In an instant, the aura surrounding Lu Li shifted once more.
In the girl's eyes, he suddenly seemed to glow, becoming divine and inviolable.
Amore stared at that holy figure with dazed eyes. She had no idea what Lu Li was going to do; all she knew was that His Holiness in this state was so divine, so captivating, and so alluring that she... really wanted to take a bite.
Lightly biting her lower lip, she exerted all her strength to tilt her head up, just to get a little closer—a tiny bit closer—to him.
“Amore, I am the Pontiff of the Holy State, the Pope of the Holy Court, and the shepherd of all living beings. You hold my name holy, which makes you a believer of the Lord. Therefore, your guilt is also my fault.”
“Here, in the Holy City of Vipris, during this trial, and before the eyes of all, I hand down judgment in the name of the Holy Father, purifying your sin and bestowing upon you a new life!”
As Lu Li's voice fell, a massive uproar erupted in the Tribunal. Everyone looked at the youth in the immaculate white robe in sheer disbelief.
“His Holiness... took on that sinner's guilt?”
“What a lucky girl to encounter such a merciful Pope.”
“...”
Hurried footsteps echoed outside as Anthelia rushed in, accompanied by Professor Mekal.
On his way here, Lu Li had instructed Anthelia to fetch Professor Mekal to the Tribunal. His original plan had been to stall for time until Professor Mekal arrived, then have her explain the entire sequence of events behind Amore's loss of control.
Ultimately, circumstances had forced him to resort to a backup plan.
Fortunately, her arrival now was not too late.
Lu Li shot a glance at the approaching Anthelia, signaling for her to come over and support him. However, Amore, who had just been acquitted, was even faster than Anthelia.
The moment the knights untied her, the girl couldn't wait to fling herself at Lu Li.
Almost the second she touched him, Lu Li could no longer support his teetering body and collapsed headfirst into her arms.
“So fragrant, so soft.”
The exact same thought popped into both of their minds at once.
“Your Holiness... are you alright?”
Amore swallowed nervously and slowly lowered her head. Seeing the youth in her arms with wet hair clinging to his cheek and a face so pale it lacked a single drop of color, her heart instantly tightened with anxiety.
Lu Li gently clutched the front of her clothes. The agonizing pain tearing through his body made it almost impossible to stand, forcing him to rely entirely on the girl in front of him to barely hold himself up.
“Help me up,” he whispered.
At the same time, Anthelia rushed over. Seeing Lu Li trying so hard to endure the pain, panic surged through her heart as well.
Yet, just as she reached out to pull the youth out of Amore's arms, Amore shifted Lu Li to dodge her hand.
The silver-haired girl cast her a provocative glance, then supported Lu Li as she led him toward the magistrate's bench.
“You...” Anthelia parted her lips, anger flaring in her chest, but given the formal setting, she forced herself to hold back.
She followed close on their heels, glaring at Amore's back with eyes that practically spouted fire.
Because everything had happened in a flash, the rest of the audience only saw Lu Li's body sway slightly before Amore stepped forward to support him.
Everyone assumed this was merely a simple display of devotion from a believer toward the Holy See.
Only the Presiding Judge, sitting in the spectator gallery, knitted her brows slightly with a thoughtful look.
Logically speaking, under normal circumstances, a Pontiff had no authority to bear suffering and guilt on behalf of believers, but the young Pope of today was clearly different from past Pontiffs.
Just as he had said, he was Amore's Holy Father. Here, "Holy Father" might carry two layers of meaning: First, he might not be the actual Holy Father, but to Amore, he was no different from one. Second, he was born divine, and upon consecration, he had acquired a portion of the Holy Father's divine authority.
If that was truly the case...
The Presiding Judge's expression changed slightly before giving way to overwhelming gratitude—gratitude that she lived in an era that gave birth to a destined-for-greatness existence, and gratitude that she was born in the same era as such a great being.
Lu Li sat back down at the magistrate's bench. Enduring the excruciating pain, he turned his head to look at Professor Mekal standing in the center of the Tribunal.
“Professor, if you please, could you explain to everyone the reason behind Amore's loss of control?”
As he spoke, he suddenly felt the softness pressed against his arm tighten. Turning his head, he saw that Amore was still clinging tightly to his arm, refusing to let go.
Even though he was seated, forcing her to remain semi-crouched beside him, she did not loosen her grip in the slightest.
On the other side, Anthelia was still glaring at her with eyes full of rage.
Hearing his request, Professor Mekal immediately complied. Turning toward the gallery, she began describing everything Amore had experienced on the Northland border front.
Her account matched Amore's actual experience down to the last detail, yet was even more comprehensive.
However, her speaking speed was fast, only slowing down when she reached the part where Amore confronted the Resurrection Armor—which was precisely the key moment of Amore's rampage.
“I won't elaborate too much on the angel portion, as I'm sure everyone is well aware of it.”
“What I want to discuss is why the Holy Relic caused Amore to lose control during its True Name Release.”
Mekal paused briefly at this point before continuing:
“As we all know, how much water a wooden bucket can hold depends on the length of its shortest plank. A knight is like the bucket, while the mental pollution caused by Holy Relic armaments is like the water inside it.”
“The process of using a Holy Relic is like continuously pouring water into the bucket. Once the bucket is filled to the brim, the owner of the Holy Relic gains the possibility of resurrection.”
As she spoke, her gaze swept across the spectator gallery, and she flashed a bright smile before asking:
“So, what if a hole were broken into this bucket? What do you think would happen?”
Many people present recognized Mekal as one of the most renowned professors in the realm of the extraordinary, so they listened attentively, taking her words like a serious lecture.
Hearing her question, several people hesitantly chimed in to answer:
“The water would leak out?”
“Exactly!”
Mekal snapped her fingers, looking at the silver-haired girl half-crouching beside the young Pope as if gazing at a rare, priceless treasure:
“The water leaks out. When water leaks, at most it wets the ground. But when mental pollution leaks, the knight themselves bears the brunt of it.”
“The knight falls under the influence of mental pollution, gradually transforming toward the Holy Relic's resurrection. Under those circumstances, losing control and going wild is entirely logical.”
“And at the time, Amore was pierced through the chest by the Sword of Victory. That was far worse than just a bucket developing a hole! So, her losing control cannot be blamed entirely on her.”
As Mekal's words landed, soft whispers echoed through the Tribunal once more. It seemed they had misjudged the girl.
“Even so, it remains a fact that dozens of knights died as a result,” someone suddenly spoke up.
Seeing someone finally bring this up, Lu Li immediately channeled his inner Oscar-winning actor. His expression dimmed, and he said with deep self-reproach:
“This should be blamed on me. If not for me, Amore wouldn't have pushed herself to the limit to become one of the Twelve Sacred Knights.”
“Had that not been the case, she might not have needed to go to the battlefield to slay enemies, but could instead be sitting in a bright classroom alongside all of your children, listening to lectures and studying.”
His face was as pale as paper at this moment. Coupled with the acting skills he had painstakingly honed in his previous life, he truly looked like a delicate, fragile white lotus, filling everyone with heartache as they looked at him.
Rate on N.U.
