The Champion's Return

by Hyougetsu

  “What do you mean?” Mao asked, confused.

  Traja gave him a polite nod and explained, “Right now, we can interfere in any conflict, so long as it is between Sonnenlicht adherents. In fact, we’ve done so multiple times in the past. But if there’s a civil war in Rolmund between adherents and heretics, we won’t be able to do anything.”

  That makes sense. So long as the war was between Sonnenlicht believers, both sides would have to respect the rules of war and treat prisoners with humanity. Of course, not everyone followed those rules, but at least they existed. But the Sternenfeuer cult had no such rules, and the Sonnenlicht rules didn’t apply to heretics. Things would get needlessly bloody. I nodded in understanding and replied, “If the empire became split between the Sonnenlicht and Sternenfeuer religions, the ensuing war could last decades, or even centuries.”

  “Indeed. Not only that, but such a war would fracture the empire.”

  That wouldn’t be too bad for Meraldia in the short term, but it would be hard to predict what the fractured empire would do once the war was over, so I didn’t really want that. It was entirely possible the losing side would flee to Meraldia seeking refuge, and the winning side would use that as an excuse to invade us again. We’d be in especially deep trouble if Sonnenlicht won that hypothetical civil war. Because then the Sonnenlicht believers would hold a grudge against Meraldia for not helping them in their time of need, despite being fellow Sonnenlicht adherents. It would be far better for Meraldia if I could put Eleora on the throne and also get Rolmund’s Sonnenlicht church in my debt. Most importantly, this method would cause the fewest casualties.

  “I understand. Lord Bolshevik is a danger to us as well, so it would certainly be in our best interests to cooperate. But why did you contact me instead of Princess Eleora?”

  Traja gave me a knowing smile and said, “Because you’re a foreigner. If the situation starts to deteriorate, we can safely pin the blame on you without harming the empire. Naturally, the other cardinals feel the same about me, since I hold the least power, so I fully understand what it feels like to be in that position. I hope we can get along.”

  “Ah, I see.”

  By all rights, I should have been angry at Traja, but what he was saying was logical, so I couldn’t really find it in me to get mad. It was far safer for a relatively unimportant cardinal to form a pact with me than it was for the Pope himself to form a pact with Eleora. This way, if things started looking grim, both sides could cut their losses by claiming their subordinates acted without permission. But man, this guy’s like those evil villains you see in Hollywood movies. Considering the fact that he was willing to sacrifice even his life for the sake of his goals, you could say he was a fanatic of sorts. Honestly speaking though, I liked guys like him. If nothing else, they were easy to talk to.

  I nodded and said, “Very well. If the worst happens, you can pin all the blame on me, and I’ll quietly return to Meraldia. Is that acceptable?”

  “Yes. The last thing we want is to harm the prestige of the royal family, so please take the fall by yourself. But I must say, you’re quite a strange man. Wouldn’t you normally get angry if someone told you to be a scapegoat?”

  “It’s a fitting job for a vice-commander, so I’m more than happy to take on that role.”

  I was planning on returning to Meraldia once my business was done anyway, so it’s not like being banished from Rolmund forever would bother me. From my point of view, Traja’s proposal didn’t require taking on any extra burdens or risks. Plus appeasing Lord Bolshevik was also part of my job. Things were finally starting to go well, so the last thing I wanted was someone getting in the way of my plans. Smiling, Traja held out his hand for a handshake.

  “I see Zanawah’s assessment of you wasn’t mistaken. I thank God for allowing me to meet with such a wise and rational individual.”

  “Thank you for trusting a demon such as myself.”

  Us two scoundrels shared a firm handshake. Cunning schemers who could be reasoned with were the best. Mao turned to me and grumbled, “You guys are so evil you make me look like a saint.”

  “Honestly, that sounds like a compliment...” I replied.

  “You have nerves of steel, you know that?”

  A cardinal who fabricated sacred texts, and a foreigner who served the Demon Lord. We made for a pretty nice pair. Alright, time to hash out some details. All for the sake of peace, of course.

