Ch.405It’s Not Much Different Here Either.

In the Holy State of Elphirem, mornings begin with the sound of bells.

Low, heavy bell sounds echo from the cathedral bell towers.

The bell towers, built to announce the beginning, middle, and end of each day, awaken at set times to release their massive roars.

In every inhabited area, whether city or village.

When priests ring the bells, people must immediately stop what they’re doing, bow their heads, and pray until the echoes fade.

Giving thanks to the gods for granting a safe day, and hoping for the blessing of a better future.

That was daily life in the Holy State.

—-

“So that’s why everyone’s doing that.”

I lay half-sprawled on the bed in my lodging, tilting my head as I looked out the window.

Through the white cigarette smoke clouding the window, glimpses of the city landscape appeared.

The sight of everyone kneeling with bowed heads in prayer throughout streets and alleys seemed more bizarre than devout.

Even the men brawling in the back alley had stopped fighting to focus on prayer.

“That’s interesting. Even the stray cats look ready to bow their heads. Must be serious trouble if you don’t observe prayer time, huh?”

“Well, from what I’ve heard, no one knows what happens to those who violate prayer times.”

Leonore smiled slightly as she drew her hand across her throat.

So breaking the rules means you ‘disappear.’ Pretty brutal.

“Should I be praying too?”

“Not necessarily. Neither you nor the lady are citizens of the Holy State or affiliated with the Church, so technically you don’t need to pray. Still… it’s better not to wander around during these times. With everyone bowing their heads, we’d stand out too much if we walked around casually, and the locals wouldn’t take kindly to it.”

Fair enough. If I were praying and saw someone walking around, I’d wonder what their deal was too.

I might get away with it since I’m obviously not from the Holy State, but Leonore couldn’t be distinguished by race alone, so she might attract unnecessary trouble.

By the time I finished smoking my cigarette, the bell’s echo had completely faded.

The praying people straightened their backs and returned to their daily routines, and the fighters in the back alley resumed punching each other.

This is hilarious.

It was quite the farce watching the person who stood up late getting one-sidedly beaten by the one who got up first.

[How pathetic they fight. Do you find such things amusing?]

Hersella commented with disbelief as I chuckled.

‘Of course.’

What a barbarian, not understanding the finer things. There’s nothing more entertaining than watching pathetic guys fight.

If it were thugs beating up ordinary people, I’d step in to stop it, but seeing that both had shaved heads covered in tattoos and scars, they seemed to be in the same line of work, so there was no need to intervene.

[I might understand if it were swordplay, but to enjoy such childish fistfights… how immature.]

Ignoring Hersella’s disapproving clicks, I lit another cigarette and continued watching the fight.

The one-sided fight took a new turn when the man being beaten pulled something from his waist and swung it.

‘Look at that guy. He pulled a knife?’

Pulling out a weapon because he’s losing the fistfight—what a despicably thuggish move.

The knife was just a dagger shorter than a forearm, but… unless you’re wearing armor, even a short blade shouldn’t be underestimated.

As the frantic knife slashed the other man’s forearm, he too drew a dagger, and what had been a mere fistfight transformed into a bloody battle.

‘There’s the knife fight you wanted. Is it more interesting now?’

[Even a ten-year-old wouldn’t swing a dagger so poorly. Still… there’s some entertainment in seeing blood spilled.]

I knew you’d like it, you barbarian.

—-

The knife fight ended anticlimactically.

The thug who first drew his knife stabbed his opponent in the side and smiled with apparent confidence in his victory, but the stabbed man slashed the other’s throat, ending his life.

A strategy of trading flesh for bone, you might say.

Though he collapsed shortly after, having been stabbed too deeply in the side.

Afterward, people who had been hiding in the alley watching the fight swarmed the bodies like crows, taking everything from wallets and daggers to the torn clothes and even the underwear beneath.

Only two bare-bottomed corpses remained in the blood-soaked corner of the back alley.

I laughed as I tapped off my cigarette ash, feeling like I’d just watched a comedy.

‘What a sight. This is absolutely hilarious.’

Hersella seemed to share my sentiment, bursting into uncontrollable laughter.

Lacy and Lena returned from their prayers, along with Nigel and Valkers who had been escorting them, just as I put out my second cigarette.

“Sister! We’ve finished our prayers!”

