Ch.212212. The Beginning of Revolution.

As Sister Teresa returned to the Paris slums, her first act—proving her declaration was no mere illusion—was establishing the Phoenix Order.

Faith in the Phoenix had already begun to take root among the poor, and Sister Teresa had been acting as the leader of what some considered a cult. Her faction was instantly reorganized into the Phoenix Order, and thus a new power was established in the Paris slums.

“Let’s spread this manifesto throughout provincial cities via social media and community websites.”

“Understood.”

But this alone wasn’t enough to challenge the Saint of Orleans who held Paris in her grip.

France’s power and resources were concentrated in Paris, and whoever controlled Paris could maintain power. The Phoenix Order, supported primarily by Paris’s poor, couldn’t compete on strength alone. So instead, they focused on drawing support from provincial cities that had been neglected for Paris’s sake. Regions that had long been exploited by Paris—the Vendée, Brittany, and Normandy, which had historically harbored resentment toward Paris and the Republic—responded passionately to the Phoenix Order’s manifesto, declaring their support.

The provinces now had a rallying point for their discontent, and naturally, the central government in Paris began taking steps to suppress this budding rebellion through political means and early intervention.

“I declare before you all: the Saint of Orleans is not the sole contractor of the Phoenix. I announce today that I too am a Fire Priestess who has contracted with the Phoenix.”

Seizing this moment, Sister Teresa publicly proclaimed in the name of the Phoenix Order that the Saint of Orleans was no longer the Phoenix’s sole contractor. She declared herself a contractor of the Phoenix as well, emphasizing that she could be a rival to the Saint of Orleans.

At this declaration…

“What? Some cult leader claims she’s contracted with the Phoenix?”

“What is the Saint of Orleans doing? Not managing the Phoenix contract properly!”

“Paris’s attention is turning to this self-proclaimed Fire Priestess! Provincial cities are showing signs of rebellion, yet no one is responding!”

The Paris central government began to panic at this announcement of another Phoenix contractor, which came at the critical timing for early suppression of rebellion. They needed public support to suppress the rebellion and needed to establish the moral high ground that opposing the government was wrong.

Paris had experienced bloody suppressions several times before, but these remained as karmic burdens on the city. For a government less than a year old, harsh measures carried too much political risk. The Paris officials wanted to present the suppression as a just cause through citizen support, but now all attention was focused on the self-proclaimed Fire Priestess.

With their plan to gather Parisian support for suppressing the rebellion falling apart, the Saint of Orleans responded immediately to the officials’ warnings.

“She is a heretic! A heretic! How dare she invoke the Phoenix’s name so carelessly!”

Yes, it was a declaration of heresy. Sister Teresa’s previous religious group had already been branded heretical by Christianity, and the political sphere was already filled with representatives chosen by the Saint of Orleans. The Saint’s voice ruled almost like an absolute authority, and in this situation, her declaration of heresy instantly branded the Phoenix Order as a cult.

“A heretic? Who is truly distorting the word of God and using His name as they please? I will show proof of my contract for all of France to see!”

In response, the Fire Priestess criticized the dictator, declaring loudly that she was not an absolute authority. She not only gave speeches in Paris squares but used every available medium—recorded videos, livestreams, social media, YouTube—to spread her message to those who hated the Saint throughout France. Simultaneously, she began to demonstrate proof of her contract.

Teresa actually summoned the Phoenix, broadcasting the event live and recording it to spread throughout France. Though the French government tried to censor and delete the videos, in the modern era where information spreads instantly, even government censorship couldn’t stop the news from spreading.

“That damned whore!”

This moment marked the first crack in the Saint of Orleans’ absolute authority. The Phoenix contractor, leader of the European Union, and ruler of France—a woman with the prestige and dignity to govern all of Europe—was beginning to falter under an adversary’s blade for the first time.

This wavering quickly reached those who despised the Saint of Orleans, transforming into support for the Phoenix Order that opposed her. Even within the cabinet, some began to recognize the shifting political winds and adopt opportunistic positions.

“Nonsense! This is all nonsense from a cult!”

But the Saint of Orleans was also a formidable figure in this apocalyptic era. Despite the sudden attack, she showed no fear or confusion, appearing before citizens with unwavering dignity and delivering a powerful speech.

“Look! The proof of my contract with the Phoenix remains unbroken. I am still the Phoenix’s contractor! But the Phoenix Order seeks to destroy the order we’ve restored through humanity’s decisive victory and return the world to apocalypse! They are traitors! Deniers of order! Would you entrust your lives to such people?”

As always, if she could maintain the support of Paris citizens, there would be no problem. Initially, she had wanted to avoid a bloody suppression and needed citizen support, but now she needed to thoroughly crush any provincial city that dared challenge Paris.

