Gerald and the company settled the aftermath. Archbishop Linza returned from the Holy City to the Bluerose Duchy to help with the criminals. He also told me that Archbishop Sana had returned to the Academy City and was waiting for me.
My knight squad and I didn't stay for long and returned using [Teleportation Gem] we prepared beforehand. We reappeared in the training area behind Academy City's church.
Sana was waiting for me there with a bright smile.
"Sir Arthur, welcome back. I am sorry for leaving so suddenly when there is such a case." She bowed her head at me. Then she raised her head and looked at me with a serious expression. "I know that you're tired, but… May I have a bit of your time?"
"Sure." I nodded.
"Thank you very much. Please, this way, Sir Arthur."
Following that, I asked Rania, Sophia, Tristan, and the others to rest and have a day off until the Annual Tournament. Then I followed Sana to the church, using <Purification> on myself to get rid of the blood smell.
On our way, I asked her how Holy City was, and she explained it happily.
"The Holy City has a barrier erected by Her Eminence Pope to keep the west monsters from advancing from the World-End border. It's a beautiful city with many glass windows and golden roofs. The biggest church is also located in the Holy City, and the Goddess would descend in one of the Holy Bodies each year on her birthday, the 1st day of the year, to preach to us!"
Sana's expression when she mentioned the Goddess was like an avid believer who didn't even care about anything else. She had known how the Goddess slept with me, but her faith was still strong.
'Is it because she thought it was natural for the Goddess to sleep with her Paladin? Or did the Goddess do something to Sana? It's probably the former because I heard a sentence in the Holy Book that tells the nun to have a descendant with the Paladin if possible.'
As we walked to the inner section of the church, she kept explaining how the Holy City and the surrounding scenery to me. While it wasn't as big as Bluerose Duchy, the Academy City, or the Capital, many strong church knights were stationed there.
Many nuns of various origins, Bishops, Archbishops, and even 2 Cardinals that directly served Pope Juriel lived in the Holy City. Those 2 Cardinals would change every 50 years, directly chosen by the Pope.
Apparently, it would also change in a few months, and Sana was aiming for that position. She winked at me and told me to keep it a secret in a playful manner.
For some reason, we passed by Sana's office and kept going.
"Where will you take me, Sana?" I decided to ask as we stepped on the third floor.
There was almost nothing here besides the open area to see the hall and a luxurious room in the back. Even if Sana wanted to talk to me privately, her office was usually enough for that.
The cute Archbishop looked at me over her shoulder and smiled.
"Someone wants to meet you, Sir Arthur. Because her visit is a secret that only I know, we can't use my private office and can only use the Holy Room. Her presence is a little special, and she needs a certain preparation before showing up in front of many people."
Hearing that, my eyes widened in realization.
Someone who wanted to meet me and visit in secret. The luxurious room on the third floor was called the Holy Room. And from Sana's words, she was a little special and needed a certain preparation before showing up in front of many people.
There could only be two possible people. One was the Goddess. There was a possibility she descended on Ertha's body to answer some of my questions regarding Adam.
But knowing that Ertha was helping to deal with the aftermath of the previous raid. She could also descend on Sana's body like before, but that couldn't explain the dot inside the said 'Holy Room' that we would visit.
Then there was only one possible possibility left.
'The Pope is visiting?' I thought.
I didn't know that she could visit before the final of the Annual Tournament.
Just like Sana explained earlier, the Pope needed to maintain the barrier in the Holy City, or it would crumble, and the monsters from the west border would flock in.
And the reason why she couldn't meet many people without special preparation should be related to her Race. She was part of a Race with a long lifespan; she had probably lived as long as the world or even just a bit younger than it. One thing for sure was she was older than even Alesia.
"Fufufu, I see that you have guessed who is waiting for you, Sir Arthur."
Sana's low giggle pulled me out of my thoughts. I looked at her and nodded.
"I do. I just never expected for her to visit today."
