Chapter 267

‘Why is Lady Seolrang acting like that?’

That was the first thought that came to Hidan's mind as he stared blankly at the scene before him.

It was only natural.

Currently, Hidan was near Rosario, far from the Colony.

In other words, under normal circumstances, he wouldn’t have encountered Seolrang here.

And yet, there she was, right in front of his eyes.

Why—

“Go back, wolf! I’ve told you over and over...!”

“No!”

............Why was she grabbing a man—whom he had never seen before—by the hair and confronting him?

‘No, calling him just an unknown man doesn’t seem right. He’s unusual too.’

Hidan examined the man’s appearance.

He gave off a similar vibe to Seolrang.

He didn’t appear that old.

More than anything.

The same killing intent that Seolrang exuded surrounded him.

That alone made it clear that this man was no ordinary person.

‘Could it be that Lady Seolrang is evenly matched with him? Or is she holding back?’

There was no way Hidan could possibly measure their strength.

Staring at the two overwhelming figures, Hidan returned to the most basic question.

‘.......Why are they even fighting?’

No matter how much he watched, he couldn’t understand.

For a brief moment, he wondered, ‘Should I help Lady Seolrang?’ — but then—

He quietly turned around and decided to slip away from the area.

He knew all too well that his tiny hands wouldn’t be of the slightest help.

Besides, look at how the fight was going.

Why were they pulling each other’s hair in such a crude and childish way, instead of using proper strength?

Like some neighborhood kids roughhousing.

Whatever the reason.

It was clear that stepping into that would only complicate matters.

The choice was obvious.

Following his instincts, Hidan quietly slipped away while the two powerful people had yet to notice him.

***

Right up until the moment Alon entered the Saint’s chamber, Yuman had been thinking, ‘Could it be...?’

To elaborate a bit more, he had a thought he would never usually entertain: ‘Could it be that Marquis Palatio isn’t the Hidden Saint?’

Of course, Yuman had already seen with his own eyes that Marquis Palatio—Alon—was indeed a Saint like himself.

He had even confirmed that Alon was a Hidden Saint, one who must walk an even harsher path than he.

Even so, the seed of doubt had been planted due to what happened yesterday.

‘Saint.’

‘I’m sorry, but I’m not the Hidden Saint you’re referring to.’

‘Just as I said. Saint, I don’t know what made you mistake me for someone else, but I’m not the person you think I am.’

A complete denial without the slightest hesitation.

Alon, by nature, rarely showed any change in expression, making it hard to discern truth from lie.

But his eyes.

His eyes struck Yuman's mind.

Those honest eyes that seemed to say he truly didn’t understand what was being said.

Yuman wavered for a moment in the face of those pure eyes.

Of course, even that—

Could have been a clever strategy employed by the brother walking the thorny path, to avoid breaking his oath.

For a Hidden Saint must deny his own identity.

Still, a small doubt had taken root in Yuman’s heart.

That perhaps it really was a misunderstanding.

And even if Alon was indeed the Hidden Saint.

At this point, with all communication from Lady Sironia cut off, he might not be much different from—

"Huh."

But the moment Alon entered the Chamber of the Holy Spirit, all worries were rendered meaningless and futile.

Because the statue of Goddess Sironia began to shine so brilliantly.

Standing before the radiant statue was Marquis Palatio.

Watching that scene, Yuman couldn’t help but marvel.

Despite walking a painful and lonely path, and even under Yuman’s pressure, he never showed the slightest sign.

No, more than not showing signs—he had practically deceived Yuman—

And still kept his oath.

‘As expected... Brother, you’re amazing.’

Yuman’s misunderstanding grew stronger and stronger.

And just as that strange faith, born of misunderstanding, began to solidify—

Alon, behind his expressionless face, was secretly flustered.

‘So suddenly?’

He briefly thought, was it reacting to my sensing ability?

But Alon shook his head slightly.

If that were the case, the statue should’ve reacted the moment he activated his senses like last time.

As he fervently analyzed the situation in his head—

[……It’s been a long time.]

He heard the voice of the Goddess Sironia, the one he’d heard years ago.

But one thing felt off.

‘Formal speech?’

The tone had changed.

She had definitely spoken casually before, but now she was using honorifics.

Baffled for a moment, Alon hurriedly opened his mouth.

“Great Goddess Sironia, I am Palatio, Marquis of Asteria.”

[Is that so.]

Short, clipped responses as if something was bothering her.

Alon showed his confusion at that, but—

[Sa... no, Marquis Palatio... Please save my greatest servant. If you do, all this disaster will naturally be resolved............ I'm sure you can do it.]

“......What does that—”

[Let’s end it here for now. We’ll continue the conversation after you’ve saved my great servant.]

Goddess Sironia finished saying only what she wanted and then vanished.

Soon, the light faded from the statue.

A heavy silence fell over the Sanctuary of the Holy Spirit.

Standing alone in the middle of it all—

“......What was that?”

Alon stood still like a stone statue for a moment.

