The villainous young master just wants to live a Buddhist-like life.

　The relationship between the Elven race and the Holy Church is extremely poor. The relationship between St. Marian Academy and the Holy Church is also not good.

　The academy's relationship with the elves can only be described as having had dealings before. If this matter weren't so significant, and if they weren't all in a community of shared interests, it would be absolutely impossible for them to gather so peacefully and in such large numbers around the same table.

　Without any unnecessary extravagance or excessive decoration, Emily Grantham, who was in charge of preparing the venue for this meeting, simply placed a round table in the clean and tidy room. Then, a chair was placed in the corner, where a skilled paladin would play the harp.

　There was no meal service or entertainment during the meeting. Everyone attending tonight's meeting had a clear purpose and would not be influenced by external factors.

　The students from St. Mary's College arrived around six o'clock, but they all gathered in the lounge next to the conference room, where there was a completely different, joyful atmosphere.

　The servants of the Holy Church had laid out fruits, pastries, and tea in the lounge. Dak and the others sipped their tea, ate pastries, and chatted and laughed.

　The group of people who came here together from St. Mary's College a few days ago are all here.

　However, those who are qualified to participate in tonight's meeting are only those who signed a contract with Hermes in the "Heavenly Court".

　That is, Cynthia Saint Arte, Sarah Sylph, Dark Dimon, Ori Dimon, and Aurora Montilfali.

　In the adjacent lounge, all the elves had already arrived.

　The elves were accompanied by attendants, and their numbers were greater than those of the St. Marian Academy side.

　But among them, only Bellamy Artemis, Lucia Artemis, Zeni Burns, and Isaiah Roger will participate in tonight's meeting.

　Another forest elf, Norma Roger, although she has awakened after treatment, unfortunately missed the opportunity to contact Hermes and is not qualified to participate in this meeting.

　Quintina North is another example.

　Furthermore, Quintina North has not yet woken up and her condition is extremely unstable.

　However, the forces from the north had already arrived and were waiting in another lounge.

　There were few people in the lounge, besides the guards, only Duke Ted North and his beloved grandson Fred North—whether he was before or not, he's his beloved grandson now!

　As for his troublesome son, Gavin North, he was sent to another lounge and was hanging out with Stanley Longfellow.

　By now, the Duke was fully aware of what Gavin Wallnors was doing.

　However, everything has two sides.

　If Gavin North succeeds, he wouldn't mind giving him a push from behind.

　But now that he has gained nothing, he shouldn't blame the Duke for not showing any kinship.

　Now that Gavin North has clearly sided with the old king, Duke Ted North has no intention of taking sides so quickly.

　But once tonight is over, many things will become clear, and he can no longer hold on to his position.

　The old duke put down his wine glass, his deep-set eyes, though cloudy, were full of spirit, his gaze seemingly trying to penetrate the wall and look into another lounge.

　That room was the lounge where Gavin North and Count Stanley Longfellow were.

　Gwen, who should have been acting as a guard, was sitting in the main seat, seemingly oblivious to the stares of the servants entering and leaving the room.

　Clearly, she has completely stopped pretending.

　However, none of the three people in this lounge were qualified to attend tonight's meeting.

　But they gathered there without panic, as if waiting for something.

　Bishop Sabrina Melville, the host, was sitting with "Bloody Saint" Hayley Saint Meredith and "Sunrise Singer" Eva Elthorpe, discussing something.

　"The Rising Sun Singer" Eva Elthorpe is the Holy Church powerhouse who has always remained hidden inside the chariot and has never shown her face!

　In this mission, the Holy Church openly and secretly dispatched three top experts, determined to obtain any divine inheritance that might exist within the "Heavenly Court".

　However, no one could have imagined that all of this was a scheme orchestrated by Hermes.

　The "Heavenly Court" does not contain the inheritance they desire!

　Of the three peak experts, only Bishop Sabrina Melville managed to catch up at the last minute; the other two unfortunately failed to even enter the "Heavenly Court".

　In fact, if it weren't for the Valkyrie's maidservants intervening, the "Twin Paladins" they had painstakingly nurtured would have been defeated in the "Heavenly Court".

　Fortunately, the final result wasn't too bad.

　The Holy Church team is undoubtedly one of the biggest beneficiaries of this operation.

　Pope Sith Saint Patricis also considered this very important. Upon receiving the news, he quickly dealt with affairs in the capital and rushed here day and night.

　Originally, this meeting was just a temporary discussion, with the main purpose of summarizing and reviewing, allowing the brain, which had been more alert after a night's rest, to re-process the previous issues.

　In addition, the time and place for the next formal meeting need to be determined. Therefore, there is absolutely no need for His Holiness Pope St. Patrice to attend.

