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“The Director of the Kingdom Rehabilitation Medicine Center, Hop Harvey, has completed the relocation of Hero Zion Laurel.”

“As a specialist in rehabilitation medicine, this is a trip abroad facilitated by space movement from the Magic Tower.”

“Thank you very much, Mages. You’ve worked hard.”

As soon as they arrived at the Holy Law Country, Zion cheerfully greeted the mages from the Magic Tower who had performed the space teleportation.

“Oh, no need for such words. It’s just embarrassing to hear that from you, Hero.”

“I know very well how much effort the Mages working here in the Holy Law Country put in.”

“Haha…”

The mages just smiled awkwardly at Zion’s words.

As in any fantasy, the Church and the Magic Tower didn’t get along well, and the tower being built in the capital of the Holy Law Country was a necessity born out of mutual support during a long war.

Now that the war was over, the Magic Tower in the Holy Law Country was like an isolated castle in enemy territory, so Zion was right in saying that the mages had it tough.

Following the guidance of the mages, as they opened the door of the Magic Tower and stepped outside, a white wagon decorated with red fabric was waiting for them at the entrance.

“Huh? That wagon is…”

“The wagon? Zion, do you know that wagon?”

“It must belong to the Pope…”

“Excuse me?”

Before Zion could finish his sentence, the door of the wagon opened, and a large man clad in robes symbolizing the Pope, with a short blonde hairstyle, stepped down to greet them.

“Welcome to the Holy Law Country, Hero Zion Laurel. Rehabilitation Expert Hop Harvey. I am Pope Silane IV.”

The Pope himself came to greet them at the entrance of the Magic Tower!

With a dignified presence and a deep, resonant voice that emanated authority.

The Pope bowed his head slightly in respect, and I hurriedly bent my waist to return the greeting.

“Thank you for personally coming to greet us, Your Holiness. I am Hop Harvey, Rehabilitation Expert.”

“Of course I should come out to meet great figures of the world! I should have thanked you first, but you beat me to it.”

“I’m not sure what you mean by offering thanks.”

“Oh, come on! There’s no way I could thank you enough for all you’ve done.”

The Pope stepped closer to me and placed his right hand lightly on my shoulder.

“Raise your head.”

When the Pope allowed it, I lifted my head to look at his face.

A striking, handsome man with a sturdy build, about 190 cm tall, and smooth blonde hair.

Without the robes and hat, he had a surprisingly unexpected image for a Pope, radiating a spirited aura in both tone and demeanor.

“Thank you for opening a new horizon in healing, recovery, and service. I am truly learning a lot from you.”

“That’s too kind of you.”

“No, no, not at all. Excessive modesty isn’t a good look. You’re much more remarkable than you think! Hahaha!”

The Pope laughed heartily, shaking his shoulders.

Once he finished talking about me, the Pope turned his head toward Zion, who was sitting in the wheelchair.

“Next to the face I wanted to see, I see a familiar face! The Messenger of God is also here.”

“Have you been well during this time?”

“All thanks to you. There’s really nothing to be grateful for in this world but you. Can I thank you once more?”

“It’s a bit embarrassing, but if it’s what Your Holiness wants, you may do so as much as you’d like.”

“Great, great! Thank you for saving the world. I’ve heard you are undergoing rehabilitation, so I will pray for your swift recovery.”

“If Your Holiness prays for me, I will definitely get better soon.”

While I was all tense, Zion was comfortably chatting with the Pope.

Is this how a hero acts?

It was a scene that truly made me grasp Zion’s position in this world once again.

After the bustling greeting with the Pope ended, it was time to board the wagon prepared by him and head to the Papal Palace, where the Pope was already seated inside, waiting for us.

“Hero. I will carry you to the wagon.”

“Oh, um…”

While Zion, sitting in the wheelchair, looked up at the wagon, he rejected the hands offered by the nuns accompanying the Pope and stared at me intently.

“Could you carry me, Teacher?”

Zion reached out his hand as if asking to be picked up.

Does he dislike being entrusted to strangers?

“Sure.”

I bent down, allowing Zion’s hand to slip over my shoulder, then supported his armpit while creating space under his legs, and lifted him up.

With my other hand grasping the wagon’s handle, I stepped onto the platform first and settled into my seat before moving Zion to the spot next to me.

“Looks like a knight and a princess, huh?”

