Damn Reincarnation-Novel

Chapter 201: The Audience Camber (2)

Kristina’s outspread wings covered the door and the walls of the Audience Chamber. Forgetting to even regenerate his severed hand, Aeuryus stared at Kristina with wide eyes.

An angel’s wings were a symbol of their rank. According to what was recorded in the Scriptures of Light, when the Incarnation of Light, the Son of Heaven[1], descended to this world, the angel whom the Son of Heaven called upon the most and showed the most favor to possessed six wings.

Yuras had always been obsessed with reproducing such a miraculous appearance. However, divine magic was only capable of growing a pair of wings. Depending on their strong faith and divine power, a user of divine magic could make their wings bigger and brighter, but no matter how much they wanted to, they wouldn’t be able to increase the number of wings they could grow.

Several attempts had been made to artificially increase the number of wings, but they hadn’t worked out. While attaching a few more wings to a pegasus, which possessed a pair of wings from birth, was a simple task that couldn’t really be considered a miracle, it wasn’t so easy to artificially attach a pair of wings to a human who had been born without wings.

In fact, if they could be satisfied with ordinary wings, it was actually possible to implant dozens of wings on a person’s back instead of just six.

However, they didn’t want just plain and ordinary wings. What they wanted were Wings of Light. Wings that had been made from the Light. Wings, whose very act of being unfurled, would seem miraculous. Even the Pope and the Cardinals, who had artificially implanted themselves with their Stigmata, could only grow two Wings of Light.

That was why the three couldn’t take their eyes off Kristina.

Just by looking at those eight shining wings, they could tell that these wings hadn’t been artificially created. Those wings were unmistakably a symbol of Divine Majesty that had to have been bestowed by a miracle. Although the three of them could have also spread their own pairs of large and shining wings, even if they all spread their wings simultaneously, it seemed like they wouldn’t be able to overwhelm the light emitted by those eight wings.

Even though the light coming from Kristina’s wings was shining so brightly… they weren’t being blinded even as they looked right at it. Instead, this light kindly caressed and passed through their eyes, stirring their souls.

“...Ahhh…!” Cardinal Beshara let out a quiet exhalation and closed his eyes.

A single tear ran down his cheek.

However, Cardinal Pietro, who stood beside him, didn’t shed any tears. Instead, he glared at Kristina with his eyes bulging in disbelief. At the same time, he balled up his fists inside his sleeves.

Raphael, who was still holding his greatsword to their necks, noticed Pietro’s eyes. The emotion that was slowly bubbling up within the Cardinal’s gaze was neither awe nor worship.

As such, Raphael didn’t hesitate.

The blade was pushed forward and decapitated Pietro’s head from his neck like a guillotine.

Pietro himself could never have imagined that he would ever be beheaded like this. He was someone who bore the mark of the Stigmata on his forearm, one of the three Cardinals of the Holy Empire.

Raphael didn’t care about any of that. Even though Pietro had been presented with a miracle that should have forced him to acknowledge the truth of his mistakes, he had refused to do so; thus, Raphael had to punish him.

Pietro had his head cut off before he could even call upon the Light. As Pietro’s head rolled down the blade of his sword, Raphael grabbed it by the hair.

The blood that gushed out of Pietro’s body after some delay, stained the walls and ceiling of the Audience Chamber red.

“...Ah…,” Beshara, who had been standing right beside the two, gulped as blood spattered onto his cheek.

He turned to look at what was happening next to him in bewilderment. Pietro’s body, which had had its head cut off, was left staggering forward.

Beshara wasn’t the only one who had been flustered by this. Both Kristina and Eugene were taken aback by the sudden violence. Pope Aeuryus’ jaw gaped soundlessly in shock. Only Raphael was left, lifting Pietro’s head with a calm look on his face.

“...Why did you… kill him?” Eugene was so dumbfounded that he stuttered his question.

In response to this, Raphael shook Pietro’s head from side to side and said, “He won’t die from just this.”

Eugene shook his head, “No, that’s absurd…. You’ve beheaded him, so how can he not die? Even someone as strong as Cardinal Rogeris would have died if he was beheaded—”

“Pietro is the Chancellor of the Department of Divine Magic,” Raphael explained. “He’s different from Sergio, a combat monk from the Inquisition. Isn’t that right?”

