Chapter 170 - Book Rabbit

Episode 170

Evangeline stared at him blankly.

For a moment, she wondered if she was dreaming.

It was the aftermath of being trapped in the profound despair Hilia had revealed, leaving her utterly dazed.

Was she dreaming because she wanted so desperately to escape, to flee this dreadful place?

Only after the Archbishop pushed his hand through the iron bars and poured divine power into her body could she comprehend the situation.

This was not a dream.

It was reality!

"Archbishop Bio?"

Realizing Evangeline had finally regained her senses, Bio let out a sigh of relief.

"How are you here?"

"I have my own people planted within the Imperial Palace. Though I've exhausted them all for this matter now."

A spy whose path is exposed loses their value.

"It's alright, Apostle. I will surely save you."

What rose in Evangeline's mind then was not joy or hope.

It was unease.

"That I am the 'original work's' protagonist, and you are merely a supporting character trying to steal that position."

If that were truly the case...

If the Chosen One written in the <Book of Destiny> pointed not to her, but to Hilia...

"What is the matter, Apostle? Are you unwell somewhere?"

Then it meant the Apostle whom the Archbishop absolutely followed was ultimately Hilia.

The protagonist of the <Book of Destiny>.

The master of the fate woven by the five goddesses.

Evangeline bit her lip until it bled.

After that miserable and dreadful realization, one thought dominated her mind.

'I must never, ever let the Archbishop know that fact.'

He was the only person who had rushed here to save her in this state.

If even Archbishop Bio were taken by Hilia, she would truly be left with nothing.

"No, no. It's not that. It's just the shock from Hilia coming earlier and pouring out curses."

The Archbishop narrowed his eyes and looked at Evangeline.

Though Evangeline, both normally and now, was completely unaware, there was a fundamentally cold aspect to the Archbishop's gaze.

It was because Evangeline did not match his ideal image of an Apostle.

It was not once or twice that he had thought someone else might be more suitable.

And each time, the person Archbishop Bio recalled was...

He shook his head, shaking off the thought.

She was, after all, just an ordinary woman, not an Apostle.

A woman who had fallen for a man of beastly bloodline and stood by his side.

It was true that his eyes were drawn to her whenever he saw the dignity and intelligence she displayed.

And he had compared her to Evangeline's shortcomings each time.

Nevertheless, Evangeline was the Apostle chosen by God, the tool that would realize the world he desired.

'It can't be helped. Even an Apostle chosen by God cannot be perfect.'

All the more, she would need his guidance and assistance.

Especially now, as she was driven into a pitifully desperate corner.

Archbishop Bio used the key he had barely obtained by expending all his remaining spies within the Imperial Palace to extract Evangeline from her cell.

Weakened in body and spirit, her heavy body having suffered too much, she could not walk properly.

Bio looked with anxious eyes at Evangeline's belly, which seemed to have grown even larger in just a few days.

"Is the child within your womb alright?"

"It hurts. It's been squirming strangely for days, and my stomach hurts..."

What was now growing inside Evangeline's womb was a homunculus created based on the imperial bloodline and a dragon heart, infused with the Tower Lord's magical power and his own divine power.

If it were born properly in human form, it would become the first being to inherit dragon blood while also possessing divine power.

'As long as that remains, there is a chance.'

No, to be more fundamental, at the deepest core of Archbishop Bio's faith lay the <Book of Destiny>.

A divine artifact of the gods who created humanity.

A piece of evidence that the world must ultimately move according to God's order.

If they could put forth the homunculus and properly wield the <Book of Destiny> through the Apostle Evangeline, they could win.

Archbishop Bio was convinced of this, and while soothing the groaning Evangeline with those words, he used divine magic.

Within the Imperial Palace, the interference from the imperial family members who dominated magical power was severe.

Because of this, only mages or priests of a certain level who had made thorough preparations could escape the imperial family's interference and perform teleportation.

Archbishop Bio was one of those rare talents.

Of course, even he could only do so with the support of a divine artifact.

In any case, Archbishop Bio vanished from within the underground prison, holding Evangeline.

* * *

Evangeline thrashed.

"Ouch! It hurts! It hurts!"

Whining like a child, she grabbed and pulled the Archbishop's hair.

He had teleported with Evangeline to a small temple on the outskirts of the capital.

This alone had consumed a great deal of divine power, and Evangeline's condition was unusual.

He scraped along the floor as he poured divine power into Evangeline.

But there was no significant improvement.

