“…Regarding the establishnt of the Earthly Kingdom of God, later scholars hold varying perspectives. However, the common consensus is that the first entity truly deserving of that title was the Great Unified Empire established by Pope Sistine I in the early 11th century. In 1082, Queen Amandra of Assyria fell in battle, and the triangular alliance, which was already based on interests and marital vows, began to crumble. With the revelation of Pope Sistine I’s true background and the queen’s will being made public, the fragile alliance completely collapsed. Fran??ois IV openly declared his ambitions for Assyria, which stood in direct opposition to the Papal States’ pursuits. Thus began their mutual hostility.”
“But as research has deepened and historical materials have been unearthed—specifically the Holy See’s 2017 release of portions of Pope Sistine I’s manuscripts, which included content never recorded in public publications—we find, to our surprise, that Ms. Bianchi seed to hint in very obscure terms that the seeds of the hostile relationship between Pope Sistine I and Fran??ois IV had been sown much earlier. Even before the War of the Kingdom of God; even earlier than that. But the reason? No one can say for certain what caused the friction between these two equally ambitious and brilliant monarchs.”
“So speculate that they were both fully aware of Pope Sistine I’s background from the beginning, and that Fran??ois IV’s coveting of Assyria had long shown signs. This, they argue, was the origin of the conflict—for who can look upon a rival for their throne without resentnt? Yet, until the Queen’s will was made public, their conflict could only be described as a ‘baseless’ mutual aversion. To this, opponents have raised a powerful rebuttal: until 1085, Fran??ois IV insisted on sending annual congratulatory gifts to the Pope in Florence, along with many other personal presents. From the gift logs still preserved by the Royal House of Calais, it is clear those expensive items were by no ans perfunctory.”
“We will discuss this in more detail in the next section. Now, back to the main topic: the establishnt of the Earthly Kingdom of God. Without a doubt, this was a dream the faithful had yearned for over a thousand years. From the mont the Holy Lord descended upon the barren earth and laid the cornerstone of Florence with a single stone, establishing an independent state ‘belonging to God and the Holy’ was the ultimate goal of the Holy See and all believers. The prototype of this goal was the Papal States.”
“However, the Papal States could not function fully as an independent nation. The unique principle of religious supremacy ant that politics and the military were all held in the hands of the pope… In an era of feudal lords and a developed manorial economy, the trend toward centralization ant this model could only be implented within the Papal States. The supre ruler lacked legitimate political and military sovereignty; looking at the whole world, this was a unique and peculiar system. History has proven that such a system also defied the laws of the era. However, due to the constraints of religious doctrine, these powers nominally did not belong to the Pope, which led to a problem…”
“When a Pope was strong enough—such as during the reigns of Pope Vitalian III or Pope Sistine I—they could easily grasp the full power of the Papal States, allowing the nation’s politics to run smoothly and consistently according to their personal will. However, even in a land blessed by the Holy Lord, the Holy City was not always fortunate enough to receive a sufficiently capable Pope. After the death of Pope Vitalian III, his successor, Leo VI, was undoubtedly an abysmal Pope. His inaction allowed the lords under the Papal States to act independently; military power, administrative power, and even the economy were completely fragnted. The Papal Palace lost its functionality as the leader of the Papal States.”
“And yet, this fragntation of power was perfectly in line with doctrine, leaving his successor in a dire situation. We should perhaps be thankful that the one who took over this ss was Pope Sistine I, and not a second Leo VI. Given the peculiar system and the Papal States’ limited land which was unable to accommodate such a large population—the realization of an ‘Earthly Kingdom of God’ was nothing more than a fantasy. Therefore, in 1082, on the Great Terrace of the Cathedral of the Holy Thorns in Florence, when that phrase was solemnly uttered and people truly saw its feasibility, it is no wonder that the believers launched a great march towards Florence.”
