“I’m a moderate.”
Cassie and the priest’s cold stares pierced the back of Amon’s head, but he paid them no mind.
“You can’t force someone into heaven. I have to make them feel like I am heaven for them, don’t I?”
However, the archbishop nodded in understanding.
“If that’s the case, it’s a shame.”
“But just as the Saint treated us, whether we are moderates or hardliners, we are all still meant to love one another, are we not?”
An ordinary person would have simply nodded at those words and moved on.
But the archbishop understood what Amon was truly implying.
“Ah, the Gospel of John. By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples if you love one another. You are all brothers.”
For the first time, Amon’s face brightened at finding someone who understood him.
“Do you happen to know 1 Corinthians, chapter 5?”
“One of my favorite passages. If anyone who calls himself a brother is sexually immoral, greedy, an idolater, a reviler, a drunkard, or a swindler—”
“Then he is not your brother and must be cast out. The Mother will judge those outside.”
The two shook hands.
Behind Amon, Cassie pressed her fingers to her temple.
‘Good grief. There’s another person like Amon? Really?’
From that point on, Amon and the archbishop were lost in their own world.
Their entire conversation was conducted through Bible verses, limiting the discussion participants to just the two of them.
For nearly an hour, they conversed without rest, and finally, with satisfied smiles, they shook hands once more.
“This was truly a heartwarming discussion, brother. I’ve never experienced anything like it before.”
“The same goes for me. There isn’t even anyone in the Vatican with whom I can have such a satisfying conversation. Have you ever considered becoming a priest?”
Amon shook his head.
“I love my freedom too much.”
“The Goddess has always emphasized human freedom as well. I respect your choice.”
“Then farewell, brother.”
“May your path be peaceful.”
And so, Amon’s meeting with the archbishop ended on a warm note.
Watching the archbishop’s retreating figure, Cassie sighed in exasperation.
“I had no idea there was another person like Amon in this world.”
Sonia nodded in agreement.
However, the priest with narrowed eyes had a different reaction.
“This is a reliable ally we’ve gained. So, where do we start?”
“First, we go after the cardinals.”
“Wait, what??”
Cassie and Sonia were completely lost.
‘What on earth were they talking about?’
Seeing their confusion, the priest explained.
“In the Vatican, the Bible is sometimes used as a code. When I take on dangerous exorcism requests, I communicate in a similar way.”
“Ahh, I see~”
“But wait, Sonia, Cassie—fine, I get why you wouldn’t know. But aren’t you studying at the seminary? How do you not know this?”
“I’m only learning sacred magic! Teehee.”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake.”
The priest sighed in frustration.
Of course, in recent times, faith-based tests were not a major part of a Holy Knight’s training.
But considering Sonia was about to be canonized as a saint, wasn’t it a bit of a problem that she lacked this knowledge?
Even Sonia seemed to feel the weight of the priest’s words, sticking out her tongue and attempting to brush it off with a playful gesture.
The priest let out a deep, weary sigh before turning his gaze toward Amon.
“By the way, this is interesting. Amon, you never attended seminary, right? How do you know these codes? Have you met with the Holy Knights before?”
“Huh? Do they use codes like this?”
“…Then what exactly was that conversation you just had?”
“I mean, I suppose there were meanings exchanged, but I wasn’t trying to use it as a code. Brother Heinrich didn’t say anything about it either, did he?”
A particular exchange between Amon and the archbishop flashed through the priest’s mind.
—”There isn’t even anyone in the Vatican with whom I can have such a satisfying conversation…”
…No way.
“Wait. Did you… memorize all those passages?”
“Of course. Isn’t that normal?”
“???”
The priest stared at Amon as if he were some kind of bizarre creature.
Beyond Amon’s ever-clear eyes, he saw a subtle but unmistakable glimmer of madness.
As he tried to gauge the depths of that madness, the priest ultimately gave up.
***
After their conversation with the archbishop, Amon and his group immediately began preparations for purging the Corrupt Faction.
They had already consulted with the pope, the leader of the moderates, and thanks to Amon’s discussion with the archbishop, they now had the support of the hardliners as well.
“This should be enough.”
The Corrupt Faction was the largest faction in the Vatican.
However, with Amon’s group allied with the other two factions, the situation had changed.
“The operation remains mostly the same.”
Amon pointed to Sonia as he spoke.
The plan was simple.
Once Sonia was officially canonized as a saint, she would use her authority to launch a religious trial against the Corrupt Faction.
But now, with the support of both the moderates and the hardliners, they could act more boldly.
