Episode 458
“I can’t believe things turned out like this…” A
brown-haired, brown-eyed man who was making a bonfire in a forest slightly off the main road smiled and sighed. He looked relaxed, as if he had completed something big.
Then, an old man without a right arm sitting across from him smiled slightly and added.
“With this, the Kassel Magic Tower will no longer be able to appear in person.”
“I don’t know. I might just ignore it and show up.”
Logan, disguised as a brown-haired man, argued that way, but in fact, he didn’t really think that way.
“If you want to deal with the Holy Kingdom with the Empire’s remaining strength after fighting a war with us.”
At those words, the old man smiled and nodded.
“Anyway, it’s definitely a good move for McLane, but…”
“Ah… I wonder if you tried to use the temple as you please…”
“No, no, whatever. It’s a temple and a god, and I’m sick of it now. “I just do it.”
Old Man Harmon smiled bitterly as he looked at Logan in disguise.
Although he doesn’t look like he’s about to collapse or break at any moment, he still looks 20 years older than his original age.
Harman, who literally fell silent for an instant, opened his mouth again with a deep sigh.
“I would like to drive out false beliefs from this land, but that would be difficult, right?”
“…Yes. Probably.”
In order to drive out the belief in the Nine Great Gods, we must prove the gods’ immorality and reveal that they are not the absolute gods who support this world.
The problem is that not only is there no way to reveal the truth in the first place, but even if one does, devout believers are sure to reject the evidence.
This is what it means to fall into faith.
You have to believe and look up to them, and doubt is a sin.
Therefore, fanaticism and celibacy are not very different in the eyes of non-believers.
“But why did the gods think that faith in them would disappear when Zibrik Cassel came?”
Logan’s answer to that innocent, unspoiled former paladin’s question was simple.
“…It will be possible to erase it with blood. Of course, it will take a long time.”
“Blood…”
Harmon’s old face was distorted. I understood what it meant at once.
Destroy the Holy Kingdom and kill the priests.
9 Those who believe in the faith of the Great God are oppressed and killed.
If this can be repeated over a long period of time across the continent, the faith of the Nine Great Gods, which has taken root in the hearts of people on the continent over thousands of years, will one day disappear.
However, in order to implement it, you would have to be the ruler of the continent, even worse than the emperor of the empire.
And even if they had the ability, who would do such a thing?
Washing the entire continent in blood just for the sake of erasing false beliefs.
‘Only a sane person who doesn’t see people as people would be able to do this.’
That means.
“…I guess you could say that Gibrik Kassel is still a good person.”
“…Yes. Enough.”
Harmon didn’t question whether Logan spoke as if he knew Gibrik Cassel.
The incarnation of an enemy that God directly points out and tries to kill.
In a situation like that, it wouldn’t be surprising if you knew something.
“Kassel Magic Tower is trying to bring back such a madman, and its ultimate goal is…”
“Yes. They say they are trying to use me as a sacrifice. That’s what a reliable source told me.”
“…the gods said you were their incarnation?”
“The Kassel Magic Tower seems to think a little differently. Whether it’s a sacrifice or an incarnation, it all sounds terrible to me.”
Logan’s bitter smile instilled confidence in Harmon’s heart.
“I guess this can’t be helped.”
“…?”
“Honestly, I was so disillusioned with the actions of the gods that I even thought that the Kassel Tower might actually be justice.”
“That can’t be right.”
“Of course.”
Haha.
Harmon let out a deep sigh and lowered his head as if he was going to throw his head into a burning bonfire.
Then, he raised his head again with stern eyes.
“…The gods and the monster Jibrik are things that should not exist in the world. We have kicked out the apostle, so now it is our turn to stop Jibrik. I will be with you, Your Majesty.”
The moment he heard those words, Logan’s face lit up.
“Thank you, Lord Harman.”
Although he now looks senile, he knows how to control the power of his soul and is now slowly regaining his past strength. Perhaps, as time passes, it will be possible to some extent to regain one’s original appearance.
‘There’s nothing I can do about my right arm.’
Losing the right arm that has held the sword throughout one’s life is a fatal flaw for a knight.
But there is a certain melody. As long as he had enough energy, he could easily deal with most Auror users.
Therefore, Logan was slowly increasing his movement speed in line with his recovery. Fortunately, Kyle Sung’s matter was resolved so quickly and favorably that it was decided that there was enough time.
But there was another reason before that.
‘A slight but scar remained on the Master’s soul. But Sir Harman made a full recovery.’
The difference was truly big. This means that if Harman fully recovers, he may be able to challenge the level of Aura Master again.
And that was the crucial difference between the resurrection of the teacher that he forced himself to bring about and the ‘resurrection’ of Harman and the saint, which was nothing more than a coincidence.
A method of reviving the soul that is not yet complete.
In order to learn the method and wake up Clayton, Logan wants to keep Harmon by his side.
“Nothing much to say. It was also Your Majesty who saved me. I just want to return the favor, so please don’t mind.”
Harmon also knew Logan’s intentions.
It is also true that Logan, who has already reached a place beyond his reach, faces a huge obstacle ahead.
Therefore, Harmon was determined to live up to those expectations.
