Chapter 87

Chapter 87
## Chapter 87

### Picaol Cathedral (2)

“Ah! Your reputation precedes you, Sir Heinrich. Truly, you possess the exceptional talent I have heard so much about!”

“Your words praise me too highly, Cardinal. I am deeply grateful that you took the time to greet me in person despite your demanding schedule.”

“This is no minor affair; we are speaking of the holy sword. Furthermore, since the Saintess herself endorsed you, I simply had to meet you face-to-face! Hahaha—”

Upon his arrival at Picaol Cathedral, Heinrich was shown to his quarters before being granted an audience with Cardinal Donovan, the overseer of the grand facility.

At first glance, the man resembled a warm, grandfatherly neighbor, his face lined with the tracks of time, sporting a lengthy silver beard and a gentle expression.

However, that initial perception shattered completely the moment Heinrich lowered his gaze past the old man’s chin.

‘Good grief… look at those shoulders…’

His physique defied all expectations for a man of his station.

“Hahaha! As one would expect from youth, your physique is splendid. I have grown ancient, and my form is no longer what it once was. Though, in my prime…”

Those massive shoulders, an impeccably straight posture, and dense musculature that shifted visibly with every motion created a striking, almost jarring contrast against his amiable countenance.

‘I recall hearing that he used to be a Paladin.’

Word had it that his elevation to Cardinal was largely due to his immense popularity among the masses, but it was clear he had never abandoned his physical regimen upon ascending the hierarchy.

Even having surpassed his sixtieth year, his physical conditioning remained remarkably sharp.

“Tell me, Sir Heinrich, how do you find your duties now that you serve as the Saintess’s personal guard?”

“Ah, in accordance with her wishes, the majority of my time has been dedicated to rigorous training for the upcoming trial of the holy sword. The Saintess rarely departs from the holy land, after all.”

“Quite true. And how fares her well-being? It has been far too long since our last meeting, and I often wonder how she is managing. Especially after that terrible crisis not long ago…”

The old man was referring to the devastating assault launched by the Immortal King against the cathedral.

His deep investment in the Saintess’s welfare was undeniable, a fact made entirely clear as he began to pour out his grievances.

To put it plainly, he was lamenting the distance that had grown between them.

“Alas, more than three years have slipped by since I last gazed upon the Saintess. When one is shackled to a position of this gravity, abandoning one’s post is no simple matter. I truly ought to have declined the mantle of Cardinal.”

Yet, his devotion seemed bordering on excessive.

Saintess Liesta had been taken in as the adopted child of the reigning Pope Hatianuss II at a tender age, growing up within the confines of the holy land where she was universally adored by the entire clergy.

Who could possibly harbor ill will toward a bright, radiant young child running through the halls with an infectious laugh?

Cardinal Donovan, who had been a serving Paladin during those years, was certainly no exception.

“Are you aware of how endearing she was? She once scooped up a common earthworm in her tiny palms just to display it to me with absolute pride.”

“I… I see. I can certainly visualize the scene, Cardinal.”

To Donovan, who was wedded but had never been blessed with offspring of his own, Saintess Liesta was both a daughter and a granddaughter.

A decade had nearly passed since he first watched her take her earliest steps within the order.

Eventually, Donovan was elevated to his current rank and dispatched to govern Picaol Cathedral.

“Regrettably, presiding over this region is an absolute nightmare. The local kingdom authorities offer zero cooperation, leaving me without a single moment of peace.”

While conditions within the Lesque Kingdom—where this cathedral stood—were somewhat manageable, the neighboring realms had formed a quiet alliance, subtly working to bottleneck the Church’s expanding influence.

Naturally, the Talia Kingdom, where Heinz the Second resided, proved to be the most antagonistic of them all.

Heinrich simply offered a solemn nod, feigning complete ignorance regarding the political intricacies while listening to the Cardinal’s venting.

He put on the perfect facade of a deeply empathetic listener.

‘But for what reason is he disclosing all of this to me?’

While it was only proper to validate the ramblings of a high-ranking superior, Heinrich could not fathom the underlying motive behind this sudden vulnerability.

As these thoughts raced through his mind—

Squeeze—

Cardinal Donovan smoothly extended an arm, draping it heavily over Heinrich’s shoulders, his dense, muscular forearm gradually tightening against the young man’s neck.

