Popes and whatnot were the most annoying … What I meant was that from the very start, the Holy Church had always been a potential competitor for us. And as the God of Holy Light's follower, Pope Caloma, who had the most authority and prestige in the entire world, had always been a wall that we couldn't get around.
I had once thought about how wonderful it would be if some assassin got lucky and took advantage of Caloma, or if Caloma got choked on a walnut biscuit one day and couldn't catch his breath before dying.
But some things only needed to be thought about.
Since Caloma was able to stand at the very top of the Holy Church, which was a gathering of heroes, he was impeccable in both power level and intelligence. Many popes in the past had died of old age, but very few had died in battle.
Being able to sit in Caloma's position meant that he had the strongest combat strength in the entire mortal plane. Although all the popes in the past looked old and decrepit, on average, they had been in power for more than 170 years. The current pope had only been in power for about ten years. Even if all the Cardinals died, Caloma might not necessarily die.
When Caloma was still a Cardinal, he had already killed the God of Waves. Now that he had inherited Pope Caloma's power, he would definitely be one of the strongest individuals in the world.
But now, I felt rather happy as I looked at the trembling old man in front of me.
"Hey, old man, you're not dead yet?"
Although Caloma still had the same face as before, his complexion was much worse than before. First, he had a kind appearance and a bottomless abyss. Now, he was giving off an astonishing pressure. However, I found it rather amusing. That was because only an old lion king whose authority was being challenged would have to bare his fangs and claws all day long to show off his existence.
I laughed in schadenfreude, not hiding my delight at all.
"Roland … Roland? Roland! "
His squinted eyes suddenly widened, filled with astonishment and disbelief. What followed next was undisguised hostility.
"Yep, it's me. You didn't recognize me? That's right, I'm already a Level 4 individual. Without all of you pressuring me, there's no need for me to be in such a hurry to take this final step. "
I looked at the little old man in front of me with evil intentions. Two months ago, he had been as steady as a mountain. Now, he was like a startled bird. Judging from his wrinkles and tired expression, he seemed to have aged more than ten years in the few months that I hadn't seen him.
What could be happier than making great progress? Naturally, it was discovering that the opponent had taken a big step back after making great progress.
For those who cultivated Divine Arts, their mental state was more important than anything else. A firm will was the most important attribute for Divine Arts job class members. Wavering in their confidence and falling in their souls were the greatest sins. Powerful priests and archbishops were all much more patient than the last. Pope Caloma's mental state was clearly out of balance. His lifespan would definitely be shortened, and it was likely that his power level would greatly decrease.
"Why aren't you dead yet? If you're dead, we can save a lot of trouble."
"Heresy!"
The Pope's guards roared in anger, and the most impulsive one had already drawn his sword and rushed over.
Then, with a flash of black shadow and a gust of black wind, the warrior disappeared without a trace. His angry roar still echoed in the air, but his figure had disappeared.
This strange scene made the guards stop in their tracks, consciously standing in front of the Pope to protect him.
I didn't want to explain. I took out my nail clippers and started to cut my nails. I didn't even look at them. The room was silent for a while.
"You're not here to watch the show, are you?"
That's right, of course I wasn't here to watch the show. I had a lot of things to do, and I didn't have the free time to watch someone else's show.
The Pope also knew that if I had come with enmity, he wouldn't have wasted any words and would have immediately attacked me.
And since I wasn't going to say anything nice, I was here to discuss something with sincerity.
Still, if someone intended to attack me with a sword, I wouldn't mind collecting some interest first.
I continued to remain silent as I patiently cut my nails, which were growing longer and longer. I had indeed been neglectful as I had been busy traveling.
After a long period of silence, I finally spoke up.
"I'm here representing the Mist Alliance and the Southern Sect to reestablish a new alliance with you. Are you happy? I'm here to help you. "
…
…
If I had to discuss who had the deepest grudge against the Holy Church, I would definitely be at the top.
