---

“Your Holiness, why do you say such things?”

“I’m merely asking for your thoughts.”

“Are you referring to political thoughts?”

“I’m not trying to verify any ideologies. I’m simply curious about how you view the Magic Tower.”

“…That’s a rather unfamiliar topic I’ve never considered.”

“It’s not a difficult question, is it?”

“…….”

“Do you need time to ponder this?”

“It seems I need time to organize my thoughts, Your Grace.”

“…….”

“…….”

“…Very well. Then return tomorrow.”

—

Episode 14 – One Religion, One Faith, Two Saints

—

The Pope had a private audience with Lucia, resulting in some friction between them.

I didn’t know the details, but I could tell something strange was unfolding.

So, I sought someone well-versed in the internal affairs of the Cult.

“Oh my, Colonel! What brings you here?”

The Saint of the Cult, Veronica.

She was right there as I burst in through the door.

“Yikes, what’s happening here?”

I took a step back, startled at the sight of her.

The shop was filled with fog. At first glance, it looked like mist, but the pungent, acrid smell unmistakably came from cigarette smoke.

This was a tobacco shop that Veronica frequented, where all kinds of exotic and curious tobacco from around the world gathered, and it was saturated in smoke.

Inside the shop, devoid of any staff.

In the center of that haze, there sat Veronica, plopped down comfortably.

“Ahh….”

The Saint exhaled the smoke into the air, placing a Maduro cigar in an ashtray while waving her hand with a sly grin.

With the thick, suffocating smell of tobacco that seemed to rot my lungs with every breath, I covered my nose with my sleeve as I approached her.

“You said you were busy and left first. Did you come here just to puff on a cigar?”

“I heard they got a new product in today, so I rushed over while putting work on hold.”

“What about work?”

“Someone’s probably taking care of it for me, right?”

What a crazy woman. How did such a person become a saint?

I thought I couldn’t possibly understand the world of religion, so I decided to stop trying.

Regardless, the runaway Saint, Veronica, retrieved a cigar from a box and offered it to me.

“Here, a bribe.”

“What’s this?”

“It means accept this and keep your mouth shut. Just take it; my arms are getting tired.”

I let out a heavy sigh.

Veronica expertly cut and toasted the cigar before handing it to me.

As I savored the heavy smoke that hit my palate and nostrils, I put a piece of chocolate into my mouth to offset the bitterness that lingered.

“What brings you all the way here? I haven’t gotten my hands on the list of Imperial officials yet.”

“I heard Lucia had a private audience with Pope John XVI. What happened?”

“It was exactly as it sounds.”

Tilting her head, Veronica brushed aside her silky black hair and began to explain.

“Three days before your arrival, the Pope summoned Lucia to the palace. They spent about ten minutes in private, and then they met again in the garden the following day.”

“What were they discussing to warrant a private audience?”

“I wouldn’t know. Because even the Guardsmen were caught up in it, no one overheard their conversation. All I know is that right after the meeting, the Pope stormed out of the garden with a furious expression, and Lucia got into the carriage looking glum, so there’s a lot of gossip that something went wrong.”

The Pope, furious after the meeting, and the Saint retreating into seclusion.

If even the typically mild-mannered Lucia isn’t coming out of her room, then something significant must be going on within the Cult.

Moreover, the Pope was, like Raphael, a high-ranking official from the Inquisition. A hardliner among hardliners. He was the absolute opposite of gentle Lucia.

“…….”

To find out what transpired during that meeting, I would need to speak with one of the parties involved.

But Lucia was holed up, and meeting the Pope was no easy feat.

Perhaps because of my anxious thoughts, I hastily pulled on the cigar, and a burnt taste began to emerge.

Throwing the cigar into the ashtray, I exhaled the burnt taste as I looked over at Veronica.

“Veronica.”

“Yes?”

“Where is Lucia right now?”

—

—

The Bethlehem of Christianity, the Mecca of Islam, the Jerusalem of Judaism.

Every religion has a region that is revered. People refer to these places as holy lands.

The Cult is no exception.

The area where the Celestial God first manifested on Earth and ascended, ‘Rusalim.’

The place where three Magi read the movements of the stars, encountered the Celestial God, and sought teachings, ‘Tiberias.’

Finally, the ‘Lateran,’ to which the Pope moved after receiving revelations amid the decline of the Cult due to the war with Al-Yabd.

The Lateran is the holy land where the Cult’s headquarters is located.

A street lined with buildings crafted by the finest architects over the centuries. The towering cathedral, along with the cobblestones and alleys, all echo centuries of history.

As the brilliant radiance lent by the heavens began to sweep away the serene morning fog, vitality started to fill the holy land.

Two days before Frederick arrived at the Cult.

As Lucia gazed blankly at the city awakening to the morning, she was suddenly pulled back to reality by the voice of a Nun.

“Let’s go.”

“Yes.”

Walking along a path that wound between stone pillars, the marble soon gave way to gravel and grass.

A garden set within the cathedral.

An old man, softly caressing his equipment and inhaling the aromas, looked up just in time to see her.

“Have you arrived?”

Pope John XVI.

The soon-to-retire Pope greeted her with an unexpectedly innocent smile for his age and gestured for her to take a seat.

