3 bar menu

Chapter 95

――On that day, numerous worlds and individuals were shaken.

Mairahl’s religion, which worshipped the Earth Mother Goddess Mairahl, was managed and governed by a female pope, the chief priest, eleven high priests, and the oracles of the gods in Mairahl’s lineage.

The Great Temple where the female pope, the earthly representative of Mairahl, sat was majestically large. However, it was considerably simple for a religion of its size. This was because Mairahl’s religion preached living in accordance with the blessings of the fertile earth. Hence, devotees placed little value on worldly wealth and honors.

Since ancient times, Mairahl’s religion had a history of endless battles with the evil gods, including Caravis’s cult. As a result, over five thousand warrior priests were constantly guarding the Great Temple.

In addition to these warrior priests, pilgrims visited throughout the year on their pilgrimages. Farmers from neighboring lands and merchants seeking out pilgrims came to and fro the main road leading to the Great Temple. An endless liveliness and the sound of footsteps surrounded the Great Temple all year round.

The Great Temple itself was erected directly above one of the continent’s meridian intersections. Although the altitude of this location was not high, the temple was built within the Gavein Mountain Range, an area known for its steepness. The mountain had been dug up from the middle, and its exposed surface was precisely where the Great Temple was located.

The current pope Cattleya, her assistant high priest, and two other high priests resided in these mountains. Sharing their residence were also the elite warrior priests and temple knights selected to protect them, as well as other priests responsible for caretaking. Ordinary devotees rarely had a chance to see these women.

Members of the religion were forbidden from setting foot in the Great Temple. The only other individuals who had access were the nine high priests scattered across the continent’s temples and the special sentries who collected and conveyed information from the various lands.

On an ordinary day, Cattleya conducted her daily duties as the pope on the floor termed the Earth Floor. This particular spot was at the peak of the Gavein Mountains and the top floor of the Great Temple. Standing on this floor, one could overlook the lands from the peak of the mountains, sensing the presence and voices of the people living on the earth and the earth itself. This was the best place to elevate one’s spiritual communion with Mairahl.

At that particular “moment,” Cattleya had been in the prayer room on the Earth Floor.

The mountain surface had been leveled to form a flat surface for walking, and the windowless room was shaped into a half-dome structure. On the ceiling, an image of Mairahl surrounded by her subordinate gods had been depicted. Right next to Mairahl, an Ancient-Celestial Dragon with white scales, six wings, and rainbow-colored eyes had also been drawn.

In the myths passed down through Mairahl’s religion, this image soaring above Cattleya’s head possessed an overwhelming finesse and solemnity. Above all, it was shrouded in mystery.

At the side, where the only entrance to the prayer room was located, a priest warrior, a temple knight, and the chief priest who was always by Cattleya’s side stood silently.

Cattleya was kneeling in the middle of the prayer room, with her hands clasped and her head bowed, in a praying posture common to almost all religions. However, many would find this woman far too young to take on the position as the pope of Mairahl’s religion.

Pope Cattleya had already been on the seat for five years and would be turning twenty-two this year. Compared to the female popes of the past, there was no doubt that she was one of the youngest in this role.

Cattleya had a head of wavy black hair that reached down to her thighs. Her luscious locks shone with the sheen of silk, and her bare skin was a healthy pigment. She might not be a ravishing beauty, but she certainly left an impression on others with her overflowing graciousness and compassion.

Cattleya’s papal attire consisted of a hooded cloak over her white priestly robe. A long cloth hung from her neck, one that had the doctrine of Mairahl’s religion embroidered in gold thread.

Even though the temple was located in the bare mountains, the floors were swept many times a day, ensuring that no stain was left on Cattleya’s hair and clothes brushing the floor.

If one were to gaze upon Cattleya, who was praying motionlessly, and the high priests who were too afraid to even breathe, one might even be convinced that time had stopped here.

The stillness and silence that seemed to have forgotten the passage of time were finally disrupted by Cattleya’s sudden movement. She got up from her kneeling posture and stood up straight.

Cattleya’s hands were clasped, and her eyelids that were fringed with her long lashes were gently closed. However, her body spasmed as if she had been struck by lightning. Then, she leaped to her feet. A bewildered expression clouded her face, a look that was nothing like her usual self and unthinkable to see on her.

