Chapter 51

It had been 10 days since their arrival in Sanctavia. Most of their time was spent in the library, searching for information on the goddess. Finally, Astaroth and Lalitha gave up, realizing that the library held no useful information for them. "Let us return to the adventurer guild and check if the guild master has returned from her trip. We have spent enough time in this place," Astaroth stated.

As they exited the library, Astaroth and Lalitha noticed a procession of priests and templars awaiting them at the entrance. Each member of the group was clad either in pristine white robes or gleaming white armor, their presence exuding an aura of power and devotion. At the center of the gathering stood an elderly man, his regal figure adorned in resplendent crimson garments. The absence of hair atop his head revealed a long, flowing white beard, and his weathered face bore the marks of a life well-lived and ancient wisdom.

Astaroth and Lalitha felt an undeniable air of significance emanating from the old man, evident in the reverence with which those around him treated him. His scarlet robe, vibrant like a flickering flame, enveloped him, while a golden symbol of religious significance rested upon his chest. The symbol gleamed with an otherworldly radiance, hinting at hidden powers.

In his right hand, the old man firmly grasped a magnificent golden staff, adorned with intricate carvings and capped with a gleaming gemstone that seemed to pulse with energy. Its presence suggested a connection to arcane forces beyond mortal comprehension.

Suddenly, the man in red stopped. He spun around so swiftly that one would think he wasn't an old man, but rather a young one. He briskly walked towards Astaroth and Lalitha, surprising the group of priests and templars who scrambled to catch up with him. As he came within five steps of Astaroth, he stopped abruptly and shivered. "You... who are you? I can sense great evil emanating from you..."

Astaroth glanced at Lalitha, a glimmer of curiosity in his eyes. He had never encountered someone who could sense the darkness that resided within him. With a calm yet enigmatic smile, Astaroth replied, "Evil is merely a matter of perspective, dear sir. As for who I am, I am Astaroth, a wanderer in search of truth and adventure."

The man in red narrowed his eyes looking at Astaroth, clearly unsettled yet intrigued by Astaroth's response. "Astaroth... I have not heard of your name. Tell me, what brings you to this sacred temple?"

"Before I answer you, shouldn't you introduce yourself, old man? It is rude to suddenly walk up to someone and claim that the person is emanating evil," Astaroth said, grinning at the old man.

"How dare you talk to the Pope in this manner!" a priest shouted at Astaroth. They had finally caught up with the Pope, and now the Templars formed a defensive wall between Astaroth and the Pope.

Lalitha frowned at the priest. The situation had suddenly turned bad, and they were now being treated as if they had done something wrong. She could see that the Templars were ready to attack at any signs of threat, The tension in the air grew thick as the hostile priests surrounded the Pope. Sensing the growing animosity, Pope Damianus Corvinus V took a step forward, commanding everyone's attention.

"Stop! All of you, move back," he declared firmly. "I have been the rude one here, approaching this young man without properly introducing myself. You may have already guessed, but I am the current Pope of Sanctavia, Pope Damianus Corvinus V."

As the Pope introduced himself, the priests and templars reluctantly took a step back, their hostility momentarily subsiding.

"Now that you know who I am," Pope Damianus continued, "why don't you share with us what brings you to this sacred temple?"

"Well, I have always been interested in history, and I am here to uncover the mysteries of Sanctavia and the goddess Seraphiel," Astaroth replied, his smile never faltering as he locked eyes with the pope.

"I see. So, you have delved into our library with your companion here in search of knowledge about the history of Sanctavia and our revered goddess Seraphiel. Tell me, have you discovered what you sought?" Pope Damianus inquired once more, his suspicions mounting. He could sense the danger and malevolence emanating from this young man.

Astaroth's eyes glimmered with a hint of mischief as he responded, "Oh, dear Pope, the library has revealed some secrets, but not all. There are depths of knowledge and power yet to be uncovered."

