Chapter 133

Chapter 133
## Chapter 133: Never Mind The Heir, I’ll Focus On Healing

“Feel free to question me however you like, or you can simply hear out my words of thanks first.”

The Archbishop offered a soft smile, leaving the choice entirely up to Lion.

“If I were in your position, I imagine this whole scenario would feel rather heavy.”

Truth be told, ordinary folks would likely find themselves weighed down by the sheer awkwardness of such a gathering.

Despite his warm demeanor and gentle smile, the man sitting across from him was still the highest-ranking prelate of the entire religious order.

Though Lion remained entirely indifferent to such status.

‘I must have committed some blunder.’

If anything, shouldn’t it be Lion accepting the gratitude, just as the Archbishop had implied?

“It isn’t burdensome at all. Since Your Eminence was kind enough to invite me here, I will gladly listen.”

“Ho ho. You certainly have a way with words.”

Chuckling softly, the Archbishop lifted his goblet and moistened his throat.

“Let me begin with a formal expression of thanks. Because of your actions, I was made aware of the disgraceful occurrences happening within our temple walls.”

The disgraceful affair in question was, of course, the arbitrary vetting and recruitment of clergy.

“You were unaware of it?”

The Archbishop offered a quiet, knowing smile without a word.

‘So he wasn’t completely in the dark after all.’

It wasn’t as though he had turned a blind eye out of negligence; he likely lacked definitive, concrete proof.

After all, a premature crackdown could have thrown the entire congregation into turmoil.

“I won’t offer any excuses. I knew. Yet, as I rose to become the Almighty’s primary servant, I ironically grew blind to the smaller details.”

“I understand. The burden of your station must be immense.”

That precisely explained why he was now seeking undeniable evidence to uproot the corruption and reform the hierarchy.

While Lion could appreciate that reasoning on an intellectual level, it didn’t mean he had to approve of it.

“It stings, though.”

At Lion’s candid remark, the corners of the Archbishop’s eyes softened.

The young man had managed to hit the nail squarely on the head without a moment’s hesitation.

“……At any rate, I will take the necessary steps to ensure such a travesty never stains our temple again. I swear it upon the deity I serve.”

Rather than taking offense at Lion’s blunt honesty, the prelate seemed genuinely charmed by it.

‘Indeed. A man ought to possess such unwavering resolve.’

The reason was simple: Lion embodied the exact archetype of human virtue the Archbishop held in high regard.

He believed a person should be gentle and kind at heart, yet resilient and unyielding as tempered steel when facing adversity.

And the young man standing before him was the very picture of those ideals.

One had to wonder where Rikschel had managed to cross paths with such an acquaintance.

‘That boy has grown up considerably as well.’

It was only natural that Rikschel’s name came to mind.

Having watched over the child from a tender age, he had perhaps inadvertently kept him confined too closely.

The scars etched into that young soul were simply too deep.

Determined that no one else within the temple should suffer a similar fate, he had redoubled his efforts since then.

And yet…….

Things rarely go entirely according to plan.

As a result, he now found himself witnessing a second and third Rikschel emerge during his own tenure.

One could only imagine how much lingering resentment Rikschel must hold toward him.

Though he possessed no right to complain, the mere thought of the boy he had raised like a surrogate son harboring bitterness toward him left a heavy ache in his chest.

Yes. The Archbishop……

Beneath his calm exterior, he was actually a bundle of quiet anxiety.

That was precisely why he had pulled Rikschel’s companion into this dreamscape—to gauge the true state of affairs.

Naturally, other motivations played a part, but that underlying yearning was the strongest of all.

With his extensive background as a seasoned negotiator, Lion had already picked up on those hidden emotions.

‘……Why couldn’t he just ask straight out if my kid is actually mad at him?’

He was certainly fond of beating around the bush.

Deciding to spare the prelate any further suspense, Lion offered the answer he was desperately fishing for just a beat before the older man could speak again.

“Rikschel holds no resentment toward Your Eminence.”

“……!”

In a fraction of a second, the Archbishop’s leisurely, composed mask dissolved into sheer astonishment.

