<h4>Chapter 318</h4>


    Fanatics are inherently strange creatures. They appear powerless before their god, yet they still possess free will.


    Radia Schmidt had intended to kill me. She hadn’t explicitly said so, but the implication had been so clear that verbal confirmation was unnecessary.


    Radia Schmidt, who had followed me with the intention of killing me, now realized that the person she had tried to kill was Ouen’s Champion.


    Radia Schmidt, who prided herself on her unparalleled devotion, had to acknowledge that she had failed to recognize Ouen’s Champion and had tried to kill him.


    Fanatics do not doubt their god. They also do not doubt themselves. While they seem to have absolute faith in their god, they actually have absolute faith in themselves. They believe that their devotion to their god makes it impossible for them to be wrong.


    However, the reality she was being confronted with contradicted her beliefs.


    The person she intended to kill had actually been chosen by one of her gods.


    The moment she recognized this, Radia Schmidt was forced to confront her error. However, fanatics cannot admit such things. If they could, they wouldn’t have fallen into the abyss of fanaticism in the first ce.


    Therefore, Radia Schimdt couldn’t admit that what she had been so ready tomit would have been the greatest sin against the gods she believed in.


    Therefore, she had to find some sort of logic in which she wasn’t wrong, without denying or doubting the gods she so fanatically believed in.


    “That should belong to Olivia! That... That should not be in your possession!”


    Naturally, Radia Schmidt arbitrarilybeled me as a thief of the Holy Relic. She seemed to have established in her mind that since Olivia served Ouen, Tiamata, the Holy Relic of Ouen, should belong to Olivia.


    “... It is Olivia’s.”


    “... What?”


    “We are both masters of Tiamata. I can’t demonstrate it to you right now, but Tiamata belongs to both me and Olivia. You could say it’s a dual soul-bond. Ah, you probably wouldn’t like hearing that... but what can I do? To put it simply...” I grinned and whispered in Radia Schmidt’s ear, “Olivia and I are practically soul-bound to each other.”


    “You... you...! You sphemous, vile maggot! How dare you speak such filth about Ouen’s representative!”


    <i>‘Ouen’s representative? First, she was supposed to be the Holy Emperor of the Millennial Empire, and now she’s Ouen’s representative? What exactly does this madwoman think Olivia is?’</i>


    It seemed she couldn’t ept that the goddess of purity was practically soul-bound to me.


    “You demon! Return Tiamata to its rightful owner! It shouldn’t be in the hands of someone like you! Tiamata is a Holy Relic that is passed down to the priests and holy knights who are sworn to Ouen, not to a non-believer like you!”


    “Is the soundproofing secure?” I asked Eleris.


    “Yes, it is,” Eleris replied.


    I found this situation quite fascinating. I had half-expected that revealing Tiamata might make her fall to her knees and apologize.


    Although I had anticipated such a reaction, actually seeing her hatred for me amplify when I summoned Tiamata was still intriguing.


    Radia Schmidt was not a loyal servant of divinity. She was just someone who interpreted her faith in her own way, to suit her own purposes. That’s why she was spouting such nonsense and so unwilling to admit her error.


    If I was truly unworthy, why would Ouen allow me to be the owner of Tiamata? To say such a thing would mean acknowledging that Ouen was imperfect.


    Radia was essentially saying that Ouen had made a mistake, all because she didn’t want to admit she was wrong about me.


    Ultimately, fanaticism and self-deception are one and the same. Humans need logic to protect themselves. Radia Schmidt was not acknowledging her gods, but putting all her faith in her own belief that killing me was right.


    Fanaticism is never about sincere and steadfast faith; it’s literally madness wrapped up in the shell of faith.


    Fanaticism cannot be sincere.


    I had no intention of discussing faith and divinity with Radia Schmidt, who was at that moment experiencing cognitive dissonance.


    Radia Schmidt had given me a chance. She had given me a chance to stay away from Olivia. When I’d refused, she had decided to kill me.


    I, too, was giving her a chance. I had shown her that I was Ouen’s Champion, and wanted to know if she would still go through with her n. Radia Schmidt, however, was iming that I had somehow deceitfully stolen Tiamata, and refused to believe that both Olivia and I were both its masters. If I told her the whole truth about this, she would go even more insane.