　But he still came!

　And it wasn't just Pope Patricis who came; even the Elf Queen was there!

　Both the elderly Pope Patricis and the Moon Elf Queen, who was theoretically incapable of leaving the Elven lands, made the decision to travel as soon as they confirmed the news.

　Now that a decision has been made, the factors that prevent them from carrying it out become minor problems that must be solved.

　It was just past six o'clock, with only one hour left before the scheduled meeting. "Pope" Patrice and "Elf Queen" Vera Artemis hurried across the northern territories and arrived near the Mountain of the Gods.

　However, instead of entering the Holy Church's camp, they encountered another uninvited guest in the already darkened night sky.

　Perhaps by coincidence, all three chose to travel light. They arrived at breakneck speed in a carriage that could fly through the air, and by sheer coincidence, they bumped into each other!

　The Pope's carriage was a gilded chariot with a sun pattern on the roof. It was pulled by a "bird of light" with a long, thin neck and was driven by two golden-armored paladins sitting on the carriage floor.

　The Elf Queen's ride was an emerald carriage, pulled not by the unicorn more common in the Elf lands, but by a beast-shaped "steel warrior" with a slender body.

　The last person's ride was a luxurious carriage covered in gold ornaments, pulled by a golden-backed wyvern kept by the royal family—a sub-dragon species with a golden back like a tortoise shell—the standard travel vehicle for King Austin Clarissa!

　The three carriages met in the air, facing each other, none yielding an inch. Theoretically, although "Pope" Patrice was of noble status, in a kingdom where royal power outweighed divine power, he was still half a head lower than "King" Austin Clarissa.

　Therefore, he should come out first to greet the "King".

　However, Patricis did not come out.

　"King" Austin Clarissa was certainly not going to come out before him.

　On the other hand, the Queen of the Elf race, whose relationship with humans was already strained, was naturally unlikely to show much friendliness at this time.

　Before the meeting even started, the arrival of the uninvited guest had already brought the atmosphere between the three parties to a freezing point.

　Holy Church Camp.

　Members of the various factions who had discovered the situation rushed into the camp to report to their respective leaders.

　Bishop Sabrina Melville was the first to learn of this, and her expression immediately changed. She quickly summoned Albert Grantham, one of the "Twin Paladins," to go and greet the emperor.

　Originally, if it were just the "Pope" arriving, she would have only needed to wait in the camp.

　However, judging from the investigator's description, if she hadn't appeared sooner, anything could have happened between the three carriages.

　Of course, deep down, Bishop Sabrina Melville had absolutely no desire to go.

　She is not the kind of person who would grovel!

　But as she led Albert outside, she saw the door to another lounge suddenly open, and Count Stanley Longfellow, who had entered under the guise of a "visit," emerged from it.

　"Good evening, Your Excellency." Count Stanley Longfellow bowed extremely respectfully, his manners impeccable, his usual ostentatiousness completely absent.

　But perhaps this formal appearance is his true self. And emerging from behind him is an embarrassed Gavin North, and Gwen, who no longer tries to hide her true feelings.

　Bishop Sabrina Melville tilted her head slightly, her gaze sweeping past Stanley Longfellow and landing on Gwen's face.

　Then she very naturally pointed out Gwen's identity: "Lord Gwendoland Ulysses, since we've met, let's go together."

　Gwendoland Ulysses nodded slightly and said, "Tonight's meeting will require Your Excellency's leniency."

　Bishop Sabrina Melville said, "Of course I have no objection, but you should also know that I only provided the venue; I am not the one who is truly in charge of the meeting."

　Gwendoline Ulysses smiled and said, "Principal Arte never embarrasses anyone."

　The two then smiled at each other and walked side by side outside.

　"Is the Pope... really like that?"

　Upon receiving the information, Dark Dimon asked with a puzzled expression.

　Principal Arte, watching the rising steam from the black tea, recalled briefly, "Patricis has always been an ambitious man. Have you ever heard of the divine right of kings?"

　Dak nodded slightly.

　Principal Art continued, “Patricias has always wanted to restore the Church to its most glorious period, and the divine right of kings is the symbol of the Church’s greatest glory. In the past, he was unable to do so, so he was always inferior to King Austin. But things are different now, and all needs and possibilities can be met after becoming a god. However, Patricias’ time is running out.”

　After a moment's thought, Dark said, "Perhaps it's precisely because time is running out that they've suddenly become so resolute. No force can stop Patricis's path."

　"Even King Austin?" Aurora asked, a hint of doubt on her face.

　Dark said with a sigh, "Your Majesty King Austin Clarissa, time is running out... originally."

