The First Pope - Chapter 35
Chapter 35
Traveling with the Elf Race made the journey incredibly smooth. In less than two days, they had left the territory of Manden City. This was only because they had to accommodate the humans and God Race members who had less stamina; otherwise, the time could have been cut in half.
After leaving Manden City, the direction indicated by the Divine Stone grew increasingly precise, occasionally flickering with a faint golden light. This made Cynthia feel that the God Race Clan Leader they were searching for might be nearby.
Although she didn't know how many God Race members were left, Cynthia remained optimistic. No matter how few clanspeople were gathered around the clan leader, there had to be more than their current group of less than ten.
Traveling was tedious and boring. Cynthia would occasionally ask Olivia some questions about magic, but most of the time, she held a silver longsword, casually swinging and toying with it.
The silver longsword was thick and wide and looked incredibly heavy, but in Cynthia's hands, it seemed weightless. She swung the sword without any particular form, and occasionally, the tip would accidentally flick up the pale green hair that hung down the back of Olivia, who was walking beside her.
The first time her hair was accidentally touched, Olivia turned her head in displeasure. But seeing Cynthia's serious and focused expression, she concluded it wasn't intentional and let it go.
This didn't happen often, only occasionally, so Olivia simply let her be.
Olivia didn't mind, but Polly, walking behind her, watched the silver longsword graze past Olivia's pale green hair several times. Suspecting the silver-haired God Race member was doing it on purpose, she took two quick steps forward to try and separate them.
When someone suddenly squeezed in beside her, Cynthia glanced up. Polly met her gaze and was about to sternly stop her from continuing to tease Her Majesty the Queen when Cynthia suddenly said, "Look at this sword aura."
She raised her wrist slightly, holding the silver longsword horizontally in front of Polly. A faint white light flickered on its sharp tip.
Polly stared at the white sword aura on the tip of the blade, shocked. "You actually figured out a way to infuse a sword aura with the Power of Light?"
Cynthia smiled slightly but said nothing.
Hearing Polly, Olivia also turned to look. With a single glance, she saw through the trick and said flatly, "It's a surface-level aura."
Polly froze, then observed the aura on the sword's tip more closely. She was a little speechless. "So it's fake."
The Power of Light was merely floating on the tip of the blade; it wasn't a truly manifested sword aura.
Having been exposed by Olivia, Cynthia dropped the act. She switched the silver longsword to her other hand, gathered a ball of white light in her now-empty palm, then dispersed it. Glancing at Olivia, she praised with a smile, "Her Majesty the Queen is truly amazing."
Though it was a simple compliment, coming from Cynthia, it always seemed to carry a hint of playfulness that left Olivia unsure how to respond.
Fortunately, she didn't have to wait for Olivia to respond, as Cynthia continued, "Practicing swordsmanship isn't complicated, but fusing the Power of Light with it is rather difficult."
Cynthia sighed. "In any case, I haven't found a way yet."
Seeing Cynthia's troubled expression, Polly couldn't help but speak up. "Actually, it's not that difficult…" As she spoke, she stole a glance at Olivia's expression. Seeing no sign that Olivia would stop her, she continued, "You just have to grasp the light elements."
Besides nature magic, the Elf Race was also skilled in archery. However, only the Elf Queen, some elders, and guards could use arrows formed from pure nature power. Ordinary elves used self-made arrows, imbuing the shafts with nature power.
This was similar in principle to what Cynthia was trying to do by infusing a sword aura with the Power of Light.
Polly's words sparked an idea in Cynthia. She put away the silver longsword and asked with a smile, "Could you explain it to me in detail?"
Cynthia's aura of light had earned her a great deal of goodwill among the elves. Even though Polly was constantly wary of the silver-haired God Race member getting close to Olivia, she couldn't help but soften when those golden eyes gazed at her with such focus.
Polly glanced at Olivia, then quietly pulled Cynthia to the side. The two began a heated discussion on the topic of sword auras.
Olivia glanced at the pair before looking away, her expression unreadable. An elf guard approached from behind and whispered, "Vampires ahead."
"What generation?"
"One fourth-generation, three fifth-generation."
Olivia nodded and said in a low, firm voice, "Kill them."
The elf guard acknowledged the order in a low voice, then asked, "And the humans we rescue?"
"Humans…" Olivia was about to say they should be left to flee on their own, but then she remembered that Cynthia was searching for humans with a Light Constitution. After a pause, she said, "Bring them here."
Although dealing with the humans would be a hassle, she could always just hand them over to the God Race to sort out.
By the time the elf guards had dealt with the vampires and brought the humans over, Cynthia and Polly had just finished the first round of their discussion. Cynthia returned to Olivia's side and looked at the crowd following the guards. "Are these more fleeing humans?" she asked thoughtfully.
They had encountered at least a dozen groups of humans on their journey, the vast majority of them fleeing. This was a strange phenomenon, as humans on their own were incapable of escaping from vampires.
Olivia's gaze also fell upon the humans. "Not this time," she said in a low voice. "The vampires escorting them were just killed."
Upon seeing the humans behind the elf guards, Sarah and the other God Race members went over to them. They had encountered many humans on their journey, and by checking them one by one, they had finally found a few more with a Light Constitution.
Their party was growing little by little, which made Sarah and the others all the more motivated.