If I had to discuss who wanted the Holy Church destroyed the most in the mortal plane, I would definitely be at the top as well.
My own grudge, the Mist Kingdom's grudge, Estrada's grudge, the Northern Mist Tribe's grievances over the past few years, as well as the recent infighting in the open and in the dark. I had just been ambushed and killed not long ago.
I really wanted the Holy Church to be destroyed as quickly as possible. But in the context of the entire world, it definitely wouldn't be a good thing for the Holy Church to be destroyed so quickly.
Even if the sky collapsed, the tallest person would hold it up. Right now, the tallest person was doubtlessly the Holy Church.
It was inevitable that the Chaos Faction would relentlessly attack the Holy Church. If they didn't make trouble for the Holy Church, they would naturally make trouble for other countries and organizations.
The current situation was doubtlessly a trap for the Holy Church.
If the Holy Church continued to get involved in this internal conflict, not only would their reputation be damaged, the Holy Church would also continuously send reinforcements to the Holy Church, which would be a huge drain on their strength.
If the Holy Church abandoned San Antonio, their reputation would also be damaged and they would lose a lot of blood.
Normally, I would be in a good mood if I didn't stab them in the back, not to mention helping them.
But now, the Holy War had only been going on for a short ten years. The Holy Church had fallen rather quickly. In the game's history, the Holy Church had also lasted for nearly two hundred years before it completely disappeared.
Even though the Holy Church's bishops and priests had all sorts of squandering methods, they had still been squandering for many years due to how rich they were. It wasn't like the current situation where the entire Holy Church had fallen into danger so quickly.
From my conclusion, it was doubtlessly that I had been constantly trying to steal the Holy Church's resources, causing them to fall into a disadvantage from the very start. After losing the support of all the human factions, the Holy Church in the game's history naturally appeared to be strong on the outside but weak on the inside.
The Holy Church could fall. In fact, I even hoped that they would fall. The God of Holy Light should fall. I cursed him to fall as soon as possible, but this definitely wouldn't happen within the next twenty years.
After some calculations, I knew what would happen if the Holy Church fell.
From an ordinary citizen's perspective, it would be as if the sky had collapsed and they would lose their faith in the Holy War. This would be a chain reaction that would cause them to lose confidence in the overall victory of the Holy War. Confidence and morale were things that didn't really exist, but they truly affected the war situation everywhere.
A fallen flag could be raised again, but if it fell so quickly, it was unknown if the Chaos Faction would even give us enough time to raise it again.
In my timeline, the Holy Church should have slowly declined to the point of death. During this process, the new generation of heroes and Gods would gradually establish new factions and organizations. Numerous flags would be erected all over the world, and it wouldn't be a big deal if the Holy Church's flag were to fall.
And from a high-level combat strength perspective, the Holy Light's faith would suffer a major blow. The number of believers would greatly decrease, and the already weakened God of Holy Light would be greatly weakened. He would no longer be "undefeatable". That would be a truly hilarious situation.
In that case, all the Chaos Main Gods and Demon Lords would lose their restraints and unhesitatingly enter the mortal plane. Who would be responsible for dealing with all the Chaos Main Gods?
Right now, there was a subtle balance between the Chaos Main Gods and the Demon Lords. As the strongest existence in the world, the God of Holy Light had far too much influence. Once the God of Holy Light was weakened, the so-called unspoken rules among the Gods would naturally vanish without a trace. All the Chaos Main Gods would personally appear, and the Holy War would progress much faster.
Although this would happen sooner or later, it would have to wait until the seeds of the Holy War sprouted. Many new outstanding individuals had already appeared in various places during the Holy War. However, it was still far from them being able to take charge. The new generation of Valkyrie's reincarnations were only ten years old. Once they reached adulthood, they would greatly improve the overall situation of the Holy War.
From the Mist Alliance's perspective, the Holy Church's collapse wasn't a good thing.
