When the Pope Becomes Competent - Chapter 79



Only Noblemtl

◈79. The hand of the enemy

I told Netelon to tell me what he wanted and then sat down.

Then Argelio immediately showed his embarrassment.

“Your Majesty, the author is the one who kidnapped me here! He is not someone I can talk to!”

“You too, have a seat. Let me hear what they’re talking about.”

When I gave him a signal with my eyes, Argel seemed to understand what I meant.

Soon he sat down next to me without saying a word.

A situation where three people are sitting around a table.

Netelon opened his mouth.

“We, the returnees, have been impressed by your ability. So, we would like to sincerely ask for your cooperation. Please help us with our work.”

“Work… … .”

“It’s not difficult. Just help me sow the seeds in this land.”

“Seeds… …?” As I asked with a hopeless mind, Netelon took something out of my inventory.

It was a seed the size of a peach seed.

He continued, holding it in his hand.

“These are the seeds of the Elcapist. Please help us spread them throughout the world.”

“… … .”

The moment I heard the name Elcapist, my eyes twisted without me realizing it.

Elcapist… Because of that strange seed sprouting, people in the palace almost died in droves.

The fact that a dungeon was created here, as well as the other nine locations, was all because of Elcapist.

And the guy was now telling me to help him plant those seeds.

I wanted to retort, “What nonsense are you talking about?” but I kept my mouth shut for now.

‘… … I need to hear a little more information. Things are going well for me right now.’

I was a little injured coming here.

That’s why the guy looked caught off guard.

They probably decided it was okay for them to tell their story.

If I don’t behave the way I want after hearing the story, I’ll probably be thinking that I can kill you at any time.

So I thought there was a high possibility that he would reveal deep stories, and it was as I expected.

“As you may already know, our purpose is to return to this land. But before that, there is something we must do first. We must uproot the weeds that have taken root in this land while we were away.”

“Weeds… Are you perhaps referring to modern humans?”

“Please do not take offense. I do not intend to insult Your Majesty by bringing up your clan. Rather, I intend to give Your Majesty a chance.”

“Opportunity… … .”

Netelon opened his mouth as if to explain what the opportunity was.

I said it first before that.

“I don’t know what kind of opportunity it is, but can you give me a chance?”

“hmm.”

“That’s right. If you were that good, you would have figured it out on your own without needing my help. But the fact that you asked for my help means that your situation isn’t all that great.”

“… … .”

“What kind of ‘opportunity’ would you give me on that topic?”

“… … .”

Nethellon’s face hardened for a moment.

Maybe that’s the guy’s real face.

But it seemed like he still had a lot to tell me, and he quickly returned to his gentle face.

“Yes, it is unfortunate, but our technology has declined greatly since we were forcibly removed from this land. As Your Majesty said, our situation is also not very… good.”

“……decline?”

“The transmission system there is completely different from the one here. The water quality, the soil, the air, even―”

Nethellon took a deep breath of the fresh air that filled this place, then exhaled and said.

“Even the creatures. Everything there is harsher, drier, and more polluted.”

“… … .”

“It’s a land that seems to be a literal reproduction of the word suffering. It’s not easy to even farm because of the monsters that fill the entire mission field. So how can we possibly develop?”

He continued, letting out a long sigh as if he felt sorry.

“We have clearly declined. When we were in the finite world… the splendid civilization we had in ancient times seems like a dream of one night. But―”

The man paused for a moment, then continued speaking in an even more eerie voice.

“That doesn’t mean we’ve lost all of the technology from that era. Despite being driven to harsher lands, we still have some ancient technologies that we’ve preserved. Genetic modification is one of those technologies that we haven’t lost.”

“… … .”

“With that technology, we will edit your genes and transform you into a superior species… the ‘Priscile’, the new ruler of this land.”

Nethellon then lifted the Elcapist seed in front of my eyes.

And then he reached the final peak of his nonsense.

“If you would join us in sowing these seeds and helping us get rid of the weeds.”

After listening to Netelon’s ramblings to that point, I thought about the main point in my head.

‘Priscileans… … . So that’s the official name of the ones who were to be killed in the future… … ?’

Direct descendants of the ancients.

The erased ones.

The returnees.

There are many names like that, but the official name seems to have been that of the ‘Priscile’ people.

‘If I help eliminate the current human race, you’ll turn me into one of those Priscillaians?’

I was surprised to suddenly hear talk of genes, but that was ultimately what this arrogant ancient race had to say.

That they would change me into the same race as them.

Race change… … . I thought it was a really interesting story and asked Netelon.

“How exactly do you sow seeds? Can you just throw them in the ground?”

“No, that simple method won’t do. First, please pull out a hundred weeds.”

“… … Bring me people? A hundred people?”

