Chapter 157: It's Been A While, Hasn't It?

Chapter 157: It's Been A While, Hasn't It?

Its Been A While, Hasnt It?

thus, the rules for the Hero Selection will proceed as follows.

Reading the documents handed to me, Atalante threw in those words.

From the schedule, theyll start with Elfante, Forge of Struggle and finally the Great Temple of the Holy Land, where the Holy Sword is displayed. Candidates from each academy will have to pass through ordeals that were prepared by the respective academies.

I nodded at her explanation.

So far, it was the same process as I remembered.

As per the custom, each country will nominate two candidates, and each of them will be accompanied by one entourage as a support.

The reason why they used a grand term like custom was because every Heroes in history had never acted alone.

There was always someone who was supporting them by their side.

Of course, they didnt have grand or big responsibilities. At best, theyd only do some ancillary activities that would enable the Hero to act as they were required to.

How should I put it? I guess it was similar to a pet in some other games?

In the original game, this was a role that would be filled by someone from the Hero Party, but Id be taking it this time.

Though the Pope wouldnt make a direct appearancean Archbishop will come in his place, alongside a War Chief from the Tribal Alliance, and Her Majesty the Empress for Elfante.

The Empress herself?

No matter how you looked at it, it was a complete mismatch.

Since the ones whod attend were an Archbishop and a War Chief, it should be Chancellor Sullivan who should attend it to match their status. But, the Empress would be attending it personallyit meant

It is a political risk for her as well.

The Headmistress said this with a bitter smile.

Basically, shes acknowledging, albeit implicitly, that her influence is below that of the Chancellor in a public setting.

Well, even in the main storyline, the Empress was always outshone by the Chancellor. She didnt really have a significant influence.

But that didnt matter, the reason why she went out of her way to accept such humiliation was what mattered.

Is itbecause of me?

Ive always found it convenient that you catch on so quickly.

Atalante brushed her hair back and nodded in affirmation.

For some reason, Her Majesty has great expectations of you. Shes even willing to go to such lengths just to see you in person, ignoring how unreasonable her action is.

Ill repeat this again. The Empress was one of the central figures in the main scenario.

Especially in the chapter where Eleanor was awakened as the Final Boss.

The biggest things that were holding Eleanors sanity together had been Beatrix and the Empress, her friends since childhood.

Eventually, Gideon too, after they reconciled and the real intentions behind her excluding him was revealed, but it wasnt the case for now.

It seems I cannot disappoint then.

That was why I had to make a good impression on her.

I was confident that I could do it. As far as I had seen, the Hero Selection hadnt deviated much from the games flow.

However

There was still one thing that bothered me.

Whats the likelihood of the Holy Land causing trouble or getting in our way?

Its pretty much inevitable that theyll do that.

Hearing Atalantes response, I let out a sigh, and a bitter smile appeared on my face.

Considering that he had sent Seras after me, it was clear that the Pope was wary of my growth.

Now that my name popped up in such an ultra-major event, the Hero Selection, there was no way that he wouldnt pull any shenanigans.

Do you have any idea what kind of method theyll use?

They willmost likely doubt your legitimacy. In hindsight, you are someone I had to hastily include, thats why your participation seems forced. Theyll argue that you havent been properly vetted to participate in such a grand event.

Well, that was one method that I couldnt really defend against.

While I had achieved feats that were impossible to achieve considering my status as a student, it was ultimately the Holy Land who held the highest authority on matters concerning Devils and Heroes. This was why Atalante said them getting in our way was an inevitability.

She let out a heavy sigh before continuing.

Moreover, Archbishop Luminol has demonstrated Miracles as proof of faith, not just in the Holy Land, but across the entire continent multiple times. If such a person directly questions your legitimacy, it will make your participation in the selection become much more difficult.

That will become a little bit of trouble, yeah.

Saying that, I flipped through the documents.

Archbishop Luminol. A middle-aged man. His demeanor painted him as a man of peace, but he was still the Popes underling. Beneath that face of his, he was another one of those scheming bastards.

And just as Atalante said, he had reached a high realm as a Priest. He performed several Miracles that were considered advanced even from the perspective of a Sera sweat.

Among those Miracles, the one that could be said as his specialty was

As soon as I saw that entry on the document

A smile crept across my face.

Whats wrong? Why are you smiling like that?

From what I see, itll be a bigger problem if this person doesnt attend.

Sorry?

You see, from my perspective, Id rather face this person more than anyone else.

There wasnt a rule that stated I couldnt scheme against them.

By them, I meant the person who they had sent to go against me.

What a coincidence.

I was actually someone who was quite good at scheming too.

Elfante was always a bustling place, befitting its name as the Imperial Academy.

However

Even taking that into account, the current uproar throughout the school was not ordinary.

Iliya, standing next to me, looked around with an incredulous expression.

After lining up the Hero Candidates in single file, everyone was preparing to present them with a fanfare.

The crowd gathered here did not fall short compared to Empires greatest festivals, like the Full Moon Festival and the Harvest Festival.

