"Good day to you, Your Eminence, Your Holiness." Queen Eve greeted us first as she stopped in front of our table.
Beatrice only watched from the side of the table. She looked a bit afraid to approach us. As a primordial Succubus, she probably could recognize Juriel as an Angel, as the opposite could recognize her.
'She doesn't need to be that afraid of Juriel. Or did she just instinctively avoid her because she could feel Pope's Angel aura? That might be it.' I nodded slightly in understanding.
Pope Juriel stood up, and so did I. We smiled at the Royal Family as if nothing was wrong, but I knew that the Pope wanted to tell King Cassius to step down from his throne immediately.
She knew about my plan and supported it; hence she acted normal and didn't show any suspicious behavior.
"Good day, Queen Eve." The Pope greeted back with a soft smile. "Good day to you too, King Cassius."
"Ah, good day." The King replied with a smile. As someone known as a sly fox, that wickedness was all gone after the rumors about the Princess spread and Beatrice charmed her. "It's been a long time, Pope Juriel. And we have a chance to meet again, Paladin Arthur."
Unlike the Queen, King Cassius had a position a little bit higher than the Pope, which was why he called her by name. At our first meeting, he also called me by name as our position was equal. He didn't need to call me Your Holiness but was still required to be polite.
'It's bothersome.'
"Indeed." I nodded at him with a smile. "My condolences regarding Princess Carissa, who went missing. I had also tried to find her but to no avail." I showed an apologetic face and purposely mentioned it to see the Queen's reaction.
As I mentioned the Princess, I noticed Queen Eve's body jolted slightly, and her expression became disturbed. It seemed like she still loved her daughter, but not as much as before. I expected her expression to crumble if she still loved Carissa as dearly as the rumor said.
'Beatrice's influence is showing.' I thought, grinning inwardly.
It wasn't as if I doubted Beatrice, but I wanted to confirm it to see its influence.
Queen Eve tilted her head slightly, forcing a smile on her face not to appear impolite and disgraceful.
"Thank you very much, Your Holiness. I can't express how much I appreciate my help."
"Indeed." The King nodded, "Please accept my gratitude."
We exchanged some pleasantries after that before they returned to their tables. I was prepared to talk about something important, but Queen Eve also knew that this location wasn't suitable for that and chose to keep it for the future.
Seeing us finished talking, the headmasters began to move one by one. The first one to approach us was Duke Blacktomb. The unpleasant aura around his body stayed the same, and Ertha and Sana frowned when he approached us.
The gray-haired man from the Sin Kingdom stopped and bowed deeply in front of the battle.
"It's an honor to meet you, Your Eminence Pope of Castitas Church, Your Holiness Paladin. My name is Jordan Blacktomb, the Duke of Blacktomb Dukedom, and I have the honor to serve in the Luxuria Church as an Archbishop."
As he raised his head, a smile as sly as a fox appeared on his face. I guessed it was his habit, and he had a hard time smiling sincerely even though he wanted to.
The Pope also didn't seem to mind him as she smiled.
"Duke Jordan Blacktomb, am I right?" She asked with a soft voice. "You have quite Sins accumulated. As someone from the Sin Kingdom, it must be hurt for you to stay for a few days in the Virtue Kingdom. Do you want my Archbishop to bless you?"
"Not at all, Your Eminence. Thank you for the offer, but I am a firm believer in Goddess Tera. Also, I have been given a magic item made from [Moon Stone] by Her Lordship, so I am able to ignore the pain."
"I see." The Pope nodded in understanding, and I did too.
This was why I said it was stupid for someone to cross the border without having the necessary preparation.
First of all, the border itself could kill you almost immediately if you passed through without going on a proper way and trapped your soul until it was lifted once a year.
Secondly, even if you sneak into the Virtue Kingdom the proper way, which was only known by some people in the Sin Kingdom, your body would be attacked by pain.
It wasn't due to accumulated Sins. If that was the case, then those who hid in the Underground Cities would also feel pain.
However, it was due to the difference in belief. Those from the Sin Kingdom believed in Goddess Tera and had a different way of accumulating Sins from those in the Virtue Kingdom.
Of course, there was a little bit of difference and similarity, such as sex brought Sins, because their customs were also different.
'The teaching from both churches are similar but different at the same time.' I thought.
The only way to stop those pain forever was to convert their beliefs by getting 'Blessed' by a Bishop or Archbishop from the Castitas Church or Luxuria Church.
That was why Tristan… Isabelle's condition was in a worse state when she arrived at the church. She experienced pain and only felt better after getting 'Blessed.' And that was why Garcia could stay in the Virtue Kingdom even though she was originally Luxuria Church's nun.
'I just remembered that there is something like that. If the Pope didn't mention it, I might only remember it when I read that Holy Book and understand the Goddess' teaching.'
To understand the difference in how to get Sins and Virtues between the two Kingdoms better, I needed to reach both Holy Books given to the Castitas and Luxuria Churches. Only then would I know how the Goddess maintains this 'Balance' of the world.
We continued talking about some pleasantries, and the Duke retreated after some time. There was nothing important to talk about. The headmasters greeted the Royal Family first before greeting us. The after-lunch talk didn't last long, as the tournament would continue after this.
After everyone greeted us, they were waiting for the VVIPs to leave the dining hall first. Alesia also gestured to me to escort the Pope back to the balcony with her eyes.
'I know. I plan to do that because the Pope seems to want to talk about something with me.' I nodded slightly to tell her that I understood.
And so, we left the dining hall together with the Royal Family and moved to a different way. Duke Blacktomb also left, following the Royal Family.
As we walked upstairs to the third floor, with Sana and Ertha following behind us, Juriel suddenly spoke.
"Paladin Arthur. Is it possible for you to arrange a meeting between me and that girl? There is something I want to ask her."
Without her specifying whom she talked about, I immediately understood.
"Let's meet tonight. As for the place… I guess it would be the Holy Room?"
"That would be nice." The Pope nodded with a small smile. "Also, good luck in your tournament. Fufufu, I know you would win, but I think it's right for me to say that."
"Thank you, Pope Juriel."
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