"Indeed. She planned to visit 3 days before the final of the Annual Tournament, meaning in 2 days. However, today's raid and the matter of the Princess have garnered her attention, so she decided to visit you to discuss it as I returned to the Academy City today." She explained and stopped in front of a wooden double door.
"She's waiting inside for you as she prepares her skill. Unfortunately, I cannot meet her directly without the help of a special curtain or high enough Lv of <Holy Magic> to withstand her presence before she prepared herself with <Holy Shroud>, so I will excuse myself here, Sir Arthur."
"Alright. Thanks for guiding me, Sana."
"It's my pleasure." Sana bowed once and turned around to leave.
I wasn't in a hurry to open the door and waited for Sana to leave first.
'<Holy Shroud>, huh? So that's the special preparation the Pope needed to hide this something that can't be seen directly by anyone not strong enough?'
If that was the case, then I could help her. It was a part of Lv 8 <Holy Magic>. Before reaching Lv Max, the skill needed a casting time of 24 Hours to use it. And the skill's effect was to hide bad status or aura title for 3 days. It was a skill needed for an ambush or espionage on the enemy's base.
'It's also a skill to stop <Appraisal> from higher Leveled people. So the Pope either wants to hide her Race, her status and possibly this aura she has that can hurt or have a bad effect on other people.'
That was understanding and kind of her.
In Lv Max <Holy Magic>, I could use <Holy Shroud> without channeling for a day. I just needed 5 minutes, and the effect lasted for 5 days due to the bonus one received when they achieved Lv Max <Holy Magic>.
But I also found out that the Pope was able to use Lv 8 <Holy Magic> from this. She was indeed fit to be a pope.
After Sana's footsteps turned faint, I stepped forward to the double door and knocked on it thrice.
"You may enter, Sir Paladin. Please excuse my rudeness, but I can't help you open the door because I am still channeling a skill and am currently blindfolded."
Before I could say anything, a soft voice belonging to a mature woman resounded. The voice was soothing as if she was speaking directly to my soul, giving me a nice feeling. Even the best singer on Earth would fall silent when they heard her voice.
I used <Calm Mind> to get rid of any thought that would make me think of anything else. The Pope was dangerous in every meaning of words.
Taking a deep breath, I pushed the door open and was greeted by a luxurious room filled with golden furniture and green plants that grow on pots.
In the middle of the room was a bed with a white curtain. Sitting on it was a beautiful woman with long blonde hair. Her beauty could blind people; her whole body was shining. The white blindfold covering her upper face didn't affect her beauty at all.
A golden halo floated behind her head, hovering over so slightly. Her hands clasped together in front of her huge breasts covered in a white holy dress with a slightly exposed cleavage. I had a feeling she had a pair of white wings too, but she seemed to hide it already.
There she was, smiling softly at me while channeling a skill <Holy Shroud> to hide her divine appearance partially.
"I finally am able to meet you, Your Holiness. I have heard about you from the Goddess, oh kind man from another world." She spoke in a soft tone as I stepped forward and closed the door.
My step froze a little as she called me a man from another world. And she didn't say Goddess Teri like the others, but just Goddess.
'She knows? How much does the Goddess tell her about me?'
However, there was no sign that she minded that detail as she continued.
"Maybe you already know about me, but allow me to introduce myself. I am the Pope of Castitas Church, from an Angel Race. Please call me Juriel."
"It's also nice to meet you, Pope Juriel."
I greeted her back with a bright smile. I didn't even think about whether she was able to see me or not. And because she didn't have any problem with me being from another world or not, I changed the way I introduced myself a little bit.
"I am Arthur. Just Arthur."
Vainglory was a name given to me by the church when I became a Paladin. If she called me the man from another world, then that introduction was the best I could offer.
Also…
"If I may offer a little assistance, do you want me to help you cast <Holy Shroud> in under 5 minutes?"
"Yes, please." The Pope replied with a slight nod. "That would be wonderful."
That was my first meeting with the Pope, who apparently hid and knew many secrets that I didn't know yet.
