I Became The Pope, Now What?



In the distance, ominous dark clouds gathered and churned, their foreboding shadows stretching across the land like the fingers of a colossal hand. A deep rumble echoed through the air, heralding the intensifying storm. Amidst the deluge, the sky was illuminated by irregular forks of lightning, their stark white brilliance painting the world in a harsh light. Each flash was followed by a deafening crack of thunder, a mighty roar that shook the very foundations of the land.

The knights of the Sandwall waited near the Western wall, atop the cliff, anticipating an attack from the western side. Adorned in lightweight armor and wielding nimble blades, they were eager for the battle.

However, the stormy rain had reduced visibility to such an extent that they could not see the bottom of the cliff, let alone the distant lands from where the cannibal army could emerge and launch an attack.

Yet, as seasoned warriors of the Sandwall, they knew how to handle such situations. They had encountered low visibility during winter fogs before, and for that very situation, they had installed bells all over the wall and lower gates.

Clad in fine armor and helmet, Sylvester kept his eyes shut and his senses alert. He tried to detect the scents and sounds emanating from his surroundings. Considering the cannibals would be in large numbers, he reckoned he could sense their emotions.

"Chonky, prepare to devour as many of them as possible. Then, after devouring them, throw them back at the enemies to disorient them. You will be my greatest defender today." Sylvester whispered to Miraj.

Miraj was already excited about the battle as his eyes shined with bloodlust. "I will kill them all, Maxy. Don't worry." 

Ting! Ting!

"Two bells!" Felix exclaimed. "It means they saw something but are uncertain. If they ring it five times, we all leap with the ropes and attack. The lower gates won't be opened today until we return."

Soon the bells rang four times, signaling them to remain prepared as the watchmen were almost certain that the enemy was coming.

Sylvester focused his gaze on the cold lands hundreds of feet below the cliff. The rain hindered his vision, but he detected a deep and strong bitterness. It was the combined animosity emanating from the cannibals. He was sure of it.

Ting! Ting!...

This time, every ear listened intently to the bells, and when the fifth one came, rage consumed them.

"DEATH TO CANNIBALS!"

"I shall win!" 

"The prize is mine!" 

The Sandwall soldiers appeared more fanatical than even the Inquisitors, jumping fearlessly off the towering wall that stood over two hundred feet tall. They clung to hundreds of long robes hanging from the wall and ran down with the support of the rope.

"They are crazy," Sylvester muttered, stepping to the edge of the wall. "I'll see you at the bottom, Felix."

"I am coming as well, my friend." Felix didn't wait for Sylvester and leaped off the wall without taking the rope.

Sylvester followed suit, diving headfirst down the cliff, his arms tucked close to his body for optimal aerodynamics. Felix was inexperienced and didn't know much about aerodynamics, so Sylvester easily passed him by.

The first Knights of Sandwall had yet to reach the ground when Sylvester arrived. He conjured powerful elemental air magic, creating a downward thrust to slow his descent and land safely on the ground.

Bam!

On the other hand, Felix landed safely but clumsily on his butt. "Ouch! I need to practice this more."

"Haaaa! Kill the heathens!" 

The knights soon joined them and charged toward the oncoming cannibals, their faint footsteps and shouts growing louder as they approached. The soldiers maintained their squad formations and moved with precision.

Sylvester glanced up and could not see the top of the cliff. "Aurora could have helped us a lot with her lightning manipulation. Still, let's utilize the rain and turn them into sharp spears against the horde." 

Sylvester was responsible for commanding the knights and wizards from Normani Duchess' army, so he had a good enough force to collaborate and inflict heavy damage. 

"Let us not rush; we must wait for the initial contact report. We need to know the enemy's numbers," Sylvester spoke, walking instead of running like the others.

"Haha! Why are you cowardly standing back, Your Grace?" The Count finally climbed down and mockingly walked past Sylvester. "Could it be you're regretting your decision?" 

Sylvester ignored him. 'Count your last breaths. Win or lose; your death is inevitable.' 

"Ah!" Felix exclaimed then. "Why do I smell something rotten? Oh, it's just you, Father." 

Count Sandwall stared daggers at Felix and ran away with his elite squad of knights and wizards. Clearly, Felix was itching to see his father die. 

"Knights, you must protect the wizards," Sylvester commanded the men under his command.

They slowly walked, carefully listening to the sounds at the front. The clashes of blades had already begun to resound, along with various explosions, as Sylvester had handed the men various crystals to be used in the battle. 

"We should rush," Felix suggested. 

"Not before we know how many there are. Remember, never go into a battle before knowing your enemy's strength." Sylvester warned.

Fortunately, they soon received a field report as a knight with blood oozing from his wounds came running back. "Your Grace! There are at least three hundred thousand of them. However, they are weak and lack knowledge of warfare."

