Chapter 109
Chapter 109
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 109
Chapter Title: Saintess Erin and Empress Eirene
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* * *
Saintess Erin and Empress Eirene.
As a result of these two highest powers on the continent taking the lead, an exploration team began to form at an astonishing speed.
The first to gather were sailors from trading companies that primarily traveled the massive river and coastlines between the north and south.
About seventy percent of them belonged to Baron Roengrin's company. Even if they weren't sailors, Baron Roengrin had declared that for the will of God, he would provide ships capable of crossing the great ocean.
"I shall lend them without any compensation, Your Majesty. Please use them as much as you need. How could I possibly complain when it's for Lord Igugwoden?"
Of course, it would be easy to brush this off with pleasant words like, "God will surely remember your generous and devout heart"—
"Raise your head, Baron Roengrin. Have you forgotten the teachings of the Igugwoden Church? If you provide something, the core is to offer a corresponding reward. And it seems the Church would prefer to purchase the ships outright. Wouldn't that be better for you as well?"
"But, Your Majesty, if I may speak boldly, paying the full value would place a considerable burden on the Church's finances..."
"Don't worry about that."
As soon as Eirene finished speaking—
Erin, standing beside her, carefully brought a box to Roengrin and let him check its contents.
"This is... gold coins."
"That's right."
"It's a huge sum, but this amount alone... Ah, of course, I would consider this more than sufficient reward."
Erin shook her head vigorously at Roengrin's words.
"That's not all, Baron. Would you look over here?"
Where Erin pointed, over twenty wooden boxes the same size as the one she'd brought were stacked up.
"No way, all those boxes contain...!!!"
"Exactly. The same thing's inside them all!"
Erin said with a sunlike smile.
Overwhelming wealth!
"They're too heavy, so we couldn't bring everything from the cathedral, but check them out, and if you need more, just let us know!"
The source of the Church's overwhelming funds—
It was the cola, which had gone on sale just recently.
Despite being an extremely expensive luxury item, the cola sold like hotcakes, boosting the Church's capital to an entirely different level from before.
Considering the short sales period, it was nothing short of miraculous.
Moreover, unlike the days of Emperor Aisha when the Igugwoden Church was nominal at best, now even the Imperial Family was under its influence—
And with a portion of the Imperial Family's budget allocated to support the Church, they could pay the proper price for the ships without strain.
"You didn't need to go this far..."
"No, Baron. As Her Majesty said, the Igugwoden Church doesn't ask people to serve without a reward."
With the most difficult part—securing the ships—resolved.
An array of extraordinary figures gathered to join the voyage.
Duke Lengard von Euler, the only one with prior experience in the New Continent, was joined by Saintess Erin; Luca and Ophelia from the Dish of Holy Knights;
And even the current Empress Eirene herself, making this an unprecedented expedition.
One unexpected participant was—
"Is the Prince coming along too?"
"Yes, Saintess. Big Sister... no, Sister Karen is joining as well. Would that be a problem...?"
"Of course not. Why would it be? Prince Ares is practically family to the Igugwoden Church already!"
—Ares, who rarely stepped forward.
Even if he was following someone else's lead, there was no reason to undervalue his willingness to risk his life for the Church's goals rather than the Imperial Family's.
With Empress Eirene away, First Princess Yuria would act as regent.
In place of the Saintess, Linea from the Dish of Holy Knights—the only one remaining on the Old Continent—would assist the Pope.
The expedition led by the Church included Empress Eirene and Third Prince Ares.
And the one commanding the cathedral was a former Second Princess, so for the historians recording this moment, Eirene's reign would undoubtedly go down as a time when the bond between Church and Imperial Family was stronger than ever.
"Alright! Let us embark on this journey to prove that beneath the heavens, there is only Lord Igugwoden!"
—Waaaaah!
With the thunderous cheers of the young priests and sailors—
For the first time in decades since Aisha's death, they raised anchor for the New Continent.
* * *
The voyage proceeded remarkably smoothly.
Unlike the old days when they had no idea how far to go, Duke Lengard's recovered memories gave them a rough distance, allowing them to ration food generously and keep the navigators' and sailors' morale high.
Having a clear goal naturally meant no impatience or anxiety.
'I hope we arrive safely like this...'
However, the sea is inherently a wild place.
A sudden typhoon began assaulting the ship with the ferocity to swallow it whole.
"Kyaa, kyaaah...!"
"Everyone, stay calm! It'll pass soon!"
Luca and the first mates under her command did their best to manage the situation, but unfortunately, the winds only grew fiercer.
"It looks like it's my turn to step in."
"Sister Karen...?"
"Prince. Wait here just a moment. Got it?"
The reason Karen—God's chosen one—had joined the voyage.
She was Plain Fact itself, the ability granted directly by God, allowing her to wield it firsthand.
Unlike Reina, who required a completed ritual and could only draw a portion from the air in a limited area—
Karen was Plain Fact incarnate, so she could project God's will—"safe passage on this voyage"—far more reliably onto the world.
"Saintess. It seems we may need to enact God's will soon."