***

Right after that.

Just to be sure, he used his sensing ability one more time—

The statue didn’t budge.

Staring quietly at it, Alon exited the room.

“Brother.”

“Marquis.”

He was immediately surrounded by cardinals.

Alon relayed Goddess Sironia’s words exactly to the cardinals, including Yuman.

“......Those words mean.”

“Surely... about His Holiness the Pope...............!?”

“Brother, did the Goddess truly say such a thing?”

“She did.”

As Alon confirmed again, the cardinals’ expressions grew solemn.

Then—

“Marquis Palatio, no—Brother, thank you so much. If it hadn’t been for you, we wouldn’t have even realized that something had happened to His Holiness the Pope.”

One cardinal bowed deeply to Alon.

He clenched his fists in frustration.

“I'm truly ashamed............. To think I believed such ridiculous rumors about someone as faithful as you.”

And then, the cardinals standing nearby began to speak one after another.

“Indeed.”

“Cardinal Yutia’s decision was the right one. I was still like a frog in a well, knowing nothing of the truth...”

“I now regret my own ignorance. Please forgive someone like me.”

The cardinals began apologizing in a chain.

Alon noticed Yutia’s name being mentioned in between, which sparked his curiosity.

“Brother, I’m truly sorry, but the situation is urgent, so I’ll express my thanks later.”

“......Don’t worry about it.”

Alon let the hurried cardinals go without protest.

On their faces, a faint sense of hope had begun to form.

Once the commotion settled down, Yuman approached him.

“Brother.”

“Saint.”

“I’m really ashamed of myself.”

Without warning, he grasped Alon’s hand.

“Eh......?”

“It’s just, after our conversation yesterday, I was momentarily confused, wondering if I had misunderstood everything—but it turns out it was a pointless doubt.”

Yuman gave a sheepish smile.

“......But you really did misunderstand.”

Alon instinctively stated the truth once more.

“Yes. I know, Brother.”

With the look of someone who believed all doubts had now been cleared, Yuman nodded confidently.

At his intense conviction of "I now know everything, truly," Alon could only sigh internally, thinking, ‘You didn’t understand anything at all.’

“Well then, I’ll take my leave for now, Brother. I’ll return after I finish the urgent tasks............!”

Yuman, too, soon disappeared into the distance.

“Congratulations, My lord.”

Yutia, who hadn’t followed the cardinals, approached him last.

With a smile that half-covered her red eyes—

“......Is this something to be congratulated on?”

“Isn’t it? You’ve gained the favor of those uncomfortable cardinals all at once.”

“That’s not untrue.”

Though it was a situation built on a misunderstanding,

He had indeed earned their favor in the end.

As Alon nodded, he suddenly recalled something the cardinals had said earlier.

“Yutia.”

“Yes, My lord.”

“I think I heard something in passing about ‘Cardinal Yutia’s decision’—was there something related to me?”

Then—

Cough—

“?”

“Ah, sorry. I just choked a little.”

The one who reacted to Alon’s question wasn’t Yutia, but Sergius.

He coughed awkwardly, looking uncomfortable, and gave a forced smile.

Yutia quickly stepped in front of him.

“No, it wasn’t anything big, My lord.”

“...Is that so?”

“Yes. It’s just that when rumors spread about you having died, there was a little controversy along with the old rumors connected to you. I merely addressed those briefly, that’s all.”

Alon could see Sergius’s shoulders twitching behind Yutia, but if Yutia said it wasn’t anything big, then perhaps it wasn’t.

“So it wasn’t anything serious.”

“No, truly nothing at all. So don’t worry too much. It died down quickly anyway.”

A warm smile and a calm voice.

Alon nodded, but another question came to mind.

“Ah, come to think of it, I have one more question.”

“What is it, My lord?”

“All the cardinals seem to have changed—did something happen in Rosario while I was gone?”

He had been curious about that from the start.

Yutia slowly shook her head.

“No, nothing particularly serious. Just a bit of an unfortunate incident.”

“An incident?”

Yutia raised her index finger to her cheek.

“Yes. The Cardinal Council room suddenly collapsed.”

“......Collapsed?”

“Yes. Because of that, all the other cardinals—except me, who had temporarily gone out on a mission—sadly passed away.”

She delivered the news in a tone like she was casually mentioning there were lots of fish in the lake nearby.

Alon, bewildered, repeated her words.

“That’s not... a big deal?”

“It isn’t. I’m sure Goddess Sironia took them because she needed them. They were all very devout in their faith.”

Alon briefly recalled the cardinals of Rosario from within the psychedelic space.

They had all been corrupt pigs with no faith to speak of.

Alon subtly shifted his gaze beyond Yutia to look at Sergius.

Sergius was now staring off into the far distance, as if determined never to look this way again.

“My lord?”

At Yutia’s clear voice, Alon met her red eyes once more.

‘......The Apostle of Vengeance hasn’t shown up yet, has he?’

Alon suddenly felt uneasy.