Chapter 123: The Holy City

The Sacred High Society of Zesuism is an organization created by the founder Zesu.

It is said that it played a strong role as a ruler from its inception, as its purpose was to spread the teachings of the Zeth cult among the people and to protect the land from mature demonic beasts.

The fact that it was a state entity, with its own territory and army, remains unchanged today, several hundred years later.

The political and economic center of St. Navempos, the once flourishing holy city of Maguausse, was raining lightly that day.

Hah……”

A priest sighed in the anteroom of the Korpa Cathedral.

The rain clouds spreading outside the window were dimly lit, as if to represent his heart.

Lante Priest. You are sighing again.”

The man called Lante replied, not bothering to hide his irritation at the priest who had warned him.

'It can't be helped. The mere thought of attending the meeting of the saints makes my hands tremble, so just shut up and let the sigh pass.

Isn't it something to be proud of as a priest, to be able to attend the Meeting of the Saints? It is something to be envied.”

In response to the priest's lighthearted comment, Lante fingered his own ceremonial dress and moved it between his fingers.

It was a vestment of lowly priestly rank, with little ornamentation.

You can take over for me if you want. Wouldn't it be nice to sit at a round table with all the high priestly dignitaries?”

I'd rather not. I'm more than nervous enough just to be in this waiting room.

Lante then fell silent with a muffled expression on his facehis.

The other priests in the waiting room also understood Lante's feelings for him painfully, so they decided not to say anything else.

Lante looks out the window while tapping the desk with his fingers and exhaling a sigh as he waits for the call.

Just as the light rain was turning into a downpour, there was a knock at the door of the waiting room.

Thank you for your patience,” Lante said. Priest Lante, Miss Renessa is waiting for you.

Lante opened the door to find his colleague standing there.

As he was led out of the corridor, he found an elderly woman waiting for him, dressed in a much more luxurious priest's robe than the lowly priest.

Lante, I've kept you waiting, haven't I?

Yes.

Lante's voice is as if she is trying to shake off her nervousness and uneasiness of him.

Renessa saw this and smiled benevolently.

You don't have to be so nervous,” She said. I have chosen you as my assistant because I judged that you were necessary.”

The Congregation of Saints, consisting of the Pope and 19 supreme priests, is the pinnacle of St. Navempos' power.

The supreme priest was allowed to have one priest as his assistant, but a high priest was customarily chosen.

The term “High priest” Does not refer to a specific office, but rather to the priests who belonged to the Lord's ancestors.

But I am a lowly priest …….”

'You cannot move forward if you are concerned about such practices. You are well aware of that, aren't you, Priest Lante?'

Lante, who is involved in the management of the territory as Renessa's subordinate and is promoting reforms to reorganize and break through vested interests, understands that silly customs are the disease that is eating away at St. Navempos.

However, in the corner of his mind, he thought that the custom of limiting attendance at the saints' meetings to high-ranking priests was one of the customs that should be protected.

The high priests are the keystone and the force that protects St. Navempos from the threat of the Levios Kingdom, not to mention mature demonic beasts.

It seemed an act of disrespect to all the high priests for a mere lowly priest to attend a meeting of the saints, which was directly related to the management of St. Navempos.

It is impossible to predict what the Pope or other high priests would think or do, just because one of the highest priests, Renessa, allowed it.

Worst case scenario is that the matter would be spearheaded and Renessa would be forced out of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.

'Have you heard about today's agenda at …… Priest Lante?'

'No, nothing yet. Does Monsignor Renessa know?'

Renesa steps closer to Lante, her brow furrowed as she listens to her surroundings her.

Lante, judging from her appearance that the content of the conversation was not good, moved her head up to Renesa's level and waited for her to speak.

It looks like we are about to go to war with the Kingdom of Levios.”

Before Lante could react, Renesa gestured with her finger, “Quiet.

Fortunately, Lante was not in the temperament to raise his voice carelessly.No one would have noticed the change had it not been for his intense expression of his.

'Is that true……?

'I would like you to assist me in ascertaining that.

Lante began to simulate in his mind how he should act if St. Navempos and the Kingdom of Levios were to go to war.

Seeing Lante's expression change, Renessa smiles with relief.The brilliant politician she relies on as her one arm she was there.

He looks so dependable,” She says. I have high hopes for you, Monsignor Lante.”

Renessa started down the corridor with Lante, who nodded silently.

The saints' meeting is held in the “Holy Chamber,” The innermost room of the Colpa Cathedral.

It is a sanctuary that is off limits to mere believers and priests, and even high-ranking priests, unless they are of a very prominent family.

The sanctuary, which is said to be the room used by the founder Zeth for prayer, was filled with a grave atmosphere.

The presence of Lante, a lowly priest, was not well received by the other high priests, but their complaints were suppressed when the pope approved Renessa's statement that there was no problem under the regulations.

'We will now hold an emergency meeting of the saints. Each of you, pray and take vows.'