“An Earthly Kingdom of God where everyone was equal, prosperous, and abundant; where people can live and work in peace, far from the exploitation of lords and nobles, living quietly and happily under the protection of the Holy Lord—who could refuse such a thing? The nobles yearned for the wealth Assyria could bring them, while the poor simply longed for the blessed land promised to them in the Holy Scriptures. This war, from the very beginning, laid the foundation for its inevitable victory.”
— Alexius Portia, “The Great Reformation of the dieval Holy See, Vol. II”
When Redrick stepped onto the solid earth of Assyria, he felt a sincere gratitude toward the Holy Lord for the first ti in his life.
He had never realized how much one could miss the land. The fragrance of greenery and the scent of soil were all so endearing. Even the burrowing stinkbugs, in his eyes, had beco far more lovable.
Before these rich thoughts could fully escape the Duke’s uncharacteristically sentintal mind, he doubled over and vomited violently.
Unfortunately, many days of living on a ship had left his stomach empty. He could only heave up the plain water he’d drunk that morning, which, mixed with honey, ca out slightly yellow.
To reach Assyria as quickly as possible, the ships of the Papal States had traveled at maximum power from start to finish. The soldiers shoveling coal in the lower decks worked in shifts day and night, their skin reddened and blistered by the boiler’s heat. The cables and gears transporting coal were covered in fine coal dust, which easily jamd the pulleys. Previously, they would stop every two days to clean them, but this ti, even as the machinery groaned and shrieked, Rederick did not allow the captain to stop the boilers.
The result was that the ships arrived three days earlier than expected, while those prone to seasickness, led by Rederick, had lain in their cabins from start to finish, vomiting until they were nearly at death’s door.
“I’m truly grateful I didn’t report the casualties to His Holiness before setting foot in Assyria,” the captain said, stroking his curled beard with a hint of mockery.
Rederick, the target of his sarcasm, rolled his eyes hard and continued to bend over, emptying his pitiful stomach, trying to turn it completely inside out, shake it, and wring it.
“Oh, Your Grace, you don’t look so well,” the captain added.
Rederick glared at him furiously from the corner of his eye. The sturdy, robust old sailor burst into laughter, happily raised his large, fan-like hand, and gave Rederick a hearty slap on the shoulder, nearly knocking the breath out of him.
“Good lad! May the Holy Lord protect you!” The lively, optimistic old captain winked at him, took off his hat, and waved it twice. “Safe travels! I’m heading back to pick up the next batch of soldiers!”
Rederick waved him off irritably, signaling him to get out of his sight, which only earned him another heavy slap from the old sailor.
They had landed in a small bay where the pier had long since rotted away from neglect. Soldiers jumped from the bows into the seawater, ropes in hand, swimming to shore to set up gangplanks to unload supplies and n. Rederick was the last to disembark; by the ti he got off, the soldiers ahead were already setting up crude tents.
The narrow port couldn’t hold many ships, so the rest of the fleet remained anchored in the outer harbor to wait. Rederick urged them to speed up the camp construction while sending out scouts to investigate the surrounding area.
The current Assyria had turned into a chaotic ss. After the death of Queen Amandra, the Sargon Dynasty had collapsed entirely. The people who lived under her protection were now swept into a multi-sided lee. anwhile, the Pilgrimage Alliance to the north, under the joint threat of Calais and the Papal States, had begun to cautiously contract their forces. Every day, a new lord would declare an independent kingdom, only to vanish the next day under the assault of another.
This once glorious and vast empire had completely lost its beautiful radiance. She had once stood as an equal to Calais and Ro, but now she was shattered into dust in the long river of history, her fertile skin and bone left for anyone to pick clean.
Before Rederick’s scouts could return, soone else arrived first to report on the situation. These were the remnants of Amandra’s army—loyal followers of the Queen who, after her death, followed Ashur’s orders and now naturally belonged to Rafael. However, most had died in the purges; only a few remained, and those who had survived this long were all skilled experts.
The Papal ships had chosen to land at this desolate, abandoned port specifically because of their guidance. The nearby towns were already deserted, the inhabitants having fled as refugees. The houses were dilapidated, but the location was excellent—perfect for assembling an army.