“Until the canonization ceremony, we’ll start raiding the homes of high-ranking corrupt priests.”
Donning his robe once more, Amon spoke resolutely.
Originally, they had planned to wait until after Sonia’s sainthood was confirmed before gathering evidence.
The delay would allow the corrupt priests time to destroy some evidence, but acting before the official recognition would have been too risky.
However, circumstances had changed, and their actions needed to change accordingly.
“I’ll be back.”
***
Amon spent his nights darting across the rooftops of the Holy City, sneaking into the homes of corrupt priests and retrieving incriminating evidence.
Meanwhile, Sonia and the priest focused on their respective tasks in their lodging.
The narrow-eyed priest meticulously organized the materials Amon had already retrieved and would continue to bring back.
Sonia carefully studied the accusations she would present at the upcoming religious trial.
The problem was Cassie.
“Sonia, is there anything I can do to help?”
“Hmm? Want to do a mock religious trial with me?”
“Uh… okay.”
However, Cassie was of little help.
As a lawyer, she was exceptionally skilled, but her religious knowledge was sorely lacking.
She had picked up a few things from Amon, but compared to those who spent their lives debating theology over meals, it was negligible.
Her expertise lay in money, statistics, and public opinion—she was out of her element in a religious trial.
During their mock trial practice…
“I condemn you for violating this passage.”
“Uh… um…”
“Take your time finding it.”
Whenever Sonia cited a verse, Cassie would fumble, struggling to locate the passage.
Even when she did find it, she hesitated, unable to grasp its meaning fully.
In the end, she was more of a hindrance than a help.
“I’m sorry…”
“It’s okay.”
“I’ll just go buy some sweets from the café instead.”
“Please do.”
With her head hanging low, Cassie left the lodging.
Cassie’s footsteps felt heavy as she made her way to the café.
“Haah…”
In this holy city, Cassie Julia felt utterly useless.
Not just here.
Even back in Europe, her foresight ability had proven to be of little significance.
“Foresight? That’s just a basic ability.”
Grit.
She clenched her teeth, recalling the jackal-headed demon who had mocked her precognition.
After that battle, her confidence had begun to wane.
She hadn’t worried much while she was at headquarters, but the moment she left, the memories started to haunt her.
And in this holy city, those feelings of inadequacy only deepened.
This place was filled with seers, some of them as formidable as demons themselves.
Compared to them, Cassie’s ability was insignificant.
She sighed repeatedly.
‘Does Amon even need me anymore?’
The enemies they were about to face all had precognitive abilities.
Her authority as a corporate representative was also limited.
Even her knowledge, which was invaluable elsewhere, was meaningless in the Vatican.
True, once they left the Vatican, Cassie’s influence might grow again.
But even that confidence had been shattered days ago when they met the archbishop.
And to make matters worse, Sonia had awakened some incredible power, leaving Cassie feeling even more distant.
At this point, it wouldn’t be strange if Amon no longer saw her as relevant.
‘I have to be the nest… I have to be the nest…’
She kept repeating those words to herself.
Trying to remember the happy future she had once glimpsed with Amon.
But the anxiety refused to fade.
Slurp.
“What’s the point of worrying?”
Shaking off her thoughts, Cassie stepped into the café.
She picked out some sweets for Sonia and prepared to head back to the lodging.
That was when she noticed a group sitting in the corner.
A Holy Knight was seated between two women, one on each side.
The problem?
All three of them were wearing matching rings.
Cassie frowned.
‘Seriously? A priest with a harem? How shameless.’
Then, for a fleeting moment, she imagined herself in the place of one of the women.
Her face instantly flushed.
Because she realized—she wasn’t so different.
Overwhelmed with embarrassment, Cassie practically fled from the café.
‘I should just hurry back.’
Clutching the cakes in her arms, she made her way to the lodging.
***
On the way back, she happened to run into Amon, who was returning from his evening mission.
“Whoa! You scared me! You’re getting even better at hiding yourself!”
“I guess after that day, I’ve started to sense people’s gazes more instinctively.”
“Where are you going with this? You’re becoming less and less human.”
“Who knows?”
Amon took the cakes from her hands.
Walking side by side, the two chatted idly.
At some point, Cassie naturally brought up what she had seen at the café.
“So, I saw… well…”
Even as she spoke, she couldn’t help but feel self-deprecating.
‘Am I really in a position to judge others?’
She had seen a happy future with Amon, but she had no idea how that future actually came to be.