“Father Rikschel simply wished to use his own strength to aid those in need. I merely provided a minor push to get him moving.”

Lion let out a light chuckle once he finished.

‘I feel oddly like I’m sitting through a parent-teacher conference.’

You know the exact type of situation.

It mirrors those moments during a school conference where you casually mention how mature and well-adjusted someone else’s child is becoming.

Even before taking over this body, Baek Yi-hyun had witnessed similar scenes.

Granted, they hadn’t concerned his own guardians; he had simply overheard discussions between teachers and parents lingering in the staff room.

And quite by accident, he had caught sight of the parents’ reactions.

It was an indescribable expression.

They looked deeply moved, utterly radiant.

Far more fluttered, flustered, and tickled pink than if the praise had been directed at them directly…….

‘I used to be so envious I couldn’t even put it into words.’

It remained just a faint, wistful memory.

And perhaps, if things had gone differently, Baek Yi-hyun might have lived out his entire existence without ever truly grasping that sentiment.

Back in those days.

“Yi-hyun, come over here for a moment.”

“Me?”

“Yes. You need to have your consultation session as well.”

“I……”

The homeroom teacher in charge of the young Baek Yi-hyun gently yet firmly grasped his small, fragile hands, looking straight into his eyes with unwavering warmth.

“You are your own guardian, so everything is going to be alright.”

“I’ll handle this just like I do for everyone else.”

With those reassuring words, the teacher sat the young boy down and spoke at length about his traits, his hidden strengths, and the qualities that would allow him to blossom entirely on his own.

The young Baek Yi-hyun hadn’t known how to reply back then.

Yet the memory remained etched in his mind with astonishing clarity.

The hushed stillness of the staff room, laced with the sweet aroma of instant coffee. The harsh glare of the overhead fluorescent lights and the creak of the teacher’s wheeled chair.

And right beside them, neat stacks of take-home notices and assignment handouts.

‘It was nice.’

Even though it felt warm, all he could do was clutch the oversized cuffs of his hand-me-down school uniform and nod silently with a flushed face.

He had simply been too young to articulate the emotions swirling inside him.

Yes.

Because of that small kindness shown by the teacher long ago, he had eventually learned to understand this exact feeling.

And those words had freed him from ever having to harbor a sense of inferiority.

‘Come to think of it, right around that era…….’

He had been so profoundly touched by that single event that his childhood ambition shifted toward becoming an educator.

He had harbored a vague dream of one day becoming the sort of person who could offer those exact words of comfort to someone else.

‘Ultimately, due to life’s twists and turns, I never made it into that profession.’

Regardless, it remained a fond memory.

Perhaps because the current dynamic felt so strikingly similar, those distant recollections came flooding back.

And…… experiencing this parallel firsthand, he finally understood the gentle state of mind that teacher must have possessed when she pulled him aside for that talk.

A spirit of humility coupled with a gaze filled with genuine affection.

It stemmed from simple truth, and from a desire to ensure someone else realized it too.

“……This is quite literally the first time I have ever engaged in such a conversation.”

“Forgive me if my frankness crossed a line.”

“Not at all. If anything…… I am deeply grateful.”

The Archbishop’s features relaxed far more naturally than they had before.

“Well now, I brought you here to offer my thanks, yet I find myself receiving comfort instead.”

What was one supposed to do with such a twist of fate?

Looking momentarily bewildered, the prelate soon broke into a broad, genuine smile, clearly charmed by the turn of events.

“Once I awaken from this dream, I must pay a visit.”

“……There is really no need to go to that length.”

“Oh, don’t look so burdened. Haha. It strikes me as a splendid excuse to check in on Petrick after all this time. Ah, and one more thing.”

The Archbishop glanced toward Lion, lifting a hand as though murmuring a silent incantation to himself.

A sudden flash of tiny sparks danced through the air, coalescing into a brief sentence before vanishing directly into his palm.

“Is there anything weighing on your curiosity? Perhaps how I managed to draw you into my dreamscape, or what this sanctuary truly resembles. Ask away, and I shall share everything within my knowledge.”