  * * * *

  —Cardinal Traja’s Speculations—

  The enigmatic demon from Meraldia ended up greatly exceeding my expectations. Even though he’s a foreigner, a heretic, and belongs to an entirely different race, he was surprisingly easy to get along with. In fact, it shocked me how reasonable he was. But perhaps it shouldn’t have. After all, we are both seekers of truth climbing the same mountain. Regardless of whether we started on the mountain’s north face or its south one, we met at the same peak. Either way, the werewolf Veight has proved himself a worthy negotiating partner. I need to thank Zanawah for introducing him to me.

  Since the time of the old republic, it has been known that to succeed as a negotiator in Rolmund, you need the ability to listen, to see, and to speak. You need to listen to the words of others and keep an ear out for any and all news. You need a discerning eye to see what information is valuable and what isn’t. And lastly, you need a fluent tongue to negotiate skillfully. Lord Veight possesses all three qualities.

  Despite being a demon, he understands human society. And despite being a heretic, he knows a great deal about both the Sonnenlicht and the Sternenfeuer religions. Not only that, but he was also willing to entertain my outlandish request. Proof that he knows how to listen.

  He also knows how to sift through relevant and irrelevant information. Furthermore, he has the spine to accept harsh truths and not avert his gaze from undesirable information. He’s also a veteran general with real foresight. Proof that he knows how to see.

  Lastly, he’s the first person I’ve ever met who managed to impress Zanawah enough to get him to write a letter of recommendation. Even I couldn’t help but be entertained in my conversation with him—proof that he knows how to speak.

  There were multiple points in our conversation where I nearly gave him concessions I shouldn’t have, just because he was that eloquent. Truly, what a terrifying demon. Still, his attitude toward negotiation was quite intriguing. Whenever I offered him favorable terms, he was more than willing to offer more favorable terms himself. Honestly, he makes for the perfect negotiation partner. His natural inclination toward kindness means I can easily get the concessions I want out of him. But at the same time, it makes me want to offer him as much as I can, too. I wonder what kind of face he’ll make when I offer him everything in my power to give?

  * * * *

  After a few minutes of deep contemplation, Traja brought out a pen and a sheet of paper, and placed them in front of me.

  “The scriptures we’re ‘repairing’ right now pertain to Sonnenlicht’s treatment of heretics. They’re meant to be a continuation of the chronicle of the Holy Zahakt Crusade.”

  According to the current scriptures, Saint Zahakt had been a great warrior who led multiple holy crusades against demons, monsters, and heretics. But there wasn’t anything that covered his later years, so Traja had some leeway to fabricate new stories there.

  “Incidentally, Saint Zahakt isn’t a real person. He never existed. Everything about his life was fiction crafted to suit the needs of the times.”

  Every time Traja happily mentioned how another section of the Sonnenlicht tenets were fake, Mao frowned. From his perspective as a merchant, this venture probably looked like it was all risk and no return. But as far as I could tell, this was the best way to stop another civil war from breaking out. Traja gave me a small smile.

  “This appended scripture is going to begin with Zahakt musing: ‘After decades of warring with humans and heretics, I came to realize something.’ But what comes after, I would like yo
u to decide. Whatever you write will become Sonnenlicht canon.”

  “Are you sure about this?”

  Aren’t you giving me a little too much in return for my help? Traja’s smile turned a little bitter.

  “In order to resolve the looming crisis, the Sonnenlicht Order will need to borrow the knowledge of a demon like you. If anything, asking you to write our next discovery is putting us in your debt, not the other way around.”

  “I see.”

  So what I write here will decide the fate of the empire... Man, this is too much pressure for me. Though I wavered for a moment, I recalled that there were werewolves in Rolmund serving the Sternenfeuer religion. As the Demon Lord’s vice-commander, it was my duty to protect their future. Aiding all demons regardless of affiliation was the entire reason the Demon Army existed. I needed to come up with a convincing monologue for Zahakt that could help them. The biggest issue was that the Sonnenlicht Order and the Sternenfeuer Cult were at war with each other. One of the core tenets of Sonnenlicht was “Combine your strength to push back the night.” In practice, that meant Sonnenlicht followers were unhealthily obsessed with conformity.

