Chapter 102: Burke Church

Heavy rain had returned to the York Territory after a long time.

In the darkness of night, strong winds howled, and raindrops pelted the rooftops.

In the Small Church of Garcia Village.

Of course, this Small Church had its own name—it was called Burke Church.

Burke was Nyx’s surname.

Nyx Burke.

He admitted there was a degree of personal intent when naming the Small Church.

So, whenever he conversed with the Great Church, the Bishop, and other Church personnel, he referred to it as “the Small Church in Garcia Village.”

Although he knew full well the Bishop must have already known.

But some matters—if not spoken aloud—wouldn’t become awkward.

However, upon thinking of the Bishop, he couldn’t help but sigh.

As a Scholar, there were unique traits.

They could perceive clues of Mystery.

It was a feeling that defied description.

Yet experienced Scholars could judge the intensity and danger of Mystery based on that sense.

And during his last conversation with the Bishop, Nyx had clearly felt the Mystery on him.

It wasn’t Mystery brought on by any item, but from the Bishop himself.

He still remembered—at first, he could tell the Bishop was an ordinary person, just capable of using some mysterious powers.

But at this point, Nyx would rather he didn’t have the Scholar’s perception.

At least, then he wouldn’t feel so strained using the power of Divine Word.

As a Scholar, his research into Church Faith was more profound than anyone else.

Because it was about stealing power from the Lord.

They hoped to destroy all Churches, so that people would entirely forget the existence of the Lord.

But the power-hungry lords would never agree.

So to prevent uncontrollable outcomes, they chose to actively participate in the Lords’ control of Churches, even assisting them in stealing power.

And during this process, Scholars naturally learned how to guide people to become Believers.

For instance, the most basic method—Mystery.

Only with Mystery comes Fear.

And once Fear took root, whether through malicious threats or gentle deceit, Faith could be established.

At least verbally.

That was why the main Believers of the Church were the lower class.

Because in their eyes, the Church, which held certain privileges, was already terrifying enough.

As for the Local Gentry and Knights—

Their own privileges exceeded those of the Church. That’s why even though most of them didn’t understand the Church’s true nature, they didn’t fear it.

Naturally, Faith couldn’t be obtained from them.

And the lords were satisfied with that.

After all, if those people believed in the Church, would they not unite under it?

What of the lords then?

In their own Territories, the lords themselves were akin to gods.

Though Nyx did fear the Church of the Sanctuary and the Bishop, he was a Scholar—Fear alone wasn’t enough to frighten him.

So after approaching the truth, he understood more clearly that he could never be like George, who treated the Holy Scriptures of the Lord as the creed of life.

He would never possess such Devout Faith.

The barely usable Divine Word was proof.

Nyx knew that it was only his Priest status that allowed him to meet the minimum threshold to use such powers.

To use them truly and freely, one had to have sincere Faith in the Lord.

But Faith—Nyx didn’t understand how its boundaries were judged.

He knew he wasn’t Devout. And he knew the Bishop knew he wasn’t Devout.

But the Bishop had never spoken of revoking his Priesthood.

In fact, he seemed quite satisfied with what Nyx had done.

Nyx understood it was only because he could properly convey the content of the Holy Scriptures of the Lord.

Unlike the Temple Warriors, who would, during interpretation, directly drag the worshippers and force them to believe in the Lord.

Sometimes, under impulse, those Temple Warriors would even press Believers with flanged maces into Faith.

So, when Knight Wolf returned and told him it was now safe, he had those Temple Warriors sent back.

After all, with them around, how could people here truly understand and feel the Lord’s Mercy?

Faith born of brute force—was either false or driven by fear.

That wasn’t what the Bishop wanted.

What the Bishop needed were Believers who listened to the Holy Scriptures of the Lord, who longed for the world depicted within.

Who believed that following the Lord’s Teachings would inevitably lead to the Heavenly Kingdom on Earth, as described in the Scriptures.

The Bishop had told him that true Faith could not deceive itself, nor could it deceive the Lord of the past, present, and future.

Nyx, in fact, longed for that Heavenly Kingdom on Earth.

He believed it was a world of truth and stability, a world without Curses.

But Nyx didn’t believe that simply following the Lord’s Teachings could achieve it.

Just like in Daniels Village—the Believers there believed in the Lord, yet they still suffered, and people still died.

In the end, the Church used force to make the Daniels Family submit—and finally, to destroy them.

Could force bring Faith?

Of course it could. At least those who were already Believers would believe the Lord saved them.

But to the non-Believers, the last survivors of Daniels Village—what they felt most was Fear.

When questioned by Church members and Believers, they would insist they were Devout Believers.

But was that enough?

At least when Nyx made such claims, he didn’t feel the Divine Word he used became any stronger.

It was Faith in Mercy—but also a very exacting Faith.

Nyx truly wished to spread the Church’s doctrine.

Not only because he hoped the Church’s “Truth” would come to fruition, but also, more so, because of Melia.

He didn’t want Melia to become a Scholar—because that was far too dangerous.

But how could he bear to let Melia end up an ordinary person?

He had witnessed the “truth” of this world—the high-tier Scholars.

So after experiencing the power of the Church firsthand, he decided to have Melia study at the Monastery.

To eventually become a Church personnel.

And he would use the remainder of his life to pave the road for Melia.

That was why he had advised Corleon to get rid of Ando.

Even knowing that it would make Melia sad.

In fact, that night, he had wanted to suggest the Bishop punish all of Daniels Village.

Because he could already imagine the Fear within those survivors.

They would become refugees, and spread the Church’s terror to everyone they came into contact with.

And the spread of that Fear would impact the message of the Lord’s Mercy and Compassion that the Church sought to convey.

Eventually, there would surely be those who converted out of Fear—but at the root, Faith born purely of Fear could never bring about the true “Heavenly Kingdom on Earth.”

Only complete erasure, maintaining the event’s Mystery, would inspire awe instead of mere Fear.

But he hadn’t spoken it in the end—because the Bishop acted too quickly.

So fast that he didn’t even realize when it started.

So fast that he never even saw the punishment unfold.

But in the end, the Bishop still chose Mercy.

Or rather, the Bishop always bore Mercy for everyone.

Just as written in the Holy Scriptures of the Lord.

Even the Local Gentry and Nobles.

After all, even Ando—someone destined to resent the Church—was spared by the Bishop.

“But if it’s not done thoroughly, those Local Gentry will still cling to hope.” Nyx sighed.

Thus, he told Knight Wolf—who had returned—that Ando was still alive and had already gone south.

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