BJ Villainess Chapter 356

Ilya, dressed in pure white, and I, dressed in pitch black, entered the Papacy, two figures in perfect contrast. Today would be the first day Ilya showed himself in public since refusing the will of God. Perhaps because of that, stares rained down on us from every direction.

 

I was used to this. No matter where I went, I was met with gazes full of hostility and wariness. As long as I remained a cultist of the Evil God, that would never change.

 

Suddenly, Ilya took my hand. “Stay close to me.” And, as always in moments like this, he deliberately took my hand for all to see.

 

“…Yes.”

 

Ilya, nobler than anyone, regarded me—someone who ought to be destroyed on sight—with open dignity. How could I not hold onto that hand? In this world, nothing was more precious or important than his warmth.

 

I stole a glance at him, only to meet his eyes. He gave me a faint smile.

 

“Don’t worry. I’ll protect you.”

 

Though his face was pale from the fever, he didn’t look weak at all. As always, he looked utterly dependable. But I had no intention of living forever like a fledgling bird under his protection.

 

I tightened my grip on his hand, fixed my gaze straight ahead, and spoke. “You don’t need to worry either, Lord Ilya. I’ll protect you.”

 

“Alright. I’ll look forward to that.”

 

When we stepped into the council chamber, we were met with pointed coughs and sighs laced with displeasure. The battle of wills has already begun.

 

Before heading to my seat, I bowed to the pope. “Greetings, Your Holiness.”

 

The pope gestured to an empty seat. “You two, sit there.”

 

Once we were seated, the meeting officially began. The first to speak was the pope.

 

“Cardinal Ilya has refused the mission bestowed by the Holy God. A week has already passed since then. Cardinal, do you still have no intention of changing your mind?”

 

“I do not.”

 

The pope clicked his tongue at Ilya’s unwavering answer, given without hesitation despite his obvious ill health from the punishment.

 

“Then the course is clear. We must choose a new mentor.”

 

An elderly cardinal spoke up, looking awkward. “It shames me to even say this… but the gap between Cardinal Ilya and the rest of us is far too great to close. You know this as well as anyone, Your Holiness.”

 

“I agree completely.”

 

“Indeed. What strength do old cardinals like us have? The role should be taken by someone young and strong, like Cardinal Ilya.”

 

In other words, no matter what, Ilya had to be the one to look after the daughter of the Holy God. Heden was just as young, yet no one mentioned him at all. At this rate, with no one yielding even an inch, the deadlock would only put Ilya at a disadvantage.

 

I raised my hand, looking at the pope. “I have a suggestion, if I may speak?”

 

“Go ahead.”

 

“The essence of selecting a mentor is about support and training, isn’t it? I can handle both.”

 

The reaction in the room was doubtful. Even the pope looked unconvinced.

 

“And how exactly would you do that?”

 

“I’ve already secured enough holy relics to raise the daughter of the Holy God to the rank of high priest immediately. And no one knows better than I do how to deal with the cultists of the Evil God.”

 

“Hmm…”

 

No one could refute that.

 

“Open the relic chamber for me right now, and let the daughter of the Holy God choose relics with me. I’ll show you the results immediately.”

 

Heden then spoke up. “And why should we trust you, a cultist of the Evil God?”

 

“It’s not like I’m asking to be alone with her. If you’re that worried, Lord Heden, you can come along and watch. How about it?”

 

Heden looked displeased but nodded as though he had no choice. “Fine.”

 

“I’ll come too,” Ilya added.

 

With both of them backing me, the mood shifted toward at least watching how it played out.

 

The pope rose from his seat. “Very well. Let’s all move to the relic chamber.”

 

* * *

Who in this world knows best how to use holy relics? It’s me. No one knew relics better than the one who had created them. And no one knew faster, more efficient training methods better than I did either.

 

I extended my hand to the golden-haired girl who was, at last, the protagonist of this world. “My name’s Theresa.”

 

“I’m Deina.”

 

With our watchers following, we entered the relic chamber.

 

“What weapon do you use now?”