Sylvester nodded and looked toward the Wall of Void in the distance. "Let us be cautious in case they have reinforcements."

Then he glanced at the soldiers with him. "Remember, secure the wizards, and allow them to cast large-scale destructive spells. You all have plenty of Solarium crystals, so you won't run out of magic."

"What about you?" Felix asked. 

"I will fight separately, as my attack area will be too wide. I don't want to harm our own." Sylvester said, holding his spear firmly.

"Understood," Felix acknowledged his limitations and decided to accompany the Duchy soldiers and wizards. Although he had some impressive moves, they were not nearly as powerful as Sylvester's.

With that, Sylvester moved first and disappeared into the crowded battlefield. Count's thirty thousand soldiers versus three hundred thousand of the Cannibals. They were outnumbered by ten to one ratio, but it was still a winnable battle as the cannibals were not the most intelligent beings.

The knights effortlessly wielded their swords and spears, slicing through the unarmored cannibals who barely covered their nether regions and brandished crude weapons. Despite having extremely dry skin and little fat, the cannibals appeared tall and ferocious with their hideous, rotten teeth and bearded faces.

"There are men, women, and even children," Sylvester observed in awe as he charged ahead of the frontlines.

However, he had no time to ponder the morality of the situation. Instead, he simply twirled his spear skillfully, leaving behind a trail of death with every swing. Tens of cannibals were beheaded or cut in half with each strike.

"Maxy, I start now?" Miraj asked for permission. 

Sylvester was too focused on decimating the cannibals to reply with a lengthy response. "Kill."

"Okay," Miraj acknowledged as he stayed close to Sylvester's shoulder and scanned the approaching horde of cannibals. Then, instead of having Sylvester take care of them, Miraj opened his jaw wide and unleashed his power.

Woosh!

In an instant, the horde began to be sucked into Miraj's mouth as if it was a black hole. The beings were pulled in and distorted, shrinking to fit into the tiny jaw.

Sylvester noticed it and felt confident about defeating the horde. "This is too easy, and I feel this isn't the best they have to offer. It's as if I'm an adult and killing newborns." 

The lack of challenge and the inability of some cannibals to wield their swords properly made Sylvester suspect that there were more waves of cannibals to come, and the current wave was just a test to exhaust them.

"Don't tire yourself out, Chonky. I'm afraid this is going to go on for too long." Sylvester warned the feisty cat. 

Miraj paused devouring, and replied. "I'm not even doing anything. Just keeping my jaw open is very easy." 

'So his power doesn't rely on Solarium?' Sylvester wondered. 'It's a passive ability that is linked to his body. But where does all the devoured material go?'

Sadly, being far too busy fighting, he focused on butchering the cannibals and slowly began to create a hill of corpses on which he stood proudly like a god of war. Around him, the Knights of Sandwall slowly made their way forward and left behind a ground covered with corpses, as if they were sheets of blood and gore. 

"It appears they have all realized it," Sylvester noticed that not many of the knights were using big moves or any explosion crystals. Like him, they only swung their blades.

"Keep going!" Sylvester roared to encourage them. "Solis sees it all! Let's make him proud!"

The name of Solis undoubtedly pumped them, as evidenced by their chants. But then, one of the nearby knights shouted and requested something from Sylvester.

"Your Grace, this battle is quite boring! Can you bless us with one of your hymns that we can all sing together.?" said the man as he beheaded five cannibals without even looking at them.

'Such marvelous knights of Sandwall. Even Inquisitors would feel ashamed before them,' Sylvester felt satisfied with their performances and prepared to sing.

This time, while one of his hands continued to swing the blade, and the other hand faked using space magic to devour the bodies, he sang and created the halo behind the head.

♫Our arms are strong, and our will is firm, 

It's our holy duty to slaughter these worms. 

It is a lesson that they must keenly learn, 

Accept Solis, or wait for the fire to burn.♫ 

♫O' brothers and sisters, fear not, for we stand tall. 

The smiles on your faces, we shan't let it stall, 

Our bodies are shields, and we defend one and all. 

For we are the mighty knights of ancient Sandwall,♫

Sylvester incorporated the name of the county into the hymn to make it closer to the hearts of the men. And as expected, upon hearing it, they began to repeat the words in a united chant. However, they added two more lines at the end. 

♫Fear we relinquish, for beside us stands the mighty bard,

Bestowing grace upon us, he is the cherished son of the lord.♫

'As always, my hymns are the most excellent tool of propaganda,' Sylvester approached his strange blessing of the halo and focused on the cannibals.

"Wait a min—" 

But just then, he realized something. He had stopped fighting the cannibals in the middle of his hymn, and yet no attack had come.

"What?! Why are they kneeling?"

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