Chapter 148 Collaboration
Pawarton Miller gradually regained consciousness. He was an arrogant man, or rather, no strong man was without arrogance, but he still felt an inescapable despair in the presence of the god.
It was a completely different kind of fear from facing the God of Light. If the former was a cold spear tip piercing his eyeballs, leaving him sweating profusely before the distorted illusions of the past, afraid to act rashly—the latter was a violent natural disaster that came crashing down with overwhelming force, rendering all so-called "backup plans" meaningless. He didn't even think he could open his eyes again.
Pawanton Miller's eyes narrowed sharply.
"you……"
He met a pair of smoky grey eyes. In a trance, he even thought he was looking into a crystal clear silver mirror that reflected everything in the world, and in it was his own disheveled reflection.
The cardinal looked around calmly - he was still in the secret room of the catacombs, not far away was Dante Matthews, who was also lying on the ground. The black-haired young man who had been struggling in pain at the feet of the god before was now standing in front of him with ease, his eyes drooping, looking down at him coldly, the shackles on his body had long since disappeared.
——Something is wrong.
Pavaton Miller was by no means a fool, and a bad premonition immediately gripped his heart.
"Pavardon Miller," the young man said slowly, "an extremely devout believer—so much so that your relentless pursuit of 'glory' is enough to make you abandon your loyalty to the god himself."
This lie called "glory" is both the sword and the shackles of the rulers.
"Don't worry, the fragment of the God of Light in you has disappeared." Nova stared at the Cardinal's drastically shrinking green pupils with some curiosity: "Do you want to become the Pope? Or rather... do you want to become God?"
"It seems to be both." Without waiting for the other party to respond, he continued to speak, narrowing his eyes slightly in thought: "I guess Owl will have some common topics with you."
"...What exactly do you want?" Pavaton Miller slowly stood up, holding on to the wall. The fake smile that was common among clergymen on his face had long disappeared without a trace.
His soul's essence was wounded, and he had no mood to continue playing coy with anyone. Even a fool could tell that the current situation was doomed and that this person was responsible. After realizing this crucial point, his eyes gradually changed - an ordinary person had almost single-handedly manipulated the entire Church, not to mention that a god stood behind him.
He suppressed the turmoil in his heart, the humiliation of being deceived by an ordinary person, and the admiration that he didn't want to admit - continuing to pretend would only bring humiliation upon himself.
Nova gave him an approving look. He really liked dealing with smart people because they always knew what to do and when.
"No, the key question now is what you can give me." He casually hooked the cardinal's scepter that rolled to the ground with his toes and kicked it in front of the other party, but his eyebrows twitched involuntarily.
...It's so heavy! It almost hooked me. How come you can't tell from the surface?
But Pawanton Miller didn't notice his little mistake at all. He was completely focused on what the other person said.
"The Chosen One, the Black County strike, the White Tower riots, the truth behind the God's resurrection..." The black-haired young man shook his head in exasperation. "You truly haven't handled a single thing properly. How can Your Holiness keep your position if this continues?"
Miller couldn't help but twitch his lips for a moment, and even the well-mannered man couldn't help but look grim. Aside from the Black County strike, what other incident wasn't connected to this guy? So, he'd actually been defeated by an ordinary person...
"Of course, you still have a way out at this moment."
The black-haired young man gracefully raised his chin slightly, motioning him to look at Dante Matthews, who was still unconscious at his feet. "My God really dislikes this group of 'sacrificial sects' who buzz around like flies, not just because they are arrogant and try to spy on God's thoughts."
He changed his tune without hesitation, without blinking, and smoothly accepted his companion's very useful new setting: "Deal with them, all of them. My God will give you everything you want."
As Pavaton Miller's expression changed dramatically, he spoke slowly, word by word: "--For example, to remove the seal that the God of Light has branded on your soul?"
“…”
The Cardinal stood there, motionless. Nova remained calm, staring at him calmly, his fingers tapping rhythmically on his arm. After a long moment, he finally leaned over, picked up the scepter, and walked towards the black-haired young man.
This was a warlock of the Lord's Prayer class, capable of taking the life of an ordinary person in an instant. But there was no tension, no vigilance, no fear in the latter's eyes—it seemed as if there was nothing at all.
The cardinal raised his hand without warning and pierced Dante Matthews' neck with the heavy, sharp tip of his scepter.