That was because the Holy Church's meat shield was now gone. Everyone could see that the Mist Alliance was in an excellent situation. In that case, the demons could also see that. Compared to other large trees that would be difficult to shake, the Chaos Main Gods would naturally first trample on the Holy Church's well-developed little sprout.
New technological revolutions were currently occurring. New technologies were appearing every day. The longer this war dragged on, the stronger the vitality of the Holy Church would be.
That was why the Holy Church absolutely couldn't collapse at this critical juncture.
I felt helpless. Even though I felt helpless, even though I was filled with resentment, I could only mutter about how "I'm only doing this for myself" in order to continue the Holy Church's growth.
Of course, I wouldn't tell them the truth. In terms of face, I was only here as a former ally of the Mist Alliance to exchange for a new alliance.
"An alliance between the Mist Alliance and the Southern Sect? That's indeed quite attractive at this juncture. Then, what's the price? "
Pope Igor reached out his hand while leaning on his walking stick. He asked me what the price would be.
"All of it … Cough, I mean, of course there's a price for this. You'll all be worried if I don't take advantage of the situation. Relax, I want a lot."
Since I was already here, how could I possibly be satisfied if I didn't take advantage of the situation?
More than two hours later, I left with several scrolls in satisfaction. Pope Igor and Cardinals were left behind in the conference room with ashen expressions.
What did I want?
First, I wanted the entire Northlands' Holy Battlefront Alliance.
The Holy Church didn't have time to worry about the Northlands anyways. I didn't make any excessive demands that the Northlands' Holy Battlefront Alliance join the Mist Alliance. I only requested that the Northlands' Holy Church countries stop being enemies with the Mist Alliance and forbid them from supervising and controlling the Mist Alliance's resources. I also requested that the Holy Church's main headquarters withdraw from the Northlands.
This was something that the Holy Church could accept. That was because the Holy Church didn't have much territory in the Northlands to begin with. The Northlands' Holy Battlefront Alliance had also caused a lot of controversy within the Holy Church. The Holy Church had to invest a lot of resources in the Northlands without any direct connection to the Northlands' Holy Battlefront Alliance. Now that the situation in Eich was worsening, it would seem foolish to invest resources in the Northlands, which had no direct connection to the Northlands.
And once the new alliance was established, the Northlands' Holy Battlefront Alliance would seem even more meaningless and wasteful.
What would the Mist Alliance gain from this alliance? I could only say that it would be countless.
Secondly, I requested that the Southern Sect's teaching of pure Holy Light be recognized as the orthodox teaching of Holy Light, and that Estrada be honored as a martyr and a Holy Disciple.
Even though this was just something that I wanted to say, the entire conference room fell silent for a full five minutes when I said this. All the cardinals looked at me as if they wanted to eat me alive.
The Holy Church was a religious organization, not a political organization. Disagreements with the Holy Church's teachings would be the most important thing for the Holy Church. Even if the entire Holy Church was destroyed, the Holy Church's teachings wouldn't be changed.
If the Southern Sect's teachings, which didn't worship the God of Holy Light, were orthodox, then what was the God of Holy Light? What was the Holy Church, which worshipped the God of Holy Light as the highest God?
This was something that the Southern Sect wouldn't agree to even if the entire Holy Church was destroyed.
But since the Southern Sect wanted to form an alliance with the Southern Sect, they would at least need to silently acknowledge the Southern Sect's legitimacy. From a certain standpoint, this would be acknowledging the Southern Sect's existence.
It would have been fine to silently acknowledge the Southern Sect's legitimacy, yet I just had to bring it up. This would be the height of stupidity when it came to diplomacy. However, I was incredibly delighted to see all the Southern Sect's elders' faces flushed red with anger, as well as the unlucky ones who were angered to the point of having their hearts beat erratically because of their Holy Light.
