Ch.408Report and Command

After the Church of Elpinel lost its authority, the Holy State was currently divided into four factions.

The Churches of Saulite, Astraea, and Ceres quickly gathered to form the largest faction, while the Church of Menes built a rival coalition by drawing in the Churches of Kranus and Imela.

The former had overwhelming power but lacked a clear focal point, while the latter, though somewhat weaker than the first three, was rapidly gaining momentum thanks to the presence of a Holy Maiden candidate and their achievements during the Great Invasion.

The third faction was an alliance between the Churches of Volberg and Grimnir.

They united around the extreme militant view that not only non-humans but also the Grand Diocese should be crushed by force, and their voice was growing louder.

The Church of Ausrine still maintained close relations with the Church of Elpinel, but they were too small to be of much help, while the Church of Vimos, as always, showed no interest in the Holy State’s politics and did their own thing.

These four factions were constantly checking each other, focusing on criticism and public opinion warfare. Though they hadn’t yet escalated to all-out war, remembering the religious wars that occurred before the founding of the Holy State… the level of conflict was deepening.

The more I heard, the more it sounded like a complete mess.

A four-way civil war in a country barely the size of a kingdom—they must be absolutely insane. They’re doing everything perfectly to ensure mutual destruction.

—-

“The Cardinal Council has also degenerated from a place of consensus-building to a venue for mutual criticism and restraint. They can’t even properly negotiate a single agenda item, severely delaying national governance. There is one issue on which their opinions align, but unfortunately it’s…”

“…The dissolution of the Grand Diocese, isn’t it?”

The Special Crusader affirmed Lacy’s words.

Apparently, while they argued like mortal enemies, all nine churches except the Churches of Elpinel and Ausrine agreed on dissolving the Grand Diocese.

This wasn’t welcome news.

Of all the things they could agree on, they had to reach consensus on the direction most unfavorable to us.

“At this point, it’s practically being treated as a public enemy. Was creating the Grand Diocese a mistake?”

“…It was necessary. A ship with multiple captains inevitably runs aground. In peaceful times it might be different, but in chaotic times like these, a unified decision-making body was essential to avoid wasting time and resources. In fact, after the establishment of the Grand Diocese, the work efficiency of the churches within the Empire improved by more than twofold… The establishment of the Grand Diocese proved the importance of unified will.”

Well… it’s like going from a parliamentary republic to a dictatorial regime, so decision-making would naturally be faster.

It’s obviously quicker for one leader to push through their own opinions than to coordinate and reach conclusions through mutual agreement.

Anyway, one thing was certain: none of the other churches’ cardinals would side with Lacy.

—-

The Special Crusader continued to share various information about the current state of the Holy State.

Some frontline priests, disillusioned with the blatant power struggles of the upper echelons, had secretly formed some kind of assembly. A paladin from the Church of Astraea had called a crusader from the Church of Volberg a “human butcher,” resulting in a duel… such news, along with information about the current situation in major cities.

“While the churches’ attention is focused on each other, corruption and depravity, which should have been eradicated, are spreading again in the shadows of the cities. Devout believers are trying to eliminate this, but their efforts are insufficient.”

Though not as bad as the Empire where villages were massacred by marauders and bandits appeared as soon as one left residential areas, crime rates in the Holy State were steadily increasing. The scale was becoming too large for frontline paladins and priests to root out.

“A red-light district has emerged in Arvil, and criminal organizations are sprouting up in Barseva’s back alleys, killing each other. Holon is struggling with drug problems, and here in Nashiriya, the number of mysterious disappearances is increasing.”

Red-light districts, gangsters, drugs, and disappearances—every city is a disaster.

Moreover, as if to prove they’re part of the Holy State, each criminal organization had distinct characteristics depending on the city.

Arvil, ruled by Saulite of Life and Imela of Love, was filled with prostitutes in pleasure districts.

In Barseva, governed by Volberg of Warriors and Vimos of Fear, gang violence was rampant.

