Myths Reawakened

While having coffee, Wayne had Sukra go into more detail about the Church of Death’s revolution. In addition to the High Reverends and the Pope becoming the Archbishops and the Pontiff, there were other changes.

“The changes start with the three subordinate gods...”

Sukra started from the beginning. The three subordinate gods represented different things with different symbols. The Observer was Death’s eyes and mouth, the Judge was Death’s rules, and the Executor was Death’s enforcer.

The Observer, Grau the Misfortune Spider, also represented flesh and blood, the Judge, Saigner the Soul-Devouring Crow, represented the soul, and the Executor, Sizorn the Wings of Winter, represented the bones. They embodied the three different places an existence went to as they welcomed death.

The flesh and blood returned to the world, the soul went to the Divine Realm, and the bones remained in the mortal realm.

She then launched into a monologue about the doctrines.

“After the revolution, the Church of Death no longer cared about flesh and blood. If you run into a member of the church, you’ll see the change in their evolution. The death elves have become skeletons. The combination of souls and bones resembles you, the Death Knight...”

“You mean Rognes,” Wayne interrupted. “He’s a skeleton, while I no longer have to turn into bones.”

He was satisfied with his current Death Knight form. He could choose whether to transform into a skeleton, no longer constrained by the traditional form.

Death was serene. In his Death Knight form, Wayne would be absolutely calm and rational. His actual head would always be in charge, while his lower head...

Well, that was why he liked the new form. Not holding a blade and not having a blade altogether were two different things. The Death Knight had no use for a third leg, but that didn’t mean Wayne didn’t need it.

Otherwise, he would’ve just agreed with the ancient god during their meeting on Dragonheart Island.

Half an hour later, Sukra walked out of the cafe, adjusting the mask on her eyes. Under Wayne’s encouraging gaze, she marched right into a chapel.

“Father, have you heard of an eternal death?”

“???”

Are you seriously talking to me about that in the Papal State?

The pastor lost it immediately, raising his hand to knock some sense into Sukra with a Sacred Tome to show her what the eternity of death was. It didn’t land, though. As soon as he raised his hand, he fell under Sukra’s psychological control. He sat down and obediently listened to her lecture on the doctrines of Death.

Five minutes later, he saw the truth of the world and concluded that the life he had led was in vain. Slamming the Sacred Tome to the ground, he phoned his colleagues and urged them to come listen to the divine oracles of Death.

Soon, a few Gold-ranked bishops rushed to the chapel in fury. As soon as they saw Sukra, they lined up in order and fell to their knees, devoutly listening to her preaching.

Sukra seemed to be getting addicted. Or perhaps she had been in hiding for so long with no chance of evangelizing that she couldn’t stop now, enjoying her role as the Holy Maiden.

The clergy visited to deliver gifts!

Their gap in power was so great that every visitor ended up staying to listen to Death’s doctrines.

While Sukra was a slacker, her power was undeniable. Even demons who could create demigod domains in the human world couldn’t resist a killing stare from her. Among legendary mages, only Wayne had a more impressive record than Sukra.

He had driven the Goddess of Darkness to escape by flooding into Her.

The critical hit had traumatized the Goddess of Darkness, making Her timid and reserved when She met him again, completely unlike Her coquettish, seductive self.

Anyway, Sukra wasn’t a run-of-the-mill legendary mage. Without resorting to unorthodox methods, only the Pontiff would be able to defeat her in a duel.

Flutter!

Or one could do it by calling on their friends in high places, of course.

Two clergy members descended with wings of light, having summoned angels into their receptive bodies with the Sacred Tomes of Golden Law. The chapel was now under tight lockdown with layers of Holy Light wards and a large number of clergy members standing guard outside. A good number of them were members of the Order of Holy Light deployed in an emergency.

Wayne stood against a wall and clicked his tongue at the impressive army. He counted ten legendary mages. There were also angels summoned to fight on behalf of the humans. The Papal State had a truly impressive foundation.

When the two descended angels reached the entrance to the chapel, they caught Wayne from the corner of their eyes, their attention involuntarily drawn.

Someone even stronger! x2

Keenly sensing Wayne’s prowess, the two angels immediately went into a defensive stance.

“Calm down. I’m on your side.”

Wayne smiled, opening his mouth and triggering the stigma on the tip of his tongue.

The angels wordlessly reined in their Holy Light and dropped to their knees, recognizing him as Śār Hesione because of the stigma, just like Hestia and Olga had.

“Turn back. The one inside is working for me, so the deployment is unnecessary. All is under my control.”

Their superior had spoken. The two angels headed right back to Heaven without delay—but not before laying into the humans they were contracted with.

Look what you’ve done. I almost bared my teeth at the Śār. That would be a great sin! x2

Angels came in different tiers, and Heaven had a strict hierarchy. The higher tier, middle tier, and lower tier were each further divided into three ranks, and the four Seraphim reigning supreme enjoyed unchallenged authority.

Even a little hissing would be considered a great sin. It was evident what consequences awaited Hestia for scowling at Hesione and calling her a shameless wench with every breath. Although Hesione had realized her mistakes and forgiven Hestia, she would still make Hestia’s life difficult once they returned to Heaven.

Hestia had no future.

The two holders of the Sacred Tomes of the Golden Law reported right to the Pontiff, and not long after, Pontiff Reza arrived at the entrance to the chapel.

The silver-haired, kind-looking old man looked hale and hearty, dressed in a white and golden robe that marked his status as the Pontiff. The hands hidden in the sleeves were bony with pronounced joints, suggesting his incredible raw strength.

It made perfect sense. In the world of magic, where power was glory, a leader without raw power would have no say no matter how loud they spoke.

