Calamity and Threats
Archbishop Hendel sat across from me at the table, while I remained tightly bound to my chair.
I spoke first.
"Quite the aggressive welcome. Is this what Aeolem teaches His followers?"
There was no reason to hold back now.
"I didn't even retaliate against the people who tried to kill me—I brought them here alive. So why am I being treated like this?"
But to my surprise, Archbishop Hendel didn't respond at all.
Her wrinkled face merely held that same serene smile, not a word escaping her lips.
"Hey, at least untie my subordinates, will you?"
"..."
"Archbishop!"
The silence that followed was heavy and unfamiliar.
I had no choice but to shut my mouth.
'Ah, so that's how you want to play it?'
Hendel had already known I was coming to Aulrax.
After all, climbing that mountain with the priests and fighting Marquis Reut must have taken enough time for word to reach her.
Plenty of time to decide how to handle the "deranged Third Prince."
"..."
Perhaps she'd even received a revelation from Aeolem by now.
If that were the case, she probably believed she already knew everything about me.
'So that's what this silence means, huh?'
I ran through what I knew about Archbishop Hendel in my mind.
[Character Information]
Archbishop of Aeolem's Grand Church, aligned with the Revolutionary Army.
Once a warrior nearing the rank of Nine Stars, she suffered a crippling wound in battle and retired from the front lines.
Despite her gentle appearance, she is a cold, calculating, and exacting commander.
This woman was not like old Bamilo.
That priest had at least a trace of compassion left in him—especially toward his subordinates and the citizens of Aulrax.
That compassion was what I had exploited to get this far.
But Archbishop Hendel…
'She's a viper, through and through.'
The closest human being to the God of Vengeance Himself—
or perhaps even more terrifying than Aeolem.
Her hatred for the Empire that took her arm burned brighter than any divine flame.
I knew that well—from the original story.
Meaning, half-truths wouldn't cut it with her.
Her silence was a wordless threat—
Tell me the truth, and repay it in blood.
But I had prepared a mixture of half-truth and half-lie—
and now was the time to use it.
The method was simple.
"Your Grace must think I impersonated Aeolem's vessel, yes? You're right. I did impersonate your god."
"...!"
A direct strike.
That ever-gentle smile on her face faltered for the first time.
"Even if you confess now, Third Prince, I doubt it will change anything."
Finally, the lock on her mouth clicked open.
"Oh? Are you sure about that? Ah, and just to be clear—I'm not apologizing for it. Let's be honest, why should I bow my head to people who tried to kill me just because I told them a few lies?"
If anything, the opposite would've made more sense.
"I can understand why your co-conspirator, the Minister of the Palace, is panicking right now. If I were in his shoes, I'd be terrified my tail was about to get caught too."
"...It's fascinating that Your Highness knows about that."
Fascinating?
This crazy woman actually found that interesting?
"Unfortunately, I found nothing about it fascinating. Thanks to you, I ended up dueling the Empire's most loyal knight and Nine-Star Commander, Marquis Elron Reut."
The instant that name left my mouth, her smile vanished completely.
I didn't miss the timing.
"Oh, but surely Your Grace understands what it's like to face a Swordmaster, don't you?
Then again, I suppose my experience differs slightly—since I was the one who won."
The cracks spreading across her expression made me smirk.
"You wanted me dead, didn't you? Still do? Then go ahead. Try it. But when you do, not even Aeolem Himself will foresee what comes after."
"..."
"I promise—you'll regret it."
If my arms weren't tied, I'd have folded them smugly.
Instead, I just lifted my chin as high as I could.
"You won't be able to stop the calamity."
She must've at least heard something about it.
So I gave her a few more details.
"Roughly a week from now, an unstoppable disaster will strike Aulrax. Countless lives will be lost. The entire city will drown in grief."
"..."
"When that happens, the Revolutionary Army will falter—and the revenge you've waited for will slip further away."
Hendel's eyebrows twitched.
"What kind of disaster are you talking about, Your Highness? An earthquake? Aulrax stands upon two Grand Churches where gods can manifest directly. Most phenomena can be repelled by divine power."
"Some calamities pierce divine protection. You of all people should know—divinity isn't omnipotence."
Archbishop Hendel fell silent, her face tightening with restrained anger and curiosity.
I smiled faintly.
She wanted to hear more.
But I wasn't about to give it for free.
"First, untie me. That's the reasonable order of things, isn't it?"
She didn't answer.
Her thoughts were clearly churning behind that calm mask.
I waited patiently.
The outcome was already decided.
"…Very well."
At last, Archbishop Hendel rose from her seat.
She walked around the table toward me.
'Oh, she's going to untie me herself? How generous—'
But instead of reaching for my bindings, she walked right past me.
Then opened the door and called out into the corridor:
"Take the Third Prince away!"
…What?
"To the underground prison!"
That—was not the plan.
"Your Highness! You've come to rescue us!"
"No, I got locked up too."
"..."
They'd thrown me into the underground cell with Cerse and Tyrbaen.
They'd untied me on the way here, sure—but now there were iron bars between us and freedom.
No difference, really.
At least the two of them were safe—
eating, resting, and even snoring away peacefully.
Still, what the hell?
"Hey! Your lord's been captured, and you're just eating? And you, Master—how can you sleep in a place like this?"
"Well, the food's decent and I was starving, what can I do?"
"And whose fault do you think it is we've been eating dried meat for days, huh?!"
…These guys were unbelievable.
Still, I couldn't help feeling a little sorry for them.
'Can't really blame them.'
The past few days had been hell for the both of them—
trekking through mountains and forests because of me.
