Chapter 450 - 92: October Revolution
Elizabeth had risen from where she had collapsed. Her ink-black eyes gazed at Ete I, swirling with an indescribable mix of emotions.
Although she had long since resolved to uphold the ideals of Noe VII even after Ete I’s ascension, secretly protecting the Path she believed in, she had never imagined the supreme authority of the Church Court would be transferred under such circumstances and in such a way.
Finally, Ete I, dragging his ruined body to the very brink of death, came to a stop before Elizabeth.
He gasped for breath, and slowly, with tremendous difficulty, he once again raised the Crescent Star Crown. With trembling hands, he held the flawless white crown—unstained by even a trace of blood—at his chest.
Then, using the last of his strength, he raised his head and straightened his hunched back ever so slightly. His movements were slow and solemn, just as they had been when Elizabeth crowned him with her own hands.
He placed the heavy crown, laden with a thousand years of faith and responsibility, firmly and squarely upon Elizabeth’s cascading, ink-black hair.
The moment the crown settled, it was as if the last ounce of strength supporting Ete I was drained from him. His body swayed violently.
But he forced himself to remain standing.
He gazed at Elizabeth one last time with eyes that had already begun to lose focus. His look held a sense of entrustment, of release, and a sliver of hope for the future.
"Saint... Elizabeth." His voice was as raspy as sandpaper, yet unnaturally clear. "The Church Court... is in your hands."
Elizabeth froze. Seeing the hope in Ete I’s eyes, she seemed to understand something.
But as the words left his lips, it was as if Ete I had completed his final mission in life. The light in his eyes rapidly dimmed, and his body slumped backward.
Dark clouds blotted out the sun, casting the world in twilight.
The rampage of the three Wizards had filled the sky with dark, heavy clouds—steam from the evaporated Endless Spring, dust kicked up by the Withering Wind, and smoke from the annihilating lightning.
After the light of the Wall of Faith shattered, the Holy City, once bathed in sacred radiance, now seemed exceptionally gloomy and dark.
It was as if the entire world was holding a moment of silence for all that had transpired.
But then, Murphy moved.
He lifted his head, his gaze fixed on the heavy clouds that seemed poised to crush the entire Holy City.
The three-inch Dark Gold Small Sword in his hand trembled slightly, emitting a low hum.
Then, Murphy raised his sword to the sky and swung. It was his second strike.
This strike—
It was torrential, immense, and overwhelmingly powerful.
It shot toward the heavens with unstoppable force!
Wherever the Sword Qi passed, the air erupted in a terrifying, deafening roar, as if the very firmament were collapsing.
Space itself seemed to be violently torn asunder, leaving behind a lingering trail of dark gold light—an eternal scar carved across the sky.
And then—
The thick, heavy clouds that had blotted out the sun and plunged the world into darkness were brutally ripped in two by the dark gold Sword Qi!
A massive rift, hundreds of meters long and dozens of meters wide, was torn open in the center of the clouds!
Golden sunlight, like a long-suppressed flood, poured down from the rift. It formed a colossal, dazzling pillar of light that shot straight toward the earth.
The pillar of light passed by Murphy’s side, grazing his silhouetted form as it continued its descent—
—landing in the very center of the altar.
It landed on the Crescent Star Crown that had just been placed on Elizabeth’s head.
It landed on the withered body of Pope Ete I as he collapsed from exhaustion, just before he hit the cold ground.
And it landed upon Elizabeth’s face, a canvas of shock, realization, and infinite complexity.
In that moment, time seemed to stand still.
Everyone witnessed the scene.
It was like a miracle.
...
A Thousand Years of the Papacy, Papal Annals: The Volume of Ete I
Preface
The following is an excerpt from the "Papal Annals" section of the official Church Court history, A Thousand Years of the Papacy. It was compiled by later historians based on numerous historical sources, personal memoirs, and Church archives.
This volume chronicles the brief and controversial reign of Pope Ete I (Saint Cyril) and recounts the events of the "October Revolution" in the Holy City.
Pioneer Calendar, October 20, 1138
Morning. Truth Plaza, before Chenxi Hall in the Holy City.
On this day, the former Cardinal, Saint Cyril, was crowned by the hand of Saint Elizabeth under the witness of the Morning Star Bell. He ascended to the papacy, taking the title "Pope Ete I."
The coronation was the grandest ceremony the Church Court had held in decades. Powers from across the Continent gathered to witness it, and the faithful assembled in unprecedented numbers.
At the moment of Ete I’s coronation, a cataclysm struck the Holy City.
An unknown, malevolent sigil erupted in the plaza, disrupting the Holy Bell ceremony. This triggered instability in the Sanctuary’s dimension, loosening its seals and allowing an ancient, catastrophic power to escape.
The Withering Wind, annihilating lightning, and the Endless Spring ravaged the Holy City, devouring life, desecrating the Holy Land, and inflicting heavy casualties. The Holy City was left half in ruins.
At that time, Pope Ete I joined forces with the Northern Great Shepherd Leader, mobilizing a thousand years of Faith Willpower to activate the Wall of Faith and resist the disaster.
Yet, for all its strength, the Wall of Faith could only maintain a desperate stalemate; it could not halt the calamity’s spread.
The people of the Holy City cried out in dire suffering, and the prestige of the Church Court was dealt a heavy blow.
Assessment of Merits and Failings (A note from later historians)
Ete I, formerly known as Saint Cyril, hailed from an ancient family within the Church Court. He was a master of political stratagem, well-versed in canon law, and held significant prestige within the College of Cardinals.
His governing philosophy favored centralization and the reinforcement of the Church Court’s traditional authority, marking him as a stalwart of the conservative faction.
Prior to his coronation, he actively pushed for adjustments to the reform policies left by Noe VII and worked to consolidate the Church Court’s resources, which had become fragmented following the upheaval in the Sanctuary.