The head swinging from Raphael’s hand was swung against the wall.

At this impact, Pietro’s head opened its mouth and screamed, “Aaargh!”

Such a sight made Eugene feel dizzy for a few moments. Although he knew that there were a few high-ranking demonfolk who wouldn’t die even after being decapitated, he had never seen a human who could survive having his head cut off.

“Ra- Rapha- Raphael! You— How dare you!” Petro cried as blood spattered from his lips. Perhaps because his throat had been cut completely open, his voice had a breathy, hissing sound to it.

“Quickly... quickly reattach… my neck… to my body!” Pietro demanded.

Raphael idly commented, “Even you will probably die if you stay like this for about five minutes, right?”

Pietro glared, “You… you dare…!”

“Although I predicted this, actually seeing you like this in reality is extremely disturbing and disgusting. Could this really be called a miracle? It looks more like evil black magic to me…,” Raphael muttered.

Pietro growled, “Graargh…!”

“I’ve wanted to try and slit your throat for a while now. There’s no need for you to feel so victimized, Pietro. After all, among the newly enlisted recruits into the Church Soldiers, I know that you’ve been enticing a few poor, young chicks who’ve lost their parents and are in need of money to conduct various experiments on them.”

“You! What do you know? Don’t act like you’re so righteous…! All of that is for the sake of developing new Miracles—”

“I didn’t slice your head off just to argue with you,” Raphael said as he threw Pietro’s head back behind him.

The head crashed into a wall and fell to the ground before rolling around.

“Gaaargh!” Pietro screamed.

Thanks to Raphael having suddenly cut the head off of one of the Cardinals, Eugene was feeling extremely off-balance. Glancing back to the person in front of him, Eugene’s eyes met with Aeuryus, whose neck was still sandwiched between the Moonlight Sword and the Holy Sword.

“...Eugene Lionheart, are you going to kill me?” Aeuryus eventually demanded.

Eugene just warned him, “Shouldn’t you add a Sir to that?”

“Hah?” Aeuryus’s eyes shook in disbelief.

Eugene continued asking, “Don’t you understand your situation? Could it be that you won’t die right away either if your head gets chopped off like his?”

Aeuryus stoically remained silent.

“Listen closely, I am the Hero chosen by the Holy Sword, and according to your doctrine, that means I am the Incarnation of the Light. Isn’t that right? Meanwhile, isn’t the Pope just an Agent of the Light? Surely the Incarnation must be closer to God than the Agent, no?”

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“...That’s….”

“What, are you going to spout bullshit and claim that I’ve fallen like Sergio did?” Eugene said with a sneer.

Aeuryus didn’t say a word in response to this and just stared at Eugene. After a few moments, he let out a long sigh and nodded.

“I understand,” Aeuryus conceded. “But please restrain your anger and allow us to treat Pietro’s head.”

Eugene raised a brow, “And why should I do that?”

“Sir Eugene, you may not be aware, but Pietro has done many things for the Light over the past few decades,” Aeuryus tried to argue.

“And I guess that one of the results is that he doesn’t die right away even if his head is cut off?” Eugene asked sarcastically.

“That is the result of repeatedly performing experimental miracles on his own body. Lord Raphael may have accused Pietro of harming the young recruits, but that was all to strengthen the Church Soldiers. And why does the Holy Empire of Yuras require a strong army, and where does it put them to use? Isn’t it all to keep Helmuth in check—”

“I also didn’t come here to listen to shit like that.”

The Holy Sword began to emit light. Aeuryus’ eyes narrowed as he looked down at the light streaming through the sword held beside his neck.

“Then please, let us talk, Sir Eugene,” Aeuryus politely requested.

Before Eugene could even respond to these words, Pietro’s head, which had rolled into a corner, cried out, “Talk?! Your Holiness, just what kind of talk can you have with these vile and vicious fallen ones!”

Pietro just couldn’t maintain his composure. It had already been over a minute since his head had been chopped off. Even with the Stigmata implanted on him, he would surely die if his head was cut off and wasn’t reattached within five minutes. Pietro couldn’t help but feel anxious and enraged at the thought that he had only a few minutes left to live.

