Cassie Mom POV
"Please don't bow. I don't like it," he said, raising one arm in a gentle stopping gesture.
I lifted my head at his words, and as our eyes met, something strange happened—my focus slipped. Without realizing it, I found myself staring at his hair, the way it now draped over his shoulder. He was smiling, enigmatic as ever.
He didn't speak right away. Instead, he glanced between Helena and me, then slowly turned his head toward the door that led into the library.
None of us said a word. A few seconds stretched into what felt like an eternity.
Then, with an amused expression—as if he understood exactly what had just happened—he looked back at us.
"So, I presume you trespassed into my library? Hm?" he asked, the inflection in his voice playfully teasing.
He's more lively today… did something good happen? I wondered.
I stole a quick glance at Madame Helene. Her usual stern presence had cracked; she looked unsettled. But she quickly composed herself and stepped forward.
She quickly explained the situation, but it only left me more perplexed. Madame Helena sounded clear-headed, but her body told a different story. I'm not particularly skilled at reading people, but even I can recognize the basic nuances in someone's posture and expression. And in Madame Helena, everything pointed to one thing:
She was afraid.
"But why?—"
Then something she said snapped me out of my haze.
"Please forgive her. She's new here. I'll make sure she becomes properly acquainted with the rules…"
Huh? What? Wait—what was she saying? Alarmed, I forced myself to tune back in. Damn it… I was so focused on Madame Helena that I didn't even notice what she was saying.
After Madame Helena's plea for forgiveness, the Pope's expression shifted—mild surprise flickered across his face, his brows lifting slightly. Then, he turned and looked straight at me.
His eyes narrowed, and a playful smirk crept across his face.
"It hasn't even been that long, and you've already gotten yourself into trouble. You both really are so similar—doing the exact same thing."
What? What did he mean by that?Which both is he talking about?
Before I could piece together the thought, he turned back to Madame Helena and offered her a strangely comforting smile.
"Don't worry about it. I won't hold it against you. Just make sure it doesn't happen again, hm?"
A pause. Then his tone sharpened.
"Have I made myself clear?"
What is going on here?! But before the thought could take form, he dismissed Madame Helena with a casual wave. She didn't wait—clearly eager to leave—offering a quick nod before stepping aside and walking away.
I stood frozen, unsure of what to do.
Without a word, he and Saint Aria began walking past me. I instinctively moved aside to let them through.
Then he stopped, glanced back, and said:
"What are you doing? Follow me."
And in that moment, I understood why Madame Helena had seemed so unsettled.
Even though his words were soft, they landed like a command—and one word echoed through my mind with chilling clarity:
Death.
***
We walked in silence for nearly a minute. Neither of them spoke, and the quiet was starting to eat at me. I didn't know where they were leading me, but I had no choice except to follow and trail behind.
This wasn't like the Pope I met a month ago. He felt… distant. Cold. Almost ruthless.
After several turns through long corridors, I couldn't hold it in anymore.
I cleared my throat. "Sir Keter—"
"Just Keter is fine," he said, still walking. "You don't need to add honorifics. I'm not that old, you know?"
His voice had a bit of his usual energy, lighthearted even. But it felt hollow.
"How old are you then?" I asked.
"Old enough," he replied dryly.
"That doesn't tell me anything…"
Judging by looks alone, he might've been two or three years older than Cassie. But plenty of Awakened looked just slightly older than my daughter, so that didn't mean much. His behavior was a better clue—and right now, something was off.
Even though his tone seemed lively, there was a cold edge underneath it. Detached. He wasn't like this before. Then it hit me—this was the first time I'd seen him outside the Inner Church.
Of course. This was the version he showed the public. A front. I hadn't even considered it. It must be exhausting, keeping up that mask all the time.
Before the silence could settle again, I asked, "Where are we going?"
"Hm?"
He sounded like he hadn't been listening. But before he could answer, Saint Aria cut in.
"We're heading to the garage. His Highness the Pope is departing soon for… work."