    She believed that my very existence tainted Olivia’s purity.


    “I don’t know what filthy trick you used to steal Tiamata, which should belong to Olivia, but divine retribution awaits you!”


    She was nowpletely convinced of this. Radia would continuously generate words and logic to protect herself.


    “I’ll make you regret this! I don’t know what kind of deal you made with that vile sorcerer, but—”


    I struck Radia Schmidt’s head with the t of Tiamata’s de to silence her.


    <i>Smack!</i>


    “Argh!”


    “Shut up. From now on, just answer my questions.”


    “...”


    “The Millennial Empire. What is it?”


    “...”


    “Can’t you understand simplenguage? Want to taste some Divine Power?”


    “Don’t speak of Divine Power with your filthy and sphemous mouth!”


    “... This isn’t working.” I looked over at Eleris. “Sorry, Eleris, but can I ask you for another favor?”


    “Yes?”


    She used the alias Rellia, but there was no need to hide anything in front of someone who was about to die.


    “Can you make her more cooperative? Or at least less energetic?”


    “...”


    Eleris looked at me quietly and then walked over to my side. She stood silently next to me and then brought her face close to Radia Schmidt’s.


    “Do I have to hide anything?” Eleris asked.


    I knew what she meant by that.


    “No.”


    Eleris seemed to take a deep breath, then closed her eyes and reopened them.


    Her eyes had turned blood-red, with long, slit-like ck pupils. Radia Schmidt was horrified by the overwhelming sight.


    “V-v-v-vampire...?” She said, her lips trembling. “H-how... how... how is this possible?”


    Radia looked back and forth between me and Eleris. No matter how much she tried to rationalize it, seeing me, the one holding Tiamata,manding a vampire as a subordinate was beyond herprehension.


    Radia Schmidt’s words were wrong in many ways, but she was also right in many ways. In fact, she was underestimating the situation.


    <i>‘Calling me a demon? I’m not just some demon; I’m the Demon King.’</i>


    No matter what Radia Schmidt imagined me to be orbeled me as, I was a much more demonic existence than she could fathom.


    Radia was on the verge of losing her mind as events beyond her wildest imagination were continuously unfolding.


    Eleris, having revealed her true form, brought her face as close as possible to Radia Schmidt’s and stared into her eyes.


    “I am the Vampire Lord Eleris, the head of the House of Tuesday of the Seven Nights.”


    “O-Oh... Oh... Ah...”


    Radia Schmidt was already engulfed in terror, unable toprehend what was happening.


    “Even if you say nothing, I can drink your blood once to make you my ve, then I’ll learn everything. No matter how strong your will is, resistance will be futile.”


    “Ah... Uh.... Um... Ugh...”


    “Do you want to reveal your secrets now and live as a human, or would you prefer to spend the rest of your life as a vampire by hiding them?” Eleris whispered, her eyes wide open, as if piercing Radia Schmidt’s soul. “Choose.”


    Eleris drove a single point into Radia Schmidt’s mind: secrets were meaningless.


    ***


    “Y-you... you... what are you?”


    “You’re right. I’m not a maggot, but I’m simr to a demon.”


    “That’s... that’s... that’s impossible... H-how could someone like you be at the Temple...?”


    “You’re a funny one. You called me a demon, but now that I say I’m one, you find it unbelievable? What do you want? Did you call me a demon knowing I wasn’t one? Hah.”


    “...”


    She had called me a demon, but she probably never truly believed I could be one. Given that Imanded the Vampire Lord who had subdued her so easily, she had to believe I was an even more formidable being.


    Although I was indeed that, at least in some manner, there was no need to inform her that Eleris was actually much stronger than I was.


    “This is the second time I’m asking you this. What is the Millennial Empire? If you don’t answer, you might just be a vampire.”


    My words turned Radia Schmidt’s face white with fear.


    “Do you think you canmit suicide if you be a vampire? Your life and death will be determined by your master’s will. If you want to end up being a vampire priest, keep resisting,” I continued.


