Chapter 110
The accompanying secretaries knew perfectly well what should and shouldn't be written during that meeting.
Even the most upright and incorruptible among them would yield when faced with the dreadful question of the kingdom's lifespan.
Several of the older men, after forcing themselves to finish recording, fell ill. Within a few months, they submitted their resignations, saying they were unwell and hoped His Majesty the King would allow them to return to their hometowns.
Lortheran looked at the earnest letters and scoffed. Although he was not pleased that these people were so frightened, he still waved his hand and agreed to everything.
Although the incident was shocking to him, life had to go on after the initial shock, and he quickly returned to his busy schedule with various government affairs. Even though he had established two other institutions to decentralize power, those people still found it difficult to change their habit of acting as if they were His Majesty the King, and in reality, Lortheran still held the reins of power.
Garcia, on the other hand, took more than a month to recover before returning to work at the Papacy.
The other archbishops present that day weren't much better off, though they only rested for a few days.
When Garcia returned, they already had that familiar expression of utter despair.
Even though its power had shrunk considerably, the downsizing was still a massive undertaking, with countless decisions to be made behind the scenes. As soon as Garcia appeared, Copperfield relocated him to the communal study to work.
Even when feeling depressed, Garcia couldn't care less about the overwhelming workload.
Fekris is already considering retirement. At his age, he is considered old among the dwarves, and the affairs of the High Papacy are extremely busy, along with the affairs of the Royal Academy and the clan. He must cultivate a successor as soon as possible.
Finney is the same, but he is much younger than Fekris. They have fought a lot over the years because of racial issues, but their relationship has eased a lot now. Fekris is considering an heir, while Finney should not be considering one so early. However, Fekris is only important in the dwarf race, while all the affairs of the elves have fallen on Finney's shoulders.
The Holy Prince went to the Demon King's Forest. The elven clansmen were useless. Even though they were confined to the elven forest, there were always conflicts, big and small. Fenny was exhausted, but she couldn't find a single clansman with better aptitude for the time being, so her face became even more haggard.
This kind of mentality among the elves has a long history, and even after studying at the Royal Academy for several years, it has only improved slightly.
Finney thought of His Highness the Holy Descendant, who had only returned to the clan a few years ago. He had not been influenced by the clan's extravagant and arrogant atmosphere and had always been silent and reserved, maintaining his dignity. Finney was extremely satisfied and placed high hopes on him.
Hopefully, His Highness the Holy Descendant can change the bad habits of the Elven race.
Finney was exhausted. Although he was also the vice dean of the Royal Academy, the overall affairs were still in the hands of Copperfield. Copperfield was also Soldas's confidant and friend. With the new batch of students enrolling and the entrance trials about to begin, Copperfield was running back and forth between the two, and his eyes were full of dark circles.
Granva, who is over ninety years old and will be one hundred next year, is getting older and has less work to do, but he still feels overwhelmed when faced with the dense list of staff reductions and the huge pile of local church documents that he needs to look through.
At this moment, Garcia, who had been on leave for more than a month and had almost escaped the most arduous period of his work, walked into the communal study. The other three archbishops looked up at him, their eyes bloodshot, as if they had seen some kind of enemy.
Garcia's desk was already piled high with official business awaiting processing.
These are arduous tasks that cannot be done wrong. They must be carefully considered and handled properly. The list of personnel to be laid off is not something that can be easily compiled.
However, they were only in charge of the former eleventh district of the Kingdom of Lotheran. To be more precise, each of them was assigned two districts, while the rest of the territory was taken over by His Holiness the Pope.
The archbishops were very familiar with the information within District 11, and they handled it quite well.
His Holiness the Pope did the work of five people all by himself.
Whenever they felt weary, thinking about this made them feel ashamed. The Pope hadn't said anything, and every day at dawn, the lights in the Pope's study on the second floor would be on, and even after the last of them left late at night, the lights in the Pope's study would still be on.
Logically speaking, it would be better for the local churches to compile the lists and submit them, since they are far away from the Papacy and wouldn't know much about local affairs.