The high priests and priest warriors rushed over upon noticing Cattleya’s unusual behavior. Anxious questions blurted from their mouths. Without caring about the other three priests present, Cattleya hugged the chief priest who had cared for her like a mother. She was just like a child who had been traumatized by a nightmare and seeking the warmth of her mother. Faced with Cattleya’s abrupt behavior, the high priest made the decision to gently embrace Cattleya, who had dove into her own arms, rather than chide the young lady.

Even though Cattleya was not a child the chief priest had labored to give birth to, the chief priest had raised Cattleya like her own ever since Cattleya had been abandoned in a corner of the Great Temple grounds. Back then, the chief priest had already risen to the role of high priest.

The chief priest’s wrinkled hands caressed Cattleya’s head gently, and Cattleya finally stopped trembling. The young lady’s tensed body relaxed too.

「It’s fine now.」The chief priest offered words of comfort, though she could not dispel the unease in her own heart.

Cattleya might be young, but she was by no means inferior in comparison to her predecessors. She was a virtuous and intelligent young lady. During her five years on the seat, she had earned the tremendous trust of not only the people of the Great Temple, but also those who visited this place.

Even if the chief priest, who knew the previous two popes, were to evaluate Cattleya impartially, she could confidently say that Cattleya performed her duties as the female pope responsibly. There was nothing for the chief priest to worry about.

For some reason, a pope like Cattleya was trembling like a child.

「Your Holiness, what in the world happened? Please speak to us. If you share your thoughts, you’ll feel a little better.」

「Ah… How should I put this? Mairahl, Mairahl is…」

「What happened to the great Mairahl? Your Holiness?」

「This is the first time I’ve heard Mairahl‘s voice sound like that. Mairahl, Mairahl is angry!」

Yes, Mairahl was enraged.

She was furious at her nemesis Caravis who had seduced her friend, Dragon.

Moreover, the god of war, Aldeath, had unintentionally thrust his steaming naked buttocks dripping with hot water before Mairahl. For Mairahl, who was unfamiliar with men, this situation was considerably disconcerting.

＊

The Caravis cult, which formed a pair with Mairahl’s religion, had been destined to fight from the very beginning due to the opposing natures of each faith’s god. However, as time passed, Mairahl’s religion gained devotees beyond just humans. Numerous other species that inhabited the earth came to worship Mairahl. On the contrary, due to the temperament of its primary god, the Caravis cult was a step, or even ten steps behind its opposing faith.

While Mairahl’s religion had its stronghold in the Gavein Mountain Range, the Caravis cult established itself deep underground, in a location unknown to all on the continent.

This cult, which controlled demons and magical beasts, had been created by the evil gods. Its followers were humans possessed by desires for the emergence of wicked miracles. Word had it that there were between a hundred thousand to two hundread thousand of such devotees on the continent.

The underground Great Temple of the Caravis cult had been built with the money donated by followers and fortunes offered by demons. In this very location, numerous statues of Caravis, the god who lacked a fixed form, crowded the place. In addition, many stone statues of the countless monsters Caravis had birthed in the past were enshrined in this temple. Accompanied by the shadows cast by the meager light, Caravis’s followers indulged in their own desires.

Caravis governed over destruction and oblivion. Love would be offered in all acts of self-affirmation, even the act of wetting oneself unknowingly.

Not only destruction and oblivion in a material sense, but also destruction and oblivion of all morals, logic, societal construct, and ideals. All who practiced such teachings would attain the protection and blessing of Caravis.

This was the affirmation of unlimited and chaotic desires, and the Great Temple built deep underground was constantly witnessing horrifying deeds coming to reality.

The Father that led such an abominable cult was a man named Gildar. He was a man in his forties, and he had a tall, lanky build.

Gildar, who had just inherited his post from the preceding Father, was in the Father’s room in the center of the Great Temple. As he sat in a chair, he had his head in his hands.

When Gildar had first taken over the position of the Father, he was pleased at the grand opportunity to plot the fulfilment of his evil wishes. Back then, the dark flames of desire within him had burned as hot as hell.

However, his ambitions had been crushed shortly after he took office as the Father.

This was because Caravis had encountered, Dran, the human reincarnation of Dragon in the world. Their meeting had led Caravis to enforce self-restraint on her followers.

Such an unprecedented warning had befuddled the entire cult. No such mandate had been established since the founding of the Caravis cult. There were even followers who had given in to their desires and broken the prohibition.

The rest of Caravis’s followers had been made to watch these malefactors being punished by Caravis. The bodies of these offenders had festered away from head and toes as they had been tortured alive, forbidden to die or to lose their minds. Finally, the other devotees had reached a realization that Caravis’s commandment was true. Ever since then, the cult started practicing self-restraint for the very first time.