Pietro demanded, “You need to call the Paladins and the Church Sol—”

“If I offer his head, would you be willing to talk to me?” Aeuryus calmly asked as his eyes gestured towards Pietro.

At these words, Pietro’s head, which had already paled from the loss of so much blood, twisted into a grimace, “Aeuryus!”

Aeuryus apologized, “I’m sorry, Pietro. However, I don’t want my name to go down in history like this.”

Pietro stammered, “Wh-what do you mean!”

“We might be able to overcome this dangerous situation. However, do you think it will be possible to resolve this crisis without any fuss? No matter what, an uproar will occur, then the Paladins and the Church Soldiers will flock over.” Aeuryus let out a long sigh and closed his eyes, “How exactly am I supposed to explain this situation to them? Do I tell them that Eugene Lionheart, the Incarnation of Light, has rebelled and that the ever-loyal Crusader, Lord Raphael, has joined in his rebellion? How am I meant to explain the wings growing from the back of Saint Candidate Kristina?”

“Th-that's…!”

“I’ve thought it over several times, but it wouldn’t benefit the Church to overcome or even show any resistance in this situation.”

“But no matter what…! You, are you really going to sacrifice me when we’ve been leading this Church together for decades now?!” Pietro roared in disbelief.

Aeuryus sighed, “Stifle your anger, Pietro. After all, wasn’t it due to your own undoing that you were beheaded?”

Eugene, listening to the conversation, let out a snort. As expected of Pope Aeuryus. He was definitely a zealot like the rest, but as befitting someone who has led the Church of Light for the past few decades, he had a cunning side.

Eugene spoke up, “If it’s just a conversation, then, of course, I’m willing to participate as long as you desire.”

“And what should we do about Pietro’s head?” Aeuryus asked cautiously.

“I’m not the one who chopped it off, so why are you asking me?” Eugene said with a shrug and a sly smirk.

Now that things had played out like this, it wouldn’t mean much to the overall situation to subtract a life or two, but Eugene didn’t want to unnecessarily shoulder the responsibility for doing so.

Though, Eugene wasn’t sure if Raphael understood his intentions. What was clear was that Raphael didn’t like Pietro. The divine magic developed by the Department of Divine Magic, which Pietro led, often demanded prices that weren't worth the miracle, most of which involved the destruction of the body.

The Knights of the Blood Cross, led by Raphael, didn’t need to rely on such dubious and crude miracles, but there was an overabundance of Paladins in Yuras.

Among these other Paladins, there were a few newly appointed knights of the faith who would knock on the door of the Department of Divine Magic, hoping for a stronger and more brilliant Light.

“H-hold on,” Pietro cried out.

Light erupted from Raphael’s greatsword. Beshara, watching this happen right before him, sighed and made the sign of the cross.

The slash made no sound. Raphael’s greatsword moved at an unbelievable speed for its size and cut down Pietro’s body.

The following stream of slashes rained down on Pietro’s head. Like the last time, Pietro couldn’t even let out a scream. A bright light engulfed Pietro’s head, and amid this Light, his head was scattered into dust.

“Such light,” Beshara muttered. “...To think that the Light emitted by a sword that kills a Cardinal… would be so unbelievably clear.”

“I know, right,” Raphael agreed with a laugh as he withdrew his greatsword’s Light.

Aeuryus questioned Eugene, “What did you do at the Fount of Light?”

“I just saved a woman who was bleeding profusely,” Eugene confessed.

“Are you saying you killed so many believers just to save the Saint Candidate?” Aeuryus asked in disbelief.

“I didn’t save her because she’s the Saint Candidate,” Eugene denied.

“Then why?”

“Because I received a revelation.”

It wasn’t a lie. Eugene really had received guidance from the Holy Sword to break through the restrictions surrounding the temples. At the source of the spring, he had even seen the Saints who had given themselves to the Fount starting from long ago.

“Since I was shown such a revelation, I couldn’t just stay still,” Eugene declared.

“A revelation, you say,” Aeuryus chuckled and nodded.

Before Aeuryus had even realized it, the two swords that had been touching his neck were already withdrawn. Aeuryus picked up his right hand that had fallen onto the table and stuck it back onto the stump of his severed hand.

Aeuryus’s flesh proceeded to merge with each other.

