Episode 1199 Reorganization (5)
The Luas religion had various conflicts with Verden personally rather than with Eon.
Verden’s moves were bold enough to cross the line.
At the World Council in Gargant, the agenda for the social coexistence of different races was submitted and passed as a representative agenda, and at the Emergency Summit in Prohas, there was even a physical clash over the Saint’s emotional assassination of the King of Ronia.
At that time, Ersetia was grabbed by the face by Verden and heard a harsh rebuke.It was the first time.No matter how many times she looked back, she was angry and bewildered… for to her, Verden was a scoundrel unlike anyone she had ever encountered.
Regardless of who caused it, it was an undeniable fact that Verden had ultimately tarnished the dignity and authority of the Ruas religion.
However… Verden proved his worth.
The ideology of Eon is to safeguard the dignity of sentient beings.
At this, Verden proudly declared himself the leader of the World Alliance and confronted the Dragon and the Old King on the front lines, destroyed the falling Citadel from the sky to prevent the annihilation of the Alliance forces, and executed the Old King in front of everyone.
If Ersetia had been there, could she have achieved a similar result? No… no! I can say with certainty that even if she had won, the disparity in casualties would have made any comparison meaningless.
and.
Ersetia was ultimately defeated despite having surrounded the Old King in a multi-to-one battle at the Scalum Gorge. Even though she was chosen by the goddess, she could not drive away the darkness with her innocent light.
Ersetia slumped into a chair and let her head hang low while resting her chin on her hand.
“……Many believers sacrificed themselves to protect humanity, and everyone did their best……but we gods could not repay them.”
Through the prayers of Romanus and Ersetia, the symptoms of the Blood-Crying Plague that had spread across the continent were alleviated… … Thanks to this, the number of casualties could be minimized, but that was a duty that the Ruas religion naturally had to fulfill.
To demonstrate the stature of world religion, they should have first thwarted the schemes of the glory of the corpse, and even if they could not stop them, they should have personally put an end to them.
We could not prove why Luasism is Luasism.
Romanus closed his eyes, unable to refute.
“……In an era of peace, light prospered, but we, too, ended up settling for that peace. True peace has meaning only if it is preserved…….”
I reflected onwhat the Ruas Kingdom did 800 years ago after dismembering the old king .
The bodies of the ancient kings could not possibly be destroyed, even by divine miracles. Even if they were thrown into the depths of the sea, they would somehow wash ashore.
For this reason, the Luas religion resolved to seal the Old King at the source by scattering his six bodies across the continent and then forgetting him. Forcomplete oblivion is no different from the annihilation of existence.Since they even distorted and modified the history of the First War of the Transcendents, had things gone according to plan, there would have been no room for the Old King and the Xerion Empire to return.
However, the servants of the glory of the dead tenaciously survived and remembered the old king.
Was it right to publicly announce it to the continent and exterminate it from the moment the Bone Dragon appeared in the Republic of Beldirn?Did concealing the truth for the sake of a seal through oblivion become poison?
The consequences of choices I could not make in the past became regrets.
“The Saint.”“Yes, the Pope.”“Perhaps… forgetting the old king was a plan impossible from the start.”
There were those who interfered with the Luas religion when Draven invaded the sanctuary of Abenka.
The saint muttered.
“Traitors to humanity.”“Our enemy was not just one.”
They were enjoying the magic festival when they suddenly turned violent and shattered the defenses of the Luas Church. Because they had appeared to be perfectly ordinary people until just moments before, and the attack was completely unimaginable, the Holy Knights were delayed in their response.Had it not been for that, Draven would not have dared to enter the depths of the sanctuary.
“Followers of Fate. I recall that the Eon side referred to the traitors to humanity as such. Phew, what kind of fate do they follow, and since when on earth has such a group existed on this continent…?”“Surely since a very long time ago… Hmm?”“The Pope?”“Wait a moment, would you please wait?”
Romanus rubbed his forehead.
“Wait… to think.”
Let’s summarize.
The traitors of humanity revealed themselves as helpers of the Glory of the Dead, but… …The Luas religion had pursued the Glory of the Dead for hundreds of years but had not come across even a small fragment of a clue regarding the traitors of humanity.
It was literally not in any record.
How can a massive group involving even the Iderat Federation Chief and a world-renowned appraiser be hidden like this? Is that physically possible?
