Valcke Dodd paused for a moment, then waved his hand and said in a simple, honest voice, "You're joking. How could I possibly be qualified to sit in that position?"
Phil Gray smiled and shook his head: "If an ordinary person, a rebellious bishop, can sit on the papacy, why can't you?"
"Hahaha." Valcke Dodd laughed as well, making a few embarrassed excuses, but the hesitation in his eyes was so obvious that Phil Gray felt he had indeed taken his words to heart.
But what exactly will this knight commander do?
He didn't expect Valcke Dodd to turn against Wendell directly. As long as it created some rifts between them, he might be able to find some opportunities and have a better chance of winning later.
They exchanged a few more polite words, but as Phil Gray watched the silver-armored knight's figure disappear, his eyes turned cold.
Just then, a long-lost voice appeared in my ears, its ethereal and divine tone seemingly about to be etched into my mind:
"Correct the distorted religion and reclaim the throne of destiny."
The proverb appeared only briefly, but it left Phil Gray stunned for a long time.
The task of advancing to the level of divine revelation is actually to regain the position of Pope of the Church of Destiny?
So fate has brought us to this juncture.
Phil Gray sighed deeply. It wasn't that he felt this was the most difficult task he had ever received, but rather that he felt a sense of melancholy. He had thought the reckoning would take at least several years, but now it had come so suddenly.
It is very difficult to accomplish.
The difference between the Divine Revelation level and the Attention level is not small. Wendell's side has several Divine Revelation level experts, while he only has Eli at the Divine Revelation level, but he cannot exert his full strength. Therefore, he must think of other ways instead of fighting them one-on-one.
Using the power of Dawn? Phil Gray frowned. The Pope of Dawn probably wouldn't let him do that. He knew in his heart that the Pope only wanted him to stay in Dawn and serve Dawn, not to return to the Church of Destiny. Besides, once the fact that he was also a chosen one of the God of Destiny was exposed, the Pope might not be so kind anymore.
So you still have to rely on yourself.
Seeing Phil Gray deep in thought, Melody was curious but didn't ask any questions. The representatives had already been settled in. She lifted her skirt and instructed the servants to clean the place again to prevent dust from affecting the ancient artifacts.
“Miss, this petal has fallen off.” The cleaning servant picked up a pure white petal from the ground. Melody recognized it as a gift from the Church of Destiny hundreds of years ago—from a flower of destiny woven from mermaid brocade. It was just that it was so old that a petal had fallen off.
"Give it to me, and I'll go to Grandma Hannah at the tailor shop to sew it back on later."
...
With a cold expression, Valcke Dodd arrived at the lodgings prepared by Dawn, led by his servants.
Unlike the other representatives who marveled at Dawn's luxurious furnishings and formidable strength, he kept pondering the words of Dawn's Holy Son.
Can I become the Pope?
He narrowed his eyes. He had thought about it before, but he had suppressed it in his heart. He had to admit that Wendell, that old fox, was superior to him in both wisdom and strength, and also had the support of his family's power, so he was willing to support him.
But what can I gain from it?
When the young pope was in power, he was the knight commander of the Knights of Destiny. But now, even if Wendell becomes the pope, what can he gain?
The governing rights of several cities he promised? The unchanging position of Knight Commander?
He scoffed, "How can that compare to the papacy?"
If... with the support of Dawn, plus his own Knights of Destiny, he wouldn't have to worry about competing with Wendell.
As for whether Dawn wants to use this to control the Church of Destiny, so what? Even if he becomes Dawn's puppet, he is still the rightful Pope of Destiny.
Even Chenxi wouldn't dare to openly subvert one of the six major churches, would he?
Thinking of this, a smile appeared on his lips, as if he had thought of something wonderful.
Perhaps, this Holy Son of Dawn is a benefactor sent to him by the god of fate.
However, he needed to confirm whether the support was genuine and how much it was, before he could act rashly. With that in mind, he made a plan.
...
Evening, inside the Holy Son's residence.
"Ever since the boss came back from entertaining those guests, he's been spacing out. What happened?" Eli asked curiously, stroking his chin.
Ernest shook his head; to avoid revealing Phil Gray's identity, neither of them went along.
Although the people from the Church of Destiny might not know them.
"Your Highness, there is a distinguished guest outside requesting an audience. He claims to be the Knight Commander of the Church of Destiny," the butler said, stepping forward with light and steady steps.
"Oh? He came to see me?" A hint of surprise flashed in Phil Gray's eyes. What could he possibly want with him?
Did his words have an effect? Or did he notice something amiss?
Phil Gray's heart tightened, then he said calmly, "Please come in, distinguished guest."
Upon hearing the name Valcke Dodd, Ernest gripped his sword tighter, the veins on his hand bulging, drawing Eli's attention.
"He's a traitor? The one who left the boss stranded and then hunted him down?"
Ernest nodded silently.
“Hmph, then I’ll have to see what this former knight commander has to do with.” Eli’s eyes flashed dangerously.
However, the two of them still hid and secretly protected their boss.
Phil Gray greeted the unannounced visitor with a smile, saying, "Is there something important that you have come to visit so suddenly, Commander of the Knights of Fate? If you're not busy, I'll have the butler prepare dinner."
“No rush, no rush. But there’s no need to prepare dinner. Today, I felt an instant connection with His Highness the Holy Son, as if we were old friends. So, since I have some free time now, I came to chat with you. Please don’t mind my intrusion,” Valk Dodd said somewhat apologetically.
“How could that be? I feel a special connection with you. Feel free to come see me during your time at Dawn.” Phil Gray smiled.
“Well, that’s wonderful. Actually, after I got back, I thought about your suggestion carefully and I think it makes some sense,” Valcke Dodd said vaguely.
“A proposal?” Phil Gray said with a half-smile. “My proposal? I’m just stating some facts. It’s not a proposal at all.”
"Haha, you're right. I'll be frank. You said your church can support me in ascending to the papacy, which is of course a great favor to me. So, I wonder what I can do to repay your church?"
Phil Gray stood up, his expression turning serious, and retorted, "It's not about repaying the Church of Dawn, but about repaying me. You desire the papacy, and so do I."
"Oh? You are the Holy Son, so naturally you will be the next Pope of Dawn."
“No, no, no, I’m not the only Holy Son of Dawn. The other one has the support of his family’s power, and I’m still relatively new to the Dawn Cult. I might not be able to compete with him, so…”
Valck Dodd's eyes lit up, and he made a plan. He had thought that the Dawn Saint's sudden offer to help him might have some ulterior motive, but now it seemed that it was just a simple transaction.
“If you can lend me a hand, I will do my best to help you when I ascend to the papacy, whether it is to assassinate another one, or…” Before Valck Dodd could finish speaking, a soft click was heard from outside the door.
Although he spoke very softly, the knight commander, who was on edge, changed his expression and quickly pushed open the door, but unfortunately, there was nothing outside.
Phil Gray also came out, but indeed found nothing.
They had no choice but to go back inside.
Phil Gray smiled and said, "It's almost autumn, and my manor has many plants, so some noise is normal. Don't worry, let's continue our conversation."
"good."
Eli appeared in the doorway, frowning as he scanned the ground before finally picking up a petal of the Flower of Destiny from an inconspicuous corner.
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