Bab 182: [Chapter 182] A simple and peaceful place <<<
After hearing his daughter's mourning, the partially deranged Lord Kendall managed to persuade many noble colleagues more than the Pope's thoughts. Although there were not many who dared to express dissatisfaction with the divine authority, the momentarily interrupted funds wreaked havoc on everything related to the subtle construction.
Relics were sold from the beautifully decorated Pope's reliquary. With the weekly offerings alone, there was not enough to pay the external laborers who were falling behind, let alone provide living expenses to the Ulverby citizens who originally worked in the sanctuary.
Those with deep faith would have endured poverty with the Pope in difficult times. Surely, God would soon overflow with rewards for his beloved children in times of hardship.
"However, the citizens of Ulverby did not see the Pope's poverty as a sudden test of faith. They simply.
Cleanly turned away from the Pope. As if seeing someone receiving divine punishment.
'These damn heretics.'
Omnius sat in the empty reliquary chair, sharpening his teeth. His face seemed to have aged several years in just a few days.
Yes, all those bastards were heretics. Heretics who were ordered by the Holy Knights to be captured and burned. More despicable than unbelievers or heretics, rotten apples who could corrupt innocent lambs faster than anyone else.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have turned away from him as if he had been waiting for this.
'Ren Fayel....'
Yes, that guy would be the ringleader of those heretics. He should have finished that guy off a long time ago.
He should have cut his throat without mercy when he was a young lad who didn't attract attention to himself.
Omnius's hand trembled on the armrest of the chair. He wanted to light a cigarette. Then he would have to dismiss the ungrateful Lord Kendall.
Idalia Kendall probably didn't die, she probably took poison. So, he had already sent a letter saying that even if she was kept in an underground prison for a few days, she wouldn't rot.
Lord Kendall surely received the letter, but there was no reply. And he obstructed the correspondence. It was an inexplicable attitude unless he had sent his foolish daughter to target him from the beginning.
The coarse and vile construction workers were all spies. Yes, there was no doubt about it.
His wrinkled face twisted as if annoyed. Then the door to the reliquary opened.
Creak. Until recently, the reliquary door had never closed due to people bustling around to put the saints of his sect or the name of his family in the reliquary. However, in the past few days, no one, except Omnius, passed through that door, making a heavy sound from the latch."
Omnius looked up to see the person who entered. Flames flickered in his eyes, but the size of those flames was very small.
"I greet Your Highness."
A cheerful young man approached with brisk steps.
His kind, innocent, and friendly face, which some described as angelic, reminded him of someone from long ago. Especially with that dark pink topknot.
The young man, who casually greeted without bowing his head, stopped under Omnius's assistant. Omnius sharpened his teeth as he looked at him.
Indeed, this unpleasant young man resembled his brother.
"...Ren... Fayel."
"As you have received the priest's blessing, there is no need to attach the family name."
Ren smiled softly.
To an onlooker, it might seem like a kind young man facing the threat of evil. However, the one feeling the pressure was Omnius, sitting in his assistant's seat, observing everything.
The dirty tactics of pushing the leader of the divine authority were carried out by Ren, who stood tall and smiled kindly.
How did Ren manage to rise to this position? With protesters camped outside the cathedral gates. And where was the financial officer who should always assist the Pope nearby?
Omnius seemed to understand everything just now. Yes, if that's the case, then perhaps what he heard at the beginning of the year...
"You... bought my... people."
The voice that was fine until this morning now sounded rough and barely flowed. Ren shrugged his shoulders with an unsurprised attitude.
"It wasn't that difficult. After all, the ones left by your side were all pawns."
"Money... was... given... a lot."
"People don't stay just because of money. If you only give money, who would follow a master who can be sold at any time?"
Omnius suddenly realized that Ren was clenching his right hand into a fist. Ren noticed his gaze and smiled slyly.
He tossed the hefty gemstone ring he was holding up into the air, and the way he caught it was as skillful as mischievous young peers. Omnius's gaze followed the familiar gem on the ring as it ascended and descended.
Three times. He threw the ring three times and caught it. Ren held it and began to climb the stairs towards the assistant's seat. The cheerful sound of footsteps echoed in the empty room.
As the young man approached, Omnius's face contorted rapidly. He broke out in a cold sweat. He wanted to get up and run away, but he had not been feeling well for the past few days. His body felt heavy, and his legs were slow to respond. It was as if he had tried to run a race against the young man.
As Ren looked down at Omnius, his gentle face became expressionless.
"...When my brother passed away, I was too young. I just came in from playing outside and noticed that the air inside the house was different. The servants said my brother suddenly collapsed and passed away."
The memory had become somewhat blurred by now, but he could not forget the events of that day.
Previously welcomed wherever he went, Ren, who was practically a prince, had lost everything in an instant after that day.
"I couldn't understand. My brother had breakfast with me that morning and he was healthy. It was unbelievable. Even when I saw him lying there as if asleep in the glass coffin, it felt like if I just opened the lid of the coffin, he would wake up and play with me again."
Ren pushed the gem on the ring upward. Omnius's eyes widened.
"I, am..."
"I should have just opened the lid back then. I didn't know. I didn't know you had such a dirty thing."
