Chapter 135: Within the Holy See, the Demon Lord Seems to Have Spotted Miss Veya ​

Translation by: Weebsread👹

​

Aside from a few Retribution Knights who remained behind to keep order, Vice Commander Guga led the rest of his contingent away, vanishing from sight.

​

For a while, time itself seemed to freeze. The heady rush of felling Duke Ous faded, leaving only a hollow, uneasy stillness in its wake.

​

Lin Wei ran a trembling hand over his face, noticing with a sort of bitter amusement just how badly he was shaking.

​

It was as if he’d been peacefully strolling along when, without warning, a message had popped up: [The Goddess Alicia has taken a liking to you and wishes to grant you her legacy.]

​

Before he could even turn his head to see where the voice was coming from, another notification had crashed into his mind: [The Emperor of the Empire has noticed you and wishes to make you Emperor.]

​

“Anyone Guga would call a ‘major powerhouse’ has to be one of the three Grand Commanders of the Knights, or the Pope, or one of the two Archbishops. There’s no one else it could be.”

​

“Maybe, at the very least, one of those Central Bishops I nearly crippled on the battlefield—but I’ve seen all their faces. It’s not possible.”

​

That left him with only one answer.

​

Lin Wei fell utterly silent.

​

Could it really be... this?

​

My Veya—sometimes adorable, sometimes as aloof as ice, sometimes as clueless as a puppy—could she really be... the Pope?

​

He muttered under his breath, still unable to fully believe it.

​

But think about it—she’s been called the ‘Useless Pope’ all this time...

​

No wonder she kept running home, breaking down in tears and looking for comfort. Suddenly, it all makes sense.

​

Wait... So that feeling I had back then wasn’t just my imagination?

​

So that teaching position at the Imperial Capital’s Magic Academy really was just a cushy post?

​

“Mr. Lin Wei, are you alright?”

​

Yalis, who had been waiting nearby this whole time, finally spoke up, concern etched on her face.

​

Ever since they’d brought down Duke Ous, something in Mr. Lin Wei’s demeanor had felt…off. She couldn’t quite put it into words.

​

Was it that realization—“the person I met was actually the Pope”—that had shaken him so badly?

​

“There’s no need to worry! I just finished discussing a few plans to punish evildoers with Her Holiness the Pope,” Yalis said brightly, trying to lighten the mood. “Don’t forget, I’m supposed to become the next Pope myself! Mr. Lin Wei, you’d better get used to this—after a few more meetings with Popes, you’ll hardly bat an eye.”

​

“Then… could you take me to meet the Pope in person?”

​

Lin Wei’s words slipped out before he could stop himself, catching even him by surprise.

​

“Eh?”

​

Yalis blinked, thrown off for a moment. She rubbed her temples, looking at him in surprise. But it wasn’t as difficult to arrange as she’d expected.

​

“You want to meet the Pope? That’s no trouble, but an official audience would normally have to be arranged in advance. But since you've already been plotting with Her Holiness in secret about this matter—honestly, you’re practically an honorary ally of the Holy See now. If you want a meeting, I can easily put in a word for you!”

​

“No need for all those formalities. Just tell me—where does the Pope usually spend her time? Which room?”

​

Even Lin Wei was momentarily stunned by the urgency in his own voice.

​

After all, what if Veya wasn’t really the Pope, but only borrowing the title to hide her identity? What if the Pope possessed some holy power that could see straight through his Demon Lord disguise—the moment he stepped inside the Holy See, his masquerade would be over? Wouldn’t it be safer to just call Veya back and interrogate her thoroughly, instead of running around like this?

​

My own silly Veya, the Pope?

​

No matter how he turned it over in his mind, it was absurd. It was as ridiculous as imagining the Pope getting married to the Demon Lord! What a joke.

​

Yet... Lin Wei’s instincts screamed that he had to see the truth for himself.

​

Ever since arriving in this world and donning the mantle of Demon Lord, his intuition—the ruler’s sixth sense—had never once failed him.

​

Veya always had a way with excuses. Press her as he might, she could find a hundred ways to dodge any question she didn’t want to answer.

​

And Veya hated the Demon Lord with every fiber of her being—she was convinced the previous Pope, the so-called Dawnstar Pope, had died by his hand.

​

Well… truthfully, Lin Wei had been the one to finish the man off, back then.

