The Greatest Magician's Ultimate Quest: I Woke from a 300 Year Slumber to a World of Disappointment Volume 2 [Parts 1 to 7] by Matsue Fukuyama

Author:Matsue Fukuyama
Language: eng
Format: epub

After parting ways with Lelesha, I headed off to the last spot I wanted to observe: the Shtaalist temple in Khonkas. The building was far grander and more imposing than the mayoral residence. A mere glance was more than enough to inform anyone of just how many devotees of Shtaal resided in Runalog and how powerful their order was.

Inside, my soldiers were in the middle of a dismantlement operation. Indeed, statues of Shtaal and past saints were being broken down and stripped of their generous gold plating. The gold would be melted down and added to the coffers of the Army of the Night. The overseer of the operation, Rosa, walked up to me when she saw I had entered the temple.

“It feels like we’re inviting divine retribution,” she commented.

Rosa wasn’t a True Blood like me, but rather a Noble vampire. Exposure to the sun’s rays would burn her skin, but unlike Lessers or Normals, she could work in shady interiors during the day—not that that erased any qualms she might have about the job itself.

“I’m not the most spiritual of people, having been born in the imperial capital and all, but even I’m pretty hesitant about this,” she said. She also grumbled about the lengths she’d gone to in order to find soldiers who’d do the work and to ensure them financial compensation.

“Oh? The citizens of the imperial capital aren’t spiritual?” I asked, blatantly dodging the subject.

Rosa glared at me but politely answered my question. “Faiths of all varieties are forbidden within the empire. The only gods deemed viable for worship are Al Shion, who helped found the empire, and other deities that make up the imperial line. All other deities are considered evil gods. However, though they may not publicly admit it, not everyone thinks the emperor is a god. Those people are more-or-less without a religion and make up roughly half of the citizens of the capital.”

She spoke with a complicated expression both bitter and nostalgic. “After I was expelled from the capital, I was surprised by what I saw outside. I witnessed plenty of people worshipping Ramias, the Sun God; Hamarn, the Mother of the Land; and other gods whose reverence was supposedly prohibited. Monuments to these gods stood tall and out in the open like it was the most natural thing in the world, and the further into the countryside I went, the more devotees I discovered.”

Rosa paused for a moment before continuing. “However,” she said emphatically, “in Arkus, Her Ladyshi—Countess Nastalia had been enforcing the same restrictions on religion as in the capital. There wasn’t a single temple in the province, and the people weren’t very faithful either, both of which rather helped me settle in.”

“Oh, how interesting,” I said with a sardonic smile. “Three hundred years ago, I succeeded in unifying the land but let its religions remain as they were.”

I had, however, stripped clergies of their religious authority and barred them from possessing excessive riches, as those were ultimately irrelevant to their worship.

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