  On the other hand, the primary teaching of Sternenfeuer was “The sky is the divine canopy which illuminates the truth.” In other words, “I’ll show you the truth, but it’s up to you to do something with it.” Generally, the people who became Sternenfeuer gurus were those who uncovered some truth about the world. They then taught others how to follow in their footsteps. Basically, Sternenfeuer was more about self-improvement than group conformity. It was inevitable that the two would clash. Fortunately, my predecessors back on earth had left behind an example on how to solve this issue. The best way to eliminate conflict between two religions was to make them more similar to each other. I just had to make Sonnenlicht more Sternenfeuer-like. And I know just the right tenet to add to make that happen.

  “Traja.”

  “Yes?”

  “The Sternenfeuer Cult is allied with demons. As a demon myself, I would very much like to bring them over to my side. Plus, doing so will weaken Lord Bolshevik. I’ll be writing these tenets with that goal in mind.”

  Honestly, I wasn’t sure my plan would work, but since this was my idea, it was my responsibility to see it through. Traja nodded his assent.

  “Very well. If that is your plan, then I have no objections. However, are you sure things will work out as neatly as you claim?”

  “These demons may be allied with the Sternenfeuer, but they are not Sternenfeuer believers themselves. The only god demons serve is the Demon Lord.”

  “I see...”

  Though Traja was wise, he wasn’t capable of understanding how demons thought. For us, strength was everything. So naturally, we only worshiped the strong. Furthermore, not all of the Sternenfeuer adherents were of the same mind as Lord Bolshevik. There were probably plenty of his followers who weren’t all that religious, too. As long as we targeted those people, chipping away at Lord Bolshevik’s strength was a realistic prospect.

  I looked up at Traja and added, “I believe it would be ideal to alter Sonnenlicht dogma so that it is more accepting of Sternenfeuer’s ideology. Doing so will help bring people living on Lord Bolshevik’s lands over to your cause. Simply adding Sternenfeuer celebrations to Sonnenlicht canon or making Sonnenlicht festivals happen on the same day as Sternenfeuer ones will be enough. And if you could find some important historical Sternenfeuer figures and find reasons to make them Sonnenlicht saints, even better.”

  “Unbelievable...” For a moment, Traja looked shocked. But then comprehension dawned and he nodded swiftly. “As you wish. That should be a simple enough task.”

  “Are you sure about this?”

  “But of course. What good are the scriptures if they lead people to fight amongst each other until everyone’s dead and only a barren wasteland remains? If altering Sonnenlicht to be more accepting is what it takes to protect believers, then that’s what I will do.”

  After hearing Traja’s reply, I steeled my resolve and picked up the pen. I gave myself a few seconds to collect my thoughts, then began to write.

  “At one point in my crusades, I was compelled to join forces with heretics to eliminate a den of dangerous monsters. Once the battle was over, the non-believers and I huddled together in the cold, waiting for the dawn. The heretics who worshiped the north star gazed northward while me and my followers looked east, anticipating the sunrise. But when the sun finally crested the horizon, everyone turned eastward, thankful that they’d lived to see another day. I realized that at dawn, the holy light of the sun graces all men equally, regardless of whether they worship the sun or the stars.”

  Will that work? I’d tried to make my sentences read like other scriptures. Everyone’s worthy of the sun’s grace, regardless of whether they believe or not. That was the tenet I wanted to add to Sonnenlicht. It was the majority religion in Rolmund, so they actually stood to gain a lot by showing they were tolerant of others.

  Traja read over my paragraph a few times, then smiled at me. “You did a splendid job. I’ll add some more context to the story to ensure it fits with past scriptures, but what you’ve written will work just fine.”

  It never ceased to amaze me how lightly he treated blasphemy.

  “You’re sure?”