Rederick hadn’t been idle during his ti in the knights’ order. The Knights practiced justice and equality; whether you were a Duke or a commoner, you were treated the sa. The only privilege he’d received was permission to use his personal cutlery during als, engraved with his family crest—on the condition that the set had to be the sa silver as everyone else’s, with no other patterns or designs.
This privilege only increased Rederick’s trouble. Before every al, he had to search through a pile of identical utensils to find his own—especially that damned fork! This step significantly increased his dining ti, so he soon voluntarily gave up the privilege and happily beca one of the “rough n.”
In short, the Duke of Lusanne had beco quite “one of the boys.”
The Papal States’ recruitnt drive had just begun, and the second wave of troops was still assembling. As the vanguard, Rederick’s mission was to scout the current state of Assyria and its main terrain to pave the way for the main force.
Adhering to this principle, he led his two thousand n in a marching pattern of traveling by night and resting by day, using their stronghold as a center to explore outward while posting sentries at regular intervals.
With two thousand n, it was impossible to remain completely unnoticed. The Assyrian civilians had long since developed their own survival rules amidst the prolonged warfare. They huddled among ruins and weeds, wrapping themselves in tattered sheepskins and linen, watching the passing soldiers warily and cautiously, like wolves lurking in the jungle—only quieter and more timid than wolves.
At first, upon encountering Rederick’s army, they would flee far away, returning cautiously to their shelters only after the troops had passed. Later, they realized these soldiers didn’t seem intent on slaughtering or pillaging them, and the distance between the two groups began to close, eventually reaching a point where they no longer fled on sight.
After a dic under Rederick’s command had saved an Assyrian girl suffering from a fever, the refugees even began to provide them with information—which lords were nearby, how many n they had, who they had clashed with… This was information Rederick’s scouts couldn’t have gathered in such a short ti.
Thus, a strange and harmonious tacit understanding was reached between the two sides. The Assyrians didn’t seem to harbor much resentnt toward this “invading army.” Years of chaos had long since eroded their concept of a “nation.” They simply longed for a quiet, peaceful life; as for who owned Assyria—they didn’t care much.
But that was the view of the young. For the older generation who grew up during the end of the unified Sargon Dynasty, there was still deep affection for the Sargon monarchs. They hoped for the arrival of an Assyrian sovereign, preferably one with Sargon blood.
Thus, the queen’s death dealt them a heavy blow, but her last will and testant kindled new hope for them.
However, that hope was soon extinguished by another voice.
The lords who opposed Rafael inheriting the Assyrian crown unanimously used his papal status as a weapon to attack him. How could a Pope of a foreign religion beco the monarch of Assyria? Would he force the Assyrian people to convert or even destroy their faith? Worse still, although he carried half-Assyrian blood, he had never set foot on Assyrian soil. How could he shoulder the burden of this free, wild, and independent nation?
All the civilians who supported the Sargon family hesitated because of this issue. Most of them were remnants who had benefited from the Sargon Dynasty, cherishing the glory of this fallen dynasty. But at the sa ti, they were the most stubborn adherents of their native faith. To abandon their beliefs and convert to an unfamiliar religion was sothing harder for them than death.
In fact, this was exactly why Rafael insisted on pushing for the Religious Freedom Act.
Without resolving this issue, he could never truly beco the monarch of this stubborn, wild nation.
In Florence, the religious freedom treaty he proposed was still a secret known to very few. He was in the middle of intense discussions with Julius regarding the specific clauses and content; he would not make it public until it was fully mature.
Once the Holy See learned of this treaty, it would undoubtedly cause a huge uproar. The reason the Holy See spared no effort in supporting the Pope’s expedition to Assyria was precisely because Rafael had proposed the “Earthly Kingdom of God” plan to spread the glory of the Holy Lord to Assyria. If religious freedom was enacted, the “Earthly Kingdom of God” would exist in na only, and they would eventually discover that the only beneficiary was Rafael himself.