“Sorry to keep you waiting. Now that it’s morning, shall we go for breakfast?”

“Yes. We should wake Demian and Millia too. Let’s go, Leonore.”

I put my extinguished cigarette in the ashtray and stood up to put on my coat.

Though it was more of a short armor piece covering my shoulders than an actual coat.

“Those two are already awake. I saw them chatting in the hallway.”

Nigel pointed toward the corridor with his thumb.

They’re up already? That’s unusually early for those two.

“Oh really? They must have gone to bed early yesterday.”

Demian and Millia were still sharing a room.

They had been restraining themselves from passionate nights since entering the Holy State.

Seeing how they were focusing on their duties rather than enjoying themselves in what was essentially enemy territory, I thought they were living up to their aspirations as knight candidates after all.

As I left the bedroom, Lacy and Lena naturally came to walk on either side of me.

Leonore, Nigel, and Valkers followed behind like proper escort knights.

“Were you observing outside?”

“Yes, it was quite interesting. Some things are different from other countries, some things are the same. It was fascinating in many ways.”

“In what ways?”

Whenever the topic of the Holy State came up, Lacy would persistently ask for my impressions like this.

As if she wanted me to take an interest in the Holy State.

It even seemed like she hoped I would convert to the Holy State altogether.

Though of course, not the current Holy State but ‘Lacy’s Holy State.’

Unfortunately for her… I didn’t see much appeal in it.

This wasn’t exactly paradise on earth, and aside from the religious elements, there wasn’t much difference from other countries.

“I expected a city that was orderly and heavenly, despite issues in the upper echelons… but now that I’m actually here, it’s not that different from other cities. Seeing the back alleys full of the poor and thugs.”

The capital might be different, but this city wasn’t fundamentally different from cities in the Empire.

The only distinctive features were religious events like prayer times and the colorfully painted roofs matching each religion.

The social structure—flashy upper class, peaceful middle class, and miserable lower class—was the same here as elsewhere.

“…It wasn’t always like this.”

A shadow fell across Lacy’s face.

She said that when she was very young, many priests took the lead in helping the poor and maintaining public order, so slums like these didn’t exist.

There were always some poor people and ruffians, but they’ve increased dramatically in recent years.

She blamed it on the Church’s focus shifting from creating an ideal society to competing between denominations… but in my view, these people probably existed all along without her knowing.

The number of poor people was higher than expected, and the way they naturally stripped clothes from corpses seemed too practiced.

—-

After meeting Millia, who was chatting at the end of the corridor, we all went down to the dining room on the lower floor.

Befitting a high-end lodging in the Holy State, the dining room was not flashy but neat and classic. The food was quite tasty too.

Well, considering how much we paid for accommodation, it should be at least this good.

Originally, the Saintess candidate’s authority would have allowed free room and board, but with her temporary demotion to ordinary priest, all such benefits had disappeared, so we had to pay.

We could have found different lodgings, but they would have been too crowded to properly secure the perimeter, and it would have made connecting with the Crusader of Seals agents more difficult.

I had thought all those agents would be gathered in the capital, but that wasn’t the case.

They were apparently dispersed throughout major cities of the Holy State, collecting local information.

There were supposed to be a couple in this city, but I didn’t know who they were since I hadn’t seen their faces.

They said they’d come tonight, so I should meet them soon.

“So, we’re just resting here today?”

“For now, yes. It will take about three days to reach Alhebron, so it’s better to gather as much information as possible before then. Since I’ve been away from the Holy State for a while, I need time to understand the current state of affairs.”

We definitely needed to collect information.

We hadn’t even known the important fact that Lacy’s Saintess candidacy had been suspended until we arrived at the Holy State.

“Can Demian and I go out for a while? Since we’re here, I’d like to look around.”

“Do as you please. Just don’t get lost.”

Millia and Demian weren’t likely to cause trouble, and two Masters wouldn’t be in danger in the city during daylight, so it should be fine.

Besides, myself, Leonore, Nigel, and Valkers were enough to guard Lacy.

Smiling, Millia left the lodging with Demian after finishing her meal.

Valkers headed off somewhere alone, saying Lacy had given him an errand, while the rest of us returned upstairs.

Honestly, I wanted to look around too… but having been assigned to guard Lacy, I had to stay if she wasn’t going out, which was a bit frustrating.