‘If it’s King Logan, it will be possible. Defeat those madmen at the Kassel Magic Tower and maybe even give
it to the gods…’ He might be able to feed them in a way he couldn’t even imagine.
The incarnation of the enemy of God.
The fact that he could look at such a being so reassuringly made Harmon feel very sad and resentful.
But for now, I had to put those feelings aside for a moment.
‘I need to clearly organize my thoughts first.’
Dramatic resurrection. To convey to him the knowledge of God and divine power behind it.
Harmon’s blue eyes gradually deepened, and Logan looked at him with calm eyes.
And a few days later.
One evening, as we passed the border of the empire and were speeding toward Ruspelheim, Harman, who was preparing to camp, suddenly opened his mouth.
“I think I can now properly explain the soul revival you mentioned earlier. It’s finally clearing things up rationally.”
His expression appears to be much lighter, as if he has mentally sorted things out.
Maybe that’s why the wrinkles on my presbyopia seemed to be turning a little.
“…please.”
Harmon, who hesitated for a moment in response, soon began talking with a small sigh.
Since he was only human, he couldn’t help but feel heartbroken as he tried to explain that the truth he had believed his entire life was a lie.
So he tried to end the story as briefly as possible.
“…Priests cultivate their faith with the sole intention of devoting themselves to God. I was the same. But anyway, the soul I would have dedicated to God was eroded, so why did I feel so betrayed?”
“…I was curious about that too.”
“The devotion I thought and hoped for as a believer was to spend eternity with God after my death. It was to spend eternity enjoying God’s blessings in heaven. But…”
Harman said, as if recalling some painful memory. The expression distorted in an instant.
“I could feel it right away as the soul erosion began. I would no longer be myself.”
“…??”
When Logan tilted his head at the ambiguous expression, Harmon continued speaking, moistening his dry lips.
“To put it simply, the gods’ status expands a little as they swallow me. They assimilate my soul into themselves. It’s a bonus to get a body that can function in this world.”
But Logan didn’t even understand those words.
“…Being one with God doesn’t seem like such a bad thing for priests, does it?”
Didn’t he himself say a little while ago that he had lived with the intention of dedicating himself to God?
However, in response to that question, Harmon’s expression became even more distorted. Then, he began to pour out words rapidly, as if he was spewing out something that had been building up in his heart.
“Do you think, Your Majesty, that you have become one with the pork you ate yesterday? No, even if you think so, would the pig that became meat also think that way? To put it simply, in the eyes of the gods, I am a food well-cooked to their taste. “It was just that.”
Harman’s analogy was truly poignant and intuitive.
“The being whom I had devoted my entire life to believing would follow me even after death… thought of me as something similar to food. Would anyone be happy about that even if they knew that? There may be such a crazy person out there somewhere, but fortunately, I am not that crazy. “It wasn’t.”
Grumbling.
Harmon’s expression as he finished his sentence by gritting his teeth clearly showed the resentment boiling in his heart.
“Ah…”
When Logan, who unconsciously let out an exclamation, made an awkward expression, Harmon collected his emotions by dry washing his face.
Soon he forced a smile and spoke calmly again.
“Still, I also gained something thanks to that. In the moment of encroachment, when God and I were connected, a little bit of God’s knowledge flowed into me.”
God’s knowledge?
The moment those words came out, Logan’s red eyes lit up.
With very clear goals and desires.
Harmon, who knew the reason, organized his thoughts once again and continued his explanation using the easiest analogy.
“…Why do you think a corrupted priest can use divine power?”
“…Because you still believe in God?”
“Yes, that’s right. Then why is it that people who are devout believers can’t use their divine power?”
“…ah?”
Logan was left speechless by the unexpected retort.
All that comes to mind is what comes to mind.
“…Because you don’t really know the scriptures or faith?”
“Have you ever heard a story about a priest whose divine power does not manifest itself even after practicing for a long time? Then why do they do that?”
Logan’s expression hardened again.
Seeing that scene, Harmon let out a short sigh, and a wry smile appeared on his lips.
“The reason a devout believer can’t use divine power is simply because they don’t match the wavelength with God. That’s all.”
“under?”
“God wants to gain souls through the faith of as many people as possible. By doing so, he has a desire to increase his own existence and grow further.
So, he wants to spread his divine power just by believing. To be precise, he wants to engrave his traces in the human souls. “It’s similar to writing down your name as your own. But if you can’t leave that mark, it’s simply because your wavelength doesn’t match.
”
“At best…?”
“Yes. That’s all. No matter how powerful the beings are, they cannot come down to this world directly after they have already ascended to a higher level. The only solution is to create apostles through holy relics. That also requires paying a big price.”
“A big price?”
“I don’t know much about that. It seems like a big loss… Well, I guess that’s why the temple’s work has been made bigger every time the apostles have come down.” There
was a hint of cynicism in the expression on Harman’s face as he said that.
“To the Nine Great Gods, humans are . “is nothing more than food to fatten themselves. This world itself is a kind of fish farm for them.” Those
words were spoken in a cold and heavy voice.
It was a truth that painfully touched even Logan, who had already become a non-believer.
