Following behind the Pope of the Divine Word Church, I arrived at a salon.
A refined table stood at the center, surrounded by plush sofas arranged in a welcoming semicircle.
The Pope settled into one of the sofas and gestured for us to sit across from him.
Kathia was briefly wary of taking a seat, but I sat down without hesitation.
I figured there was no point in being on guard here, and honestly, I felt awful enough that standing was becoming unbearable.
I took the seat directly across from the Pope, right in the middle of the sofa, and
It put her in a spot that was perfectly positioned to block Kathia from sitting down.
With Sue planted there, Kathia had nowhere to go.
I was about to tell her to sit on my other side, but after exchanging a brief glance with Sue, Kathia walked around to the back of the sofa and sat down on my opposite side — right next to me, away from Sue.
...I think they're both trying to stick to me.
The Pope's lukewarm gaze was unsettling.
The women who had been escorting the Pope began serving refreshments.
Fragrant tea was placed before us, and a few varieties of light snacks were arranged on the table.
Once they finished, the women withdrew from the room.
Only the Pope and the rest of us remained.
I extended my senses and detected no one hiding in the room.
Of course, if someone possessed stealth abilities that surpassed my perception, that would be a different story — but at least within range of my detection, there was definitely no one else.
Isn't this a bit too careless?
"Are you sure? Being alone like this?"
"Quite sure. It doesn't bother me in the least."
The Pope's calm reply gave me no clue as to what he was really thinking.
What was going on here?
Being in this man's presence made me uneasy.
It was different from when I'd faced
It was like having a massive ball of cotton right in front of me.
Something that looked like it could burn easily, yet wouldn't budge no matter how much you poked or pounded it.
Something that seemed so fragile, yet gave the vague impression that it could deflect everything thrown at it.
"Well then. Would you mind appraising me first? That should prove I haven't been brainwashed or anything of the sort. I'm making myself visible to you now, so please go ahead."
Appraising someone was considered rude.
Nobles were especially sensitive about this.
If having your status read was considered a violation of privacy, then it was easy to understand why that was seen as discourteous.
For the Pope of all people to allow someone to appraise him — that wasn't something done lightly.
It showed just how willing he was to demonstrate his sincerity.
"Then, forgive the intrusion."
Figuring I should at least dispel even the slightest lingering doubt, I activated Appraisal.
『Human Race — LV1 — Name: Dustyn Status HP: 34/34 (Green) MP: 29/29 (Blue) SP: 21/21 (Yellow) : 19/22 (Red) Average Attack: 27 (Details) Average Defense: 25 (Details) Average Magic: 33 (Details) Average Resistance: 34 (Details) Average Speed: 23 (Details) Skills "SP Consumption Reduction LV4" "Magic Power Perception LV3" "Magic Power Operation LV3" "Concentration LV10" "Thought Acceleration LV2" "Foresight LV8" "High-Speed Arithmetic LV10" "Record LV10" "Coordination LV2" "Command LV3" "Telepathy LV2" "Appraisal LV10" "Harmony" "Light Magic LV3" "Holy Light Magic LV1" "Healing Magic LV3" "Miracle Magic LV1" "Poison Resistance LV8" "Sleep Immunity" "Pain Immunity LV10" "Pain Reduction LV2" "Vision Enhancement LV3" "Hearing Enhancement LV3" "Smell Enhancement LV2" "Taste Enhancement LV1" "Touch Enhancement LV1" "Life LV5" "Magic Power LV4" "Burst LV2" "Endurance LV2" "Strength LV2" "Durability LV2" "Mage LV3" "Guardian LV3" "Dash LV2" "Pride LV4" "Temperance" "Taboo LV10"
Skill Points: 0 Titles "Lord of Temperance" "Knower of Reincarnation" "One Who Leads" "King" "Savior" "Saint"』
What the hell was this?
The Pope's appraisal results were far beyond anything I'd expected.
His stats were low, and almost all of his skills pointed to a non-combat role.
Well, I could still understand that part.
Even as the head of the Divine Word Church, a colossal organization, he didn't necessarily need high combat ability.
For ruling over people, he had chosen intellect over brute force.
That was probably the kind of Pope he was.
But that was all trivial.
What I absolutely could not overlook were those two skills — Temperance, and Taboo LV10.
"Taboo..."
The word slipped out of my mouth before I could stop it.
Within the Divine Word Church, simply possessing the Taboo skill was supposed to be an unforgivable sin.
I knew this because
The Divine Word Church would never, ever forgive someone who possessed the Taboo skill.
And yet, the very leader of that Divine Word Church had Taboo — at level max, no less?
Was this some kind of joke?
