When the Pope Becomes Competent - Chapter 87



Only Noblemtl

◈87. Those who wish to become gods

After carefully selecting questions that would not break the law of causality, that was the question I ended up asking.

‘Why’ did those erased ones, the Priscillians, need me so much from the past?

Doria seemed to hesitate a bit after hearing the question, then answered.

【Sure, I think I can answer that question.】

Fortunately, it seemed like they decided it was okay to tell me.

Doria carefully let out a piece of truth.

【To put it simply, the leader of the Priscillians, ‘Romun’, wants to become a god.】

“god……?”

【I told you earlier, right? In this world, God is the administrator who manages the world’s systems.】

“Then… does that Romun guy also want to manage the system?”

【That’s right. He’s the one who wants to change the rules of the world by interfering with the system instead of Lucid Miller, who was the original administrator.】

“The rules… … .”

【Yes. I want to change the rules of the world and return those who were erased to the finite world.】

You want to change the world’s system, its rules.

Doria continued speaking while being surprised by the larger scale than expected.

【But since he is not a god, he does not have the authority to access the system. So he tries to access the system using a terminal called ‘Nickelus’, an apostle of Lucid Miller―】

Just as the conversation was going on, a crackling noise was heard again.

This time the noise continued without stopping, and finally the message we had been afraid of resurfaced.

※warning※

*Collapse rate: 0.5%

It was a question chosen so as not to destroy causality as much as possible.

However, it seemed that it was ultimately impossible to prevent some degree of damage to causality.

The collapse rate, which was 0.3% last time, has now risen to 0.5%.

Still, it seems like a small number to me. I tried to ask Doria more about Romun.

But before he could ask, Doria was the first to firmly refuse.

【I think that’s all I can tell you.】

“Wait a minute, you haven’t said much yet. The collapse rate is still at 0.5%, so just a little more… … .”

【No. I already told you a little bit, but it’s pretty close to the core information.】

“… … .”

【If I say more, the causality will collapse even faster. Before that happens, please release the Deification skill right now and send me back.】

I don’t know specifically what happens when causality breaks down.

But seeing that Doria was so concerned, it seemed clear that something very serious was going on.

A sigh of resignation finally escaped my lips.

“……okay.”

After that, I immediately unlocked the deification skill.

The shape of Doria that had been floating before my eyes had also disappeared.

Left alone, I took out my notepad.

Then I roughly summarized what I had heard earlier.

1. Romun, their leader, wants to directly manage the ‘system’ that forms the basis of this world.

(To use that authority and power to move the entire Priscilla clan to this limited world.)

2. However, only a true god like Lucid Miller can manage the system.

3. So, they are trying to access the system by using me (Nickelus), the true apostle of God.

After writing up to that point, I read the organized content again.

The scale was so large that my head became complicated.

But still, I felt like I knew this one thing for sure.

‘… … There are all kinds of crazy people out there.’

There was one thing that distinguished great ambition from vain delusion.

The vessel of the one who holds it.

For example, if someone who is destined to become a god wishes to become a god, that is an ambition.

But if that pathetic author, who wanted to use me by putting a curse on that young Luciana to become a god, wanted to become a god, then that was nothing but a delusion.

It could be said that this was a serious delusion that required immediate treatment.

Crunch.

I unconsciously put strength into my hand and the pen I was holding got bent.

As I watched the ink drip down my hand, I made up my mind.

I will definitely find that crazy guy who is obsessed with delusions and personally beat him up so he never has such foolish thoughts again.

* * *

Even after hearing the truth from Doria, time continued to pass.

I’ve decided to find Romun and beat him up, but I don’t really have any clues about him.

So, for now, we decided to focus on preparing for the founding of the country, which was just around the corner.

Of course, it wasn’t like I had to personally take care of things like the items to be used during the event.

Because the Pope’s role was only to approve the documents that came up.

What I really had to focus on was, ‘How am I going to present myself to the public that day?’

For example, things like speeches or clothing.

So, I was just about to try on the event suit that I had ordered directly from the costume shop―

“… … .”

I couldn’t bring myself to wear it.

That’s understandable, it was too flashy.

I asked the designer who designed this, holding the blindingly shiny dress.

“Is it really necessary to hang this much gold…? No, are you saying that even if you hang it like this, the clothes won’t really tear?”

It was too much, too much.

The pure white fabric looks like it was woven with light, and the buttons are all heavy gold… … .

It was also studded with jewels that were presumed to be diamonds.

The designer almost forced me to wear the jacket and showered me with compliments.

“Wonderful! Beautiful! Shining, Your Majesty!!”

Well… it was a bit presumptuous, but when I looked in the mirror, it seemed like the designer wasn’t completely lying.

Usually, if you wear overly flashy clothes, you end up looking ridiculous, but Nickelodeon’s original was so colorful and flashy that it actually created a good balance.

At least I can say that my complexion isn’t dull because of my clothes.

Perhaps that is why the designer was unable to restrain himself at all and was showering him with praise.

“You are truly the best model in my life!! You are more graceful than any other noble!! It’s like you just came down from the sky―”

“Thank you for the compliments, but let’s just take them all away.”