Especially after Cynthia had demonstrated the power of the Grand Light Spell, they were eager to find their other clan members and as many humans with a Light Constitution as possible.
"Don't be afraid. We're here to heal you." Sarah skillfully took a human's arm and, while examining her injuries, asked, "Have you heard of the Goddess of Light?"
She silently chanted a spell, and a faint white light healed a wound on the human's arm that had been festering for a long time. Hearing the gasps around her, she smiled and said, "This is a Healing Spell from the Goddess of Light. Would you like to learn it?"
"But only Light Believers can learn it."
If the mention of the Goddess of Light had merely piqued the humans' curiosity, then the Healing Spell Sarah used left them truly shocked and excited.
As Sarah and the other God Race members checked the humans' constitutions and patiently answered their questions, a strange voice suddenly spoke up. "Light Believers? Messengers of the Goddess of Light?"
Sarah looked toward the voice and saw a red-haired young woman. The woman was very beautiful; even in ragged clothes, she had a pitifully lovely appearance that made one want to protect her.
Sarah motioned for another God Race member to take her place, then walked over to the red-haired woman. "Are you injured?" she asked with a smile. "Let me take a look."
The red-haired woman had a strange expression. She glanced at the Healing Spell being used, her eyes darting about, and asked tentatively, "You're messengers of the Goddess of Light? Aren't you the God Race?"
Some humans recognized the God Race, so Sarah didn't find the question strange. She nodded and said, "That's right. The God Race are the messengers of the Goddess of Light."
Avira: "…"
First the Wolf Race became meddlesome, and now the God Race was putting on airs and acting mysterious.
Avira raised a hand to brush back the red hair falling over her chest. Just as she was about to say something, a sound suddenly came from the weed-covered hillside nearby. She froze, turning to stare at the slope with a strange expression.
The nearby elf guards also turned alertly, raising their longbows. The sound grew louder, and suddenly, the head of a white wolf peeked down, its sky-blue eyes filled with curiosity.
The elf guards frowned and slowly lowered their longbows.
The white wolf leaped down from the hillside and shouted happily, "Elves!"
After landing, she transformed into her human form. She started walking toward the elf guards, but her peripheral vision suddenly caught sight of Avira in the crowd. She turned her head, her face a mask of surprise. "It's you again! You got captured again?"
Avira twitched the corner of her mouth into a smile but said nothing.
Hanni looked at her sympathetically and offered comfort. "It's all right. You were saved by elves this time, so you're very lucky."
The commotion drew the attention of Olivia and Cynthia. Olivia clearly recognized the white wolf, and she asked in surprise, "Hanni? What are you doing here?"
Hearing Olivia's voice, Hanni quickly turned. Her sky-blue eyes lit up in an instant. "Her Majesty Queen Olivia."
Avira, who had been thoroughly displeased at seeing Hanni again, started slightly at the sound of Olivia's voice. She subconsciously straightened her posture, her brown eyes narrowing as she watched Olivia approach.
The Elf Queen… Interesting.
Hanni strode toward Olivia, scratching her head in embarrassment. "You remember my name."
Olivia nodded and asked flatly, "Why are you here alone?"
"I'm not alone," Hanni said, pointing in a certain direction. "My clan members were delayed by something, so they haven't arrived yet."
"I'm waiting for them."
Olivia frowned. "What are you all doing here?"
They were currently in an unnamed wasteland. If they continued onward, they would reach the territory of a fourth-generation vampire.
"We're tracking vampires," Hanni said, her tone growing serious. "Many third-generation vampires have come to this area. Clan Leader Helen suspected they were up to no good, so she led a group in pursuit."
"Helen is here as well?"
Hanni nodded. "Clan Leader Helen will be very happy to know that Your Majesty the Queen is here."
While the two were talking, Cynthia stood beside Olivia, politely refraining from interrupting. She had only seen members of the Wolf Race once before, in Nobi City, and that had been from a distance. She had never been this close.
Remembering how Hanni had just transformed from a white wolf into a person, Cynthia studied her with interest. After a moment, however, she felt a scorching gaze fixed on her. Cynthia looked up sharply and saw it was the red-haired young woman.
Avira had been sizing up Olivia, but when she caught sight of Cynthia beside her, she was stunned by her delicate features and exceptionally elegant aura. A sudden interest sparked within her, and touching her lips, she began to openly scrutinize Cynthia from head to toe.
Cynthia's sudden glance made Avira pause. She was about to habitually curve her red lips into a smile, but then she remembered something. She lowered her gaze, feigning a timid, frightened expression.
"…Who is that person?" Avira tried to coax information out of Sarah.
Sarah answered enthusiastically, "That's Cynthia. She's very powerful and knows a lot of Light Magic."
"Light Magic? What's it like?"
Sarah had just tried to secretly probe Avira but had failed, so she didn't reveal too much. She just nodded vaguely. "It's just… very, very powerful."
Seeing that Sarah had grown wary, Avira didn't press further. She slowly backed away from the center of the crowd to the side, then discreetly glanced at Cynthia again, her expression thoughtful.
A God Race member standing beside the Elf Queen, who could use powerful Light Magic and claimed to be a messenger of the Goddess of Light… A playful glint flashed in Avira's eyes. She suddenly decided not to leave.
This God Race member was far too much to her liking. It made her want to play.
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