I Became The Pope, Now What?

Someone was standing on the head of the giant white snake. Neither the snake nor the man moved and stayed a safe distance away. As for the scents, Sylvester smelled a lot of rage from the snake. In contrast, the man above it was so small that his emotion got overridden by the snake’s scent.

Sylvester put one palm towards the snake and prepared to shoot the wrath of heavens beam. But, simultaneously, he kept his second strongest attack, the Holyfire Purge, ready.

“State your name and purpose for being here!” The knight commander shouted aloud.

“Hissss!” The snake slithered and glared at the man with its huge eyes.

Slowly, the air started to feel heavy as the man above the snake didn’t utter a word and began to command the snake to come closer to the wall.

Sylvester started chanting a hymn under his breath, and instantly the halo appeared. Those who knew Sylvester knew what was about to happen.

“Stop!”

Lady Aurora abruptly pushed his raised palm down. “That’s the Sixth Guardian of Light! I didn’t know he had such a pet, but it’s definitely him—The famed Winter Ghost.”

But Sylvester didn’t stop until he had confirmation. So he asked the man by incorporating the question in his hymn.

…My words echo the will of the lord.

I stand against the evil damned by god.

Do not force us to raise our blessed sword.

Speak, stranger, are you his light’s guard??

The man on the snake’s head also sounded like a snake. He spoke in long hissing breaths by prolonging the ‘s’ sounds in his words. “I am what you say~”

“Prove it!” Sir Dolorem boomed. The man feared nothing at this point.

The man on the snake took out a parchment from his robes and showed it. “Yours, thisss isss~”

‘We have another lunatic freak among the ranks of Guardians now. Why are they not normal like Lady Aurora?’

“Forgive me, Lord Winter Ghost. Recently the town was infiltrated by a heathen who killed two hundred innocent children. What might you do with that snake? We can’t let it move inside the town as people will be frightened.” Sylvester respectfully apologised and asked.

Winter Ghost knelt on the snake’s head and patted it. “Ashra, be a good girl. Go to the nearby valley and sleep. Do not attack anyone unlesss they attack you. Eat the Giant wolvesss and lionsss when hungry~”

While that happened, Sylvester spoke to Miraj in whispers. “Can you kill that white snake?”

Miraj sleepily looked while yawning. Soon, his hair stood up, and he hissed. “So big! But I think I can still eat it. Don’t mind its size, Maxy. My throat is very deep, and I can swallow anything, no matter how long.”

“…”

“A yes or no would have sufficed, but alright.”

Sylvester watched as Winter Ghost sent the snake named Ashra away and walked towards the closed gates. The man wore loose white clothing, from pants to long tunics and the furred cloak above with protruding shoulders—all white. There was also a strange furry cap on his head, and his mouth was covered with a white cloth.

The man looked as goofy as possible, but Sylvester was used to it now after seeing Inquisitor High Lord and Lord Bloodrain with their visors and long pointy hats.

The gates were swiftly opened, and Sylvester greeted the man with some reservations. He never trusted any clergyman at the first meeting, as that was a rule of thumb he had adopted since school.

“Respected Sixth Guardian, welcome to Frozen Town. I am grateful to you for providing us with your assistance.” Sylvester stayed humble.

Though Lady Aurora didn’t need to act reserved at all. “Senior Guardian, it’s a pleasure to meet you. I had only heard about you before, and now, I finally get to see you. You look as mysterious as the legends say.”

Winter Ghost bowed his head lightly, not being much of a talker, as he soon explained in his hissing voice. “Winter is my home, and it is only I who mansss The Last Church, east of Mount Primisss. Forgive me for my lack of enthusiasm in communication. Isolation is my bliss~”

‘So he lives alone without any regular supervision from the Holy Land? The smells are strange too. Peace, admiration, doubt, and what’s this new smell of a… Durian?’

The new scent alone made Sylvester interested in investigating the man first.

“I am Duchess Melina Iceling. Thank you for accepting the call for help, Lord Sixth.” The Duchess came forward to greet the man.

But Winter Ghost didn’t react much to her words and only looked at Sylvester. “I wasss told you are the battle commander? Where isss the army?”

“On their way, Lord Winter. The snow covers the roads, so they are required to shovel the roads clean before moving. Right now, it’s the last month of the year, so by the middle of the first month of next year, we shall have at least a hundred thousand soldiers here. If the gods grace us, then perhaps fifty thousand more. So we have until then to plan our actions.” Sylvester didn’t reveal too much, such as information about Emperor Lich.

Since they were among the soldiers of the Duchy, he revealed the number of soldiers coming to fight to boost their morale. After all, what good was a soldier who had no will to fight?

“That isss good,” Winter Ghost replied and went silent again.

Since the man was so hard to talk to, Sylvester decided to retreat into the castle and prepare to leave for Grand Fort Borzol.

