Krollakia and Senaka, who had joined up with Malina, fled as far as possible to avoid the golden flames. Thanks to their efforts paying off, the golden flames that seemed like they would spread endlessly without stopping came to a halt and then began to subside.
"Phew. What the hell was that?"
Krollakia let out a sigh of relief as he set down Senaka, whom she had been carrying on her back. Looking back, she could see the sight of hot heat waves burning and flickering throughout the entire passage.
That terrible flesh passage had dried up completely due to the heat, transforming like a withered old tree. It was only because the heat was relatively weak here - if they had been near the epicenter where those flames spread, not even ashes would have remained around them. Just thinking about what would have happened if they had been a little later made his spine tingle with dread.
"Sister. What happened here? What were those flames?"
"That man."
"That man - you mean the fixer that big sister brought?"
She was about to ask how a mere fixer could do such a thing, but Malina's expression was too serious. That meant it was really true.
"...Well, I'll be. Big sister didn't bring him for nothing."
To sweep away the bishop who had been troubling them and all his subordinate believers in one go. And it wasn't even intentional - this was just the aftermath of manifesting his ability.'That Daver fellow. How did he manage to survive fighting such a monster?'
Phillis knew the potential he possessed. He was the only case who had received the most powerful baptism from Red Eternity.
If Zaxilos' case was one where his power naturally increased from living for a long time, then he was born with tremendous power from the moment he became a follower of Red Eternity.
The starting line was different. And naturally, the finishing line would be different too.
Zaxilos would just remain in the cardinal's position, but Phillis had no intention of doing so. He would become pope. His talent and power made that sufficiently possible.
He should have captured the intruders who arrogantly invaded Trinity Building on their own, then gained merit to be looked upon more favorably by Red Eternity.
But all those plans had gone awry and because of just one person at that.
'Is anyone there! Bishops! What are you all doing! Help me! Archbishop Mirak! I know you're nearby! I need help!'
Phillis desperately spread mental waves filled with earnestness. His will definitely reached the bishops and archbishops. But there wasn't a single response coming back.
'No response?'
There were some. At least the bishop-level ones did respond, but most were unsatisfactory.
-I'm sorry. Archbishop Phillis. Right now the city government's dogs are rushing in through the opened entrance. We have to block them, so please understand.
-Currently many bishops have died, creating gaps in our forces. We can't move because we're busy rallying the wandering believers.
Everyone had their own reasons, but Phillis knew these were inappropriate excuses. Most of all, the lack of response from Archbishop Mirak made it even more so.
No matter how bishop-level they were, when he as an archbishop gave such orders, they should have followed them even reluctantly. But now the bishops were rather boldly refusing, reciting reasons why they couldn't come.
There was only one reason that was possible.
'Only when there's an order from a superior higher than me.'
A superior order strong enough to refuse an archbishop's command - there was only one possibility even a fool could understand. It was Cardinal Zaxilos' doing.
'Could it be...!'
Phillis gritted his teeth. Bloodshot veins appeared in both his eyes from anger.
'Zaxilos! You're planning to eliminate me using this opportunity!'
From the beginning, Zaxilos hadn't really wanted to appoint him as archbishop but he had no choice. Some guy who came in from nowhere with no background suddenly had archbishop-level potential. He even received a great baptism from Red Eternity, gaining the qualifications to become pope in the future.
To Zaxilos, who had been secretly active on the continent for long years, growing the Eternal Church and maintaining his cardinal position, Phillis must have looked like a stone that rolled in.
Though he had appointed him as archbishop for lack of justification, he had still confined him to Trinity Building for decades, using the excuse that he was still inexperienced in handling power.
'He said this fight would be an excuse to let me finally engage in external activities. Could even that have been bait to eliminate me?'
Looking at the current results, that was right. Otherwise, there was no way the bishops would refuse his orders.
"Wait!"
Phillis urgently opened his mouth.
"I know where Cardinal Zaxilos is and what he's trying to do! I can tell you everything!"
"Now that you're about to die, you're trying to sell out your comrade? That's not even funny."
"F-fighting you, I realized it. That power you wield. Besides that pure white light and blue light, you have another power, right? Zaxilos has it. He's using it to experiment on test subjects, trying to create new believers!"
That was something Osian already knew from hearing it. He had heard from Grace that Zaxilos used the power of Sunlight to grant it to test subjects.
But the test subjects couldn't withstand that power and eventually collapsed on their own. In the end, it meant it wasn't perfect.
"That experiment has now reached a near completion stage. While we're fighting and wasting time here, Zaxilos is planning to implant that power into his own body!"
Osian's sword blade moved a little away from his neck. Phillis thought this was his chance and desperately displayed his value.
"I can open the path. I can send you to that bastard."
