WeTried Translations

Translator: Botanica

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◈ I Became the Slit-Eyed Henchman of the Evil Boss

Chapter 38

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The Order's Betrayer (2)

The Pope (敎皇).

It was a position that Blasphemia's reports stated only "theoretically existed." A being all the cults united to revere as their supreme commander.

I had taken that for information Blasphemia had needlessly exaggerated to pull more subsidy funds out of the Ten Towers.

A political show, overhyping the danger to demand a larger budget for themselves, the ones who had to deal with that "grave threat."

When Karisia and I fought a guerrilla war against Blasphemia, we'd raided the databases of Blasphemia branch offices a few times.

But there was not a single piece of concrete information about the cult confederation the Pope ruled.

The Pope serves as the representative of all the cults. Therefore, electing a Pope requires the participation of many cults.

But now, with most cults driven into the shadows by Blasphemia's hunts, I'd thought an election requiring so many cults to gather wouldn't even be attempted.

'The Pope really existed? And a cult confederation formed by the cults coming together?'

I was stunned by this sudden revelation.

Because the original work barely touched on any of this.

He was the Mage King who had personally driven the cults to ruin in the distant past, but in the original, his main enemies were the Ten Towers who betrayed him. In part 2, which began with the death of the White Nameless, Karisia of the original, that is, extradimensional beings did emerge as new foes, though.

'The usefulness of the cults of the gods, which vanished from the original...'

It was close to being a mine from which I could excavate items like the sacred relic of Phoibos I now possessed. A bank where the Mage King would withdraw whatever tools he needed, murmuring, 'Ah, back in the day, we used to bury temples like this too'?

It was clear that the original's world-building still held true to some extent.

But then, why did these differences occur?

'Is it because 2077, the year the Mage King revives, hasn't come yet? Did the cult confederation get completely destroyed by Blasphemia between now and 2077?'

But the Blasphemia of now was vastly weakened compared to the Blasphemia of the original.

Because of the civil war between Blasphemia and the survivors of the Golden Desert Operation, who had returned as the Eroded. They lacked the strength to project outward while cleaning up that mess.

And who was the culprit who had poured their finest elite agents into the extradimensional realm, knocking Blasphemia down a class or two?

Me and Karisia.

Haha, damn it.

A disaster we brought upon ourselves?

A hollow laugh escaped me.

***

Sikton had initially regarded the man before him as nothing more than an offering. But no longer. This was someone who possessed both the faith and the martial might to have been entrusted with a sacred relic of Phoibos.

Snake-like eyes that seemed ill-suited to Phoibos the Far-Seer. Eyes so thinly lidded you'd wonder if they could see anything at all, yet that very contradiction gave off a strange, uncanny pressure.

It was a moment that called to mind the old saying that contradiction holds power.

The man holding the crystal relic suddenly let out a scoff (失笑). An indescribable unease hung in the air.

Sikton interpreted it instinctively. It was a laugh close to mockery, carrying the intent of: 'Even knowing who I am, you still intend to resist?'

"...Indeed. The superiority between the alluring authority Bacchus bestowed upon me and the crystal relic of Phoibos you carry is clear."

Divine power is an ability a god bestows upon believers. In this world, where the gods' authority had become far scarcer than in the distant past, the absolute quantity of divine power granted could only dwindle.

Relics like that, on the other hand, were handed down from the beautiful age of old, when the gods communicated directly with their priests. The divine power dwelling within relics that preserved the mysteries of antiquity overwhelmed modern priests in both quantity and quality.

"But hear me, high priest of Phoibos. The Order of the Divine Name would call me a traitor. But was it not they who first betrayed the gods?"

"High priest, you say. Is that how I appear to you?"

"Do not try to deceive me any further. If you carried a sacred relic that powerful and still slipped through Blasphemia's pursuit, who else but you could be the high priest of the Phoibos cult?"

***

'Actually, this is a brand-new relic even Blasphemia doesn't know about.'

I thought about saying that just once, but decided against it. What mattered now was drawing out more information by any means.

"Betrayal, you say."

I deduced what the bishop of the Bacchus cult had been trying to accomplish with the magic circle he had drawn here.

Consider the vision the relic showed me. The bishop offers the chimeras and other living sacrifices to the god to create something.

Blood-water formed by compressing all the offerings together. Given that this was the Bacchus cult, was it a kind of wine?

After drinking it, his own body and this entire space were utterly smashed to pieces.