    I didn’t actually know how vampire thralls and ves worked, and I was making things up as I went along. Radia Schmidt, already terrified, would believe anything I said, regardless of the truth.


    Radia had misjudged me earlier, but now, she was misjudging me in a different way.


    She had been easily subdued despite being much stronger than an active holy knight, merely by the power of my subordinate.


    I had Tiamata in my possession, and she had begun to see me as an enigmatic being akin to a demon. She did not see me as a weakling anymore, but was misjudging me as something altogether different.


    She was starting to see me as a being beyond her wildest imagination.


    It was impossible to keep secrets.


    Radia trembled, perhaps imagining herself as a vampire. She might have envisioned herself as a yer of such beings, but she had never considered bing one herself. Even the thought ofmitting suicide as a vampire would be futile, as her mind would be utterly dominated.


    To go from a promising holy knight of Alse to a creature that drinks human blood and lives in the shadows of the night—could there be a greater humiliation? The mere thought of it was so terrifying and shameful that Radia trembled like a leaf in the wind.


    Secrets could often lose their power. Once the person holding them realizes that hiding them is meaningless, they often spill them easily, even the secrets they once believed they were willing to die to protect.


    Radia Schmidt suddenly adopted a very respectful manner of speech.


    “The... the Millennial Empire... is a n that has been set in motion by the Nameless Monastery...”


    ***


    The Nameless Monastery...


    Another unfamiliar concept had emerged. As Radia Schmidt uttered it, her expression was a mix of despair, misery, and fear.


    “What is the Nameless Monastery?”


    “It is a faithmunityposed of members from various sects and organizations of the Church of the Five Great Gods, who share the same vision...”


    “So, the purpose of this Nameless Monastery is to unify the forces of the Five Great Gods and establish a theocratic state. And they n to make Olivia Lanche the first ruler?”


    “... In summary, yes...”


    She seemed to have a lot of objections, but was too afraid to speak them out loud. Both Eleris and I couldn’t help but take the situation seriously.


    “They seem no different from the Revolutionary Forces, just with a different ideology.”


    “Indeed...”


    Just like the Revolutionary Forces who were spreading within the Temple, the Church of the Five Great Gods had extremist factions like the Nameless Monastery whose goals were to breakaway from the empire and establish a Holy Empire.


    Judging by the term “Holy Emperor,” it seemed they intended to run their theocracy in a simr manner to the empire.


    “Do you know the scale of this group?”


    “...”


    Radia nodded and trembled, but stayed silent.


    I clicked my tongue. “Don’t even think about lying. If I suspect you’re lying, I’ll turn you into a vampire and cross-check everything.”


    “N-no! I swear! I will never mix lies with the truth!”


    Radia, bound and shaking her head vigorously, seemed to fear bing a vampire more than death itself.


    “The group isn’trge for now, but it is continuously growing. It’s projected to soon grow to be asrge as one of the denominations of the Church of the Five Great Gods...”


    “... Damn it.”


    “This is serious,” Eleris said.


    Fortunately, the group still seemed rtively small, but its growth rate was rming. They were expected to soon match the size of the major denominations. Moreover, this group wasn’t just restricted to one group of believers, but included members from the Order of the Holy Knights and believers of all of the Five Great Gods.


    In other words, the radicals from every denomination had gathered, and they would be able to wield influence over all who believed in the Five Great Gods.


    The situation was far more severe than I had anticipated. Alongside the Revolutionary Forces, there was now a religious faction to contend with.


    “This is driving me crazy...”


    I held my head in my hands, and Eleris sighed deeply.


    The empire was like a house of cards. If both the Revolutionary Forces and this Holy Empire enacted their ns simultaneously, the empire would be torn apart.


    Radia seemed unable toprehend the situation. She was certain that Eleris and I were evil beings, but she also appeared deeply unsettled by the impending crisis facing the empire.


    She would be even more shocked if she knew the truth that the Demon King and his subordinate were fretting over the potential copse of the empire.


    Still, it was maddening and infuriating.


    “How long has this Nameless Monastery been around?”