The Saint’s regime had been absolute, and she could not tolerate anyone undermining that absoluteness.

“Citizens of Paris! Unite! These people are traitors trying to divide us! They are plunderers who want to take the clothes you wear, the food you eat, and the warm homes where you rest! Will you hand over the possessions you’ve fought to protect to them?”

“Long live the Saint of Orleans! Long live Paris!”

“Paris is eternal!”

As always, France began and ended with Paris, which is why the Saint had established a structure that exploited the provinces to satisfy Paris. Thunderous applause erupted from the Paris assembly and citizens in response to the Saint’s claims. After all, they were benefiting more than anyone from her policies, so they had no reason not to support her.

When a legal dictator working through democratic procedures was working for the citizens, who would dare impeach her? Who would dare harbor thoughts of treason?

“How ridiculous. That’s just the story of Paris alone. Is that truly democracy where the majority opinion matters? It’s just the pleasure-seeking of Parisian citizens. It’s the Republic of Paris! Not the Republic of France!”

Meanwhile, Teresa, now a Phoenix contractor, remained unshaken even in the face of the Saint. She appeared calmly among the citizens, glaring at the hateful Saint of Orleans with burning eyes.

“Do you, Saint, truly worship the Phoenix as a god, or have you ever considered it an equal friend? Or are you merely using it?”

The air in Paris grew rapidly colder at this piercing question. The Saint of Orleans merely laughed loudly at Teresa’s point and shook her head.

“What arrogance. Above all, you have no proof that you’re a Phoenix contractor. The videos and livestreams you’ve shown could all be fabricated.”

“No.”

The Saint accused Teresa, who had appeared before the people, of lying about the Phoenix contract and spreading falsehoods throughout France. But Teresa responded without hesitation.

“I am not a heretic. I am creating a path for those who have been abandoned. For citizens you’ve turned your back on, for those wandering in collapsed order. Unlike you, who demands sacrifice for Paris alone!”

Some citizens began to waver at these words. Several showed signs of being shaken by Teresa’s speech. Surely there had to be some conscientious people among them who felt guilty knowing their wealth came from exploiting others.

In fact, some among the crowd surely had family in the provinces and would have had opportunities to learn how hellish conditions were there.

“That’s dangerous thinking. Do you really think denying the faith that should be the pillar of our nation and sowing confusion is the way to serve citizens? Your claims only accelerate chaos! Uncontrolled power brings only indiscriminate violence and disorder!”

“But what have you done with that controlled power? The closer one gets to central Paris, the more certain one can be of surviving this apocalypse. But Parisian citizens, do you know what conditions are like on the outskirts of Paris? Just a little distance from the center, you’ll find ruined buildings and impoverished citizens. Can you turn your backs on all of them? What you’re doing now only builds resentment from others.”

The Saint’s fierce criticism continued, and Teresa’s rebuttals were equally intense. Both had valid points.

Without the Saint’s control, rebellion and uncontrolled power would bring violence and chaos from plunderers. But Teresa also had a point—the controlled power was only feeding Paris while resentment in provincial cities continued to build, making insightful people fear the coming backlash.

“But the Phoenix Order wants to give us a new future. Not extinction, but rebirth.”

“Rebirth… So you’re saying you’ll burn all the order we know? The revolution that is Paris’s pride! Paris, the heart of revolution!”

Teresa claimed the Phoenix Order would create a new future, while the Saint of Orleans evaluated this as burning everything down and appealed to a sense of crisis. Naturally expecting Teresa to deny that she would burn everything down, the Saint prepared to counter her response.

“That’s right.”

Teresa affirmed the Saint’s words.

“………”

Suddenly, the square fell silent. The Saint, the gathered citizens, and the cabinet members who had been quietly observing their debate all slowly turned to Teresa with expressions of disbelief.

“What needs to be burned away is not God, but the rotten structure of this country.”

At these words, everyone watching the scene began to stir. Harsh shouts erupted from all directions, and some fell into frenzy.

Everyone understood what this meant. The self-proclaimed Fire Priestess had declared she would destroy the country. Any rational person would immediately hurl harsh criticism and curses at Teresa.

“Heretic!”

“Inciting treason!”

“Arrest her immediately!”

Indeed, those who had been observing quietly began loudly denouncing Teresa as a traitor, calling for the police to arrest her immediately.

“No, it could be revolution!”

“Revolution! Finally, a proper revolution is coming!”

“France naturally should begin with revolution and end with revolution!”

Conversely, some began mentioning revolution. Yes, revolution—France had once been overturned through revolution, and numerous large and small revolutions had occurred since, greatly changing the country.

“Revolution at this point? Don’t be ridiculous.”

“History will change. In the name of the Phoenix.”

And so, as always, the flames of revolution were beginning to ignite once more.