“……yes?”

He glanced at the designer who was asking blankly, then took off his top.

After that, I gave the dress back to the designer, which was making a creaking noise because of the decorations.

Fortunately, there wasn’t much decoration on the pants, so I didn’t have to take them off.

“Make it more plain. But don’t make it look too bare, but make it look modest and frugal. In any case, I’m saying to take off the decorations.”

“But you suit each other well… … .”

“If it were any other time, it would have been okay to just wear it… but not now. Everyone’s lives are unstable right now because of the dungeon.”

I let out a short sigh and added:

“If I come out wearing all this jewellery… you can tell what I’ll look like.”

“Ah.” I shook my head as I watched the designer exclaim in surprise.

“I didn’t hold the event because I wanted to brag about living well. People want a spiritual pillar. It’s my role and His Majesty’s role to show them that they are a pillar and appease their anxiety.”

“Oh, I see… … .”

The designer looked at me with slightly trembling pupils, then quickly handed me an apple.

“Ahem, sorry. I was short-sighted. I believed the old rumor that you liked fancy clothes, and… … I’ll make it again.”

Perhaps he heard about Nickelus during his old days as a punk and prepared clothes to suit his taste.

It was somehow too flashy.

The designer quickly left the room, saying he would go and fix it.

Thomas, who was left there, took advantage of the silence to open his mouth.

“It may be a little embarrassing to say this, but it seems like you’ve really changed a lot.”

“me?”

“Yes. If it were in the past, you would have definitely said that those clothes were nice. You really liked expensive and flashy clothes.”

He added, as if he had been reminded of Thomas more.

“Besides, unlike before, this time you didn’t say it was a bother and didn’t attend the foundation ceremony… … Oh, I’m sorry. I spoke out of turn.”

“No, it’s okay. It’s true.”

It was an obvious fact that he had continued to miss events.

However, Thomas didn’t know why I didn’t attend.

Nickelus was becoming increasingly violent because of the curse―

Because of that, my karma points were lowered and my skill usage was restricted―

Because his skills were limited and he couldn’t show off his power in front of people, he had no choice but to skip the National Foundation Day event.

This was a fact known only to Nickelus.

‘Yeah, most people probably think I’m just being lazy and not showing up. Those who hate me probably think I’m a fraud and can’t use my skills in front of others… … .’

Both are wrong.

I was neither a bother nor a fraud pretending to be chosen by God.

And now I was going to prove it.

“I will continue to attend in the future.”

“I’m really looking forward to it. It’s the moment I’ve been waiting for.”

The moment when a man who was called a conman and a bastard proves his worth.

Thomas smiled brightly, saying he had been looking forward to it.

I, who had the confidence to prove it, also smiled without hesitation.

“Look forward to it. But to do that, you’ll need to prepare a proper outfit first… … Oh, by the way, I forgot to mention the measurements because we were talking about decorations. While you’re at it, tell them to make the waist a little narrower. It’s too loose.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

Thomas, who was about to go to the designer, suddenly stopped in front of the door.

“But is it really okay if the gloves, belt, and boots don’t match?”

“Yeah. I have something saved for that day.”

“Oh, yes. Okay. Then I’ll tell them to reduce their waist size.”

Thomas left the room.

Now I’m left alone here.

I opened my inventory and took out the ‘Timeless Sacred Item Set’ that I had stored inside.

‘Still white. Just like its name.’

Sacred white gloves that never get dirty.

Sacred white boots that never get dirty.

A sacred white belt that never gets dirty.

These were the three-piece set items previously obtained thanks to the affinity event.

‘As expected, the items had special effects that only activated when the entire set was collected.’

This is something I have already confirmed by wearing it myself before.

When I put on the gloves, belt, and boots all at once, a rather strange special effect was activated.

And those special effects were going to be a huge help in changing my image for this event.

‘I’m looking forward to it now. How surprised will everyone be… ?’

When exactly did it start?

I’ve been looking forward to the National Foundation Day event that the original Nickelus hated so much for some time now.

* * *

-Kiaak!!

A pitch-black monster like a shadow rushed towards Petros.

Petros rolled his body sideways and dodged the monster’s attack.

Then he raised the spear he was holding and stabbed.

Not the monster, but the shadow spread out at the monster’s feet.

‘These types of monsters are all shadows.’

Petros’ thoughts were correct, and the monster whose main body was attacked disappeared while letting out a strange final cry.

“after…….”

The monster he had just defeated was the final boss monster that was waiting for him on the third floor of the B-rank dungeon “Villa of Blurry Shadows.”

By just defeating that final boss, he was able to clear the dungeon.

‘It wasn’t a difficult dungeon, but it was still too much to do alone. The original plan was to go with that Bliss guy… … .’

But he couldn’t bring himself to ask Bliss to raid the dungeon with him.

As soon as I brought up the bad news about Nickelus, Bliss threw the teacup down on me.

Even now, Petros still couldn’t understand Bliss’ reaction.

Bliss was known to have no support from anyone, so why did they go around fighting Nickelus?

Then, soon, a plausible reason came to mind.

‘Did you get bribed by Nickelus?’