NOVEL NEXT Interlude: The church is in trouble
"Have you heard the news yet?" Another messenger with even more devastating news, as if I didn't have enough to bear. I dreaded to learn what new catastrophe had befallen us. We've been spiraling downward ever since we lost Julius to that malevolent deity!
"What news?"
"The saint of the North claims ownership over two holy virtues. I believe this presents a problem to your holiness." That's inconceivable! No one has received such blessings in over five hundred years. It's unfathomable that this new self-proclaimed saint has not just one but two of them! It's sheer madness!
"What do we know about them so far?" It's not like I expect him to know much, but I lose nothing by asking for more information.
"Not much yet. I already sent two companies to investigate the matter." He knows nothing more than what the rumors say; it was to be expected. He's only a pawn. After all, I couldn't count on him to know all the details before coming to me; it is valuable information regardless.
The law does state that we, the church, shall kill any users who manage to get their hands on such "holy" skills, but we cannot consider such a thing in the current state of affairs where the demons are taking over everything we own.
Perhaps leaving that self-proclaimed saint alone is prudent, but I cannot deny that having more information about their identity could be a bargaining chip against them if we could make a deal someday. Who knows, maybe they will become part of our troops. It's not out of the question for them to join us.
We command a force called "The holy army," so recruiting a saint would not be so crazy. My only trouble would be the bishops trying to get in my way! If only I had access to that skill Julius granted me access to, then this whole thing would be under my control! I need the power of Lust once more, but where could that kid be?
I've sent men to every single corner of the world to try and find him, but we've had next to no luck so far. I don't want to think about it like this, but I fear that Julius might be dead for the worse. What will I do without him for this long? I'm already under fire and blame for the massive losses we've been having against the demon king's army.
All I can do is wait and hope that either Julius will come to save the day or perhaps recruit this new self-proclaimed saint. Whatever the case, I must keep acting cautiously, as this crisis might devastate the church.