Genius Prismatic Mage Chapter 263

#263. When the sun rises (2)

Sun's day, that day.

Knock── Knock──

The low footsteps of the Lutheran Archbishop echoed through the cathedral hallways.

A quiet atmosphere.

Sunlight pouring in through the window.

Religious paintings hanging on the wall.

A scene I have seen repeatedly over the decades I have spent in the church.

It was a reason for priests and visitors of the church to become devout, but that will end today.

At noon today.

From the moment the southern sun rises, the appearance of the world will change completely.

Woof.

As if resonating with anticipation and excitement, the four blue rings emitted a vivid light.

The Lutheran archbishop recalled the moment when the Dawn Society first approached him.

"Archbishop, if there was an easy way to reach a higher magical realm, what would you do?"

A believer who stayed behind after the service ended.

I responded to the conversation casually, and when I came to my senses, the congregation had already left the sanctuary.

And in his hand he held a blue gem the size of a fingernail.

“If you swallow this, you can change the properties of the ring… .”

It was embarrassing.

The theories that came out of the believers' mouths had a systematicity and expertise that could never be ignored.

The conflict was deep.

And desire too.

The Lutheran Archbishop, who had swallowed the jewel, trembled at the power of the mixed ring.

“This is…!”

Increased magic casting speed.

Greatly enhanced magical power.

I felt like I had opened my eyes to a new world, and all the values I had held onto until then seemed worthless.

The archbishop was eagerly awaiting the reunion.

The believer came back when his impatience reached its peak.

"I guess you like it."

After checking the Archbishop's condition with a satisfied smile.

"If you'd do us a favor, we can offer you something better than a mixed ring."

He introduced himself as a member of the Dawn Society and said:

The request was to spread mixed links in the church.

The archbishop nodded.

"It's not difficult."

What happened after that happened in an instant.

It was not difficult to stimulate the desire for power deep in the hearts of the priests.

Because it was already a familiar feeling.

Because I knew exactly where and how to touch.

All it took was a drop of stain on their clear and pure thinking and a little shaking.

Of course, there were those who were unable to work because of their strong faith, but they were a very small minority.

It took less than a year for the church to become so mixed up.

“May the blessings of the sun be with you.”

“May the sunshine stay with you today.”

Greetings could be heard from all over the place as the archbishop passed through the corridor.

The priests who were waiting in their respective positions before departing for the Sanctuary of the Sun, the vast majority of whom were apostates.

'Satisfactory… huh?'

At that moment, a strange figure caught the archbishop's eye.

A boy was standing in one corner of the hallway.

White hair and an expressionless face.

Was there a kid like that in the classroom?

The moment I blinked my eyes in thought, the boy had disappeared without a trace.

“… … .”

I must have been hallucinating because I was so excited.

The archbishop did not take it seriously and continued walking.

As we passed through the large doors that opened on both sides, a high-ceilinged hall appeared.

Under the colorful light streaming in through the stained glass, about a hundred priests were lined up, divided to the left and right.

Knock—knock—knock—

The archbishop passed through them.

widely.

Stopped at the very front.

When I looked up, there was a high railing connected to the curved stairs on both sides.

Soon, someone appeared from the passage behind the railing.

The true center of the religious community.

It was Pope Betelgeuse.

The Pope, looking around the audience in a solemn atmosphere, opened his mouth.

“It is a joyful and glorious day. It is the day when our, no, the whole world’s, longing wishes come true. It is proof that the efforts of the church have not been in vain, so I cannot express the overwhelming emotion. This is the emotion that everyone here must be feeling.”

After a while of congratulating the members of the church, the Pope looked at one person and said:

“Archbishop Lutheran, come up.”

"yes."

The archbishop climbed the steps, knelt on one knee before the Pope, and bowed his head.

The Pope's voice continued.

“Archbishop Lutheran, your duty as the guardian of the saint is very important. It is a day that everyone is blessed to attend to, but we cannot afford for any unfortunate incidents to occur. I hope you will do your best until the very end.”

The Pope's hand on your shoulder.

The archbishop, who had been watching it out of the corner of his eye, clenched his teeth.

'Who dares to put your hand on my shoulder?'

The blue mana, symbolizing inferiority, swirled roughly in the bowl.

It was an old feeling.

After going through the training center.

Be ordained as a full priest.

After being appointed as a bishop.

Until the moment when they were finally nominated together as candidates for the papacy.

There has never been a period in my not-so-short life that I did not embrace it.

A very old feeling.

Archbishop Lutheran was a man of great ability, but he was always overshadowed by Pope Betelgeuse.

'If it weren't for you, I would have been the Pope.'

The eternal number two, that was the fate of the Lutheran Archbishop.

Feeling extreme anger, he took a deep breath and suppressed his emotions.

And I repeated.

The fact that the Pope was completely oblivious to the fact that he was spreading his mixed links and devouring the church.

Then, I felt better right away.

“Let’s all set off together here, and the rearguard should quickly finish preparing… .”

Idiot.

You're talking so well without knowing what's going to happen today.

The archbishop admitted the inferiority complex he harbored toward his long-time friend.

And I thought.

It's a feeling that will soon disappear anyway.

The mission he received from the Dawn Society was to safely escort the fake saint to the sanctuary.

In return, he was promised a high position in the new world that would unfold.

'On the other hand, you will be brutally killed for resisting the Dawn Society.'

Currently, there are only about 50 non-apostates within the church who can stand on the Pope's side.

The power of the Yeomyeonghoe is also not something to be ignored.

Even a wizard close to the 5th circle is unable to handle it.

