Another side

　If there was a man on the move in the demon world, there was a movement in Isual as well.

''The front line is rigid, the troops are being depleted, their food supply is being depleted, and if they don't change, this year's wintering will be difficult.

　Theocratic State Tris.
　A country that worships a god and whose faith makes up the nation.
　The great temple that rises in the center of its capital, Trice.
　In the chapel-like hall, a knight reports to the archbishops lined up at a long table, but his report is not good.
　Everyone has a look of dissatisfaction on their faces.
　The theocracy is at war with the empire, allied with a neighboring kingdom.
　Although the war was initiated by the empire, it was not spontaneous, but rather it was started with anticipated, if not sufficient, preparations.
　There would have been more time to prepare if it had been originally planned.
　Nevertheless, the situation looks bad.
　It is not a bad situation assuming that they were set up and pushed back, but from the point of view of the apostles of God, it is not an acceptable situation.
　I know the reason for this, so the complaint is even more piling up.
　The series of scandals that have come to this was unexpected even by the leaders present here.
　The first is that the intelligence department was late in detecting the golem created by the empire, and thus the response was delayed and countermeasures were not fully taken.
　The second is that all the brave men and women who were summoned to oppose the empire were taken by someone who wanted to regain the lead.
　And third.

"Is the holy sword back yet?
"Ha!　I'm reporting that you're not ready either.
"Hurry up!
"Ha!

　The existing trump card that was built to redeem the scandal is sealed.
　The more you deal with it, the more you fall behind and the more you do, the worse it gets.
　The man who is reporting to the knight, in this case the man sitting at the top, shouts back at the knight's report with annoyance.
　You're going to have to have a lot of money to spend on your own.
　Above all, the imperial golem.
　The only way to counter the golem made from the remains of the demon king is now sealed, coupled with the impatience of the imperial golem.
　The original plan would have prepared more holy swords, and the war situation would have been more relaxed.
　The conversation in this conference room should not be about the war situation, but about the post-war period.
　It has devolved into a clash of emotions as they try to deviate from their plans and somehow come up with a breakthrough.

"The only holy sword I could have made was that one. It's almost too much of an inconvenience.

　Watching the knight leave, the man in the upper seat sits down to lean back.

It can't be helped. I forced a man with a low aptitude to become a holy sword. It's not surprising that there are flaws in its performance.

　The material for the holy sword was a grown man who led the brave men who were to become the material for the holy sword.
　It was a sad ending for a man who was drunk with the scent of women, got beaten to a pulp, lived a good life and forgot his true nature as a teacher.

Fortunately it's not a bad weapon. There have been reports of some improvement in its limited use.
I know that.

　Such a man is only a material role for one man, and men who do not hide their displeasure with his role as well.
　It is a theocracy, and everyone runs the state, a priest.
　Who would think they are priests just by what they say in this conference.
　The term "separation of church and state" has no place in this country, and a being named Pope is a person who prays to God and has no political voice, with no exceptions.
　So a being called the Archbishop gathers here to run the country and organize the military.
　It's more accurately called the Temple Knights, and although there is also a leader, the general movement is decided here.
　It sounds good when you say that the so-called "leaders" are struggling with their heads, but most of them are greedy, power-hungry foul-mouthed men who only care about keeping their power.
　The seat of the man who made the mistake of the hero's disappearance the other day is not here, and there is no one to think about what they are doing now.

"Can't push the front line for the time being?
"I'm sorry,
"d*mned heretics.

　There is a difference in the religions worshipped by empires and theocracies.
　Theocracies have the so-called "theocracy", the idea that God is the Supreme Being, with many pious believers.
　It is an environment where religion is often a part of the cycle of life, where people pray when they are in trouble, and pray when something auspicious happens.
　As a nation, it is easy to be united but fragile once chaos strikes.
　In contrast, the empire is a meritocracy, praying to God but ultimately thinking that you have to deal with it yourself.
　Therefore, it is similar to the Japanese concept of Oda Nobunaga, who neglected religion at the right time and place.
　It is the kind of thought that tells you to use them if you can, and if they are in your way, to shut up and pray.
　Because of this, there is a tendency to suspect their relatives because of the dry atmosphere.
　Because of this national character, even if you are accused of being a heretic, you will be blown away, and even take advantage of this trend to counterattack against the fact that the divine punishment does not fall on you, claiming that you are arrogant in the name of the god.
　There is no way such countries can get along with each other, and even the ceasefire agreement is not an option.
　There are two choices if we do this, destroy the enemy or destroy our own country.
　If we continue to do this, we will exhaust and ruin each other.
　Fearing such a future, there are factions in each country called moderates, but they have little or no say in the matter.
　That's why it's a quagmire.
　It is a quagmire because they only think of each other's interests and have no qualms about trampling on each other's feet.
　It is no wonder they are called corrupt.
　Complaining each other in the name of a meeting.
　And the simple task of affirming and lifting up the words of the one who has the most to say.
　The door to such a place is slammed.

Who's there!　I'm in a meeting right now!
"The Pope is here.
"!

　The archbishop, who was sitting near the door, was annoyed that the meeting was interrupted and shouted at him through the door, but it wasn't the voice of the knight at the door, but the voice of the maid, who was supposed to be the maid of honor.
　And the maid must have been a top-shelf attendant.
　Understanding and grasping the words, the archbishops are blindsided.


　An entity that should never have come here is now at the door.
　The archbishop, seated on the throne, immediately rises and pulls the knight to the wall.
　To greet him, he kneels down and turns to the altar in a prayer position.
　The other archbishops will follow suit and kneel down.
　Then, at the right moment, the knight opens the door.
　A sound like a bell can be heard from behind the door.
　But no one here hangs their head and doesn't look up.
　The bell tolls in a steady rhythm.
　Step by step, step by step, it rings in time with their steps.
　Then it leads them to the back of the main conference room and to the altar, which is higher than the conference room.

