Subscriber of the Gods Episode 185
Episode 185. Beware of Death
Southern District of the Holy Light Church.
Inosin’s room was so pure white that it felt sacred.
Ethan and Archbishop Inosin entered the room and sat facing each other.
“The followers of the moon are so cunning that I have to take the risk of being rude. They have sent countless spies to our sect so far.”
Archbishop Inosin told me the whole story with an awkward expression.
“That’s why I was trying to check it out on my own, but I never thought I’d get caught before I even started.”
Next to Archbishop Inosin stood the bishop who had pretended to faint on the terrace earlier by the archbishop.
The bishop’s face also turned red with embarrassment.
This play has never been discovered by anyone until now. That is because Archbishop Inosin’s acting skills are quite outstanding.
Moreover, it was entirely thanks to Archbishop Inosin’s outstanding observation skills that he was able to detect the spies of the Moon Followers through this play.
“The followers of the moon are bound to be swayed. Of course, trained followers of the moon are said to be able to completely erase their mental sway, but there is one thing they cannot control as they wish.”
At Archbishop Inosin’s words, Ethan looked straight at him.
“It’s the pupils.”
“……yes.”
Of course, they don’t show it openly, but no matter how well trained they are, they are bound to show signs of being agitated, even if only slightly.
Inosin had incredibly good senses and insight, so he never missed that reaction.
As a result, the number of spies arrested through this play exceeded double digits.
“There were some who donated large sums of money like Ethan, and there were also many who joined the church and started from the bottom.”
The archbishop said this and observed Ethan.
He thought Ethan’s insight was admirable.
It’s amazing that he knows that I can’t control my shaking eyes, but he also knows that I’m using that gap to my advantage.
‘It’s something that’s difficult for young people to understand.’
Archbishop Inosin reviewed Ethan’s information.
The identity was certain.
Like many noble estates in the provinces, it was once prosperous, but has now become as ordinary as can be.
It is said that when he was young, he was famous in the neighborhood as a swordsmanship genius, but later he became seriously ill and was counting the days until he died.
However, he barely managed to recover from his illness, and from then on, he repeatedly displayed his outstanding abilities as if he was trying to regain all the years he had spent in his sickbed.
‘They said that this person was the one who made the Wickus Estate grow so quickly.’
Excellent business acumen, proven through his lightweight workshop and dyeing workshop.
Not only that, she was hired as a head teacher at Ibeka Academy and became a teacher teaching two classes in just one year.
‘This is an incredible achievement.’
He was literally a man of character.
I couldn’t even imagine how difficult the process would be, from losing my talent in a hospital bed to regaining it.
Usually, such people are full of confidence.
Their shoulders are raised high, and their confidence is evident in their eyes, intonation, and even in their smallest gestures.
But Ethan was completely different from those people.
That rather irritated the archbishop.
The Archbishop’s instincts were whispering.
There’s something special about the Ethan Wickers in front of you.
But I couldn’t figure out exactly what it was.
“Well, that’s fortunate. I guess Ethan isn’t such a heretic.”
A divine power spread out from Archbishop Inosin. The divine power spread out very quietly throughout the room.
Shaaaaak-.
“But we must do what we must do. Ethan’s identity is certain, but… … they are truly vicious people, so I hope you understand.”
The atmosphere in the room changed.
The divine power that spread throughout the room enveloped everyone in the room and made their minds hazy.
The bishop behind him changed his gaze. He drew up his divine power and glanced at Ethan.
“So, Ethan, now tell me the truth.”
The divine power that filled the room soon seeped into Ethan’s body.
For a moment, a pure white divine power appeared in Ethan’s eyes.
Holy Rest.
One of the sacred magics of the Holy Light Church, its true nature was hypnotic magic using divine power.
However, unlike black magic with the same effect, Holy Rest naturally drew out the target’s response. Furthermore, it was a magic that did not put a great burden on the opponent’s body or mind.
But it was incredibly difficult to learn and use.
It can be used easily if you have the level of divine power of an archbishop, but since it is a magic with such a high level of difficulty, it tends to be noticeable when using Holy Rest.
However, Archbishop Inosin had great skill in this area, so he was able to use Holy Rest naturally by spreading the divine power so carefully that the opponent would not be aware of it.
The bishop saw Ethan hanging in the Holy Rest and thought that this time he would finally be able to identify him for sure.
This Holy Rest was a technique that was extremely difficult to resist.
That was because he couldn’t even realize that he was under a spell.
This is divine magic.
It was a power that was completely different from not only common magic but also the black magic of the special heretics.
“For what purpose did you make your donation, Ethan Wickers?”
Archbishop Inosin asked the most fundamental question.
But Ethan didn’t answer.
Then he slowly closed his eyes. When Ethan opened his eyes again, the divine power in his eyes had disappeared.
“… … !”
The bishop behind him widened his eyes. Could it be that he had defeated this Holy Rest?
Likewise, Archbishop Inosin, who was greatly surprised, also made a face.
The divine magic went in perfectly.
Clearly, there was a divine power in Ethan’s eyes.
“Archbishop.”
Ethan’s voice was small but powerful.
“… … .”
“It’s natural for you to be suspicious of me. I also know that it’s better to be careful and cautious.”
Ethan said.
