When the Pope Becomes Competent - Chapter 112



Only Noblemtl

112. How to hatch an immortal egg
2024.02.20.

I knew that I could hatch the ‘immortal egg’ I had into a divine beast, ‘immortal’.

It was obvious that a divine beast egg would hatch into a divine beast.

But who would have thought that the method was simply ‘warming it to a certain temperature’?

It wasn’t much different from hatching a normal chick.

I thought about it for a moment, then blew warm breath on the immortal egg.

“… … .”

Of course, nothing happened.

Realizing that I had done something stupid, I looked around, but fortunately, there was no one.

It was a single-person room.

I looked at the egg again and fell into thought.

‘It’s great as an egg, so if I hatch it, it’ll be even better… … ? Then the problem is how to keep it warm… … .’

Should I put it in a chicken coop? Then, wouldn’t the chickens know how to hatch it?

I continued to ponder over how to maintain the temperature of the eggs.

Then, suddenly, an idea occurred to me.

‘Open inventory.’

I quickly opened my inventory and took out an item from there.

It was an item that I had just left unused because it was useless, but now I could put it to good use.

[Warm Feather Cushion (L)]

– It’s warm. It maintains a constant temperature even when placed on a snowy field.

– It’s a good item for hatching something. If you place a fertilized egg on it, it might hatch into a chick.

After checking the information window of the item I took out again, I shouted.

“This is it!”

This “Warm Feather Cushion” was an item I had received as a reward while clearing a sea dungeon.

While the other party members had gotten wonderful items, I was the only one who got a cushion and such, so I felt a little bitter inside.

That’s why I had just kept it in my inventory, but not anymore.

‘Constant temperature maintenance effect… …! With this, I can hatch an immortal egg… …!’

I immediately placed the Immortal Egg on the cushion.

Then, a strange message soon appeared.

[The Immortal Egg rejoices in the warmth.]

– Time left until hatching: 15 days, 21:55

*The hatching period may be brought forward or delayed depending on the situation.

After confirming that there were two weeks left until hatching, I cheered inwardly again.

Something amazing was definitely going to be born.

Since it was a divine beast born from an L-class egg, it would definitely be amazing.

‘Hurry up and be born…’

I looked at the Immortal Egg with such anticipation in my eyes.

That was when I heard a knock outside and the voice of the Marquis’ servant.

“Your Holiness. Dinner has been prepared. I will show you to the venue.”

I had been waiting for the Marquis to prepare a banquet, and it just so happened that the preparations were complete.

I left the Immortal Egg alone and put on my outer clothes.

Then I went down to the first floor where the meal was prepared with the servant.

* * *

The place I arrived at following the attendant was, as expected, filled with delicious food.

The former Marquis and the current Marquis, who had been waiting for me, stood up and greeted me.

The first to speak was the former Marquis, Luciana’s father.

“Hello, Your Holiness. It’s been a long time since I last greeted you. I hope you’ve been well.”

As he had said, it had been almost ten years since he last saw Nickelus.

It was the first time he had seen Nickelus since Nickelus lifted Luciana’s curse a long time ago.

The current Marquis, Ivan, looked puzzled after hearing the former Marquis’ greeting.

It was understandable for him, who didn’t know that I had visited the Marquis’ residence to lift Luciana’s curse.

So I didn’t mention Luciana’s curse and simply greeted the former Marquis.

“Well, I’ve always been fine. You look healthy too.”

“Haha, it’s all thanks to Your Holiness. “How can I thank you for clearing up that troublesome dungeon again… … .”

“It was something that had to be done. A drink would be enough.”

“Thank goodness I prepared some good alcohol in advance. Please have a seat.”

As I sat down, the group soon followed.

The group, who must have had a hard time clearing the dungeon, hurriedly sat down in front of their food as expected.

Finally, when Luciana sat down next to me, the previous Marquis called out to her.

“Hey, I’ve prepared a seat for you here.”

Luciana was also a member of the Lazar Marquis family.

That’s why the previous Marquis had prepared a seat for Luciana next to the seats of the three Marquis Lazar brothers.

Even so, Luciana seemed puzzled when she sat next to me instead of the seat she had been given, so Luciana answered briefly.

“I stay by His Majesty’s side and protect Him. Even during mealtimes.”

“Hmm… … .”

Upon hearing her answer, the previous Marquis Lazar opened his eyes slightly and looked back and forth between Luciana and me.

What was he thinking? I felt

like I knew, but I tried to ignore him and raised my glass.

Soon, the previous Marquis made a toast.

“I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone who helped us clean up the dungeon that was a headache for our territory. I hope you enjoy this dinner that I prepared with all my heart.”

After that, the party enjoyed the dinner as the Marquis had said.

Dionik ate the large turkey leg in front of him to his heart’s content, and Elodie elegantly sliced ​​the steak.

Cheonggwang enjoyed a vegetable-based meal, and Petros, surprisingly, followed the etiquette of a nobleman and played with his fork elegantly.

Luciana did not let her guard down while eating, and Bliss―

“Why don’t you drink alcohol?”