However, both approaches have their drawbacks. They will be extremely careful in reviewing the list and will have no selfish motives, since they don't know anyone in power. If the local church is responsible for compiling the list, there is no guarantee that favoritism will not occur.
After Garcia returned and worked for seven or eight days, he realized he should have just stayed home.
They spent their days looking at the list, and in the evenings they would all go to the Pope's study to report on their work.
The Pope, dressed in casual clothes, sat behind his desk without looking up, scribbling a string of words. It was unclear whether he was listening or not, but if their reports had even the slightest problem, the Pope would immediately point it out and send it back.
The rare moments of rest are spent eating three meals a day.
During the meal, the archbishops sat together without any barriers and finally had some time to chat.
That day, they were discussing how long His Holiness the Pope's working hours were.
The first person to arrive at the Papacy every day was undoubtedly Granva, who lived there. He said, "When I opened the door at six o'clock in the morning, the Pope's study was already lit. However, when I got up in the middle of the night and looked out, the Pope had gone back to rest."
That means there is no situation where the Pope's study is always lit up.
If we're talking about 6:00 AM or earlier, let's say 5:30 AM.
Garcia was the last to leave each day. His princely residence wasn't too far from the Papacy. Last month, he had been slacking off, and a lot of official business had piled up. Coupled with his guilt, he would work until late at night every day before he was willing to leave.
At this moment, he pondered and said, "When I left after midnight, the Pope's study was still lit."
The archbishops discussed it and concluded that their Pope was indeed as tough as nails; he arrived at his study at 5:30 in the morning and didn't leave until after 1 a.m. while handling official business.
So that means only five hours of rest?
It lasted for two months!
Several grown men shuddered. After his initial shock, Granvar recalled the days when he was just a junior priest in the Papacy.
He couldn't help but exclaim, "You all find this shocking, but actually, many years ago, when His Holiness the Pope hadn't yet left the Papacy, it was pretty much the same. His Holiness the Pope had devoted himself to the Church, and when we heard that he was leaving to go somewhere else, we, his followers, were happy for him for a long time."
The archbishops fell silent for a moment. Garcia, who had been fighting his brothers to the death decades ago, had no idea what was going on.
Suddenly, Copperfield remembered something: "Why haven't I seen His Holiness the Holy Son for the past two months?"
The second-floor restaurant fell silent for a moment.
This isn't the first time this topic has been brought up.
Copperfield glanced at his colleagues, then finally looked at Garcia: "Garcia, what do you think?"
Garcia silently took a sip of the drink, which made him feel much more relaxed. He had an unusually high alcohol tolerance, and this amount of alcohol was about the same as plain water for him.
He looked up, his lips moved slightly, and Copperfield looked puzzled.
Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out from behind: "You guys seem quite concerned about Sylvain, aren't you?"
Copperfield froze.
Granva strained to keep his eyelids closed, then slowly lifted them, pretending he was just spacing out.
Veris walked over carrying a tray, glanced at the group of archbishops at the table, and, seemingly unconcerned about their earlier hushed discussion about Sylvain, simply said, "He was helping out in my study, but I had already sent him back when you came to report. You just didn't run into him."
After saying that, he picked up his tray, found a seat, and began to eat his dinner.
After finishing dinner, I went back to my study to continue working.
He hadn't experienced such high-intensity work for a while, although this "while" could be considered half a lifetime for a human being.
Sylvain was indeed in the study accompanying him as he worked.
His memory remained stagnant, and some memories even began to fade, such as his past in Mercury City, where he had forgotten even Arnold and the others.
He stubbornly remembered only all the images of Veris; those unimportant people were just similar faces in his mind.
Veris was somewhat worried, but not to the point of losing his composure. It was only a matter of time before Sylvain's divine status stabilized, and the fall of the Icarus pantheon would not affect Sylvain's foundation.