Woah, this is no joke.

Are you nervous?

There are so many people here, of course I am!

It really felt like it was a huge event.

You could really tell how big it was from seeing all kinds of facilities that had been set up across this vast academy in just a few days. Theyd be using these for the ordeals.

Everyones excited, huh?

Thinking this, I looked around.

Since we couldnt reveal that traces of Devils had been found here and there, they promoted this event instead, as an international competition to determine the Number One Hero Candidate.

To othersmaybe it felt like a sports event or something of that sort

I continued to look around while thinking that when

A sudden warmth enveloped my hand.

Startled, I turned to see who it was, only to find Iliya looking at me.

She had a drooping expression, and her eyes were downturned. Her hands were placed on top of mine.

Please hold onto meIm so nervous

What?

When I hold your hand like this, TeachI feelreassured

Come to think of it

During the Full Moon Festival, didnt I also hold Eleanors hand like this, even when there were a lot of people around?

But back then I was the one who grabbed Eleanors hand.

It seemed like the Alliance had sent him as the representative.

The other candidates will be entering shortly, so please wait just a

Sorry, War Chief. But it seems we cannot have them just be on stand-by here.

There we go. Id be feeling lonely if I didnt get obstructed like this. Shit wouldnt be fun without a little challenge.

I turned towards the source of the interruption with a wry smile.

Archbishop Luminol.

The representative of the Holy Land.

From within the veil, he stroked his Holy Relic while looking directly at me.

What is that supposed to mean, Archbishop? Is there a problem with the Hero Candidate selected by the Empire?

Ah, no, please dont misunderstand me. I have no issue with the candidate, however

With that, Archbishop Luminol stood up.

I can detect an irreverent aura from that attendant over there.

What does that mean, Archbishop Luminol? You need to avoid such baseless suspicion.

It is not a baseless suspicion.

Following that

The Archbishops Holy Relic emitted a divine light.

It was a vast amount of Divine Power. So much so that the surrounding spectators murmured at the display.

After all, this being will immediately testify why I felt such an aura.

At the same time as he spoke

A portal tore open in front of me.

The portal didnt serve as a simple medium for teleportation.

Instead, it momentarily created a gap between dimensions.

Following that

From within, something with an overwhelming presence emerged.

And at that sight

Despite the vast expanse of the circular seating filled to the brim

The entire audience fell silent instantly, all eyes fixed on the portal.

A portal directly connecting from the Astral Realm to here. And the entity that emerged was undoubtedly an Angel. Halo and divine wings in all their glory.

Angel?

It cant be, they only exist in myths and references!

Just as expected

This persons specialty that I read in the documents was

Angel Summon.

This being who represents the Will of Heaven shall be the judge.

It certainly made sense.

The Holy Land must be aware of my deep interactions with Devils. Summoning an Angel to testify would certainly put me in a dire situation. They could even sentence me to death if they wanted to.

Yet, they waited until this event started and I was exposed in front of the public. This meant they were aiming to hurt me as deeply as possible with a certain dramatic flair.

Truly shitty behavior, second to none.

O Faithful One Who Serves the Will of Heaven.

The angels voice resonated deeply.

Most listeners were awestruck, some even gasping because the overwhelming presence made it hard for them to breathe.

A proof of myth had now descended upon this place.

I have arrived in this place, responding to your

The Angels voice

Abruptly halted upon seeing me.

The Angels expression scrunched.

As if wondering why the hell I was here.

Implying that me and this fellow were acquainted.

O Agent of God?

Archbishop Luminol tried to prompt the Angel

But the Angel remained immovable, their complexion turned slightly pale while they were looking at me.

Let me tell you a secret.

According to various sources

It seemed the hierarchy of beings that could be summoned by this person was limited to that of a Virtue.

And

If a Virtue was summoned here at Elfante

There would only be one angel that would appear.

A rare female Angel from the Astral Realm, the one who I was all too familiar with.

System Log

[ Target Virtue A1101 recognizes you as irredeemable trash! ]

[ Marked with Negative Tendency! ]

[ Rewards Available! ]

[ Skill: Evil Ruler has been activated! Obtained 1 command right over the target! ]

Oh right, this fellow

Definitely had something like this implanted by me before.

I vividly remembered blackmailing and extorting Starsteel from her through the White Devil.

And the point that I needed to pay attention to was this command right embedded in her.

Virtue.

At my call

The Virtue flinched.

Her eyes trembled. It was a stark contrast to the dignified demeanor she attempted to maintain moments ago.

Seeing this, I smiled and added to my words.

Its been a while, hasnt it?

Watching the Angels expression crumble

I activated the skill.

System Message

[ Skill: Evil Ruler activated. ]

[ Using command rights on target Virtue A1101! ]

[ The target is absolutely obedient to your commands! ]

Noicee~

Absolute obedience, huh?

Noiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiice~

Id need this kind of shit anyway because there was no way shed comply with my demand without that level of coercion.

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