Chapter 43

Watching the white-robed man’s departing figure, Wu Shu hesitated briefly before casually turning back. She had left something behind in the shelter. Returning to retrieve it was perfectly reasonable.

The aberrant realm had vanished completely. The surroundings reverted to ordinary streets. This area belonged to the lower district’s affluent zone, with few pedestrians. Every passerby looked shaken.

None of them had imagined danger could lurk even inside a shelter.

Wu Shu overheard fragments of conversation. Names were mentioned repeatedly. Some marveled at the crown prince’s dazzling presence. Many expressed gratitude toward the saintess and the others. Some worried about the Cloud Soarers’ scores.

Amid the chatter, someone noted that the crown prince’s vehicle was missing. The massive beast used for transport had suddenly fled, sparking concern.

Wu Shu approached the shelter. Seeing two figures at the entrance, she halted and observed from a distance. The white-robed man stood with his back to her, his expression unseen.

Ye Zheng’s face, however, was clearly visible.

Her brows were slightly knit, her head bowed in an obedient posture that looked sincere to the point of excess. Instinctively, Wu Shu felt that Ye Zheng disliked this man.

She read Ye Zheng’s lips.

“Everyone praises me too much. It was just luck.”

“The monster’s corpse is inside.”

“An abnormal person… do you mean someone parasitized by insects?”

Wu Shu found the Pope’s presence deeply unsettling. Once contestants sealed a realm, no external forces could intervene unless the situation became critically dangerous and a contestant sacrificed points to request aid.

Even then, the responder would not be the Pope.

Even if something happened to the crown prince, it would not justify mobilizing him. Besides, rumors claimed the Pope’s ability was ill-suited for combat.

There was only one explanation.

He was not here for the competition.

He was here for something within this realm.

The two continued speaking. Suddenly, the white-robed man shifted.

Wu Shu’s short purple hair fluttered messily across her face in the wind. She ducked into cover at once, cold sweat breaking across her forehead.

In that instant, the clues aligned.

The bizarre insect.

The subtly abnormal saintess.

The Pope’s sudden appearance.

Wu Shu clutched her head, forcing herself not to think further.

In their brief cooperation and confrontation, even she, who prided herself on cleverness, had failed to outmaneuver Ye Zheng, the so-called church mascot. Let alone interfere in matters grave enough to draw the Pope himself.

Wu Shu steadied her breathing.

Her ability allowed her to appear and vanish at will. She enjoyed games of hunter and prey, but some targets were beyond even her reach.

Winning the tournament was enough to occupy her.

Other matters, unless they involved dragon bone that could protect her hometown, were irrelevant, no matter how vast their implications.

As Wu Shu walked away, her pace slowed.

Still… Ye Zheng might be worth contacting.

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“Your heart rate is elevated. Have you not yet recovered from earlier?”

The white-robed man spoke from a short distance away, having already heard of the events inside the shelter.

“I rarely face monsters directly,” Ye Zheng replied softly. “The church knights usually protect me well. After such an intense experience, my hands and feet are still trembling.”

She clutched her chest lightly. She showed no doubt that he could hear her heartbeat clearly.

“Hahaha. You’ve worked hard,” the man said warmly. “A church saintess should not have to do such rough work.”

Ye Zheng, still bowing, suddenly lifted her head and met the Pope’s gaze.

“This is what I should do,” she said quietly. “You know… I do not wish to remain a mere puppet saintess.”

The man’s gaze deepened.

The atmosphere froze.

After a long pause, he spoke.

“I appreciate ambitious children. That is why I chose you in the first place.”

Ambitious people were the easiest to control.

They sought power or wealth, both of which he possessed in abundance.

Since the last time he exposed her minor schemes, Ye Zheng had happily embraced the role of ambition, handing him a handle he believed he could grasp.

“You performed well this time,” the Pope said. “You earned points for Sykes’s team and gained prestige.”

Then his tone shifted.

