I was finally freed from my torment just as the sun dipped below the horizon and the moon rose, casting darkness all around.

Honestly, if I had kept watching, I felt like my patience would’ve hit rock bottom, so I had planned to sneak away midway, but Stella and Selene clung to me, pleading, “Please don’t leave! Stay with us!”

Ploretta and Luna, who had been hugging and crying for quite a while, seemed to come to their senses only after the surroundings had completely darkened. They wiped their tear-streaked faces and approached me with slightly flushed cheeks.

“…Thank you for waiting for us, distinguished guest.”

“I’m sorry. I was just so happy…”

Despite sitting on the dirt floor for so long, my attire remained pristine. There was no trace of dirt or disarray. My calves and thighs were also impeccable.

It wouldn’t have felt out of place to say I had just arrived from somewhere. By this point, I was very curious about what material those clothes were made of.

At first glance, the outfit seemed like it would reveal a nipple or an intimate area with just a little movement, yet in reality, that had never happened, even when rolling around on the ground a moment ago.

“Um… I have something to tell you, distinguished guest.”

Luna stepped forward. She fumbled for a moment, then clutched her hands in front of her lower abdomen, bowing her head very respectfully.

“Thank you for saving me… for ensuring I wouldn’t die leaving my sister behind… Thank you truly, truly.”

“I must also thank you, distinguished guest, for saving my sister and… for allowing me to live without her.”

Ploretta smiled, following Luna’s lead. The center of gravity of her chest swayed heavily as the scene unfolded, and I couldn’t help but notice her nearly-bare cleavage.

‘Thank you for saving me, huh…’

In the game, the Pope of the Moon and the Pope of the Sun were siblings, but their relationship was pretty distant. So, there wasn’t much sadness over one’s death for the other.

Moreover, unlike Ploretta, neither of them had desperately sought a way to twist divine revelations. They merely accepted the idea that they had to die because God had decreed it.

Since they didn’t take death too heavily, it was no wonder that they wouldn’t react violently when the protagonist saved them, unlike Ploretta and Luna.

Still, they greeted me nicely, and since the fall of the Holy Kingdom left a bitter aftertaste, I had fought bosses diligently each cycle… But this was the first time I was sincerely thanked by the Popes.

‘Well, this isn’t so bad.’

After a moment, Luna lifted her head again and gave me a beaming, silly smile. Despite having an appearance that seemed like it wouldn’t bleed even if pricked by a needle, it was quite unexpected.

“Is it strange to see my sister smiling like that, distinguished guest?”

As if she read my inner thoughts, Ploretta slyly asked. Luna’s cheeks flushed a bit. I simply nodded in silence. Ploretta looked like she understood everything.

“Though it might not match her appearance, Sister Seraphica was much kinder than I. However, she closed her heart tightly, thinking she had to sacrifice herself.”

“…Huh.”

“The cold demeanor you saw stemmed from the hope that if she despised herself, we would suffer a little less. I understood that intention completely, so I quietly accepted it. What do you think, distinguished guest? Isn’t she adorable?”

“I’m embarrassed, Evangelina….”

The Pope of the Moon cupped her face with both hands, bringing her hair to cover it. Her once red-hot cheeks were now hidden behind silvery locks. It was a stark contrast to her former, all-business demeanor.

As Ploretta giggled at her sister, she gently took my hand, pulling it toward her chest. Before I knew it, my hand was nestled between two magnificent peaks.

“Distinguished guest, it’s a rather shameless request, but may I ask one thing?”

Suddenly, Ploretta buried my hand between her breasts. Caught off guard, I struggled to refocus my senses elsewhere.

“Such a lovely sound… but how unfortunate.”

“Unfortunate? How so?”

“You’re calling me by my last name. You could’ve called me Evangelina.”

“Oh, so Evangelina is your last name?”

A bit confused, I pondered. The naming conventions in Brightest Darkness 4 would follow a Western-style format where the first name comes first, then the last name. After all, the game’s setting is medieval Western.

Yet, the Sun Pope had introduced herself as Floretta Evangelina. So according to her statement, Floretta must be the last name, and Evangelina the first name.

