Chapter 20
Chapter 20
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 20
Chapter Title: Parting the Red Sea
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“Everyone, get ready! The final highlight scene is coming up soon!”
The religious play Exodus raced toward its climax.
The magician preparing the staging from behind the stage issued the command.
Flashy, realistic special effects—the pride of this world's theater.
That was why every troupe made a point of hiring at least one specialist in illusion magic.
“The moment the signal comes down, activate the device! This is the most important part of today's play!”
“Yep!”
“Got it!”
Crisp replies came back, and the staff scattered to their posts.
The magician recalled the final 'miracle' he was about to unleash and let out a faint chuckle.
That guy Phantom... how does he come up with such intricate ideas?
From ancient times, efforts to fill the gaps in the scriptures with research and imagination had always been lively.
Even with God's existence proven beyond doubt, the deeds of long-ago prophets and saints were often buried in mystery.
Was it influenced by that? Crafting plausible creative plays from the tiniest scraps of known info was a time-honored tradition here.
For instance, if there was a record of someone walking on water through divine power, they'd spin an entire mystical saga from that single case.
And those scripts, meant to teach morals and sermons, could get a pass even if the plot felt a bit crude or sloppy.
The core was delivering the scripture's message—not weaving a flawless narrative.
Even with some exaggeration or adaptation, it wasn't like they were inventing things from whole cloth.
“……”
Yet Phantom's script was similar to those old works... but decisively different.
Phantom's tale was structured like a finely woven tapestry.
It radiated a holiness bordering on the divine, as if God himself had whispered every line.
Especially striking was the highlight crowning the finale.
It must be based on that passage where some nameless prophet dried up a section of the sea...
The magician himself had heard that legend before.
But he'd never dreamed a mere fragmentary tale could be reborn in such a spectacular way.
Phantom's story of Moses went beyond mere script.
It had such uncanny verisimilitude that you could easily believe the exact events had unfolded in some hidden corner of the past.
At that moment, an extra's frantic line rang out from offstage.
[Moses! Moses! Disaster! Pharaoh—he broke his promise! He's leading his army to slaughter all us Hebrews!]
“Good! Here we go! Everyone in position? No slip-ups!”
The signal to launch the final scene of Exodus.
The magician hurriedly spurred on his colleagues.
And then, muttering under his breath, he began chanting the spell for the illusion magic as he readied the next step.
◇◇◇◆◇◇◇ “Wh-what did you say—!? Broke the promise and chasing down the ones we let go to kill them?!”
“Gahhh, Pharaoh! You cowardly, ugly heretic!”
The Holy Knights flushed with outrage, faces burning.
With such deep faith, they were especially sensitive to broken promises.
A pact between people was a sacred oath that must be honored.
Shattering it on a whim and deceiving others was utterly vile by Celestial Faith standards.
……But Moses showed no hint of agitation at Pharaoh's betrayal.
Rumble, BOOM!!
Suddenly, dark clouds gathered in the sky, thunder crashing as the heavens darkened.
The next instant, a blazing pillar of fire plunged from the sky like an elongated spear, stabbing into the earth.
Pharaoh's legions—who had shattered their vow to release the Hebrews—found their path blocked by roaring flames.
[A p-pillar of fire!]
[Ahh, God! Our God!]
[B-but there's still no way through! Pharaoh's army behind us, endless sea ahead!]
It halted the Egyptians for the moment, but they were trapped—army at their backs, ocean blocking the front.
As the Hebrews panicked in confusion, Moses quietly approached the surging Red Sea.
[Moses, my Moses.]
In their hour of peril, God's holy voice echoed once more from the void.
[I tell thee: fear not.]
[With this staff, thou shalt work my miracle.]
[……]
Renua, playing Moses, gripped the staff with both hands and closed his eyes.
The next moment, he slowly raised it toward the sea.
SPLASHHH—!!
Before their eyes, the vast sea parted to left and right.
A grand seascape conjured by illusion magic and this world's stagecraft.
The once-calm waters surged skyward.
Parting to form a massive corridor wide enough for crowds to pass.
“Th-the sea! The sea...!!”
“Ah, ahh, aaaaah...!!”
The Holy Knights were utterly entranced by the sight.
Some wept tears like sweat, unconsciously tracing the holy sign.
Of course, they knew it was just a play.
The parting sea was mere magic and machinery.
But for these knights, worn down by endless campaigns, that hardly mattered.
What truly mattered was this: a creative play rooted in their own faith.
Where the Hebrews—the role they themselves inhabited—received salvation.
And in such a grand, scripture-worthy fashion, no less.
[The slaves flee using wicked sorcery!]
Moses ushered the Hebrews into escape through the parted Red Sea.
Yet Pharaoh refused to abandon the chase.
He raised his sickle-shaped khopesh sword and commanded his soldiers.
[Pursue them! Slaughter every last one! Cut their throats—leave none alive!]
Pharaoh wasn't the only one blinded by hatred.
His troops had all lost their firstborns to Moses' plagues.
Without a shred of fear, the soldiers plunged into the parted sea after the Hebrews.
But it was an irreversible, fatal blunder.
[Pharaoh! Foolish and arrogant ruler of Egypt!]
The instant the Hebrews fully crossed.
[Behold clearly, unbeliever! This is the true power of God!!]
Moses slammed the staff down onto the parted waters with all his might.
SPLASHHH—!!
The seas crashed together with a deafening roar, just as they'd parted.
In one gulp, they engulfed the Egyptian legions charging after with weapons raised.
Pharaoh's pursuing forces vanished without a trace.
No chance to scream, no moment to wail.
Simply devoured in an instant by the deluge.
As the churning waves subsided and the simulated Red Sea grew still once more.
“……”
“……”
A deathly silence blanketed the audience, unbroken.
No one spoke; all sat in stunned rapture.
[……Thus, led by Moses, the Hebrews advanced to the land flowing with milk and honey.]
A narrator's actor pierced the heavy quiet, reciting the tale in a gentle, soothing tone like a bedtime story.
[Though the journey was arduous and far from smooth, the Hebrews at last reached their promised land. There they founded a nation blessed by God and lived happily ever after.]
……Honestly, it was heavily abbreviated.
To draw a real-world parallel, it was like saying 'Hitler offed himself because he flunked art school'?
Heck, they'd even skipped the Golden Calf debacle right after escaping Egypt—for the sake of that happy ending.
But considering Exodus's purpose, this level of adaptation was just right.
This play was written to reignite the Holy Knights' faith in the first place.
No need to pile on the bitter afterstories full of frustration.
Alright... play's over. Time to gauge the real reactions?
As he crossed his arms and scanned the crowd.
One Holy Knight, shoulders trembling, let out a guttural groan.
“……Ugh.”
Uh?
“UWOOOOOOH—!!!!”
The next instant, the entire audience leaped to their feet as one, unleashing a fanatical roar in perfect unison.