I Became The Pope, Now What?
chapter-19

Sylvester didn't speak much and simply pointed them in a direction. "What if the town's wells are connected with this pit?"

That was all he needed to say for the faces of these men to turn pale. A few priests with weak hearts even puked right there, imagining that they drank the water mixed with feces—for years!

The Archpriest jumped into the stagecoach in a hurry. "Move! We need to return immediately. How can they be connected? They are so far away."

"Rivers traverse through the mountains and many kingdoms," Sylvester shut him up quickly.

So they hurried back into the town and arrived at the well at an intersection. As they reached there, Sylvester pointed out the smell. "Don't you notice the stench coming from it?"

Archpriest seemed confused. "What stench?"

That's when it hit him why nobody found out such an obvious thing. 'Ah, they have been smelling it for so long that they can't even tell the difference. But, if this happened in the recent months, that must mean that there's a current flowing under there, and it's now blocked.'

"Someone will have to go down there and clean your wells." He advised.

A priest spoke up quickly. "I will go and call Dungface. He must be sleeping somewhere around."

In a few minutes, a man named Dungface arrived. He appeared to be a young man with an unconcerned look, black hair, a black beard, and patched clothes on his body. Everything was dirty, as if he had not taken a bath in years.

"Boy, jump into this well and see if you find any garbage on the bed," the Archpriest ordered. He also noticed the gaze of Sylvester on him and the man. "He's the local idiot… mentally slow. But he's a hard worker and keeps the town clean of all its filth."

Even Sir Dolorem felt offended by that name. "A man who keeps the town clean, and you named him Dungface?"

"No-no, not us. His parents named him that. He used to work at their farm before and used to clean the cowshed. They used to beat him, so the monastery took him in. We ensure he bathes every night before sleep, so what you see is due to his day's work."

Splash!—Dungface didn't wait and jumped straight into the well. Then his loud voice came. "Dungface found bones."

That made it all clear. The water was the source of the illness. It would also explain why people got sick even after being treated once.

"We will need to clear all wells in the town then. Bring other cleaners; I will also jump in if I have to." Archpriest ordered and turned to Sylvester. "Thank you, God's Favoured, for your wisdom. The fear of plague had blinded us with worry for the common folk that even I overlooked such a basic problem. Please, you may go and take a rest in the monastery."

'I want to return to the Holy Land now. But the outbreak is still here.' He thought. But he couldn't waste his time resting. "Sir Dolorem, I wish to practice magic."

So they headed into the nearby forest to train in peace. Sylvester also meant to ask some questions to Sir Dolorem about the Church and his future duties. He wondered if he would also be sent to some monastery to be its priest. He honestly hoped that was the case.

After arriving in the lush, green forest with tall trees, Miraj ran off to sit on a branch and sleep. Meanwhile, Sylvester began to use his wizard moves on a few trees.

"Sir Dolorem, I once saw my mother chanting something and making patterns with her hand to use magic. What was that?" He asked since, until now, he had learnt nothing about making patterns.

"That's rune magic, Master Maximilian. You will learn it in School of Dawn. The runes are essential to use magic more intricately. If the magic is like yarn, then runes are like knitting methods. We can fight with simple magic, but one must learn runes to implement the same magic in more complex tasks, such as smithing and healing.

"Our body's natural magic is limited to elemental manipulation of fire, earth, water, and air. Using runes, you can do anything from creating burning plasma to thunder. Since many wizards can't use all elements, learning runes remove that limit and allow one to master all elements and beyond.

"But it is hard to master as it's a major branch of magic along with healing, alchemy, divination, enchanting, smithing, astrology, incantation, and necromancy.

"Usually, most wizards learn runes and incantations as these two combined can greatly amplify one's biological elemental magic. Of course, more specialised branches of magic exist, but these are usually personal research. The School of Dawn does not teach those."

'Wait… necromancy?' Sylvester had stopped listening once this word came up.

"Necromancy is not bad?"

Sir Dolorem chuckled. "Haha, most people have the same conception, Master Maximilian. It can be unsettling, but it is not evil. After all, it works on the same Solaris Particles that Solis gifts us with. So to hate any class of human magic is wrong in the Church's eyes. But this field of magic is heavily regulated due to its prospect of misuse, not to mention it's rare. Even your light magic is rare to see, and one as extreme as yours is probably the first case in history."

'And I will use this gift like a scam to the fullest.' Sylvester had long understood the advantages of having strong light magic in a world obsessed with the sun and its light.

"Will I become a priest too after school?" he asked.

To this, Sir Dolorem had no definite answer. "Normally, yes, but you are the blessed one, the God's Favoured, his divine bard. Therefore, the Holy Father must have something else planned for you, something greater. Otherwise, your talents will be wasted. Maybe you will become a great warrior for the eventual continuation of the war."

'A tool for war? So nothing has changed in this life either?'

"How strong is the Holy Father?"

"That… I believe the Holy Father is the strongest being in the world. Yet, as an Inquisitor, I've only seen him use his power once in my twenty years. With a simple wave of his staff, he once turned a whole rebellious heretic barony into a deep ravine. I still remember that day as if it was yesterday. My body shivered from the overwhelming power the holy father exuded. The army fell to its knees and chanted the hymns as we prayed for peace and light on that punished land.