 

“A sword. It’s the most basic weapon.”

 

“Swords are easy for beginners, but they’ll become a burden against cultists of the Evil God later on. They excel at long-range attacks.” I pulled out a golden bow and handed it to her. “Use this.”

 

“Huh? I’ve never used a bow before.”

 

“That’s the same thing for most things here, isn’t it? And this is the best weapon in this place.”

 

In any game, no job or weapon is perfectly balanced—there are always overpowered classes and weapons. I was an archer in <God’s Play>. It’s ridiculously easy to use, absurdly powerful, and viable all the way to the late game. Moreover, this golden bow was an endgame-tier weapon.

 

“You see the five slots on the bow?”

 

“Yes.”

 

“Put all these stones of holy power into them. They’ll let you fire intangible arrows made of holy power instead of regular ones, and these jewels will enhance them.”

 

“Oh…!”

 

I went to a display case and retrieved a softly glowing elixir. “Drink all of this. It’ll triple your holy power.”

 

Heden, silent until now, frowned. “And how do you know that? Even though we only know it as holy water filled with pure, sacred energy—no one has precisely identified its effects.”

 

Because my team made it, obviously.

 

“I brought it myself—of course I know what it does. I even explained the effects when I handed it over. I guess none of the priests who heard me bothered to believe it.”

 

Heden, well aware of my treatment within the Papacy, said nothing more.

 

Deina, busily following my instructions, suddenly looked worried. “Is it really okay for me to use all of this?”

 

“Of course. I gathered it all with you in mind.”

 

“…!”

 

“Now let’s pick out your armor.”

 

“Yes!”

 

Thirty minutes later, our not-a-shopping-trip was done.

 

“All set.”

 

When she’d entered the room, Deina had been nothing more than a novice priest. When she stepped back out, she gleamed like a max-level veteran player. If expressed in game stats, it looked like this:

 

 

▼

[Deina]

Class: Archer

Level: 1

HP: 100 (+1,023)

MP: 50 (+5,810)

Strength: 10 (+300)

Agility: 10 (+970)

Intelligence: 10 (+1,155)

Defense: 10 (+901)

※ Holy God’s Blessing set effect: +100 to all stats

※ Stones of the Holy God: MP recovery speed ×10

※ Immune to mental attacks

.

.

.

※ When near the Statue of the Holy God, divine arrows double in number

▲

 

With item boosts alone, her stats had shot up to the highest among archbishops. And this wasn’t just from piling on good gear. It’s about combining items with synergy for far greater boosts.

 

Right now, Deina had reached a power level only possible in the late game. Once she leveled up, she’d be on par with a cardinal in no time. It’s only a matter of time before she becomes the strongest in the world.

 

With her all kitted out, it was time to test her performance. “Let’s go to the Altar of Light.”

 

When Deina offered holy power to the altar, it would produce a purification stone in return—the simplest way to prove she was the daughter of the Holy God. The purification stone was a concentrated energy source capable of destroying temples of the Evil God.

 

Deina poured all her holy power into the altar, eyes tense with focus. And as much as she invested, the result was enormous. From the altar, a fist-sized, vividly opal purification stone appeared.

 

“Ooh, my goodness…!”

 

“A top-grade purification stone! This could easily destroy an Evil God’s temple!”

 

Hope lit up the faces of everyone present. Then the pope spoke. “To be honest, Theresa, I still cannot fully trust you. It is like a frog unable to trust a snake. But regardless of your origins, you are a benefactor of the Holy God temple.”

 

The pope bowed to me. One by one, the cardinals and archbishops followed suit.

 

Looks like all that relentless item farming wasn’t for nothing. I waved my hands awkwardly. “I just want peace as much as anyone else. The sooner we wipe out all the Evil God’s temples, the better.”

 

Destroying them without purification stones was a monumental task. No matter how strong I’d become, I had no desire to suffer needlessly when the straightforward route was right there.

 

Then, suddenly, Deina stepped up to me, dropped to one knee, and said— “Please, be my mentor!”

 

This wasn’t exactly the development I had in mind.