The Novel’s Villain

70. Evil Protestantism (3)

The Pope could not come to his senses.

Goddess Lee Jae-mi was right in front of him. Although he had seen numerous paintings of her, they were nothing compared to her sacred presence in person.

He was moved to tears.

“W-woah! Goddess! Welcome! Please pardon my appearance. I am but a humble servant of the God of Evil.”

“Come with me. The God of Evil awaits us.”

She reached out her hand, and he took it gently.

The Pope felt his body fill up with divinity as the halo of light pulled him and the goddess in. Amid its intensity, all he could do was shut his eyes tightly, unable to see anything due to how blinding the brilliance was.

After waiting for a while, the swarm of lights finally subsided, and he finally felt a floor under his feet. However, it was so soft it was as if his feet would sink into it.

The Pope slowly opened his eyes.

‘Hey, this is… a cloud?’

No, more accurately, innumerable beautiful clouds emitting divine light stretched across his view, reaching all the way to the horizon. Beautiful angels flew across the sky,

Heaven!

The promised land that only those who had done good and passed Faro’s judgment could enter!

It looked no different from how it was described in the Bible, being a place that any of the God of Evil’s followers would like to reach. The Pope immediately went down on his knees and offered a prayer to the God of Evil.

The goddess Lee Jae-mi just stared at him with her well-known kind smile.

“Come this way.”

The Pope followed her into a temple. There he saw a being sitting on an elegant throne, his face surrounded by luminescence, preventing undeserving eyes from prying. Even so, his overwhelming presence and holiness made his identity far too evident to miss.

The God of Evil.

The Pope was so ecstatic and moved that he was rendered speechless. Before his greatness, all he could do was stare at him in awe as he lost his mind and senses.

Despite having the rank of Pope, he was still human. He did maintain his firm beliefs, but there had been times when he couldn’t help but question the existence of his god.

Now all of his doubts and worries had been washed away, strengthening his faith beyond words!

“Come closer.”

“Ahhh…”

Hearing the God of Evil’s majestic voice made him approach him instinctively. Many of his angels and loyal servants recorded in the Bible stood around him, creating a scene so beautiful and seraphic that it felt as if his reason had been paralyzed.

He wanted to bask in each and every one of their glory, but he couldn’t turn his eyes away from the supreme deity before him. His faith had essentially paralyzed him, his head and heart only filled by his belief in him.

‘It’s worse than I thought.’

The Pope’s behavior mildly startled Jin-woo. It was as if he was watching the General Manager. There was no problem with people worshiping him, but his eyes carried danger within them.

After quickly scanning the Bible, he prepared for their meeting accordingly. He had a temple built on Heaven and set the atmosphere before summoning his religion’s highest executive.

In doing so, he produced great results. According to the Devil’s Eye, the Pope’s piety had reached a level similar to that of the General Manager’s.

Jin-woo’s face emitted light, making it impossible for his visitor to see any of his expressions.

However, the same couldn’t be said for Bread Jam.

He glanced at him. He had to play the role of Lee Jae-mi, a holy, benevolent but valiant goddess. Based on how the corners of his lips trembled ever so slightly, he seemed to be having quite a hard time.

Jin-woo raised his voice, causing it to sound as if the clap of lightning accompanied each of his words. Alas, his godly powers proved quite convenient.

“I have a mission for you.”

“Finally…”

He hadn’t even told him what it was yet, but the Pope was already burning with a pure sense of duty, almost as if he had guessed what was about to come.

“Are the prophecies about the apocalypse finally coming true?”

Apocalypse?

This was the first time he had ever heard of such a rumor. When he looked at his subordinates, they immediately contacted someone who then brought a book titled ‘Apocalypse of Darkness.’

Jin-woo looked at the book with the eyes of a demon.

[B+] Apocalypse of Darkness

‘The end is coming!’

‘The end is sure to come!’

‘Someday, it will come!’

A prophecy written by the General Manager.

It speaks of a darkness that would soon appear to destroy humanity itself. However, the God of Evil would descend to defeat it, thus immortalizing eternal happiness.

The General Manager’s realistic depiction and development make it a masterpiece.

The apocalypse of darkness was discovered in the Middle Ages while wandering the gaps of dimension and time and has since been regarded as a symbol of faith along with the Bible.

*[B]Faith: The faith of those who read the apocalypse greatly increases.

The General Manager wrote this prophecy. It was more akin to a novel, but Jin-woo decided to use it to his advantage since it fit the current situation.

“… Yes. The time of the apocalypse has come.”

“Oh! Ohhhhhhh!”

The Pope’s eyes turned bloodshot as they widened. Tears welled up on their surface, and veins burst out of his temples, creating quite the terrifying appearance.

[The Pope’s faith has reached its peak.]

*[S+] Absolute Faith

He lives and moves solely for his beliefs and to embody them. Nothing can stop his burning devotion now.

‘Well, that’s convenient.’

“Prepare a prophecy. We need loyal priests.”

“Everything will come to pass.”

He didn’t even need to say anything. Things just went smoothly because of his faith.

