Chapter 190

On the 99th floor of the Pantheon, where not a single visitor had set foot for years, the Staff of Faith, Harry, had come face to face with his first guest.

“How long have you been here?” Seojin asked.

“Not too long.”

“Where were you before?”

“I traveled to many places. It allowed me to see much and encounter hidden records. Is this an interrogation?”

“Just curious. Stopping here implies you’ve achieved a certain goal, right?”

“I wouldn’t say I’ve achieved it.”

Harry smiled kindly. His decision to stay wasn’t due to achieving his goal, but realizing that no matter how much he sought, it was never enough. The records were everywhere, and reading them changed nothing.

“You’re referring to the records of the gods?”

“Yes.”

“So instead of trying to comprehend them, you chose to actively seek them out. Discovering things wouldn’t change anything either.”

“Very direct, aren’t you? You’re correct.”

“If it makes you uncomfortable, I’ll be more careful. I judged too hastily based on Aikora’s words.”

“No, you saw correctly.”

Seojin stood up and approached the entrance to the 99th floor. He saw the light staircase and Aikora’s “ceiling” still in place.

“Why put up such cumbersome devices? Even mediocre followers can exert significant influence if there are many of them.”

Aikora had claimed that a few powerful believers could greatly aid in restoring the gods’ powers.

‘But that’s fallacious.’

At least in Asgard, a deity’s power was proportional to the quantity and quality of its followers. Even with lower devotion, a large number of followers could grant immense influence to a god.

As Seojin looked outside, he heard Harry’s response behind him.

“Is it strange after all?”

“I could tell how much trust Aikora had in you. She even believed such words.”

Seojin turned around, looking at Harry’s ever-smiling face.

“You gave Aikora power. Enough to warrant the title of Saint. Not a small feat in an Empire, not some backwater nation.”

“I did.”

“It’s strange for a mere human to grant such power. Even high-ranking bishops can’t do that.”

“Perhaps.”

Power in a religious hierarchy was granted based on one’s worthiness to their deity, not the ability to empower a follower.

“But you did. As the Staff of Faith, maintaining a position untouchable, even by the emperor.”

“That too seems strange, doesn’t it?”

“Just as a god’s power stems from its followers, so does a follower’s power. The gods you serve have vanished from this land, yet you perform miracles.”

“How strange indeed.”

Harry’s smile deepened but he didn’t reply. Seojin raised two fingers.

“I have two hypotheses.”

“Then the answer must be one of them.”

“The first is that there was something among the things you found, something that allows you to exercise such power without resorting to the gods.”

“For example?”

“A way to read the divine language, for example.”

Harry’s smile grew thicker, but he did not respond this time. Seojin raised a second finger.

“My second hypothesis is simpler. Not all the gods have vanished. Someone remains, wishing for the others’ return. You serve that being.”

Again, Harry did not respond, only nodding slightly, his smile fading a bit. Seojin took his seat again.

He had seized control of the conversation. Harry hadn’t expected Seojin to know so much.

“Will you tell me, Harry?”

“It seems I must. It’s been a long time since I’ve felt like I was being tested.”

“That’s probably because you haven’t met anyone so far. Isn’t this level of questioning normal?”

“Up to that point, yes. But...”

“...”

“I think there’s more to your words than what you’ve just said.”

“I won’t lie to you. It’s as you presume.”

Harry studied Seojin’s face for a long time, trying to gauge him, but it was futile. Adventurers were beings beyond the rules of this world.

Harry’s smile shifted slightly. Like how Raul had his dreams, so did the Staff of Faith, Harry, have a fervent goal.

“...I was an archaeologist.”

* * *

As an archaeologist, Harry’s profession had been to explore records of the past, and it demanded extensive knowledge in his chosen field.

His pursuit was the lost technologies of ancient times, not merely aggressive ones, but those that might be of some benefit to the world. His role was to seek them out.

However, the artifacts unearthed or the ruins discovered didn’t always align with his desires. He couldn’t ignore them either, naturally leading him to ancient records, where he uncovered many astonishing facts.