“However, remember this. The protagonist of this tournament is only Sykes. Do you understand?”

Ye Zheng nodded obediently.

“I understand. I will fully support His Highness Sykes.”

The man seemed about to continue, but loud commotion interrupted them.

“Why are you here?”

Though the address was respectful, the tone was anything but reverent. The man recognized the speaker without turning.

“Little Highness. Long time no see.”

Sykes’s expression was grim. He had wandered the realm like a headless fly before it abruptly collapsed. Someone else had claimed his prey.

Even if that person was, in name, his subordinate.

He ignored the Pope entirely and fixed his golden eyes on Ye Zheng.

“I underestimated you.”

Ye Zheng responded evenly. “It is good that you realize that.”

Sykes laughed, clearly furious. He glanced at Ryan and Yu Tianming behind him. His team truly concealed dragons and tigers.

A willful cat.

A useless dog.

A scheming fox.

“Pope,” Sykes said coldly, “why have you come all this way?”

Nearby, Yinkong’s exaggerated shout rang out.

“What Pope?”

“Where? I’ve never seen a real Pope before!”

“Shut up, Lu Qi. That’s disrespectful!”

Ye Zheng turned her head and looked in surprise at the approaching Cloud Soarers and Divine Academy teams in the distance. Why were they coming here together?

Among the noisy, excited crowd of teenagers, she spotted Wu Shu looking straight at her.

The instant their gazes met across the distance, Ye Zheng was certain. She had deliberately drawn these people here.

The white-robed man standing before her watched the lively group approach. The gentle expression on his face stiffened subtly, the faint curve of his lips flattening.

A barely noticeable smile flickered through Ye Zheng’s eyes. With feigned concern, she asked the Pope, “By the way, didn’t you mention earlier that you lost something here? Perhaps these young contestants can help. Don’t underestimate them just because they seem unruly. Once they get serious, they’re quite capable.”

Sykes cast a probing glance at the Pope beside him. What could this old fox Wen Jian have lost in the lower district that required his personal presence?

As for Sykes himself, he had indeed lost something. That aberrant beast vehicle. Ryan was utterly useless, incompetent even as a driver.

“Hehe, no need.”

“I can no longer sense her aura. Perhaps it has been completely destroyed.”

The white-robed Pope spoke indifferently.

“Ye Zheng, why didn’t you follow us? We were worried and came looking for you.”

The short-haired woman spoke anxiously as she enthusiastically looped her arm through Ye Zheng’s. Ye Zheng blinked and turned an apologetic look toward the Pope.

The Pope clearly lost interest in continuing the exchange. He turned instead to the excited teenagers, smiling as he greeted them a few times. The attention left the group flustered. Even the usually composed Pei Xi appeared somewhat awkward.

The man in white possessed unremarkable features, yet his temperament was exceptional. Every movement carried an air of inclusive warmth, while still retaining unquestionable authority.

Pei Xi had dealt with clergy from the lower district before. They were arrogant, worshipping the high and trampling the low, utterly unlike the holy image the church claimed to uphold.

Only after meeting Ye Zheng, and now this unassuming, gentle Pope, did he realize that the church was not entirely a facade.

The black-haired youth could not help glancing toward the saintess. She stood beside the middle-district captain, chatting and laughing as if at ease.

Her pure white dress bore far more bloodstains than when she had shot the monster earlier. He wondered how much of it belonged to the monster, and how much was her own.

It was his oversight, Pei Xi thought. He should have realized that the core monster might be hiding inside the shelter. Otherwise, this gentle and holy saintess would never have had to stain herself with such filthy blood.

He suddenly turned to Lu Qi. “Lu Qi, the fight inside must have been rough for you all.”

“Sorry. I shouldn’t have left you alone.”

Lu Qi caught the note of self-reproach in Pei Xi’s voice and scratched her head. “It wasn’t really that hard. We thought we did pretty great.”

In the past, she would have been delighted by Pei Xi’s concern. But now, she wanted praise instead. After all, they had just killed the core monster.

