As the night fell, I was at last left alone. The people could still be heard from the outside. It could be easy to say that it had really turned into a festival of sorts.
During the day I had found out that, the people that were present while I was touching the orb, many of them had been gifted with the ability to use the light element. Really, at this rate it was bound to be like this. Never in history was anyone able to get light element just by standing near the one getting baptized.
After contemplating, I realized that since not only the old man but even the goddess of love had come to find me… or rather she had plunged herself at me... the majority of the time I was there, I guess the light that reached this world had turned significantly brighter for that reason. even more so, if think about it, the goddess was hard pressed to let me go, I don't know what kind of relationship we had in my past life, but I may have been a important human to a goddess like that.
Even though I know that gods are whimsical… to think that their whim would bring me this much trouble… although even after a day like this, I couldn't forget that face… the goddess of love… man she was cute…
What was that sensation that just made me remember her every time I looked at my hand… I had suddenly patted her head.
The simple gesture had made her forgive me for not remembering her for sure… but… I wondered if in my 2nd life I really was close to her or not… still.. strangely I don't feel any romantic feelings for her… I guess it wasn't that serious. Maybe since I got her blessing, we were more tightly bonded…
That should be all… only talking to them got me into this mess… I think I should not get in touch with them in public again…
As I was broken out of my thoughts, I heard the pope.
"Holy one… I am truly sorry for making you do all this." As I was relaxing in my room, the pope came by and suddenly started talking in a tone we had spoken like the first time.
"Pope I am not like you guys, okay! Let me go please!" I said finally getting her alone. Even if I run out from here it's not like I can vanish. Formally letting me go was the only option.
"I know sir Rekka is not a clergy man but this was the only way to save my city… will you please hear me out?" the pope talked in a rather grave tone….
I knew a pope can't be so blind that she would just make any guy who god favoured as their leader. So was this her plan to solve some problem?
"Then why are you doing just that?"
"As you know there are 3 human countries. You are acquainted with 2 of them but do you know much about the third country?" the pope asked.
"Not really, never came up with that subject…. Why? What is the problem with the 3rd one?"
"Well the 3rd country is the biggest one there is of human lands. It is called the Therondia Empire. It was also the oldest country out there, but a thousand year ago, the country changed and started to attack other remaining countries. Excluding other races, They only attacked other human countries. As such they started gaining new lands, but after many long years, the 2 counties Stein and Treastein stabilized the human race."
"You mean Tresteain and Stein? Or rather… it was fully stabilized since the heroes popped out." the Pope nodded hearing that. That was why there were only 3 countries left. All the small countries must have been sucked in by this empire long ago. so they were a military ruled country...
"But still, the empire kept doing small wars with the countries. After hundreds of years they are still doing so….. By now I believe that the Emperor who wanted to unite the humans under his empire was just a legend…. His goal was to stand equal with all the other races out there… it was forgotten in the passage of time."
"Then? What's the reason for the wars currently?"
"They want the rest of humanity to be under them or rather they want to unite humanity too but in a way their method can be said to be the lowest of the low…." the Pope said looking dejected at humanity's decline… I was the one surprised here though… if there was a country like this I wonder why I never got to hear about it.
"But aren't you an independent city? I heard no country out there can have this place." leaving those thoughts behind, I focused on learning the pope's troubles. By the talks… I think that this Empire was going for this place too.
"That is true, but the empire as it is now, is nothing more than a band of devils dressed as humans…. Recently their princesses have gotten the title of saint, of course from this very church… she had summoned a strong holy presence even for a moment...because of that, the emperor started saying this city should be within the empire's protection."
"Wow… they want the holy supporters all around the human countries to break the stalemate situation…"
"Yes… I see you are just as fast as Sir Merlin…. Now.. we did refuse that because we ourselves had a great saint who even had a blessing rivaling Lady Melinda… more over, their motives were clear as day… so they started to pressure us, even proposing marriage between the eldest prince and our Saint to unite ourselves…" The pope took a long sigh saying till this.
The empire sounds like a real shit hole.
"You refused… didn't you?"
"Of course, our beloved saint is not only loved in this city. She is a sacred child so pure even I can't compare to her. She is different from the heroes but she is in a way like a hero… if we were to give her to the empire, the whole of humanity would get raged by war, gods misfortune as they say, it is not unreal to think that might just happen. But since the time we declined their offer, most of the merchants and big influential people have stopped giving their support…. Or in truth, they had been stopped by the empire's influence… if not for the Hero's protection, we would have given up long ago. but without able to tread with others.... I am afraid even this city would become broken, even now many residents had to look outside and leave the city."
"But now my grandparents are retired." I said. They had long retired since they came to get me back at the edge of the world… Although after they came back, it was formally announced that they would retire.
"Yes… and since a year ago, the empire has started to wage constant war and pressure us for the saints' marriage… with their next emperor… the Prince himself is even leading the war for that reason…. I would have considered it if he were a good man but the prince has been known to use even more cruel tactics than the current emperor…"
"So what does he do?"
"He has told his armies that whatever they get, be it money, belongings, lands or even people, it will be theirs for the taking. Since then the prince has gradually won some land and battles… It is said that those battles that he won were nothing but torturing hell and the lands he seized had all its people turn into playthings. He even killed the kids in cold blood. Last year, he told our saint that he would stop these if only she marries him.. At that time.. I couldn't even look at that child... " I could see the pope breaking down… man… this story sucks… I don't wanna read a novel with a setting like this for sure.
"She was afraid to go?" I didn't know much about the saint since I was the Cursed sword wielder. You could say we are like the opposites of magnet poles. But since she was a girl aged like Leila and Mai, I thought she would be scared to go to such a ruthless place.