The Pope didn’t do anything either. It was impossible for him to summon all the members of the Church of Evil alone, but at least the priests who were full of faith could.

The ‘revelation’ that Luna gave them unlocked their powers according to their faith.

“I will give you strength against the darkness.”

Jin-woo reached out and gave the Pope power. Paying attention to his directing, he ensured a beautiful halo would envelop his hand. When he reached out to him, his body began to rise into the air.

[The God of Evil’s power now dwells within the Pope!]

The hem of his robe fluttered. Bread Jam’s eyes widened slightly, astonished by his rather sacred appearance. Luna, watching from Jin-woo’s side, reacted similarly.

‘Well… He’ll probably be a healer since he’s still technically a priest.’

According to Luna, the powers one would get from their faith would be in accordance with their characteristics and occupations.

The New World lacked healers. They were too destructive, but if they could be paired up with priests, then they might just create powerful synergies.

Jin-woo thought so, at least.

Crack!

‘Huh?’

The Pope’s bones and muscles sounded like they were being twisted and bent. Jin-woo and Bread Jam couldn’t help but tilt their heads as they looked at him. Luna was just as confused. She had given many revelations, but she had never seen such a change.

The Pope’s clothes began to swell. To be more precise, his muscles swelled. Though quite tall, he had always been quite skinny due to his frugal life. Not anymore, though.

Cheeky!

His bulging physique tore through his outfit. Clenching his fists, blue zaps of electricity spread through his body from his arms.

Thud!

He sank to the ground, causing an explosive sound to reverberate, but soon slowly got up. His rigorous appearance, now visible through his ripped clothes, made Jin-woo panic.

“This is the power given by the God of Evil!”

Hot air erupted from his body. His movements alone were enough to cause his surroundings to heat up, and blue electricity swirled around his veins whenever they twitched!

With his figure now radically changed, the Pope’s muscles had surpassed that of One-Handed Swordsman’s!

He no longer looked anything like a priest. On the contrary, he was now more akin to that of a warrior.

Jin-woo looked at him with the Devil’s Eye.

[The Pope has received the God of Evil’s power, resulting in a role change.]

[A new profession has been born!]

[A] Evil Pope -> [S+] Physical Therapist of Brilliant Faith

[S+] Physical Therapist of Brilliant Faith

The pinnacle of all healers.

His fists have become miraculous tools in healing allies and defeating enemies. Wielding powerful physical therapy remedies imbued with divine powers, he has gained abilities that slightly surpass ordinary healing magic.

*[S+]Physical Therapy of Brilliant Faith: Strikes the wounded area, restoring it instantly. Imbues madness into the patient each time they’re hit.

*[S+]Muscle Shout: Increases the strength and durability of nearby allies with a sacred prayer.

*[S+] Conversion of Madness: Spreads the user’s madness over his devotion, providing allies with the Berserker attribute.

*[S+] Holy Power: Embody the power of piety as an attack. The more serious the faith, the stronger the damage.

‘…’

He indeed became a healer.

In fact, in terms of abilities alone, his were so powerful it wouldn’t be wrong to label him as Emperor-ranked. However, he was far from being a conventional healer.

He cured and mended wounds by hitting them. He could heal, buff, and even had excellent offensive power. In more ways than one, his new role was amazing.

However, his appearance was so extraordinary nobody would’ve thought his profession would be centered around support.

“… Well, prepare yourself.”

The Pope bowed his head deeply in reply to his remark.

With a wave of Jin-woo’s hand, he was sent back to the Vatican. Bread Jam and Luna then looked at their master with uncertainty.

“Uhh… The Pope’s transformation is strange, to say the least.”

“It seems like he gained quite a lot of power, though…”

His new appearance greatly surprised them, which was only natural. It was far too different from what they were expecting.

Humans indeed have great potential. That was why Odin chose Earthlings to train into warriors, after all.

“Still, to think he’d be given such outstanding abilities…” Even Jin-woo couldn’t help but agree with them. He wasn’t complaining, though. He just gained an excellent healer despite how he looked.

He should be quite useful.

The Pope worked miracles on Earth and gathered many priests, all of them as devout as he was. Jin-woo then gave them revelations after they had convened at the Holy See.

Strangely enough, their figures all turned into that of the Pope’s. At that moment, the Physical Therapy Corps was born.

The 5,000 bishops were ranked on the same level as the Pope, and though the 300,000 priests were graded a little lower, they overcame that gap with their faith. What they all had in common was that they were handpicked.

Jin-woo called them to Midgard. Only monsters now inhabited this realm after the Asgardian gods left, leaving its management and maintenance unattended for so long that creatures began to overpopulate the area.

He sent the Valkyries to protect them, but he didn’t have to.

Wolves much larger than the ones that mercilessly killed Earthlings appeared behind the priests, who were silently praying. They all had their jaws wide open and their fangs bared, prepared to devour their prey.

Shhh!

Their acidic saliva fell to the ground, melting rocks and soil alike.

Bam!