“Many gods had been forgotten, gods even greater than those revered in current parishes. There were no worries on this land when they were around.”

It seemed unbelievable. Initially dismissed as primitive beliefs, the consistency of the records seeded conviction in Harry. The world was at peace then, but then these beings had vanished into thin air.

“It wasn’t time to search for trivial things. Even the most revolutionary technologies paled compared to their return. Technology, after all, is merely a tool.”

Tools, once found, often ended up in the hands of the powerful. What was meant to save the populace became the privilege of the elite. Harry had witnessed this inevitable pattern repeat many times.

That shifted his focus and direction of his research, and ultimately, he remained the only archaeologist dedicated to his area. It was a field that did not receive support of those in power after all.

“They didn’t want change. I was more convinced of this. I had to succeed, no matter the sacrifice.”

It was like throwing straws against the wind at first. But at some point, Harry’s working conditions drastically improved.

“I could read them. The words those beings had left behind.”

He could start reading the divine language. What seemed like simple pictographs began to hold meaning. Of course, he couldn’t read everything, but only a tiny amount of fragmented information.

Despite that, it was enough to give Harry the ability to wield immense power.

“Not all of it was meaningful. Some of it was incomprehensible. But how could a human fully understand the will of gods?”

“What were they?”

“As I recall... it said something like this.”

Harry recalled with grave seriousness, “Looking for a party to raid Lag. Lawful_Catnip.”

“...Ah.”

“So you know about it.”

Harry was impressed. That kind of response wasn’t something that could be acted out. The adventurer truly knew the meaning behind those words.

“Roughly. Continue. We’ll talk about me later.”

Harry found his motivation surging. He had long discarded the guise of the Staff of Faith. Such titles were mere vanity bestowed by the people of this land, irrelevant to the adventurer before him.

The conversation continued. Harry shared his experiences without reservation. What he didn’t know, he admitted; what he knew, he told him. Each time, Seojin’s responses met his expectations.

“So, someone supreme being wants those gods to return, and that being seems to have helped you. That was how you were able to read the divine language, obtained this tower from the Emperor, and fortunately that being seems to have taken a liking to the direction you’re taking. Am I right?”

“That’s correct.”

“I think I understand where things are going now.”

Seojin did not disappoint Harry’s expectations this time either.

“Which part?”

“All of it. Aikora didn’t relay my claim that I could bring back the gods on that list?”

“I didn’t receive that.”

“You probably didn’t expect a visitor. It’s fine. Anyway, it’s true, and the entity giving you power is likely one of the gods still exerting influence on this land.”

“On this land?”

“A god with a cult and followers. Perhaps less powerful than the forgotten ones, but longing for them.”

Harry’s face brightened. If true, this entity shared his goal.

“A benevolent god!”

“I don’t know what you’re basing benevolence on, but yes. Similar to you, desiring peace on this land as in the days of old.”

Seojin had a rough idea of this god’s identity, recalling a girl from his time playing Asgard, a deity, more human than any other.

“Which god could be helping me...?”

“Let’s leave it here. I won’t lie to you, but I can’t tell you everything. I’m here for a transaction.”

“I’ll do anything.”

“If you keep that mindset, you’ll likely achieve your goal. This is the 99th floor, right?”

“Yes.”

“I need to go up one more floor. Can you open the way?”

“This is the end of the Pantheon. There’s nothing above here, adventurer.”

“Oh, but there is.”

“Pardon?”

“There is one more floor. It was designed that way.”

“...?”

Harry found it incomprehensible. He had overseen the tower’s construction, supported by the Emperor. But Seojin spoke with such certainty.

“Didn’t the engineers perhaps tell you that it’s impossible to build above the 99th floor?”

“...They did.”

They claimed that it was physically impossible. That it would never be possible with today’s technology. Harry had believed them, but Seojin now suggested a different reason.

“That’s because it’s not supposed to be possible for humans to go up there in the first place.”