The most devout believer is the most desperate human.

Pope Johan of the Holy Church knew this better than anyone.

Friends, lovers, family.

He had seen many people on the brink of losing their precious ones, praying desperately not to take them away.

But more than anything, it was because Johan himself had experienced such loss.

When he was away on a business trip, he received the news that his four-year-old daughter had fallen victim to blind terror.

He prayed more fervently than ever before.

Since the day he declared he would devote his body and soul to God, he had never once faltered in his devotion. But never had he prayed with such desperation.

The fear of losing a being who was the reason for his life. That anxiety only strengthened his faith.

But despite that…

“I’m sorry.”

A miracle did not occur.

The man handed over a charred lump of flesh to Johan, barely recognizable, as he had run there like a madman.

That was supposedly the child’s arm.

The rest had turned into a handful of blood, lost forever after the explosion, the man explained.

He had encountered situations like this many times before.

Late at night, people would come to the church, praying for someone not to be taken away. Most of them ended up facing similar results.

They would gently say it was all part of the divine plan, so not to be too sad.

But in such moments, what was one supposed to do?

Was it enough to comfort oneself?

To think that taking the child was the omniscient light’s judgment, and thus, he had to accept it?

But… if this was truly the light’s plan…

Did that mean He truly wanted this child to end up like this?

Four years old.

She had only been in this world for four years.

So much yet to experience.

So many things yet to give her.

Could this really be God’s plan?

Doubt began to creep in.

His faith, once unshaken even by the blathering of heretic apostates, began to waver.

The seeds of suspicion took root.

But even then… he did not leave the church.

Surely, the Almighty had a grand plan that could not be understood by the eyes of a sinner like him. Certainly, the child would be happy in the embrace of the light.

While thinking along those lines, Johan desperately shook off his worries.

He even believed with more fervor in his God than ever before.

Perhaps if he believed more, if he worked harder for Him, perhaps He would take better care of that child.

Maybe, just like it was written in the doctrine, the child would be miraculously resurrected three years later.

Relying on such faith, he imposed an external image of having fallen into corruption due to his daughter’s death. This allowed him to capture a few heretics attempting to approach him.

Even that was a remarkable achievement. However, that deception also led to more than just capturing heretics.

Even the Emperor of the Empire.

The biggest player among players attempted to make contact with him.

With a proposal to infiltrate the Hero party while concealing their identity.

“It’s not such a complicated story. Who can say for sure between that guy and the ruler who will come out on top? If it seems hopeless…”

Depending on the situation, he would betray the Hero and side with the ruler.

A statement that could never be forgiven: considering to deal with a chosen human by the light while siding with evil beings.

Johan’s decision upon hearing that was already made.

“…What can I do?”

As per their words, he would infiltrate the Hero’s camp.

And if the Emperor tried to betray the Hero, he would stop it and protect him.

With such thoughts, Johan infiltrated the Hero party.

Though those irreverent words from the Emperor bothered him, it was undeniable that he would be of great support to the Hero.

He swore to find a way to prevent a disaster from happening and help the Hero fulfill his responsibilities.

With that vow, Johan set out on his journey.

And just as before, he kept that vow with all his strength.

…Until the day it came.

While exploring the Demon Realm, the Hero’s heart was pierced by the Sword of the Corpse King.

No matter how much holy power there was, healing such severe wounds was impossible. Thus, the Hero’s death was inevitable.

Upon realizing this, despair painted Johan’s face…

But then, the light descended.

The Goddess of Light, whom he had dedicated his life to yet had never even heard the sound of her voice came down to that place.

She personally breathed life into the boy, reviving the Hero, who should have definitively died.

Everyone rushed to the boy.

The companions embraced the Hero, thanking the Goddess of Light for this miracle.

Except for Johan.

In that moment.

The single thought that filled his mind was:

“……Why?”

The boy was alive.

The Goddess of Light had saved him.

While that was undoubtedly a good thing…

Then why had she not saved his daughter?

With the power to save someone, why had she left the child alone?

