radicalducati Chapter 181 The Cult of the First Birth
Chapter 181 The Cult of the First Birth
Chapter 181 The Cult of the First Birth
Since entering the Principality of the Holy Envoy, Anne felt that her surroundings were much safer.
The Church has always been irreconcilably opposed to evil, and in the Principality of the Holy See, where the Papacy holds power, there is naturally no place for criminals to hide.
Once a crime occurs, the nearby Holy Knights will be mobilized to quickly eliminate the bandits.
After all, the security situation within a diocese is one of the key criteria for evaluating whether the local church leader can be promoted to the Vatican.
Gentleman Seth said that the Holy Knights were a powerful force.
The average combat strength of a single paladin may not be comparable to that of the Guardian Knights of the Great Kingdom, or even to the members of the Unswearing Knights.
But it is by no means comparable to the ordinary knights of the kingdom.
The Duchy of Saints has numerous paladin orders; almost every diocese has a paladin order affiliated with the church, and each denomination also trains its own paladin order.
However, the Principality of the Holy See is a highly centralized papal state, and conflicts rarely erupt between the various dioceses and holy territories.
Therefore, the principality's fighting strength is severely excessive.
Therefore, their only option was to mobilize troops to track down and eliminate the criminals, thereby reducing the waste of combat resources.
However, while Anne could not deny the duchy's excellent security, she could not ignore the oppressive atmosphere.
While the people living on this land are not exactly devoid of life, Anne rarely sees any vitality or energy in their eyes.
This feeling arose in Anne's heart from the moment she left Coolidge Gorge and set foot in the first city of the Duchy.
This feeling became more and more pronounced as she visited more and more cities.
If this is the price to pay for security, Anne isn't sure if it's worth it.
Anne's destination, the Holy City, is located in the southern part of the Principality of the Holy Envoy.
At this moment, Anne has arrived at Fushi Port in the northern part of the Duchy.
You can reach the southern part of the principality simply by crossing the Holy Son Canal.
As its name suggests, the Son of God Canal is an artificially constructed river.
It runs through the east and west coasts of the principality, and ships can travel between the Flameheart Sea and the Calm Sea simply by passing through it.
So although it is called a "river", what flows inside is actually seawater.
The passage fees and surcharges collected by the Holy Son Canal are an important source of revenue for the principality.
Therefore, the management of the various ports along the river is very strict.
Any vessel attempting to navigate the waters must pay the full fee and obtain a valid navigation certificate or trade permit in advance.
Even if it is just crossing the north and south banks, the boats need to be reported in advance.
By this time, all the ships heading to the southern ports had already left, so Anne was unable to board a ship immediately and head to the southern part of the duchy. Instead, she had to stay in Fushi Port for a day.
However, Seth said that this might not be a bad thing:
"In most cases, I can protect you, but only on land. If we need to board a ship, I may need to make some more preparations."
"Aren't you good at dealing with the risks at sea?" Anne asked curiously.
"I have boarded ships and embarked on voyages several times, but the results were terrible."
Seth's expression remained relaxed, but Annie could tell that his tone was somewhat heavy.
"The Unswearing Knights were almost completely wiped out at sea."
Hearing this reply, Anne felt somewhat incredulous.
She had long heard of the Unswearing Knights' reputation. Although she disliked the mercenary organization because of Lola, she couldn't deny that the Unswearing Knights were rumored to be extremely powerful.
After this period of contact, she became even more convinced that this group was not just a name without substance.
And they almost got wiped out? Annie couldn't imagine what kind of accident they had encountered:
"What happened?"
"The Unswearing Knights rarely leave the kingdom unless it's for a mission, and that incident was also for a mission."
"We took a boat, chased another ship, entered the Sea of Despair, and strayed into the Corruption Sea," said the gentleman with a shrug, leading his horse and Anne through the streets of Forsythia. "Oh, my lady, it was truly a despairingly corrupt sea; I had never seen such absurd phenomena and forces."
"In short, although I eventually led the ships to safety, the Unswerving Knights suffered heavy losses. You see, miss, if we hadn't gone through that incident, there would be many more people escorting you now."
