Chapter 227 - The Vault
The Vatican Secret Archives were located in Vatican City. These archives were under the ownership of the serving pope until death or resignation. The Vatican Secret Archives mainly contained the state papers, correspondence, papal account books, plus many other documents which had been accumulated by the church over the centuries. That was the information that was exposed to the public. There were even some public tours set up to see the vault. But there was actually another hidden vault, which held some of the world's most priceless treasures.
Dozens of people walked toward the building where the vaults were located. Those people were the pope, the president of Greece, the mayor of Rome, the ambassador of Spain, as well as the unknown ambassador of German. All of them were being escorted by the ambassador of France, Marshal Louis, and his four bodyguards and the Roman police forces.
As they walked into the archives building, the pope leisurely talked with the mysterious German ambassador. This man was not much younger than the pope, but he seemed to be brimming with energy.
"I am so glad I decided to come today.... I never thought that I would be able to see the famous vault."
"You probably know more about this vault than I do... Sir Heinrich."
The conversation between these two elder figures felt off to those who heard it. They didn't know why, but they had an uncanny feeling about it.
The party finally arrived at the building where the Vatican Archives was located. Access to the vault was in the form of a special elevator to the basement.
All the guards, including the Swiss guards and Roman soldiers, waited outside the building. Apart from the personal bodyguard of the pope, only the four special bodyguards of the French ambassador accompanied them to enter the vault. Marshal Louis was extremely confident in the abilities of his four bodyguards. This was because they were not only members of the French Foreign Legion special forces, but all of them had reached above level 10 of the Earth Realm.
Seth, the pope's bodyguard, used a special lock on the elevator panel and turned a hidden additional floor open.
"A hidden floor... the Vatican sure is confident, to keep the real vault right under the fake one," exclaimed Marshal Louis.
The pope simply answered, "There are no treasures that are fake here, Mr. Ambassador. Every item here is a priceless treasure that is part of the world's history."
"Yes, yes, Cardinal... I'm only interested in seeing the valuable treasures... gold, gems… The shinier the better, of course."
Hearing this, the mayor of Rome, who took part in this matter, could no longer remain silent and reminded, "Marshall Louis. Just because we are willing to help you does not mean that you can disrespect the Holy Father..." He then apologized to the pope.
"It's... all right... I'm fine, my child."
Soon after, the group arrived at a large hall. In contrast to the archive room on the top floor, which was shaped like a library bookshelf, this hall looked more like a museum. The right and left of the hallway were filled with display cases of extremely valuable artifacts, from letters or important documents to equipment that were part of important human history.
They continued to walk forward until they finally reached the room that was filled with priceless artifacts. Around them, on their right and left were valuable artifacts. Seeing this, all eyes were shocked. Marshal Louis's expression became hysterical.
"Jackpot! This is much more amazing than I imagined!" His smile made it seem as though he had gotten control of the world.
Marshal Louis used the bracelet he got from the pillar to examine the equipment stored in the glass cases.
[Round Shield]
[Shield - Tier 2]
[One-handed shield, weighs 12 kilograms]
[Special effect - Extra resistance]
[Light Armor - Tier 2]
[A set of body armor, weighs 13.5 kilograms]
[Set item - Extra damage resistance]
[Crescent Sword - tier 2]
[90 centimeters long, 13 centimeters wide, weighs 12.5 kilograms]
[Special effects - Extra sharpness]
[Leather Coat - Tier 2]
[Body armor, weighs 2.5 kilograms]
[Special effect - Fire-resistant]
As far as the eye could see, more than a hundred artifacts were emblazoned in this place. At least one of the two artifacts was a Tier 1 artifact while there were nearly twenty Tier 2 items. Currently, the Doomsday Pillars only granted access to Tier 1 artifact equipment. For the marshal, the artifacts that were gathered in this place were more than enough to face the challenges of the apocalypse,
"HAHAHA... the Vatican Vault! It truly doesn't disappoint," exclaimed Marshal Louis. The others were just as amazed as he was. They had never seen so many artifact items.
The German ambassador also commented, "Good. Good... Very good."
"Sir Henry, you shouldn't tease with this old man too much..."
The pope continued to walk forward indifferently to the following hallway.
This time, the items displayed looked even more magnificent. Not only that, but there were four special artifacts stored here.
This time, looking at the artifacts in this room, the marshal's hand trembled. He used the bracelet in his hand to double-check everything. He was in disbelief. Each artifact had a description of it displayed in front of the glass case. But of course, the Marshal wanted to know the exact information from the bracelet on his hand.
The first artifact he saw was a bow that was almost as tall as an adult human. The inscription on the display case was - Bow of Attila the Hun.
[Bow of the Wind's Eye]
[Bow - Tier 3]
[150 centimeters long, weighs 14 kilograms]
[Special effect - Extra shooting range]
[Special skill - True Sight: The user will be able to see far away and control the arrows released by the bow.]
A bow that once belonged to an archer and fighter named Attila. Attila, frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. More than a millennia after his death, Attila's name remained known and was often associated with brutality. During his reign, he was one of the most feared enemies of the Western and Eastern Roman Empires.
The next artifact was a pair of spears and a shield with the inscription - Sparta.
[Lightning Javelin Spear]
[Spear - Tier 3]
[190 centimeters long, weighs 8 kilograms]
[Special effects - Sharp and light]
[Special skill - Piercing Rain: A torrent-like lightning strike.]
[Sun Shield]
[Shield - Tier 3]
[Diameter 120 centimeters, weighs 18 kilograms]
[Special effect - Extra durability and lightness]
[Special skill - Flash Attack: A beam attack capable of blinding an opponent.]
The Spartan Army was a military force in the city-state of Sparta, which was one of the strongest city-states in ancient Greece. This army was one of the core civilizations of the Spartan state. The main goal of each of its inhabitants was to become a strong warrior. The legend of Sparta was extremely well-known as the strongest fighter of his time, even until modern times.
Seeing the second artifact, the president of Greece seemed a bit sentimental. Sparta was part of the history of his people, after all.
The third artifact was a horn-shaped trumpet with the inscription - Alaric of the Visigoths.
[Horn of Warcry]
[Instrument- Tier 3]
[Diameter 60 centimeters, weighs 4 kilograms]
[Special skill - Warcry: Increases the war strength of all troops The area of effect and the affected number will depend on the power of the wielder.]
The history of King Alaric and the Visigoths, the leader who was able to besiege the city of Rome and sacked the city and made off with a huge haul of gold and jewels. Numerous historians marked this event as the beginning of the end for the Roman Empire in the west.
These three artifacts were Tier 3 artifacts that were far more valuable than all the other artifacts combined.
"These treasures once belonged to the enemy of Rome… They are spoils of war. With these treasures, no wonder these people could become a famous historical figure. Now having all three of them together, how awesome is this!" said the marshal.
However, the fourth artifact in the center of the room remained the center of attention of everyone present. This artifact was in the shape of an ordinary cup. It was not shiny, nor did it look precious, but everyone who saw it could vividly feel a strong aura. Written in front of it was "The Holy Grail".
Marshal Louis used his bracelet to check yet again.
[Unknown]
[Instrument - Tier ???]
[25 centimeters tall, weighs 5 kilograms]
[Special effect - Unknown]
[Special skill - Unknown]
Even the bracelet from the Doomsday Pillar was unable to analyze this artifact in front of them…
Marshal Louis laughed out loud. It seemed that the intel he received was indeed correct, and he did not walk from France to Rome in vain at all. For this artifact that even the bracelet from the Doomsday Pillar was unable to analyze, it was much more than simply worth it. He would still go for it even if it were on the other side of the world.