Now, though, Pontiff Reza looked like an honest old man with nothing but the desire to please on his face. He jogged up to Wayne and held a hand to his chest in greeting. “Mr. Wayne, when did you arrive in the Papal State?” he said with excitement. “This subordinate has not received the notice. I’ve failed my duty.”

Reza recognized Wayne since he had a dossier on each of the seven reincarnated angels. Moreover, Wayne had starred in a movie, so his photo wasn’t difficult to come by.

The dossier on Wayne was quite complex, including both good points and bad points. The good was his records of fighting demons, always found at the frontline whenever the demons and the Gate of Hell were concerned. The bad was even more straightforward—it was all about his private life.

Reza had tried to figure out Wayne’s real name in Heaven based on everything he had done since his awakening, but no amount of analysis could give him an answer.

He couldn’t figure Wayne out. The angel was impossible to predict.

That didn’t matter, though. Reza could guess how important Wayne was based on Auriel’s actions. In fact, Wayne might be one of the Cherubim representing the Seven Sacred Virtues. That would narrow the possibilities down to three. Two of them had already descended and awakened: Gerar, representing temperance, and Vilkul, representing gentleness. That left Milia, representing diligence.

It all fit. In his private life, Wayne was indeed diligent. Putting aside in which aspect he showed his diligence, no one could argue that he didn’t embody that virtue!

Even disregarding all that, Wayne had been going after demons more diligently than anyone else, showing up at every demon invasion with no exception.

Still, there was no telling whether he was Cherub Milia yet. Based on the Sacred Tome’s description of Milia, the angel was on the feminine side and would more likely reincarnate into a female, as Olga and Frey had.

Reza kept his eyes lowered, prepared to get an answer out of Wayne today.

The old man is a good actor, almost as good as I am!

Wayne believed that good acting was necessary for great achievement. He had long found a kindred spirit in the Pontiff even before they met. Finally, he had a chance to interact with the man and the myth in person.

Still...

The Pontiff’s white mustache was quite an eyesore.

“The fault doesn’t lie in you, Pontiff, but in me,” Wayne said with a smile. “I’ve visited uninvited and disturbed the peace of the Papal State. I hope you don’t find it an offense.”

“Oh, no. My failing is my failing,” Reza hurriedly said. “You’re free to make a sudden visit, but I shouldn’t be unprepared. It’s my mistake to be caught off guard.”

After exchanging pleasantries, Reza shifted the conversation since Wayne hadn’t introduced himself, and he wanted to know who Wayne was. “Mr. Wayne, Mr. Pedro and the other reincarnated angels are in Londan. Why are you here?”

Did you relocate because you had a disagreement?

“You mean Auriel? That one knows nothing but his ambition for power. He wouldn't see his mistake without a lesson.” Wayne huffed. Then he cracked a smile like he just remembered something. “That’s off the record. Pretend that you didn’t hear anything.”

Reza bowed even lower like a professional. “I mean no offense, but may I... may I know your real name in Heaven, Sir?”

He bowed to hide the look of surprise on his face. The fact that Wayne had addressed Auriel by name and showed visible distaste meant that he wasn’t a Cherub, but a Seraph like Auriel.

Who could it be? The sarcasm didn’t sound like Lahr, representing tolerance, and the casual arrogance was at odds with Mikhael’s humility.

Then who was it? Hesione, representing purity?

What a joke. It wasn’t funny at all.

Reza would rather believe that Wayne was Viceroy Mikhael than that he was Hesione. After all, if Wayne were Hesione, Reza would’ve committed a great sin: he had given Purity a clergywoman, and they had done the nasty.

The achievement would warrant the stake treatment if he went to Heaven and an award personally bestowed by the Seven Demon Lords if he went to Hell. The thought alone made Reza sweat buckets.

“Sweating now, aren’t you?” Wayne scoffed. “Pontiff Reza, isn’t it? Old boy, you’re in trouble!”

“Please-please enlighten me.”

“I won’t hide it from you since you’re one of our own, and Auriel and the others already know...” Wayne showed Reza the stigma on the tip of his tongue, dropping the atomic bomb of a revelation: “I’m Hesione, a Seraph and one of the four Śārim, representing purity among the Seven Sacred Virtues. Do you understand now?”

✟✟✟

The world seemed to spin around Reza. He felt like crosses were falling from the sky and hitting him right in the head.

Gulp!

“Don’t gulp yet. I’m not done.” Wayne blew at his fingertips, speaking at a deliberate pace. “Do you know why Frey hit you? She was my subordinate in Heaven, so she beat up the culprit responsible for my loss of purity.”

“I’ve kept my body and heart pure before my awakening, never developing any worldly desires, but you shamefully and insidiously sent Clergywoman Mona to me as an assistant and a secretary.”

“Don’t think I wouldn’t figure out the problem with the cross. You guided her into developing possessive feelings, and you used my subconscious yearning for the Holy Light to make me lose control before my awakening. The night Mona acquired the cross, I lost my purity.”

“With the loss, I rolled down the slippery slope of impurity. When I awakened, I was already surrounded by beautiful ladies...”

“When all is said and done without considering the facts, I conclude that you have to take full responsibility. You are the real demon. In terms of sins, the Seven Demon Lords are nothing compared to you.”

“...”

Reza gaped. He would like to question the Śār’s culpability disregarding the facts. If the Śār didn’t have the desire, would an obedient virgin clergywoman with a cross pendant for cosplay be enough to make him fall? Ha, which Śār would fail the test?

Auriel didn’t. He had shunned the temptation before awakening and didn’t even see the temptation after his awakening. That was an angel with no worldly desire.

The Pontiff would like to know if the Seven Sacred Virtues were different from the slogans he recited in his daily life. Was it just lip service? Did being a representation of purity not mean that Hesione was pure?

“Oh my, you’re glaring at me? Glare at me again if you dare!”