Holon, under the rule of Menes of Dreams and Ausrine of Stars, was plagued by hallucinogenic drugs, while Nashiriya, where Grimnir of Magic and Ceres of Death resided, was experiencing mysterious disappearances.

“…This is more serious than I thought. What about Arad?”

“Arad maintains relatively stable public order. With the Church of Astraea present, there’s no room for criminal organizations to take root.”

Befitting a city ruled by Astraea of Justice and Kranus of Fire, Arad was the only major city in the Holy State where the underworld hadn’t emerged.

No, it went beyond having no underworld—apart from spontaneous incidents, there was virtually no crime at all.

Well, that makes sense.

It’s a city where even children who steal bread or people who slap their lovers or family members are all executed by burning at the stake.

They say only two outcomes await those brought to Arad’s court:

Death by fire or death by dismemberment.

In the past, there were sentencing guidelines based on the law, but due to the high recidivism rate of those released after serving their sentences, they changed their policy to execute everyone.

The punishment was excessively harsh, but it dramatically reduced the crime rate, so it had its pros and cons.

—-

There was also talk about Lacy.

Rumors were rampant that she was a traitor with ambitions to become the Empire’s vanguard, aiming to reabsorb the churches—no, the entire Holy State—back into the Empire.

Although few believed these rumors since they were intentionally spread by the upper echelons, rumors tend to transform into truth as they continue to spread.

Moreover, they could evolve into even more extreme and radical rumors.

Just look at the rumors about Hersella—at one point, she was even believed to be a demon who chewed up western children.

“Everyone has worked hard. Thank you for the information. I think it will be very helpful.”

After the crusader’s lengthy report ended, Lacy, who had been listening with a serious expression, made the sign of the cross and expressed her gratitude.

“The honor is too great. I only did what I was supposed to do.”

“That modesty is also your virtue. Now then, what should we do next…”

Having organized the subordinate’s report in her mind, Lacy tilted her head slightly as she considered her response.

The crusader remained half-prostrated, apparently waiting for her orders without any intention of moving until they came.

“All the higher-ups are practically your enemies. So… you have no choice but to work your way up from the bottom, right? That was the plan from the beginning anyway.”

“Indeed. Hmm… for now, it would be good to start with public opinion warfare, if only to prepare for the hearing. Sir Himler, mobilize the crusaders to spread rumors in each city. Spread content that proclaims our legitimacy and criticizes the current Holy State leadership’s dereliction of duty. You mentioned earlier about a secret assembly of frontline priests dissatisfied with the leadership? It would be good to make contact with them as well. They might become good collaborators.”

“I will do my best.”

Himler bowed his head with a determined expression.

Lacy smiled with satisfaction and began to discuss the details of the rumors to be spread throughout the region.

The content generally criticized the current situation of the Holy State severely, placing the blame on the upper-level cardinals and their blind followers.

She subtly implied that someone connected to dark mana was hiding and operating within the church leadership.

Additionally, she included content praising the achievements of the Church of Elpinel in the Empire and defending the church itself and her actions.

However, she didn’t add false information or groundless slander.

It was just like her to use only fact-based content even when waging a public opinion war.

Regardless of her extreme ideology, as a woman with devout faith befitting a Holy Maiden candidate, she likely considered it sinful to incite people with falsehoods.

“Lacy, about those city stories we heard earlier, don’t you find them suspicious too? I know the churches are in disarray, but it’s been less than a year. Can criminal organizations become that active in such a short time? And in this country where churches used to punish criminals thoroughly, no less. Honestly, I suspect someone might be involved here too. While spreading rumors, wouldn’t it be good to investigate this as well?”

“…Indeed, now that you mention it, it does seem suspicious. It’s certainly worth investigating. Even if they turn out to be unrelated to our goals, identifying their roots and eradicating them in the name of Elpinel would be helpful in many ways.”

Lacy nodded and ordered Himler to secretly approach and investigate the criminal organizations in each city as well.

If necessary, even by infiltrating the organizations.

Though it would be a dangerous and difficult task, since the organization was created for such purposes, Himler accepted her orders without hesitation.