After returning to the real world, Alger patiently awaited the task Mr. Fool had spoken of.
One day, dressed in papal robes and a silver-black mask, he was discussing the internal affairs of the Church of the Sea God with Divine Emissary Danitz when he suddenly saw a bishop enter.
"Your Holiness, the
Danitz, secretly glad the telegraph line in Bayam had broken down, blurted out in surprise: "Where is the messenger?"
"He left the gifts and left," the bishop at the door replied rather helplessly.
Although the people of the Church of the Lord of Storms were often irritable and impulsive, this kind of behavior was still quite rare.
Alger lightly nodded and said: "It's already enough that they sent a messenger with gifts instead of treating us with hostility."
Saying that, he raised his right hand and gently clenched it, causing the wind to lift the white tin box from the bishop's hand and bring it over to him.
After catching the box, Alger's movements suddenly slowed down, as if he felt a great weight.
He slowly opened the container and saw inside a book bound in yellowish-brown parchment.
On the cover of the book, a line of words was written in the Elvish language: "
"Book of Calamity"... After clearly making out the words, Alger was stunned, feeling as if he were in a dream.
But soon, he understood it was real, and understood what the task Mr. Fool had spoken of was.
Alger sighed silently, looked at the bishop at the door, and asked: "What is the second gift?"
"It's a ghost ship called the 'Blue Avenger', already docked at the port," the bishop replied, not seeing anything unusual.
"Blue Avenger"... Hearing this name, Danitz instinctively turned his gaze to Alger the Pope beside him.
He remembered very clearly that this was Alger's ship from his pirate days.
This meant that the Church of the Lord of Storms knew that the Pope of the Church of the Sea God was their former Cardinal!
Was this a congratulation, or a declaration of war? As Danitz's heart tightened, he realized that the other gift was also quite familiar to him: It was the extremely evil and uncanny Book of Calamity he had seen when he followed Gehrman Sparrow.
"Write a letter of reply to the Church of the Lord of Storms, thanking them for their gifts," Alger ordered calmly, already composed.
When the bishop left the room, he turned to Danitz and said: "Divine Emissary, I have received a divine edict from Mr. Fool. I will now go to complete a task, and perhaps I will not return for several years."
"Divine edict?" Danitz blurted out in shock.
At that moment, only one thought echoed in his mind: How come I don't know about this?
Alger nodded.
"Mr. Fool is about to enter his slumber. "However, this will not prevent your prayers from receiving a response."
"..." Danitz was too shocked to speak.
Alger continued: "Gehrman Sparrow has entered his slumber as well.
"After I leave, the affairs of the church will be handed over to Elder
Danitz felt dizzy, but he understood the gravity of it.
After hesitating for a moment, he nodded firmly and said: "Okay."
After finishing this, Alger stood up, took the Book of Calamity, and returned to his room.
Looking at himself in the mirror, he let out a laugh, slowly took off the triple tiara from his head, and removed the silver-black mask from his face.
A few days later, at the port of Bayam, on the crowded pier.
Alger looked up at Derrick "The Sun," who was much taller and larger in build than himself, and said with a smile: "You've done very well during this time. The Church of the Sea God is functioning normally."
Derrick instinctively wanted to raise his hand to scratch the back of his head again, but he held back and said with a hint of melancholy and reluctance: "H-Hanged... Your Holiness
Alger shook his head.
"Everything ahead is still unknown. No one can say for sure."
Not waiting for Derrick Berg to respond, he turned and said: "You are already mature and steady enough. There is nothing more I need to advise you on."
Having said that, Alger paused for a moment, but still spoke up: "If the
"Ah?" Derrick was stunned.
This was the most important place of faith for Mr. Fool, the new home of the City of Silver. How could they just give up on it?
Alger had already anticipated Derrick's reaction, and explained with a serious expression: "To Mr. Fool, what is most important are the believers here, not these islands. To the City of Silver, what is most important are the people, not the city. "As long as we can protect the believers of Mr. Fool and the people of the City of Silver, and evacuate them in time, even if we lose Bayam, New City of Silver, and the Rorsted Archipelago, we can always build new cities and a new home elsewhere. "Remember, do not sacrifice the substance for the sake of the form."
Derrick was deeply moved by what he heard, instantly grasping the crux of the issue.
He replied sincerely: "I understand. Thank you, H-Hanged... Your Holiness Wilson. I will protect Mr. Fool's believers and the people here."
Alger said no more. He turned and walked towards the "Blue Avenger" docked at this pier.