His colleague twitched violently, opened his eyes wide, and subconsciously grabbed his neck with his arms - but he was unable to utter a word, and hot blood immediately spurted out, staining the cardinal's white robe red and splashing onto the face of the black-haired young man, adding a strange, bright scarlet color to his pale and cold face.
Before leaving the catacombs, Pavardon Miller cast a deep glance at the young man he had assumed would spend his entire life in the underworld. "...Is that god truly the resurrected Storm God Utosca?"
His only answer was a cold "No comment".
After the Cardinal left, Nova closed his eyes and finally couldn't help but rub his swollen and aching temple. He hadn't consumed any caffeine in days. He couldn't expect the Inquisition to provide such a thing for its prisoners. Those backward and brutal defenders of feudal superstition had no concept of "humanitarianism."
The withdrawal reaction gave him a splitting headache. He was extremely sleepy but couldn't fall asleep. If he forced himself to fall asleep, he would be haunted by endless nightmares. The sleep he had previously had when he was half-forced to sleep with someone holding him on their legs could be considered the best sleep quality he had had in recent days.
Uncontrollable anxiety made him subconsciously want to bite his fingers - but just as he put his hand to his lips, a hand gently pinched his chin, forcing him to turn his head.
The professor was stunned for a moment, then met the savior's beautiful face. She was gently wiping his cheek with a wet handkerchief, her light golden eyelashes drooping slightly, covering her blue eyes as clear as the sea.
"Dirty." Seeing that his old enemy's face was a little deformed by his rubbing, but still did not subconsciously escape, but just looked at him in some confusion, Azukahe showed the blood on the handkerchief and explained concisely.
Nova blinked slowly: "Where is the God of Eros?"
Why did this guy suddenly have the mind to come and wash his face?
"There's nothing more to ask." The Savior said calmly, "As time goes by, the fragments of the God of Love's soul are gradually losing their sanity. Now, all that thing can do is scream."
Seeing the not-so-obvious disappointment on his face, he added, "Looks like we need to catch another one."
"Then give her to me." The professor suddenly said, "I want to try... to 'eat' her with my soul."
"It's too dangerous." Azuka frowned in disapproval. "In the past, sorcerers have indeed proposed increasing their power by devouring souls, but without exception, they all ended up going mad and dying miserably."
His expression gradually grew serious. "Even if your soul's essence is strong and sturdy enough—how can we be sure that this 'strong and sturdy' is simply because you haven't devoured enough souls? We can conduct experiments by finding more soul fragments instead of taking such a risk."
"No, that's too slow, and I think testing is necessary." The other person, however, seemed unyielding. "Performing the experiment under your supervision and protection is the best option. Only this way can we plan ahead for any contingencies. Furthermore, why is my soul so 'tempting' to gods, and why can it devour fragments of gods' souls? These questions touch upon the most fundamental issues, and we must obtain answers."
“…”
"You know my character." Nova stared at the man expressionlessly. At this moment, he seemed particularly arbitrary and domineering, a living tyrant, so much so that the other man suddenly felt his teeth itching. "As long as this matter does not endanger our lives, and the benefits far outweigh the risks, I will not easily change my decision."
The implication is that even if his companions do not agree, he will do it himself.
"...I really want to spank you right now." The savior said expressionlessly.
The professor thought for a moment and said, "So if you're done beating me, you can agree to my request?"
This person couldn't possibly beat him to death, he thought very seriously - besides, the other party had healing spells, so this level of sacrifice was permissible.
Then Nova saw the savior take a deep, deep breath, turn his head away and pinch his eyebrows: "...sometimes you really go too far."
Even he couldn't help but feel his anger rising. For a moment, he really couldn't help but want to make this ridiculous "deal" become a reality. Maybe after the other people lost their ability to move, they would become more obedient.
This should mean compromise.
But the professor didn't feel any joy of victory at this moment. He frowned and looked at the other person's slightly pursed lips. After thinking for a while, he suddenly opened his arms and said, "Hug me?"
Seeing that the other person was standing still with a half-smile on his face, he simply walked forward, gave him a quick hug, and patted his companion on the back.
Azuka's fingers hanging at his side twitched subtly. From an angle invisible to others, his eyes seemed to condense a whirlpool in the deep sea, but it quickly disappeared.
"I understand why you're angry." The black-haired young man took a step back and looked intently into the blue eyes that revealed a hint of sadness and bewilderment. "But I can't say sorry this time, because I can't make it right."
He looked serious, damn serious. "If you can't forgive me, and you need me to pay a price, just tell me. I'll do my best to satisfy you."
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