Since there is no hierarchy among the high priests, the presiding role rotates.

The meeting of the saints was opened with the Pope, the high priest, his assistant priests, and several clerical staff members, including the secretary.

The Pope said, “First of all, let me ask you a question. Is it true that you launched a large-scale indiscriminate attack in the kingdom of Levios and failed?”

The first to open his mouth was not the moderator, Renessa, but a middle-aged high priest with a balding head.

He had a temper and usually tended to ignore the moderator, but this time, no one could blame him.Everyone wanted to know the answer to his question.

May I make a statement?”

The elderly high priest slowly lifted his palm, which was covered with blood vessels.

The right half of his stubble-streaked face was marked by a red, burnt-out scar.It is a scar of honor from a battle with a mature magical beast.

His body, which had been known as a martial artist in the past, now looked well-trained and toned.

Please,” He said, “I'm a priest of Therotris. High Priest Terotris.

High Priest Teratolis is one of the most outspoken priests in St. Navempos.

The nineteen high priests who attend the Congregation of the Saints form several factions, one of which is the Terotolis faction.

This is a faction that is not willing to resort to violent means for the revival of the Congregation of the Saints, or rather, actively uses them.

I do not like to be slandered as a failure.”

In a low, resonant voice, Terroris continues, “We have failed.

We were forced into a situation where we had no choice but to fail. Those of you sitting over there are well aware of that, are you not?”

Without trying to hide his sarcasm, Terroris turned his palm to the other side of the round table and said.

'What can I say! It was the priest Terroris who caused all this in the first place! It was because of your arbitrary and arbitrary plan! Do you have any idea how much tighter the vigilance of King's Landing has become thanks to that!”

Terroris smiles fearlessly, while the High Priest, who has his palm pointed at him, turns red and protests. Furthermore, a high priest of the same faction as him started a rebuttal that resembled a wild accusation against Terroris.

Just when Lante thought that the situation was about to escalate into a shouting match, Renessa, the moderator, interrupted him.

'Silence……. Terroris Priest. Could you begin by telling us what happened so that all of us here can understand?”

'Yes, I will.'

Terroris stood up and looked at everyone seated at the round table.

Lante, whose eyes met Renessa's reddish-black eyes, felt a cold sweat break out on his back.The reason was that they looked at him with nothing but contempt, as if they were staring at something dirty.

Let me start with a conclusion,” He said. My men carried out an indiscriminate attack. The location was the city of New Neri, in the territory of Kuordenze.

These words caused an uproar in the sanctuary.

Lante felt like slamming his desk down, wondering why in the world it was in New Nerry City.

And that seemed to be the feeling of most of the people present, as one of the high priests threw down the words as if in a fit of rage: “Why are you trying to provoke the Quardenzes?

Why did you provoke the Quardenze family? This is a serious matter!

Seeing the high priest raising his voice, Lante inwardly cheered him on, saying, “Good, say more!

The Quardenze family has not destroyed the Holy High Church despite being in the Kingdom of Levios.

Their collaboration with St. Navempos is monitored and there are many restrictions on their activities, but they are still allowed to worship in the city of Newnery.

There are several moderate supreme priests who are considering reconciliation with the Kingdom of Levios, but they envisioned negotiations through the Quardenze family.

Even if they did not proceed with reconciliation, there was no merit in making enemies of the Quardenzes, whose repression against the Holy High Priesthood was not strong.

Quiet. To be continued.”

Renessa once again takes on the role of moderator, returning the initiative of the conversation to Terroris.

I must begin by telling you how it all began. It all began many years ago, when a boy was born in a farming village near the city of New Nelly with the blessing of the spirits. Society.”

Even if the child is just a commoner, a child of two slave ancestors, in extremely rare cases, a person belonging to the main ancestor may be born.

This is called a child blessed by the spirit, but in the Kingdom of Levios and the Jinkaen Empire, the parents are separated from their parents in a hunt for the main ancestor by the nobility.

If it is a boy, he is executed in principle, and if it is a girl, she is often raised as a mother to bear children.

The parents who did not want their children to be killed by the Kuordentse family consulted the church in the city of New Nelly.

It was natural that the parents would try to hide the child, since an execution was certain for a boy.

But it is not something that can be easily hidden.As if he had read Lante's thoughts, Terroris continued his story.

The hiding place is a field. Fortunately, there is a large field in New Nellie City.

The field is a good place to hide the baby of the main ancestor, because it is difficult for detection magic to work inside the field.

The field is a great place to hide a baby, because it is difficult for detection magic to work inside the field. I am also happy to report that research has shown that leeches no longer occur in an area the size of this room.

Lante had once entered a field to exterminate magical beasts, so he understood the nuisance of leeches in the field.

He thinks that it would be quite convenient if he could just take one of the main ancestors into the field and no longer have to worry about leeches.

However, it was not in his power to take a high-ranking priest into the field.

The environment for raising the child was set up with the guidance of the local churchwarden. Food was carried mainly by adventurers, but I do not know the details.