“Did the revelation instruct you to destroy the Fount?” Aeuryus asked.

“Nope,” Eugene admitted.

“So, Sir Eugene, that means it was your decision to destroy the Fount,” Aeuryus concluded.

Eugene nodded, “That’s right.”

“The fact that the Holy Sword can emit such brilliant light in your hand… in the end, doesn’t that mean the Light was enraged by the ritual being performed at the Fount?” Aeuryus asked doubtfully.

“I don’t know about the Light, but I was infuriated,” Eugene replied.

“Sir Eugene,” Aeuryus raised his hand to grab the three-layered crown above his head, slowly lifted it off, and set it down in front of him. “Are our beliefs wrong?”

This question wasn’t one that could be answered lightly. Eugene stared at the Pope of Yuras in front of him. Although only a single Pope was currently standing before him, the entire history of the Holy Empire could be seen within the light flickering in his eyes.

So Eugene decided to answer honestly, “How should I know?”

He hadn’t come here with a grandiose intention to argue about the right and wrong of their faith. What Eugene wanted, in the end, was just for nothing at all to have happened. For all the things he had done in Yuras to not become a problem and weigh him down like a ball tied to his ankle. So that the troublesome and grandiose accomplishment of turning the whole of Yuras into his enemy didn’t happen.

“If you want to hear about whether your beliefs are right or wrong, ask her,” Eugene said as he turned his head and looked down.

His eyes met with Kristina, whose eight wings were still outspread.

[Kristina Rogeris,] the voice in her head spoke to her.

The intention wasn’t to give her a push to the back. Kristina was well aware of what she should do in this situation. She didn’t need to muster up any great determination to do it. Kristina herself knew that she deserved to do this.

Light scattered from her like falling feathers as Kristina spread her wings and flew up to stand right in front of Aeuryus.

“Aaaah…!” Beshara closed his eyes and raised a prayer at her holy appearance.

Aeuryus calmed his trembling breath and blinked his eyes once before speaking, “...Saint Candidate Kristina. No, it’s no longer appropriate to call you tha—”

Before his words were even finished, Kristina’s right hand slapped Aeuryus in the ear.

An unbelievably heavy sound of a slap echoed through the Audience Chamber.

“Let’s start with getting this blow in,” Kristina’s lips parted. “I have discovered what I am. I know what the Saints who came before me were like and what became of them when they died. I know the truth of that false name you gave to the Fount of Light.”

“However, it’s true that you have grown wings,” Aeuryus tried to argue.

“Yes, that’s right,” Kristina conceded. “But these wings weren’t grown by me through the miracles and rituals designed by you. These wings are not the products of the false miracles you all have been seeking.”

“If that’s the case, then does that mean everything we’ve done has been meaningless?” Aeuryus asked. “Is our faith, no, the faith of all the Popes and Cardinals who have existed in the past wrong?”

“There are those…,” Kristina began hesitantly, “who have been saved by this country you have nurtured and by the Light and faith you have untiringly promoted.”

Kristina recalled a few of her long-distant memories. Before she had even become the adopted daughter of Sergio Rogeris. She remembered living in a secluded and peaceful rural monastery.

While she may have been under watch even then, Kristina had no awareness of this in her childhood. All of the children who had been raised in the monastery were from similar circumstances. They were children who had been abandoned by their parents. All from ordinary backgrounds, children who didn’t know anything about their families.

The monasteries of the Church of Light regularly took in such orphans.

Kristina didn’t have any clue whether the orphans raised by the monastery had grown up in the right way and eventually found their own happiness. However, at that time… when Kristina thought of her life in the monastery, she had felt that the salvation of the Light had come to save her abandoned self.

“But there are also those who have been hurt by your obsessions,” Kristina concluded.

Aeuryus pleaded, “Is it wrong to yearn for the Light?”

“No, that isn’t wrong. However, you went beyond even yearning for the Light and wanted to own a Light created by your own hands. You all… were meant to serve the God of Light, but instead intruded on his domain,” Kristina condemned.

“Hahaha…!” Aeuryus laughed and shook his head. “If you really know everything, and have indeed received a ‘real’ miracle that has given you the ability to spread those wings, then please, answer this question. A long, long time ago, when the Incarnation of the Light, the Son of Heaven, descended onto this land, then died and left once more, leaving behind the Holy Sword Altair….”