"It is precisely because we understand Taboo that we cannot allow it to spread. Surely you understand that much?"
"What!?"
Though phrased as a question, the Pope spoke with absolute certainty.
He knew. That my Taboo was at level 10.
How could he possibly know that?
I'd only raised Taboo to level 10 when I resurrected Ana in the elven village.
The Pope wasn't there — there was no way he could have learned about it. Besides, I'd never told anyone I had Taboo and had been extraordinarily careful to keep it hidden.
So how did the Pope know?
My panicked outburst only deepened the Pope's smile.
Damn it!
I was such an idiot!
That reaction was practically an admission that what the Pope said was correct!
Sure enough, Kathia and Sue were staring at me with startled expressions.
...Could I have been played?
"Fufu. There's no need for that look. It was simply faster and more convenient if you already knew about Taboo, so I wanted to confirm. Even if you possess Taboo at this point, we have no intention of doing anything to you. That stage passed long ago."
True to his words, I couldn't sense any hostility from the Pope toward us.
But whether I could trust him — I couldn't make that judgment.
With a cunning old man like this, even if he were hiding malice beneath that gentle smile, I doubted I'd be able to see through it.
"Taboo is the memory of sin."
The Pope's smile faded. He closed his eyes and spoke quietly.
"The sins we committed in the past. The record of those sins. What forces you to remember them against your will — that is Taboo. We must atone for those sins."
— Atone.
The compulsion from Taboo continued to reverberate, even now.
The Pope had taken that burden seriously and was living according to its demands.
"But people are weak. Crushed by the weight of guilt, they flee down the path of least resistance before they can atone. Even if that means obliterating themselves. They convince themselves that it's easier to simply cease existing than to endure prolonged suffering. That is why it was necessary to keep Taboo hidden from others."
That... might be true.
The thought that this sense of revulsion might continue forever was enough to make even me lose heart.
And I was a reincarnator with absolutely no connection to this world's past.
For people who had actually lived here their whole lives, it wouldn't be someone else's story — it could easily be even harder for them than for me.
The Taboo menu had an entry called "Reincarnation History."
In my case, that field was blank.
My previous life had been spent somewhere other than this world, so the system had no record of it — it fell outside the system's scope.
But people native to this world were different.
This Reincarnation History contained the complete record of every life that person had lived.
From the moment the system was born.
How the system came into existence.
And from then until now, how that person had lived their life.
All of it, laid bare.
— Atone.
Along with that compulsion.
"Record of sin" — they got that right.
Being shown all of that and constantly threatened with "atone" — it made perfect sense that people would be crushed by it.
In fact, it was because such people existed that the Pope had deemed Taboo dangerous and cracked down so hard on anyone who possessed the skill.
To protect those people.
"But someday, you must remember. The debt of sin is never settled, and the accumulated interest demands repayment even from a spent soul. We are on the verge of total collapse."
The Pope tilted his face upward, eyes still closed.
And then.
『World Quest activated. An evil god plots to offer humanity as a sacrifice in order to prevent the destruction of the world. Thwart this scheme, or cooperate with it.』
A voice rang directly inside my head — the Voice of Heaven, now all too familiar.
At the same time, a white figure appeared in my mind's eye.
"W-What?"
The sudden development left my thoughts scrambling to catch up.
I glanced at Kathia, and she too had furrowed her brow, wearing a troubled expression.
Turning to the other side, Sue looked stunned, yet somehow also as if she'd expected this.
Judging from their reactions, it seemed the Voice of Heaven hadn't been heard by me alone.
"So it's begun."
The only person here who remained composed was the Pope, and even he murmured those words in a weary tone.
"Begin? What do you mean?"
"The time for a choice has come."
As I pressed the question, the Pope slowly turned his face forward and opened his eyes.
I was struck by the sheer force of his presence.
By that unwavering gaze.
This old man whose stats were overwhelmingly lower than mine and whose combat ability was essentially nonexistent — I felt I was looking at the truest form of strength in the iron will he carried within.
"We, humanity, must choose. To repay the kindness of the gods who gave us everything and survive? Or to repent for our sins as we perish?"
Kathia and Sue didn't know the contents of Taboo, so they couldn't follow the conversation.
Still, they could tell something enormous was happening — or perhaps the Pope's sheer intensity was enough to make their bodies tense up with gravity.
I wasn't any different.
"To save humanity, I will sacrifice the God of the Divine Word Church — the deity we revere — and stand against the evil god. When I say the Divine Word Church is finished, that is what I mean."
It was a declaration so outrageous it felt like the heavens and earth were being turned upside down.
"Hero Shurein. Which will you choose? Humanity, or God? Which one will you allow to survive?"