Taming The Villainesses-Chapter 406: Leader (3)

Sssht.

I unrolled the scroll Antiek had given me and studied the illustrations carefully. The images resembled the kinds of patterns one might find in ancient murals from long-lost civilizations. freewebnσvel.cøm

Stars sparkled in the sky like grains of salt.

One of those stars fell and plunged into the sea.

A long-eared figure—likely an elf or fairy—hauled it up with a net, and finally, the star was brought ashore, where it cracked open like an egg, and something inside was born.

That was as far as I could understand the contents of the illustration.

“This... Are you saying this is a god?”

At my question, Antiek nodded.

“We merely call it a god. That’s all. But there’s more. After becoming Archbishop, I obtained many other tablets depicting similar things. What you're holding now is one of the copied versions.”

Sssht.

Antiek rose from his seat and rummaged through a nearby drawer.

Soon, he handed me a stack of scrolls, arms full. As I unrolled them one by one, I began to notice something strange.

“All of the scrolls depict different images. But...”

Each scroll featured illustrations of beasts and humans. Some showed trees, others flowers. And yet, if there was one common thread across them all—

“They all begin with a star falling from the sky.”

“Correct. Stars that fall to earth in cycles of a thousand years. And those stars bring about changes to the world—introducing things that never before existed.”

A star that falls once every thousand years.

My gaze returned to the first scroll Antiek had handed me. He had said Isaiah Gospel had given him the original tablet of that scroll before disappearing.

If that were true, then this must have meant something deeply significant to him. I slowly traced the drawings again: the star that fell into the sea, the child born from it.

A thousand years...

Then, like a bolt of lightning, a realization flashed through my mind.

“This... This is a story about the gods of Light and Salt.”

It was a conclusion pulled straight from my subconscious.

The one-eyed man smiled warmly.

“Correct.”

“Then... are these illustrations claiming that the god of Flame and Light was a star fallen from space?”

“Unfortunately, that’s incorrect. It’s not a metaphor—it’s literal truth. Our god came down from the heavens, bringing with it a new law.”

“A new law...”

“They say it brought the light of magic and salt in the most literal sense. Do you know why the sea is salty? It’s because the fallen star sank into it—”

Antiek’s voice echoed in my ears with a strange resonance. It felt as if time itself had slowed.

God. Laws. Stars. Scrolls. A thousand years. Beasts and history... Words I had never deeply considered before began to lose their grounding in reality.

It felt like I was being drawn in—bewitched.

Was Antiek casting some kind of spell on me? No... That wasn’t it. I was simply being overwhelmed by the content of the scrolls and the sheer scale of this narrative.

His voice rumbled like thunder beside me.

“But new laws inevitably conflict with the old. Therefore, this world is engulfed in a great flame every thousand years.”

I forced my lips to move.

“A war...?”

“Something even greater. Destruction. Annihilation. But out of the blackened ash, the new law will sprout and flourish stronger than ever before.”

His words reminded me of something—the secret cult magician I’d met during the tournament.

He had babbled about a new millennium approaching. I’d dismissed it as the nonsense of a magic-addled lunatic.

But now...

A new history.

A thousand-year cycle of ruin.

The word destruction formed a dark chain in my mind, connecting idea after idea. This world was destined to fall under Solomon’s army of shadow. Perhaps that had always been part of the plan.

Antiek spoke again.

“According to our clergy’s research, the stars are already showing signs of strange behavior. This winter marks the thousandth year. We may soon witness the rise of a new law.”

“This winter? That’s not far off.”

“Indeed. We must prepare. Unlike those fools in Gracia who refuse to accept change and blind themselves with old ideals. That won't save anyone.”

That filled in much of the picture about the Church’s internal schism.

The Saint’s faction in Gracia clings to the old order.

But here in Roman, under Antiek’s leadership, they were preparing to embrace a new order.

Those two ideologies could never coexist.

Antiek's voice burst with passionate fervor.

“The Saint of Gracia mocked all of our research. She cast aside Isaiah Gospel’s efforts like they were garbage!”

“......”

“But I believe in these scrolls. I believe they are truth. That’s why Isaiah entrusted them to me.”

Sssht.

Antiek grabbed both my shoulders. His grip was unyielding—I couldn’t pull away.

“I’ve done everything I could to carry out his will. I rose to the position of Archbishop of Roman! And yet... I couldn’t even convince that self-righteous girl who calls herself a saint.”