“But you have to say it out loud, right? Be polite. That’s not polite.”
In that moment, a tremendous amount of pressure came out of Ethan.
The archbishop’s shoulders trembled.
As Ethan slowly stood up, Archbishop Inosin stood up even faster.
“I have been rude, Ethan.”
But Ethan turned around without mercy. As Ethan tried to leave without saying a word, Archbishop Inosin quickly grabbed him and bowed down.
“Please forgive my rudeness.”
Only then did Ethan stop.
‘Just up to here.’
If we go any further, Archbishop Inosin’s reputation will be ruined.
This alone would be the maximum apology he could give from his perspective.
‘Rather, thanks to you being so humble, the conversation took over.’
Ethan looked back at Archbishop Inosin.
“I will let this slide this time, knowing your will, Archbishop. Please be careful.”
Archbishop Inosin bowed deeply at Ethan’s words and held his breath.
It seemed like he was clearly smiling as he spoke, but it felt like something sharp was poking my skin.
“By the way, why did you come to see me like this?”
“It is to appoint Ethan as an honorary bishop of the Holy Light Church. Ethan has already met the qualifications. I came today to confirm Ethan before the appointment.”
The bishop standing behind him took a small step back. The atmosphere in the room was extremely tense.
As he took a step back to catch his breath, the bishop witnessed an unbelievable sight.
Archbishop Inosin’s back was soaked with sweat.
“Then I guess this concludes the confirmation.”
“Yes, for your donation of 100 million gold and for your achievements with the followers of the moon. On behalf of the Holy Light Church, I would like to thank you once again.”
“So, am I being given the official title of honorary bishop?”
“Yes, you will be appointed as an honorary bishop. Being an honorary bishop comes with many benefits. Of course, there are also duties and responsibilities that come with it.”
“That’s a given. You can’t just receive benefits.
As for duties and responsibilities, they only serve to provide some assistance in dealing with the followers of the moon.
‘These are the things I was supposed to do.’
Even if it was not necessarily the duty and responsibility of the Holy Light Church, they intended to exterminate all followers of the moon.
‘Not only will you achieve great things, but your reputation will also increase significantly.’
That’s not all. It’s not known right now that the 12 apostles are dead, but it’s only a matter of time before this fact becomes known.
If it is revealed that Ethan was the one who killed the Twelve Apostles, there may be danger beyond what was expected.
‘If I get the Holy Light Church on my side, it’ll be a lot easier to deal with them.’
A religious order with a common enemy was a very strong force to have as an ally.
“Then, before you officially receive the title of honorary bishop, I will clear your doubts once more.”
The Archbishop’s eyes lit up at Ethan’s words.
“I will assist the side that is most undermanned in dealing with the followers of the moon.”
* * *
“Archbishop.”
“……huh?”
After Ethan left, only Archbishop Inosin and the bishop remained in the room.
The bishop handed Archbishop Inosin a towel. The archbishop looked at the towel curiously, and only then noticed that his back was soaked with sweat.
“It certainly doesn’t seem like you’re a follower of the moon… … .”
“You don’t have to think too deeply. Just think of one thing.”
Archbishop Inosin said.
“He said he would be our ally, so we must never turn him into our enemy, no matter what happens.”
* * *
Dark night.
Ethan was moving with one of his holy knights.
“The first advance party has already gone in, but we lost contact with them a while ago. I think there might be an apostle.”
It wasn’t a very good situation.
The cult, having discovered where the hundreds of followers of the moon were gathered, deployed a force of more than 30 Holy Knights.
The Holy Knights were each as powerful as the Inquisitors.
Moreover, since they were well-suited to fighting against the followers of the moon, they judged that with about 30 people, they would be able to easily defeat over a hundred followers of the moon.
But they didn’t come back.
“I’m sorry. In fact, this is a very dangerous situation. Normally, we should gather more reinforcements and go… … .”
“Don’t worry. I’ll set off when I feel I’m good enough.”
The knight’s name is Van Crow.
He was a full-fledged holy knight of the Holy Light Order, wearing a long coat over light chain mail.
“I’m telling you this just in case you don’t know, but our church is fundamentally anti-killing.”
“Yes? Isn’t that difficult?”
“But it can’t be helped. Violence cannot be put first in doing good.”
‘Immortalism?’
Ethan questioned himself.
I know that the Holy Light Church advocates immortality, but that is only external information.
In order to deal with heretics, including the followers of the moon, they had effectively abandoned the doctrine of immortality, judging that they needed to become more vicious themselves in order to counter their viciousness.
Even the Inquisition Department, which can be said to be the front line of judging heresy within the religious order, has never advocated the principle of non-killing.
As Ethan questioned, the Holy Knight ran to the entrance of the cave where the Moon Followers were hiding.
At the entrance to the cave, a follower of the moon stood guard.
“Oh, Goddess!”
Phew-!
One of the Moon Followers was instantly killed by the Holy Knight’s mace.
“Didn’t you say it was immortal?”
“Yes, that’s right. I just swung the mace. I hit his head with it. That’s not murder.”
“… … .”
Ethan looked at the Holy Knight Van Crow. Then he gave him a thumbs up.
“It’s immortal.”
“Yes, it is immortal.”
fantasy,
