When Grant walked from the cathedral to the Place of Grace under the gaze of countless believers, he felt that he would never forget this day for the rest of his life.

- the day he officially became pope.

The coronation ceremony is tedious and needs no detail. The church was lined with white candles, long prayers, and the bishops came up in turn to salute him...... He remembered these pious faces, who had glared at him angrily half a month ago, cursing him for being a perfidious monster, and now they were only obedient.

It's just that, looking at the obedient appearance of the bishops, Grant doesn't feel the slightest pleasure of revenge.

He knew how he did it. Killing, threatening, inducement...... He had long since turned into a completely different person. Change came so quickly and quietly that he didn't even realize how he had gotten here.

If the bishop were still alive, he might have commented that "everything is God's will," but he is no longer there. Grant remembered the night he killed the bishop, and the bishop's serenity terrified him, as if the shadow would hang over his head forever, and even if he killed the bishop a thousand times and ten thousand times, he would not be able to get out of the bishop's control.

Can...... If it wasn't for the sake of getting out of that shadow, why would he kill the bishop?

With all kinds of lingering thoughts in his mind, Grant felt that it was difficult to breathe, perhaps because the pressure of this grand papal uniform was too heavy.

"Your Majesty, put on your crown and march towards the Place of Grace. Thousands of believers are waiting to pay homage to your majesty!"

When he came to the door of the church, a priest whispered in his ear.

Grant looked down.

Even though the atmosphere of terror had permeated the royal capital for several months, at this moment, the Holy Light Avenue outside the church was still full of people. Thousands of paladins parted the crowd, leaving a wide path for his next pilgrimage. Under the gloomy sky, all the people raised their heads, squeezed their eyes, and desperately looked at him.

These people ...... They are all believers who are subject to Him.

The parade is arguably the most traditional part of the coronation ceremony. The new pope, accompanied by two newly joined priests, walked all the way from the church to the Place of the Holy Grace to receive worship from the faithful who had arrived from all over the country. Others say that if you can look at the sun crest on the pope's crown during the pilgrimage, you will be blessed by God.

Perhaps, this is the reason why countless believers are fanatical.

Grant wanted to fly over their heads.

Malicious thoughts flashed through him, and after all, he walked out of St. Peter's Basilica.

He walked into the path of the paladin's discharge, followed by two bishops, stepping on fresh roses and calla petals, and walked past the fanatical gaze on either side with a blank expression. The believers squeezed and jumped desperately forward, but no one dared to make a sound, and the scene was filled with silent and noisy footsteps.

Grant didn't feel these people looking at him, he felt like a sculpture.

The long road soon became a form of torture, and he walked like he was walking in hell, screaming evil spirits pouring out from both sides, fangs and claws, and hateful faces. He resisted the urge to kill all these evil spirits, maintained his expression, and tried to move forward.

I don't know how long it took, but the road in front of them suddenly became wider, and they finally came to the Place of Grace. Civilians were not allowed to enter, and were kept out by armor-clad paladins. And in the square, the nobles of the whole country will bow to him.

Grant's indifferent mood suddenly fluctuated.

“...... Duke Claude, you're here. ”

He stopped in front of a middle-aged man, was silent for a moment, and said this. The middle-aged man raised his head, and his old-fashioned and stubborn face was no different from what he remembered.

"Yes, His Majesty the Pope. Claude's voice seemed to tremble. He knelt deep at Grant's feet and said, "Today is the day of your coronation, and we pray for you." ”

Grant's heart was full of happiness, but now he froze in place, not knowing what to say.

He didn't understand why, but ...... It wasn't what he expected.

The most ironic thing is that he didn't even know what he was expecting when he stopped to talk to Claude, they hadn't spoken for a long time, not to mention that he was the Pope and Claude was a nobleman. What Claude just said couldn't be more reasonable.

So, Grant could only turn his head and leave in a hurry, maintaining a stiff expression and continuing to walk forward.

He felt that he must have been embarrassed to flee.

In the Place of Grace, he performed a magic spell and burned eleven mages tied to the cross, completing the final ritual. At that moment, countless people fell to their knees and shouted "Long live the Pope", but Grant only noticed the relieved expressions of the two new priests behind him.

He suddenly realized that he might never be qualified to put on that expression

The coronation took place at noon, but the follow-up proceedings went straight into the night. It wasn't until Grant finished reading the last page of the Bible and closed the book that the priests hurriedly retreated from the church. He was the only one left under the silent idol.

He put down his book, turned his head, and looked at the idol in silence for a long time.

That night, he returned to the Rieser family's big house—he couldn't remember how long it had been since he had been back. Presumably after Benjamin was burned at the stake, the whole family was so silent every time they dined that he felt like he was going to suffocate for a second longer.

Gradually, he lived only in the church.

"Less...... His Majesty, His Majesty, meet His Holiness. We...... That ......"

The guard at the door was still the same as before, and when he saw him, he fell to his knees in a daze, unable to utter even a complete sentence.

Grant shook his head.

"Get up, I'm just coming back and seeing. ”

When the guard heard this, he raised his head: "Then, you need me to report it......"

Grant ignored the guards and walked straight through the gate. The whole room was well acquainted, and he quickly came to the door of the study, pushed open a crack in the door, and saw Claude inside.

He didn't know why he came back here, maybe it was because the encounter in the square during the day was too embarrassing, and he felt a breath in his heart that he couldn't swallow.

Claude sat at the table. The oil lamp was on. He appears to be reading a letter.

After a moment's hesitation, Grant walked in.

"Your Majesty, what ...... you?"

Unlike the guards at the door, Claude reacted quickly after being stunned. He saluted Grant in a respectful tone, and did not make any unruly gestures.

Grant, however, felt a wave of depression for no apparent reason.

“...... Father, I'm back. After being silent for I don't know how long, I did countless mental constructions, and finally, his voice trembled, and he said this sentence.

Claude froze in place.

The atmosphere was awkward, and no one took the conversation. Grant could only look left and right in a hurry.

“...... What about Mother?"

"She's in the countryside of the territory...... Recuperation ......"

"Where's Grandmother?"

“...... Those useless knights, still nothing was found. ”

The study fell silent again.

Grant begins to regret his decision to go home. He looked around awkwardly for a moment, and was about to turn to leave, when he suddenly caught a glimpse of the letter on his desk.

At that moment, as if sensing something, he walked over and snatched the letter in his hand.