But Rafael would not retreat a single step on this issue.
He wanted to build the Earthly Kingdom of God while also promoting religious freedom.
What he wanted was a centralized, unified nation—not like the Papal States, where the Pope could not hold legitimate ruling power and acted as a re figurehead of faith. Only if the people’s faiths were diverse could he exercise the path of balance among them and beco a true monarch, rather than letting the Holy See dominate and simply replicate another Papal State in Assyria.
The battle reports from Assyria briefly detailed the vanguard’s situation. They hadn’t encountered any large-scale battles yet, only small groups of fleeing bandits. These ragtag groups were no match for the regular Papal army. Rederick didn’t even bother to list them as achievents in his reports; it was the accompanying Holy Crows who ntioned them in supplentary briefings.
Rafael skimd the reports, wearily rubbing his temples, and continued refining the clauses of the act. It was no easy task. Drafting a law from scratch required considering every possible scenario, not to ntion that the content touched on matters of faith—a highly sensitive and sharp issue. In an era where a King’s conversion could lead to excommunication and a commoner’s could lead to execution, many wars were fought over faith; there had been over a dozen large-scale campaigns launched solely under the pretext of “crusading against heretics.”
Rafael could imagine the terrifying wave this act would trigger once promulgated. The monarch of the Holy See personally writing a permit for “religious freedom” was tantamount to him undermining the very foundation of his rule. Not just the Church, but even ordinary believers would feel betrayed.
Therefore, he had to carefully weigh every word and phrase, making sure each term and sentence was as appropriate and complete as possible. He certainly did not want to see a “War of the Act”; enough people had died in the chaos of recent years.
Julius sat at a desk to his right. For the sake of secrecy, they had added a new desk in the Pope’s study. Julius had stopped working in the Secretary’s Office lately, spending most of his ti here discussing the act with Rafael—much to Ferrante’s powerless fury.
With a soft “click,” the room suddenly brightened. Rafael realized it was already late. Julius had opened the gas valve, and the gas lamps in the room flared up. The lamps in the Papal Palace used to burn day and night, but after Rafael took power, he promoted frugality and piety, leading by example by cutting the Pope’s expenses—including stopping the dayti use of gas lamps to save money. In response to the Pope’s ssage, the Holy See also began to cut back on their expenses. Regardless of how the bishops lived in private, this behavior significantly improved the Church’s public image.
It was through such small, incrental actions that Rafael won the love and respect of the faithful. He had done all these things in his previous life, but the historical records back then had shown him no rcy for such behavior.
Now, Rafael didn’t care much about reputation one way or another. He had too much to do—how could he have ti to ponder how future generations would judge him?
Julius walked over and stood behind Rafael, leaning down to look at the ssy parchnt on the desk. It was covered in dense writing, with many words crossed out. Synonyms were written next to each term—so circled, so erased, so marked with emphasis.
Julius glanced at them for a mont, then casually picked up a pen and highlighted one of the words. Rafael thought for two seconds, then happily filled it into the blank space.
Julius lowered his gaze, seeing the perfectly repaired Portia family signet ring on Rafael’s right thumb. His lips curved into a faint, gentle smile as he spoke softly: “Let’s eat first. There’s still the Cardinals’ eting tomorrow.”
Rafael’s motion of rubbing his neck paused, and a flicker of irritation crossed his eyes. The Cardinals’ eting, as the na suggested…
Julius saw his resistance. His deep violet eyes crinkled slightly, and his long, iron-gray hair slid off his shoulder, a few cool strands brushing against Rafael’s cheek. “If you don’t want to go, just say you’re busy with official duties.”
Rafael hesitated for a mont, then sighed: “Forget it. There’s been a lot of activity in the Papal States lately with the conscription. I’d better go and see what they’re up to.”
Julius looked at him for a mont, his smile sowhat complex—seeming both amused and wistful—as he said, “You have beco a truly qualified monarch.”
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