"Karen...!"
The only person who knew Karen's circumstances in detail, Erin carefully looked up at the sky.
The rain showed no sign of weakening; if anything, it intensified.
She wanted to conserve the "Plain Fact" God had bestowed, as it came at the cost of His life force...
But if they ended up in danger, that would be defying God's will—the ultimate sin.
"Got it. Then, I'll leave it to you—"
At that moment.
From afar, Ophelia's urgent voice rang out.
"Rabbit Lord! It's dangerous! Even for you, that tiny body can't withstand such fierce waves—"
"Igogodon."
"You want me to leave it to you...? Are you serious?"
The Rabbit hopped down from Ophelia's head, tapped the deck with its tiny front paws.
—Hop!
'...!!!'
It leaped into the air like a flying squirrel with arms outstretched... and froze midair.
A massive spherical barrier then formed around the Rabbit, engulfing the entire ship.
From a distance, it would look like they were enclosed in a protective dome.
Then, blue light gleamed from its black, sea-slug-like eyes...
And darkness began seeping from the Rabbit's body, as if to devour the world.
Flash! Flash!
The Rabbit glowed like it had swallowed lightning... and finally opened its tiny mouth.
"Igo... not Igodon!"
—BOOOOM!!!
"!!!!"
And the sky exploded.
This was no metaphor. The pitch-black sky, hurling rain and lightning, burst open like a grand explosion spell.
At the same moment, as if the concept of space itself vanished, the surroundings plunged into instant darkness.
As everyone dropped into pure blackness, too stunned to speak—
—Whiiiiiish!
The Rabbit sucked the darkness into its mouth.
The pitch-black void was inhaled into its tiny maw in an instant.
Gulp gulp gulp!
Then, like drawing back thick curtains—
Clear blue ocean and sky suddenly appeared.
The storm had ceased, and the sea was utterly calm.
Having restored the sense of space to everyone, the Rabbit landed nonchalantly on the deck as if nothing had happened and began devouring the darkness it had inhaled...
Munch munch munch munch.
...Gulp!
"Stuffedogodon."
The Rabbit said, then hopped toward Eirene, who wasn't far away watching the scene—
It nestled into her arms—
"Igogodon. Igogodon."
And began spoiling for affection.
It was sudden, but... during the voyage, the Rabbit had often left Ophelia's head to cuddle in her arms like this.
'Sir Ophelia mentioned it. The Rabbit Lord likes me very much.'
There was no reason for Eirene not to return the favor to God's Messenger—who liked her, no less.
Wasn't God's Messenger essentially part of God Himself?
Eirene stroked the Rabbit's head with a deeply affectionate smile.
With its ears pinned back fully, it was easy to pet.
"Yes, little Rabbit. You've worked so hard. Thanks to you, we've overcome a great peril. I shall never forget your devotion in my lifetime."
"Pya! That'srightogodon!"
The sailors, who had been lost in awe at the surreal sight, exchanged foolish expressions—
Then approached the Rabbit en masse and knelt.
"Ahh... God...!"
"Long live Rabbit Lord, the Messenger sent by Lord Igugwoden!"
"Long live Rabbit Lord! Long live Her Majesty the Empress!"
Watching from a distance, Erin nodded carefully to Karen.
"...It seems we didn't need to use 'Plain Fact' after all."
"Yeah..."
The power of God's Messenger "Rabbit," sent to the mortal world.
Its potential was so immense that even Saintess Erin and Plain Fact incarnate Karen couldn't fathom it.
* * *
After that, thankfully, the voyage continued without incident—
And finally, a new continent appeared in the sailors' sight.
"Land! Land sighted!"
Hearing the shout, Erin turned to Lengard, whose face was filled with emotion, and said,
"What do you think, Duke?"
"It's definite! However... as I mentioned, they may be hostile to us. Please exercise utmost caution."
"Understood."
She said that, but Erin wasn't worried at all.
After all, Lengard regaining his memories could only be seen as God's will.
Believing God's will wouldn't lead them into a trap, she naturally pondered differently from Lengard.
'How best to persuade those who believe in false gods.'
The Igugwoden Church's absolute rule—rewards must exist for proselytizing.
As long as the "pointy-eared foreigners" didn't act aggressively first, there was no need to stir up trouble—
But if they unilaterally insisted their god was the one true God and drew blades, the accompanying High Priestesses wouldn't stay silent, nor would Erin accept it.
If communication were impossible, that'd be one thing, but according to Lengard, they used some power to speak the language, which worried her more.
'Even if they get aggressive, let's resolve it with words if possible. Thinking of the demons, Lord Igugwoden values peace above all. He didn't send us here just to fight... There must be a way.'
With such thoughts, steeling her resolve—
"We'll anchor!"
"Everyone, prepare to disembark!"
—They cautiously dropped anchor off the New Continent's coast.
"This is the new continent...!"
"I never dreamed it'd take decades to return..."
As Lengard said, laden with emotions too complex for one word—
After decades, people from the Old Continent set foot on the New Continent once more, a historic moment.