“Saint, you said that in the Scalum Fault, the Old King unleashed sword energy imbued with divine power, rendering the entire power of the Transcendents futile.”“That is true, but…”“The Followers of Fate and the Old King worship the same, certain god… However, they can arbitrarily conceal their divine power to the point where even the God of Light cannot see through it… Just how far can they hide their faith…?”
Romanus’s muttering stopped abruptly.
“Following the Massacre of the Sanctuary, the Theocracy of Luas tracked down and eliminated the Followers of Destiny through the Inquisition. The Order of the Holy Law took on this role on a large scale, and the Followers were found in every country and every region, as if they were everywhere. Isn’t that right?”“Yes, that is correct.”“How much trust do you place in our Theocracy’s Inquisition, Saint?”
Ersetia flinched.
“…Is the Pope perhaps doubting the function of the Inquisition? In fact, it was revealed by the interrogators themselves that they were followers.”“No, I do not think the miracles of the Inquisition are wrong. I am merely focusing on who performs those miracles.”“What…”“Everything I say from now on is a hypothesis, so please take it lightly.”
Romanus narrowed his eyes.
“If there are followers among the Church of Light.”“……!!”“If there are those deceiving us from within.”
Ersetia was shocked.
Romanus continued speaking while looking back at her.
“If the followers have been operating in the shadows of the Holy Kingdom since the distant past, hundreds of years ago.”“That is excessive speculation…….”“If they orchestrated the sealing through oblivion in ancient times and caused it to fail in the modern era!”
He slammed his hand on the table.
“Quite a few things can be explained logically, Saint.”
Ersetia fell silent at Romanus’s blazing gaze. As far as she knew, it was the first time the gentle and benevolent Pope had ever been so enraged.And, even to Ersetia, it was a perfectly plausible assumption. It was as if she had found a missing puzzle piece.
Ersetia slowly put her hands together.
“That one-eyed giant, who also appeared at the final battleground, killed the Archbishop of the Holy Flame at the Four Gates of Lake Pendren. According to testimonies from that time, he mentioned fate.”“And that giant also praised Verden, calling him Father. If we assume Verden is a god, he could be a being derived from that god.”“An apostle, or something…?”“He could be an angel. In any case, if we believe in Verden—or give him a little more faith—the important thing is that the Archbishop of the Holy Flame is highly likely to be a follower.”“In other words, followers might have settled into high-ranking positions within the Holy Kingdom…”
The two people’s gazes crossed.
“How far do you think they go?”“I even suspect the Cardinal of Samjeong.”“What about us newcomers?”“I trust the Saint. It hasn’t been long since Leonhardt was chosen as a newcomer. And the previous newcomers surely aren’t followers either. Aren’t we beings chosen by the Goddess Luas?”
Although the decision to seal the ancient king in oblivion was made by the divine beings, the conclusion was pushed forward jointly by the archbishops and cardinals.Since sealing by oblivion seemed reasonable, it was not a solution worth rejecting if they had been sincerely persuaded.
Ersetia nodded.
“I share the same thoughts as the Pope. And I share the same heart. In the end, the one who always guides us is the Goddess Luas.……”
She soon clenched her teeth furiously and veins bulged on her forehead.
“I wish to root out and judge every single spy right now.”“It is difficult at this moment. Conducting an heresy interrogation on church members would cause great chaos. If it were the covenant of a pledgee, the heresy interrogation could take their place, but regrettably, the pledgee is missing…”
The image of the sworn soldier Julion, who had fulfilled his duties as a legion commander to the very end, flickered before Romanus’s eyes.His sacrifice was noble, like a brilliant light.
“I understand the situation. So, I suppose we should go about our daily lives as if nothing happened. However, that doesn’t mean we can do nothing.”“It seems a reorganization is necessary. We will have to gather members of the Church of Pure Light, cleverly… so that the followers do not notice.”
Ersetia asked.
“Then, are you putting the matter of Verden’s divinity on hold for now?”“That was my intention from the beginning. Even if Verden is an unacceptable heretical god who must be eradicated, we do not have the capacity to start a Second Great Crusade now that the war is over.”
The two stood up from their seats.
“Let’s resolve our internal issues first, Saint.”“Yes, Pope.”
