"You are an evil, vile man, who has done things that, were we in my world, I would be appalled by to the point of running to the police without a second thought," I said at last, and he nodded, that bloody smile never leaving his lips now, as he obviously heard the 'but' coming.
"However, you are also the kind of vile and evil that can be led around by the nose. You desire comfort, power, and position, those are things that joining your star to mine can get you in abundance," I said, and his smile actually became wider.
"Honestly, the first and third are more what I choose to gain. If you desire the middle one for yourself, I would not object to becoming your subordinate, in much the same way the rabbit Demi-Human has at Sanctuary," he said with an almost chipper tone.
"Ben isn't…," I began, trailing off as in a sense, he was. He gave the Guild stamp of approval to whatever I wanted. They owed me so much in cash for bounties and stuff that it wasn't like they could refuse without taking a massive reputation hit. Still, it was a bit of a head tilting moment to have him just come out and admit that, though no more than all the other things he'd admitted to today.
"Very well then, we should talk terms, before this goes any further," I said, and he smiled, probably because, in all truth, he had won. I was offering him the backing of the Hero of the Bow, legitimacy that put him above the Royals, technically, given the Shield had no love for them, the Sword had no love for anyone, and the Spear had screwed up so many times the people had no faith in him, so him being wrapped around Myne's finger meant little in the way of political clout.
"First off, no more killing, without running it by myself or my allies first," I said simply, and that, it seems, caught him off guard.
"I must admit, I had expected you to say no killing at all, given your…reaction to the death of the queen," he responded, and I was caught off guard myself, given I was curious how he knew what my reaction was with that event. I chose to ignore it, however, and waved my hand.
"Her death was necessary, much as it was regretful, but that's why you will not unilaterally decide such anymore. It might indeed be needed, but that is something we need to know, just in case it disrupts other plans for the future," I said, and that, at least, seemed to bring understanding to his face, as he nodded and went back to that warm, fatherly smile.
"Next, release the Duke's daughter, this Eclair. Having her imprisoned made sense when you did it, now it is unnecessary, however," I opined, and to this, he nodded again.
"I will admit, I'm not looking forward to the explanation I will have to give for such, but if it is your command, it will be done," he said, giving the concession, as was needed.
"Good. After that…we need to discuss this with Ben, but I will allow you to restore the cathedral built into the walls of the gorge to its former glory, and give your people a place in the city," I said, and that got a rise out of him, a shock on his face that I would give him something like out of the blue.
"Of course, this cathedral will need a few…updates, I think is the right word, to the scripture," I added, and this placated him, getting back to the way such things were done in his eyes.
"I believe we can offer the Bow Hero a more prominent place in our Gospel, if that is what you are asking?" he said, curious to what I was going to ask for specifically, but I shook my head.
"I find myself wanting to give credit where it is due, and for the first two Waves, much as it shames me, I was not the active Hero I should have been. It was Naofumi who took the role of Guardian, and I think we need to make sure people know it," I told him, and that gave him pause for a moment, as he seemed to consider it.
"It is…a massive departure from what we have taught before. It might even make the people think we are trying to rejoin the Four Heroes Faith that is prevalent in so many of our neighbors, taking the knee to them, as it were, not a situation I would relish," he said, the tone making it clear he would never allow his own position to become something lesser, to the other churches in other realms, but I smiled at him, trying to mime that dark, cold one he had sometimes.
"And why, praytell, would you be going to them? Is it not your church who has seen the Heroes in action this generation? Is it not you, yourself, who offered your hand to the Hero of the Shield, reaching out in friendship to him, and even those of the other races, encouraging friendship and alliance against our true foe?" I said, and that actually caused a glint in his eye to go off. He'd probably considered it himself, but hadn't wanted to voice it, as it would put anyone supporting him in conflict with other churches, as they would probably not accept a subservient position to him either.
"This nation has seen Naofumi, Hero of the Shield, turn its Sloth from a Vice, into the Virtue of the Savior, coming back behind us, and making sure good works stay done, rather than falling when the Three Heroes have to move on, as there are always more monsters to face," I offer, and he rubs his chin as if in thought, but I could see that glint in his eye, thinking about how he could probably claim 'credit' for such a thing, given he'd reached his hand out to the Shield Hero, even if only slightly.
"I believe, with some effort, I might be able to have the cardinals pass such a change down the line. It will take time, but, if you believe such changes worth our time, I will see to it with all my skill," he said at last, and I nodded, bracing myself, as the final point I needed him to pass was probably the hardest to get him to agree to, but rubbing my formally pained side, I knew it to be the course I wanted.
"Then I have one last request to make of the church, one that should bring in not only more funding, but also more prestige to it," I began, and he looked to where I was touching myself, I could see he knew what I was about to propose, and he voiced it first.
"You want us to offer our services to the Guild in a more…proactive manner?" he said, and I have to admit, him stating it bluntly did catch me off guard, but I nodded.
"I had a Paladin, a class that has an affinity for healing magic, and a potion that was made by an, if not master craftsman, then an expert one, and it left me in no fit state to fight. You healed me without any significant drop in your MP, and I doubt that spell was one only a Pope could do," I countered, and he stroked his chin, nodding.
