“Why are you so irritated?”
Arthur, who was following closely beside Lucart, spoke up. Lucart glanced at him with an indifferent expression before finally speaking.
“I’m not irritated.”
He replied curtly.
“It’s suspicion.”
Arthur scoffed.
“I don’t understand why you’re so suspicious of lady Shekina. She’s such a warm and kind person!”
As he passionately defended her, Lucart narrowed his eyes.
“Isn’t it because you have a particular fondness for children?”
“……..…”
Arthur, momentarily lost for words, clutched his chest.
“Wow, my lord. You really know how to stab me where it hurts.”
Lucart flinched slightly but knew that Arthur’s words were ultimately meaningless, so he didn’t pay much attention to them. As expected, Arthur quickly changed the subject.
“Well, there’s that, but…”
He suddenly thought of his two children, and then, with a bitter smile, shook his head.
“As I said before, lady Shekina is someone worth trusting.”
“That remains to be seen.”
Lucart stated firmly.
“I still don’t trust her.”
“Yes, yes. Just don’t regret later that you should have trusted her.”
Arthur chuckled as he turned his gaze towards the path Shekina had taken.
“I hope she’s careful on her journey.”
He sincerely wished for nothing to go wrong.
***
However, nothing will go smoothly when Shekina is involved.
Shekina, who had followed Dehan to the central temple, which served as the Vatican, recalled the quest window.
Side Quest: <Infiltrate the Vatican!>
There is a sinister aura lingering in the central temple, the Vatican.
The perpetrators may not notice it, but we are different. Let’s find the source of this aura!
Something good might be waiting there!
(Hint: All auras flow from bottom to top.)
Reward: ???
Failure: Death
A sinister aura.
Something good.
When these two things are combined, Shekina could only conclude one thing.
‘It’s an artifact.’
In Shekina’s memory, there’s a bow belonging to the Demon King in this dungeon. But she doubted that the system would give her a quest just for a single bow.
She had discovered many artifacts before, but this was the first time she had been given such a direct order through a quest window.
‘This means there’s something truly amazing here.’
Just imagining Lucifer clutching his stomach and rolling on the ground made her feel great.
“…Lady Shekina.”
At this moment, Dehan spoke.
“Huh? What?”
“Your expression.”
“My expression?”
“Yes… it looks like you’re determined to make someone suffer.”
“Oh…”
This kid has sharp eyes.
Shekina quickly masked her expression.
“Stop saying weird things and hurry up.”
“Understood.”
Dehan, shaking off his doubts, started walking ahead. What would change even if he doubted Shekina? After all, he had already decided to follow her.
Yes. He trusted Shekina. He relied on her. That was the conclusion Dehan had reached.
Soon, they arrived in front of a massive door that resembled a grand castle gate. There were no guards, as the teachings were that the door was open to everyone, but no one dared to cross the threshold easily.
People would hesitate due to the overwhelming presence of the enormous door and the fearsome statues that stretched out on both sides. Because of this, most people never approached the Vatican. Only the nobles and royalty, who were accustomed to such splendor, visited; commoners would usually turn back in fear.
Dehan was feeling the same.
He had been to the Vatican before, but that time he was accompanied by priests, so he was less nervous.
But not now. The fact that he had to step into this majestic place alone weighed heavily on his shoulders. His breath became labored.
It wasn’t like he had come to an inappropriate place; he was here at the Pope’s request, yet he still felt this fear.
Dehan clenched his fist tightly and took a deep breath. Then he looked back at Shekina, thinking she would feel the same as him.
But…
“Wow, if we take one of these floor tiles and sell it, we could live for a year. Right?”
Shekina had already passed him and was wandering around the hall as if it were her own home.
“Can’t we just take one of these statues? I think someone would love it.”
And she was thinking about stealing them.
“………..”
Who is that person, no, that demon…?
Are all demons born without fear…? Were they born without the concept of fear…?
But thanks to that, the pressure that had been weighing on Dehan eased up a bit. He smiled as he crossed the threshold.
“Don’t touch anything. If you get caught, it’s the death penalty.”
“Ugh, how stingy.”
Shekina responded playfully, trying to lighten the mood.
She had to do this because inside this wretched Vatican, there was a filthy aura so overwhelming that just breathing was infuriating.
This wasn’t just a dark aura or something similar.
‘It’s magic.’
It was a spell that creates mental disturbances to prevent unauthorized entry, a spell that only a mage could use.
It was probably, no, she was sure, that this wasn’t Lucifer’s doing. This kind of magic was mostly used by humans.
It must have been here long before Lucifer took over.
‘It’s likely intended to keep out the riffraff.’
This is probably what caused Dehan to hesitate.
‘They say God is open to all?’
What nonsense. Then why install such a device?
Whether it’s Lucifer or anyone else, it’s clear that the priests here aren’t in their right minds either.
Ugh, humans.
Ring!
[SYSTEM]
You’re human too, you know?
Ever heard of self-hatred?
Shekina let out a long sigh.
“Anyway, let’s hurry up. Didn’t you say we’re meeting the Pope?”
“Oh, yes!”
Dehan walked ahead. Shekina followed behind him, scanning her surroundings. She was looking for Sera, whom she had brought along.
‘Hey. Where are you?’
No response.
‘Answer before I lock you up in Calvin’s room.’
– Really annoying. I can’t believe I’m being controlled like this because of that one guy!
Sera grumbled in reply. Shekina chuckled.
‘Aren’t you my familiar? Shouldn’t you be listening to me?’
– I take it back. I want to be a free spirit!
‘Sorry, no refunds, dear customer.’
– Aaargh!
Suddenly, the sound of a cat’s meow startled Dehan, who was walking ahead.
“Did you hear that?”
His eyes widened in surprise.
“There’s no way a cat would be here… What’s going on?”
“Huh? What are you talking about?”
“……What?”
Dehan tilted his head in confusion.
“Didn’t you hear a cat meowing just now?”
“No. I didn’t hear anything.”
“What?”
“I didn’t hear anything. Are you sure you’re not hearing things? Have you been tired lately? Sick? Feeling weak?”
“……….”
But I definitely heard it…
However, if he insisted it was real, he would only be told again that he was hearing things.
So Dehan kept his mouth shut and continued walking.
‘You really need to shut up. I’ve told you several times not to get caught.’
Shekina sighed in relief and spoke to Sera.
– Hmph. I do what I want.
‘Then I’ll do what I want and give you to Calvin…’
– Alright, alright! I’ll be quiet! Is that good enough?
‘Perfect.’
Shekina smiled and looked up.
‘So, what did you find?’
– Below.
Sera replied confidently.
– It’s underground.
Shekina knew there was a dungeon underground. But why was Sera repeating herself?
Shekina tilted her head.
‘What’s down there? The dungeon? Weapons?’
– No. I’m talking about the thing that’s emitting that filthy, annoying aura. It’s underground.
Wait, what…?
Shekina involuntarily stopped in her tracks.
‘…Are you saying there’s a trace of dark magic?’
There should be a dungeon underground, and the dungeon should contain weapons. But traces of dark magic underground…?
Side Quest: <Infiltrate the Vatican!>
Something good might be waiting there?
Hah.
No way.
It couldn’t possibly be referring to dark magic as that ‘something good.’ No way, that doesn’t make sense…
– It’s not just a trace. It’s dark magic itself. I’m sure of it.
You’ve got to be kidding me.
Damn it…
“Why is life like this…”
Shekina felt disheartened.