    I needed to rify whether this secret religious organization was a recent development or if it had been around for a long time, like the Revolutionary Forces. If it was an existing group, what had triggered its recent explosive growth?


    “... It hasn’t been around for long.”


    “Really? Then why are so many people flocking to it? Is the religiousmunity so eager for a Holy Empire?”


    “... It’s because of religious persecution.”


    “... Persecution?”


    <i>‘What’s she talking about now?’</i>


    Radia Schmidt gritted her teeth and lowered her gaze.


    “Many believers think that the fall of the former Commander of the Order of the Holy Knights, Sir Leverier Lanche, was a signal of the empire’s persecution. A way to keep the Order of the Holy Knights in check.”


    “Ah.”


    That alone gave me a rough understanding of the situation.


    From the perspective of those in the religiousmunity who didn’t know the full story, the fall of the war hero Leverier Lanche could indeed be seen in that light.


    Or perhaps...


    “... No way. Was Leverier Lanche the one who founded the Nameless Monastery?”


    “...”


    Radia Schmidt’s silence was enough. She either couldn’t answer, or wouldn’t. That was already an answer.


    “It seems like that’s the case. It probably isn’t a theory that many believers automatically subscribed to. Leverier Lanche must have spread that rumor himself. iming that his fall was due to political pressure, regardless of what he actually did.”


    “No! The Commander was unjustly ndered—!”


    “Shut up. You’re a Temple student; you should know better than to call it nder.”


    “It was necessary to guide Olivia, who was wavering, back to the right path—”


    “I said shut up, didn’t I?”


    “...”


    Radia Schmidt believed that everything Leverier Lanche had done to Olivia was justified. I did not want to discuss this matter with her any further.


    I hadn’t kept track of what Leverier Lanche was up to after his fall, but it was clear he had formed a secret society and was causing trouble.


    This was something that had been triggered by the historical inflection point caused by Olivia Lanche’s survival.


    This mess was ultimately my mess.


    <i>‘Damn it.’</i>


    Both Olivia and Charlotte... Did individuals who yed significant roles in altering history have to go through crisis after crisis?


    If Leverier Lanche had remained as Commander of the Order of the Holy Knights, none of this would have happened. This meant that Leverier Lanche truly had ambitions to breakaway from the empire and establish a Holy Empire in the name of the Church of the Five Great Gods.


    However, it had not been part of the main story, which meant that he was not allowed to push this agenda aggressively.


    However, after his fall from grace and removal from power, he had now chosen the path of creating a secret society.


    Leverier Lanche would have made the im that his downfall was a consequence of religious persecution by the state, stirring up resentment among religious figures. He had formed the Nameless Monastery, and was using the idea that they had to form a breakaway Holy Empire that was made up only of true believers to attract followers to him.


    Leverier Lanche effectively stirred up this sense of persecution and was using it to rapidly grow his secret society.


    His achievements as a hero of the Great War would also support his cause. If things continued like this, they could grow in number to rival one of the denominations of the Church of the Five Great Gods, and that could shake the very foundation of the Church itself.


    Leverier Lanche intended to elevate Olivia to the position of Holy Emperor. While he might have wanted that position for himself, it would have beenughable.


    If he dered that he would be the first Holy Emperor of a Holy Empire, his true intentions woulde into question. However, if he imed to be creating a divine nation that only his exceptionally talented and virtuous foster daughter was qualified to lead, it would lend some legitimacy to his cause.


    Moreover, Leverier Lanche could only repair his reputation through Olivia’s testimony. If Olivia dered that she had not been mistreated by Leverier Lanche, all usations against him would be seen as imperial nder, regardless of the truth.


    Having witnessed her abilities firsthand, I could see why Olivia herself could serve as a justification for such a n. While Leverier Lanche might have ambitions to be emperor himself, installing himself as emperor would be impossible, so he aimed to elevate Olivia instead.


    In this scenario, Olivia would find her faith again, and Leverier Lanche would eventually use this secret society to create an independent religious state and force Olivia into the position of Holy Emperor.


    Leverier Lanche’s obsession with Olivia stemmed from the fact that she could serve both as a justification for the Millenial Empire, serving as its Holy Emperor, and as a means to restore his own reputation.