Adventurers spend several days or weeks in the field, so it is not unusual for them to have a large supply of food.

The local churchwarden seems to be a reasonably intelligent man, Lante thought.

'The reason we raised the boys,' he said, 'was to make followers. Once the blessed child reached full term, we planned to bring in cheap slave girls to increase our numbers in the field. Forces of the coming days.”

Terroris insists that we must fight the Kingdom of Levios decisively.

If the Kingdom of Levioth and St. Navempos were to go to war as he said, the Quardensee family would also join the war.

What would happen if a special detachment of follower soldiers, led by the main ancestor, were to suddenly jump out from the field?

They would be able to inflict great damage on the Quardenzes, who would be pummeled in the side.

Lante thought that what Terroris said, right or wrong, made sense.

'In other words, we did not intend to carry out our previous plan of indiscriminate attacks in the Quordentse territory. We were going to use the Blessed Child as a stallion. In fact, we have received reports that we were able to impregnate several of them.”

Lante looked at Terroris'face his.

Lante looked at the face of Terroris, who was convinced that he had done nothing wrong.

But our plans have been foiled. I believe that some of you failed in your efforts in King's Landing, which allowed some of our movements to leak out.

At the mention of someone who had failed to make a move in King's Landing, Terroris shifted his gaze to a few of the high priests.

His exasperated tone his, “It's your fault,” Must have come from the heart his.

He then continued, “Unfortunately, the only ones on the field were the Blessed Child and a few unborn babies. No wonder they chose to strike a blow against the oppression of the nobility rather than flee with them. My comrade Diana has carried out an indiscriminate attack by mature magical beasts.”

Lante knew the name of the lowly priestess Diana.

Diana is a female priestess under the direct command of Terroris who has strong radical beliefs. It was no surprise that she would launch an indiscriminate attack, as Terroris had said.

The details are still unknown, but a mature demonic beast was born and attacked the city of Newnery.”

Once again, the Holy Chamber becomes noisy.

Everyone could understand that a mature demonic beast, one the size of the New Nellie Field, would cause a catastrophe once every several hundred years.

Everyone waited for Terroris to continue, wondering how much land had been contaminated and in which direction the mature demonic beast that had destroyed New Nellie City was headed.

Lante also narrowed his eyes as he thought about what to do.

If the mature demonic beasts headed south, they would cause a great deal of trouble for the city-state groups that have established friendly relations with St. Navempos.

If the plot was leaked, it would lead to a serious deterioration in relations between the two.

The “……,” By the way, is a mature hexenbiest. The actual “I'm not a fan of the way you do it,” He said. By the Quardenze family.”

The face of Terroris, who said it as if he was throwing up, is deeply bitter.

Lante was not the only one who felt the outpouring of concentrated rage, like sludge vomited from the depths of his throat.

Everyone present gasped at the sight, and for a moment, the sanctuary fell silent.

He said, “…… Wait a minute. How is it possible that a mature demonic beast the size of New Nelly can be defeated in a single night? The Quardenze family was led by Quardenze Rouxe. I have never heard of Such bravery against mature demonic beasts.

The question on everyone's mind was uttered by one of the high priests.

The silence was broken by the other high priests, who also expressed their doubts one after another.

Is it really a demonic beast born in the New Nellie Field? Could it be mistaken for something born in a smaller field?”

'No, I think Gulfis was staying in New Nellie City. It makes sense to think that the overnight stay was just a rumor and that they actually fought for several days.

Isn't it normal to assume that Gulfis is on the front lines against the empire?” Given the current composition of the Quardenze family, it is reasonable to place Gulfis in the western part.

“It's probably just that his military prowess he wasn't spread out and that he had power in his day. He has the blood of the five princesses and the red devil, no wonder.

Amidst all the speculation, Renessa turned her attention to Lante.

'What do you think, Priestess Lante?

I'm……”

Just as Lante was about to speak his thoughts her, Terroris poked his desk lightly and then answered the question.

The man who defeated him was Quardenze Wilk, a legitimate son of the Quardenze family.I have received a report that a festival was held in his name in the city of New Nellie.

Even the High Priest does not know the names of the children of noble families.

Terroris saw that the high priests did not seem to be responding well to the news and began to talk about the information about the avenger, as if he had no other choice.

Lante already knew about it, didn't he?

Renessa said quietly, looking at Lante, who was listening just to confirm.

'Yes, I do. Someone has recently become devoted to Quardenze, and I naturally became familiar with it.'

'Well,…… After the meeting is over, I'd like to have a few words with you as well. The actuality that he defeated a matured magical beast in a single night is something that raises eyebrows, but I am concerned about the fact that the head of the Quardenze family is trying to spread his son's name.

While Lante and Renessa are whispering in secret, Terotris finishes his explanation.

After looking around at everyone for the last time, Terroris concludes his story.

I have one last thing to say. Deanna sent a letter to me before she went through with the plan.

