Chapter 116 - Mission Impossible (3)

What was the Demonic god? Humans worshipped the gods. The Demonic god was the god worshipped by the Demon race. It was as simple as that. However, there was only one reason why Artpe hadn’t bothered to worry about it. It was the fact that the true nature of the Demonic god wasn’t known.

‘There is a myth that’s been handed down that the Demon king is the first son of the Demonic god. However, it was merely a myth. I checked the Demon King with my Read All Creation ability, and he didn’t originate from the Demon King. Moreover, I had to travel all over the place to fulfill my duties as one of the Four Heavenly kings, and I never found even a trace of the Demonic god.’

At this point, he surmised the Demonic god was made up by the Demon king to establish his legitimacy. Artpe wondered if the Demonic god was a fictitious figure. Of course, normal Demons had absolute faith in the existence of the Demonic god. Artpe had ‘pretended’ to believe in the Demonic god in his past life.

“So why are the humans in this place believing in the Demonic god with such fervor…...”

Moreover, these were high rank priests of Lihazeta! They were supposed to be the backbone of the temple’s forces in Paladia!

“What the hell happened here? How is this possible?”

“These are people who are most favored by our god….. Hero-nim, how can this be?”

Both Silpennon and Aria groaned. They didn’t want to believe it, but the incontrovertible truth was in front of them. However, Artpe just shrugged his shoulders.

“I’m not sure. This is only a guess, but….. Since these people know the power of the gods, it might be easier for them to believe in the existence of the Demonic god too. Moreover, they existed to aid the hero, yet a hero hadn’t appeared in several hundred years. Their sense of duty became weathered under the test of time, and a light stimulus from the outside was able to flip them easily to the other side.”

“Ooh-ooooh. I still don’t get it.”

Aria looked like she was about to cry as she spoke.

“Not yet. I won’t believe it just yet. I can’t be sure with just this. Some psychoes might have written stuff here. I still have 27 other suspicious spots I want to check out. Will you accompany me, Mr Silpennon?”

“In truth, you were suspicious of the temple before everyone else. Weren’t you already moving against them?”

“It isn't like that! I was just working, yet they did weird things in front of me!”

At this point, Silpennon and Artpe wouldn’t have been surprised if they found out that Aria knew all about what was going on within the temple. Artpe looked at Aria, who was afire with fervor. He discreetly whispered towards Silpennon.

“Hey. Why don’t you seduce her too? She’s completely a big fish.”

“Ah. Since you’ve brought up this subject, I can’t seduce the priestess..”

“Why!”

When Artpe replied with shock and fright, Silpennon grinded his teeth as he told Artpe about what he had witnessed. The holy priestess had acted as she pleased by entering into Artpe’s room. She laid down on top of the bed, and she did things a stalker might do. She cussed out Maetel, and she was brainstorming about separating Maetel from Artpe’s side.

“······.”

When he heard the entirety of Silpennon’s explanation, Artpe was at a loss for words. They had just met, so he hadn’t never expected the holy priestess to be so rotten. Silpennon looked at Artpe, who looked out of it. He firmly told Artpe that it would be impossible to carry out the mission.

“That is why it’ll be impossible for me. You have to take care of her. I’ll work with Aria on the side to gather more evidence.”

“No…. Yes, I understand. I’m sorry…...”

Artpe had believed that there was still time for the holy priestess to be rehabilitated. However, he never expected her move towards marriage would be so aggressive! It was so bad that she was thinking about eliminating Maetel in the near future…. Artpe’s eyes automatically turned cold.

“Do I have to kill her?”

His resolve was about to harden, but at that moment, Silpennon threw out his opinion.

“If it’s you, you probably have a way to resolve this without killing her.”

“However, if I let things be, I’m sure she’ll try to harm Maetel.”

“I’m not so sure. You can probably change that with just few words.”

“······?”

Silpennon was using the Image Recording Artifact given to him by Artpe. He recorded the bookcase. Of course, he also recorded the content that discussed the worship of the Demonic god and the plot of assassinating the hero by the high rank priests of Paladia. As he did so, he continued to speak as if Artpe’s problem was trivial.

“She is still just talking about it. If I’m to put it bluntly, anyone can curse someone. I wish that rotten bastard, who holds sole possession of Maetel’s heart, would die. If he didn’t exist, I would be by the hero’s side. These kinds of thoughts could be had by just about anyone.”