“You’ve hit the nail on the head, distinguished guest.”

With that, finally, my hand was freed. I could still feel the warmth lingering from being between her breasts.

“We sisters shed our human names when we ascended to the Pope’s position. We inherited the names Floretta and Luna from the previous Popes. Each signifies the Sun and Moon in the ancient language of our Holy Kingdom.”

After letting go of my hand, Ploretta reached out to Luna, carefully brushing aside her hair covering her face and gently removing her hands from her chin.

Luna trembled slightly but let Ploretta be. Her shyly swollen face reappeared, looking utterly embarrassed, still unsure of how to handle herself.

“Before being humans, we were the Pope of the Sun and the Pope of the Moon. So, it’s only natural for us to have Floretta and Luna as our last names.”

With a smiling Ploretta, she continued to remove stray hairs from Luna’s cheeks.

“However, you wished to see us as Evangelina and Seraphica, not as the Popes of the Sun and Moon, so we dared to make this request. Do you have any more questions, distinguished guest?”

“I understand perfectly. Floretta.”

“…You still aren’t calling me Evangelina, are you?”

Ploretta pouted adorably. Perhaps it was because she had just shown a vulnerable side while sobbing in her sister’s arms, but the imposing figure she had when we first met was nowhere to be found.

But the moment of pouting was brief; she once again wore a gentle smile and bowed to me.

“Well, I can’t help it. I’ll wait for the day when you fully open your heart to us sisters.”

With their bow, Ploretta turned to leave. Luna followed suit, bowing, and turning away.

It was a relief that their backs were obscured by their flowing hair. Other than their see-through outfits, they appeared completely bare.

As the two swiftly distanced themselves, it seemed they had used a Sacred Spell.

Once the Popes finished their farewells, Stella and Selene approached from a distance. They stood side by side in front of me and bowed respectfully, just as the Popes had done.

“We’d like to take this opportunity to thank you once again. Thank you for protecting the Popes and for saving the Holy Kingdom. We express our gratitude in the name of the Inquisitor.”

“Y-yes, I also thank you, distinguished guest. Thank you for protecting the Popes and for saving the Holy Kingdom in the name of the Inquisitor.”

After finishing her bow, Selene hesitated for a moment before adding,

“…And I apologize for what happened in the Moon Cathedral. I’m sorry, distinguished guest.”

“The Moon Cathedral?”

“When you mentioned the monster in the underground of the Holy Kingdom to me… that is.”

‘Oh, that’s what you were talking about.’

I had been puzzled why she’d seemed so hesitant around me.

“Why would the Inquisitor apologize for that? It was clearly me who was being unreasonable. Really, I should thank you for believing such nonsense.”

From Selene’s perspective, that was undoubtedly the right thing to say.

Who wouldn’t be perplexed by someone claiming they’d handle a monster that even the Popes couldn’t deal with, demanding they simply believe in their abilities without any evidence?

Moreover, since I had ultimately followed through, there was no reason for Selene to apologize. I waved it off.

“And please, let us be called by our names now.”

“Excuse me?”

“We don’t have last names, so you can just call us Stella and Selene. No need for honorifics. The Popes told you to address them comfortably, so it’d be odd to elevate our titles.”

“That’s… true.”

Indeed, it would be odd to elevate them while addressing the Popes casually.

“Distinguished guest, how long do you plan to stay in the Holy Kingdom?”

“Well, that’s not really something I can decide alone.”

I gave a vague answer to Selene’s question.

The situation had so awkwardly turned where Iris and Claudia seemed to be following my lead, yet it felt strange to respond without discussing it with the Knight Commanders.

If I concluded all on my own without asking, that would be insubordination. Even if they might let it slide, I didn’t want to act too highhanded.

“Understood, distinguished guest. Please feel free to stay in the Holy Kingdom as long as you’d like. I promise the best hospitality.”

With those words, Selene’s purple eyes shimmered slightly. Stella shared a similar look, and suddenly, an uneasiness washed over me.

What were they planning this time?