  “I am. Of course, publishing this will cause an ideological divide among the cardinals. We have oppressed heretics for so long that even those who know the truth are reluctant to recognize their rights. However, what you have written is the very embodiment of the creed ‘Combine your strength to push back the night.’”

  Traja’s smile grew wider.

  “I should have known you would be familiar enough with the scriptures to come up with just the thing to appease believers, Lord Veight. Leave the rest to me. I’ll convince the other cardinals to publish this.” Traja pocketed the piece of paper containing my addition to Sonnenlicht canon before adding, “From here on out, Sonnenlicht will no longer persecute heretics and demons, so long as they do not oppose us. Of course, it will take time for this policy to take root, but we will make every effort to speed the process along.”

  He made it sound so simple, but reforming a religion wasn’t that easy.

  “Are you sure you can do it?”

  “I can, and I must,” Traja replied, his expression growing serious. “In order for the Sonnenlicht Order to continue existing, it needs to continue changing. Religions are like people—they must adapt to survive.”

  Traja glanced out the window, his face solemn.

  “On that note, we need to adopt new means by which we transform religion as well. We have already crafted too many scriptures. Soon we will need to sort what is necessary and what isn’t, then stage a proper reform. Though...I suppose that’s one problem I can be forgiven for pushing onto future generations.”

  Traja shrugged and smiled again. And here I thought you were serious about your job.

  “Alright, Lord Veight, we will begin preparations to recognize the rights of Sternenfeuer believers, so could you please start undermining Lord Bolshevik’s influence?”

  “But of course, Traja.”

  I got to my feet and flourished my cape. There wasn’t much else I could do to help, but at least I had an established reputation for convincing people to change sides. I’d get Lord Bolshevik’s supporters to turn traitor somehow or the other. At least I already had connections with Jovtzia and Volka. So I had a place to start. Hehehe, I’m really turning into a villain now.

  For all of Traja’s claims that he was the least powerful cardinal, he sure seemed to have a lot of influence. I was actually a bit curious about that.

  “Traja, are you secretly one of the most powerful cardinals and just pretending to be unimportant?”

  Traja smiled lightly and replied, “Oh no, not at all. The cardinal who is appointed to be keeper of the scripture can never become Pope, nor can they transfer to any other cardinal post. This is as far as my career goes.
”

  You won’t fool me that easily. I grinned and replied, “Isn’t that because if someone with as much authority as the keeper of the scripture became Pope, they’d be able to control the entire Order? And I imagine the reason you cannot change posts is because the cardinals do not want too many people knowing the secret of the scriptures. In other words, yours is quite an important post, no?”

  “I suppose you could say that. Regardless, I’ve found I’m quite suited to doing dirty work like this. So important or not, this is the perfect job for me.”

  Traja didn’t seem proud of what he was doing, but he didn’t seem to feel guilty about it either. He added, “Now if you’ll excuse me, I have a very important scripture to fabricate. Don’t worry, I’ll convince the other cardinals to publish it.”

  Traja gave me a pure, guileless smile. I guess only guys like him could survive a job like this.

  * * * *

  —Jovtzia’s Frustrations—

  “Hmm, so the assassination attempt failed...”

  My older brother, Shallier Bolshevik, folded his arms in front of the fireplace. He was staring at a sharp-eyed old woman named Volka. She was the head of an assassination clan that had lived hidden in North Rolmund for generations. Her long years of service had earned her the nickname “The Witch of the Waltz” among her peers. Volka shook her head and replied, “He was too much for me. That Meraldian’s strength is unnatural. Plus, I didn’t expect all of his guards to be the same as him. If you’d known that, you should have told me.”

  “Even I was unaware of that fact. Though I was afraid that might be the case, which is why I requested your services. Seeing as no one died, that turned out to be the right call.”

  My brother smiled, but Volka didn’t seem placated.

  “Save your breath. You should know you can’t lie in my presence.”

  “Whoops, I nearly forgot. Anyway, I guess members of the same race aren’t guaranteed to all have the same strength. If you think your clan’s stronger than his, that’s all well and good, but if you really think you’re weaker, then...”