Terroris then took out a letter and flicked it.

It says that all decisive evidence must be destroyed before the indiscriminate attacks can be carried out. We will just have to keep our heads down.”

No matter how much the low priests said they would dispose of the evidence, the high priests could not be trusted.

To them, Diana was only a weak existence with the magical power of a follower.

What would happen if Diana was captured by the Quardenze family?

Terroris glared at the High Priestess who spoke from the side.

'First the adventurers of the squire we captured will be sacrificed, then the mercenaries of the squire we hired, then the baby that the Blessed Child bore, then if that doesn't mature the magical beast, Diana will offer herself, and finally the Blessed Child will jump in…….This is the plan of indiscriminate attack described in the letter.”

Lante felt his skin his crawl with horror at the spirit of the plan to carry it out by offering even his own body his.

The Blessed Child is also educated in the ideology of extremism, so he probably has no doubts about being sacrificed.

Lante was now horrified by the distortion of the extremist and terrorist groups.

He said, “Incorporating a few …… Followers will not mature the demonic beasts in New Nellie Field. I believe that the maturation of the demonic beast was probably completed by taking in the Blessed Child. In that order, Deanna is most likely already dead.”

Terroris, whose tone of voice has dropped, prays to the spirits as soon as he finishes. It was a prayer of requiem for the low priestess Diana.

With his eyes closed, Terroris says.

Even if she were caught, there would be no problem. Diana will not be tortured by the nobles.

His confident words echoed in the quiet sanctuary.

After the meeting of the saints was closed, Lante and Renessa returned to the waiting room and both let out a sigh.

It has only been around 20 days since the indiscriminate attack by mature magical beasts in New Nellie City.

At this point, they could only trust what Terotlis, who was well informed about New Nelly City, had to say.

We do not know what the Quardenze family will actually do, how much information they have, or whether the lowly priestess Diana has really disposed of the evidence.

Renessa felt the need to find out what was going on in the city of Newnery as soon as possible, so she closed the meeting of the saints before things fell into disquiet.

She felt that making decisions without sufficient information would allow her to be swayed as Terroris wished.

In fact, there were indications that Terroris wanted war with the Kingdom of Levioth.

Renessa thought it was a good thing that they could avoid the possibility of starting a war by saying, “Let's do it before we are attacked.

Lante, on the other hand, was pessimistic.

He thought that an open war with the Kingdom of Levioth was quite possible.

It was possible that the Quardenze family would not publicize the indiscriminate attacks by the Holy High Council because they wanted to prioritize the war against the Zinkaen Empire.

However, Lante believed that there was a 50-50 chance that the Quardenzes would choose that option.

If the facts were made public, the Levios royal family would take advantage of the opportunity and declare war on St. Navempos.

Lante was desperately thinking of ways to avoid war.

It was when a cold sweat dripped down his chin that Lante heard a soft, sweet voice in his ear.

'Priestess Renessa.

'Is it not the Holy Priestess?

Renessa replied to the owner of the voice, and Lante only looked at her silently.

There stood a girl.

She was a girl of about the age when a girl takes the very first step in her transformation into a woman.

The pure white robe she wears is simple, with only a few gold ornaments sewn into the ends of the sleeves and the edges of the cloth.

It is made of several layers of cloth, and to the untrained eye, it looks less expensive than the priestly vestments worn by the high priests of Renaissa.

However, the cloth was made of the finest pure white silk of the Mamusled Federation.

The clothes were worth enough to build two small castles, and only those in the position of “Holy priestess” Were allowed to wear them.

Please don't call me a priestess,” He said. Please, as always.

She speaks in a gentle tone, like a saintly woman who has never been defiled.

Her black hair, which reached her knees and looked like the darkness of night, shimmered with a luster that was not befitting a young girl of her age, perhaps due to the light.

Her dark, childlike eyes her shone like obsidian, making her smile all the more alluring.

Lante, who turns 30 this year, gazed at the girl who could have been his daughter, and involuntarily swallowed hard.

Renessa, on the other hand, was a little taken back by the girl's unchanged demeanor, but also relieved.

You haven't changed, Lorna. The only people in this room now are from my faction, but you mustn't talk like that anywhere else.

Holy priestess Lorna.

She was a girl who had been prepared as a symbol of faith in St. Navempos.

So what is Lorna doing here? You don't attend the saints' meetings, do you?”

The current position of the holy priestess is only a symbol and she has no political power.

Since the position of holy priestess today is merely symbolic and has no political power, it is usually reserved for a beautiful girl from a prominent family, since it is the only way to gain popularity among the people.

I have something to ask you.

What is it?

Renessa used to be Lorna's tutor her, and sometimes she would come to her for advice her.

The content of the consultation is usually not related to politics, such as the pet is not doing well, or there is a problem with the study of ancient languages.

Sometimes, when Renessa was busy, Lante and the others would send her answers by letter.