"I told you not to use titles," Keter said, glancing over his shoulder. He didn't stop walking.
"My apologies, sir…" Aria replied, her tone polite—but not particularly sorry.
The Pope is leaving? For what? And alone? Questions pressed against the back of my mind, too many to focus on.
"Where exactly are you going?" I asked before I could stop myself.
He didn't answer—because just then, we arrived in front of a large set of doors.
He glanced at me with a smug little smile.
"I'm going to Egypt."
…
Silence.
Saint Aria closed her eyes and rubbed her temples. Like this wasn't the first time she'd heard something ridiculous.
I just stared at him, trying—and failing—to place the name. Egypt…? Was that even a real place? The word rattled around in my mind with no context. Was there ever a place called that?
He noticed my blank expression and raised an eyebrow—then caught himself.
"Ah. Right. You wouldn't know." He scratched the back of his head, sheepish. "It's in North Africa."
Something clicked. Memory resurfaced. And then came the shock.
"What?! Africa?" The words burst out of my mouth before I could shut them down.
The African Quadrant was ridiculously far. Weeks away—assuming you could even get there. And he was talking about just… going?
Before I could ask anything else, Keter pushed open a pair of massive metal doors.
Inside was a long, dimly lit chamber—lined with rows of vehicles. But these weren't the standard PTVs that roamed the streets of NQSC. No, these were… different.
As we stepped inside, I slowed to a stop, staring.
"What are these?" I murmured, still half in disbelief.
Keter turned, chuckling. "Right. You're probably not used to seeing these bad boys."
He walked ahead, hands in his coat pockets. "Let's just say they're antiques. From before the Dark Times."
My eyes widened. "No way…"
I took another sweeping glance. Their shapes. The paint. The solid steel. Real wheels.
"These are pre-Dark Times PTVs? And they're in perfect condition?"
It didn't make sense. Everything from before the collapse was either destroyed, decayed, or buried out in the dead zones. Nobody had working tech from that era—hell, most people didn't even believe it survived.
Then Keter added, almost casually, "They cost me a fortune. But I collected them anyway."
Wait. I blinked. All of these PTV's… belong to him?
My thoughts stalled as he approached a particularly aggressive-looking PTV—sleek, low-bodied, black chrome with crimson accents. He opened the door and slid inside.
"Wait—wait!" I hurried after him. "All of these PTV's are yours?!"
"It's a muscle car," he said, fiddling under the wheel. "And yes."
He inserted a key, gave it a turn—and the engine roared awake like a beast breathing fire.
I flinched at the sound. It wasn't anything like the quiet hum of modern drives. This had soul—violent, raw, and real.
"How did you even get it?" I muttered, barely loud enough to hear over the noise.
But Keter heard me anyway. His grin turned wry.
"How else?" he said.
"I'm rich."
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A/N: I am back again, sorry for not updating, as you know or might not know, life has been rather busy lately, so i haven't been able to update, as much as I wished, I do plan to keep this fic going, so rest assured unless something goes really south i wont stop with this fic.
other then that, you might have noticed a slight change in my writing, yes you got it right, i have been learning to write for the past few weeks, for my upcoming novel, so stay tuned, as for why it took so long, its mainly due to a big overhaul, i had to delete and rewrite the chapter, to make it more clean and more concise, as my previous chapters have been very convoluted, so you can expect that from the next chapter onwards it will be more slower and more easier to follow, I will also be taking quality control more seriously.
as for any questions that might come for this chapter, no everything is just right, i have placed hints in this chapter if you notice it, there is also a hint for future chapters of "The Holy Emperor", so see if you can find it.
Also let me remind you that this is a fanfiction, and I do this out of passion hobby, so do understand that the lack of updates come from lack of motivation, so if you want faster chapters, share your thoughts in the comments and leave a review, I enjoy reading your comments and it helps me get the motivation to write the chapters.
Thank you
From your Spineless Author.