I Became The Pope, Now What?
Chapter 84: Real Homies!

At that moment, Sylvester felt like gutting himself and just dying right there. 'I could have been a prince? What madness is this? Why am I slaving myself for the church?'

His hate for the church increased manifolds in an instant. He could have been a rich fat lord at this stage, but no, here he was, singing like a Disney princess but instead of birds and animals, religious fanatics get attracted.

"And what did the Holy Father say?" He inquired.

Sir Dolorem shrugged. "That, I don't know. This matter only came once when I was in a planning meeting with the Lord Inquisitor. Most likely, the king was turned down, as you are far more valuable to the faith than a minor kingdom in Sol.

Sylvester sighed tiredly. This revelation just ruined his mood for the night. Though he quickly came to terms with his fate, it was just a lost opportunity. If he left the church now, he'd be killed because he could one day be as strong as the Pope, and all these years, Sylvester had learned that the church was ready to do anything to maintain its hegemony.

"I shall go and sleep too then. Good evening, Sir Dolorem and Gab." He picked up the sleeping Miraj from the corner of the table and left.

The tavern was also empty now, and the twin moons were shining bright.

However, that night, he wondered as he lay down on the bed. 'I hope those villagers did something to that baron.'

…

On the same night, they did a lot to that Baron.

Baron Fredrick was a thin man with dark circles under his baggy eyes. He was balding even though he was merely thirty—surely his pure blood was at work. Having inherited the land and peerage from his late father, he did everything he could to ruin what all his forefathers worked hard to attain.

He squandered all his money on fine drinks, food, and women. But that didn't satisfy him as he soon realized his control over others' lives. Being a sick-minded man, he aimed to cause mental anguish to others, especially those marrying.

But every time he did it, no one objected. That bolstered his arrogance. Finally, today was the day, the straw that broke the camel's back.

"Come out, Baron!"

"Come and die!"

"Pay for your sins!"

Bam!

When Baron was busy with one of his servants in bed, one of his victims, he jumped to his feet and ran to look outside from the window. Initially, he was angry, but soon his face paled as his noble keep seemed to have been surrounded by thousands upon thousands of people, each with torches and pike in hand.

"What in the god's name is happening?" He was still enraged and wore his clothes before running off to find the guards.

However, as soon as he arrived downstairs, he noticed that the gates of the keep were open, and the moat bridge was already down—no guards were around.

"Guards!" he shouted in panic.

"Kill him! For the glory of god!"

To Baron's shock, the people had already entered the keep and were looking for him, and by shouting, he attracted them.

"Stay back! Do you have any idea what you're doing? This will get you death." Baron threatened.

But just then, a dozen more men and women entered, then a hundred. Slowly, the hall of his keep was full while he stood in the middle.

"Please let me go." He cried finally, understanding the gravity of the situation.

However, the people had run out of tolerance. As Cardinal Suprima had said, sometimes, to condemn, one must use his own hand.

"My daughter cried the same way that night." One man with bloodshot eyes moved forward and thrust the pike in his hand into the Baron's belly.

"My wife still has nightmares." Finally, another man came and stabbed a dagger into the Baron's shoulder.

Then a woman came forward and smacked the fire torch in Baron's face. "To show you mercy is heresy!"

"Aaaa…" the Baron rolled on the floor in searing pain.

However, before he could realize it, countless stabs and kicks showered him like rain.

The night was dark, but the light of justice fell bright. The demise of the Baron was worth a thousand delights.

Justice was served, and one face shall forever be etched in the minds of all—blonde hair, golden eyes, and a voice that'd make anyone fall.

…

The group spent the next few days onboard a ship. It was uneventful and tedious. Not even pirates could attack them since they were merely traveling in a river. So Sylvester, Felix, and Gabriel just sat at the edge of the deck, talking, drinking what Sylvester had termed carbonated water, and playing a card game called "The High Kingdom.".

"Hehe, I got you two now!" Gabriel smugly giggled and put down his next card. A card with the image of a warship with ten magic guns.

Sylvester scowled. "Ugh, you got me. Go ahead, plunder me."

Gabriel happily took the remaining cards from Sylvester's hand while discarding the current ongoing stack on the table.

"Felix, you can surrender and keep your cards or keep fighting," Gabriel suggested.

Felix knew he was going to lose, but he didn't quit. "Go ahead, show me what you got."

"Hehe, alright then… try countering this"

Bam!—Gabriel slapped one that had the image of a man.

"Fu…! You got the Pope! There is no counter." Felix sighed and gave away his cards as well. Finally, both Sylvester and Felix had to take out a Gold Grace and give it to Gabriel.

"Alright, I need to go and prepare my initial report. See you later." Sylvester got up and went to the ship's secondary captain's room, which was usually for important guests, which he was.

…

Boom!

Boom!

Sylvester was suddenly woken up from the loud bangs as if thunder was striking somewhere. He quickly donned his robes and picked up the spear.

As soon as he rushed to the ship's deck, he was greeted by a sunny sky while the sailors and the Inquisitors were huddled on one side of the ship, looking at the Holy Land's deep water port.

"What's going on?" He asked Bishop Moris.