“If you don’t use metaphors, then yes. You have to catch people like that and feed them with their life force so that the seed can ‘properly’ germinate.”

“… … .”

“As you know, the sprouted seeds have powerful magical powers, and with that, they create dimensional cracks and dungeons. After that, they pour out demonic monsters. And then, the demons that pour out like that remove the weeds again.”

The guy laughed, as if he was explaining some great business idea.

“Therefore, this land will be transformed into a clean land without any weeds.”

“Then you take possession of the land?”

“That’s right. Laying the foundation for all plans… … . With Your Majesty’s help, that work will surely go smoothly.”

I nodded and asked.

“But is that all I can gain? A change of race. Nothing else?”

“His Holiness!!”

Argel, who had been quietly listening from the side, eventually chimed in.

I clearly sent a signal with my eyes… … .

Yet he seemed surprised that I was genuinely interested in his story.

“Do you really agree with that crazy talk? That nonsense that keeps talking about humans as weeds or something—”

“Shut up for a second. We’re talking about something important right now.”

He deliberately responded to Argelio in a more harsh manner.

That way, Netelon will be fooled easily.

In fact, the guy seemed to be fooled by my acting and had a satisfied smile on his face.

“How could that be all? The people around His Majesty who were supposed to be weeded out originally… for example, Lady Luciana, Lady Delsi, Lady Bliss, and even Lord Argelio next to you, can all enjoy the same benefits.”

“Everyone around me… … ?”

“Yes, it is also possible to be awarded a title in recognition of your achievements. Your efforts in reclaiming the world are worthy of praise. Perhaps, His Majesty the Emperor will grant you a ‘Duke’s title’.”

At first glance, it sounds like the delusion of a madman.

That’s why I too might have dismissed his words as nothing more than nonsense.

If you didn’t know what a terrible plant the elkephist is.

‘It’s not nonsense. It’s all true that they plan to reclaim the land after eliminating all the humans. Judging by the emperor and all that, the national system seems to be properly organized.’

Because I saw with my own eyes what kind of seed Elcapist is―

And I heard a similar story from Elodie too―

I couldn’t dismiss that bastard Nethellon’s words as nonsense.

So, in a word, a force that has now formed a single nation is targeting this land.

A force with a much more developed civilization.

‘There is still hope. For some reason, it seems that not all Priscillians will be able to cross over to the Finite Realm straight away… ‘

If a number of Priscillians had come over here and started this ‘weeding’, things would have been much easier.

However, the weeding work was carried out by only this grower.

That’s why he wanted to lend me a helping hand.

And, I could tell by that.

There is a reason why not all Presilea people can immigrate yet.

So, they probably gave a few of them a fancy title like ‘returnee’ and sent them out first.

“Let me ask you one last question.”

After that, I asked the guy Netelon.

“Can you take me to His Majesty the Emperor?”

“No, that’s impossible.”

A quick answer without any hesitation.

Netelon dismissed my question with a laugh.

“Because you haven’t achieved anything yet.”

“Hmm… … Okay, then another question. Why do you need my help? I wonder why. Why don’t you get help from the other Priscillians?”

“That’s because we have already adapted to the ecosystem of the missionary world.”

“Have you been exiled for so long that you’ve already physically adapted to the land?”

Netelon, who flinched for a moment at the word ‘banishment’, soon smiled again.

“Yes. So before the full-scale migration begins, we need to use Elcapist seeds and other things to transform this place into an environment similar to the missionary system.”

“aha.”

“Even after immigrating, you still need a period of time to slowly adapt.”

“In other words, the other Prisileans can’t roam around freely here yet because the environment is different… … ? That’s why you, who have adapted relatively well to the ecosystem here, came first and are ‘alone’ spreading the seeds.”

“you’re right.”

“Then, finally, let me ask you just one more question.”

This time, I smiled too.

A brighter smile than the one he gave me.

Then, slowly, he asked the last question.

“If I kill you here, there will be no one to sow the seeds?”

* * *

30 minutes. It was a long time to just stare at something without looking away.

Elodie, who had been staring at the entrance after Nickelus disappeared, suddenly frowned.

‘Don’t worry about it… … .’

I was a strong enough human being so I didn’t want to worry about it.

But, contrary to her initial determination, as time passed, her nerves became increasingly tense.

Nickelus is an important figure to those who have been erased.

So, there might be some erased ones nearby.

They would have wanted to watch nearby to see whether the Qingguang they had personally brainwashed could subdue Nickelus or not.

‘I didn’t know it would appear this quickly… … .’

Thanks to the Eye of Prophecy, I had expected them to appear sooner or later, but I never thought I would hear news of them so quickly.

That’s why I couldn’t shake off my worries. Could it be that Nickelus is facing those who were erased on the third floor?

If so―

‘It’s dangerous.’

Nickelus was in danger.