A wine made by offering sacrifices to a god. If it only destroyed a person, that would be one thing, but destroying even the space and letting the extradimensional torrent pour through, that was not something ordinary wine could do.

"You sought to trespass into the realm of divinity. Bacchus's wine, you intended to drink the wine of the gods and ascend to the realm of a Demigod, did you not?"

"Is that what the Order of the Divine Name told you? The foresight granted by Phoibos can pierce through veils of beguilement, but it seems it cannot perceive the malice of men."

A term that kept recurring: the Order of the Divine Name (神名). It appeared to be the name of the cult confederation that elected the Pope.

"Give it up. You cannot withstand divinity."

"That is exactly what I want!"

The bishop suddenly barked. Just moments ago, he had been acting like a man at death's door.

"The Order of the Divine Name is trying to abandon the gods! They say that since the gods abandoned us first, we too shall abandon the gods! Do you think that makes any sense?! No! No!"

The bishop, who had shouted with such ferocity, soon seemed to run out of strength, leaning on his staff and gasping for breath.

"I'm sure you can't believe the Pope... said such a thing. But it is the truth. Use the authority of Phoibos to discern the truth of my words."

"Let us assume your words are true. But what connection is there between your ascension to the rank of a Demigod and your loyalty to the gods?"

Kheheh, a low laugh echoed through the cave.

"Did you not say it yourself? That I cannot withstand divinity. I never intended to withstand it from the start. As my body, imbued with the divinity of Bacchus, is destroyed... I become a door connected to his palace."

'Is he insane?'

What that old man meant was that he would die and open a door to the extradimensional realm. That he would directly connect this world to the thrones of the gods.

It is true that attacking the dimensional barrier with power beyond a certain threshold can break it.

But how could anyone know whether the extradimensional space beyond that broken barrier was Bacchus's vineyard, Phoibos's shooting range, or the maw of some nameless aberration?

As if unaware of my horror, the old man claiming to be a bishop of Bacchus rambled on.

"When the gods themselves descend upon this world once more, even the Pope will change his mind. That loathsome Blasphemia and the Ten Towers behind them will be wiped out! What a joyous day that will be!"

This borders on delusion.

"Do you have any means to coordinate the connection with the extradimensional realm? You are chasing a vain dream."

"There is a secret sacred invocation (聖禱) handed down from ancient times. I stole it from the Order of the Divine Name's secret archive. There is so much they hide from us."

A sacred invocation. A holy (聖) prayer (禱). A miracle wrought by praying to the gods and calling upon divine power. It would be fair enough to call it magic that uses divine power, though the two differ in quite a few details.

"It is a sacred invocation that explores the extradimensional realm. Using the divinity of Bacchus dwelling within me as a medium, I will locate the celestial coordinates."

***

Sikton laid out his entire plan and looked at Ortes. If only that high priest of Phoibos would assent to his scheme, his chances of success would rise dramatically.

He was a prophet who saw the future, after all. Even simply identifying the cause of failure within a future doomed to fail and correcting it would be enough.

'Only those at the rank of cult leader attended the Order of the Divine Name's meetings. The leader of the Phoibos cult had a different appearance from this man. If he learns that the cult leaders all agreed to the plan to abandon the gods, his heart cannot help but waver.'

And that wavering of the heart was precisely the specialty of a priest of Bacchus. After all, was it not the very nature of wine to seep in pleasure, excitement, and intoxication?

A veil of illusion could not blind a prophet's eyes. But with the scent of wine, he could stoke the rage seething within the prophet's heart and cultivate pity toward himself.

A subtle grape scent spread through the cave.

Sikton saw the grip on Ortes's sword clench tight.

'It worked!'

"Sikton."

The high priest of Phoibos approached. A blue iris showed through the slit between his eyelids.

How did he know my name? Did the Order of the Divine Name tell him? No. It might be one of those abilities peculiar to prophets.

'He calls my name, the distance in his heart has closed considerably. But not yet. If he realizes I have been secretly using the sacred invocation, everything could be twisted out of shape.'

"If you wish to take my head, then take it. But know this: it was not I who betrayed the Order of the Divine Name, the Order of the Divine Name was the one who first betrayed our gods."

"I have something to say to you."

Sikton smiled, spreading both arms wide toward Ortes. It was a gesture of welcome for a comrade who shared his noble cause.

Sshhk.

And the next moment, his head was severed, flying through the air.

'Why?'

Within his fading life, Sikton heard Ortes's final words.

"If you intend to die, die alone."

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