Lu Qi understood Pei Xi’s strong sense of responsibility. But once she had entered the competition, she had resolved herself to it. She was not here to be protected. That realization, admittedly, was a recent one.

The girl conveniently forgot her original reason for joining the competition. She had wanted to find a strong boyfriend.

✧✧✧✧✧

『Wow. That Pope really lives up to his certified late-stage perverted villain status. Giving orders is one thing, but that tone is seriously creepy.』

The system could not hold itself back once the Pope finally left. Ye Zheng was chatting casually with Wu Shu, responding perfunctorily in her mind.

“Yeah, very creepy. Kind of like you.”

『???』

『That’s slander, female lead-sama!』

“His overt and subtle pressure on Sykes isn’t that different from you telling me to obediently play Pei Xi’s proper heroine.”

『You never listened anyway. Who could have predicted you’d turn out like this?』

『I can’t stop you anymore. But the Pope is an even bigger villain than Sykes. You should avoid confronting him directly.』

Ye Zheng was not surprised. Sykes possessed power but lacked the mindset required of a final antagonist. Based on years of interaction, she would have been shocked if the Pope were not a major villain.

“Ye Zheng, want to grab drinks later? I know a pub nearby. Lots of cute guys.”

Wu Shu spoke casually, her arm still linked with Ye Zheng’s, as if the earlier tension inside the shelter had never occurred. They looked like close friends who had bonded instantly.

Compared to the revolting big villain, Ye Zheng found this smaller villain far more interesting. Wu Shu truly fascinated her. What benefit had she sensed this time, approaching so naturally once again?

In truth, compared to people as pure as Bai Muqing, Ye Zheng preferred dealing with intelligent, worldly individuals like Wu Shu. She despised the Pope, yet she had learned worldly tactics from him all the same. Interests made for the most efficient short-term alliances.

Remembering that she owed Wu Shu a favor, Ye Zheng blinked. Though she could not fulfill it yet, she could offer another gift in return for this goodwill.

“You like cute guys?”

Ye Zheng asked calmly.

Hearing the saintess say the words “cute guys” felt oddly blasphemous to Wu Shu.

Then Ye Zheng looked at her sincerely, making Wu Shu distinctly uncomfortable.

“Hm. Do you think Sykes counts? Everyone says he’s handsome.”

The name “Sykes” nearly made Wu Shu jump.

Before she could respond, a sudden disturbance broke out nearby, accompanied by curses.

Wu Shu looked over. At the center of the crowd, Sykes had suddenly fallen. The red-haired and black-haired boys hurried to help him up. The crown prince’s face was dark with fury.

He wore a white shirt on his upper body. Likely from the fall, the fabric at his chest had torn open, exposing pale pectoral muscles. Wu Shu’s gaze drifted downward. The cloth at his waist appeared ripped by jagged stones, revealing a section of taut abdomen.

Wu Shu’s eyes flickered. She noticed damp streaks along Sykes’s pant legs.

Objectively speaking, the crown prince looked rather appealing in this state. Yet compared to his usual cold aloofness, the comical sight made Wu Shu want to laugh.

She quickly lost that impulse.

Her expression grew awkward.

Sykes’s outfit felt strangely familiar. Its style was remarkably similar to the black dress she was wearing.

Wu Shu covered her face. When she got home, she would burn this crown prince imitation outfit and change immediately.

Ye Zheng watched Wu Shu’s expression with curiosity. She must be satisfied. Applying Wu Shu’s aesthetic preferences directly to Sykes could not fail.

Ye Zheng glanced at her own damp palm.

Worthy of true dragon bone. Just a fragment buried within her body was enough to sabotage Sykes without him ever realizing it.

The unfortunate crown prince kept his grim expression as he strode away quickly, eager to escape the scene of his humiliation.

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Authors Note

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The Pope must die. Otherwise, how could Zhengzheng clear the position for herself?