The trial ended.
Frozen time began to flow once more, and Bell restored the surrounding scenery back into the Forest of Courtesy.
The saintess’s face was swollen from crying so much.
Apparently, she bruised and swelled more easily than expected.
“Done crying?”
“...Yeah.”
“Good. Then that’s enough.”
“......”
At Su-ho’s words, Bell seemed to hesitate for a moment before suddenly tearing the necklace from around her neck.
Crack!
The necklace shattered.
Now that she knew the truth behind the holy relic, there was no longer any reason to keep wearing it.
Watching her, Su-ho said,
“This place really is cruel too. Imagine bringing someone all the way to the Pantheon after death and still never telling them the truth.”
“It’s fine.”
“Yeah. I guess they all had their circumstances too. So... are you satisfied now?”
Nod—
Bell nodded her head.
Then she spoke.
“The truth is, I understood everything you were saying from the beginning. But it had become a habit... No, more than that, if I accepted your words, it felt like it would deny the entire life I’d lived until now, so I couldn’t acknowledge it.”
“But now you can?”
“There’s no reason for me to keep living according to the wishes of disgusting people anymore.”
“Yeah. You made the right choice.”
It wasn’t hard to understand how she felt.
Alive, she had been a saintess. After death, she had even reached the position of Pope. Yet the brainwashing engraved into her over countless years like a slave brand had become a major part of who she was.
‘If it were me, I probably couldn’t have accepted everything overnight either.’
But now she had accepted it.
She accepted what needed to be accepted and discarded what needed to be discarded.
And the things she had once looked at through clouded eyes, she had finally begun seeing properly.
Maybe that was why.
After hesitating for a while, still unable to meet Su-ho’s eyes, she quietly said,
“Thank you. I’ll acknowledge everything about you now. Thank you for teaching me.”
“Did I really teach you anything? I just corrected the truth.”
“Even so.”
Unlike Roland or Pyo, no further words were necessary.
Her saying she acknowledged everything—
That alone was enough.
Wheeeeng—
A door opened.
It was probably the passage leading to the next place.
Still, something felt strange.
“But I already went through Paladin, Monk, and Cleric. Why is there still more left?”
“There is.”
“What’s still lef—... Ah.”
Halfway through speaking, Su-ho realized it.
The final order.
It was Crusader.
The moment Su-ho figured it out himself, Bell smiled.
“You’ll do well in the final trial too.”
“Oh, so the next one’s the last?”
“Probably?”
“That’s the best news I’ve heard all day.”
He had been wondering when this endless trial would finally end, and now apparently the next stage was the last.
Then naturally, he ought to welcome it gladly.
Before he stepped through the door, Bell spoke.
“See you next time!”
“Hm?”
“When we meet again, I’ll treat you properly.”
Snort—
And here he thought she was going to say something important.
“It’s fine. Just act like you always do.”
Bell smiled at Su-ho’s answer.
“Take care.”
“Yeah.”
After exchanging farewells, Su-ho stepped through the door.
And some time after he disappeared inside—
Bell returned to the place where she had been sitting and laid herself down.
If one called it long, it had been long.
If one called it short, it had been short.
But one thing was certain.
Since arriving at the Pantheon, it had been the most intense and pleasant encounter she had experienced.
At that moment—
Fwaaaash!
Light burst forth.
This was not a place just anyone could enter.
And yet a foreign light was pouring into it.
That meant there was only one possible person.
“Chief God?”
It was Quai.
***
Su-ho crossed the door, and the scenery around him changed.
This time, the sky was murky, the surroundings dim, and even the dirt beneath his feet was dry and lifeless, giving off a bleak atmosphere.
Flap flap flap—
Birds suddenly took flight somewhere in the distance.
Given the atmosphere, they felt like a flock of crows.
The scattered trees looked blackened and skeletal, as though they had survived a forest fire.
There wasn’t even a proper road here, but Su-ho paid little attention as he slowly walked forward.
‘She said this was the last one.’
The class this time was Crusader.
Who would it be?
Thinking back to the Conclave, whoever it was probably had not been especially welcomed either.
After walking for some time, Su-ho spotted a crudely designed altar ahead of him.
Deep grooves had been carved into the stone floor, and the grooves connected together to form a pattern.
It was unmistakably an altar.
Su-ho observed it for a moment before stepping onto it.
Then a strange voice echoed from somewhere.
“You took longer than expected.”
Su-ho turned toward the unfamiliar voice and saw a broad middle-aged man with gray hair slicked back, his entire body wrapped in ragged robes.
The long horizontal scar across his forehead left the strongest impression.
Instinctively, Su-ho realized this man was the Crusader Master of this place.
The man approached Su-ho and greeted him.
“It’s good to meet you. My name is Sachsen. I don’t know whether you’ve heard of me, but I’m a Master from the Crusader line and someone who was once called the Red Pope.”
“It’s an honor to meet you. I’m An Su-ho, bearer of the name Black Pope.”
