The Holy Church Begins with Bestowal of Blessings

Chapter 380 : An Unshakable Truth

『If we really do encounter these gods, then let's see if they can stand against the Red Dragon Knight Order.』 Councilor Julian said with a trace of pride.Jeremiah, intrigued by the knight order, asked, 『A knight order bestowed with a title by the King?』

In Greenwood, few secrets could escape the bishops' knowledge. Yet, the Red Dragon Knight Order, named personally by the King, was one of those rare secrets.

This was a knight order that belonged solely to the King. Now, it was temporarily commanded by Councilor Julian, who held the responsibility for military affairs under the authority of the Senate acting in the King’s stead.

After Agamemnon entered the Senate, some secrets could be shared with select individuals—such as Councilor Julian.

After all, Julian was of knightly origin. He had his own mind.

To earn his full support, Agamemnon couldn’t rely solely on status.

Rather, Julian, who still retained his knighthood, would only give his absolute loyalty to a lord he personally acknowledged. Loyalty was a virtue, one recognized by the New Testament Era. What was not recognized were loyalties born from selfish desires masked as devotion.

Julian said, 『Each of them is a Tier Four Knight, and the captain of the order is a Tier Five Great Knight. As of now, every member possesses at least the magical capacity of a Tier Two Magic Apprentice. Their armor and weapons are alloyed with the rarest mithril. When they received the banner bestowed by the King, they also received his personal instruction in battlefield techniques—techniques forged from the pinnacle of knightly martial skill fused with magic, created specifically for knights who fight on the battlefield.』

『After Dean Oscar completed his knight-magic combat system, he even requested a match against one of these knights. In terms of flexibility, Dean Oscar’s system was undoubtedly more versatile. But if we're purely evaluating destructive power and combat effectiveness, it was far inferior to the techniques passed down by the King.』

『Their mounts, too, are specially bred warhorses with magical beast bloodlines. Compared to regular warhorses, they are stronger, have greater endurance, and even possess magical power.』

『A single one of these warhorses, taken alone, cannot be subdued by an unarmored Tier Three Warrior. While the Beast Association hasn’t officially classified them yet, by comparison with the Warrior and Knight Associations, they should be Tier Three Magical Beasts.』

『As they are now, they truly rival the legendary knight orders of the past—those who, once they began their charge, could not be stopped.』

『In the past, sacred relics might have been able to stop them. But now, even if relics stand in their path, they will be shattered through.』

『You witnessed the power of the Type-III Magic Cannons today. Yet in the Red Dragon Knight Order's exercises, when their momentum peaked, they faced the blasts head-on. The aura they condensed swallowed the power of the Type-III Magic Cannons outright, breaking it down into raw mana and absorbing it to fuel their endurance.』

『If not for the fact that using the Church’s Holy Relics in training would be a form of blasphemy—』

Julian didn’t finish his sentence, clearly still showing restraint.

Jeremiah was visibly shaken by Julian’s depiction.

Though he hadn’t directly witnessed the cannon's blast, the trembling of the earth had given him a sense of its power.

Jeremiah had originally believed that in this era of gradually reviving mana, the age of knights ruling the battlefield and relics deciding all outcomes belonged solely to the Old Testament.

But now it seemed that while relics might no longer decide everything, knights could still dominate the battlefield. And with the Old Testament era fading, their dominance might only grow stronger.

Yet hearing Julian's dangerously ambitious tone, Jeremiah offered a mild warning: 『Even if you're confident in the knights’ strength, testing them with magic cannons is too risky.』

Julian piously replied, 『I heed your counsel.』

As for whether he would actually follow it—that was another matter.

Mana was of a pure pale blue hue, and not even the most knowledgeable mages had uncovered why.

Of course, after the New Testament, Greenwood’s mages reached a consensus:

They claimed that since the Lord created the world and gave this gift to all, and the earth in His eyes shimmered pale blue, mana too became pale blue.

These New Testament mages clearly hadn’t yet reached the stars; their reach extended only to the earth. And through special magic, they could barely perceive the state of the entire land.

Thus, they believed the mana driving magic was the Lord’s gift to all. Therefore, that pale blue might be how the Lord saw the world.

In truth, the Book of Genesis in the New Testament Scriptures did not explicitly state the origin of mana. It merely hinted that it was a gift from the world.

Yet every reader interpreted it differently. For mages, since the Lord created the world, mana’s source was also from the world and thus still a gift from the Lord.

As for the professors of the Magic Academy, they avoided the topic. Still, apprentices spread the tale so widely that it became accepted as fact—or truth.

Hence, 『The Lord gave mana its pale blue color, for in His eyes, mankind is pale blue.』

Some found this explanation far-fetched, so it was eventually simplified to: 『The Lord granted mana its pale blue hue.』

Because mana was pure, any foreign color tinting it would naturally alter its appearance.

Such as when one infused it with their will.

The Red Dragon Knight Order was unique. They carried the Red Dragon Banner, a symbol of collective will. Though each knight held slight personal differences, when united under the banner, their will became one: crimson.

Infused with mana, this crimson will became flaming red torches.

In the night, those torches blazed dazzlingly bright—so bright that when a knight, stationed outside Doyle City leading a noble's forces, saw the crimson light, all he felt was terror.

A fear greater than the arcs streaking across the sky before.

At least those arcs were distant and not aimed at them.

But these red torches surged forward like a fiery storm, pouring into his camp.

『Enemy attack!』 the knight shouted. 『Everyone assemble! Form ranks!』

The knight felt a moment of relief. The arcs had startled the camp, so the soldiers were already armored and armed.

Though this relief felt somewhat inappropriate—

After all, those arcs had struck Doyle City. And the fortress they once saw had now vanished entirely. The lord to whom he swore fealty was inside, his fate unknown.

Still, for now, they had some means to resist the crimson.

Or so the knight believed.

They were warriors under a baron, numbering over 150, including nearly thirty Tier Three Elite Warriors—a formidable force for any baron.

And they weren’t the only camp outside Doyle City. If a fight broke out, other camps would rush to support them.

They were, after all, the Allied Nobles.

The knight didn’t believe these blazing red torches were individual knights.

In Greenwood, in the Doyle Territory, aside from the Doyle Knight Order, who else could gather so many knights?

Perhaps only the York Territory, outside Doyle, could muster such a force.

But the knight had heard no word of the York Territory mobilizing troops.

In fact, he’d heard the opposite—York was in chaos.

The formation of the Scholars’ Guild and Lawyers’ Guild had greatly diminished the officials’ power. Though they dared not openly oppose, their sabotage was constant.

The Merchants’ Guild caused an uproar among the great merchants by demanding uniform pricing in Greenwood, threatening nobles' profits and eliminating price manipulation.

The Warrior and Knight Guilds drew ire from Tier Four powerhouses. The very knights in this coalition were their victims.

Only the Thieves’ Guild received praise, having brought the thieves under control.

Even the Bards’ Guild stirred discontent. Critics claimed bards had grown dull, afraid to tell tales of the powerful.

To the knight, all this chaos seemed to confirm what Marquis Gregor had said when summoning them:

The Senate had failed in its duty as the King’s substitute. York, the center of the world, had become a mess. The King who granted power to such unfit senators was equally unfit.

This, it seemed, was a valid reason.

This was a kingdom under the Lord’s protection. How could it tolerate such an irresponsible King and such power-abusing senators?

Thus, the knight believed—what they were doing was an unshakably correct thing.