　Before the unusual events occurred, both "King" Austin Clarissa and "Pope" Sith Saint Patrice were equally old and frail. The only slight difference was that "King" Austin Clarissa's old age was due to the normal passage of time; the injuries she sustained during the war merely caused her energy to decline more rapidly than that of an average elderly person. This is why there was a succession struggle between Elizabeth and Charles.

　However, the "Pope" Sith Saint Patricis was actually in his prime. The reason he was old and frail to the point of waiting to die was only due to the side effects of being an "artificial saint".

　However, at that time, the two old men, who could also see the underworld, did not appear to have a bad relationship.

　Since they were all going to die, many of their differences naturally dissipated. However, the harmony brought about by being elderly was ultimately short-lived.

　Once either of them finds a way to prolong their lives, the other will immediately become a thorn in their side and a nuisance!

　"King" Austin Clarissa has imposed numerous restrictions on the Church over the past six months, further straining the already tense relationship between the two sides.

　Under these circumstances, if Pope Patrice doesn't live much longer, he might continue to swallow his anger for the sake of the Holy Church's future development.

　But now there is a direct path to godhood laid out before us, and if this method succeeds, it will surely prolong our lives.

　He was quite confident in his own power, believing that as long as he put in the effort, he would definitely be able to surpass everyone and be the first to ascend to the position of a magical god!

　That almost foreseeable future naturally rekindled some of his spirits. Therefore, he could no longer tolerate it; there was no need to endure it any longer!

　Moreover, on that path leading directly to godhood, the two sides may become the most direct competitors!

Chapter 1006 The Valkyrie Faction (A Commemorative Edition for Five Million Words)

　Once the struggle between "Pope" Sith Saint Patricis and "King" Austin Clarissa moves from the shadows to the open, the already turbulent kingdom will be further fractured.

　But the tide of epochal change was already inevitable, and the internal strife within the kingdom caused by the discord between the "Pope" and the "King" was not a major issue.

　Unless, of course, the Holy Church has the intention of becoming independent and establishing a Holy Kingdom!

　However, as of now, Pope Sis St. Patrice has not shown any similar ideas.

　Dak didn't think he would do that either.

　It's not that I have any confidence in his "patriotism," but simply because the current situation doesn't allow it.

　Although the war between humans and demons ended more than a decade ago, the highly cohesive government that had been formed to cope with the war has not yet relinquished its power.

　In today's human world, there is only one great nation, and that is the Kingdom of Yunic, which is home to almost all of humanity!

　As for the small countries that were rebuilt piecemeal after the war, they are still far from being a significant force.

　That would obviously not be a good choice for a religion that needs a large population base to spread its faith.

　As Principal Arte said, if the Church wants to restore its former glory, striving towards the goal of "divine right of kings" is a more reliable option.

　Previously, the Holy Church had strongly supported Prince Charles, perhaps harboring the idea of ​​controlling the kingdom through Charles.

　But that is all in the past! If the gods are revived, they will surely establish a divine kingdom.

　The current social structure of the human world is something that the gods would very much like not to see.

　What they undoubtedly want is a loose structure where "a hundred flowers bloom".

　If Pope Sith Saint Patrice can truly achieve godhood through this, it's not impossible that he could gather followers and establish a holy kingdom in the future.

　But the future is the future, and the future of this world has entered a stage that no one can see through.

　Therefore, Dark couldn't help but shake his head at the thought of the "Night of Prophecy" that the tower master of the "Star Tower" would be holding in four months.

　“There’s no use in overthinking it,” Principal Art said casually, assuming he was still pondering the kingdom’s situation. “Now that Austin is here, we can’t very well turn him away. Let’s prepare some responses to what Austin might say.”

　Professor Sylph interjected, "I think there's no need to worry too much. Austin Clarissa is undoubtedly the head of state. Even if he didn't come today, he will likely be invited to future formal meetings."

　“That’s different,” Professor Mitis said. “He’s in the first batch of people who came to the meeting today. Next time he comes, he’ll only be in the second batch.”

　“Wait a minute.” Professor Steven Harvey said with slight displeasure, as if he had just realized something. “Shouldn’t this meeting be open only to those who have signed a pact with Hermes? The Duke of the North could at least be said to be attending as a guardian with Fred North. The Pope and the Elf Queen’s participation was already against the rules. Now, we have an old king who has almost zero connection to this event. So why can’t the rest of us attend?”

　“That’s absolutely right!” Professor Mitis Bartholomew immediately raised both hands in strong agreement.

　"Lion" Trina added with slight dissatisfaction, "Since the rules are no longer rules, why should we still follow them?"

　Scorpio Chris emerged from the shadows, arms crossed, and said, "I will attend this meeting."