Late that night.
"Ah, why am I still here..."
After returning from the holy residence, Nia Honjo, who had been waiting in her own church for most of the day, was drinking beer in a depressed mood.
At least seven or eight empty wine bottles lay on the table, and she had almost finished the squid strips, fried chicken nuggets, and other side dishes.
But she still hadn't received the hint she was waiting for a prompt from the system indicating that the main task had been completed.
"Become a nun spreading the gospel in the Tokyo area."
Watching the TV repeatedly broadcast the contents of the press conference held by the Holy Emperor that morning, Nia Honjo muttered, "The shelter has been built, the monolith has been constructed, and the erosion rate blocker has been made. Doesn't this count as spreading the gospel?"
She had thought that after the Holy Emperor announced the two major events, her main mission would be completed.
After all, she had done enough to help the Cursed Children.
What's more, the main quest only required her to become a nun who spreads the gospel in the Tokyo area, not the whole world. In other words, as long as the situation in the Tokyo area improved, the main quest should have been completed.
But she had done nothing for most of the day, waiting for the main task to be completed, yet the system prompt screen still hadn't appeared.
It wasn't like she hadn't tried calling out the system and asking it questions directly.
However, the system would only respond in the settlement space. When performing tasks in other worlds, the system wouldn't appear at all except for the occasional release of side quests.
So Nia Honjo could only figure it out on her own.
"Could it be that the system really wants me to establish a religion?" She scratched her head and muttered to herself in distress. "But being the Pope doesn't fit my personality. If I really want to preach, I can only spread the second dimension at most..."
But obviously, that was impossible.
Leaning back on the lazy sofa, she pondered over what was wrong with her actions.
Or did she need to wait until the influence of this press conference spread and fermented, until the day when the Tokyo area truly accepted the Cursed Children?
Or maybe she had misinterpreted the meaning of the main quest, and the system not only required her to help the Cursed Children but also to help everyone in Tokyo, so that everyone could receive the so-called 'gospel'?
"Forget it, I don't want to think about it anymore. I'd better go to bed today."
The alcohol had slowed her thinking.
Her eyelids began to droop, but she didn't intend to fight the sleepiness and closed her eyes obediently.
Just as she was about to fall asleep, the church door was suddenly slammed open.
"Fuck!"
Nibelcole voice came, filled with surprise and excitement: "Guess who's here!"
"Ah? You still have guests this late?"
With difficulty, Nia Honjo opened her eyes a crack. Awakened, she waved her hands and yawned, saying, "Whoever it is, tell them to come back tomorrow. I'm already exhausted after today."
"Believe me, if it weren't for an emergency, I wouldn't want to meet you."
Just then, an old male voice came from behind Nibelcole.
Hearing this voice, Nia Honjo was stunned.
This wasn't Elder Matsuzaki voice. Compared to the old man's gentle tone, this voice was too serious and hoarse.
But she felt that she must have heard such a voice somewhere before.
With drunken eyes, Nia Honjo forced herself to wake up and looked outside the church door.
There stood an old man dressed in traditional clothes, with a long beard.
Though he was old, his eyes were still as sharp as swords, exuding a majesty that ordinary people dared not meet.
"Kikunojou Tendo?!"
The moment she saw the old man, Nia Honjo eyes widened suddenly.
The spiritual energy in her body immediately began to flow, and the dizziness caused by drunkenness disappeared, making her brain clear in an instant.
If she hadn't sensed any hostility from him and there was no dangerous aura lurking around, she would probably have summoned the divine spiritual suit to protect herself at that moment.
She had to be alert.
This was the person who wanted to kill her the most in this world.
Once, they had even sent assassins to wipe her out.
"What are you doing here?"
Though she was on guard, Nia Honjo was still puzzled by his arrival.
Before the press conference, she had already made some guesses about Kikunojou Tendo reaction after learning that the Holy Emperor was preparing to deal with the Tendo family.
Perhaps he would become radical and send more assassins to kill Nia Honjo regardless of the consequences. Perhaps he would choose to evacuate Tokyo and leave this area that no longer welcomed the Tendo family. Or perhaps he would do nothing and accept reality.
The only thing Nia Honjo hadn't expected was that this man would come to her on his own initiative.
And alone, at that.
What was he planning to do?
After learning what had happened to the Tendo family, had he come to beg for her forgiveness and mercy?
As if he had guessed what Nia Honjo was thinking from her gaze, Kikunojou Tendo snorted coldly and said, "Don't dream, Honjo. I'm not here to beg for mercy this time."
"Whatever. If you really did that, I'd be very troubled."
Kikunojou Tendo appearance here made it obvious that he had guessed she was the woman standing behind the Holy Emperor.
In that case, Nia Honjo simply stopped pretending and took over his words without hesitation.
Seeing that she wasn't playing dumb, the frost on Kikunojou Tendo face dissipated a little.
Conversations between smart people always went much more smoothly.
"This is already your second visit in the middle of the night. The first time was when you sent Kagetane Hiruko to assassinate me."
Facing her enemy, Nia Honjo also didn't look at him kindly. She stood up, put her hands on her hips, and said, "You came to see me for something important, right? Otherwise, I'll ask Nibelcole to kick you out right now!"
"Watch your tone."
No one had ever dared to speak to him in this manner. Kikunojou Tendo narrowed his eyes and was about to get angry.
But soon, as if he remembered something, he suppressed his anger.
"This time, I came here to ask for a favor."
Kikunojou Tendo took a deep breath and said reluctantly, "I would like to ask the organization behind you to help save the Tokyo area."
"...Ah?"
Nia Honjo blinked.
There was no organization behind her.
However, it wasn't unexpected that Kikunojou Tendo had such a misunderstanding.
After all, anyone who looked into her past and considered her actions would think she was a member sent by some mysterious organization.
But saving the Tokyo area?
Wasn't that what she was already doing?
"If you're talking about the giant stone tablet, the Holy Emperor made it very clear this morning. You don't have to worry," Nia Honjo said. "The only thing you need to worry about is the future of the Tendo family."
"I'm not talking about the monolith. I'm talking about the Holy Emperor."
Kikunojou Tendo face was gloomy, and his eyes stared straight at Nia Honjo.
"Lord Holy Emperor has disappeared."