“Hahaha, both the knight and the princess are about Zion.”

“Really? To me, you seem quite knightly as well.”

Zion seemed a bit shy at the Pope’s joke and lowered his head.

The wagon, befitting the Pope, rolled smoothly and comfortably toward the Papal Palace without any jolts.

“Hop Harvey.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

“Actually, you know, when I first heard about you, I was both amazed and quite angry.”

“What? You were angry… did I do something wrong?”

“No, no. It’s anger directed at myself. I am, after all, a Pope. I don’t hold bad feelings toward others.”

Using “I am a Pope” as an excuse…

Is there ANYONE who speaks like that more trustworthy in this world?

“Treating the sick, rescuing the broken… I believed such things would always be best done by our Holy Law Country.”

“I think so too.”

“Haha, don’t tease me. If you knew what we did for the patients who flocked for treatment after the war, you’d likely be shocked.”

“Shocked? What did you do?”

The Pope seemed to slump, shoulders drooping, and smiled helplessly as he shared his answer.

“Prayer.”

“……”

That answer left me utterly speechless.

It wasn’t hard to understand given that this was the Holy Law Country, but…

“Our pride, the Holy Magic, can drive away illnesses and heal humans, but it’s not perfect. We can stitch together torn flesh with healing magic, but scars will remain. Leaving scars on the outside means scars of damage remain inside the muscles. We can reattach a severed arm, but only immediately after it was cut, and that arm can’t move like it did before. We can’t completely fix scars from fire or ice either. The pain that drives a person mad isn’t something we can remedy. Though we’ve seen people with disabilities raised by the Lord and the blind given sight, we cannot do such things. It means there is no Holy Magic that can heal disabilities. Unfortunately.”

The Pope gazed out the window with an expression of emptiness.

He propped his elbows on the window frame, rested his forehead on his hands, sighed, and continued.

“During the long war, countless adventurers returned as disabled individuals, trembling in their hands and feet due to the ceaseless cycles of injury and healing. We thought we couldn’t cure them, so we hoped the Lord would do it for us. Pretty pathetic, huh?”

“That’s not true.”

“Don’t give me empty words. I’m a Pope, and I won’t get mad if you speak honestly.”

A prolonged silence settled in the wagon.

Sensing my inability to respond, the Pope smiled wryly, as if expecting it, and opened his mouth once more.

“Of course, there were no miracles of those praying suddenly getting up and running out healed, and amidst that, news of rehabilitation medicine started to come in… Haha, you see, Hop.”

“Yes, Your Holiness.”

“Do you know why we can use the power of God?”

“Um… Is it because the Lord permits us to do so?”

“You could say that, but strictly speaking, no. The reason we can use the power of God is because we were fashioned resembling God.”

The Pope raised his palm and gathered divine energy, creating a sparkling golden light.

“We are each a replica of God, so the power we use can be said to be our own. It’s not something borrowed from somewhere; it’s something drawn out from within ourselves. Hence, we call Holy Magic ‘magic.’ We use mana just like magic.”

Wow, did that really come out of the Pope’s mouth?

Recognition of Holy Magic as part of magic?

“Ah, don’t go telling anyone you heard me say this. Don’t say it was me who said it either.”

“Yes… Of course, that should be kept to ourselves…”

Given that it was the Pope’s words, I figured there wouldn’t be anything wrong with that doctrine, yet here he was, casually uttering statements that were considered taboo…

“And rehabilitation medicine is basically about us fixing ourselves with our own power. You taught us that method. I’ve truly gained so much insight.”

“Thank you for such high praise.”

This church in this world is far more open and rational than I’d expected…

It was a bit shocking, yet, at least the Pope’s mindset clearly seemed to be remarkably open-minded.

“Oh, you’ll be stopping by the Papal Palace before heading to check on the rehabilitation center, right?”

“That’s exactly right. I came to check on and support the rehabilitation center of the Holy Law Country.”

“Will the hero be joining you?”

“Yes.”

Upon my answer that I would be accompanying Zion, the Pope showed a smile with an unreadable meaning.

“Then it’s going to be a delightful meeting. There’s someone eagerly awaiting your arrival.”

“Waiting? Who on earth…”

“If I tell you in advance, it won’t be fun. It’s better to go find out for yourself.”

There’s someone else anticipating us?

And a delightful meeting at that? Who on earth could it be…

 

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