Their romance storyline only begins on the second playthrough

Elenora realized at that moment that something was definitely wrong with the girl in front of her.

If these scenes were all created by her, it would mean that the girl truly understands these special advanced skills and has witnessed their release.

To witness a battle of this caliber means that this guy has at least leveled up seven times, no... possibly even stronger.

But if it wasn't fabricated, then—

"Prediction?"

"Yes, I can help you see your future."

"How could such an ability possibly exist in this world..."

“It’s true.” Shirley smiled, her eyes crinkling. “History repeats itself, for all eternity, and the memory will forever fill the soul, indelible.”

"In the foreseeable future, it's written that he and I are fighting, not that we're good friends."

"A fight?" Shirley tilted her head, a hint of confusion in her flawless white pupils, but she quickly raised her lips. "Isn't it normal for friends to spar? Only through mutual competition can we continuously grow."

Shirley's words struck Elenora's mind like a thunderbolt. A flash of understanding crossed her eyes, and she opened her mouth to say:

"I see."

She had an idea.

Before entering the store, she was thinking of finding an opportunity to spar with Rod to improve her skills.

In other words, this so-called precognition is the foresight that she would actually go to spar with Rhodes and become "friends" with him in the future?

No, the prophecy is definitely fake. After all, this girl doesn't seem like a very normal person, does she? I've never heard of such an ability in this world.

And that's not right either. If she really is friends with Rod in the future, then why does she look so resentful in the scene?

"But... I seem to hate him?"

"You can't really take a serious sparring match with a friend. He's basically making you think of him as some hateful enemy."

"That's true."

Elenora nodded.

That's true, how could she and Rhodes possibly have any hatred between them?

No... that's not the point.

The point is, even if this prophecy is false,

But overall, there is still a tiny, albeit slight, possibility.

What if, what if she really went to spar with Rhodes and fought him, and she actually improved and became that powerful person?

Even if she didn't become stronger because of Rhodes, as someone who could fight against her even in the later stages of the story, she must have received a lot of kindness and guidance along the way.

In an instant, she set aside whether the prophecy was true or false.

Because it doesn't matter whether it's true or false anymore.

At this moment, her desire to find Rhodes and challenge him to a duel reached its peak.

Regardless of whether she can actually learn anything from Rhodes, at least the strength he demonstrated at the station was real; in other words, he is definitely someone worth sparring with.

Suddenly, she stood up and said, "Boss, I'm sorry, I'd better not eat here. I have something important to do."

"Huh?" Shirley asked in surprise, "What is it...?"

"I'm going to have a match with Rhodes."

A hint of excitement flashed in Shirley's eyes.

She's here; that's exactly what she's been waiting for.

“I’m Rod’s friend. Since you know where he is, take me there. I’d like to catch up with him.”

"Really? Okay." Elenora responded with an adorable, doll-like expression; she was actually not very good at having long conversations with strangers.

It's not that I hide my emotions, but rather that I feel...very uncomfortable talking to them.

"Then, you'll stay with me for now...?"

Elenora's figure froze for a moment.

wrong.

Wait.

Speaking of which... she didn't know where Rod had gone either.

"Yes, the Tianxing Cathedral, right? After all, it's in that direction."

...

...

Starry Night Cathedral

One of the most prosperous areas in the Linlank Empire, where countless priests, nuns, and even high priests operate.

However, due to the deep of night, there were very few clergy members out and about.

Whenever they saw Rhodes and the others, they would bow respectfully and distinctly, saying, "Greetings, Holy Maiden."

Natalie's title, "Saint," despite having the word "woman" in it, actually has nothing to do with nuns—her title is more like "Acting Pope" under the Pope.

The reason for calling her "Saintess" is simply to emphasize that Natalie is young and has a promising future.

"If you get married, there will be a lot of things to do."

Felicity's voice came from behind Cedric, gesturing with her fingers, "Clothes, time, rings, so many things. But, brother, it seems we didn't even know about this before we came to the capital. That... doesn't seem right?"

Felicity's gaze was fixed on the elder in front of her.

Cedric turned his head. "The main reason is to prevent you from finding out too early and causing trouble. But actually, according to the plan, I will use the Star Orbiter to travel to Phillips tomorrow to inform you about this."

“So this level of consideration is completely unnecessary.” Rhodes interrupted them, feeling slightly helpless. “In any case, let’s deal with the church matter first.”

Upon hearing this, Cedric's eyes sharpened.

After all, they were already completely in the location of the cathedral.

The cathedral's luxurious and noble buildings stand side by side, each pillar intricately carved with inscriptions of "Guardianship" and adorned with towering crosses.

At the same time, the church-like building is also visible to the naked eye, with its colorful, mottled glass still clearly visible in the wind and snow.

"The enemy, their numbers, how many?"

“One is promoted seven times, three are promoted six times, and several are promoted five times.”

"That strong?"

Cedric's pupils contracted.

"What, you didn't expect there to be someone who has been promoted seven times?"

“No, no, it’s only natural.” Cedric calmed down. “Anyway, once someone who has been promoted seven times makes a move, the Pope will definitely know and she will take care of that guy.”

"As for the remaining six promotions, two of them, leave them to me."

“Okay.” Rhodes responded simply, but did not say anything more.

At that moment, a priest approached and bowed respectfully.

She was a woman around forty years old, with brown hair, and dressed in a simple white long dress.

"Your Majesty, you have returned. The journey has been long, and we have already sent people to prepare things for you to rest and shower."

“No, I’m not resting yet. Inform Her Holiness the Pope that we have something to discuss with her.” Natalie once again adopted that long-unseen facade, speaking with composure and poise.

“Your Holiness the Pope…? She, you know, she should be sleeping right now.”

“The situation is urgent. Get her up in my name, and she won’t do anything to you.”

"Yes... then I'll go wake her up now, but she won't do anything to me, though she'll be angry with you..."

"It doesn't matter, it's really important. Have His Holiness the Pope come to the Celestial Star Chapel to see me later, understand?"

"Yes."

Please take one day off.

The weather's been bad these past couple of days, and my thoughts haven't been very clear either. I need to rest, relax, and sort things out.

Chapter 167 I, the Fifth Pope, need money.

It was a little after 8 p.m.

The cathedral has many buildings, and even though they moved quickly, they still couldn't reach the location of the Celestial Bow.

"Why go to the location of the Celestial Bow?" Cedric couldn't understand the purpose of Rhodes and his group's actions.

If the goal is to hunt down those witches, shouldn't we find the Pope before they realize what's happening and launch a surprise attack?

Given that the Celestial Bow is located quite far back, taking a long detour is fundamentally not the right choice.

Rhodes and the others did not directly respond to Cedric's question.

After all, you can't exactly tell Cedric that the witch is actually protecting the Heavenly Star Bow, and that they are the ones who want to take it away, can you?

Thinking of this, Rhodes calmly said:

"It's just that I have something to discuss with the Pope, don't overthink it. But... Maeve, what's our next move?"

Maeve Dolan, Lilith's human form, is the fifth generation of the High Pope and has been promoted to a forbidden powerhouse eight times.

The problem was handed over to Lilith.

From the moment she stepped into the cathedral, the vast majority of the actions were handed over to Lilith.

I came here specifically to help Lilith regain her divine power.

Rhodes was too lazy to explain to Cedric, but Lilith was different; she didn't care if Cedric knew—

From this moment forward, her identity is no longer that of the Star Goddess Lilith, but rather that of the fifth Pope of the Linlank Empire—Maeve Dolan.

"Logically speaking, we cannot attempt to steal the Heavenly Star Bow."