The Great Demolition Movement didn't come to an end until the New Year. It was only the end of the Great Vatican's work. The general work had been arranged, and everything was settled. It was just a matter of seeing how the people below would act.
On New Year's Day, fireworks still lit up the capital city of Lortheran and the High Papacy, illuminating the entire capital with colorful lights. Everything was thriving, and the great city remained as prosperous as it had been for centuries.
With his work at the Papacy finished, Veris took Sylvain out for some fun.
The dragon, having mustered the courage to visit his companions for the New Year, was disappointed to find them empty-handed and went to Lortheran in tears.
According to past practice, the royal family would hold a family banquet, but nowadays the royal family... let's not even talk about it.
There haven't been any newborns in recent years. At family dinners, it's just three men—Lotheran, Garcia, and Ethan—sitting in the small hall, eating without tasting anything.
When the dragon ran in, Lortheran looked at it, pointed to an empty seat next to it, and said to the servants, "Tell the kitchen to make more dishes and send them over. Replace the dishes on the table with a new one, and put the old ones on a new table."
The servants quickly arranged a seat for the dragon.
The dragon had actually come to complain, but seeing food, it immediately forgot its displeasure and happily began to feast.
This was the first time Ethan and Garcia had ever seen a dragon eat.
There were only a few of them in the small hall, so of course they weren't restrained. Ethan had been out there making a living for several years and had long since abandoned royal etiquette. As for Garcia, it was even less important to her; these things were dispensable to her.
But upon seeing the dragon's table, the two couldn't help but fall silent for a moment.
Long really doesn't consider himself an outsider.
They had eaten their fill, drunk their fill several times, and had gone through more than a dozen different topics of banter with Lortheran. Even the fireworks outside had quieted down, while the dragon was still happily munching on a piece of roasted meat.
Lortheran smiled, but didn't feel angry.
Eating more is good; it means you're healthy.
Ethan was getting restless. He gave Garcia a wink and prepared to get up and leave.
At this moment, another of Lortheran's trusted confidants entered from outside. He glanced at the servants in the small hall, and they quickly withdrew.
The trusted aide stood in the small hall and respectfully said, "Your Majesty, the heroes and the others have entered the Sand Rift City, the closest city to the Demon King's Abyss, and are expected to arrive at the Demon King's Abyss this year."
Lortheran, holding a small, exquisite gold cup, didn't even lift his eyelids upon hearing this, but simply turned to look at Ethan beside him: "How long have they been gone?"
Ethan paused, as if thinking, before answering, "It's been more than a year."
“More than a year…that’s fast enough,” Lortheran murmured, looking up. “I understand. You may leave.”
The confidant left quickly.
Lortheran then turned to the dragon: "What brings you here?"
Long chewed on a piece of roasted meat, his speech a little unclear but loud: "Veris and Sylvain have disappeared! I went to the High Vatican but couldn't find them!"
Lortheran: "..."
"Forget it, you shouldn't go to see them for the next month."
The dragon gave a muffled reply, then swallowed the roasted meat. It had heard the human's words earlier and was quite interested: "Sand Rift City? Is that the place with the Sand Rift Pit?"
I'll go take a look tomorrow!
Clearly, this was a notification from the dragon. Although it wasn't too bored in Icarus, after several years, it had visited all the novel places and was starting to get tired of them. The only place it hadn't been to was the Demon King's Forest.
Lortheran pondered for a moment, then said, "Wait a little longer. Veris is also going to the Demon Forest... one month, two months... how about you go ask him in March."
In January, Arnold and his companions arrived in Shattered Sand City.
I estimate that I will be able to escape from Rift Sand City and obtain the ticket to the Demon King's Abyss around March.
Dragon obediently listened.
Throughout January, Veris and Sylvan roamed the continent of Icarus. After working so hard for so long, it was time for him to rest.
He knew exactly where the best places to see and what fun things to do, and he was even happier to be with Sylvain.
The reason Sylvain was left in the Papacy was because of Yannis, that rotten apple, and he was worried that Yannis would take action against Sylvain.
