NOVEL ONLINE FREE C100
Chapter 100
The Old Man and the Dwarf
1.
The morning after the company dinner.
Thanks to expelling the drunkenness with divine power, I didn’t have any hangovers.
Still, my grandmother made dried pollack soup, so everyone who participated in the dinner ate well and headed to the temple.
Minsoo and Baek Seolhwa went to Minsoo’s company located in Hapjeong. They said they had something to discuss regarding MyTube content? So I also sent In-wook there as a representative of our order.
One thing to keep in mind is that today is Sunday.
“We ran until dawn…and now you’re making us work on the weekend… seriously a cruel boss…I should report you to the labor department…”
“Stop whining, there’s no hangover. And yesterday, our order did something, and you want to leave the temple empty?”
“Hoo…did I do that?”
“I can hear everything.”
“I’m saying this on purpose, Your Holiness. Don’t you know about work-life balance? Work. Life. Balance. When in Rome, do as the Romans do, when on Earth, follow Earth’s laws.”
I never thought I’d hear such words from an alien in my life.
I’m sure Luna could adapt perfectly to any world within a month.
I’m confident of it.
I lightly ignored Luna’s complaints and continued speaking.
“Today, just give the new members basic training, then put them to work maintaining order within the sanctuary.”
“Does that mean patrol duty?”
“It’s the perfect time to boost their pride, right? Let them have a break for a day, and do it that way.”
“You saw the crowd outside when you came in, right? No matter how I think about it, it doesn’t look like a break…but, since it’s your command, I’ll go prepare quickly.”
“Make sure to bring Oh Junwoo too. He’s going to be working at the Limen order from now on, so we should expose him to the media as Limen order’s Oh Junwoo, not as HIVE guild’s. There are a lot of reporters around, so it’ll be effective.”
This way, he’ll definitely keep working for our order in the future.
S-Class Hunters aren’t just laying around everywhere, and once they’re in my grasp, I’m not letting go.
Noticing my intention, Luna narrowed her eyes and spoke.
“On Earth, they say even Satan would cry after seeing such things, is that how it’s expressed?”
“Satan is the devil. How dare you compare the pope you serve to the devil? Are you insulting the pope in the temple?”
“It’s true that many demons cried in front of the pope. It’s not wrong. Anyway, I’ll take Junwoo with me. That’s it.”
With light footsteps, Luna headed toward the area where the new members were waiting.
She doesn’t lose a word until the end.
The pope’s authority is at rock bottom. At rock bottom.
“Leo, you just finish the Bible compilation work and take a rest.”
“Your Highness, I have something to ask.”
“What is it?”
Could it be that he’s asking for a Wi-Fi upgrade?
I nodded, and Leo said with a polite posture.
“I’d like to be allowed to go out.”
“Where are you going?”
“Do you remember the Hope Orphanage you visited last time, Your Highness? Today, the area around the sanctuary is a bit chaotic, and there’s no urgent schedule, so I’d like to visit it again.”
The orphanage where I personally replaced the headmaster.
From what I heard from Manager Kim, the government temporarily increased the staff there.
For Leo, who loves children, the Hope Orphanage must have been something he was concerned about.
“Don’t ask for permission for things like that, just go.”
“Thank you.”
“Make sure to go by car. You know what I mean, right?”
If you run around like you did in Eden, there’ll be a big accident. Just a few months ago, when I rushed to Seoul, rumors like ‘Bipedal monster has appeared!’ spread online, so if it’s not urgent, it’s best to be mindful of the attention.
“Yes, I will be careful.”
“Good. You got your driver’s license, right? For the vehicle…you can use the one Minsoo lent you.”
For the record, both Leo and Luna are legally Korean now. They didn’t originally have any “nationality” on Earth, so there was no issue.
Today, I planned to spend the whole day at the temple handling internal affairs, so there was no need for the executives to stay around the temple.
I also planned to give Luna a break after patrolling until the afternoon.
After all, it’s the weekend.
“Then, I’ll take care of my duties.”
“Alright. Good work.”
Leo politely bowed and then headed to his studio located in the basement.
Since Leo came to Earth, the Bible translation project that had been ongoing was almost finished. If I had allowed him to invest all his time in Bible translation, it would have been finished much faster, but there were so many places we had to go.
Still, by next month, the translated Bible in Korean will be available to the believers. The most urgent issue was resolved.
“Hoo.”
Just as I sighed lightly, several message windows appeared in front of me.
[You have a large amount of Divine Power. Please consume it through the store.]
[You have not received the completion reward for the main quest
As the order grows, the number of DLC system messages keeps increasing.
That means there are more things to manage as time goes on.
I had already planned to consume the Divine Power, and now seemed like a good time to also strengthen the foundations I had postponed.
I briefly closed the message windows and slowly made my way to my office.
I had already sent my opinion on the friendly match with China to President Seo this morning, so the atmosphere would probably start to lean toward the friendly match happening soon.
When that time comes, it’s clear that I won’t be able to enjoy the relatively peaceful state like now.
After all, those Chinese bastards are a real handful.
Just like in Japan, I couldn’t expect a smooth, peaceful outcome like just grabbing their pawns and getting applauded.
Moreover,
‘The Purifiers are definitely going to move together.’
The Purifiers’ influence will likely extend in some way.
In the worst-case scenario, a war could break out, but that’s only in the worst case.