I am wondering if something rough has happened in the city of New Nellie. I'm so anxious …… I can't sleep at night like this ……”

Lorna is kind. Let us pray to …… The spirits then.”

The first thing to do is to make sure that you have a good time.

Well, it is certainly unquestionably beautiful and a perfect symbol. But couldn't she manage this relaxed personality?

Why was Lorna, who was a student of his so laid-back while Renesa was a fast and lively woman?

Lante wanted to end this boring conversation as soon as possible and discuss how to deal with the Kingdom of Levios.

However, Lorna slowly denied Renessa's words to her.

'I am no stranger to this. My friend is visiting the church in New Nelly. Oh …… How I can only pray that she is safe.

Lante was not the only one who was perturbed by these words.

Renessa and all the priests around her gasped.

The Holy Maiden's friend can't be a mere commoner; he's definitely a member of the Holy High Priesthood.

'Wait a minute, Lorna. Who is this friend? Why were you visiting the church in New Nelly?'

What? What's the matter, Priest Renessa?

'Just answer me.

Lorna began to speak in a faltering voice, as if she could read the air a little better now that Renessa had become more agitated.

I don't know if you know priestess Renessa, but her name is Cynthia.She is a very gentle woman who cares for the scriptures…….”

Lante.”

Lante called out her name her, and immediately twisted the priestess named Cynthia out of his memory her.

A woman named Cynthia, a devout believer who was close to the priestess.

The first thing that came to Lante's mind was a female priestess whose large breasts first caught his attention.

Casually approaching Renessa, Lante told her where Cynthia was from, where she belonged, and what her position was.

Lorna, tell me. Why did Cynthia go to the church in New Nellie City?”

Lante wondered if the priestess had started to work in the dark to gain political power, and since she sent her men to New Nelly, she must have an agenda. Lante looked at Lorna's face and tried to find out what was behind it.

Loner, however, remained unconcerned and said matter-of-factly, “The city of New Nellie is the home of Levy.

She said, “I heard that the city of Newnery is in the Kingdom of Levios, but the Church of St. High still exists. Then it would be possible to get along with the Quardenze family, wouldn't it?”

Of course, Lante does not deny Lorna's words her.She is a holy priestess, of a much higher status than Lante, a lowly priestess.

She should not have said things like, “That can't be true.

If I show the correct faith of the Holy High Priestess, I am sure the Quardenze family will understand. Cynthia seemed to agree with me and wanted to actually take action. I have sent her an offer of a day at …….”

Cynthia said she left, saying that as a nun, she would seek to improve the status of the Holy High Society by working with integrity.

Lante was taken back by this peaceful thought.

The holy priestesses of the day are highly religious and not at all interested in political disputes. Besides, there is little that a priestess can do.

For this reason, she has been neglected by all factions and has little experience with the ill will of inter-factional strife.

She is beautiful and calm, and has probably been surrounded by goodwill all her life.She believes that if she approaches others with good intentions, they will respond with good intentions.

If the Quardenze family accepts the Holy High Society, the Kingdom of Levios will one day admit its mistakes.

Seeing the holy priestess who believed in a bright future without a single cloud in her eyes, Lante was so shaken that he wondered if he was the one who was wrong.

Renessa Priestess? Um, did I do something unnecessary……?”

Lorna says anxiously, noticing that everyone in the room is looking at her suspiciously.

Renessa put her hand on Lorna's shoulder and said admonishingly.

No,” She said. No. Your idea is a wonderful one. It is the very ideal of the Holy High Society. But if you are going to do anything outside of St. Navempos, I would like you to talk to someone about it , preferably me. Preferably me.”

It sounded, if anything, like an attempt to win the priestess over to her own faction of hers.

But even so, Renesa wanted to reduce the possibility of Lorna's being involved in danger.

For Renesa, who had never been blessed with a child, Lorna was not only a student, but also a daughter.

'I will look into Cynthia Priest's movements at …… Myself. Lorna must not move.

'Yes sir. I made a…… Mistake, Priestess Renessa.'

The priestess corrected her adorably, but Lante looked at her coldly.

Cynthia is no doubt a priest of the so-called faithful, as faithful as the Holy Miko.

She is incompatible with the Terrorists, who would not hesitate to unleash mature magical beasts in order to regain the authority of the Seiko Kai.

He probably went to New Nellie City unrelated to the plans of the Terrorist faction and must have been working there without knowing anything about it.

In light of this incident, Cynthia will meet a tragic end.

She would have been arrested without question simply for being at the Holy High Church and tortured to tell the whole truth about the indiscriminate attack plan, which she was not supposed to know. He was only genuinely trying to protect the teachings of the saints.

The holy priestess and Renessa prayed to the spirits for her safety her, but Lante prayed only that she would meet her end her as peacefully as possible.

Renessa, Lante, and the other priests went straight to Renessa's mansion.

Lante had a position in the church, but what he was actually doing was mainly managing the fiefdom that Renessa owned.