Did she just watch the little girl scatter into a handful of blood in the aftermath of the explosion?

He prayed desperately.

He prayed more earnestly than ever before.

He had devoted his whole life to serving God.

Without being swayed by personal desires, he had lived placing Him above himself.

He had never once committed any impure act in his life, nor had he broken any teachings from the doctrine.

He had only ever praised Him with all his heart.

He had strived to establish goodness in His name.

Yet still, why…

Why had that child not been saved while that boy was?

That boy could be saved, yet why had his child been left to die?

He had the ability to save her. If the Goddess of Light had ignored that, then…

“Isn’t that the same as murder?”

In that moment, his faith collapsed entirely.

God was not perfect.

He did not love all humans equally.

Everything written in the doctrine was nothing but lies. Therefore, there was no longer a reason to believe in such lies.

That child must still be suffering.

That heartless God wouldn’t have saved his daughter; surely, she was in hell.

There would be no resurrection for her. The resurrection written in the scriptures was nothing more than a fabricated tale.

So then… what was he supposed to do now?

That was painfully obvious.

There was someone responsible for the child’s death.

To let such a being go about their life unbothered; what kind of father could allow that?

He had to take revenge.

How to do that, he had no idea.

Having devoted his entire life to God, how could he know the means to take revenge against Him?

But that didn’t matter much.

“I will make damned sure whoever killed my daughter pays for their sins, no matter the cost.”

He teamed up with demons.

Used people as sacrifices to extract information here and there.

He got to know Charon, who was marked as a dangerous individual and was about to be dealt with, and together, they shared their insights and conducted research.

Researching the structure of God.

The results surpassed expectations.

Faith. It was created by that, and it could be greatly influenced by it.

Using the Hero’s corpse, he realized he could bind the Goddess of Light and manipulate humans connected to God.

With those two pieces of information combined, he could craft a sufficient plan. There was no reason to hesitate in taking action.

He named Charon as his successor and made himself vanish.

Once he took that post, the Holy Church would likely corrupt and decay rapidly. Negative perceptions toward the Holy Church and the Goddess of Light would take root.

Using the identity of Heinrich, he monitored the Saintess, ensuring she never became aware of his existence.

From behind, he controlled everything, ensuring she would distrust everything and believe in nothing.

Ten years passed like that…

Finally, all preparations were complete.

A ritual being built in midair.

Holy power derived from children as ingredients. A massive truth created from everything he had brought when departing the Holy Church.

The sky’s crimson hue—

The ominous black sun rises.

“Well, this alone doesn’t mean anything.”

The gigantic ritual, which could cover the entire sky, had a simple content.

Just an ordinary illusion magic.

All of this was nothing more than an illusion.

But… just because it was an illusion, that didn’t mean it wouldn’t have any effect.

The surroundings grew chaotic. The murmurs now mixed with screams. Everyone was gripped by fear of the foreboding events unraveling before them.

In other words, they all believed it.

That something ominous was about to happen.

And in this moment, information began to circulate.

“…A curse? The Third Princess isn’t actually a princess?”

The origin of all this chaos was the fake princess.

An evil deity’s saint who had infiltrated the Empire’s royal family under a false identity. The rumors he had prepared spread rapidly.

Right now.

Everyone believed it.

That the Goddess of Light was an evil deity.

They thought an evil deity was trying to destroy the world right now.

The author of that Goddess of Light was probably thrashing around, distorted.

It was clear that she was being labeled as an evil deity due to people’s belief.

As evidence of that, the connection of the ritual had just been severed.

No longer was this black sun and crimson sky merely illusions.

The beliefs of all the people, their fears, turned everything into reality.

He could feel the heartbeat.

Something stirred within the black sun—no, that now resembled a black egg.

As Johan watched, a smile crept onto his face.

Now all events were out of his hands.

What would happen next, what results would unfold, even Johan had no idea.

However, one thing was certain…

“For you, who weeps alone in isolation, I will burn the whole world to be your companion.”

The longed-for end was approaching.