"So it's called ......."
"......"
I hold Riko in my arms and gently stroke her back as we talk. Riko is silent all the ti, whether she is listening or not. On the contrary, she has been jerking and shaking whenever I stroke her back since a while ago. He must be ticklish.
"A long ti ago, I promised Rico that I would never be around a woman he didn't approve of. I have no intention of breaking that promise. I never have and I never will."
I'm not lying. All the won that Rico likes, so far, have turned out to be good family mbers.
Rico's face is still on my chest. I stroke her hair with my right hand which is on my arm. Her hair is wavy as if it has been perd, but I guess she takes good care of it everyday. Her hair is as smooth and silky as silk. Many years have passed since the day I first held Riko in my arms, but the beauty of her hair and skin has not diminished at all. Holding Rico in my arms is a very healing experience.
"So this Vieille girl has nothing to do with this?"
Rico speaks to as he sits up from my chest.
"Yes, of course. I don't happen to be here today, but you can check with Mato."
"...... Okay."
Rico then covered my lips with his own.
"Oops. Rico ......"
"I won't ...... let you go tonight."
"Rico ....... After I gave birth to Eryl, that ......"
"What is it?"
"You've grown ...... to like it a lot. ......"
Rico slowly covers .
"It's Linos' fault. Linos made ...... into this woman. ......"
"Rico ......"
I then spent a long, slow, and rich ti with Rico.
The next day, I imdiately moved to the village where the Klimianas live. Outside of the village, thousands of the faithful who had not yet contracted the disease were pouring into the warded village. Outside the village, Agartha's army had already set up a barricade, and the voices of soldiers repeatedly announced to the assembled believers that those under their protection in the village were very likely to be infected with the Rulointh, and that they should stay away from them.
I heard the clamor and headed for the headquarters. Rafaience, Knogen, and Matkal are gathered there.
"Mr. Linos ......"
Matkal is the first to notice and speaks to .
"Mato, thank you for your hard work. You arrived very fast, did you ride your horse all night? I'd tell you to get so rest ......, but that's going to be difficult now, isn't it?"
Lafayence grins when he hears my words. He is probably thinking dirty thoughts in his head. I call out to the old general.
"General, how are the believers you are protecting doing?
"He's quiet. Unexpectedly quiet."
"Perhaps they are worried that the disease will return. The spots are gone, but who knows if the disease is completely cured?
Knogen follows up by saying.
"Well, that's for sure. Do you hear ...... the sound of prayer?"
"So far, I haven't heard it, but ......"
Knogen glanced at the ward of the faithful.
"Lord Rinos, it is indeed difficult to make them apostatize, isn't it?"
Lafayence opens his mouth. I look at him and nod slowly.
"Right. I've got them sworn to obey for now, but I don't think they'll obey that easily. This ti our goal was to get Vieille away from Cassel, so I'd say we've accomplished what we set out to do. That woman Vieille has a brain like a razor. As long as she is with Cassel, we will be in trouble for a long ti to co. The strategy of bringing her back to reality by giving her pleasant dreams in order to draw the razor blade has turned out to be more successful than expected. Moreover, it is a windfall to have made the congregation of Crimiana swear obedience to our side, even if it is only 500, and even if it is a lie. It would be great if the priest would be very upset on the side of Klimiana. ....... Well, let's talk to them and see how they react. First of all, the first thing we need to do is to make sure that this disease of Leroyance is not contagious to others. And then we must find out the cause of this disease.
The three of them nodded silently at my words.
"Once the congregation has finished breakfast, gather everyone together. Everyone, have you had your breakfast at ......? Not yet? Then we'll eat too.
With that, we tasted the food from the soup kitchen. After that, the entire congregation of the village was gathered outside the village. I put up a big ward for the group. I looked up and saw Vieille at the head of the group. She was in a state of stupor, as if her soul had been drained out of her. A woman, who must be a bishop, is taking care of her. I give them a glance and open my mouth.
"Yes, yes, yes, well, can you hear ? Oh, hon. King Agartha, this is Linos. Did you sleep well last night? Raise your hand if you lost your life as of yesterday. ...... anyone? Good."
I straighten my posture.
