“No, there’s nothing to be impressed about.”
Even though I was not a clergyman, he seemed sincerely pleased that I had learned ancient proverbs.
I continued to scan through the documents and suddenly had an idea.
“Would it be okay if I helped you with this?”
“What?”
“I mean, with organizing these scriptures. It looks like it would take a lot of time to go through the papers, but it doesn’t seem like a particularly difficult task.”
At a glance, it was just a matter of sorting and organizing the scriptures. So if one could read ancient proverbs, it seemed like something anyone could do, even if they weren’t a church member.
Tane blinked and responded.
“Well, that’s true, but I don’t know if I should ask you to do that, Ethan.”
“You’ve already been so helpful to me, so it’s really not a big deal. Plus, I really want to give it a try.”
All I did all day was lie in bed or look at the scenery in the monastery’s courtyard. Doing nothing and passing the time like that was beyond boring.
And as I had said, I was indebted to the monastery, so this kind of help wasn’t a big deal.
“If I take care of half the volume, couldn’t you just give it one final check, Father?”
Tane seemed to hesitate for a moment.
But seeing the dark circles under his eyes, and knowing how busy he already was, it seemed like an offer he couldn’t refuse.
He smiled and nodded.
“Okay, I’ll ask you to do that. Thank you so much.”
***
I came back to my room with the scriptures and paper and pen that Tane handed to me.
I sat at the desk on one side of the room and started working immediately. I unfolded the scriptures on one side and put the paper down on the other, scribbling with an inked pen.
'I will try to finish it by tomorrow.'
I searched for verses, categorized them, and recorded them. It was a task that was close to simple labor, but it was much less boring and more productive than doing nothing. And there was some enjoyment in examining each verse of the scriptures.
As I filled one side of the paper, I took a moment of rest and lost myself in thought.
'God...'
There were countless religions on Earth, but the concept of religion in this world was a bit different. That was because they truly believed and worshiped a transcendent being whose existence was clearly present.
The God of Light, Rael.
The only denomination in the RaSa’s worldview that was recognized by all was the Raelian denomination that worshiped him. It was also the state religion of Santea, and at least within the realm of Santea, it was difficult to find someone who did not believe in Rael.
Compared to the past, the Raelian religion had become much stronger, and there were clear reasons and turning points why they had even more absolute faith in the existence of the God they believed in.
The onslaught of demon forces and the appearance of the Holy Sword.
In the abyss of despair, where nothing but destruction awaited, the transcendent being performed a miracle for humanity with a single sword. And the course of the war was completely reversed.
Only one human, who was chosen by the Holy Sword, eradicated the darkness that had spread over the continent with her transcendent power, and humanity ultimately succeeded in sealing the Demon King and driving out the demons.
'Hero.'
The current owner of the Holy Sword, a being celebrated as a great hero by all.
In the official setting, she was the strongest existence in RaSa’s worldview.
Such a hero could be considered the axis that currently balanced the four major powers.
Even the powerful Calderic maintained a certain degree of surface-level peace by not invading Santea, and the fact that the demonic forces with superior power than Calderic were not running wild was all due to the existence of the hero.
Therefore, it was an expected future that a great chaos would return to the continent once the hero disappeared.
And there wasn’t much time left until that moment.
She suffered from serious after-effects from the final battle with the Demon King, and even now, she was losing vitality.
“...Um.”
Thinking up to that point made me feel like my current situation was silly.
Why was I organizing scriptures so leisurely when it was not the time to do so?
I needed to recover as soon as possible and go find Asher... but.
Suddenly, I sensed someone approaching the room, and without even knocking, the door was abruptly opened.
“Dinner is ready.”
...It was Erica.
She stumbled with a piece of bread in her mouth and walked up to the desk, dropping the food she was holding on the table.
I quickly cleared away the papers as the soup almost spilled. Then, with a frown, I asked.
“Why are you...?”
There used to be a nun who would always bring meals, but it was odd to see this guy suddenly showing up.
Erica finished chewing her bread and shrugged before replying.
“She stopped me while I was passing by and asked me to bring it instead. It’s a bit of a hassle for me too. Anyway, enjoy your meal.”
“Sure, thanks.”
“But why are you doing this with all these scriptures piled up?”
Her gaze went to the scriptures and the paper I was recording on.
“Oh, this? It’s organizing and copying the scriptures that need to be transcribed. Some of the priests have been working hard on it for a while now.”
“I see. Why is the Uncle doing it?”
“I’m just helping out since I’m indebted.”
She raised an eyebrow.
“But can you even read the scriptures?”
“Yes.”
“How come? Were you also a priest?”
“No.”
“Then how did you learn to read them?”