"Indeed, that is a spell that our most junior members learn to take the cloth at first. Still, that is also WHY we don't send them on dangerous missions, like what the Guild regularly must undertake. Risking even a fraction of our up and coming is simply too great a gamble," he said, simply, and effectively cutting to the heart of it.
"It is a gamble, but right now is not a normal time. The Waves are happening, and if the people had priests and holy church members watching over them, what almost happened in Lafen and Lute villages would not happen again," I said, and that, obviously, got little reaction from a man who could care less about the average citizen, but then, that's why I led with it.
"More importantly, if the church were to, say, start giving each Guild an on-call priest at all times, and send one with teams on important missions, I'm sure we could convince them to start including a 'tithing' or the like from the mission cost. Say, about twenty-percent of the cost of the job, with a regular one for having one with a high skill stationed in the Guild Hall at all times?" I offered, and that got his attention, as I figured it would, which set him up for the final one.
"Even better, the sect that does such, as I know for a fact the Guild in no other country has such an agreement, might be seen as more involved in aiding the people, a beacon to be followed, and if they're following behind you, then a man of your…talents, can surely use that to finagle a higher position in any joint church that comes from the Waves. Maybe not the top dog, but at least high enough to have a luxurious lifestyle for the rest of your natural life," I advised, and that, with the hook baited properly beforehand, did give his holiness the most wicked grin on his face.
"It will, of course, require more than simple words here, no matter who they come from, but I must admit…shoving this in that dragon's face in Siltvelt would indeed let me die smiling," he said, almost hissing with laughter, before he moved his hand in a peculiar way, and I felt air moving around us. Suddenly, sounds outside the room could be heard, the clink of metal boots on floors and such.
"This has been a most enlightening discussion, Lord Bowman, and I shall ready an entourage to journey to Sanctuary in the coming days. It may take some time, of course. While I prepare, I will search the archives for a certain item of some potency. When we have found it, I will send word to you, as I believe you might find it helpful in your quest," he said, smiling at me as he rose from the seat. I did the same.
We said a few more pleasantries to each other, but when it was done, we exited the room, the woman to whom it belonged quickly straightening out her robes as she bowed to us, and I inclined my head in turn. I apologized from the inconvenience our little discussion had caused, given it was already past the afternoon, and into the waning sun of evening, with the sky outside drifting past blue into a light orange.
I briefly tried to track down Princess Melty, wanting to discuss her findings on the character of the Shield Hero, and probe her about how accurate the Pope's words on her mother were, but sadly she and a small group of guards had already departed, to follow after Naofumi as it happened. That likely meant she and he would be returning to the capital some time in the future, so I decided to let it lay for the moment, I'd talk with them later.
Honestly, I still wasn't happy with her putting me on the spot like that. It wasn't nice to do at the best of times, and to directly attempt to get me on her side by force? I mean, I certainly wasn't on Malty's side. Her interference in the PvP match was pushing it, but her attitude every time I'd seen her was of a nasty mean girl. Still, you didn't become the good guy simply by virtue of pitting yourself against the bad.
I was thinking that as I got back to the Inn, finding the three parties had drunk through most of the alcohol in the place, and were currently engaged in a variety of games, including something with cards, what looked like something with a knife stabbing into a table between the fingers, and some darts…also done with knives, but it at least looked safer than the alternative, as they took turns hurling them at a board someone had carved and hung on the wall.
I smiled, and found Ren and Motoyasu sitting at a table, neither looking happy exactly, but certainly looking to be in a better mood than when we'd entered this place earlier. The former saw me first, and motioned with his hand, pulling his seat over, so the three of us were soon settled into a discussion on what we planned on doing next, given the local wildlife, read monsters, had been pretty well hunted.
We crossed off certain areas from our lists, and knowing Naofumi had headed out of the gates of the city and taken the road southeast, thanks to a Guild contact, we quickly listed off where we were going next. Ren, wanting a challenge, would head into the mountain area, to brave the peaks and such there. Apparently he'd also heard tell of some sacred shrine there where he could get a bonus or two for himself.
Motoyasu, as it turned out, would be heading back to where he'd been before the Wave, a small city almost straight south of here, along the coastline. He giggled like a teenager about the ladies in swimsuits he'd seen down there, wishing he had his swimming trunks with him, though that made me ask if we even needed such niceties here, and I was informed by an eavesdropping Souka that YES we did need them, and they were available for purchase at a shop here in the castletown.
For my own group, we would head west. Sanctuary was almost straight north, at the juncture of the roads, and I would visit it at nights, but I wanted to travel west, as the country in that direction was relatively unknown to me, or most of my party not named Ray, and that meant plenty of things to learn there. And also hopefully plenty of monsters to slay for both monster parts and EXP, as Melromarc tended to keep their forces away from the border they shared with Faubery.
Plans laid out, the sun setting outside, we made for our beds, with me deciding to stay here tonight, rather than head to Sanctuary to celebrate. It was a thing of fate that I did, considering in the middle of the night, with the sound of metal boots on stone outside, a cadre of knights approached the Inn, with news. News that Naofumi had kidnapped Princess Melty, and our presence was requested at the castle at once.