'I will personally cut off your last breath. I will do my best as a long-time friend…'

Just then, as I was laughing inside, a voice was heard.

“Lutheran, I have something for you.”

Speaking as a friend, not as the Pope.

The archbishop was momentarily embarrassed, as the Pope had always kept a strict distinction between public and private life.

“What the… all of a sudden….”

“It will help you in your mission.”

The archbishop accepted the object presented to the Pope in a panic.

It was the oath stone.

I knew exactly what it was.

Because once the Pope showed me a rare relic that he had acquired.

“Why are you doing this to me…?”

“Lutheran, you and I have been together for so many years.”

I felt a strong sense of discomfort.

Something was going wrong.

While my body was motionless for a moment in embarrassment, the Pope continued speaking.

“From my days as a trainee priest to now. There have been so many things. During that long time, my belief and faith in making the world a better place have not changed, and.”

Phew.

A single breath of choice.

“I think your beliefs and faith are the same. Don’t you?”

“… … .”

The archbishop could not answer.

The Pope's gaze changed for a moment.

“Archbishop Lutheran! Answer!”

A thunderous voice echoed through the hall.

“I ask you! Are you living shamelessly under the sun? Are you walking unbowed by the temptations of the world that come your way? Are you maintaining the purity of faith that you pledged to yourself in your childhood?”

The Pope's angry gaze was now directed at the audience below the podium, not at the archbishop.

Ultimately, it could be said that it was a question posed to everyone present.

While the crowd was overwhelmed by the tremendous force, the archbishop regained his composure.

He answered while secretly drawing up the mana of the mixing ring.

“My faith has never been without shame. Isn’t that something you know better?”

The oath stone began to rattle in his hands.

The two fired mana at each other simultaneously, and the recoil pushed them back greatly.

Crackle! Crackle!

The beams of mana, visible due to their thick concentration, collided in the air.

The Pope gritted his teeth as he looked into the archbishop's dark blue light.

“Lutheran, why on earth…!”

“You wouldn’t know…! How many dark days I’ve spent, hidden by your shadow…! But now it’s different! With my eyes opened to new powers, I’ve become a completely different being!”

The blue ray resonated with feelings of inferiority and hatred, becoming stronger.

The archbishop shouted at the priests below the podium, all of whom were apostates.

“What are you all doing! There is no change to the plan to escort the saintess to the sanctuary! Go outside the hall and sweep away all those who have not converted to the Dawning Order!”

That was the moment.

The flower pots and picture frames on the wall began to break.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

The blue stone fragments hidden inside broke apart and scattered.

Woohoo──!

Countless waves generated by the broken Qingdao Stone swept through the entire hall.

“What the…!”

“Mana got heavy…?”

The apostates were bewildered by the anomaly that had occurred in the mixed ring.

Immediately the archbishop's cry was heard.

“Calm down! They say the flow of mana has slowed down! Even so, it has only dropped to the level of a normal ring! If you concentrate, you can still use magic!”

As if to support his words, the Archbishop maintained a blue ray of light.

It is not known exactly why the ring's functions were impaired, but it did not mean that magic was completely unusable.

At that moment, the chaos in the room began to calm down with a sense of relief.

“There’s someone over there!”

A figure was discovered on a parapet much higher than the Pope and the Archbishop.

He was a boy with white hair.

Staring at me with a blank face.

Only then did the archbishop realize that he had not been hallucinating.

Crackle! Crackle!

A tremendous amount of light began to gather in the boy's palm.

The traitors who sensed something was wrong fired a barrage of magic, but it was no use.

Before he knew it, the priests had appeared behind the boy and were pouring all their mana into protecting him.

“Solitaire Priest!”

“Everyone, don’t panic! We outnumber you! Defend and then counterattack!”

Under the command of those of higher rank, the renegades joined forces to carry out defense.

A huge, gloomy, blue-hued shield creaked and surrounded the traitors.

Soon, the boy lowered his hand holding the lightning bolt.

Kwaaaaang──!

There was a flash of light.

The traitors laughed in relief after seeing the intact blue shield.

“It was just a magic that looked great!”

“Yeah, it doesn’t make sense to break through a defense line put up by a hundred people.”

Now that the blow had been overcome, the next step was clear.

“Disarm the defenses! Quickly help Archbishop Lutheran and counterattack…?”

Dismissed!

The boy's hands were once again gathering yellow electricity.

And at a speed several times faster than before.

There was no room to release the defense.

Kwaang─! Kwaang──! Kwaaang──!

Successive lightning strikes blinded my vision.

Seconds later, when the commotion died down, only countless piles of ashes remained.

And the archbishop too.

“Ugh!”

His heart was pierced by the Pope's ice pick.

“I still… couldn’t beat you…”

Thud!

The archbishop slowly leaned over and fell, sobbing and spitting out blood.

The Pope watched the scene and spoke in a bitter tone.

“If you had just opened up to me at any time… we wouldn’t be in this situation now.”

So many emotions buried in the eyes.

It was the gaze of a close friend, not the Pope.

Then Ray came down with the priests.

“The hall seems to be roughly cleared.”

“Yes, it’s thanks to your magic. It’s incredible that you’re in the 4th circle. But anyway, the fight is only just beginning.”

Ray nodded.

I turned my gaze to follow the Pope.

Outside the huge doorway, the renegades could be seen rushing in after hearing the commotion.

Ray pulled out a card the same color as his hair.

[Please specify the items to be exported.]

With Ray's response, seven colored lines began to be drawn on the thin, white metal plate.