pope.

The Pope serves as a representative of various religious orders. Therefore, the election of a Pope requires participation from multiple orders.

But now, with Blasphemia’s hunting, most religious orders have gone underground. I thought an election requiring multiple orders to gather would be impossible to attempt.

‘Was there really a Pope? And a coalition of religious orders?’

I was dumbfounded by this suddenly revealed fact.

The original work barely covered them.

As the Demon King who directly drove the religious orders into decline in the distant past, my main enemies in the original work were the Ten Towers who betrayed me. In Part 2, which began with the death of Baekmumeong—that is, the original Charisia—beings from other dimensions emerged as new enemies.

‘The utility of the vanished gods’ orders in the original work…’

It was closer to a mine for extracting items like the Phoebus relic I now possess. A bank where the Demon King would say, “Ah, I buried temples like this in the old days,” while withdrawing necessary tools?

It’s clear that the original world-building still applies to some extent.

But what’s causing these differences?

‘Is it because the year 2077, when the Demon King resurrects, hasn’t arrived yet? Will the religious coalition be completely destroyed by Blasphemia between now and 2077?’

But the current Blasphemia is significantly weaker than in the original work.

Blasphemia’s civil war with the Golden Desert Operation survivors who returned as Corruptors. They lack the capacity to project power externally because they’re busy dealing with this.

And who’s responsible for reducing Blasphemia’s power by a level or two by sending their elite agents into other dimensions?

Me and Charisia.

Haha, damn it.

Is this the disaster I brought upon myself?

A bitter laugh escaped me.

***

Sikton initially regarded the man before him as merely a sacrifice. But not anymore. He was someone who possessed both faith and power worthy of receiving Phoebus’s relic.

Snake-like eyes that didn’t suit the far-seeing Phoebus. Eyes so narrowly open that one might wonder if they could see anything at all, yet this contradiction created a strange sense of pressure.

It was a moment that recalled the old adage that contradiction holds power.

The man holding the crystal relic suddenly burst into laughter. An indescribable ominousness hung in the air.

Sikton instinctively interpreted this. It was mockery-like laughter with the intent of ‘Do you still intend to resist even knowing my identity?’

“…Indeed. The superiority between the power of intoxication bestowed upon me by Bacchus and your crystal relic of Phoebus is clear.”

Divine power is an ability granted by gods to believers. In this world where divine power has become diluted compared to ancient times, the absolute amount of divine power bestowed has inevitably decreased.

On the other hand, relics like that come from the old era, the beautiful age when gods communicated directly with priests. The divine power imbued in relics preserving ancient mysteries overwhelmed modern priests in both quantity and quality.

“But listen, you High Priest of Phoebus. The Divine Name Order may call me a traitor. But weren’t they the first to betray the gods?”

“High Priest? Is that how I appear to you?”

“Stop trying to deceive me. If you escaped Blasphemia’s pursuit while possessing such a powerful relic, who else could be the High Priest of the Phoebus Order?”

***

‘Actually, this is a divine relic unknown even to Blasphemia.’

I was tempted to say this but decided against it. Right now, extracting more information was the priority.

“Betrayal, you say.”

I tried to deduce what the bishop of the Bacchus Order intended to do with the magic circle drawn here.

Thinking about the vision shown by the relic. The bishop offers chimeras and other living sacrifices to the god to create something.

The blood substance created by compressing the sacrifices together. Considering it’s the Bacchus Order, some kind of wine?

After drinking it, both his body and this space were completely destroyed.

A wine made by offering sacrifices to a god. If it only destroyed people, that would be one thing, but destroying space itself and causing extra-dimensional currents to flow was not something possible with ordinary wine.

“You were trying to invade the realm of divinity. Bacchus’s wine. You intended to drink the wine of the gods to ascend to the realm of demigods, didn’t you?”

“Is that what the Divine Name Order told you? The foresight granted by Phoebus can pierce through the veil of intoxication but cannot perceive human malice.”