Most of the priests with fiefdoms live in their mansions in the Holy City and govern without going to the fiefdoms.

This is because the territory of St. Navempos as a whole is not that big, so even if a mature magical beast appears, they can get there in time by rushing from the Holy City.

Lante looks around the workrooms in the mansion and checks the situation.

In the last room he visited, a young man was lying on the floor.

Vidardo, what are you doing?”

'Oh, …… You're a Lante priest.

Lante was holding one of the blueprints in his hand.

Lante picked up one of them. It was a blueprint of a bridge.

Can you really build a bridge this big?

“Well, yes.”

Vidardo was silent after saying that.

Not wanting to interrupt his work by talking to him, Lante decided to look at the other blueprints scattered on the floor.They were diverse, ranging from designs for bridges and mansions to construction plans for flood control projects.

Lante could not understand any of the written formulas, but he quickly abandoned the thought that he did not need to understand them.

Vidardo had a track record of creating unfamiliar blueprints and bringing them to fruition.There was no need for him to invade the realm of his work.

The only thing Lante could enjoy was a drawing of the completed project.

Remembering that Vidardo used to make money as a painter, Lante felt that it would not be surprising if someone would pay for such a magnificent painting.

'Your budget is not enough,' he said. Ask the priest Lante to ask Lady Renessa for more money. Let me do more experiments.”

'I'm sorry, but we have our hands full with this. I'm sorry Vidardo, but I need you to do the best you can with the budget you have.

Renessa appears from behind Lante, wondering when she arrived.

Lante was afraid of her sudden appearance and straightened his posture, but Vidardo remained sprawled out.

Hey, Vidardo! Don't be rude in front of Renesa-sama!

It doesn't matter. Vidardo's job is to think. If there is no one else around, there is no need to be polite to me.

You know what you're talking about, Miss Renesa.

Vidardo, having received Lante's endorsement, lay down as if to show him off and, of course, farted.

Vidaldo, a man of such disrespect, is a mere commoner. He is not even a follower, let alone the head of a family. He is a fragile human being with no magical powers.

The only thing that makes him valuable is that he has a genius brain.

Mathematics, architecture, civil engineering, and painting are just a few of his abilities, and this young man, who has extraordinary talent in everything, was one of the valuable talents Renessa found.

But the budget is the only thing we can't manage. Can't we make do with what we have?”

Renessa was a practical, pragmatic, rationalist among the high priests.

She would call low-ranking priests like Lante to the Congregation of the Saints if she thought they were capable, and she had no trouble in using lay people like Vidardo. He does everything for the sake of St. Navempos.

He is not afraid to use the budget to experiment with his own hobbies, “Said Vidardo. The more we give him, the more he spends on his experiments.”

I'm only trying to do my best for Master Renessa,” Vidal said. I am just doing my best for Master Renessa. So I don't mind doing a little hobby experimentation.”

Lante knows that Vidardo is not entirely wrong.

There have been several times when his experiments have helped solve a problem and yielded significant benefits.

The total result would certainly be positive, but Lante's problem was that he had too many gold coins to spend on investments.

He said, “Look, I gave up on the experiment with the manaral crystals. So, please give me a little bit of flexibility.

It's obvious,” Lante said. If we were to buy manaral crystals, our finances would be in the red at once. We went to a lot of effort to make our finances healthy.

The financial situation is even tighter than usual in the management of the territory.

It would be laughable if the territory was going bankrupt because of the Rebirth initiative.”

Renessa was now working on a plan called the Rebirth Initiative.

Right now, she is putting all her energy into restructuring and revitalizing her own territory.

The reorganization by Lante is going well, and Renessa's fiefdom, which had been in the red, has been healthy for several years.

And since Vidardo's arrival, a number of facilities and tools using new technology have been created, and productivity has increased dramatically.

Renessa intended to first achieve results in her own territory and eventually advocate reform of St. Navempos as a whole.

After doing so, she planned to take the lead in reform, streamline the governing structure, and increase national power to compete with the kingdom of Levios.

Re-nationalism, huh? It's all the rage.

For the past dozen years or so, an idea called “Re-nativism” Has been spreading in St. Navempos.

In the past, the Holy High Society had influence throughout the continent and boasted of its immense authority. Today, however, St. Navempos has fallen and there is not even a trace of it.

The current situation is not good, and the basic idea of ​​nativism is to restore the authority of the Holy High Society as it was in the classical period.

This nativism is a vague idea, and how one perceives it depends entirely on one's own thinking.

For Renessa, nativism is to oppose kingdoms and empires by correcting their organization, improving their finances, and boosting their economy and culture, as the cause of the corruption of the Holy High Society itself.

For Teratris, nativism is to demonstrate the power of the priests by defeating the nobles through force and violence, as they are the cause of the nobles who are avenging the Holy High Society.

For the priestess Lorna, nativism means to restore the correct faith and become a virtuous priest by reviewing the scriptures, because the Holy High Society has lost its faith and become corrupt.

