Free Web Novel“The brothers in Area 5 have sent information.”
After that.
The nature of the pursuit changed somewhat.
“They say they discovered traces that appear to be less than five minutes old.”
“Traces....... That man had not been leaving behind anything except fallen believers.”
“The traces referred to the fallen believer. They found someone who failed to regroup while attempting to join up per Your Eminence’s orders.”
Whether that should be called fortunate or unfortunate, no one knew.
But when they discovered Jang Woohyuk, one of the Church’s officers.
He had only recently been defeated.
“If he headed directly that way from the place where Sir Woohyuk fell.......”
“It seems he is moving in a straight line toward the side closer to the surface. He likely does not know the exact location of the passage.”
In other words.
Unlike before, when they could not even estimate where the target was.
“The target is likely hiding somewhere around this area at present.”
Now.
They could roughly estimate his location.
[Cardinal : To the believers searching the deep sanctuary.]
Once that location had been approximately measured.
The Cardinal’s guild message flew out, and the believers began to move.
“Now the other brothers will completely block all routes leading to the escape path.”
Unlike before, they gathered not individually, but in squads.
And they blocked every alley leading to the escape route.
“Judging from the circumstances, there is a high probability the target is hiding somewhere in this area.”
“Assign one brother possessing a search-type grace to each squad aside from those guarding the chokepoints. If Priest Lee Haein is correct and his grace has been withdrawn, then he will not be able to avoid the eyes of brothers specialized in detection.”
And beyond that.
They restored the broken system of command and steadily tightened the encirclement with meticulous precision.
In truth.
If they had intended from the beginning to search with full force.
They could have conducted the search this way from the start.
The problem had been that the Maxim had activated.
Which meant the target was no awakened being, but an ordinary civilian.
'We thought there was no need to create a complicated encirclement just to find someone like that.'
If the target was an ordinary civilian.
Then having every believer search individually would finish the matter much faster.......
It had been a judgment that, in a way, could only be called complacent.
'......Not anymore.'
Those conducting the search turned their heads toward the Cardinal and Lee Haein.
After confirming Jang Woohyuk’s defeat.
A strangely cold atmosphere had begun flowing between the two.
More precisely, the Cardinal seemed furious with Lee Haein.
The fact that the usually gentle Cardinal had not spoken a single unnecessary word outside matters related to the operation alone made it obvious just how deep that anger ran.
“......As expected, he truly is remarkable.”
Meanwhile.
In Lee Haein’s case.
“To think that even after forming an encirclement and searching like this, we still have not found him yet......!”
As though she did not notice the Cardinal’s mood at all.
She was murmuring in a voice filled with ecstasy.
'......Sister Lee Haein, I understand why you’re excited, but.'
'That statement.......'
At her words.
The believers looked toward the Cardinal’s face.
What she had said.
Was admiration toward an opponent who was still evading a pursuit of this scale.
But interpreted differently.
“......It is because this Cardinal lacks ability.”
Even after using their full strength.
It sounded almost like an insult toward the Cardinal, who still could not properly capture even a single ordinary human.
“Ah, that was not what I meant. Please do not misunderstand.”
“......Priest Lee Haein seems to be enjoying the current situation.”
“As I said, I am merely admiring the one who is to become our leader.”
“Even though the one who is supposed to become that leader may flee from us and never return?”
“Haha, I doubt it will go that far.”
Lee Haein smiled brightly.
At her words.
Those watching expected something like, 'If it is the Cardinal, surely he will be able to capture him.'
But instead.
“He is destined to become our leader.”
“.......”
“Even if Your Eminence fails to find him, he will someday return to us and lead us. There is no possibility he will disappear forever.”
What came from her mouth instead.
Only poured oil onto the fire.
“Priest Lee Haein, you......!”
Thus.
The enraged Cardinal flushed red and opened his mouth to speak......
At that exact moment.
Step.......
The old man’s rapidly moving footsteps.
Suddenly came to a halt.
***
“......?”
“Your Eminence?”
When the old man abruptly stopped.
The gazes of those moving alongside him turned toward the Cardinal.
Then.
The Cardinal stood blankly for a moment before finally speaking.
“You said destiny, did you not.”
“Pardon?”
“Brother Shin Youngjun. Did you not say that he is destined to someday become our leader.”
“......That is correct.”
“But I find myself somewhat doubtful.”
Looking at Lee Haein, the Cardinal asked softly,
“How can you be so certain he was born with such a destiny?”
“......Well, even Your Eminence knows the doctrine, does he not.”
“Yes. I do.”
“The one who receives the greatest favor from Him is destined to become our leader.......”
“But.”
Interrupting Lee Haein, the Cardinal said,
“The doctrine is certainly great, but are there not things we know through experience?”
“What do you mean.”
“That simply because one receives great favor from Him, not all people are humans worthy of His love.”
