From God of Lies to Lord of All Worlds

Chapter 187: Secrets of the Holy See Council

"A Devout Believer in Milan named Charlie Muto claims he spotted a Vampire!" the Cardinal reported briskly. "We immediately dispatched a member of the Precept Order to investigate, and they confirmed he wasn't lying!"

Hearing this, Mario's hand, which had been tracing a relief sculpture, suddenly paused. "If he isn't lying, then either he is mentally unstable, or..."

"Or he truly saw a Vampire?" The Cardinal finished the Pope's thought. "Your Crown, should we mobilize?"

Mario turned to look at him. "Mobilize? Mobilize what exactly?"

The Pope spoke with blunt candor. "The Church guards? Or the Knights Templar? Or perhaps the Knights Hospitaller and Teutonic Knights, who only obey orders when it suits them?"

He gazed at the Cardinal before him—his old friend, Rasinger Leo—looking rather weary. "You know as well as I do that the majority of our Precept Order is still cultivating in America. Following Cardinal Angus offers them far more growth than staying with us!"

This was naturally expected, for aside from cultivation, the Vatican had absolutely no practical affairs to manage.

In America, however, those devout followers of the Precept Order—Monks who had accepted a Precept and awakened their own power—could fully execute Father Angus's will.

Various Fallen Bishops, wicked churches, and other Cultists would all serve as nourishment for their growth and strength.

As they exercised their Precepts, they continually grew stronger. Only when they truly fulfilled their Precepts would they return to the Vatican to be Baptized and become a Bishop of a region or the head Deacon of an organization.This was an initiative Mario had single-handedly pushed forward. Once these individuals returned, the entire Catholic Church would undoubtedly be revitalized!

Because these people possessed faith and power; they could even become vessels of faith themselves, driving the spiritual development of entire regions.

Only then would the Catholic Church truly expand its influence and spread its faith far and wide.

Mario knew very well that all he needed to do was wait. He had to wait for those children to return, and then everything would change. The world would shine brilliantly under the Lord's radiance!

However, he was even more acutely aware that the world was evolving at lightning speed, and he might not live to see such a future unfold.

Have you not seen South America? Factions calling themselves "Mayan Priests" had already emerged. They were gathering those who still possessed Indigenous American bloodlines and beliefs, leading them on a Pilgrimage to San Diego and the Baja California region of Mexico.

Have you not seen the Nordic Five? Historically Protestant territories, they had long since become domains of faith for the Norse pantheon. The aggressively expanding faith and dominant Divine Miracles had completely routed Protestantism, which had previously been capable of suppressing the Catholic Church!

The only region experiencing positive growth was, surprisingly, America. Guided by countless Divine Miracles and tangible manifestations of power, that nation had barely managed to secure its position as a stronghold of the Catholic Church.

Protestantism, meanwhile, could only lament its endless misfortune of always playing the sacrificial lamb.

It was precisely because of this that Mario was so anxious. He was a Devout Believer. He could not accept arriving at the Heavenly Kingdom only to confess to the Lord that he had lost vast swathes of faith and territory.

Rasinger naturally understood his old friend's concerns. He gave a slight nod. "I understand. I will personally handle this investigation!"

As one of the Vatican's three possessors of a "Bishop's Precept," he certainly had the ability and confidence to make such a claim. The power of the Precept manifested even stronger in him than in Mario, simply because he was younger and in better physical condition.

Mario nodded. He was practically a solitary figure now; the only person he could truly rely on was this old friend.

"Wait a moment. I shall offer a prayer and blessing for you. This is the Vatican's first official deployment in recent times. There cannot be any mistakes!"

The Roman Catholic Holy See in the Vatican was currently facing unprecedented internal and external turmoil. Rasinger stepping forward meant that all the pressure would fall squarely on his shoulders.

"All for the Holy Father! For the Lord! For all the suffering Faithful around the world!" the Cardinal declared loudly, continuing to fortify the faith upon this land.

Mario echoed his sentiments, "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end..."

The two men locked eyes and simultaneously invoked the holy word: "Amen!"

Right at that moment, the relief sculpture Mario had just been observing began to slowly sink into the wall before their very eyes. An ancient-looking Parchment Scroll revealed itself! "This is..." Both men froze in astonishment. Eventually, Rasinger stepped forward slowly, scrutinized the Parchment Scroll, and picked it up to examine it.

Holy light bloomed across his body. A Bishop's Precept power—the "Power of Protection"—swept over the object. Only after confirming it was safe did he hand the Parchment Scroll to Mario.

"Your Crown, this must be a revelation from the Lord!"

Mario nodded in agreement. "Indeed, I believe so as well. Just now, the holy light and the sunlight merged and reflected directly onto this relief!"

