Book 17: Chapter 2
A man attired in red robe came arrived below the huge statue of God and knelt down next to the young boy. Accompanying a bow, he reported, “Your Excellency, you can go rest now. Leave the rest to us. The new church has not yet taken any action; therefore, we need not worry too much. Even if they want to attack, they would not do so at this point in time. If we try anything now, we will definitely infuriate Her Majesty. We cannot allow ourselves to be subjected to a second blow.”
“I know.”
The young boy stood up. He tightly clasped a pure-gold ornament in his hand. It was a hoary-stock-shaped chest pin: “The church saved me in the past. This time, it’s my turn to save the church. While the church has gone through so many struggles under my lead, I believe that it is God’s trial for us. I believe in hoary stock; I believe in our faith. Despite it being an era where this faith has crumbled, I am certain we will be able to advance with our beliefs again. I believe that. I’ve always believed that.”
Hoary stock, a flower, which was similar to a circular ball, was the church’s emblem. It was said that the country was established on a city of hoary stock. Alas, it was practically all burnt when the barbarians rioted during Elizabeth’s father’s reign. The flower no longer existed in the reconstructed Hilles City. There were only some that could be found inside the Royal Palace and the church. The church considered it to be a holy flower symbolising the beginning of life.
The young boy looked up at the huge statue of God in front of him. God didn’t lower his head to look at those below, but he had his hand extended toward them, which meant that he could hear their voices from their souls. Those who betrayed the faith were punished, and those who didn’t pray were destroyed. The church had been destroyed once, but Her Majesty gave the church a chance to return to the Royal Palace. They, therefore, reasoned that they should be able to regain their status. Though what they preached was completely in the hands of the Royal Palace henceforward, Her Majesty didn’t seem to care for the power that His Majesty risked everything to obtain. She never got involved with any of the church’s business, and she never oppressed them or anything of similar nature after their destruction. Hence, the church was very grateful to Elizabeth and Troy. That magnanimity was rare to come by.
The church planned to communicate properly with the royal family with Daisy’s baptism as a medium. Due to the dispute between the old and new churches, the churches were in a rush to prove their status. The royal family had attacked the old church before. Subsequently, the new church never stopped using that history to attack the old church. Additionally, the new church had begun to influence vassals within the Royal Palace in an attempt to gain the approval of the royal family as the legitimate church. The old church virtually had no channels to get through. Although the new church and old church had yet to open fire on all fronts, specifically physical warfare, their overzealous believers had already begun to have small skirmishes amongst each other. With that said, due to the severity not being too serious, Empress Elizabeth wasn’t yet aware of it.
“Hoary stock shall protect us. This time, we will definitely obtain everything that we want through Daisy. Our status, our belief, our God, we shall put the purity of hoary stock on the line! We must realise all of our dreams! We must!”
The boy stabbed the golden pin into his hand. Nevertheless, that couldn’t damage his determination and resolve. The young boy’s belief in god and his faith was his greatest strength.
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