“.......”
He was speaking in circles.
But Lee Haein immediately understood what he meant.
“Certainly, there are evil ones who cannot be reformed despite their level.”
The Church believed that the higher an awakened being’s level, the more grace they had received from the system.
However.
Among high-level awakened beings were many villains and sinners whom the believers considered unforgivable.
“Those twisted beings are sinners who commit evil with the love they received from the system...... and so they are the trials the system has sent down upon us.”
Naturally.
The Church did not embrace all such people either.
“By dealing with them and guiding the world toward righteousness, we fulfill what the system desires of us. Did you not teach me yourself that this is why we gain experience even from defeating other awakened beings?”
Those whose existence was considered seriously harmful to the survival of the group.
Such people were strictly monitored by the Church, sometimes imprisoned, and at times even executed.
It was the reason the Church had remained such a stable organization until now.
“......Why are you bringing this up now?”
Even so.
Lee Haein still asked with a frown.
“Even if he were such a sinner, was that not why you intended to use the power of the ‘crown’ in order to purify his sins?”
As she said.
The Church did not execute every sinner.
Among them were individuals whose abilities were too valuable to discard.
Rather than eliminating them, the Church preferred to capture them alive and place the “crown” upon them.
By implanting faith into them through the crown’s effects.
They attempted to reform them so they could move in the proper direction.
The representative example of that was precisely—
“As was the case with Your Eminence.”
The one currently leading them.
......And during the Church’s earliest days.
The head of a gigantic slaughterer guild that had nearly caused the collapse of the Church.
“.......”
An old man.
Who had once focused solely on strengthening his own power through every cruel and atrocious means imaginable.
“But.”
The meaning contained in Lee Haein’s words was obvious.
'You, too, were only reformed through the crown’s power, so what right do you have to speak?'
Yet.
“That person resisted even the power of such a crown.”
The Cardinal answered with a faint smile.
“If he were truly destined to become our leader...... would it not be natural that he should have been unable to resist the crown’s power?”
“.......”
“In my opinion...... perhaps he is merely a somewhat powerful ‘trial.’”
“Your Eminence!”
At the old man’s words.
Lee Haein cried out with widened eyes, as though hearing blasphemy.
“You must not recklessly judge and distort the will of the system.”
“Do you not know how much the Church has lost because of him? If he were truly someone arranged for us by the system, we would never have suffered such losses.”
“......That may be true. But perhaps there is a reason we must accept him as our leader even while suffering such damage.”
“Then I am curious. Whether he is a trial sent to us, or one born with the destiny to lead us...... how are we to distinguish between the two?”
At those words.
Lee Haein fell into serious thought for a moment.
Then carefully opened her mouth.
“If he is our trial, then as Your Eminence said, he will leave us and never return. The system would never appoint one destined to become our trial as our leader.”
“Conversely, if he is destined to become our leader, then no matter what happens in the process, he will ultimately return to our embrace and sit upon the papal throne.”
“Hm, that does make sense.”
At Lee Haein’s answer.
The Cardinal stroked his chin before nodding.
“If he survives and becomes our leader, then that was his destiny. If he fails, then he was destined to become a trial....... Simple and easy to understand, is it not?”
“......?”
“I hope that thought does not change, Priest Lee Haein.”
At those words.
Lee Haein frowned, as though sensing something wrong.
“Then.”
But before she could realize exactly what was wrong.
Tap.
“Would you show us which destiny it truly is?”
The Cardinal lightly pushed her body aside.
Then swung the sword in his hand as he spoke.
“Brother Shin Youngjun.”
***
The Cardinal’s sword swung toward empty air.
Many looked at its trajectory with puzzled expressions.
But then.
Kaaang!
“......!”
At the sound that rang out from there.
They flinched and turned their heads.
Then.
“Kuh......!”
A place that had seemed completely empty.
There.
“Brother Shin Youngjun......!”
Stood a man in military uniform.
A man with a face every one of them remembered clearly.......
That very man!
“There is a slight feeling of resistance, but it is nowhere near the level of strength I sensed during the coronation.”
And.
Looking at the man, the Cardinal calmly continued,
“It seems the Maxim truly did activate.”
“W-wait.”
“I do not know why this much strength still remains in you.”
Then.
The man knocked aside the Cardinal’s sword in visible confusion.
And just as he was about to say something—
Slash—!
Once more, the Cardinal’s blade swung.
And the sound of something being cut echoed out.
“So it is not impossible to cut through after all.”
......And.
Those who witnessed that scene.
Could only widen their eyes in horror.
Because.
That second slash.
Swung lightly as though it were nothing.
“Your Eminence.......”
After that slash passed.
What the people saw was none other than—
“What in the world have you done......!”
The man who had been destined to become their leader.
......Shin Youngjun’s head.
Flying through the air.