It was then.
dripping.
A knock was heard. The person who sought out the Saint and the Pope was none other than Cardinal Gregorban of Justice, who had fought alongside Yurion in the southern part of the Eastern Continent.
“What is the matter?”“It is urgent news.”
The moment Cardinal Gregorban lowered his voice and delivered the news secretly, the secret room of the sanctuary fell silent as if time had stopped.
Ersetia asked back with a stiff face.
“Evidence that Mauler Gareth Cyrilliard made a pact with a demon…?”
* * *
After finishing his conversation with the Apostles, Verden returned to the Great Hall. There was still much work to be done and many people to meet.
I felt a presence behind me.
Naturally, Verden did not look back because he knew who it was.
“house owner!”
Isabella hugged Verden from behind. She didn’t just hug him; she carried him on her back. Verden naturally supported her thighs with both hands.
“Did you catch up with Zenia?”“……Thanks to you.”
I finally reunited with my younger sister, whose whereabouts I hadn’t been able to find for over a decade. I was very surprised to hear that she was a contractor of the Great Demon Ifekarn, but now I have calmed down.
He recalled his meeting with Verden.
If Verden hadn’t saved her in Gargant, she wouldn’t have been able to face a day like this. She was able to live because of Verden. Isabella could no longer imagine a day without Verden.
“I love you, Verden.”“…….”“There are at least two children…….”
Verden let out a hollow laugh at Isabella’s blunt confession. It seemed she was looking much further into the future than he did.Marriage.Verden pictured a world where he could feel at ease. He couldn’t quite visualize it, but the outline seemed to be taking shape.
“Let’s build a house in my hometown first.”“I’ll look into it in the near future.”
After making that promise, Verden changed the subject.
“How is Adrian doing?”“He seemed to be moving well, but he just fainted again. Then again, considering he was forced to fight with tree roots implanted in his body and a severed leg attached. Enette is right by his side nursing him. She won’t leave his side.”“I see.”“Why? Where are you going?”“Yes, I have somewhere to go right now.”
Verden headed into the depths of Black Hour.
I have something to say when I go.
* * *
Among the original eight founders of Black Hour, there is one work that the leader barely managed to complete after dedicating nearly half of his life to it.
Artificial Artifact [Hourglass of Eternity].
Inside, it contains records of all research conducted since the founding of Black Hour.Much like the sacred artifacts of the Luas religion, it is the very foundation of Black Hour; if it were to be lost or destroyed in the slightest, it would be tantamount to the leader of the current Black Hour losing their qualifications.
Verden seized the [Hourglass of Eternity] to set the stage for a one-on-one magic battle with Dahit, and ultimately usurped the Black Hour.
“…….”
Cayman Vermont was engrossed in the [Hourglass of Eternity], seeing it for the first time in decades. The original eight. Past memories and nightmares unfolded before his eyes.
Dahit’s rebellion and purge.A contract with a demon made while dying from the Black Flame after barely escaping.A gray man who has come to usurp Black Hour after a long time.
dump.
Cayman sank onto the stairs as if sliding into a vortex of emotions. It was only after swimming through the past like that that he could finally admit it.
I’m finally back.To the house where I used to be with my friends.
“If I meet Harkan after death, I should bow down to him. For in the end… Verden, he sent you to us.”“We were destined to be together.”
Verden entered the deepest part of the Black Hour with Alpha, Beta, and Isabella. Additionally, a Shadow Demon joined the party.It was a small demon that Verden had personally taken in after discovering it in Tuhar.
Cayman said.
“I will tell you about what I found in the Mirror of Evil regarding Ifeakarn.”“Let’s move seats first.”
Verden saw through the highest-ranking demon who had made a contract with Cayman with his insight.
“Farnium, open the way to Rivereas.”“……!”“And, tell Noxias this.”
Archdemon of Darkness – Noxias.
Verden firmly declared, mentioning one of the three great demons.
“I will do it for you.”
Cayman’s shadow trembled. From within, a demon enveloped in darkness manifested. It was Parnium, who had opened a dimension in the past to allow Verden and his party to infiltrate the Black Hour.
thud!
Parnium bowed respectfully.Dark tears flowed down.
[I have been waiting… … It is me… … .]
Join the Dark Archdemon.
It was one of Verden’s power reorganization plans.