“Yes, that’s all true,” Kristina nodded impatiently.

“However, after the Son of Heaven left us, none of the believers of the Light could hold the Holy Sword. And that wasn’t the end, was it? Even though the believers so fervently longed for the Light, the Light that had returned to the heavens up above never returned. He didn’t even send down a new Apostle to take his place,” Aeuryus said bitterly, his face no longer calm. With passionate eyes, he stared at Kristina and continued speaking, “That was why our predecessors decided to bring the Light back themselves. Is that… is that really such a mistake?”

“The Light…,” Kristina paused as she looked through Anise’s memories.

Now Kristina no longer had any doubts about the existence of the God of Light.

Kristina continued, “No matter what kind of ugly deeds they committed, the Light was always there for them, bestowing its blessings.”

They had tried to artificially create a Saint, cloned her, and then used her remains as a holy relic to create the Fount of Light.

At that time, the Church felt they had no choice but to do so. The current era might be peaceful, but even going back just three hundred years ago, the world had entered an era of war led by the Demon Kings. In previous eras, wars were even more frequent as nations collided with each other, and even faiths were contested.

In such an era, the Saint created to serve as a divine weapon managed to perform admirably. In the battlefields where the Saint could participate, the damage to her allies was overwhelmingly lesser. In return, the Saint’s life was short-lived, but she was able to save the lives of countless soldiers in return.

“The crimes that successive Popes and Cardinals have committed… the Light had no choice but to sorrowfully accept their deeds,” Kristina revealed.

If the existence of the Saint was truly a mistake….

If Yuras who had created and made use of the Saint was wrong to do so….

Then surely, shouldn’t the Light have left them immediately?

Kristina explained, “The reason that the Light didn’t return to this world is that he already dwells within the hearts of the believers who serve him, and he shines down upon them from the heavens up above.”

“…….”

Aeuryus remained silent.

“The merciful Light can accept the entire sordid past of this country. However, this does not absolve your transgressions. The Light knows how easily zealotry can destroy someone. That is why they do not allow a citizen of this country to lift the Holy Sword.”

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“How… how could that be!”

“You should recall the entire history of this country and what all of you have done to propagandize your faith. For example, the Stigmata has been passed down through successive generations of Popes and Cardinals. For that alone, the Popes and Cardinals have been considered special, and many people became followers of the Light because they were fascinated by the ‘symbol’ of the Stigmata,” Kristina pointed out.

Aeuryus hesitated, “...That was to revitalize the church….”

Kristina agreed, “Yes, they did manage to revitalize the church with their self-drawn Stigmata and self-made Saint. That is how Yuras has been able to reign as a Holy Empire for so long. However, the Light will no longer overlook your transgressions. The Light does not want the Holy Sword, which was forged personally from their own flesh and blood, to be used as a symbol for zealous proselytization.”

“Ha… hahaha!” Aeuryus let out a dejected laugh and lowered his head. “...So if that is why we were not able to carry the Holy Sword… then why… why was the Great Vermouth able to hold the Holy Sword? Why is his descendant, Eugene Lionheart, currently holding the Holy Sword?”

“Because the era needed a Hero,” Kristina replied in an unwavering voice. “The Light wanted the Holy Sword to be used purely to save the world, not to act as a symbol that would lead the era into an age of zealotry. Therefore, a person with the qualifications to do so could pull out the Holy Sword and become the Hero.”

“...Saint Kristina, you… are you saying that Eugene Lionheart, who isn’t even from Yuras, is the Hero who will save this world?” Aeuryus asked doubtfully.

Kristina denied this, “I am not the one who chose him to be the Hero. The God of Light personally chose Sir Eugene Lionheart.”

Aeuryus was struck silent.

There was no way that could be the case. The Saint Candidates were just such an existence. Their existence was necessary for the sake of Yuras, the Church, and the World. It was only natural that the mission of a Saint was more important than any individual Saint’s personality or emotions.

“Yuras couldn’t even save a single woman who was festering in agony. How can a person from such a country as Yuras become a Hero to save the world?” Kristina scoffed bitterly.