Hearing this, Anne couldn't help but ask:
"Your deputy commander is dead too?"
"No, he wasn't involved in that mission; he went to investigate another assignment."
pity.
Anne hopes that anyone who harms Lola will suffer a terrible fate.
"So that mission failed?"
"That's how it should have been, but—" Gentleman paused, "the commissioning party suddenly withdrew the mission, and this doomed defeat was unexpectedly reversed, allowing the Unswearing Knights' invincibility to continue."
Anne complained, "The Unswearing Knights aren't as omnipotent as the rumors say."
"Oh! That's natural. We're only human, and there are bound to be things we can't do."
Seth maintained his smile and answered calmly.
"In short, that experience taught me that the deck is not our battlefield, and if I have to go back on the deck, I must be fully prepared."
Anne understood, so she nodded and quietly followed Seth as they searched for an inn in the harbor.
Just then, Anne saw a group of people dressed in golden armor walking towards her, heading straight for them.
Annie noticed the group of mercenaries and they all reached for their weapons.
However, Seth gently waved his hand, seemingly signaling to the band members not to act rashly.
The gentleman stepped forward, bowed to the newcomer, and inquired about his purpose.
Then the leader of the other side also stepped out of the group and started talking to Seth.
The two were not speaking loudly, and Annie could only hear snippets of their conversation, unable to understand in detail what they were saying.
Finally, the leading warrior glanced at everyone and led his troops away.
Seth turned around and bowed to Anne, saying:
"Miss, I'm sorry you were frightened, but you're alright now."
"Who are they?" Anne asked.
"The Holy Knights," Seth said, "I told you, the Holy Knights are everywhere in the Principality of the Holy Envoy."
"But not every location," Anne corrected, "could it be that Port Forsythe is also a permanent base for the Holy Knights?"
"The ports along the Holy Son Canal are important locations for the Duchy, so it is not surprising that the Holy Knights are stationed here regularly."
Seth raised an eyebrow as he spoke.
"But you're right, this is indeed not the central city of the local parish, nor the birthplace of any sect, and the Holy Knights do not have a permanent presence in Port Forsythia."
"Then why were those paladins here?"
"In order to investigate a major case, they saw that we were all wearing armor and helmets and had iron weapons hanging from our waists, so they became suspicious and stopped us for questioning. However, since we were invited, they did not linger and let us move freely."
Annie narrowed her eyes: "What case?"
“Someone attacked a heretic examiner,” Seth said. “In the Principality of the Holy Apostles, attacking a church member is equivalent to committing apostasy and blasphemy, and should be punished by burning at the stake.”
"The church seems to be taking this case very seriously, so it has sent the Holy Knights to investigate in order to find the culprit and make an example of him."
The armed forces of the Principality of the Holy Envoy are unusually bloated. It is probably not surprising that the Holy Knights would be mobilized for such a trivial matter.
However, the paladins' attitude seemed overly serious and tense, and Anne vaguely felt that this matter might not be as simple as the gentleman had said.
So he asked, "Is that all?"
"Your intuition is quite good, miss," Seth smiled. "That captain just now told me a little inside information—"
This matter may be related to sectarian power struggles.
Heraldry is an important and profound branch of heraldry, and as Joseph's key disciple, Anne naturally had a deep understanding of it.
The power struggle between religious sects has never ceased since the establishment of the Principality of the Holy Envoy.
However, in recent days, the strength of the major mainstream sects has become more balanced. Although the intensity of the power struggle has increased, the sects' actions have become more covert.
If those paladins were truly involved in a power struggle within the cult, wouldn't that be far too blatant?
Anne asked, "What denomination?"
"This matter is related to the Inquisitors, and is naturally a heretical sect," Seth said. "A nun posted a heretical paper on the bulletin board, and the Inquisitors led a group to arrest her, but were attacked. The heretical nun was also rescued."
"As for the name of this sect, Miss Anne, you surely know it, because that's what motivated you to embark on this journey." Upon hearing this, a word immediately popped into Anne's mind:
"The First Birth Cult!"