'Come to think of it, why are you getting into nativism, Lady Renessa? I think you should only think about your own territory, don't you?

In response to Vidardo's light tone her, Renesa turned a serious expression on her face her.

It is to protect the world in which people can live as human beings.

Huh?”

Vidardo, who had expected her to answer with some clear benefit, gave a curt response.

Lante was similarly unable to immediately comprehend the meaning of his words her.

Do you two know the current situation in the Kingdom of Levios? The Holy High Church has been destroyed, and the faith is in the wind.

Renessa said slowly, as if she were a teacher teaching.

Of course. It can only be described as the tyranny of the nobility. It would be unforgivable for them to destroy the church.

I've never been to the Kingdom of Levioth, but I've heard that it is. I have never been to the Kingdom of Levioth, but it seems so. Priests have a hard time finding jobs.

I have never been to the Kingdom of Levioth, but I have heard that it is so.

Lante was unable to gauge Renessa's true intentions in asking such a question.

Renessa exhaled deeply when she heard both of them answer.

No, you don't know anything,” She said. I am not talking about the church or the priests of the High Priesthood. I am talking about the people.

The people?”

Lante was still not quite sure what she was talking about, and Renessa continued her explanation of her.

Do you know how the people in the kingdom of Levios live now? How do you think they make decisions about what is good and what is evil?

“Good and evil are things that only common sense can tell us.”

What you call common sense is the teaching of the Holy High Priesthood……. Lante Priest, a child must not kill its parents her.Why?

“It is in the scriptures……”

'That's it,' said Renessa, clapping her hands.

A child must not kill his parents Her.That is what the scriptures say.Then,priest Lante,if we asked the same question of the people living in the kingdom of Levios,how would they respond?”

“That would be …………………. I don't know.

There is no Holy High Church in the Kingdom of Levios.

In other words, the people of the Kingdom of Levioth cannot know the scriptures.

That is how it is. We don't know what the people of the Kingdom of Levioth consider good and what they consider evil. Isn't this very frightening?”

“…… It is, indeed.”

There are people for whom common sense, which they take for granted, does not apply at all. Isn't that terribly unsettling?

Lante felt he understood what Renessa was trying to say.

Their values ​​are solidified by common sense based on the scriptures of the Holy High Society.There was an instinctive fear in his heart when he thought that people who did not understand this at all were spreading in the kingdom of Levios.

What I just said is an extreme example. Even if there is no priest, there is common sense that can be passed on from parent to child.

But,” Says Renessa.

The people are weaker than we are, and the generations are changing faster than we are. The common sense that is passed down from parents to children will also fade as the generations go by. There is no priest in the Kingdom of Levios who can point that out.”

That means that common sense will increasingly diverge from that of St. Navempos.

The common sense that needs to be passed on will fade away, and even if wrong common sense gets mixed in, there will be no priest to correct it.

Since there is no unified teaching, as in the case of the Holy High Priesthood, each person creates his or her own sense of values, and as many people as there are, there will be as many common sense as there are people.

What do you think will happen to the people of the Kingdom of Levios when the current situation continues for 100 or 200 years? Do you think you can hold hands with the people who live there? Can you trust them wholeheartedly?”

I can't……”

To cover Lante's answer, Renessa continued.

It is the same for them. The people of the Kingdom of Levios will not be able to trust the people of the Holy High Church because they do not understand them. It is a world where one cannot trust another.”

It is a world of beasts, Renessa asserted.

Once that happens, all that awaits us is endless killing.

Lante felt that people who could not see their own beliefs were like beasts.

But he had no idea that anyone would see him as a beast.

The teachings of Founder Zeth, and the teachings of the saints, do not exist solely to benefit the Holy High Society. They are teachings that are necessary for people to live hand in hand.

Lante nodded silently.

In the past, we, the Sacred Congregation, have forgotten our mission and have allowed ourselves to be corrupted by our own authority, allowing the rise of the nobility to take over. Faith should not be for priests. Live as a man, not as a beast.”

Yes.”

'We must reestablish St. Navempos and turn the people who are going the way of the beasts back to the way of men.

Lante, who had seen Renessa struggling with the Rebirth concept, was convinced that she meant what she just said.

He opened his clenched fist and found that he was sweating profusely.

The conversation ended there, and tea was prepared at Renessa's word that she was thirsty after her powerful speech her.

As the three of us sipped our tea, Renessa said as if she remembered.

She said, “By the way, you said at the meeting of the saints that priest Lante had become familiar with the territory of Quardenze. Who told you about that?”

Renaissa said, “Oh, that's Vidardo. Isn't he the most knowledgeable person in the house when it comes to the Quardenze family?

When Vidardo's name was called, he turned his attention to Lante.

Oh, my.I wonder why Vidardo is interested?

Vidardo looked at Lante, “Because in the last few years Quardenze has made a name for itself, I hear that New Nelly Silk makes soap and all sorts of other unusual things, and there's also the matter of the Nambonan market. I wonder where . ….. Vidardo got his interest? Come to think of it, I'd never heard of it.”