The pope's grip on his staff tightened, he then continues, "If there is knowledge that you seek but not found in the library, you can ask me. But not today as you should be aware the festival of thanks is coming up in a couple of days. I can have an audience with you after the festival, what do you say Astaroth."

"But sir," a priest standing close to Pope Damianus interjected softly, "there are also many meetings that you need to attend after the festival. I am in charge of the Pope's schedule, and there are no free slots for the Pope to entertain an unknown young man. Many important people have already arrived and made arrangements to meet with Pope Damianus."

"That's fine," Pope Damianus recalled, "I believe there was a meeting scheduled with the merchant from Feyrith... you can reschedule his appointment with me for a later date. It is far more important to share our faith with this young man, especially since he seems to have so many questions about our goddess, Seraphiel."

The secretary nodded, acknowledging the Pope's decision. He then turned to Astaroth and stated, "The second day after the festival of thanks, at noon, come into the inner temple, and we will arrange for you to meet Pope Damianus."

"Very well," Astaroth replied. "I appreciate your assistance. I look forward to meeting with Pope Damianus."

As Pope Damianus and his entourage moved away, Astaroth and Lalitha left the temple as well. They decided to stick to their initial plan and head back to the adventurer guild to check if the guild master, Glenda White, had returned from her trip. And soon they reach the adventurer guild and the guild like always is quiet and lacks the normal bustling noises you would expect from an adventurer guild.

Lalitha pushed open the wooden door to the building, and Sophia raised her head. "Oh, it's you guys. The guild master hasn't come back yet, but she did send a message. She says she will be back soon, either the day before or on the day of the Festival of Thanks. She also mentioned that the letter you are supposed to give her... no one should open it, or else..."

"Very well, we shall wait for the guild master to return. We have nothing else to do at the moment. The books in the library haven't provided us with much information, but we managed to secure an audience with the Pope," Lalitha declared. Upon hearing this, Sophia eyes grew as large as saucers. She knew that the Pope rarely granted audiences to anyone.

"Oh, you are so lucky! The people around him don't allow anyone to approach the Pope. Tell me about it, this place is so boring, when the guild master is back I will give her my resignation letter." Sophia exclaimed.

Lalitha shrugged and began recounting what had happened, purposefully leaving out the Pope's accusation of Astaroth being evil. While Lalitha conversed with the receptionist, Astaroth walked toward one of the guild's walls where guild requests were posted. It struck Astaroth as peculiar that the guild hall was devoid of adventurers, yet numerous requests adorned the wall. Almost fifty to sixty requests were displayed, and most of them were relatively recent. The oldest request was merely a month old.

"Hey, who will undertake these requests?" Astaroth turned to face the receptionist, curiosity piqued. "It appears that this adventurer guild in Sanctavia is lacking in adventurers, yet the oldest request is only a month old."

"Our guild master takes care of them," Sophia replied. "Given the shortage of adventurers in this area, Guild Master Glenda personally selects a few requests at a time and embarks on the missions herself. That's why the requests don't stay on the wall for long."

"I see. We don't have anything important at the moment. Is there any short request here that we can take and still make it back in time for the Festival of Thanks?" asked Astaroth.

Sophia stood up from behind her desk and walked over to the request wall. As she looked through the requests, Lalitha approached them and joined in. "This one shouldn't take too long. Although it's a C+ rank request to subdue a monster around Sanctavia. If you are fine with taking up this request, I will process it."

Astaroth took the request from Sophia and saw that it was a request to kill a manticore and bring back its body as proof. He wonder if this was the same manticore that the adventurer group encountered in the forest.

"Sure we can search for it and bring it back." Astaroth claims.

"Great, show me your adventurer card and I will process it." Sophia stick out her hand asking for their card.

"Oh, that's right we have not yet registered as adventurers as our documents were destroyed in the fire at the Yosnad branch," Lalitha exclaimed, "could you help to process our card right now?"