We can take proactive action first.
“So, let’s just finish the work quickly.”
I already know from experience that managing an order, even with the system in place, is quite a complicated task.
I quietly entered my office.
The first thing I did after sitting at my desk in the office was collect the quest rewards.
[You have completed the main quest
[As a reward, <10,000 Divine Points> and will be given.]
[You can use the
[Current Divine Points: 47,000]
“What’s the use of just having a lot of points?”
While the amount of points I receive has increased exponentially compared to the early days of my return, the prices of items in the DLC shop have also risen.
I didn’t expect the market principles of a system shop to be applied like this.
Of course, some items are still relatively cheap, but there’s an old saying, “You get what you pay for,” and that holds true here. The cheaper the price, the less effective the item.
In situations like this, the best option would be to level up the sanctum without any hesitation, but
[To level up the sanctum, the number of consecrated priests in the order must exceed 30.]
I was caught by a restriction I had never seen before.
It seems that a “build-up” process, similar to strategy simulation games, is needed.
It seems that the system is trying to secure its own causal structure through these kinds of elements.
“I feel like I’m playing a tycoon game.”
In terms of making a new religious order into the world’s best order, it’s somewhat similar to existing tycoon-style games…but still, it’s complicated.
At first, it had a bit of a cute charm, but as time went on, the scale grew and the number of things I needed to pay attention to increased.
Honestly, things like this are best handled by people suited to it.
Even though I am the pope, in Eden, I was practically just a figurehead pope. The actual operations of the order were mostly handled by the archbishops who had management skills.
For example, Archbishop Rapart, who was the Secretary of State at the Holy See.
A grumpy old man who never stopped nagging, but with him around, I felt completely secure…
[Your God delivers a prophecy.]
I was startled.
“Now that I think about it, it seems like it’s about time for Siwoo to have a proper organization. Before the passage becomes unstable, it might be a good idea to send him the people he needs.”
The voice of Limen echoed in my ears. Yesterday, she had even manifested in person, and now she was delivering a prophecy on the second day in a row.
It seemed like she had truly regained her composure.
“Who are you planning to send?”
“The person Siwoo was thinking of just now.”
“So, Limen. To you, it’s a child, but to me, it’s just an old man…No, never mind. So, you’re saying you’re going to send Archbishop Rapart?”
“It seems necessary to me. Siwoo is probably busy tracking enemies right now, and running a growing order alone is impossible. I’m not underestimating Siwoo, but honestly, Siwoo has never taken a management course in Eden, has he? It’s the same on Earth.”
I was speechless at the heavy facts Limen threw at me.
This is tough, living as a high school graduate.
“Of course, Earth is a society that is more developed in many ways compared to Eden. The order’s organization will have to be much more refined and detailed. But that was already something Siwoo was preparing for, right?”
“That’s true.”
I was supposed to be introduced to people through CEO Choi. However, that person was a businessman, and there would always be a gap when it came to religious organizations.
If we could inject the color of the Limen order through Archbishop Rapart, it would make the management of the organization much easier.
“By the way, Rapart has been praying for you.”
“What did he say?”
“He said he hopes you will be happy in your homeland, and if this old man can be of help, he would want to come running anytime. He’s always been a soft-hearted person, hasn’t he?”
Considering that Archbishop Rapart is 68 years old, calling him a “child” doesn’t quite fit. But from Limen’s perspective, it didn’t make much difference, so I decided to let it slide.
After hearing Limen’s suggestion, I scratched my chin for a moment.
It was indeed a good card. If I added Archbishop Rapart and the executives I would be introduced to through CEO Choi, the order would be organized quickly.
I couldn’t keep leading the order with a haphazard approach forever.
Unless I was some kind of superhuman who could do everything myself, it made sense to accept Limen’s offer.
But there was just one point that bothered me.
“I originally wanted to bring one of the dwarves from the Holy See. The artisans on Earth still can’t properly smelt metals like mithril from other worlds. I also want to equip our new members with good gear.”
“Which dwarf?”
“Toby Ironbeard. He used to say he wanted to follow me back to Earth whenever I mentioned it.”
There was only one reason for that.
I once said during a drinking session that “there’s a world beer bar on Earth where you can drink beers from all over the world.”
Since then, Toby had become interested in Earth and asked me to take him along when I returned.
He was also one of the best blacksmiths in the Holy See, so he was someone I really wanted to bring along.
“…Hmm, that might be a bit tight.”
“Is two too much?”
“Rather than saying two is too much…if I had to pick, Ironbeard is the problem. Dwarves aren’t a native race of Earth, so the cost will be significant. I’ll check first.”
[Your divine being is applying for a
After a moment, a message with the results appeared before me.
[The cost to be paid will be set using your
[
[
“What is this price…?”
Considering that the Divine Points I spent to bring Luna here were 5,000 points, Toby’s cost is a whopping 30,000 points, six times that amount.
That was the amount of points I could only get by completing the main quest three times.
“If you really think it’s necessary, I think it would be better to make a quick decision, Siwoo. It wouldn’t be surprising if the dimensional passage closed suddenly.”
“Well, in that case, I guess there’s no choice.”
“Indeed, the price you’re paying is quite steep. If you want, I can find an artisan among humans…”
“I’ll pay the cost, Limen. Bring them both.”
What good is saving Divine Points?
It’s times like this that I have to spend them generously.