Shadows darkened Ren's face. As the gem on the ring pushed up, a small liquid slowly oozed out from a hidden small device.
The old man's face turned pale with fear. He tried to move and break free now. However, no matter how hard he tried, his body no longer responded.
Ren chuckled sinisterly. But to Omnius, that laughter felt more terrifying and dreadful than any expression he had shown so far.
"If I had known that our brother could wake up someday, I would never have let that coffin bury him. Huh? What will you do? Do you know how painful it is for me?"
Takitus, Ren's brother and the former Pope, was greatly loved by the followers. Many people watched in anguish as the funeral was held suddenly upon his death.
Who knew that burying someone in the ground was actually burying someone who might wake up someday.
Ren sighed like a gust of wind. However, his left hand viciously gripped Omnius's chin, prying it open.
Tap. With a very faint sound, a drop of poison fell into his mouth.
And then another drop.
Omnius's body stiffened.
Before the light disappeared, the last thing his eyes illuminated was not Ren. It was a man who resembled him, confident and standing far ahead of Omnius for a long time.
"I won't bid you farewell. Don't go. Suffer just like our brother did."
Ren whispered.
The sudden death of the religious leader brought about a timely calming effect on the riots brewing in Ulverby.
"Although he was criticized for turning the sacred city into a city of gold and creating the moniker Orevis, the meaning the Pope held for his followers was exceptional. For those who gathered every morning to pray and witnessed the grand history of the gods in the form of architectural structures somewhere in the city every day, it was even more so.
Therefore, the citizens watched the funeral of the former Pope Omnius III with somewhat reverent hearts.
While it was said that the money Omnius had amassed during his lifetime could fill the Lily Palace with gold and still have some left, the ultimate luxury that could be afforded after his death was only the coffin and the coffin.
The deceased, lying in the coffin filled with candles, dressed in noble white silk, seemed as vivid as if he had just closed his eyes. Even though he had passed away several days ago.
The glass lid of the coffin, decorated with golden pieces, allowed people to immerse themselves in a sufficiently mournful contemplation as the procession circled Ulverby.
While the problems of people pondering how to proceed with their lives remained unresolved throughout the city, they also realized at this moment that raising their voices would not help.
Nevertheless, the citizens of the old Papal Decree were people who valued the glory of returning to the side of the gods more than the brief troubles on earth.
When true adversity struck, they might speak differently than they did in front of their neighbors, but at least in this place, maintaining dignity was paramount.
"Lord, your servant now returns to your side...."
Upon hearing the news of the Pope's passing, the high priests who hurriedly arrived in Ulverby this morning prayed with a solemn voice.
When the procession stopped at the small square behind the Lily Palace, there was a large gathering.
No one asked what would happen to the construction of the reliquary in the future or what would become of the splendid spot in the middle of the reliquary that was just built.
Naturally, as the 'simple and peaceful place' was prepared, it was just as it should be.
The priests put on black robes for mourning. The sight of numerous high priests in black attire was a spectacle rarely seen in other situations. These priests, with their high noses, followed the principle that even if the emperor died, they should conduct the funeral mass in white robes if they were outside the divine authority.
Surprisingly, the person leading these priests was the youngest among them.
The young man with dark pink hair and a sharp face, despite being from a family that the deceased had disliked greatly during his lifetime, seemed profoundly saddened by this death. With a pale complexion, sorrowful eyes, and tear-streaked cheeks, one could believe he was the son of the deceased.
Neris, quietly nestled among the guests, watched Ren's performance with interest behind her black veil.
Beside her, also dressed in black, Kledwin whispered, "Look over there."
"Where?"
"The lady who narrowly escaped a dreadful fate is here."
At that moment, there was only one person who fit that description.
Bridget, the lady who was almost sold off like a pawn to a Marquis many decades her senior by her father, narrowly escaping a terrible deal.
By church law, illegitimate children were not allowed to attend the funerals or weddings of others, even if they were immediate family members.
Therefore, the person Kledwin pointed out was completely covered in black cloth from head to toe, standing among people who seemed completely unfamiliar, as if hiding their identity.
Neris guessed from the glimpses of eyes beyond the veil that the lady had not come to sincerely mourn her father's death but rather to witness it for closure.
While silently celebrating her newfound freedom.
This was the first time Neris had actually seen Bridget, but she could tell just by looking at her.
"If you get caught, your father might not make it to heaven because of you. You'll be responsible for his punishment. Brave lady. How did you recognize me? Have we met before?"
"I have no business seeing you. Talfryn told me."
Talfryn, disguised as a guest, standing beside them, let out a slight fake cough.
Neris turned her sharp gaze to the other side with a soft 'hmm.'
The most recent acolyte and the youngest among the high priests, Ren, led the rest of the priests, creating an atmosphere for them, while the deceased Omnius's financial officer oversaw the coffin disappearing into the deeply dug pit and being covered with earth solemnly.
As everyone finished their prayers following Ren's lead, they slowly walked towards the entrance of the Lily Palace.
The acolytes followed behind him, with no other high priests, only them.
It was the beginning of the papal vote to elect the next Pope.
Status Power Mingguan
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Power 
-- Power
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