“I was interested in languages, so I studied them separately. I’d appreciate it if you left now and didn’t bother me anymore.”
I told her not to bother me and leave.
However, as she continued to glance around, I wondered what else she was planning to do.
“But Uncle.”
“...?”
“Why were you lying unconscious in the forest? Are you really planning to keep hiding the reason until the end?”
I frowned at her words.
Every time this guy saw me, she persistently asked about that incident.
“How many times do I have to tell you that I don’t remember?”
“That’s a lie. How long do you plan to keep saying that?”
She crossed her arms.
“I couldn’t help being curious. You look suspicious no matter how I look at it. You were covered in blood but didn’t have a scratch on your body, and you were naked without any clothes.”
The reason why there were no injuries despite being covered in blood was because of [Super Regeneration].
It seemed like she still thought I was hiding something, especially about that part.
'Of course, it’s true that I’m hiding something.'
Since I had no intention of telling her, I just ignored her.
It wouldn’t make a difference even if I tried to explain.
Erica clicked her tongue at my reaction and turned her gaze back to the paper I was writing on.
After a moment of silence, she opened her mouth again.
“By the way, why do we have to use this kind of script separately when we can just use the common language of the continent? It’s needlessly complicated and takes longer to learn without any practicality.”
I looked at her with a slightly bewildered expression.
“Can a clergyman say something like that?”
“I haven’t been baptized yet, so I’m not an official member of the church.”
“Anyway, you’ll become one in the future, won’t you? Don’t you want to be a knight?”
“What are you talking about? Who said that?”
“Sometimes it seems like you were engrossed with the stories that your friends were telling,” I said with a deep frown.
“No, I didn’t. Why would I believe the nonsense that Tom spouts off?” she forcefully denied.
“I didn’t say that you believed it. I was just asking,” I replied.
“Well, even if it’s not true, I could still become a member of the congregation. I don’t have anywhere else to go after leaving the monastery, anyway.”
In other words, she would become a member of the congregation just to get by.
I couldn’t detect any sense of faith in her words, and I couldn’t help but wonder if someone like her existed.
She continued, “And I never believed in god to begin with.”
“...”
What was she talking about now?
I asked out of curiosity, “You don’t believe in god... Do you mean you don’t believe in the existence of god?”
Erica shook her head.
“No, that’s not what I mean. It’s just that I can’t understand it. The hero received the Holy Sword from the god of Light, right?”
“Right.”
“It’s just that I can’t wrap my head around it. God saved humanity, but so many people died in wars. Why did god wait until so many lives had been sacrificed before helping us?”
'...I don’t know either.'
The game’s story didn’t explain it in detail.
“If god really had omnipotent power and could save humanity without any sacrifice, should I feel reverence and awe towards such a being? Should I just be grateful for the salvation without knowing the reason why?”
She trailed off with a soft, pensive look in her eyes.
“When I say things like this, the priests and nuns always say the same thing. They say that god only gives us trials and tests us.”
“...”
“But what is the purpose of these tests? If we overcome them, will god bring back the people we have lost? What is the point of all this for those who have already lost what is most precious to them in life?”
Her voice, though still quiet, now contained a hint of anger.
I looked at her intently.
She hesitated for a moment, as if unsure of what to say, then changed the subject.
“Uh, never mind. What do you think about god, Uncle?”
“I don’t really have any strong opinions about it.”
He was a transcendent being who bestowed the holy sword upon the hero of the RaSa universe.
And he held the key to solving the problems facing this world and me.
That was the extent of my understanding of Rael, the god of light.
“I spoke from my heart, but your response lacked sincerity.”
Erica pouted.
I asked her, “But can you talk about such things so casually to someone like me, an outsider?”
“What’s wrong with not believing in god?”
“That’s true.”
“It’s because you’re an outside that I say these things. Do you think I’d go around saying these things in front of the priests?”
“Well, I guess not.”
“Then what, would I go around shouting it in public?”
“Impossible.”
“And anyway, it doesn’t matter whether I say it or not. Even if I’ve never said it out loud, most of the people in the monastery know that my personality is twisted.”
As if all the talk had ended, she straightened her back from where she had been leaning on the edge of the desk.
“Anyway, enjoy your meal. I’ve been babbling about useless things.”
“Oh, now that I think about it...”
I remembered something I had forgotten and asked her.
“You said before that we shouldn’t go deep into the forest behind the monastery. What’s the reason?”
“Ah... about that?”
She scratched her neck and answered.
“Actually, I’m not sure either. They say that there’s a monster living deep in the forest.”
“A monster?”
“Several times in the past, priests and holy knights have gone missing in the forest without any trace. So nobody goes into the deep part of the forest.”