Unable to say anything more, Aeuryus closed his eyes. Beshara shed tears as he recited a prayer over and over again.

“...What shall we do?” Aeuryus finally spoke up at the end of a long silence. “...What do you want from us?”

“Please don’t get involved,” Kristina replied. “Please don’t hold Sir Eugene accountable for any of this. Please don’t commit any more transgressions. Please don’t repeat any of your sins. …And for the Saints who have been sacrificed so far as well as the candidates who weren’t able to become Saints… please erect a memorial in remembrance of them.”

Aeuryus silently accepted these requests.

“There will be no more need for Saints in the ages to come,” Kristina promised. “So please don’t try to make any more Saints. If you still have some of the relics stored away… please return them to where they need to go. Please don’t openly acknowledge me as the Saint. You don’t have the right to give such an acknowledgment.”

“...Our faith…,” Aeuryus brought up hesitantly.

Kristina instructed, “Just serve the Light with pure intentions. Be thankful for the Light that exists everywhere in this world.”

“...Yes,” Aeuryus looked up at the Light with blank eyes. “...I promise I will.”

Now, everything was over.

Kristina tried to withdraw as she felt a slight dizziness. However, at that moment, Anise spoke inside Kristina’s head.

[Kristina, may I borrow your body for a few moments?]

[This is my own personal business. It won’t take long, so please allow me to use your body for a little while.]

While feeling uneasy, Kristina focussed on Anise’s soul.

Then a conversion took place.

Anise was aware, as someone who had already died, it would be unacceptable for her to steal or monopolize Kristina’s body for herself. However, there were moments when she couldn’t help but do so. Now was one such moment for Anise.

A sound heavier than the slap from earlier shook the Audience Chamber.

It was only natural. Anise didn’t slap him like Kristina had but instead smashed Aeuryus’ nose with a tightly clenched fist.

“Gagh?!”

Who could have imagined that a fist would be sent flying into his face in such an atmosphere? Aeuryus tumbled backward in his chair.

“Open the door to the Special Artifact Vault,” Anise ordered.

“Ah… huh?” Aeuryus stammered painfully.

“No, is there even any need for me to tell you to open the door? I’ll open the door myself, so just hand me the key.”

As she said this, Anise grabbed Aeuryus’ right hand and pulled off the platinum ring from his index finger. Even though she had told him to hand it over, she just took it herself.

“After all, even though you’ve said all this, isn’t it possible for you lot to go back on your words behind the scenes?” Anise muttered to herself. “So, I’ll go to the Special Artifact Vault and check the remaining relics. By seeing it with my own eyes, I’ll be able to judge what things shouldn’t be allowed to exist and take care of them with the Sacred Rites.”

“...Ah… un-understood,” Aeuryus stammered once more.

While the demand was excessive, Aeuryus couldn’t put up any resistance to her words. For some reason, the nature of the Light surrounding Kristina seemed to have changed, and it was impossible to even think of refusing, especially when he was being confronted with those eyes.

“I’ll also take out any items I need to carry from the Special Artifacts Vault, so just overlook them if they’re missing.”

“Yes….”

Upon hearing this timid reply, Anise smiled contentedly. She massaged her aching wrist and turned, meeting Eugene’s gaze, who was standing beside her with a dazed expression.

“What are you looking at?” Anise asked cheekily.

“Uh… um…. Oh, that’s right, it is you,” Eugene nodded.

“Let’s go,” Anise said as she spread her wings and glided down from the raised dais.

Raphael, who had returned the greatsword to his back, bowed his head to Anise even as he inwardly tilted his head in confusion at the strange sense of incongruity and charisma coming from Kristina.

Before they left the Audience Chamber, Beshara, who had been praying for quite some time, sobbed and called out to Anise, “Lady Saint.”

“What is it?” Anise curtly responded.

“...We… can we really go to heaven? Is heaven truly real?” Beshara pleaded.

At this question, Anise snorted and tucked her wings back in, “Heaven exits, but you need to do a lot of good deeds to get in there.”

“...Ah…!” Beshara gasped.

“You know what that means, right? Just because you’re a Pope or a Cardinal doesn’t mean you necessarily get to go to heaven,” as Anise said this, she opened the closed doors to the Audience Chamber. “If you want to go to heaven, go and do good deeds.”