Ch.106106. Blue Eyes (2)

# ‘Blue Eyes’

This underground organization that serves Magica, the evil god of conspiracy known as ‘The Plotting Prophet,’ was not, strictly speaking, the only group that worshipped Magica.

While the official organizations that worship and revere Ma-Duk, the god of vengeance, are unified under the Vengeance Order, the evil god of conspiracy handles his worshippers in the exact opposite manner.

That is, he forms numerous cell organizations that secretly infiltrate specific groups, then uses the god himself and his minions to establish underground networks.

As few as one person, or at most five people per cell.

They form groups and share information by meeting in dreams every night, making it virtually impossible to completely eradicate them.

Of course, not all organizations under the evil god of conspiracy are cell-based. A prime example is the aforementioned ‘Blue Eyes.’

Consisting of about 80 members operating in the judicial and administrative districts of the Rom Empire, ‘Blue Eyes’ is composed of promising bureaucrats from various factions and a small number of high-ranking officials who are treated as faction bosses.

Most of them are scattered, working in hiding within their factions or committees, and since they only make contact in dreams, there’s no risk of being discovered.

Following the will of the evil god of conspiracy, they share information among themselves while climbing to the highest positions possible, eagerly encouraging corruption among officials and assassinating those who remain uncorrupted.

Thanks to their efforts, ‘Blue Eyes’ continues to lead the Rom Empire toward destruction, and surprisingly, their boss has infiltrated the position of Minister of Commerce and Industry.

In modern terms, this would be equivalent to combining the Ministry of Industry and Trade with the Ministry of Science and Technology, plus some authority from the Ministry of Finance—an incredibly powerful position… and that’s not even the end of it.

The name of the ‘Blue Eyes’ boss is Hrunting, and his race is a pure-blooded White Dragon.

White Dragons are a pure-blooded dragon race among the “Colored Dragons,” characterized by snow-white scales and high affinity for wind and ice elements. They are a superior race in almost every aspect, from intelligence to physical abilities.

Under their leadership, ‘Blue Eyes’ has seized control of the Rom Empire’s administration through unimaginable political machinations.

…Ironically, despite their zealous efforts to control the administrative system, they must still pay tribute to an entirely different evil god according to their contract.

※ ※ ※

‘Hmmmm…’

As I was watching the worshippers pray in their own ways with a warm gaze, helping them realize their earnest wishes, I suddenly shifted my attention elsewhere.

‘…Priests, huh.’

My gaze turned toward the priest hosting the prayer meeting in the underground temple’s chapel.

Currently, within my Vengeance Order, priests are classified into roughly five types.

First are the apprentice priests of the 10th rank, also called the lowest rank.

These apprentice priests, who can barely cast a few 1st-level spells, are generally quite inexperienced, and while they may be respected, their status within the order is the same as that of ordinary believers.

Interestingly, besides those who truly aspire to become priests, some simply hold the apprentice position because the 10th rank is attainable with faith alone, regardless of talent.

In such cases, they typically maintain separate occupations and view their position merely as a symbol of their faith.

This tendency became even stronger after a certain fellow who got cocky with his apprentice priest title was sent to a detention camp.

Meanwhile, the minimum threshold to be officially recognized as a priest within the order is the 9th rank, known as junior priests.

Although 9th rank priests, who cannot yet cast 2nd-level spells, are often treated as novice priests, all junior priests are considered equal in position since reaching the 9th rank already indicates talent.

They receive high monthly salaries from the order and enjoy the honor of being revered as teachers within the order, but they are also expected to fulfill corresponding responsibilities.

As clergy, they must study various disciplines including theology and scriptures, and in their spare time, they consecrate water to create holy water or bless weapons used by the Avenger Legion.

Additionally, priests are obligated to serve on the battlefield for a certain number of days each year, so they often gain experience through monster subjugation missions in underground cities.

Moreover, the code of conduct required of them is quite strict; if they violate the doctrine, they are typically implanted into golems for labor purposes, and in the worst cases, they receive the Blood Eagle punishment and become bloody eagle totems.

However, these harsh measures are only possible because they all volunteered to become priests. If they dislike the strict regulations, they can always quit and return to being ordinary believers.

But usually, these individuals are so genuinely devoted to the doctrine and faith of the Vengeance Order that such cases have occurred only once so far.

Meanwhile, as regular (junior) priests cultivate themselves and grow, some break through barriers to reach the intermediate level.

And priests who reach this level are presented with two paths—one is to become a Paladin, and the other is to become an intermediate priest.

Paladins are a level typically reached by priests skilled in close combat. In a nutshell, they are warriors and priests who use holy auras.

Although their magical abilities may be inferior to those of priests, they can handle holy auras, giving them intermediate warrior-level close combat abilities, excellent combat endurance, and decent magical capabilities.

Particularly, their ability to heal their own wounds with magic, the regenerative properties of holy auras, and attribute-imbued auras make them virtually invincible against demons and undead.

However, perhaps as a trade-off for these characteristics, talented individuals who can become Paladins are extremely rare, and since one cannot become a Paladin without personal desire, their numbers are incredibly small—currently, our order has only two Paladins in total.

On the other hand, intermediate priests are the natural result of regular priests continuing their cultivation.

Enhanced magical abilities allowing them to use 3rd-level divine spells, increased daily usage of “miracles” from three to five times.

And in addition to various minor equivalent special abilities of priests, the most important ability available to intermediate priests is—resurrection magic.

This magic requests the divine realm to retrieve a soul and place it into a restored body to resurrect the person.

Although it comes with side effects such as short-term memory loss or rank/level reduction, it’s an ability that must be used despite these penalties.

Anyway, when a priest reaches the intermediate level and becomes either a Paladin or an intermediate priest, their position within the Vengeance Order rises exponentially.

They immediately qualify to become the head of an underground temple or hold high positions, and with permission, they can even establish a new underground temple and become its leader.

Also, teaching doctrine to priests and believers is only possible for those of intermediate rank, and only intermediate priests are permitted to conduct priestly activities outside and evangelize secretly.

Furthermore, to rise to a high position within the order, one must reach the intermediate level. For example, Gracchus became the head of the order because, before being the founder, he proved himself by becoming an intermediate priest.

However, from the intermediate level onward, freedom is no longer granted, and dedicating one’s life to the order is the only choice left.

Paladins, in particular, must make a soul-binding oath and spend their lives wandering, without even receiving proper treatment as intermediate human resources…

But since reaching the intermediate level itself proves the priest’s attitude toward faith, those of intermediate rank are generally considered reliable, high-quality talents.

And the fifth and final type of priest classified by the order is the senior priest, but…

Since there’s only one in the entire order, and they operate separately from the order’s system, there’s not much to say.

However, considering that the senior level is so rare that having more than one in an era is unusual, and that senior priests are typically regarded as living saints or papal-level figures,

The only senior priest, Lisa, could actually stand at the top of the Vengeance Order if she wanted to.

Well, she’s actually too busy enjoying her life lounging around in the Blood Sanctuary to show even the slightest interest in doing so.