Anything edible would taste heavenly right now,
and any flat surface would do for sleep.
'It's not like the game at all.'
I was reminded again that they were alive—not NPCs who could move endlessly at a player's command.
"Your Highness, are you sulking?"
"Seems like it. Sir Silion, give me one of those dumplings you were eating."
"This was my last one, but… here, have it."
"...Don't need it! I'm not eating something that's already been bitten! You two split it and enjoy it together!"
The two of them obediently broke the dumpling in half and began chewing side by side.
I rubbed my swollen arms—still sore from being tied up—and sat down heavily against the wall.
Surprisingly, the stone floor of the cell wasn't cold. It was faintly warm, as if some kind of magic was heating it.
"...Hmm."
Just as I thought.
"So, how did it go? Did you meet the Archbishop?"
Cerse asked as he took a seat across from me.
Unlike when he'd been flattened by the Titan Taskforce, he looked much calmer now.
Tyrbaen too had regained his composure.
Apparently, the two of them had figured out the situation here faster than I had.
"Bamilo came by earlier. He even brought us food."
"He gave us a rough rundown of what's going on in Aulrax right now. Seems people here aren't so different from anywhere else…"
Hearing the little witch mutter like a jaded elder made me snort quietly.
Still, I could guess what she meant.
"The Archpriest probably told you about the faction conflicts within Aulrax, didn't he?"
"Huh? How did you know that?"
I'd suspected it since the moment we were thrown into this cell.
And sure enough—
'They locked us up here because other factions are watching.'
Within the Revolutionary Army, there were six major armed groups.
First, the Aeolem Church, where we were now.
Opposing them stood the Kishiris Church.
Then came the Border Guard, responsible for the outskirts.
The City Watch, protecting occupied territories.
The Titan Taskforce, the Supreme Commander's elite unit.
And finally, the 1st Legion, serving as reserve forces.
Each had its own scale, structure, and responsibilities—
together forming this vast, divided power.
"According to Archpriest Bamilo, the Kishiris Cathedral and the Titan Taskforce are pressuring the Aeolem Church."
"How so?"
"They're insisting the Third Prince—meaning you, Your Highness—must be exiled or executed as a dangerous sympathizer."
Cerse trembled, but I just laughed.
Sympathizer? What was this, some kind of communist purge?
God Soft's sense of naming things was as deranged as ever.
'So it's the Kishiris Church and the Titans, huh?'
No wonder they'd handled us so roughly even when we didn't resist.
…Well, at least my stamina's recovered now.
Of course, there was a Supreme Commander at the top of the Revolutionary Army—
its equivalent of an emperor.
If he intervened, the matter would be decided instantly.
'But the Supreme Commander's currently absent.'
That was why the factions were divided—
and why I'd ended up rotting in this cell.
I fell into thought.
If even the Aeolem Church ultimately abandoned me,
how would I break free?
'Should I trigger the Great Cataclysm Event?'
Not an appealing option… but it might be necessary.
I shelved the thought for now and turned to Tyrbaen.
"Master, did Bamilo say anything else?"
"Ah, yes, now that you mention it."
The little witch turned toward the entrance of the cell and spoke.
What she said made me flinch.
"He said, 'Please, this time, try not to show off so much.' What was that supposed to mean?"
"Ugh… Don't tell me…"
Just then—
Creeeeak.
Step, step.
The door's hinges groaned, and footsteps echoed closer.
Two shadows appeared, stopping before the iron bars.
"…Third Prince, you've been waiting, haven't you?"
It was Archbishop Hendel's voice.
She entered the underground prison with Bamilo in tow, wearing a dark hood that reminded me of Igral's robes.
"From this moment on, what I say is not as an archbishop. Officially, I was never here. But… I've decided to believe in you."
Her words sounded suspiciously familiar—
and the rattling of the cell door confirmed my hunch.
I remembered this quest.
'…You're the jailbreak, and I'm the archbishop, huh?'
Sure enough, the message appeared before my eyes.
[Quest: 'You're the Jailbreak, and I'm the Archbishop' has begun.]
[Quest]
Although the Revolutionary command remains divided, Archbishop Hendel of the Aeolem Church has a request for you.
Escape the prison with her aid and resolve the coming incident.
Special: Linked to other quests
Expected Rewards: Aulrax Travel Pass + 3 other rewards
'So it really triggered.'
This quest was originally meant to activate if the player got arrested after forming a friendly bond with Archbishop Hendel.
Still, technically, I had met her before being imprisoned—
so the trigger condition fit.
'Well then, I suppose I'll take back control now.'
I stepped closer to the open cell and asked,
"Archbishop, I'm a sympathizer and a blasphemer who impersonated your god.
Why trust me now?"
It was a question that needed to be asked—
to clarify my next move.
"…"
Hendel's gaze on me was heavy—
as weighty as Marquis Reut's had been.
A tremor rippled through my body,
but I held firm.
This was something I needed to hear.
Finally, Archbishop Hendel spoke.
"The calamity you mentioned earlier, Third Prince… we've sensed it too."
'What? They already noticed that event?'
That alone was shocking—
but she wasn't done.
"And we've learned that someone within the Revolutionary Army is involved."
Her eyes trembled with anger.
"We don't yet know who, but there's a traitor among us."
"…"
She was telling the truth.
If the Third Prince's assassination had been triggered by a traitor on the Imperial side,
then the Aulrax Calamity was the work of a traitor within the Revolutionary Army.
'The Dying Sons.'
If this event failed, countless young boys in Aulrax would die.
And I knew exactly who the culprit was.
'The Kishiris Cathedral.'
Those who served the Goddess of Deception—
they were the masterminds behind it all.