"Ah, good afternoon, your eminence. Those are the new magic canon our C9 Workshop produced. Looks like they are testing it. Isn't it marvelous? To reach three hundred meters with such a destructive energy projectile."

Sylvester watched as the ship slowly moved to dock itself, and the thundering bangs of the canon testing continued. This was the first time he saw the weapon scientists for the first time.

'Probably preparing for the holy war, it seems. Well, I shall say all the best. Better weapons mean I might survive longer.' he thought to himself.

Pat!

Felix appeared and slapped Sylvester's back. "Max, let's meet this evening. Sir Dolorem told me about a specially reserved bathhouse for Sanctum Inspectors. It's supposed to be really luxurious since all Sanctum Inspectors were supposed to be Bishops. Moreover, it's supposed to have medicinal water."

Sylvester stretched his arms and cracked his neck. "Yeah, I can use a good bath at this point. Let's meet later then…I will go ahead and submit the report first."

Soon the ship laid down the stairs and started unloading. Sylvester took his horse from the lower deck and moved out first, as he had no idea about report submission.

"Max!"

However, as he stepped onto the holy land, he heard Xavia's longing call. She appeared not far away, waving at him excitedly and showing the usual cheerful smile.

'She's grown thin again. I guess she'll need another lecture later.' he sighed and walked to her.

Xavia hugged him quickly the first thing and kissed his forehead, making Miraj jealous. "I missed you, Max."

Sylvester looked left and right and noticed the smug gazes of inquisitors. "Mum, I told you not to kiss my head in public. Hugging is enough."

She didn't listen, however, as she had something great to share. "Max, I got promoted. I gave an interview and became the Superintendent Healer of Guild Peninsula."

"..."

"You what? Really?" He was shocked, to say the least. In his eyes, Xavia was an unambitious woman who'd rather live in fear than do something to overpower it. But this went against her usual behavior.

She nodded firmly. "Yes, I even got a raise. Now I make 20 Gold Graces a month. Hehe, are you proud of your mum now?"

He truly was. Watching her progress was like seeing your student finally achieve greatness. So instinctively, his old man's heart took over, and he ended up patting her head. "Good, very good…"

Embarrassed, he stopped and started walking away. "Let's celebrate your promotion with a nice dinner then."

She walked beside him while caressing his horse, who was still nameless. "I had the same thing in mind. Invite your friends too. I will make a big meal."

"It's decided then. But first, I need to submit the report to the Administration Office. I will see you in the evening then…by the way, add some honey to a few dishes."

She giggled and left to prepare dinner quickly.

Sylvester soon reached the administration office and handed over the initial one-page report and the short staff of Cardinal Suprima. 'So long, little one, you gave me so much power… one day I shall have you back.'

He hated parting ways with his temporary rank. But it at least gave him a taste of what the high authority would feel like.

"Sign here, Priest." The head secretary of Saint Wazir spoke. The man was a simple high-ranking staffer. The title of secretary was just a namesake.

Sylvester quickly dealt with all the formalities and felt relieved. "I will submit the final in-depth report by tomorrow evening. By the way, when shall I get the next assignment?"

"No need to hurry, Priest Sylvester. Usually, it can take a week to a month for reassignment. Saint Wazir chairs a meeting for it every two days, so you will have to wait."

'So long? Well, I can train in the meantime.'

"Thank you." He left the administration building and headed to the nearby bathhouse. It was close to the Administration building as it was reserved for Sanctum Inspectors. It shared the same white marble architecture but had a chimney spewing steam.

"Finally, some good rest." He stretched and entered the premises. There was room to place his clothes and weapons. He was okay with keeping clothes away but always kept the Spear of infinity in Miraj's belly.

In the end, he only had a towel covering his manhood as he proceeded towards the enclosed bathroom with a large hot water pool.

But, at the door of the bathing room, he found Sir Dolorem, equally naked, holding the door's knob but not opening.

"What happened, Sir Dolorem? Let's go I-"

Sylvester gulped his words once the old knight started back, eyes widened and furrowed brows. "Lord Bard, often, above petty thinking, brotherly bonds transcends—So we should give privacy to our friends."

"What? Let's go. I'm tired… Gab and Felix must be waiting inside." Sylvester went ahead and held the doorknob this time. However, before he turned it, some words from inside hit his ears that made him forget all his rhymes.

"Ah, Gab, don't worry, it won't bite you… just touch it."

"Felix, how does it stay this long? How does it fit in?"

"Hehe, with time, you will learn it too, Gab. Let me show you by pushing it."

"It won't fit."

"Just trust me, brother, it will… I've been doing it since I was six."

"..."

Sylvester felt his face going numb, and his eyes widen in shock. He was speechless and… breathless… as if blood had left his head. For some reason, the world seemed to lack all the color, but he kept his heart strong, for he was a modern man. "Haha… they must be joking, right, Sir Dolorem?"

Bam!—Suddenly, something hit the door.

"Fuck!" A curse left Sylvester's mouth.

"Indeed." Sir Dolorem nodded, equally shaken.

[A/N: Sylvester's face, basically.]

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APE TOGETHER STRONG!