“Those sounds like your thoughts.”

“That’s right. In truth, I fell for Maetel on first sight.”

The thief spoke in a bold manner.

“There was a time when I wished that I could replace you. However, I realized how much Maetel likes you. I also know how much you take care of Maetel, so I gave up my heart’s desire. Still, a part of my desire is still left within me. I would be lying if I said I don’t occasionally curse you. ······so, are you going to kill me?”

“However, you used rationality to suppress such desires. You are working for yourself, and you are working for us. You know what is more important, and you are able to live it out. You left your delusions behind.”

“Right. I like you as much as I hate you. I want to work for Maetel’s sake as much as I like her.”

Silpennon acknowledged Artpe’s words.

“I also believe that it is well within your power to change the psychotic holy priestess. In the first place, she hasn’t acted out her delusions.”

“However, wouldn’t it be weird for Maetel if I tried to seduce a woman with ill intentions towards her?”

“Then you should check with Maetel first. If Maetel says it’s ok, you can completely bring the holy priestess to your side. If you want to use the holy priestess’ abilities, you should be willing to make the effort.”

“You······.”

The content of Silpennon’s words were hard to accept from Artpe’s way of thinking. However, Silpennon continued to speak with a cold light in his eyes. In the end, it was a logically sound argument.

“You are a hero. I know it is good to look out for Maetel’s feelings, but you should spend as much effort into eliminating the Demon King. Don’t you need the holy priestess’ abilities to succeed in that task?”

Silpennon’s words stabbed into Artpe’s heart. Silpenno’s words had hit the bullseye. Up until now, Artpe had based his moves too much on his emotions, and he had done whatever he wanted. Silpennon’s words acted as a brake to Artpe.

So what should he do? In the end, Artpe had no choice, but to agree with Silpennon’s words.

“······yes. All right. If you can’t do it, then the correct move is for me to step up. I won’t act in haste by being hostile towards her. First, I’ll try to find a way to make her our ally.”

“Good. You are finally acting like a hero.”

Silpennon had a wide grin on his face. When Artpe faced Silpennon’s smile, Artpe couldn’t help but feel that he had lost this round.

When the two of them turned to look at Aria, her eyes were twinkling.

“For some reason…. When I saw both of you quarrel with each other, I felt my heart grow hot!”

“You should cool it.”

“You should put it to sleep.”

Silpennon and Artpe spoke their words at the same time. They looked at each other at the same time as they let out a bitter laugh. Unbeknownst to them, their actions had lit a bigger fire within Aria.

This was how the adventure that night came to an end. If they really roamed around any more, they might be found.

Duplicates were made of all the evidence they found, and when the footage was in hand, Artpe was able to leave the place with an easy mind. He didn’t forget to warn Silpennon and Aria.

“I won’t be able to help you guys from now on. It’ll be a whirlwind for me starting tomorrow. Will the two of you be ok by yourselves?”

“Yes, hero-nim! Please leave it to us!”

“Hmmph. Can you not trust me after you saw me disable the traps?”

“······normally, the ones that are confident alway makes the mistake..”

They weren’t reliable, but what could he do? He could only leave them to their own device. Artpe took off the boots he always had on. He handed them over to Silpennon. Silpennon tilted his head in puzzlement as he checked out the boots.

“What is this….. Boots?”

“It’s the Blink Boots. It’ll help you in a perilous situation.”

“Even if you give me such an item, I won’t seduce the holy priestess.”

“I’m not giving it to you! I’m lending it to you!”

After giving them future missions, Artpe let out a sigh as he returned to his room.

When the next day arrived, Artpe and Maetel was able to meet the pope for the first time at breakfast.

“My name is Fredrick Kuar Paladia. The two of you can call me by Fredrick.”

“······I’m Maetel.”

“I’m Artpe.”

Kuar was a middle name given to those that rose to the rank of high priest. The name was also given to their family. Vadinet and Aria possessed it, and of course, the pope possessed that middle name too.

“······pope-nim?”

“Hoo.”

Maetel tilted her head as she looked at the pope. Artpe smirked. It was as if the pope didn’t even acknowledge their reaction. He just let out a benevolent laughter.

