Even in this situation, the Pope had a satisfied smile.

“Will you truly cooperate?”

“Yes. I’ll genuinely cooperate.”

“In that case… Axel, take care of it. After everything is over, you can do as you please, so stay in the corner until then.”

It seemed like Axel and the Pope had some kind of superior-subordinate relationship.

Axel grumbled and cursed, but without a word of complaint, he went to the corner and stuck himself there.

I watched that scene with fascination, and then the Pope, who had approached us again, lit more incense on the altar. Suddenly, he knelt in front of the altar, bowing a few times.

‘Acid…’

Unlike the first meeting, I looked at Acid with a helpless expression. However, he was no longer the young boy I had rescued in the past.

While hanging on the altar, Acid maintained a knightly posture even as he observed the flames flowing from the Pope’s hands. His expression remained stoic, despite the dazzling white flames and even the slight vibration in the Pope’s eyes that had briefly turned towards me.

I swallowed my saliva as I listened to Acid’s voice.

So, Acid would…

“Release him.”

…I pleaded with the Pope. However, he ignored me, continuing to scrutinize Acid’s entire body with an expression that seemed almost worshipful.

I muttered to myself quietly, “Acid, don’t hurt.”

Whether he heard me or not…

In this moment, amid the blazing light, Acid remained calm. Only I trembled as I gazed at Acid.

The pure white, yet deep blue flames nibbled at Acid’s feet. But his expression remained unaffected.

And in a very soft voice, he responded to me.

“I’m okay, Lady Sien.”

It was a reassuring gesture.
It felt like tears would soon flow as Acid’s body was engulfed in flames as if to devour him, but I decided to calm down.

It was clear that we were cornered, but objectively, finding reason amidst the chaos might not be such a bad situation.

‘I don’t have the intention of killing Acid. There is still time, and the more they are at ease, the more vulnerabilities will arise. So, stay calm.’

According to Acid, reinforcements would arrive soon.

As we stood still, facing each other, the Pope laughed sarcastically at us.

“It’s going to be okay. Now…”

The Pope smiled happily, as if all his plans were about to come true.

It was the typical appearance of a foolish villain.

‘Typically, they would make a false move in such situations…’

I squinted my eyes and glared at the Pope.

“Shall we move on to the next step?”

While patting Acid’s hair and casting an affectionate gaze, right at that moment, a very subtle vibration echoed in the room.

The Pope seemed not to notice the subtle vibration yet, being absorbed in his attention towards Acid.

Axel Mirmode, who came to torture me, seemed to continue losing strength in this space, and he was still gasping for breath, pressed into the corner.

In the meantime, having subtly gained freedom, I stared at the door as if examining it.

‘Is that vibration a good thing for me, or a bad thing?’

While tightly bound, I continued to gaze at the closed door.

Whether Acid was aware of the vibration near the door or not, he was playing the role of diverting the Pope’s attention so that he wouldn’t notice.

“Pope.”

“Yes.”

The Pope was extremely imposing in front of Acid.

A posture that could be described as tremendous.

In a manner similar to an executioner, he tilted his head sharply and spoke to Acid.

“Noble sword, do you have something to say? Or perhaps, do you feel uncomfortable? How does it feel to be refined into a true sword? I’m genuinely curious. I am.”

Acid, without hesitation but in a somewhat tired tone, stared at the white light that seemed to devour his body.

“I’m just curious. Right now… What are you doing to me?”

Even amid such a situation, the vibration was gradually intensifying.

I watched Acid and the Pope’s conversation, listening to the vibrations with my ears, gazing at the door. Light was gradually seeping through the crack in the door.

Even in the midst of this, the Pope, being absorbed in Acid, seemed oblivious to any signs.

While observing the crack in the door where a gap was forming, I became certain.

‘Delphia unni has arrived! Acid mentioned earlier that she was coming.’

Since I left a note, I thought Delphia unni should be able to come to this place.

Although I wasn’t sure if she had managed to successfully escape from our father’s clutches, I decided to show a confident posture, hiding my pounding heart.

Indeed, my arms were firmly tied, so my T-shirt didn’t reveal anything, but as the lady owner of Delphia, I wanted to present an impressive image.

So, slowly, the door opened.

It was around the time the Pope and Acid were confronting each other and exchanging words. The black shadow instantly split the door and quickly appeared through the gap.

I stared at that scene, swallowing my saliva.

‘I need to act confidently in front of Delphia unni.’

Thinking about how Delphia unni had unexpectedly fast and capable abilities, I thought of asking her to stroke my pink hair later.

However, at that moment, an unexpected voice rang in my ears.

“Who dares to kidnap my daughter?”

…Huh?