"This is my crew member. She used to be a human, but now she has turned into a rat. Does your church have any way to restore her to her original state?"
Charles asked, carefully holding the mouse in his hand, but the Pope obviously did not want to answer this question.
"So the reason why your voyage was indefinitely postponed is because of this? A mouse?" The Pope sitting on the sofa laughed, but there was no smile in his eyes.
Charles touched Lily's head with his hand and shook his head with regret. "Lily is not a mouse, she was just turned into a mouse by some method. To be precise, she is a human, but not from our world."
The Pope stood up suddenly, his voice once again carrying a hint of anger, "Don't tell me this! Don't you want to go back to your home?"
"Of course I have to go back, but my crew's life is in danger now. I must find a way to heal her before looking for a surface exit. You haven't answered my question yet. Does your church have any solution?"
"Is it more important to return to the surface, or to hold the mouse in your hand?" At this time, the Pope's face was getting closer and closer to Charles' face.
"The surface is right there and it can't run away. I've been waiting for twelve years. I don't mind waiting one more year, but my crew only have four months left to live. We can't wait that long." Charles said as he lifted Lily in his hands and kissed her gently on the cheek.
Lily looked very happy to see Charles kissing her. The corners of her mouth turned up, revealing her small white front teeth, and her tail kept wagging like a puppy.
The Pope shook his head in disappointment. "My child, you have changed. You are no longer the reckless Charles. The exit is right in front of you, but you are still wasting time on these trivial matters."
“People change all the time, but I like this change.”
"Your island was in danger, and I rescued you. You were blind, and I helped you regain your sight. And this is how you repay me? Have I been too weak in front of you for so long? To the point that I forgot my... true identity?"
White light emanated from the Pope's skin, supporting his body like a god or demon. A powerful aura emanated from the Pope, suppressing Charles and forcing him to retreat continuously.
Faced with the Pope's sudden change of hostility, Charles was not at all panicked. Instead, he showed a sneer on his face, put Lily into his pocket, and then strode towards the Pope.
The black blade popped out from the palm of the prosthetic limb. Charles handed the weapon directly to the Pope and readily exposed his neck.
With a hint of madness in his eyes, he said: "Come, my neck is right here, kill me right now if you can."
The Pope was stunned and looked at Charles in front of him in surprise, and his aura slowly disappeared.
"See? This is the aorta. If you cut it with a knife, even if my healing ability is strong, I will die in less than a minute. Cut it!"
The church was now in a passive position, caught in a dilemma with the dagger in its hand.
"You don't want to cut it? No problem, I'll cut it myself!" The prosthetic limb in Charles' hand instantly turned into a chainsaw and he chopped fiercely towards his neck.
For the first time, panic showed on the Pope's wrinkled face.
Just when the rapidly spinning chainsaw was about to tear Charles' neck, it was blocked by a black dagger. The two continued to collide and sparks flew. It was the black blade in the Pope's hand.
The rapidly spinning chainsaw slowly stopped, and Charles looked at the Pope and smiled. "Why can't you continue acting? Hasn't the Pope always been a good actor?"
"I don't know what you are talking about. I just feel that we have known each other for so long, I can't just watch you die, kid." There was a hint of regret in the Pope's eyes.
"Stop pretending! What on earth are you planning on me? Why am I so important to you? Why were you so nervous when you heard that I was going blind? Why did you let me explore the island alone?"
"And most importantly! Since you have obtained the exit map to the surface, why are you pushing me to go out to sea? Under normal circumstances, if you have hope of escaping the God of Light, shouldn't you immediately form a fleet and head to the destination? Or... is your goal not the surface at all?"
The Pope threw the black blade in his hand to the ground, his face gloomy and he said nothing.
"I don't know what you are plotting, and what you are planning to do with me. I still say the same thing. As long as Lily doesn't recover, I won't go out to sea."
Charles took Lily out of his pocket and walked to the balcony, enjoying the warm sunshine while stroking Lily's hair.
After a few minutes, Charles turned around and found that the Pope who had been standing there was gone.
The corners of his mouth rose slightly. In fact, he had suspected the other party for a long time, but it was just speculation before. However, after seeing that the other party showed no signs of moving after getting the nautical chart, he was sure that his guess was correct.
The other party must be plotting something against him. What he said before about simply keeping it secret was all lies. There is not a single word of truth in this old man's mouth.
But soon, the Pope came to Charles again, and this time he came alone, with more than a dozen people behind him.
This time the Pope's tone was much softer. "Yes, I am indeed plotting against you. I do not deny this, but this does not conflict with our mutual interests. The God of Light told me that only the Chosen One of Dick can open that door."
"I told you before, you're different from everyone else, you're unique, and the reason I didn't tell you earlier is because—"
The Pope was interrupted by Charles halfway through his words. "Your Holiness, have you heard the story of the boy who cried wolf?"
"What?"
"Forget about it. I don't want to hear your explanation anymore. I don't believe a word you say now. Let's not talk nonsense anymore. Let's talk about something real."
"What is your real name?"
"Ledger, why are you asking this?"
Charles pulled a black marker from his pocket and began writing on the huge wooden table in front of him.
Condition: Pope Ledger of the Church of Light must use all the power of the Church of Light within four months to find a way to restore Lily.
Reward: Charles will fully assist the other party in finding the surface exit and must not do anything irrelevant during this period.
[agree Disagree?]
"This pen is a powerful relic. Anyone who dares to break his promise will disappear instantly. Do you dare to sign?" Charles threw the marker in his hand to the other party.
The sentence after the word "remuneration" was added by Charles specifically for himself. It seems to be a restriction on himself, but in fact it is a restriction on the other party, restricting the other party and forcing him to find a way out.
If the Pope really just wanted to find the surface, then there was no way he would not sign such a powerful condition.
If he doesn't sign, then the other party's motives are very questionable.
"Okay, it seems you don't believe anything I say. I'll sign!" The Pope took a pen and wrote his name.
"Whoosh~!" A red flame instantly ignited on the notebook, and the contract between the two was established.
(End of this chapter)