    “What a despicable bastard,” I spat.


    Radia Schmidt grew even more fearful.


    This matter couldn’t be left alone. Leverier Lanche and the Nameless Monastery were seeds that could bring about massive discord. They needed to be eradicated.


    If we didn’t act while their force was still rtively small, it would be impossible to deal with themter.


    But how? If we used them of conspiracy and involved the imperial family, it would bring about actual religious persecution. This would undoubtedly turn even the moderates into extremists.


    Involving the imperial family and the government in this matter would inevitably lead to a massive conflict.


    I needed to organize my thoughts. I had to figure out how to approach this, and what strategy to implement.


    “Alright, onest question. Was your attempt to kill me also an order from the Nameless Monastery?”


    Radia Schmidt had genuine personal reasons to kill me. However, she might also have received orders to do so.


    Radia Schmidt shook her head vigorously at my question.


    “N-no... This was... my own decision...”


    “Are you sure? You’re not lying to protect them because you’re afraid I’ll go after them?”


    “No! No! The original n was... different! This was my own decision!”


    How much did Radia Schmidt hate the idea of bing a vampire?


    “Really? Then what was the original n?”


    “...”


    Radia Schmidt hesitated, clearly afraid to speak. But she knew what I would say if she kept silent.


    The words came out of her in a torrent. “Adriana... Adriana, who was a second-year student at the Temple... the Monastery has her...”


    “... What?”


    The unexpected name left my mind nk.


    <i>‘Why Adriana? Why bring her up?’</i>


    Images of Adriana shed through my mind. Thest memory I had of her was walking through the fields around the Art-Ouen Monastery.


    <i>‘What are they nning to do to Adriana? No, what have they already done?’</i>


    “Exin in detail.”


    If I had any semnce of rationality left... what I was about to hear would snap it.


    ***


    Olivia was in her dormitory room. The Miss Temple contest was approaching and she should have been heading to the venue to prepare, but she was waiting in her room since Reinhart had asked her to.


    She didn’t know what he was nning, but he seemed to have something in mind. Still, if he took too long, she would have to leave soon. If there was no word from Reinhart in the next thirty minutes, Olivia nned to head to the venue.


    <i>Knock, knock.</i>


    How long had she waited? At the sound of a knock on her door, Olivia jumped up from her seat.


    “Reinhart, what on earth are you—?”


    But it wasn’t Reinhart at her door; it was a dormitory attendant.


    “...?”


    “Oh, I’m sorry.”


    The maid, seeing Olivia’s puzzled expression, smiled and handed her something.


    “I don’t know who you’re waiting for, but there’s a letter for you, Miss Olivia.”


    “Oh... thank you.”


    Olivia took the letter from the maid and closed the door. The letter bore no sender’s name, only an address. Who could have sent such a letter?


    Olivia opened the envelope. Inside, there were only two lines of text.


    <i>[My daughter, do you remember the name Adriana?]</i>


    <i>[She is with me now.]</i>


    Shock ran through Olivia’s mind.


    The only person who would call her “daughter” was Leverier Lanche. She didn’t know why or how, but he had Adriana.


    Reinhart, Adriana, and Evia from ss 1-B had yed crucial roles in rescuing her. That was widely known. It also meant that those three had yed decisive roles in Leverier Lanche’s downfall.


    Reinhart and Evia were Temple students, which made it dangerous for Leverier Lanche to touch them. Adriana, however, was rtively easier for him to reach.


    Whether for revenge or some other reason, Leverier Lanche had Adriana.


    There was no indication who had sent the letter, only the address from which it had been sent. It was an invitation to go to that location.


    Her foster father was calling her to him, using Adriana as bait. She didn’t know what he wanted to say or what he intended to do to Adriana, but the child who had saved her was now in danger because of it.


    Olivia, as if in a trance, stood up and flung open her dormitory door.


    “Why... just why...?”


    What did he want from her? Why was he doing this?


    Gritting her teeth, Olivia ran down the dormitory hallway. The Miss Temple contest was already a distant memory.