Did he think this was an attractive proposal that Osian would sufficiently accept? Hope that he might survive began to show on Phillis' face.
There was no guilt. It was Zaxilos who had tried to abandon him first, so his actions had sufficient justification.
-Oh my. Archbishop Phillis. What are you doing right now?
Then a voice flew in from Cardinal Zaxilos. Phillis' expression, which had been trying to persuade Osian, distorted as he couldn't bear the momentary emotion.
-Cardinal Zaxilos! You filthy bastard!
-Archbishop Phillis. Your words are harsh toward me, a cardinal.
-Shut up! Do you think I'll play along with your hypocrisy? How dare you push me into this fire pit and then try to kill me?
-Kill? Who? Me killing you? Hahaha. That's something only a delusional patient would say.
-It's no use pretending. If not that, then what's the reason the bishops won't listen to my orders? The reason you told me to catch Basilio without giving me any hint?
Phillis' interrogation continued.
-Right. I've been curious since coming here. Though you're the sole cardinal who has lived for long years, you didn't feel like some great strong person, just someone who lived long. Because your aptitude and talent were lower than mine. How could such a guy continue to maintain the high position of cardinal until now?
-Archbishop Phillis. Stop the delusions there.
-You killed them all. Because those with excellent qualities might someday surpass you, you cut those buds in advance. Like me now!
-...
-Why are you silent? If you have a mouth, at least try to make excuses that my reasoning is wrong.
What was heard in the prolonged silence was Cardinal Zaxilos' laughter.
At first he thought he had misheard. But soon the laughter grew louder, and Phillis instinctively realized his anxious imagination had become reality.
-Why would I deny it? It's all true.
-You...!
-But even so, passing information to enemies who have invaded our world without permission is unacceptable.
-Shut up! Do you think I'll die easily like this?
-Oh my. That's not what I meant. How could I directly punish an archbishop with such excellent qualities as yourself?
Phillis felt unease at Zaxilos' words.
-It's not me who will punish you. From the beginning, isn't the being who can punish those of our level predetermined?
-What?
The moment Phillis asked that, he felt the strength throughout his body rapidly draining away.
"Wh-what? N-no! Stop!"
No matter how he struggled, like air escaping from a balloon, his overflowing vitality quickly diminished. Phillis gritted his teeth and tried to recover his vitality, but his control and authority power didn't work properly.
-Could it be!
Phillis belatedly realized who was behind the current situation.
-Red Eternity!
He desperately called the name of the god he served. But no answer came back. Only the authority of life carved into his body was disappearing.
-You were complacent. Did you think that person would just watch idly when you so openly committed acts of betrayal?
The way Zaxilos had killed excellent talents so far was to handle them secretly from behind without revealing it openly.
But Phillis' apostasy was clear. He had confessed it with his own mouth, no less.
"This is..."
Osian also noticed the abnormal phenomenon occurring in Phillis' body. His skin was aging at rapid speed, his hair turned white and began falling out in clumps.
The sight of him transforming into a mummy-like appearance in an instant was quite eerie, but what was more surprising was that he still hadn't died despite such a state. More accurately, it would be correct to say he couldn't die.
"Keuuugh."
Phillis' head dropped down with a thud. There was no longer any life force remaining in his body. All that remained was just the very last remnants, about the size of a single candle flame.
-Oh my, what a pity. If only he had been careful with his words, he might have become pope.
-...
Even at Zaxilos' mockery, Phillis couldn't respond. To such a Phillis, Zaxilos made a sweet proposal.
-But it would also be a waste to discard someone with such excellent talent right here. So, I'll give you power to replace what that person took away.
As soon as those words ended, Phillis' bowed head suddenly shot up.
"Keugeuggeuk! Keuaaaaaa!!"
Phillis, who had been trembling like an epileptic patient, raised the veins in his neck and screamed. At the same time, bright yellow flames flickered from inside his open throat and spewed outward.
-Puhwaaaaak!
The yellow flames didn't stop at his mouth but burned his eyeballs. His skin cracked like broken pottery, and bright yellow flames surged from those cracks.
Melted flesh poured out from Phillis' gaping mouth. It looked like magma because it contained flames.
"This is..."
Osian frowned at the familiar power flowing from Phillis' body.
Cardinal Zaxilos had infused the power of the Sun Ring into the dying Phillis' body.
The power of Sunlight was not something that could be carelessly contained. Even Osian, its owner, had to be careful when handling that power, let alone others.
As if proving this, Sunlight burned and burned Phillis' body again.
Sunlight flames engulfed Phillis' entire body. Phillis' resistance as he writhed in pain grew faint and then completely stopped.
His head had burned completely, leaving only his skull, which moved to face Osian.