“……Is that genuinely permissible?”

“I have no intention of undermining the trust we are building.”

With a light laugh, he added, “That little display just now was fairly magical, wasn’t it?”

“Regardless, you can place your faith in me. I might not look the part at times, but I am an Archbishop. I have spent my life listening and learning.”

Therefore, please unburden yourself and ask whatever you wish. I will provide an answer with absolute sincerity.

Lion nodded in response to the prelate’s earnest declaration.

Truth be told, even without this supernatural encounter, Lion had intended to pry into the mystery of the ‘sealing’ mechanism anyway.

‘……Directly displaying the bottle itself poses too great a risk.’

-None of the ■■ belonging to this realm shall ever perceive the existence of this vial.

Those specific words remained burned into his memory.

Though he still lacked context regarding the corrupted characters, the implication was clear: the denizens of this world were fundamentally blind to the vial’s existence.

Sure enough, a thorough sweep of the library texts yielded zero references to any ‘sealed bottle’ or ‘ancient vial.’

The same held true while he was sorting through the archives back at the temple.

The only reliable baseline of knowledge he possessed came from general lore regarding mystical seals.

“I would like to inquire about the proper method for breaking a seal.”

“A seal……?”

The Archbishop’s response lagged by a fraction, clearly caught off guard by the abrupt shift in topic.

“Just as a precaution, if you happen to be in possession of any demonic artifact, your best course of action is to incinerate it immediately rather than attempting to crack its seal simply to satisfy your curiosity.”

“That isn’t the case here.”

He couldn’t even state with absolute certainty whether the item in question genuinely belonged to a demon.

Then again…… it might represent an even graver complication.

Since Lion couldn’t verify the specifics just yet, he decided to brush the thought aside for the moment.

“It’s not that, but you are asking about the mechanics of undoing a seal. Well then……”

Falling into deep contemplation, the Archbishop slowly began to speak.

“Very well. Should any real danger arise from this, Lord Petrick will undoubtedly intervene long before things spiral out of hand, so I will answer you.”

“My thanks to you.”

The prelate began with a concise overview of foundational principles.

Primarily, the entity attempting to cast or shatter a seal must possess a magnitude of power superior to the seal itself.

“Whether that energy manifests as mana, divine grace, or even raw physical might, it must surpass the threshold of the sealed entity in order to break it.”

Consequently, the more formidable the seal, the narrower the pool of individuals capable of dismantling it.

“As things stand, my capabilities allow me to fracture up to level-three seals.”

That meant he possessed the means to break virtually any recognized barrier known to the order.

He enjoyed certain specialized exemptions owing to his status as the highest prelate.

‘Yet this bottle sits at level five…….’

Lion let out a silent sigh, keeping his expression entirely neutral.

If the Archbishop’s threshold capped out at level three, how on earth was a level-five barrier supposed to be breached?

‘……Hold on a moment.’

Looking at it from the reverse perspective, didn’t that imply whoever originally placed the seal far exceeded the current Archbishop in power?

“Might I ask a question concerning the Saintess? What was her standing in this regard?”

“Hmm?”

The prelate’s gaze flickered with a sudden intensity.

“Indeed. The Saintess…… was indeed gifted with the capacity to establish and manipulate seals of level three and above. The Great Barrier currently shielding us from demonic incursions stands as living proof of that fact, does it not? Even so, measuring her full extent remains impossible. As you are likely aware, it was a collaborative endeavor between the Saintess and Lord Petrick.”

In short, the Archbishop’s response offered no concrete technical insights he could immediately exploit.

“Still, judging by your expression, you appear unaware of this next detail.”

“…….”

Masking his disappointment, Lion directed a steady gaze toward the prelate.

“The primary rule one must observe when approaching a broken or active seal is not to gauge whether your strength outmatches it.”

“Then what is the crucial factor to verify?”

“You must determine the directional orientation of the seal.”

“……!”

Was it designed to keep something trapped securely within?

Or perhaps…….

‘……To block an invasion originating from the outside?’