A repeatedly mentioned term. The Divine Name Order. It appeared to be the name of the religious coalition that elects the Pope.

“Give up. You cannot withstand divinity.”

“That is precisely what I want!”

The bishop suddenly shouted. Just moments ago, he was acting like someone on the verge of death.

“The Divine Name Order is trying to abandon the gods! They say since the gods abandoned us first, we will abandon them too! Does that make any sense? No! No!”

After shouting vehemently, the bishop, seemingly exhausted, leaned on his staff and panted.

“The Pope… said such things. It’s hard to believe, isn’t it? But it’s the truth. Use Phoebus’s power to judge the truth of my words.”

“Let’s assume your words are true. But what connection is there between your ascension to demigod status and loyalty to the gods?”

Khuhu, a low laugh echoed in the cave.

“Didn’t you say it yourself? That I cannot withstand divinity. I never intended to withstand it. As my body, infused with Bacchus’s divinity, is destroyed… I become a gate connected to his palace.”

‘Is he insane?’

What the old man was saying meant he would die to open a gate to another dimension. To directly connect the thrones of the gods with this world.

If you attack the dimensional barrier with power beyond a certain threshold, you can break it.

But how can one know whether the other dimension beyond that broken barrier will be Bacchus’s vineyard, Phoebus’s shooting range, or the maw of some nameless monstrous entity?

Seemingly unaware of my shock, the old man claiming to be a bishop of Bacchus rambled on.

“If the gods directly return to this world, even the Pope will change his mind. That hateful Blasphemia and the Ten Towers behind them will be eradicated! How joyous would that be?”

This borders on delusion.

“Is there a way to calibrate the connection with other dimensions? You’re chasing a futile dream.”

“There is a secret holy prayer passed down from ancient times. I stole it from the secret archives of the Divine Name Order. They hide so much from us.”

Holy prayer. A miracle invoked by praying to a god with divine power. It could also be appropriately understood as magic used with divine power, though there are quite a few differences in the details.

“It’s a holy prayer that explores other dimensions. Using the divinity of Bacchus that will dwell within me as a medium, I will find the celestial coordinates.”

***

Sikton revealed all his plans and looked at Ortes. If the High Priest of Phoebus would endorse his plan, the chances of success would be much higher.

He’s a prophet who sees the future, isn’t he? Just by identifying the causes of failure from failed futures and improving upon them would be enough.

‘Only the heads of each order attended the Divine Name Order’s meeting. The head of the Phoebus Order looked different from this man. He cannot help but waver when he learns that the order heads agreed to abandon the gods.’

And that wavering of the heart was precisely the specialty of Bacchus’s priest. Isn’t it the essence of wine to infuse pleasure, excitement, and intoxication?

He couldn’t veil the prophet’s eyes with illusions. But he could use the wine’s fragrance to amplify the anger brewing in the prophet’s heart and cultivate sympathy toward himself.

A subtle grape fragrance spread throughout the cave.

Sikton saw Ortes’s hand gripping the sword tighten.

‘It’s working!’

“Sikton.”

The High Priest of Phoebus approached. Blue irises were visible through the slits of his eyelids.

How did he know my name? Did the Divine Name Order tell him? No, it could be a power unique to prophets.

‘He’s calling me by name, so the emotional distance in his heart has significantly decreased. But not yet. If he notices that I’ve secretly used the holy prayer, everything could be twisted.’

“Take my head if you wish. But know that it wasn’t I who betrayed the Divine Name Order, but the Divine Name Order that first betrayed our gods.”

“I have something to tell you.”

Sikton smiled, spreading his arms toward Ortes. It was a gesture of welcome to a comrade joining the cause.

Slash.

And the next moment, his head was severed and flying through the air.

‘Why?’

In his fading life, Sikton heard Ortes’s final words.

“If you want to die, die alone.”