“Thank you for accepting the invitation, Saint. Refreshments have been prepared, so please sit comfortably.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

Lucia willingly took her seat at the place prepared for her.

Approaching with his staff tapping the grass, the Pope received assistance from a Priest. As a middle-aged Priest carefully pulled out a chair, the Pope leaned his staff against the table and slowly settled into the chair.

A weary sigh mixed with labored breaths lingered at the table, also…

For a moment.

Pope John XVI raised the pitcher and filled his glass as well as Lucia’s.

“Thank you for humoring the whims of an old man. I would have liked to visit in person, but moving this old body isn’t exactly easy.”

The garden in the cathedral courtyard retained a soft green hue even in the chilly weather.

The plants, meticulously cared for by priests and monks, radiated a healthy glow, and the fragrant aroma of blooming flowers danced with the breeze.

Roses bloomed within reach. The pope stretched out his hand and plucked one.

“It smells delightful. Would you like to take a whiff, Saint?”

“Are you talking about the rose?”

“Indeed.”

“Oh, yes. Please wait a moment.”

Requesting understanding, Lucia stood up from her chair and tiptoed closer to the rose bush.

Carefully touching the roses to avoid thorns, she bent down to inhale their fragrance.

“…Mmm.”

Pope John XVI, who had been staring at her intently, remained silent until Lucia returned to the table, a pensive expression on his face.

Lucia, tidying the petals stuck in her hair, spoke up.

“It smells wonderful.”

“Doesn’t it? The gardeners will be pleased to hear that.”

With a bright smile, the pope waved his hand to dismiss the surroundings.

First, the inquisitors and nuns who had been assisting the pope and the saint left. Then the priests vacated their seats. When the guardsmen, stationed at the corner of the garden, finally exited through the door, only the pope and the saint were left.

Drinking from the clear glass filled with water, the pope began the conversation with a light greeting.

“These days, doctors are clamoring about cutting down on sweets. Since I’m getting on in years, just like the emperor, they say I should prioritize my health, but giving up what I love is easier said than done, I worry.”

“Good medicine is often bitter for the body, isn’t it?”

“So, I discreetly sneak candies. It’s the only joy in the life of an old man. Hehe.”

The pope chuckled playfully as he popped a candy from the table into his mouth.

Lucia, looking at him with concern, suddenly lifted her gaze at the sound of the pope’s voice.

“May I receive the answer to the question I posed to you yesterday today, in this very place?”

“I’m sorry, Your Holiness.”

Lucia gently shook her head.

“I haven’t found the answer yet.”

“I see you are still mulling it over, is that so?”

“Embarrassingly, yes. That is correct.”

“Hehe.”

Lucia bowed her head, while the pope chuckled heartily and waved it off, reassuring her with a gentle smile.

“No one else can make me wait this long but you.”

“Me?”

“Indeed. Even the bishops and cardinals have never made me wait like this. You’re the first to keep me waiting.”

“What about Saint Veronica?”

“Ah….”

The sudden utterance of Veronica’s name cast a shadow over Pope John XVI’s expression.

“Well, yes. There is one more person who makes me wait every time. It’s not just that they keep me waiting, they also make me anxious… Let’s put that aside for now.”

His face, filled with worry, trailed off as he muttered, clearing his throat awkwardly. He then smoothly redirected the conversation.

“I arranged this meeting to hear your answer, but I did not call you here just for that.”

“Do you have something else to say to me?”

“Indeed. That’s it.”

“What are you trying to say?”

“It’s a complicated matter. Should I label it philosophical or theological? It’s also political. A difficult subject to define succinctly.”

Pausing in his explanation, the pope took a moment to quench his thirst.

He then placed his wrinkled hand on the staff’s handle and said:

“To sum it up in one sentence….”

“…….”

“It would be a discussion about the future of our church and the cult.”

*

“Lucia? She’s in her quarters right now. But I doubt you can go in.”

“Why is that?”

“Did you forget, Colonel? That time the Imperial Guard planted a spy in my quarters and set up a listening device? Because of that, security has tightened. Dozens of knights are guarding around the place, and the Inquisition is keeping a close watch—who could get in? No one can enter right now. Not even me.”

“Lucia isn’t receiving visitors then.”

“Correct. Has that girl grown wise? She doesn’t even come out when I show up anymore.”

With an irritated demeanor, Veronica puffed out a breath, sounding as if she had no other option.

“So just give it up. Don’t exhaust yourself unnecessarily.”

“Isn’t there really anyone going in or out? Even just to the building?”

“Well, the priests assisting Lucia and the Knights Order, and people handling her necessities are in and out, I suppose. Some commute to and from her place. But why are you asking?”

“…….”

“…….”

Lost in thought, maintaining silence, Veronica’s expression suddenly shifted subtly.

Without noticing ash fall on her outfit, she gazed at me with a questioning look.

“Colonel.”

“Yes?”

“Surely you aren’t thinking of disguising yourself as a priest to sneak into Lucia’s quarters, right? Are you?”

Veronica pressed with her questions as if urging for an answer. I quietly lit a cigarette and met her gaze.

No further dialogue was needed.

“Go find out the list of entrants and the way to her quarters.”

“What kind of lunatic are you….”

Throwing away the cigar, Veronica promptly grabbed the back of her neck.

 

---