"The kids… have their own destiny to fulfill. Since they are born from our goddess and for our goddess, they will return to our goddess as well once their purpose is fulfilled."

Cardinal Joshua told me, and I was now even more sure that there was some kind of disconnect between these people and their goddess.

Their words and actions were too different from what the goddess had asked me to do.

'It's not my concern anyway. What I need to focus on is to complete my side of the deal.'

Cardinal Joshua noticed my expression and decided to ask me the same question once more.

"I am not in the habit of repeating myself, but you are a special case, shopkeeper. You are a wild card who can change the tide of the tug-of-war. So I will ask you once more—won't you betray the duchess and join my side?"

The man asked, and this time, I had a feeling that saying no was not an option for me. There were too many guards around, ready to take me down the second I gave them a chance to.

So I did the only sane thing a person in my position could do—I pretended to agree with him.

"After hearing what you have to say, I have decided that I should take your side. I will change my allegiance to you."

I told the Cardinal, and he smiled back at me.

"That is good to know. It takes a huge burden off my mind to know that I have you to count on. Otherwise, I was thinking of the drastic measures I could take to make you understand. Ah, I never served you tea, right? Let me right that wrong."

Cardinal Joshua had a beautiful smile on his face when he told me this, but his words sounded anything but beautiful.

'That… is a threat, right? I feel like I just dodged a huge bullet.'

I wanted to suddenly cry at the unfairness of it all. I was just a bystander being dragged everywhere by those around me.

But crying would not help, so I finished the tea I had been served cold. The taste had gone bad, but I still finished it before I stood up.

"I should take my leave now. I have… some work to be done."

I told the Cardinal before I stepped back. A guard quickly came forward to lead me back to my room, and thank god they did because I was sure I would have gotten lost in here.

The dome was too big and white. But it was starting to hurt my eyes now. Fenrir quietly followed me, and I doubted he even understood what was going on.

'When will I be able to go home and rest? I feel like I am losing years of my life because of all this.'

I sighed before I entered my room and pushed myself back on the bed.

The whole situation was a mess—and in a bad way. And right now, I felt like I was being played by people on all sides.

________

"Cardinal Joshua, should we ask someone to follow that man? He is highly suspicious."

A guard asked Cardinal Joshua as he looked at the shopkeeper's retreating back. He and the other guards had been tense all this time, their guard up to make sure they were ready to tackle any situation.

Luckily, nothing had happened. But they still had a feeling they had dodged a huge nuke or something.

The person the duchess had brought along did not seem to be anything special at first glance. But there was something terrifying about him that no one could explain.

"No, let it be. That person already agreed to betray the duchess and come to our side. The goddess's powers and our faith will make sure the rest happens."

Cardinal Joshua told the guards around him.

His answer caught everyone off guard because the Cardinal was usually a highly critical person, not allowing even the slightest hint of something going wrong to remain.

For such a person to tell them to 'let it go' could only mean one thing—the Cardinal was confident in his victory.

That was what the guard believed. But for the Cardinal, that was not the case.

The reason he had wanted to stop and wait was because he was afraid. The shopkeeper was… powerful in a way the Cardinal could not comprehend.

Not only did all of Cardinal Joshua's attempts to put the shopkeeper under his control fail, but the shopkeeper also somehow managed to get their goddess's protection.

How could the Cardinal try and mess with someone like that?

The mere fact that the shopkeeper had their goddess's protection meant that he was on their side—or at least someone their goddess trusted.

But there was still this… unsettling feeling of fear and something else that came when the shopkeeper was there. His presence felt too… oppressive.

'He's sure not a normal person, but why would a higher being be interested in the affairs of the human world and gods? Anyway, that is not a thing of concern because my faith will make sure things go my way.'

Since he was sure about this, he decided to call the guard back.

"I'm sure our goddess has planned things out for us to follow, so let's not doubt her. Her glory is all we need."

The Cardinal told his people, and they all agreed. The other Cardinals would start to arrive tomorrow after the first ritual, and until then, Cardinal Joshua had to handle the fort.

But something still bothered him about all this.

Mainly the fact that the shopkeeper had bothered to ask about those kids and their well-being. It almost made the Cardinal feel like the shopkeeper knew something.

'Did that shopkeeper meet Goddess Helia… did she tell him something…?'

The Cardinal dared to ask, only for his mind to hear the bell sound. He pushed his back straight as soon as that happened.

Then, a soft and melodic voice spoke to him.

[Do not fall victim to that duchess and her pawn. That shopkeeper is a fraud. Do not listen to him. He and the duchess are playing tricks to take away our treasures from the prophecy. You need to be careful.]

The voice reminded Cardinal Joshua, and as he straightened, his doubts started to clear away.

It was not the first time he had heard this voice. This voice had been whispering to him ever since he became a Cardinal. And he was not the only one.

The other Cardinals heard the same voices all the time as well. It was a symbol of their goddess's favor and told them what they needed to do.

Now that he had heard his goddess's voice, he had no doubt in his mind about what he needed to do. He needed to make sure the prophecy came to pass at all costs.

[Good. You need to make sure only one remains. Three souls are unnecessary. Offer the other two back to me, and I will let them sleep in my embrace.]

Their goddess commanded, and the Cardinal's only desire was to fulfill his goddess's wishes. That was all he lived for at the moment.

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