Please Stop The Pope

Chapter 102

Archbishop Rapart’s lecture went on for a staggering three hours.

Starting from my ad-hoc management of the church to the reckless opening of the sacred grounds without any proper measures, he critiqued everything relentlessly based on the reports Leo had meticulously compiled over time.

It was three hours of sheer hell.

After battering me with cold, hard facts for what felt like an eternity, Archbishop Rapart wet his lips with the now-cold tea and spoke in the same tone as before.

“The most urgent matter is reorganizing the organization. It’s far too much for Your Holiness to handle everything on your own. Therefore, a strong organization to support you is essential.”

Archbishop Rapart was a realist.

The church, after all, was an organization composed of people. Leading it solely with faith was an idealistic notion, completely detached from reality.

That kind of approach would never work unless you brainwashed everyone into becoming fanatics.

“That’s why I brought you here, Archbishop Rapart.”

“We will need a different kind of organization than Eden’s. The level of civilization on Earth is vastly different from Eden’s. Simply transplanting Eden’s system to Earth won’t work.”

As people age, their mindset tends to grow more conservative, preferring to cling to the status quo rather than embracing change.

However, Archbishop Rapart showed no such tendencies.

He was willing to accept any bold idea for the sake of the church. Even if it was an opinion from a novice trainee, he was prepared to adopt it if it would benefit the church.

“Before Your Holiness arrived in Eden, the mission given to me was to continually learn and help the church prosper. The grace of learning bestowed upon me by Lady Limen, must have been for that very reason.”

The Grace of Learning, as the name implies, was the divine blessing that allowed him to learn ceaselessly. To him, learning was a lifelong companion.

This is why Archbishop Rapart would adapt easily to Earth. He would continue learning endlessly even after arriving here.

And this was precisely why I brought him to Earth.

“To be given the opportunity to learn something new—it makes my heart race, even at this late stage in life. I am merely grateful for the grace of Lady Limen for sending me here.”

Listening to the earnest words of the old man, I nodded slowly.

“I’ve arranged to meet someone through an acquaintance. They’re supposedly very skilled in running a large business—essentially a vast merchant guild. If they seem capable, I plan to bring them onboard.”

If CEO Choi, who was notoriously strict in judging people, vouched for this person, they were bound to be exceptionally talented.

I’d only know for sure after meeting them in person, but I had high expectations.

Archbishop Rapart, seemingly guessing the meaning behind my words, replied in a gentle voice.

“It’s always a joy for an old man like me to work with young people. If it’s someone Your Holiness personally intends to bring in, I’m sure their abilities are outstanding. You needn’t worry.”

“Haha…I wasn’t really worried.”

“Then don’t mind me and go ahead—gather the talented people Your Holiness needs.”

With a kind smile, Archbishop Rapart nodded.

“I feel so guilty, calling someone like you to another world when you should be resting comfortably.”

“As always, Your Holiness has a knack for saying things you don’t mean. You could simply say, ‘I’m glad I have this old man to put to work.’ That would be more honest.”

What a sharp old man he was.

I thought I’d been subtle, but was my expression that easy to read?

“Then I’ll take a look around the temple, Your Holiness. Don’t you also have to speak with Toby?”

“That’s right.”

“Well then, I’ll see you again later.”

Archbishop Rapart, now standing, bowed his head toward me.

Then, with leisurely steps, he exited the office.

As I watched the tall figure of Archbishop Rapart, towering well over 180 cm, leave, I let out a soft breath.

Bringing him here was definitely the right decision.

Archbishop Rapart would undoubtedly become an excellent control tower for our church.

If I could pair him with a partner who could fill in his gaps in managerial expertise, the burden of managing the church would lighten significantly.

“Whew.”

Now that the meeting with Archbishop Rapart was over, it was time to meet Toby, the dwarf responsible for our equipment.

I got up and headed toward the Sacred Stone Mine behind the temple.

A sacred stone mine located behind the temple.

It was a site where players from the Meister Guild, with whom Minsoo had established a contract, were responsible for all the mining work.

This was also a place where the highest-grade sacred stones were being excavated, and currently, it was bustling with activity.

“You can’t mine like that! Mining that way might scratch the sacred stones! Do you know how precious these are? You have to swing the pickaxe like this, see?”

A dwarf was shouting loudly among the players of the Guild while personally demonstrating how to mine.

Despite wearing thick armor, his pickaxe swings were not only precise but almost beautiful to watch.

It was unclear when he had become so friendly with the others, but the players here were watching the dwarf’s pickaxe techniques with glowing eyes.

I quietly approached the hardworking dwarf from behind.

“So, you swing the pickaxe like this… Oh! Your Holiness! How can you appear so silently like a ghost? You nearly scared the life out of me!”

“Your voice is still as loud as ever.”

“Please wait a moment! I must properly educate these friends about the art of mining. It won’t take long!”

It was a true craftsman’s spirit, befitting a dwarf.

After temporarily asking me to wait, Toby gave a 15-minute lecture on “What is a pickaxe?” and finally nodded in satisfaction.

The players, eager to apply the newly learned techniques, scattered to start their tasks immediately, while Toby stroked his brown beard contentedly.

“I couldn’t just stand by watching them recklessly dig out the highest-grade sacred stones. Don’t you agree?”

“Didn’t those people get startled by you at first?”

“They were surprised at first, but after I taught them a few things, we became friends quickly. They said their mining level was increasing rapidly or something? Haha! Oh, and earlier, I secretly took a sip of that drink they brought along—some liquor called soju….”

For players in production roles, especially those with mining skills, a dwarf would be nothing short of a godsend.

The difference between receiving guidance and not was as vast as heaven and earth.