As for Gildar, he was plagued by his depressing inability to exercise his power and authority despite attaining the position of Father. Instead, he was forced to remain in this role, powerless to act. This was one of his worries.

The other frustration looming in Gildar’s mind concerned one of Caravis cult’s treasures inherited by each generation of Fathers—the oldest pieces of scripture handwritten by Caravis.

In the past, the Caravis cult had obtained a number of ritual vessels through various sacrifices and prayers. Among them, the Scripture of the Beginning had been handed down as the cult’s most valuable treasure.

This scripture was also the testimony of a Father’s status.

As far as the contents of the scripture were concerned, only the Fathers of each generation were permitted to read through it. Depending on one’s ability to decipher the scripture, one’s spirituality could be elevated accordingly. A rumor among followers was that with sufficient enlightenement, one would even be able to meet Caravis in the flesh.

When Gildar had first set his eyes on the scripture and received it from his predecessor, reality had finally struck him. He had risen to the highest position in the entire cult. This realization had caused him to tremble with elation.

Gildar had entered the Father’s room and sat down in this very chair he was still seated on to browse the scripture’s contents. From that moment on, he had been tormented by intense confusion and regret.

No wonder. Gildar could not help lamenting silently. No wonder his predecessor was looking at him so pityingly when handing over this scripture. It would be better never to have known the contents of this scripture. Wait, it’s not against all the doctrines being handed down thus far. It’s not, but this is too much.

「There’s no way something like that can be related to the followers. Is this the reason for keeping such knowledge from all devotees except the Father? Oh, Caravis, great goddess of destruction and oblivion, jester goddess who dances on the boundary between good and evil. There really is no choice but to seal such knowledge in the hearts of the Fathers, is there?」

Upon translation, this was the contents written on the scripture, with its black cover, spread out on the table:

『I risk my life to toy with him, my greatest nemesis and best friend, my most loved one, Dra-chan』

『Seems like Dra-chan was reincarnated as a human, so I went into his dream to take a look and tease him. Well, what should I say to Dra-chan?』

『Damn, he’s gotten a lot weaker after reincarnating. Despite that, Dra-chan’s still strong! I got a little excited, and I was walloped without being able to attack ☆

I’ve gotten better than before, but I’ll just observe for now!

But, how should I put this? Hehe, Dra-chan is as unbelievable as always. I’m so happy. Guahahaha』

『Well, you know, Dra-chan’s being seduced by such a gorgeous goddess like me, but he’s so aloof. Isn’t it rude to have no reaction at all?

Anyway, I’ve never had a child, but I’ll definitely take care of my child with Dra-chan!

I’ll give birth to a hundred or even two hundred! I’m a maiden both in body and mind, but I’m willing to dedicate my all to Dra-chan!! Totally!!!』

『Oh my gosh! Holy cow! Dra-chan called upon me, so I went to him happily, and I totally forget about that child I created from Dra-chan’s spirit fragment in the past. She reincarnated and met Dra-chan! Like, holy crap! This really happened! I forgot I pissed Dra-chan off! Crap crap crap crap craaaaaap!』

『Yes!!!!!! Dra-chan was really angry about that incident, but not about the child’s creation. He snapped because I neglected her.

That’s was really a mess. But, you know, that child shielded me.

Um, she stood in front of that Dra-chan, yeah, whom everyone trembles at the sight of, pees their pants, and cries. She protected me!!!

What’s with that child! She’s so brave and so cute! My god!!! What a lovely child! Does she already feel a bond with Dra-chan?

I’ve decided. I’ll watch over this beloved child with all my heart. I’ll love her!!!』

『Yeeeeeeeeek!!!!!! Waaaaaaaaaah!!!! I-I-I pissed off Dra-chan! I’m sorry!

I didn’t mean to implicate him! Really!! D-Dran-chan looked really sad at times like this. More so than being angry, it’s like his heart was gouged out. Sob, w-waaaaaaah! I’m sorry!!!』

Gildar was probably not the only one who wanted to say, “What the hell is this?” after reading this scripture. This was obviously a diary. Moreover, there were even more entries than when Gildar had first read it.

Evidently, Caravis’s thoughts were still being transcribed somewhat automatically.

Turns out, the treasure of the evil goddess worshipped for thousands of years was a diary like this.

Hence, generation after generation, the Fathers of the Caravis cult were forced to question their beliefs each time they ascended to this position.

In addition, Caravis had completely forgotten about the existence of this scripture.