The two men raised their heads once more, looking at the building around them, their expressions suddenly turning a bit dazed.

After learning the reality that Transcendence truly existed, they couldn't help but wonder with intense Curiosity: just how many Mysteries were still hidden in Rome, the long-standing sanctuary and capital of the Catholic Church?

They had no answers, but the Parchment Scroll before them might just offer a few clues!

"This is... a manuscript written by Clement VI?" Upon opening the Parchment Scroll, the first thing Mario saw was the signature of a former Pope!

Clement VI was the 198th Pope of the Roman Catholic Holy See, and a Pope who had died during the Black Death!

"No, wait, there's more..." Mario continued reading and spotted another name. "Urban V?"

This was the 200th Pope, renowned for his piety, and who was even beatified in 1870.

These two names made Mario's heart grow heavy. He naturally knew their historical achievements and experiences, but he was far more desperate to learn what was written in this Secret document!

He feared it was something entirely different from the history he knew!

"From Clement VI, a servant trapped in the sulfurous smoke of Hell yet still clutching the Keys of Peter, Greetings to the future torchbearer who will eventually unearth this tomb:

When death swept across Europa with rotting rats as its steeds and festering ulcers as its banners, the altars flowed no longer with wine, but with the purulent rot seeping from the temples of Bishops!

Only yesterday, I was forced to order the incineration of the "Holy Eucharist" delivered by the College of Cardinals. For what writhed within that communion bread was not the flesh and blood of Christ! It was a writhing mass of black maggots, tangling together like venomous vipers!"

Reading this, Mario recalled some historical records he had seen. In 1348, Cologne had indeed experienced a shocking case of Eucharist Blasphemy that stunned the Catholic Church. To think that there was such a hidden truth behind it!

He continued reading. More profound Secrets were revealed on the Parchment Scroll:

"The seven councilors of the Holy See Council have all become decipherers of death. They were supposed to decipher prophecies and guide us safely past this disaster... but...

Alas! I should have realized it sooner. We have not heard the bells of the Heavenly Kingdom for decades. The Lord seems to have forgotten our world.

I saw flesh tumors sprouting from their Scepters. The eyes that snapped open within those tumors have ignited the very dome of the Shadow Department's Sanctuary. They are feasting on the blood of the Faithful..."

This description made Mario frown deeply. Had the situation truly devolved to such a horrific state back then? Even the Church's Shadow Department was corrupted?

They were supposed to be the Church's final line of defense! Was the crisis of that era truly that terrifying?

"I commanded the Knights Templar to charge! I rallied the Catholic believers across all of Europe to return! I sent the inquisitors of the Religious Tribunal rushing back onto the battlefield!

This is our Sin, and we must absolve it here! Even if we have to sink Avignon into the earth, we must lock these molted husks of Satan into this land.

Under the Lord's protection, we won this War—a pyrrhic victory. The principal Knight Commanders and Grand Masters of the Knights Hospitaller and Teutonic Knights perished in battle. Nearly half the clergy died. Only eleven Cardinals remain. As for the Inquisition... heh, the Inquisition never even got the chance to leave their dungeons!

They sealed those dreadful prisons shut from the inside, locking themselves away with the Monsters at the ultimate precipice of death!

Meanwhile, under my command, the remnants of the Knights Templar, the Holy See Council, and the Religious Tribunal are heading to Rome, taking what they swore to protect with them!

May the Lord bless them to arrive safely!"

The sheer terror of this account caused Mario to tremble. What blessings? What commands? It was merely a desperate contingency plan. Because death was inevitable, he could only pray they would successfully pass on their legacy.

Clutching the Parchment, Mario returned to his papal throne and continued to read.

There were frantic scribbles and edits, seemingly the final words penned by the Pope on his deathbed:

"I do not plan to leave. A Pope of Avignon should die on the soil of Avignon. Alongside those buried here, I will permanently seal away those Demons, ghosts, and undead spirits!

Yet, the dust-covered commandments must still be passed down:

Beware the parasites in purple robes; those Demons will never cease their attempts to corrupt our hearts!

Burn those Holy Relics! They are Holy Relics no more, but rather the illusory wreckage of Hell!

Finally, when the council reconvenes, a peasant girl shall undoubtedly give birth to an infant grasping a sword of fire!"

The message ended abruptly. The bottom was splattered with dark stains—a mixture of wine and mercury—the remnants left behind when holy water was used to wash the church steps in those days.

Below that, someone had added an annotation: Imprint of the Clementine Ring (Inscription: Crux Ave Noctis)

"All Souls' Day, 1349, when a flock of crows blotted out the sun."

Mario sat in utter silence, yet a newfound understanding dawned within him.