As they turned around, he walked beside Sir Dolorem and started tapping on the blind Inquisitor’s shoulder. They were uneven taps, but not without meaning. Sometimes short taps and sometimes long ones.

Sir Dolorem didn’t speak and merely nodded the entire time. In the end, he affirmed. “Understood, Lord Bard. My senses shall remain sharp.”

Sylvester warned his most loyal subordinate about his doubts about the Sixth Guardian. Sylvester reckoned it was better to share his suspicions with a man as faithful as Sir Dolorem.

Thud!

Thud!

However, just as the gates of the town were closing again, the earth started to shake a little. The soldiers hurriedly closed the gates and took their positions on the wall again with their weapons aimed out.

The sound of the thuds only increased and soon cleared up enough to make out that this was the sound of a marching army. They knew that Barbarians didn’t use any military formation, but they still stayed alert.

Thud!

Thud! 𝚍ｎ𝚘ｖ𝚕．𝚘𝚛𝚐

From the land of sand, we come. We have the blood of warriors.

Wherever we go, home it becomes. We lust for the blood of foreigners.

Our battles are glorious. Our swords and shields are strong.

We’re always victorious, for we never commit any wrong!?

The marching song resounded, and it became clear where the men had come from. The land of sand was another name for Sandwall County, as it was extraordinarily sandy and bordered the Masan Empire and crude entrance to the Divine Desert.

Eventually, the army arrived outside the town walls and stopped in a neat and clean formation. The man in fine golden armour and a red feathered cloak at the front came forward on the horse and saluted.

“I am Sir Regulus Sandwall, the eldest son of Count Sandwall. I have come to aid in securing my younger brother’s release. Please allow me and my disciplined soldiers to take refuge.” shouted the tall, black-haired, black-eyed and bearded man with much etiquette.

But Sylvester frowned at the scene. ‘At most, there’s just a thousand men in his army. And they think of getting Felix released with this?’

Duchess Melina ordered to open the gates quickly as she knew Regulus very well. The Sandwall family was a famous and well-respected family, after all. Furthermore, they were the protectors of the west and the famed strongest noble house in Gracia when it came to individual strength of soldiers.

“Sir Regulus, please follow us to my castle. There is much to discuss as many new revelations have come about. Sixth Guardian arrived here mere minutes before you.” She stoically led the way to the black-bricked castle.

Sylvester had planned to leave to meet the barbarians, but he postponed for a few hours as he needed to clear something with the new arrivals. They were likely still under the illusion that they were in charge, especially Felix’s brother.

As they arrived at the Duchess’ office, they sat around a large table to discuss the matter. First of all, the major bombs were dropped. The news about Emperor Lich was shared, instantly rattling Sir Regulus.

Sylvester’s eyes were fixated on Sixth Guardian, however. “Lord Winter Ghost, you’ve lived in the mountains for so long. Did you not notice the arrival of the undead?”

“I do not venture into the lands of Barbariansss, as it usually leads to senselessss bloodshed~”

‘Smells like lies, but it’s not as strong. Which part is true and which is false?’

“What about my brother?” Sir Regulus asked. “He’s been under captivity for so long. Is he even alive?”

“Yes, he is. I infiltrated the enemy fort once and checked him. They have kept him secure, but I was able to hand him a lot of food and other resources to survive inside the deep pit prisons. In fact, I was planning on going there and getting him released.” Sylvester knew what was coming next.

So before Sir Regulus could speak, he added. “Sir Regulus, Felix is like a brother to me. While your army of a thousand can do nothing to the army of tens of thousands that belong to the Borzol faction. I’m grateful you came, but now this situation has evolved into a much grander mess. So please be patient and let me take the helm, as commanded by the Pope and agreed by the Duchess.”

Sir Regulus looked down at his own hands. “How big is the enemy army?”

“Barbarians will likely number in the tens of thousands. As for the undead, they can be millions. The real danger is from Emperor Lich, as it could very well be of Supreme Wizard Rank.”

Sir Regulus sipped in some cold air as his face contorted into an ugly mess. He looked around and questioned genuinely. “How are we going to fight something like this?”

“I have everything planned, Sir. Lady Aurora and Sir Dolorem will explain later. By the way, why did you only bring a thousand men, Sir?”

Sir Regulus shamefully looked away, the guilt being evident in his eyes. He scoffed and sneered as he took the name of his own father. “Our father is… He’s not the best man. He considers Felix a disappointment because he got caught by the barbarians. Father believes that if Felix can’t even survive this, he isn’t worth supporting at all. I had to fight him, and this is the number I could gather.”

Sylvester genuinely felt sorry for Felix. The boy lost his mum at a young age and had a father like Count Sandwall. It was amazing that Felix even grew to be so goofy and kind in ways.

‘What a mad, obsessed man with power and prestige. Felix is already better than most other knights and is bound to be a Platinum Knight. What’s there not to be proud of?’

Sylvester felt conflicted by the family.

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