"The Pope speaks.

　Then, without anyone raising their heads, a woman's voice echoed in the silent space, followed by a young voice.

The Sun God sent a sign.

　No one reacts to the content of his voice.
　A pope is one who hears and delivers the voice of God.
　One who is not politically involved in any way, but has a voice in influencing the actions of this country.
　Therefore, his appearance here means that he has received a revelation from God.
　Normally he prays at the altar in the top room of the cathedral in the capital, but it is not unusual for him to appear in front of the archbishops like this.
　But on the contrary, when he appears, it means that he has a sign from God.

Seven days from now, a messenger from heaven will come forth. Attach three offerings to it. Then the messenger will guide you into the world of the brave.

　And whether the signs are beneficial or not depends on the time, but this time the result is beneficial.
　Joy fills the hearts of the archbishops.
　This will bring a blow to the abominable empire.

Yet.

　But then the Pope, who would normally leave after a word or two, continued to speak.

Choose your offerings carefully. That land is a place where God's majesty does not reach, a land unknown, where language is given, but know that it is different from the laws of this world. But know that this is not the way of the world.

　The archbishops could not gauge the meaning of those words.
　I understood that we were told to go for a brave man in a savage land, but I honestly didn't know what the other threats were.

"And there is the shadow of the moon in the land
""!"?"?"?

　But his next words caused the archbishops to look up.
　Forgetting that they were being reprimanded for being rude, they checked to see if the words were true.

'Rude!　Who said it was okay to look up!

　And the archbishops are reprimanded by the younger women.
　They are higher in rank.
　But in the here and now, the words of the maid are justified.
　It is not an acceptable act for anyone to interfere with the proclamation of the word of God.
　But it is also true that the word of the pope cannot be ignored.
　The moon is the word that goes to Trice.
　A word that can only be understood by those who know the truth.
　That demons are reaching out to the land of the brave.
　That was a fact that the archbishops should never have known.
　A brave man is a doctrinal symbol of justice, and that must not be violated.

Good.

　And the Pope, understanding that, questioned the archbishops for looking up.
　A small figure wrapped in a thin white veil covering his face.
　Dressed in a garment boasting an excess of ornamentation, gender unknown.

The word of God was that much harder for these men to accept. That's all.
"Excuse me.
"Good

　Not emotionless, but with a bird's-eye view of things.
　The lady bowed her head and apologized for raising her voice, but she didn't seem bothered.

"I beg your pardon, your eminence, but did you mean what you just said?

　And when the archbishop, the man sitting on the throne, who was measuring the timing of his statement, said it, the Pope shifted his gaze from the priestess to the archbishop, "Do you doubt the word of God?

"Do you doubt the word of God?
No, but the idea that demons would have a way to cross over to the other world is a bit far-fetched.
"But the word of God can only speak the truth.
"Ha!　Sorry.
"Good

　Although the archbishop expressed his reluctance to believe it, he could not look away from the gaze that seemed to be peering into the depths of his heart through the veil, and he could not help but hang his head honestly to the next words of the pope.

"And now, Archbishop,
"Ha!

　And the powers that be in this country can not go against the Pope.
　Normally, no one can oppose them, and they are the ones who stand above this country.
　Why?
　That's because this pope has remained in this form for more than a thousand years.
　He is not involved in politics and just preaches the word of God.
　But he is mightier than anyone else in the room.
　Do not harm his opponent and do not go against him.
　That is the unwritten law in this country.
　Therefore, the archbishop waits for the Pope's words.

Put the saints among the offerings, otherwise I'll leave it to you to choose.
"Haha!

　And having finished saying what he wanted to say, the Pope leaves the Great Chamber, led by a lady.


　They rang the bell as they had come and left, and after the door was closed, the archbishops continued to pray at the altar for a while, and when they stood up, sweat was on their foreheads.
　And when they got up, sweat was running down everyone's forehead.
　How I wish I could have said one word: pressure.
　A bundle of pride.
　Who doesn't have a heart.
　They are a quirky bunch of characters, and they do not fare well with the pope alone.

Archbishop Haese.
"What?

　Then, each of you takes your seat and tries to resume the conversation, but the earlier momentum is gone.

What do you want to know about the selection?
".........

　It's a tall order.
　That's all I have to say.
　It's obvious that we'll have a problem if we pick the wrong people.
　It is the apostle of God who will guide you across the other world.
　Perhaps, but if you use a strong selfish being with ambition or pride, you will displease the angels no matter how strong he is.
　Moreover, if you displease him and neglect this announcement, it will affect the future war situation.
　That must be avoided at all costs.
　Knowing this, the archbishop, called Hese, chooses silence and contemplates.

It can't be helped.

　And meanwhile, the other archbishops quietly waited for the words of Archbishop Haase.

"We will work with the Kingdom.
Is it still the case?

　After a long wait, Archbishop Haese's words made the Archbishop, who was sitting next to him, think that this is the only way.
　Of course, at first, Archbishop Haese wanted to deal with it with his own people, but then he decided that no one was qualified to be chosen from the current pool of candidates.
　In that case, we will bear the full responsibility for the failure.
　That must be avoided at all costs.
　You will share the honor of being led by God's apostle, but as a result of judging that the change will be worth it if you can bring in a brave man, you decide to ask for the kingdom's help and share the responsibility.
　There is no one to argue with that.

"Send a messenger now, and I will allow you to use the Pegasus. This is happening now, and it's urgent!
「「「「! 」」」」

　And on the day of the departure of the wise men to begin their activities in the magical world, this decision was made.

　Another side End


　Word of the Day
　Doesn't this happen on different days off?