​

And as for Pope Selina—hadn’t her parents died in the first demon invasion sixteen years ago?

​

A sudden, suffocating chill swept over Lin Wei—from the base of his skull down his spine, coiling tight within his chest. He stood rooted to the spot, paralyzed by dread.

​

He exhaled slowly, forcing himself to steady his breathing, then met Yalis’s gaze.

​

No matter what, he needed to see the Holy See with his own eyes. Only then could he silence the gnawing unease eating away at him.

​

“That won’t be a problem at all~”

​

Perhaps it was because Lin Wei had performed a great service for the Holy See, or simply because he had met Her Holiness face to face—

​

At this point, a visit to the Holy See was hardly out of the ordinary. As a Saintess, Yalis was more than qualified to make such a promise.

​

Truthfully, even if Mr. Lin Wei had done nothing, it wouldn’t have mattered.

​

If an ordinary friend wanted to catch a glimpse of the Pope, well—as her friend, Yalis would gladly help fulfill that wish.

​

And really, even if they got caught, the worst that might happen was a stern lecture afterward. Wasn’t that a small price to pay?

​

“So shall we go now? I was just about to check up on Miss Secretary myself.”

​

Ordinarily, the Secretary quietly managed the mountain of daily affairs in the Holy See.

​

Now that word had it she was in trouble—even if Lin Wei trusted that the Pope would handle things fairly and not make things difficult for her—it still didn’t sit right. After all, contact with the power of an evil god was no trivial matter, and rumors claimed she had even leaked sensitive information. For everyone’s sake, it seemed far better to check on her personally.

​

“…Yeah. Let’s go.”

​

Lin Wei nodded, overwhelmed by the tangle of racing thoughts and half-formed memories swirling in his mind. He could barely muster any energy at all.

​

After that, he allowed Yalis to gently escort him to the waiting carriage.

​

Before long, the carriage jostled them onward toward the Holy City, rising in splendor just ahead.

​

His thoughts bounced between confusion and growing apprehension. And when the city’s silhouette finally rose into view, the feeling that welled up within him was—unease.

​

The Holy City shimmered with flowing light, steeped in the magnificent radiance of Goddess Alicia.

​

Even the flagstones underfoot seemed etched with holy brilliance.

​

Everywhere Lin Wei looked, the structures blazed so brightly that it was almost painful—a world awash in blinding divine luminance.

​

Every sight, every stone, every street corner was touched by the sanctity of this place.

​

“Um, Miss Saint… I…”

​

He remembered, back when he first became the Demon Lord, swearing he would one day storm the Holy City—tear down this sacred ground, stone by radiant stone.

​

Who could have predicted that his first real visit here would be like this?

​

“Look.” Yalis gestured ahead. “That building there is where the Pope usually works.”

​

It was almost funny—Lin Wei never even had the chance to muster an excuse to leave.

​

As Lady Yalis raised her hand, his gaze obeyed, trailing inevitably toward her fingers.

​

There, behind the soaring stained glass at the cathedral’s peak, was one of the Holy See’s grandest chambers. Through those luminous panes, he could just make out the faint silhouettes of people, hard at work within.

​

“Her Holiness the Pope has a staggering amount of work,” Yalis murmured. “Even when she was still the Saintess, I remember her grumbling about lessons and endless duties…”

​

Her voice softened further, tinged with an odd reverence. “But compared to her, my own hardships are nothing. Sometimes I stay at the Holy See for days. On those restless nights when I find myself wandering the courtyard, I always see her window aglow. She never rests.”

​

She works late into the night, never allowing herself a single slack moment?

​

Lin Wei stopped in his tracks. The swirling doubts and flinching urges within him quietly dissolved beneath the gentle, unwavering light. He stared at the building ahead. He’d come this far already.

​

How could he back down now?

​

At the very least, he owed himself the chance to step inside and see the truth with his own eyes. If Veya really was the Pope, he needed to know—who did she become within these gilded halls?

​

Would she be cold and distant? Casual and unbothered? Muttering complaints under her breath while tackling endless paperwork?

​

No—whatever she was, it could never resemble the Veya he knew at home.

​

Drawing a long, deep breath, Lin Wei felt his chest clench with resolve.

​

“All right,” he said. “Take me to her.”

​

At last, he’d made up his mind. He met Yalis’s gaze, unflinching, ready to face whatever truth awaited him.