The gentleman smiled and said, "That's right."
Anne came to the Duchy of the Holy Apostles to attend the ordination ceremony of the new cardinal.
And that deceased cardinal was the leader of the First Birth Church!
The sect’s main force had just died, and other sects immediately launched an attack on it, defining it as a heretic.
This indicates that the religious atmosphere in the Principality of the Holy Envoy, as well as the power struggles between religious sects, had reached an extremely tense level.
Anne had a premonition that the rest of the journey would not be smooth sailing.
Anne also knew something about the Firstborn Church.
The Firstborn Church is also a branch of the faith in God. The church's emblem is the First New Life, with a black background and a bright cross radiating holy light in the center.
Its main difference from other sects lies in its different interpretation of creationism.
Most mainstream religious sects believe that the world was created by God.
However, the Firstborn Church believes that God existed after the birth of the universe, and was the first thing to be born after the formation of the universe.
Therefore, God has the authority to manage all things in the universe.
As for which one is right, Annie can't tell, nor does she care.
She was raised by Aaron, who seemed to have no specific faith, but did not restrict her faith either.
Although Anne eventually became a believer in God, influenced by Aaron, this faith was not an inseparable part of her life.
However, Anne remembers that the Firstborn Church was one of the major sects.
Is it really that easy to suppress the Newborn sect and define it as heresy?
Or is it just a situation in certain local areas?
Before she could think things through, they had already arrived at the hotel.
After checking in, it was already late, so Annie had a simple dinner with Seth and the others at the hotel.
After dinner, Anne said to Seth:
I want to go out for a while.
“This is dangerous, Miss,” the gentleman said. “The night is always filled with ominous signs. Although the Holy Envoy’s work is well-maintained, unforeseen events always lurk in the shadows. Besides, as you have seen, the religious atmosphere in the Duchy is unusually tense right now.”
“I’m not just wandering around,” Anne said. “You should know I have a second purpose for coming to the Duchy: to write a paper.”
Therefore, I need to consult relevant materials. Tonight's unexpected stay means I'd like to use this time to do some research at the local library.
Seth asked, "Is there a library here?"
"I don't know," Anne shook her head, "but I want to look for it."
Hearing this, Seth shook his head with a wry smile:
"You're really making things difficult for me, Miss Anne. But since you're so beautiful, fine, I'll let you go, but I'll come along to make sure that someone as beautiful as you won't dare to lay a finger on me."
Anne doesn't care about looks, but she's still happy when people compliment her on her appearance.
Therefore, she guessed that Gentleman Seth must be very good at attracting the opposite sex in private.
He is already very good-looking, not to mention he is good at taking care of other people's feelings.
Anne agreed to Seth's suggestion, and the two then went out to search for a library in the city.
Aaron's library was located outside the city, but this seems to be an isolated case.
Most libraries belonged to the local lords and were therefore usually built within the city or even in a castle.
Not long after, to everyone's surprise, Annie actually found it.
Annie went inside, and the manager said that the customers inside hadn't left yet, so they were still open.
This made her feel lucky, so she happily went inside.
Upon entering the library, I indeed found a man sitting in a seat, reading late into the night.
Anne found several books that documented local history and described the development of the sect, and began to read them carefully.
She was always so engrossed in her reading that she didn't know how much time had passed. When she looked up, she found that the man opposite her was still there.
Anne glanced at the books on the table; they must be quite old.
The man seemed to sense Annie's gaze, and suddenly raised his head, bowing slightly to her.
Anne nodded in response and politely struck up a conversation:
"That book seems quite old."
"I like ancient knowledge, which may contain technology that spans thousands of years."
The other person smiled and said,
"Therefore, I also enjoy visiting historic libraries, which are likely to contain books that interest me. However, perhaps it's because I'm an oddball, haha, sorry, my hobbies are a bit incomprehensible."
Anne shook her head: "No, I understand. I also enjoy reading, especially history books. Besides, I grew up in an old library."
As soon as she finished speaking, Annie instantly sensed a glint in the eyes of the person opposite her:
"Oh? What kind of library is that?"
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