However, just as they charged in, the priests disappeared and reappeared in front of them, their gigantic palms gripping their jaws in one hand and the Bible in the other.

“The God of Evil has spoken.”

Kwajik!

The wolves’ jaws shattered because of the pressure they applied. Groaning, the canines were forced to step back. Even then, they still didn’t take their eyes off their Bible.

“If you get hit on the left cheek, break their right cheek.”

“If you get hit on the right cheek, break their left cheek and ribs.”

“If you get hit in the ribs, destroy their entire existence.”

“If vengeance is tiring, then let blood be your rest.”

They closed their books and stared at their opponents. The wolves flinched and tried to distance themselves from them, but…

Fusuk!

The priests broke through their ribs and ripped their hearts out.

“Akmen.”

Pussack!

The giant wolves fell to the ground lifelessly as their supposed prey crushed their hearts. Smiling, they skinned their carcasses.

“Thank you for giving us our daily bread.”

When one of them offered a prayer of thanks, the others around him did as well.

“Behold! This is the heart of a heathen. Without faith in the one true God, it will always be fragile!”

“Glory be onto the God of Evil!”

“Even darkness itself surrendered to him!”

“Akmen!”

Engulfed by their craze over their faith, the Pope and the cardinals slaughtered every monster they came across with, calling them heretics as their bodies exploded and scattered throughout Midgard.

They slew those with huge cow heads, those that looked like a mixture of spiders and humans, and even those that looked like half-pigs.

However, they also kept some of their opponents tied up.

The cardinals bowed to the Pope, who had his hands stretched out toward the sky.

“O’ God of Evil, I present to you our sacrifices, the lives of malevolent pagans! May their fates be decided according to your will!”

“Akmen.”

Their reverent voices rang out.

With a gesture from him, the priests threw the torches they were holding towards the crowd of beasts.

Woosh!

The monsters screamed as they burned. Having eaten many Earthlings, they deemed it only fair for them to suffer the same level of pain.

“Whew…”

“Hahaha!”

The priests laughed mockingly at the sight.

Purging pagans was so much fun!

Even amid the thick darkness, the eyes of the priests shimmered with blue light, a mixture of madness and liveliness spreading across the blood-filled air. With their sacrifices’ shrieks and screams in the background, the Pope held a mass. Afterward, he pointed to the mountains.

“Come with me, warriors chosen by the God of Evil! Let us build a temple where we all can offer prayers to him!”

Upon his orders, they began to move to the mountains, slaughtering the wicked heretics in their path and building an infrastructure dedicated to their god using wood and stones.

All this happened on the first day the Pope and his priests came to Midgard.

* * *

Jin-woo placed an on New World immediately after giving revelations, deciding to stick with the concept of the apocalypse the Pope was talking about. This battle they would soon fight was on a far larger scale than any of the other wars they had ever experienced.

In preparation for it, his subordinates made a teaser video right away.

It started off showcasing a peaceful land where children ran around and played. Amid their smiles, one of them looked up at the sky, his hand just about to reach for a huge flower.

Once filled with blue light, the dome above them had now been tainted by gigantic dark clouds.

Rumble!

As dark smoke covered the surroundings, the earth dried up and crumbled, causing the flowers to fall into the pits it left behind.

[The time of the apocalypse has come!]

A gloomy voice roared, followed by numerous monsters ascending from the ground and advancing to a distant city. Soon enough, screams begin to echo across the fields.

[Despair approaches.]

Doom! Doom!

War drums echoed.

No, they weren’t drum beats.

A black giant had appeared, each of his footsteps releasing sounds akin to that of missiles detonating. With a swing of his hand, he blew half of the city away.

His appearance quickly escalated the situation to the direst it had ever been.

For brief moments, the teaser showed scenes of children weeping as they looked for their parents. Afterward, the giant raised his hand once more.

However, just before he could launch another attack, beams of light descended from the heavens, New World players standing within them. They looked at each other, nodded, then pulled out their weapons.

Ji-ing!

Beam swords soared!

The scene changed at that moment to the interior of a huge battleship. Answering a call, the captain nodded and stretched his arm forward.

With a magnificent fleet now fully visible, all of the ships activated their warp drives, allowing them to arrive immediately and surround the black giant.

[Fire!]

The captain roared, bringing his hand down through the air with a chopping motion. The armada fired their beams towards their target at his signal, disintegrating his body as he collapsed.

But the captain didn’t celebrate. No, he couldn’t.

The earth cracked once more, and in the gaps crawled out countless monstrosities, creating a sea of nightmares.

New World players began to charge with wretched expressions. As explosions engulfed the battlefield, robots began to be deployed as well.

[Stop the darkness that will soon invade this world!]

The screen projected a bird’s eye view of the battlefield.

The moment the New World players and monsters collided, the screen went black.

[Gasp! Gasp!]

Someone breathed.

The video showed yet another scene.

[Groaaaaggrhhhh!]

Another giant appeared, but it looked a lot more powerful than the one before.

[Pre-order now!]

The video ended with such a phrase.