“As expected, both of you possess extremely clear eyes. When I first heard that two heroes were born, I was surprised. However, I can accept it now that I see the two of you. The two of you truly possess the spirit of heroes.”

“I think so too.”

Even at Artpe’s insolent words, the pope just laughed in a good mood.

“I pray that you receive a massive amount of the god’s blessing during your stay here. I will also pray for the heroes..”

“It is much appreciated.”

“Your holiness, I’ll be disappointed if you left me out.”

“Ha ha. I’m sorry. However, your wish for the hero’s safety exceeds mine, right?”

“Hoo-hoo-hooht.”

The holy priestess and the pope exchanged bright laughters. When Artpe saw her, he remembered what Silpennon had said yesterday.

He shouldn't be rash in turning the holy priestess into an enemy. It would be much easier to use couple words to turn her into an ally. Silpennon made Artpe acknowledge this line of thinking.

While he was having such thoughts, Maetel kept looking back and forth between the holy priestess and the pope. A questioning light started appearing within her eyes

“Artpe, I think…...”

“Later. …...I have something I have to talk to you about.”

“A...all right.”

Maetel automatically nodded her head when she saw the serious light in Artpe’s eyes. The holy priestess was sitting across from them, and sparks flew when she caught sight of the exchange between the two heroes. Artpe decided to ignore her for now.

After the breakfast finished, it was free time. Artpe and Maetel were in their room, and they sat facing each other. Silpennon and Aria were probably residing in his room right now. The holy priestess was probably grinding her teeth, and the pope…… No, he didn’t have to pay attention to that right now.

“Maetel, I have a request.”

“What is it?”

Maetel sat still as she listened intently to his words. Artpe took couple breaths before he spoke.

“You probably picked up on the fact that the priests here aren’t of their right mind.”

“Yes. I smelled something strange from the pope.”

“It isn’t just the pope. Most of the high rank priests are in the same state. I asked Silpennon to infiltrate this place, so he can investigate further into it…..”

“As expected, Artpe knew about it.”

Maetel’s expression immediately became brighter. In truth, she had felt the difference in energy between the holy priestess and the pope. She had been troubled as to whether she should ask Artpe about it or not. However, Artpe confirmed her suspicion on the spot!

“The weirdest smell came off from the guy called the pope. It was like the Demon called Teana, whom we met before. There is a bizarre yet annoying energy…..”

“You read him correctly. The pope is a Demon.”

Artpe made an explosive declaration that would have overturned the entirety of Paladia. However, Maetel just nodded her head as if it all made sense! However, Artpe wasn’t done talking yet.

“Currently, the pope is recruiting the high rank priests into the Demon King’s army. However, the holy priestess hasn’t gone over to them yet. Before it is too late, I want to bring the holy priestess to our side.”

“However, that woman seems to be suspicious in an entirely different way?”

As expected, Maetel’s sense was best in the world. Maetel realized that the holy priestess didn’t side with the Demon King’s army, but she was still rotten to the bone. However, Artpe feigned ignorance as he shook his head from side to side.

“That woman is focused only on the occupation of the Hero Class. She is obsessed with fulfilling her role. I…. Yes, I think there is still time for her to be rehabilitated. That is why I want a little bit of your cooperation, Maetel.”

“I have a bad feeling about this. I already want to decline it…..”

“······what I’m about to say is a bit awful, but from this point on, I’ll have to…. Yes, I’ll have to try to get along with her.”

When she heard those words, Maetel had a dead expression on her face. However, Artpe kept a stiff upper lip as he continued to speak.

“This is only an act. I just have to be a little bit more friendly towards her.”

“Artpe, you sound like a really bad man…..”

“You just have acknowledge this fact. The attitude that I will adopt towards that woman isn’t true.”

“Artpe is always like that. You always hide the truth, and you are focused on packaging the outside.”

“Maetel.”

There was a sincere light in Artpe’s eyes. Maetel wanted to pout. She was quite clear in expressing her displeasure, but in the end, she nodded her head.

“Instead, I want you to grant my wish.”

“All right. If it isn’t too over the line, I’ll grant you one wish. However, you cannot work against the holy priestess joining our party. All right?”

“Yes······.”

The contract was satisfactorily made.

Artpe started his work in earnest at lunch.