“Archbishop Antiek, please... calm yourself.”

“Sir Teo, I beg you—be our leader. Guide us. If anyone can do it, it’s someone with eyes just like Isaiah’s.”

So that was it.

Now I understood why Antiek had asked me to become their guiding light. He literally wanted to pass everything Isaiah had left him to me, Isaiah’s son.

This man—more than anyone I’d met—was Isaiah Gospel’s most fervent disciple. The god he believed in wasn’t Light or Salt.

It was Isaiah Gospel himself.

And to him, I must be the Son of God. A savior.

“Sir Teo, you already possess power and influence. You can do everything I could not.”

“...Before I answer that, I need to ask you something.”

Sssht.

I removed Antiek’s hands from my shoulders and took a breath. If there was ever a time to ❀ Nоvеlігht ❀ (Don’t copy, read here) ask—it was now. About the experiments being conducted on lost children.

“Do you know the names Andromalli or Narnar?”

I’m not Ayra, but I have a good sense for people. I can usually tell when someone is lying. Depending on his response, I’d know.

Antiek answered:

“Who are they?”

“......”

It didn’t seem like he was pretending not to know. He truly looked unaware.

So I briefly explained what I’d witnessed—the experiments happening at the orphanages.

Antiek replied:

“I’ve only held this seat for about five years. Before me, Roman was gripped by a kind of fanaticism. I suspect they were the ones behind it.”

“They...?”

“As I said earlier—I used to be a thief. A killer. Many objected to someone like me becoming Archbishop of such a storied place.”

“I see...”

“Most of them have now been purged or disbanded after losing their center of power. They were the ones who sought to make Teodoros Gospel into the next Holy King—or rather, a vessel.”

“A vessel...?”

“Are you familiar with the Soul-Rebinding Technique, Sir Teo? As a skilled magician, I assume you are. But just in case...”

He was about to launch into a long explanation, but I held up my palm to stop him. Of course I knew. The technique used to instill life into a body.

The same technique used in the Draco household to fuse Mirna and Narmee into one body.

And Isaiah Gospel—he himself was a clone, created by Solomon’s use of soul-rebinding to divide his spirit among vessels. If that originated here...

“They planned to prepare vessels ahead of time—vessels to hold the new law. Andromalli, Narnar... they were likely victims of those experiments.”

“To... hold the new law? Are you saying...”

I trailed off.

Antiek finished my sentence for me.

“They intended to control the new god.”

***

After leaving the reception room, I returned to the guest quarters. There, I found Marmar seated in a chair, while Professor Balan tied a ribbon to her tail.

Sssht.

As soon as she spotted me, Balan stood up.

“Good heavens—what have they done to you? Your face looks completely drained! Did that corrupted Archbishop harm you?!”

“No need to overreact. We just had a very long conversation. I’ll tell you what was said. Have a seat.”

I recounted everything to Marmar and Balan. After hearing it all, Marmar tilted her head in surprise.

“Comrade, from the sound of it... that Antiek guy doesn’t seem like such a bad person?”

“I kind of think the same.”

As I nodded lightly, Balan asked:

“So, Lord Teo... what did you decide? About that... leader position. I, Balan, believe it would be a very beneficial opportunity...”

Ah.

That was an important question too.

“I’ve decided to postpone. Though... it might turn into a rejection.”

Balan made a clearly disappointed face. I understood what she was thinking.

A chance to seize power over the Church. If I turned that down, no one would blame people for calling me a fool.

But for me, our paths didn’t align.

A new law. History. Annihilation... None of it felt real to me.

I just wanted to marry my brides, settle down, and live a peaceful life. Raise children. Build a family.

That’s all.

However—

If what the Archbishop said was true, I might be swept up in that change unprepared.

...I don’t know.

“For now, I’ll return to Monarch City and talk with my wives. Professor Balan, Marmar—you head to Gracia. I have a lot to ask Basago.”

I sent my companions to Gracia using the dimensional gate within the Sanctum of the Holy King. Then, I opened the gate to Monarch City.

Sssht.

My organs floated and sank inside me. When I opened my eyes again, I was face-to-face with someone who had come to greet me—Elga.

“...I’m back.”

“You’re late.”

Elga said it calmly.

Somehow, that was scarier than if she’d yelled. I had a thousand excuses, but none of them mattered—I had broken my promise.

So first, I needed to perform the—

Fairy Secret Technique

“I-I’m sorryyyyyyy...!”

─Nymph-Level Groveling.