“C-Cardinal?”

“Indeed, Sir Heinrich. Tell me…”

Even as the physical pressure mounted, the old man’s grandfatherly grin and pleasant demeanor never wavered for a fraction of a second.

“The image of the Saintess’s innocent laughter is etched so deeply into my soul that the mere thought of her weeping fills me with intolerable wrath.”

The veins tracing along the arm locked around Heinrich’s neck began to throb, the underlying muscle swelling with terrifying force.

“Yet, having known nothing but the sanctuary of the holy land, she remains naive to the malice of the wider world, does she not? I am plagued by anxiety that some wretched scoundrel might attempt to deceive or entice her.”

The warmth vanished entirely from the Cardinal’s face, his words slipping through clenched teeth.

His piercing, intense glare locked directly onto Heinrich’s eyes.

“Do you take my meaning?”

“…Yes, perfectly, Cardinal. I shall execute my duties as her ‘personal guard’ with the utmost vigilance. You have nothing to fear.”

What alternative response could he possibly offer to an obsessively protective patriarch?

The wisest course of action was to deliver the precise reassurance the man desired.

Meeting that burning gaze head-on with a flawless display of sincerity, Heinrich watched as the rigid tension slowly drained from the Cardinal, replaced once more by his habitual smile.

“Hahaha! Splendid! It brings immense peace of mind to know that the most brilliant prospect within our order is safeguarding the Saintess. I place her well-being in your hands.”

“Understood! I shall not fail in my duty.”

Their bizarre bonding experience concluded abruptly as the Cardinal, who had carved out only a fleeting window of time from his suffocating schedule, stood up to return to his overflowing paperwork.

“I must return to my ledger. I shall pray that you find favor and claim ownership of the holy sword. With the Immortal King walking the earth once more, our world grows shorter on time by the day.”

With those parting words, Cardinal Donovan exited the chamber, allowing the Archbishop tasked with protecting the holy sword’s seal to step forward.

“The rites and preparations are concluded. At what hour do you wish to proceed?”

“Having journeyed all this way, there is no benefit in hesitation. I shall attempt the trial immediately.”

Because the holy sword served as the foundational pillar for the grand barrier, gaining access to its resting place demanded an incredibly intricate and rigorous protocol.

Consequently, the institution strictly rationed the number of attempts permitted each year, and Heinrich had successfully secured one of those coveted windows.

‘When even legendary Paladins have met with failure, the weight of expectation is immense…’

Nonetheless, he possessed a hidden reserve of confidence.

He maintained a direct link to the Main God, after all.

Surely divinity would smile upon him on this occasion as well?

‘Therefore, I implore your guidance. I will prove my devotion tenfold in the days to come!’

Fixing a pious prayer in his heart, Heinrich trailed behind the Archbishop, his devotion laced with just a touch of pragmatism.

—

Within the grand estate of the Bright ducal family, situated in the Talia Kingdom.

“Are you reporting that our inquiries have yielded absolutely nothing?”

“Regrettably, yes. In the wake of the Immortal King crisis, the Holy Church conducted a thorough purging of the territory, leaving virtually no significant dark mage factions operating in the immediate vicinity.”

“What of our efforts to establish an intelligence web?”

“Progress is underway, but penetrating the more distant regions to extract reliable data will require an extended period.”

Naturally, constructing an espionage network from scratch was not an overnight endeavor.

It was a project demanding patience and a long-term strategy, yet he could not entirely suppress his rising anxiety.

“Very well. Should you catch wind of any dark mages, regardless of how minor their influence, report them to me instantly. The same applies to anyone actively sabotaging our objectives. We shall eliminate them personally.”

“…Understood.”

Mulo offered a respectful bow before retreating from the room. Left alone, Heinz strode toward the grand windows, parting the heavy drapes to survey the nocturnal sky.

‘Hans remains stagnant for the moment, meaning any brewing complications stem from other factions setting their designs into motion… Yet I lack the means to uncover their plots.’

The necessity to bolster his military and political strength with greater speed pressed heavily upon him.

Fortunately, he commanded access to the most exceptional talents currently residing across the continent.

Flap—

A heavy gloom blanketed the celestial sphere, the thick clouds entirely choking out the radiance of the moon.

From his vantage, Hans stared down at the terrain beneath him, his vision augmented by the dark depths of his abyss-tainted eyes.