"Now, calm yourself."

"A doctor! Call a doctor!"

"I cannot bring a doctor now."

"What can you do instead?!"

Evangeline was a traitorous criminal who had attempted to replace the imperial bloodline.

Archbishop Bio was another criminal who had helped the convict escape.

They did not have the leisure to leisurely call a doctor and receive treatment now.

Soothing Evangeline, the Archbishop headed toward the basement of the small temple.

Evangeline made a puzzled expression.

"This is the <Book of Destiny>'s..."

"Correct. Because no matter what happens, we must take the <Book of Destiny>."

Evangeline realized.

The Archbishop was now trying to flee with her and the <Book of Destiny>.

"You said that thing always had to be left here, didn't you?"

"It's fine for a maximum of one or two months. Of course, if it is not stored in its original location within this temple, neither deciphering it nor transferring divine power is possible."

Evangeline forcibly suppressed her unease.

'Will it be alright? Can we move with the <Book of Destiny> and the Archbishop without being discovered?'

That she was a fake Apostle.

'I must never be found out. If he learns it's Hilia, not me, this man will discard me like a piece of trash.'

Moreover, there was a fundamentally unsettling aspect.

'It's too hard and painful. How can I flee in my current physical state?'

After the Archbishop retrieved the <Book of Destiny>, he brought two horses laden with luggage, perhaps prepared in advance.

Seeing this, Evangeline asked in a trembling voice.

"You want me to ride this horse and move?"

"Yes. Time is of the essence. We don't know when the empty cell will be discovered."

The Archbishop naturally assumed Evangeline would follow his instructions.

Anyone with common sense and a mind would know they should.

Even if half-dead, the correct course was to first get as far from the Imperial Palace as possible, hide, and then tend to one's body.

But Evangeline threw a tantrum before the benefactor who had risked his life to save her.

"A carriage? I can't go until you bring a carriage!"

"Apostle!"

"In the first place, shouldn't you have checked if I even know how to ride a horse? I can't ride a horse, and with this body, how am I supposed to go?!"

"......"

The Archbishop let out a long sigh.

And he began to placate Evangeline.

"Then ride with me. I will hold you so you don't fall."

Grumbling, Evangeline reluctantly allowed herself to be held in the Archbishop's arms and mounted the horse.

It was precisely at that moment.

*Whizz—!*

A sharp sound cutting through the wind grazed their ears.

*Thud!* A short, black-painted arrow embedded itself in the horse's leg.

*Neigh!* The startled horse reared wildly.

Naturally, the man and woman riding on its back fell and tumbled across the ground.

"Aaah!!"

"Ugh!"

At least Evangeline was not seriously injured, as the Archbishop protected her with his whole body.

But the shock of the fall left them unable to move easily.

The sound of hooves from the other horse, not hit by the arrow, fleeing in panic was clamorous.

Calm footsteps approached them as they crackled with pain and shock, trying to suppress it.

Clutching her belly as a tearing pain assaulted her, Evangeline flailed helplessly in the air.

"Save, save me..."

She didn't know who it was, but this person was the only one who could help her now.

"Please..."

Fortunately, the unknown person seemed to take pity on Evangeline's state.

The hand reaching out to grasp hers was very warm and kind.

And a familiar scent brushed the tip of Evangeline's nose.

"Huh?"

It was a scent she had smelled very closely recently.

Evangeline blankly raised her head.

And she finally saw who had appeared before her and offered a hand.

Pink hair shone softly under the moonlight.

In this moment, Evangeline keenly felt anew how Hilia's overly relaxed smile could be so chilling.

She tried to pull her hand back, but lacked the strength. Hilia held it tightly and did not let go.

Hilia's coral-colored lips parted, and despairing words gathered to crush Evangeline.

"Was this pitiful distance all you could manage in your desperate flight?"

"How, how...?"

Hilia did not answer Evangeline's question.

Because she turned her body upon seeing Aaron Müzen bring over a large, square object after searching the fallen Archbishop.

Simultaneously, she also released Evangeline's hand.

Evangeline had to fall face-first onto the ground in an unsightly manner once more.

No one paid attention to her rolling on the ground like trash.

Hilia unwrapped the silk cloth and confirmed the object within.

"Yes. It is indeed the <Book of Destiny>."

"!"

Only then did Evangeline realize.

'Could it be... she let me go briefly to get her hands on the <Book of Destiny>?!'

It was a belated, and despairing, prediction.