Hermes Cathedral, the Tower of Babel.
Mein, who had become the new Pope, listened quietly to the reports from the three bishops in the secret chamber.
In addition to the old Bishop Taiflen, the two newly promoted archbishops, Soli Dahl and El, were from the Judgment Army and the Arbitration Tribunal respectively. The former was a brave and skilled judge who had accumulated a high reputation in the army during his twenty-five years of service, while the latter was Heather's adjutant, and taking over the former's position was a matter of popular support.
"This year, the reception of orphans in the Evil Moon Eternal Winter region has been very smooth. The nobles of various major cities have fully turned to the church. Currently, the number sent to the Old Holy City has exceeded three times the planned number," Taiflen said with emotion. "This is also the only good news recently."
Nobles are like this. Once they see the situation is not right, defecting is easier for them than drinking water. Mein nodded. "This is only the first year. There will be more and more in the future—if we can occupy the entire continent, the number of people accepted each year can easily fill a new city."
"Hopefully," he sighed. "Since the heavy snow, how many large-scale attacks have we encountered from the Evil Beasts?"
"Six times," Soli replied.
"Six times... More than a hundred Judgment Warriors have fallen on the defense line," Taiflen said in a heavy tone. "Ten God's Punishment Army members have also died, and when next year comes, the attacks of the Evil Beasts will only become more ferocious."
"Compared to fighting demons, this is already considered easy," El spread his hands. "Although I haven't seen how powerful demons are with my own eyes, the Holy Book seems to describe them as invincible. I'm saying, is it really necessary to hold on here to the end?"
"What do you mean by that!" Soli frowned. "The gods have shown us the way and given us power. As believers, shouldn't we defend our faith here, instead of turning around and running away?"
"Don't argue," Mein tapped his scepter. El had worked with Heather for more than ten years and had also picked up the habit of speaking without restraint. Looking at the two of them, he couldn't help but think of the old partners Taiflen and Heather. He looked at the old bishop and found that the latter was also looking at him, seemingly thinking of the same scene as him. "Our ultimate goal is to continue humanity, and to achieve this goal, there is no other way but to defeat the enemy."
"Yes, Your Holiness," the two lowered their heads respectfully.
But he himself was not sure whether holding on to Hermes to the death would defeat the demons.
Thinking of Aubraine's entrustment, Mein felt the weight on his shoulders.
Hell Beasts have already appeared, and the demons will sweep in five years later. He will witness this Divine Will War with his own eyes during his lifetime and will not be able to entrust the task to the next successor like Aubraine. Every time he thought of this, he felt uneasy.
In fact, he also thought about leaving a way out for himself. After swallowing Garcia's Black Sail Fleet, he did not order the ships to be burned and all the rebels to be publicly hanged, but instead imprisoned them all. Apart from a few leaders and a large number of scapegoats found in the slums who were pushed to the execution ground, most of the sailors are now in Eternal Winter Harbor, guarded by his most trusted subordinates.
If the defense line is completely lost, the fjord is the last refuge—even if retreating to the strait islands means eking out a living and never having the chance to turn over, at least he can spend the rest of his life there.
After all, humanity has tried its best twice and failed to defeat the opponent, hasn't it?
Mein didn't listen much to the subsequent discussions about how the church should develop next and how to consolidate the rule of Wolfheart. When the three finished discussing, he absentmindedly replied, "Just do as you said. The meeting is adjourned."
"As you command, Your Holiness." The three bishops stood up and saluted.
Mein left the secret chamber and walked towards the Secret Area, accompanied by guards.
According to the plan, a new batch of Judgment Army members will be transformed into God's Punishment Army today, which is what he is concerned about. Whether to hold on or retreat, these powerful warriors are the greatest guarantee that his orders will be implemented.
But before that, he needs to deal with an extra trouble.
Stepping over the stone steps, Mein entered the Secret Agency,
And turned into the prison corridor located in the middle of the agency. The last time he came here was to secretly execute King Wimbledon III of Graycastle.
The corridor was still cold and quiet, and the burning pine resin torches on both sides emitted a dim and faint light. The end of the corridor was dark, as if it were an entrance to an bottomless abyss. Many people were imprisoned and could not leave this place until they died.
Mein walked to room fifteen and signaled the guard to open the cell door.
The heavy wooden door made a harsh friction sound, stirring up a burst of wailing and crying in this silent place, but as the cell door was closed again, all the cries were isolated outside.
Through the iron bars, he saw Zero's figure.
The Pure One was facing away from the entrance, her upper body naked, her hands handcuffed to the iron bar above her head, and she had to stand on tiptoes to barely touch the ground. There were dozens of bright red whip marks on her fair back, and the blood that flowed down had solidified.
"How does the Arbitration Tribunal's chastisement whip taste?" Mein asked. "I hope this will make you understand the meaning of obedience."
"Hmm..." Zero groaned softly, as if waking up from a dream, and turned her head slightly. "So it's His Holiness the Pope. What you mean by obedience, does it mean obedience to you, or to also maintain respect for other bishops?"
Her slightly frivolous tone made Mein frown, but when he thought that he was now His Holiness the Pope, which was very different from his previous position as a bishop, he suppressed the unhappiness in his heart. After this lesson, she should also understand that he now has the power of life and death over her. "It is obedience to my orders. When I ask you to assist other bishops in completing their tasks, you must also obey their instructions."
"Is that so?" She said noncommittally, "Since you require it, I will naturally comply."
"Unlock her handcuffs," Mein ordered the guard.
After a long time of being suspended, her hands were almost dislocated, and they hung down softly, as if she didn't have any strength. The Pope used his scepter to pick up her clothes and throw them over her shoulder. "Next, I have a task for you to do. Come with me."
Zero let the clothes hang in front of her and followed him out of the prison corridor nonchalantly.
"This year, the Evil Moon is likely to last for five months, which is a difficult challenge for the Holy City, and even more so for other places affected by the Evil Moon," Mein walked to the end of the agency area, passed through a narrow iron-walled passage, and came to the elevator cage again—since being crowned Pope, he has been busy with various church affairs, and now he is stepping into this place for the first time as the person in charge. "I order you and other Pure Ones to go to the Kingdom of Graycastle, and take advantage of the chaos brought by this heavy snow to eliminate the rebels Taifik Wimbledon and Roland Wimbledon, understand?"
The cage door closed, and the clacking sound of the winch turning came from above, and the cage began to slowly descend, but he did not hear the other party's response.
Damn it, it seems that this whipping hasn't taught her to be obedient, Mein turned around with a gloomy face, but saw Zero raising the corners of her mouth, with a dangerous light flashing in her eyes.
Then a gleam of light rushed towards him.
.(。)