"No… she cried because she thought if she had already given herself to the empire all those lives and sufferings wouldn't have happened…. At that moment I stopped her somehow but I never saw that girl smile again… it eats away at me till this day." the Pope looked like she was holding on to so much pressure… and today she was finally releasing those pent up feelings..
But man… that saint… she is kinda… praise worthy if I think of the choice she wanted to make...
"Why didn't you ask Granny and Gramps?… they returned from the edge of the world quite some time ago."
"My child… They have already done a great deal. since I heard that you, their grandchild had reunited with them… I couldn't ask myself to tell them to fight for us. Now they have something so much more precious to them."
"I see…" I fell silent.. I was wondering all this time why the information of the empire was unheard of for me.. but it seems I was purposefully not given any information. For the first time in this world I felt the malice of humanity…. It wasn't new to me after living 3 lives… but I never got used to these situations…. and I could already feel my anger rising. it was surprising that Amanori wasn't preaching slaughter this and slaughter that about now.
"Can you tell me what the saint is doing now?" all this time I was here, I never heard anyone saying the saint was here.. Was she off somewhere?
"A few months ago she had developed a new magic… she has been using it to stop people's sufferings around the nearby locations…. It is unbearable to see her use that magic but she said it's her punishment for what happened to all those people because of her."
"What kind of magic is that?"
"She exchanges any wounds, ailments, injuries and all with her own body…. In some cases she can heal near dead humans too… this godly healing power was the thing the empire wanted.. If they had it, they would have an invincible army, you see?"
"D-doesn't she die? Because of that?" I asked, hearing a shocking magic at work. Not only that, her healing powers might just have surpassed my granny long ago.
"No, the saint is immortal. Any damage to her body no matter how fatal gets healed. Even if her head was cut, she would still live on." the pope answered. She really was a child of miracles...
"T-then what about the pain?" a normal human can't possibly endure having his head cut off and then heal like it was nothing! She would go insane!
"Of Course, every time she heals great amounts of people at once, it is even hard to recognize her as a corpse…. And she cries while her injuries get healed over several days… I am ashamed to say this but the girl loved by god has been going through hell. I am loath to say this but some priests out there say that this is a trial by god for her!" saying until that, the pope clutches her hand tightly in frustration.
As blood came out of her hands from clutching her fist, it really made me realize how much frustration she was holding.. I could see my hand was already shaking hearing the story. calm down...calm down... I need a hell of a lot information than just this... I need more and more info!
While I was frolicking around with my girlfriends, here this girl was seeing agony day after day..
"As the Pope and the one who looks at the saint as my own daughter, looking at your radiant light which I had never seen before in this world… I couldn't stop myself from wanting to get your support…. Will you please save my daughter… if not the city, only my daughter is fine!"
This wasn't a plea from the Pope… no this was a mother cornered after seeing her beloved daughter suffering day after day…. She even bowed to a teen boy… on earth I was barely seen as an adult. But in this world I had already become an adult.
"Please save her… I know I have no right to say this after everything that Lady Melinda has done for us, even Sir Merlin… but still.." I stopped her from grabbing my feet to beg…
I wonder how much time it has been since she saw her daughter the saint smile for real.
But even so, she showed a dazzling smile seeing my granny and me..
"Stop please…" hearing me and seeing that I stopped her from further begging, she stood up dejectedly. She couldn't look up because her face was ruined by tears… she already had a very saint-like face. It already relieves one if they only see her but this face when one sees her like this, their heart would surely feel like breaking apart.
She looked a bit older than my Granny but she still had the same air as a kind person.
I turned around and lay on the bed. Seeing me not giving her any response, the Pope left silently.
I had already made my decision. Tomorrow, I will get on my way out of here.
...….
Last night was hard to sleep… I never thought I would get such news after being baptized.
Now it was morning. After getting out of the room, the city was still buzzing with festivities.. rather it became even more bustling...
I guess they felt the terror of the empire could be solved by me…. no the normal peoples still don't know about the real problems... they are just happy about someone appearing... it seems though they don't know the whole details, they could sense it in the air... Or maybe they just wanted someone who had god's protection on him. The Pope was just like the way I had seen her the first time, last night's face was nowhere to be seen.
As the day progressed, I ordered the high ranking priests and the pope to gather everyone and I mean everyone out there.
In mere moments the order was done. My order was like god sent. They didn't even think about it and just did it.
"Everyone out there!" I was standing in front of thousands of people. Looks like by the night more had gathered. I used concentrated magic to make my voice sound louder. So that even the people out in the far back could hear me.
"Find the Oracle! The one who can truly hear God and get his guidance is the Oracle."
Hearing me slight murmur could be heard. This world didn't have them, but the second world I was born to had many of them. After the pope, I could say they were very important.
"If you think it is a legend, you are all wrong! I heard from him, there will always be one out there, you will have to find them and take them under your protection. If you want God's guidance, that is the only way! I am no one like that! I had only been given that massage to pass on to you.
Now it will be your turn! If you want God's guidance, go find them! The oracles!" As I stepped down from the platform the crowd went silent.
Since the old man did say the information to me. it wasn't really a lie. Also oracles are important, if the world is going in the wrong direction the oracles are more than necessary, even more than the hero's. Their Direction was something that even the cheat power like Amanori Couldn't compare to it.
"I will be going now… My work here is done… Please, your holiness in the near future, don't come to me. I am just their grandson, no one special." Hearing me, only for a second, I could see her depressed face. She nodded at me. I felt that she would keep her word. After wrapping up the proceedings, I started for my home…. There was no need to stay here any longer.
'To think that this world had another hell other than the Edge of the world… ha ha ha.. Civilization never seems to stop amazing me...'