Now Yannis has left nothing behind. Arnold's contract was dissolved after the Fisherman's Tomb, and he has no more scruples.
Sylvain was unusually happy because Veris was not surrounded by those messy people.
Especially those "old acquaintances" who were familiar with Veris.
If a glare could kill, even a dragon would be chopped into mincemeat.
Veris made another trip to Phoenix. Since the rise of the northern mountains, the climate here has improved a lot, which has also caused a lot of problems, but compared to the harsh permafrost of the past few hundred years, these problems are nothing.
He took Sylvain and reopened the ruins of Cupid.
But this time they didn't see Cupid. The statue of Cupid was completely lifeless. Veris stood in the water palace for a long time before pulling Sylvain away.
Sylvain sensed that he was in a bad mood and couldn't help but worry.
However, Veris was only in a bad mood for a few days and soon got over it. He took Sylvain south and traveled along the long and winding coastline of Icarus. In January, the north of Icarus was frozen, and although the climate in the south was warm, it was still bitterly cold.
Sylvain has rarely seen the sea.
To be precise, based on his current memory, he has never seen the sea, nor has he ever had the inclination to appreciate any natural beauty.
Things are different now; he has someone he longs for by his side.
Veris laughed heartily; he always loved to laugh, just as he had for many years.
He pulled Sylvain along as they walked on the flat beach. The sky was overcast, and the beach wasn't particularly beautiful to begin with, but he was still in high spirits.
One day, he stood on a reef, pointed to the distant horizon, and said, "That was once the site of the sea god's ruins."
It's not the ruins that suddenly opened above the city in the Seven Mysterious Realms; the real ruins belonging to the Sea God are located in the western sea.
Sylvain felt the cold sea breeze and turned to look at Veris.
Veris continued, "I used to live here."
Sylvain was stunned.
The young man moved his finger and pointed to another place that was also the sea. "But now that place is submerged by the ocean. I lived by the sea when I was a child."
Veris looked at the rocks at his feet and said with a smile, "You may not believe it, but this place used to be a small hill. However, when I first came into contact with magic, I blasted it away. I never thought that hundreds of years later, it would turn into this."
The chaos of that year, especially the fall of Ambrose, the god of the earth, caused significant changes to Icarus's territory.
“I believe you,” Sylvain said.
Someone like Veris should have been dazzling and extraordinary from birth. He wasn't involved in Veris's past, but Veris was willing to let him glimpse a part of his past. How could he not understand such intentions?
The month-long trip came to an end in the blink of an eye, and Veris returned to the High Papacy, only this time with much less work.
With him in charge of the Papacy, the churches, large and small, below him probably guessed what was going on and behaved themselves quite well.
Lortheran predicted that Arnold and his companions would be able to finish their adventure in Shattered Sands in March, but he was wrong.
It wasn't until May that Arnold and the others had left Shattered Sand City.
Even Lortheran noticed that the Star of Heroes seemed somewhat dim.
At the end of May, Veris entrusted the affairs of the Papacy to Sylvain—after more than half a year of observation, and given that Sylvain was a smart man, handling these matters was a piece of cake for him.
The dragon wanted to come along, and although Veris was a little surprised, he nodded in agreement. The dragon, with its thick skin and tough flesh, was indeed very useful.
Moreover, with the dragon around, you won't get lost even in the secret realm, which seems very useful... cough cough.
On the day of their farewell, Sylvain and Lortheran were both present, with a large open space between them. Sylvain's face was somber, while the dragon stood beside Veris, its neck hunched, looking at Lortheran as if pleading for help.
Lortheran looked at the sky, the earth, and Veris, but not at it.
According to him, the dragon should wait for Veris to set off and then join him halfway, so that Sylvain wouldn't see it. Even if he was unhappy, Veris would coax him. Now, he's following Veris in front of Sylvain, and Sylvain is already in a good mood if he doesn't strip off all of its scales.
Oh, jealous men!
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Author's note: Before it was secret jealousy, now it's open jealousy. [Thumbs up]
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