Just as I said earlier, Bliss surprisingly didn’t even touch the alcohol. She

looked like she was drinking alcohol.

Bliss smiled and answered,

“It’s because I have bad drinking habits.”

“Bad drinking habits? Do you get violent when you get drunk?”

“Not violent―”

Bliss trailed off and then answered abruptly.

“When I get drunk, I hug the person next to me. Even if I only have one drink.”

“… … .”

I probably would have burst out laughing. Even if I wasn’t sitting ‘next to’ Bliss.

In other words, according to what he said, if he gets alcohol in his mouth, he’ll hug me tightly… … .

“Uh… Okay… … . Don’t finish drinking.”

I was worried that the guy might drink, so I pushed his glass away slightly.

It was then that Dionik, who was sitting on the other side of Bliss, joined the conversation.

“Hyung, when you drink, you hug the person next to you?”

Dionik asked Bliss with a playful smile, and then suddenly picked up his glass.

Then, he grabbed Bliss’ face and poured the drink into her mouth.

It all happened in an instant.

“Hey! What are you doing! To someone who has bad drinking habits!”

Dionik giggled and answered me when I shouted.

“No, I’m curious. What do you think of the Pope and Bliss hugging each other?”

Dionik said and poured the drink on Bliss.

Just as he had said that he would get drunk after just one drink, Bliss’ face quickly turned red.

Only then did Dionik let go of Bliss and watched him with interest.

After that, the drunk Bliss reached out. Not me, but towards Dionik.

“Huh?! Dude, why are you like this!! Hug the person next to you instead of me!!”

Bliss actually hugged the person next to her.

However, she hugged Dionik, who was sitting on her left, not me, who was sitting on her right.

I couldn’t hold back laughter as I watched Dionik, who was trying to screw someone over but ended up screwing himself over instead.

“That’s why people should live well. Repent now, you punk.”

“Ugh! Help me! This punk’s arms are uselessly strong, I can’t get out!!”

Dionik looked around at the group and asked for help, but no one helped.

Even Elodie said, “Tsk tsk… … . Just eat properly… … .” and ignored her brother’s help.

The other group laughed at the situation and continued eating.

That’s when the mood had somewhat warmed up. The previous Marquis called Luciana.

“More importantly, Luciana.”

“Yes, father.”

“When are you getting married?”

“… … .”

Luciana stopped herself from picking at a piece of fruit with a fork.

Watching her stiffen up at the mention of marriage, I let out a sigh of regret.

‘I’ve asked a question that all single young people find awkward… … .’

While I was feeling regretful, Luciana answered the former Marquis.

“I… I have no intention of getting married yet.”

“You’re already in your twenties. You should start looking for a groom.”

“… … .”

“Are there any men you like around you? If there’s a man you want, I, your father, will try to use my power. Tell me.”

Luciana’s face turned bright red.

It couldn’t be because of the alcohol. She hadn’t even been drinking.

Luciana hesitated as if searching for words to say.

“I don’t plan on finding a partner yet. I have too many things on my mind.”

“What’s on my mind?”

“It’s hard to tell you. But I think I should get up first. I want to get some air… .”

Normally, she would have stayed by my side to protect me, but now she was standing up.

It seemed that she had decided to leave because there were so many people and because she had just been asked a difficult question.

Soon, she left, and the marquis left behind sighed, “Whew… …”

“I wish you would find a good groom, but how long are you going to make this father wait… .”

“I don’t think you need to rush me too much.”

I said, smiling at the previous marquis.

“From what I’ve seen, Luciana is a capable and decisive person. If a man catches her eye, she will definitely grab him without hesitation.”

“Is that so? Then, that’s fortunate… … .”

“You can trust me and wait.”

Only after hearing my last words did the former Marquis’ expression soften.

After that, we quietly drank and talked a little more about Luciana.

I got up from my seat when I was a little drunk. I

belatedly remembered that I had something to give to Luciana, who had left first, so I left the dining area to look for her.

Finding Luciana wasn’t difficult.

As expected, she was swinging her sword in the training ground.

“Luciana. You were here, as expected.”

“Your Majesty? The meal… … .”

“I had my fill. More importantly, I have something for you,”

Luciana asked with a bewildered expression at the mention of something.

“Are you talking about me?”

“Yes. It’s a sword item that I got as a reward for defeating the boss on the top floor of the dungeon earlier… As you know, I already have a lot of swords.”

“Ah… … .”

“I thought it was a nice item, so I thought you might want to use it.”

After saying that, I took out the reward item I got from catching the spider earlier, 「Guardian of the Forest (L)」.

Then I briefly explained it to Luciana.

“It’s a sword called Guardian of the Forest.”

“Guardian of the Forest… …”

Luciana quietly recited the name of the sword and examined it carefully.

Finally, an exclamation escaped her lips.

“It is certainly a good sword. It is well-balanced, and I feel a special power from the sword. However―”

Luciana’s gaze, which had been examining the sword, stopped at the handle.

She looked at the letters engraved on the end of the handle and asked.

“What is this?”