Still, the people were far more open-minded than I’d expected. You’d think they’d make a fuss over interacting with someone of a different race.

“Looks like you’ve been quite the adventurer since coming to Earth, Your Holiness.”

“Hmm?”

“They seem to accept that anything can happen on Limen’s land. They said, ‘With otherworldly beings around, nothing’s too strange.’”

“…Oddly convincing logic.”

With Leo and Luna—beings from another world—already active, adding a single dwarf didn’t seem particularly strange.

Besides, the existence of returnees had been officially recognized, and the presence of other worlds was widely acknowledged.

Particularly in South Korea, the theory that “all non-human beings from the gates are hostile” had been debunked thanks to Leo and Luna, which might have made it easier for them to accept Toby.

“Let’s talk about the details as we go.”

“Understood, Your Holiness.”

The sacred stone mine was currently treated as classified within our Order. Naturally, there was a secret passage connecting it to the underground of the temple, allowing us to leave quietly if necessary.

After walking through the passage for about 20 minutes, we arrived at the temple’s underground area and headed straight to the office.

Back in the office with Toby, I took a seat and asked him, “Would you like some tea?”

“Anything else? Tea’s a bit bland for my taste. Beer might be hard to come by in a temple, though….”

“I got this for myself. Why don’t you give it a try?”

I retrieved a red-labeled cola from the mini fridge under my desk and handed it to Toby.

“Just twist the cap to open it.”

“Such a curious material for a bottle. Hmm, is it like this?”

Hisss—

As Toby twisted the cap with his thick hand, the sound of carbonation escaping accompanied the separation of the cap from the bottle.

Toby examined this with fascination, then promptly gulped down the cola.

It took him just two seconds to finish the 500ml plastic bottle of cola.

“Buuuurp.”

Toby, now visibly excited, exclaimed in a thrilled voice, “This is the best drink I’ve had in my life, next to beer. What is this?”

“It’s a beverage called cola. A carbonated drink very popular on Earth.”

“Cola! Do you have more?”

“Here, another one.”

“Thank you!”

Toby began devouring all the colas packed into my mini fridge, and I could only laugh as I watched him.

“Toby, are you still brewing beer using holy water?”

Gulp.

“Ahhh, yes. Before coming to Earth, I passed on the brewing method to my comrades. Beer brewed with holy water is a masterpiece, don’t you think? But this cola drink is equally…buuuurp. Oh, it’s fantastic.”

For some reason, the sight of a dwarf in armor repeatedly gulping down cola with his short arms was incredibly amusing.

“Whew. That quenched my thirst. Thank you, Your Holiness.”

Toby patted his stomach contentedly after downing 13 bottles of cola in a row.

“Let’s get to business, Toby.”

“Is there even much to discuss? Don’t worry. I’ll make anything you ask for, Your Holiness.”

“Do you need anything specific?”

“Just a forge to craft equipment and a sacred furnace to melt sacred stones. As you know, to maximize the power of sacred items, sacred stones must be mixed during the crafting process.”

A forge could be built using the DLC shop. While I had spent a lot of sacred points bringing both Archbishop Rapart and Toby here, I still had enough left to construct a forge.

The problem was the sacred furnace.

“The Holy See used a sacred furnace blessed directly by Limen. It’s necessary to melt sacred stones.”

“A furnace blessed by Limen directly…?”

“It’s a relic. The Holy See forge had seven sacred furnaces. That’s why I prayed to Limen about this issue, and Limen said the answer lies with you, Your Holiness.”

“…Tsk.”

I had one relic selection option remaining from the last quest. It seemed like I’d have to use it.

I had been saving it for the new temple, but….

“Can’t the sacred furnace be crafted separately?”

“Of course, it can! If Limen blesses the finished product directly, that’ll do the trick!”

“Oh?”

“However! Crafting it still requires a sacred furnace as a key ingredient, since sacred stones are crucial for its creation.”

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

This seemed like one of those age-old riddles, except in this case, it was clear the chicken—the sacred furnace—had to come first.

Reluctantly, I made up my mind.

“Can’t I just light a sacred fire myself? Wouldn’t that work?”

“If you could maintain a high-temperature sacred flame capable of melting sacred stones for an entire month, it might be possible. That would be quite a challenge. If you’re up for it, this dwarf will gladly accompany—”

“Let’s summon the sacred furnace.”

Sacred flames require divine power as fuel, meaning they consume it at an absurd rate.

They’re ideal for purging things corrupted by malice, but maintaining them casually in everyday situations is a bit excessive.

Even for me, sustaining a sacred flame capable of melting sacred stones for a whole month would be pushing it.

“It’s not impossible; I’m just too busy for it, Toby. You don’t misunderstand, do you?”

“Of course not! How could I doubt you, Your Holiness?”

Deciding to save the new temple for later, I chose to invest my relic selection for the safety of our new recruits.

After sighing repeatedly, I opened the DLC shop and purchased from the category.

Price: 10,000 sacred points.

Following this, I used the relic selection option.

[Based on the current causal allowances for the  , your relic selection is restricted.]

Unlike the previous random selection, this allowed me to pick the relic I wanted.

The choice was already clear.

Item Type: Relic – Limen Order

Origin Dimension: Eden

Description: The seventh sacred furnace crafted using the primordial flame. Blessed by Limen directly.

If summoned using the , 3,000 sacred points will be consumed.

[Use the to place in ?]

[3,000 sacred points will be consumed.]

[Remaining sacred points: 500.]

“They’ve practically scraped me clean of sacred points.”

Staring at the 47,000 points reduced to a mere 500, I could only muster a bitter smile.

With this, I had made a bold investment portfolio for the Order’s future.

…It better pay off.