At the two gazes, Vidardo stood up and picked up a book from the bookshelf.

Placing the book on his desk, he said.

'This one. This is a book made in the city of New Nelly.'

Renesa picked up the book and flipped through the pages.

On the last page was the author's name and the seal of the bindery.

I didn't know you were still reading that boring book.

Lante had read the book before, but she had stopped halfway through.

Lante wondered why someone as smart as Vidardo would keep such a book so carefully.

Is it boring?”

Vidardo did not respond to Renesa's question, so Lante responded instead.

Lante replies, “Well, how can I say …… It's a boring book. It's a book made by rich people for fun. I think it is a book made by rich people for pleasure. The author's name seems to be a fake.

Oh, dear. What did Vidarde find so good about it, then?

But Vidardo said nothing.The first thing to do is to make sure that you have a good understanding of what you're doing.

I think you should read it once, Renessa-sama,” He said. Then I will give you my answer.

With that, Vidardo pulled out a few more books from the bookshelf and placed them in front of Renesa.

Renesa's eyes flashed, and he continued, “That's all I have so far.

This is all I have at the moment.

'So many ……. These books were sold in the city of Newnery, in the territory of Kuordenze, weren't they? What did you do with the money? If you buy them here, you have to pay more to the merchants, don't you?

I paid for it out of my salary. Thanks to you, I live in poverty.

Oh my God.

In order to keep Vidardo, who has a genius brain, in the loop, Renessa gives him an unbelievable amount of gold coins as a salary.

Knowing the amount of gold coins she had provided, Renesa was horrified to find that they had been converted into books.

'That's how interesting the book is. And I'm curious about the author. See, if you replace them like this: …….”

With that, Vidardo brought a wooden letter for notes.

Vidardo wrote the author's name on it, and then wrote down each of the words that made up the name in a different order.

'………Quardenze Wilk?”

What appeared there was the name of a legitimate son of the Quordenze family, who had been the topic of conversation at the saints' meeting.

'Yes. I was wondering if the author of this book is actually a nobleman. If that's the case, it's really interesting. .

Neither Lante nor Renessa had noticed the twinkle in Vidardo's eyes.

Oh, my. If we go to war with the Kingdom of Levios, it's going to be hard to get it.

Huh?”

Although Renesa hired him, Vidardo was not a priest, but a mere commoner.

Lante hesitated to tell Vidardo the contents of the saints' meeting.

'Monsignor Renessa, are you sure?

'It will soon become a rumor, so let us tell the story ourselves.

Lante reconsidered, “Surely, these bad rumors will spread quickly.

In that case, it would be better to tell them first than to let them hear exaggerated information.

Lante agreed with Renesa's idea and decided to tell Vidardo about the situation.

'Heh. ……The die is cast, huh?

Lante picked up on what Vidardo muttered in a whisper.

What's that?”

Lante picks up on Vidardo's muttered words, “It's a quote from a general in this book. Remember it well, it will come in handy soon.

Vidardo smiled wryly, and Lante felt something disturbing.

The next day.

Vidardo had disappeared, leaving only one letter behind.

The letter said, in summary, “I don't want to be unable to read the latest volume, so I'm moving to New Nelly City. I will pay you back this month's salary in books. Bye-bye.

Renessa and Lante, not wanting to give up a man as smart as Vidardo, immediately sent their men in pursuit.

To get from St. Navempos to the city of Newnery, all they had to do was to follow the great river northward.

It was undeniable that Lante had been proud of the fact that he could catch up with Vidaldo, who did not have magical power.

In the end, Renessa and the others could not find Vidardo.

At the very time that Lante and the others were in trouble, Vidardo was being rocked by a ship crossing a large river.

Although it was not necessary to cross the river to get to Newnery City, Vidardo dared to cross the river, anticipating that his pursuers would come after him.

If only the priest had read the book, he could have guessed.

If he would have been caught, he would have been caught, and with such playfulness Vidardo told Lante, “The die is cast.

The general who said “The die is cast” In the book was in the process of crossing a river. Cross the great river to New Nelly.

Well, what was I to do?”

Vidaldo had thought about moving to New Nelly, but he wanted to confirm the identity of the author of the book anyway.

He also thought that the Quardenze family seemed to be well off, and if possible, he would like a job similar to the one he had when he was employed by Renessa.

Either way, I would like to meet with the heir apparent of the Quardenze family.

Vidardo was convinced that if he could get a meeting with him, he would be able to get some kind of job by showing his talent his.

The most troublesome thing was to get him to meet with him.

Vidardo thought that he would need a souvenir to attract the attention of the nobility.

Oh, where are you going, niichan?”

A sailor on a break spoke to Vidardo.

He thought for a moment and then said, “I'm going home to see the sea.

I'm going home to see the sea,” He said after a moment's thought. New Nelly will come after that.