Unlike Bell, whose appearance was beautiful but whose speech was rough, Sachsen’s attitude was surprisingly gentlemanly despite his rugged appearance.
When Su-ho stepped down from the altar, Sachsen spoke.
“Black Pope... Certainly a color never once recorded in Pantheon history. You were originally a Crusader too, weren’t you?”
“Yes. I passed through Rage Crusader and Blood Cardinal.”
“So did I. That makes this even more pleasant. Historically, I was the only Pope who walked the paths of Crusader, Rage Crusader, and Blood Cardinal. But now there are two of us.”
This was the first time Su-ho had heard that.
Then again, Quai had not explained every Pope in history.
Still, it did not feel unpleasant.
No, if anything, he liked it.
“That’s nice. Being from the same background. I never expected to feel something like school ties or hometown connections in a place like this.”
“Haha, do you think that’s all?”
“There’s more?”
“We have plenty in common. For example... I was a Player too.”
A former Player.
At those words, Su-ho’s eyes widened.
Seeing his expression, Sachsen continued with a grin.
“And one more thing. The target of my revenge is the same as yours.”
“...What?”
“Exactly what you heard. I’m someone who lost everything because of the System as well. Does that make things clearer?”
“......!”
Su-ho’s mouth fell open.
The shock was too overwhelming for him to close it again.
Naturally so.
Never, after coming to the Pantheon, had he imagined there would be someone else like him.
Especially someone with such a similar story.
Still smiling, Sachsen continued speaking.
“I’m the last one, correct? Do you understand now why Quai arranged for us to meet?”
He did not call Quai the Chief God.
That fact alone made it more convincing than anything else that he truly had once been a Player.
“...Yes. I understand immediately.”
“Before me, you met the Paladin, Monk, and Cleric in order, didn’t you? Roland, Pyo, and Bell. And then finally me. Do you know why Quai arranged it like this?”
After thinking for a moment, Su-ho answered.
“Because they’re the greatest Masters in each field?”
“Correct. You understand quickly. Quai’s duty is always to provide the best possible support according to the needs of the new Pope. In that sense, the first Paladin, the strongest Monk, and a saintess with unprecedented abilities would naturally be the greatest teachers for you.”
“I’m looking forward to your teachings as well, Sir Sachsen.”
“Haha, yes. I’ll teach you everything I can with all my effort. Though I’m someone who challenged the System and failed, so perhaps my teachings won’t resonate as deeply as the others’. Still, if you have any use even for the experiences of a defeated man, then I’ll gladly share all of them.”
His desire to teach Su-ho was genuine.
Naturally so.
He still had not let go of his hatred for the System.
Su-ho saw the flames of revenge flickering in Sachsen’s eyes and spoke earnestly.
“I don’t believe there’s such a thing as {N•o•v•e•l•i•g•h•t} useless experience or useless teachings in this world. Especially not from someone who once shared the same goal as me. So please, help me become even a little stronger than I am now. Share your experience and teachings with me.”
“Hahaha, excellent.”
Sachsen laughed heartily.
Then he stretched out a hand to the side, and a gigantic greatsword large enough to require both hands was summoned into his grip.
“My heart’s pounding. You have no idea how long I’ve waited for this moment.”
He meant every word.
Among the countless worldlines extending beneath the Pantheon, Sachsen’s world had been the only one invaded by the System.
Back then, Sachsen had merely been an ordinary priest.
And after the world overturned, he became a Crusader.
There was only one reason.
Because during the Great Cataclysm, he had lost everything, including the people he loved.
And then he realized it.
God did not answer prayers.
So he chose to survive by his own hands.
He fought.
And fought again.
Even as family, friends, comrades, and former enemies all died and vanished, he continued fighting and advancing forward.
And when he finally reached the utmost limit attainable to him, he realized:
Ah.
I was far too weak.
Small, pathetic—
Nothing more than a frog trapped inside a well.
And when he was later invited to the Pantheon, a place like Valhalla, he realized something once more.
The Chief God he had once believed in, then hated so fiercely after the Great Cataclysm—
The being he once believed was the entirety of the world and truly omnipotent—
To the System, such a god had been nothing more than a mere toy.
And from that moment onward, he waited.
Without ever extinguishing the sparks of revenge and hatred buried deep in his heart, he waited for the day someone identical to himself would appear.
Someone with the same story.
The same thoughts.
The same enemy.
Someone who had walked the same path as him.
And when that person appeared, he intended to hand over everything he possessed without hesitation.
Sachsen’s eyes flickered like sacred flames.
“Then shall we begin with a simple test? Even if these are merely the teachings of a defeated man, shouldn’t I at least confirm whether you possess the minimum qualifications to receive them?”
“Sounds good. If you want proof, I’ll gladly provide it. Throw anything at me.”
“Heh heh. Then let’s begin.”
Once he had finished preparing, Sachsen swung his greatsword.
The blade struck the altar.
KWAAAAANG!!
And together with the deafening explosion, the altar began to tremble.
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