I knew that it would be impossible for the Southern Sect to agree to my proposal of "acknowledging the Southern Sect's legitimacy." That was only to disgust them. However, not only was my request disgusting, it was also filled with evil intentions.
With Estrada's reputation and past achievements, it wouldn't be an exaggeration to call him a martyr or a Holy Disciple. In fact, such a saying had even been spread among the Holy Church factions. But in the end, everyone tacitly forgot about this old Knight who had dedicated his entire life to the Holy Light.
The reason? The one who killed Estrada was the God of Holy Light's incarnation, the God of Holy Light's will.
In that case, why did the God of Holy Light confer the title of martyr and Holy Disciple on Estrada?
Previously, when I said "acknowledging the Southern Sect's legitimacy," the Southern Sect's elders were only angry to the point of stomping their feet. Not only that, their hearts couldn't take it anymore, so they kept buffing themselves with Holy Light. When I asked for Estrada to be conferred the title of Holy Light, two of them even collapsed while clutching their chests. It was almost possible to see an old man performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.
Even with such a situation occurring, I could still see the Holy Knight and priest representatives eagerly wanting to speak up. But in the end, after exchanging glances with each other, they all maintained a unified silence with complex expressions.
In another hundred years, Estrada would probably become the Holy Church's greatest dark history. But right now, Estrada's disciples, students, and benefactors could be found in every corner of the Holy Church.
There were plenty of low-level Holy Knight and priests who secretly sympathized with the "pure Holy Light martyrs." There were also plenty of low-level Holy Knights who felt that the God of Holy Light had gone too far, which was why their faith in him had wavered. This was why there were voices within the Holy Church that spoke up against Estrada.
I believed that after I left, the Southern Sect and the Holy Church would maintain a certain amount of distance and peace between each other. The voices calling out for Estrada's innocence would only grow louder and louder. In that case, as time passed, the foundational beliefs of the Holy Church would be shaken.
"I'm Estrada's disciple, as well as the strongest Holy Light Knight in the world. I've even inherited the Hammer of Holy Light and the path of protection. Isn't it normal for me to call out for my teacher's innocence?"
My words were quite simple, direct, and sincere. They were all the truth, the truth that came from the bottom of my heart.
The moment I said this, the Holy Light sword at my waist became the center of attention in the entire conference room. After confirming that I had indeed broken through to SemiGod due to the Concept of Holy Light, the other Holy Knight and Holy Light priests obviously looked at me in a different light. They were still on guard, but there was now more respect and understanding.
The successor of the Hammer of Holy Light had always been the Holy Knight's spiritual leader in name and in reality. My status was indeed quite awkward, but as a mature Holy Knight, they would at least show me friendliness and basic etiquette.
In the end, we stopped talking about this topic. After all, the God of Holy Light was an existence that we couldn't avoid. If we continued talking about this, it would likely lead to a religious war. Today, we were here to sign an alliance.
"Alright, I understand your difficulties. In that case, at the very least, you can cancel the ban on Estrada. This isn't something that the God of Holy Light ordered you to do. Estrada has served the Holy Church for his entire life. At the very least, the younger generations should know who he is. This request isn't too much at all. "
All the Holy Knight and priests around me nodded silently. Seeing this situation, Pope Caloma sighed and finally made a compromise.
Although the Holy Church didn't agree to make me a Holy Light Saint or recognize me as the orthodox Holy Church, they also made a compromise. Maintaining peace with the Southern Sect in private was a part of the alliance, and private discussion of Estrada and how to commemorate Estrada was now forbidden.
However, these were only the least controversial and most acceptable parts of this alliance that was destined to be recorded in history.
"In the tenth year of the Dawn calendar, the Holy Church signed a secret alliance with the Southern Sect and the Mist Alliance, reaching an agreement that was known in history as the 'Betrayers' Alliance. 'From then on, the Holy Church, which had been so powerful for so long, began to decline … Ha, I like this way of saying it. Let's record it down in our notebook."
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