‘As I am currently unoccupied, I might as well lend Heinz a hand.’

His immediate objective involved gathering a labor force of disposable underlings and staff to handle his mundane bidding.

Naturally, the terms of engagement would be entirely equitable.

He intended to compensate them with an asset universally deemed beyond price.

‘Their continued survival.’

‘While I cannot guarantee immunity from workplace mishaps… at the very least, they retain a prospect of breathing another day.’

A far more appealing alternative than immediate execution.

$$Hehehe… I spot a miserable wretch lurking right over there.$$

For those who allied themselves with darkness, hiding from the piercing clarity of his “Abyssal Eye” was an absolute impossibility.

—

Within the borders of the Azeria Empire, which bordered the holy land.

“Oh! A resonance!”

A fair-haired young man, who had been lounging so inertly across a plush seat in an elegantly adorned chamber that he appeared deceased, abruptly snapped his eyes open.

“Good heavens, I harbored my doubts, but the monster truly draws breath. The current incarnation of the Immortal King baffles me entirely. What sorcery allowed him to evade my senses until now?”

His inherent capability, designated as “Trajectory Observation,” functioned as a peerless instrument for unearthing hidden truths.

It was an extraordinary power capable of unraveling historical events.

Having caught wind of the catastrophic events unfolding at the Roselia Cathedral, his subsequent investigations into the finer details had exposed the reality of the Immortal King’s resurgence.

‘An immense warding spell had been erected over the epicenter of the Immortal King’s manifestation, blocking direct scrying, but intelligence gathering is ultimately an art of extracting whispers.’

A multitude of souls had been dragged into that conflict, making it a simple task to harvest fragments of reality from their testimonies.

A single careless word dropped in conversation was all it took to construct a narrative.

Naturally, such a feat was only achievable because he had successfully evolved his unique trait three times by hoarding Karma through various exploits.

“Tsk, a monstrous entity remains a monstrous entity, it seems. Even with this level of evolution, a direct glimpse remains beyond my reach. Predictable, though disappointing…”

Inevitably, his prowess was bound by strict parameters.

He required foundational data regarding the entity he sought to track, and individuals of an excessively high tier remained entirely immune to his probing.

It was completely logical that the Immortal King slipped past his diagnostic threshold.

Yet, his current shock stemmed from an entirely different anomaly.

When he had half-heartedly triggered “Trajectory Observation” previously, the feedback had been utterly bizarre.

The failure did not manifest because his proficiency fell short; rather, the system indicated that the target simply lacked any existence in the mortal realm altogether.

This anomaly had sparked fears that the entity had perished at the Roselia Cathedral, though his peers had dismissed his anxieties as foolishness.

They maintained that a true Immortal King could never be vanquished so trivializingly.

Adopting a daily ritual, he had tested the entity’s status once each morning, and only today had the diagnosis shifted from non-existence to ‘unidentifiable.’

“The others predicted accurately… Was the creature recuperating inside a localized distortion where dimensional boundaries were severed?”

Clicking his tongue, he ran a hand through his unkempt, golden locks.

Even so, the turn of events was far from unfavorable.

A grand theatrical piece was on the horizon, and the resurrection of the Immortal King’s campaign served their collective agenda beautifully.

‘The alignment of events is perfect. Has fortune smiled upon me?’

The remaining pool of Karma required to trigger his fourth evolution was minimal.

Should this impending endeavor yield success, crossing that threshold would be a certainty.

Furthermore, this particular operation was merely the opening gambit, far from the grand finale.

‘What staggering amounts of Karma await me by playing a hand in the annihilation of an entire realm?’

Letting out a low chuckle, he sank deeper into the comforts of his cushioned chair.

‘My role demands nothing more than harvesting intelligence from a secure, luxurious sanctuary, leaving the hazardous physical execution to the rest of the pack. A textbook example of value creation.’

He harbored no illusions about the volatile nature of his current associates, yet the danger failed to trouble him.

By the time this world degenerated into absolute peril, he would have amassed sufficient Karma to facilitate his return to Earth.

“Ah~ the anticipation is intoxicating. Upon my return to Earth, perhaps global domination is within my grasp? I could effortlessly plunder every state secret imaginable and… Hehehe.”

Yet another transposed soul, cast away into the Auterica Dimension, indulged in grand illusions of a golden future.