"I can not even fathom the idea of trying to understand his might. He is the backbone of the church, the harbinger of peace. Even if other beings are as strong as him, I believe the Holy Father will still win… because the whole church stands behind him. We will gladly lay down our lives, and even if turned into wraiths, we shall keep fighting for the faith." Sir Dolorem's eyes were so full of worship and enthusiasm that he might have just dropped to his knees and started praying if Sylvester had kept going.

'I can't believe I'm supposed to show this overzealous worship in the future.' Sylvester felt a headache. He wondered if he could truly become the greatest actor and scammer in history because the bar increases to a new level every day.

"Thank you for clearing my doubts, Sir Dolorem. I will resume my practice now."

…

Dungface was able to clean all the wells on the same day. He even faced death as one of the wells had a strong current flowing at its depth. But he was saved by Archpriest, who used the wind magic and negated the pressure to create a suction on the well.

After Dungface and others had cleaned the connected pathways, the stench started to vanish, and the water became clearer. Xavia didn't have to heal people more than once, so after three days, the town was as good as ever. However, twenty percent of the population had died even before Xavia and Sylvester's arrival.

Still, everyone was highly grateful to them. While Xavia was like a caring mother, Sylvester proved to be the warm light that asked for nothing and enlightened their lives by finding the solution to the plague.

The Archpriest held a ceremony in the Monastery on the day they were to leave. The whole town of eight thousand people came to bear witness.

In fully formal robes, the Archpriest thanked Sylvester by kneeling before him since the little boy outranked him and was deemed blessed. "Pitfall is blessed to have witnessed your presence, Favoured One. Please accept this little token of gratitude."

He offered a palm-sized small box with velvet layered on it. Sylvester took it and opened it. 'Ah, this is nice. A gold bracelet?'

However, as he looked at it, his sense of smell and taste were intensely attacked by sourness and saltiness. It was so much that he felt his tongue was drying up. 'Fuck, the people are feeling jealous of me! B-But… this gold…'

At that moment, he realised something that instantly gave him a headache. He remembered a church bishop in his past life. The man was old and fat, but his attitude was warm and kind. On top of that, he drove a bloody Rolls-Royce. He did some background checks and found out the man came from a low-income family and got rich by using his authority in the church. The whole county hated that man not because he was an evil man but because he was rich.

Ordinary people hate wealthy people just for being rich. Common people hate those even more who are wealthy and government officials or, in his case, church officials. This meant that he could not openly gain and show his wealth.

However, there was a loophole. 'I saw the grandeur of the Pope. If I can get to a high position, I can live in luxury without spending my own money. But… I want a peaceful life…'

Sylvester sighed and innocently smiled at the Archpriest. "Thank you, Archpriest Ronald."

He looked left and right and found the man he was looking for. So he continued. "But I can not take this. My mother taught me not to be greedy, and Sir Dolorem taught me to think for others, for we are servants of Solis. So I wish you could use this gold to pay for a new set of clothes for Dungface. After that, you can use the rest of the money to make a stone-paved Town Square."

He didn't give a moment so others could speak as he started to chant one more hymn in this town. This time he kept his eyes open but showed his palm to the people as if giving them his blessing. He reckoned if he couldn't farm money from them, he might as well get their unwavering worship.

Then, the miraculous halo appeared behind his head and elevated his status to a god in the eyes of these feared commoner mortals. Then, he went even more overboard by making the center of his palm release some light magic that made people feel warm.

♫The love of Solis knows no bounds,

For he nourishes you with everything around.

The water, the air, and nature's melodious sounds.

Lord has his ways to expound.♫

♫So pray with me in the name of the Lord.

Your voices shall be kept in the blessed record.

From his grace, none is ignored.

Your land has been blessed again, wholly restored.♫

♫Raise not your swords but your voice.

To help one or to hurt it's always a choice.

For every action, there is a price.

So strive to do what shall make the Lord rejoice.♫

♫Some hands may be soaked in bloody grease.

Few bodies may need help with disease.

All shall find the holy road with ease.

For his name guides us all to eternal peace.♫

♫With warmth that all have embraced.

I kneel to the Lord, for he has graced.♫

♫This servant hopes that this healed those scarred.

With your open hearts, accept this sermon by the Lord's bard.♫

Thud!—as soon as the bright halo disappeared from behind Sylvester, the people fell to their knees, their eyes tearing up. It was not because they were all extremely religious. Some of them were even borderline heathens.

But hearing these words from a five-year-old child, in his sweet voice and the bright halo behind, it felt nothing short of a divine miracle. It was enough to fill hearts with utmost devotion and warmth instantly.

Their eyes turned moist, and they clapped their hands together to pray. Then, one after another, they started chanting.

"May the holy light enlighten us!"

"May the holy light enlighten us!"

Slowly the shouts turned into a unified blood-pumping chant that made Sylvester feel amazed and impressed by himself.

"May the Lord's Bard bless us again!"

"Long live Lord Maximillian!"

"Long live Lord Maximillian!"