"Yesterday I gave you the Leroyance treatnt. I can't tell you now how it was done, but I can tell you that you are probably cured. Well, you'll have to see my doctors later to confirm that. That's what I'm trying to say today."
I cut off my words and look around at the congregation. They all look worried.
"It's not that I'm asking you to abandon the Klimiana religion," I said.
All of the believers there looked surprised. I continue to speak.
"I don't care what you believe. You can believe in Klimiana, or the foxes, or the dragon gods, or ....... I don't care if you believe in the Great Demon King.
The congregation begins to be puzzled. Everyone's eyes are swimming.
"No, I think religion is necessary. Belief in sothing is important. But not many people know the aning of religion. I think it's the sa for you."
I slowly look around the congregation. Vieille is still stunned.
"You know what? Belief in sothing is a way to keep your mind at peace. When we are faced with sothing difficult, we can face it with a calm mind by believing that the Lord Klimiana, the foxes, and the ancestors are watching over us and that we will be all right. To put it in an extre way, the most feared thing for human beings is death. If we are tornted by this fear, we will not be able to do anything. Isn't that what you were doing until just yesterday? Bound by the fear of not knowing when we will die, we could do nothing but pray. Isn't that right?"
The clerics all cast down their eyes. I continued to speak.
"That's just the way it is with people. So, I wish I could have faced death with a normal heart by believing in sothing. Why couldn't you face death with a sense of normalcy? It was because he was looking for sothing in the thing he believed in, which was Klimiana."
The word "kurimiana" causes the congregation to look at .
God doesn't do anything for us. He just watches. That's all."
The faces of the faithful are frozen.
"From God's point of view, what human beings do is too foolish for him to watch. But he still watches over them. We should not ask such a God to do anything. We should be grateful, but we should not ask for anything. We must act in a way that does not disgrace the God who is watching over us.
The crowd goes quiet as if hit by water. Vieille's shoulders are shaking.
"And religion doesn't rule over people, but people have to rule over religion. Do you understand? If you let religion control you, you can kill people in the na of God. By what qualification can they take human life? They can do such terrible things with impunity. In other words, religion can turn people into demons if it is done in the wrong way. That's why people control religion. Think of it as a tool to keep your mind in a normal state of mind by believing in it. In other words, it would be best if you could believe in yourself. If you can make yourself believable, there is no need for religion. That's what I think. So I don't ask you to abandon the Klimiana religion. You are free to believe. But the Lord Klimiana that you believe in, he only watches over you. He does nothing. So if you believe, live your lives in a way that will not bring sha to Lord Kriana. Don't cause trouble. Don't do what people don't like. This plague is a good opportunity, isn't it? I think so. Okay, that's all I have to say. You can figure out the rest on your own."
With that, I left.
"Master Linos, you have done well. When did you acquire such knowledge?"
Matkal speaks to as he follows behind . I look back at her and smile.
"Oh, no. It's not my knowledge. It's what my grandma used to say."
"Grandma?"
"She was a kind grandmother. She took really, really good care of . She used to tell that story with on her lap. I rember ......."
"I'd like to thank you for your ...... grandmother ....... of Mr. Linos. If she is such a wonderful person, I would like to et her.
Matkal's words leave speechless for a mont, and I mutter with a faraway look in my eyes.
"He's dead, you know."
"What?"
He is no longer with us. But it was beautiful, wasn't it? He was born on December 25 and died on March 3, when he was 100 years old. It was not too hot and not too cold, and it was a day when we could mourn him on a holiday. Thanks to that, all the family mbers who loved grandma could gather together to take care of her and send her to the other side. A virtuous person is different.
Talking about such things and rembering my late grandma, tears naturally welled up in my eyes. I quietly wiped away my tears so that Matkal would not notice.
"Grandma took care of and helped many people. She was well-liked by the neighbors. They say that God allows such a virtuous person to choose the way of death. That's exactly what happened to my grandma. I think God is the one who watches over us and lets only the virtuous people choose the way of death in the end.
Matkal gazed lovingly at Linos' back as he spoke, quietly wiping away his tears so that he would not be recognized. He was convinced that Linos' abilities were far beyond human beings, given that his family had people who lived to be a hundred years old, an astonishingly long lifespan.
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