She had deliberately avoided looking at the in-between, treating Amon like a wildcard she could play to her advantage.
All she knew was that, at some point, she had ended up as his lover.
So if the way she got there was through something immoral…
She wasn’t sure if she could accept that future.
Just then, Amon’s words pulled her out of her thoughts.
“That? It’s not a problem within the faith.”
“???”
Cassie blinked in confusion.
“What do you mean?”
“If you don’t study in-depth, you wouldn’t know this, but there are actually different denominations within the Goddess Church. Some of them prohibit polygamy, but others allow it.”
“What? Isn’t that heresy?”
“Don’t say that out loud. It’s an officially recognized doctrine. The Mother emphasizes freedom of choice, after all.”
It was something that had also surprised Amon when he first arrived in this world.
The faith was strict about forbidding idol worship, but when it came to interpreting the Goddess’s teachings, there was room for variation.
The twelve disciples of the Saint had each understood her teachings in twelve different ways, leading to twelve officially recognized sects.
It was like a university with twelve different specialized fields.
‘The Goddess herself acknowledged it.’
She never took issue with differing interpretations—because, to her, freedom was just as important as love.
“Just so you know, that doesn’t mean you can do whatever you want like the Corrupt Faction.”
They weren’t just different—they were wrong.
Freedom in faith didn’t mean twisting doctrine for personal convenience.
To Cassie, it still sounded like a case of “it means whatever you want it to mean,” and she was bewildered.
Amon understood her confusion.
“That’s why they don’t bother explaining the differences to the general public.”
You had to study theology at a high level—enough to earn a senior priesthood in the Vatican—just to grasp the distinctions.
“For reference, the priest, the archbishop, and I all follow different sects.”
“Huh? Then which one are you closest to?”
“Why?”
“Just curious.”
“Just so you know, you shouldn’t choose based on me. The twelve sects are something you should decide on based on what resonates with you.”
“Got it. Now tell me already.”
“The Eleventh Sect.”
“Eleventh?”
“The Simon Sect. If you check the Vatican Library, you’ll find more about it under the number eleven.”
After returning to the lodging, Amon, Cassie, and Sonia shared the cake.
***
The next morning, Cassie woke up and immediately headed for the library.
Using the access pass granted by the pope, she made her way deep inside.
She couldn’t understand the original texts, so she found the simplest translated version she could.
And there, she finally read about the doctrine of the Eleventh Sect.
[On Marriage]
“The Holy Mother is a symbol of fertility, so abundant love in itself is not to be condemned.”
“It is far better to have multiple parents than to leave a child orphaned.”
“Multiple spouses are permitted, as long as all parties agree and can be treated fairly.”
“A wife may have up to three husbands, and a husband may have up to two wives. However, one side must always remain monogamous.”
“That said, monogamy is still the preferred norm.”
As she read, Cassie felt a dizzy spell coming on and pressed her fingers to her temple.
‘What the hell…’
Amon had been right.
That Holy Knight hadn’t technically violated any doctrine.
Even though monogamy was still recommended to the general public, polygamy was conditionally permitted.
Cassie barely managed to compose herself as she left the library.
‘Of course, Amon didn’t choose this sect because of this reason.’
From what she had gathered, this sect also promoted a rather aggressive stance on punishing heretics.
Spreading faith was to be done gently, but when dealing with demons and heretics, they showed no mercy.
It fit Amon’s methods perfectly.
But still…
‘This just makes me start hoping again…’
Cassie barely managed to keep herself from smiling too much as she made her way back to the lodging.
When she arrived, Sonia tilted her head.
“Did something good happen?”
“Huh? What do you mean?”
“You just seem a lot happier than yesterday.”
Cassie touched the corners of her lips, then shook her head.
“No, nothing special. But hey, Sonia.”
“Yeah?”
“Can you help me study the Bible?”
“Huh? Why the sudden interest?”
“I can’t just sit around doing nothing in the holy city.”
Sonia readily agreed.
She wasn’t on Amon’s or the priest’s level, but her knowledge was still considerable.
“Alright, let’s start here. This passage emphasizes a priest’s humility…”
Listening to Sonia’s explanations, Cassie nodded along.
Once again, she recalled that happy future she had once seen.
Huh… Just realized something.
I already assumed that MC was aligned with the virtue of love, because his love for the world was the entire reason the goddess chose to reincarnate him, but I missed the significance of his “half awakening” earlier… Even though Sonia gained a ring on her finger during the process, which was a big hint. He couldn’t fully awaken to Love because he hasn’t yet shared it with his other destined partner.